The melodic tune of the piano echoed in the spacious hall. The guests felt as though they were on cloud nine as the music guided them to a trip down memory lane, back to their carefree days.
The guests in the hall paused and indulged themselves, listening to the euphonic tune produced by the skillful pianist. The performance, which was never meant to be the highlight of the banquet, grabbed the attention of the guests as though they were there for an exclusive performance of a renowned pianist.
On the other end of the hall, another pair of glistening, aqua blue eyes could be seen staring at Charlotte affectionately. The man seemed to be surprised and delighted at the same time.
After Michael indulged himself in the harmonious piece for a short while, he looked elsewhere and headed to the back of the hall to locate Charlotte because he wasn’t aware she was the mysterious pianist.
…
Soon, loud applause erupted in the banquet hall after the first piece ended.
Charlotte got up from the seat and bowed at the audience before continuing with the second piece—Grande valse Brillante in E-flat major by Chopin.
The euphonic tune of the piece gave off the impression of a deeply in love lady dancing ballet by the lake while waiting for the arrival of her loved one.
As Charlotte reached the climax of the piece, the guests started swaying rhythmically along with the euphonic tune, smiling because they had a great time enjoying the music.
Zachary, who was known for being an indifferent man, had his lips curved upwards, forming a gentle smile.
Previously, when he was in the bar, he didn’t have the chance to enjoy the show. He noticed the woman he deemed ignorant wasn’t a complete fool—at least she was a skillful pianist.
“I don’t get it! What’s so great about it? She’s but an undergraduate from a local music institution! The tune irks me so much!” Sharon murmured while she was by Zachary’s side.
“There are only a mere few on this planet that possess such top-notch skills, yet you’re considering this to be irritating? I guess you’re the one who can’t grasp the concept behind the music!” Zachary remarked sarcastically with a contemptuous look.
“N-No, Zachary… I-I—”
“Shoosh!” Zachary stopped Sharon because he didn’t want her to ruin the blissful moment anymore.
Sharon had no choice but to keep her mouth shut tight as instructed, but she felt frustrated deep down.
Meanwhile, Charlotte continued playing the third piece after the second piece. The third piece was Liebesträume by Franz Liszt.
Halfway through the prelude of the piece, Charlotte got anxious because she noticed the sheet music had been torn in half.
Although she used to play this particular piece, she could barely recall the notes because it had been four years since she last played the piano.
She had long forgotten the notes and couldn’t recall the notes after the prelude.
Oh, God! What should I do?
She managed to pull it through the prelude, but the sheet music for the postlude was nowhere to be seen. Eventually, she braced herself and started playing according to the tune she had in her mind.
Soon, she noticed something was wrong.
Albeit faintly, the audience could detect the error because the current piece was nothing similar to the previous two flawless pieces. The guests who had been indulging themselves started frowning in irritation and started whispering to one another.
Charlotte couldn’t keep her cool anymore, but when she wondered if she should stop, a pair of slender hands showed up and started playing the piano by her side.
The man was on par with Charlotte in terms of skills. Apart from that, he was familiar with the sheet music of the particular piece and didn’t have to refer to the sheet music to recite the piece.
Charlotte soon regained the pace under the mysterious man’s guidance.
The duo started playing the piano together, waltzing their finger through the keys as though they had known each other for a long time.
She was glad things turned out to be fine, but when she raised her head and looked at the man by her side, she was shocked.
The man was a handsome lad with ethereal facial features, including porcelain-like skin and a pair of aqua blue, glistering eyes.
He emanated a majestic presence, behaving as though he was the prince of a kingdom who had just made his way into the mundane world out of ancient mythology.
The man turned around and beamed with pleasure, causing Charlotte’s heart to skip a beat.
As she started spacing out, the man gestured her focus on the keys with his chin.
She finally returned to her senses and focused intently on playing the piano.
Once again, the crowd started applauding the duo for the fantastic performance.
In the meantime, Zachary winced at the man’s presence. He stared at the duo on the stage with a frown.
Sharon craned over and whispered, “Zachary, is that…”