Chapter Four
Author: Mattimeo
last update2026-01-13 20:31:07

“You mean you want to leave me and join a bigger label? Hah! Where was that label when you were nothing? Where was it when you were jumping from one talent show to another?” A tall, beautiful, mature woman shouted angrily at a girl dressed in purple.

The girl in purple looked younger and was also beautiful, but her beauty paled in comparison to that of the mature woman.

She bowed her head in shame.

“I’m sorry, Anna, but as you can see, my career has grown immensely. You can no longer handle it. Be honest with yourself. I need a better label for better marketing and better deals,” she explained.

“I can’t handle you?” The mature woman slammed her hand against her chest. “Do you even know how much I’ve sacrificed, and how much more I’m still willing to sacrifice for you? Do you know how long I’ve been in this industry? Eight years. Eight good years.

“The connections and experience I’ve gathered during those years are more than enough to take you even further.”

“Let’s stop lying to ourselves, Anna,” the younger beauty said. “No agent could take you that far. You’ve already outdone most of them by taking me this far, and I truly appreciate it. But growing my talent is far more important than the gratitude I feel toward you.”

“Is that really what you want?” the mature woman asked, a smirk tugging at her lips.

“Yes, Anna. I’m sorry.” The girl with purple hair looked as though she were making an incredibly difficult decision.

“No need to be sorry. This has been the pattern every time. You’re not the first, and you won’t be the last. As a private agent, all I do is scout talent, nurture it, and wait for top industry players, who didn’t even know these talents existed, to offer them contracts. You can leave my house now, Percy.” Her tone was icy, cold, and commanding.

The girl in purple knew there was no point in staying. Her presence would only make Anna angrier. She decided it would be better to return later, once Anna had calmed down.

“Alright, I’ll go now. I’ll come back later when you’ve calmed down,” she said softly.

“No need to come back, Percy. I understand you, and I forgive you. It’s not your fault. The deal they offered was simply too good for you to resist. But I should warn you in good faith. The moment you join them, you completely lose your freedom.”

****

After a few minutes of walking, Alex arrived at Newar Square. It was not a particularly popular square, but it still held a decent crowd. Night had already fallen, yet a surprising number of people lingered.

Alex sat beside an old waterfall at the center of the square and took out his guitar. People noticed him, whispered among themselves, and some even laughed quietly.

Alex ignored the commotion and began strumming his guitar, searching for the right tune. His eyes closed as he immersed himself in the emotions of the song he was about to sing. Soon, his voice rose, steady and confident.

🎶🎶🎶

Verse 1

When the world fell apart

Darkness found its stride

But you remember what I promised

One day, I’ll lean on you to hide

From moments that slip away

I hate to say goodnight

Yet I’ll see you with the sunrise

Still know your heart, still know your eyes

🎶🎶🎶

His voice carried slowly but confidently through the square. Some passersby stopped and listened. His voice was not exceptional, but the lyrics were flawless.

🎶🎶🎶

Pre-Chorus

I could tell you of restless nights

How no one cheers for the birds that don’t take flight

So let the heroes fade and hide

My wonder’s weary, just a little tired

🎶🎶🎶

🎶🎶🎶

Chorus

If only you could see yourself the way I do

You’d see your glow, your glow

I know you’d never leave me behind

But right now, I’m lost, I know

Are we meant to burn, or will we make it through the night?

I’ll hold you close until it feels right

If only you could see yourself the way I do

You’d see your glow, your glow

🎶🎶🎶

Alex became so absorbed in the performance that he poured his heart into the second verse. The crowd felt it. Even though his voice was not perfect, the emotion behind it was undeniable, and people genuinely connected with the lyrics.

He strummed the final note. A brief silence followed before it shattered, and the small audience burst into applause. Some even tossed money toward him. Alex felt embarrassed. He was not a beggar. Still, he bent down and picked up the few dollar bills.

Among the crowd stood a tall, beautiful, mature woman. She held her phone and frowned slightly. “Strange,” she murmured. “I recorded the lyrics and searched online. They don’t seem to belong to any known artist. It’s highly likely he wrote them himself.”

“Very talented composer,” Anna thought, “but his voice isn’t strong enough to become a musician. He’d be better off composing and selling his songs.”

She had stepped out for some fresh air from one of her favorite restaurants in Newar Square when she happened upon Alex singing. Curiosity had kept her there.

Alex was packing up his guitar when a sharp scent of lavender reached him. It was lovely and refreshing. He looked up and saw the mature beauty standing before him.

“Excuse me, are you the one who composed these lyrics?” Her voice was soft, pleasant, and soothing. Alex froze, momentarily stunned.

He was struck by the beauty before him. She wore a blue blouse and black trousers, her eyes hazel and captivating, and she carried a seductive aura. At the same time, the confidence etched into her expression made it clear she was no ordinary person.

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  • 89

    It had now been four hours. Many people in the waiting room had already performed, and it would soon be his turn.Suddenly, the door to the waiting room opened, and the show organizer walked in.“We have a special artist here with us today. Initially, he was supposed to open the show, but he had an emergency. To those of you waiting in line, I’m sorry, but this artist will have to perform first. He’s still very busy and has somewhere else to be after this.”The show organizer spoke in an apologetic tone. Everyone waiting for their turn, including Alex, frowned, but none of them could do anything about it. All of them here were upcoming artists who were barely known, so they had no power to protest.They all looked up to see the artist receiving such special treatment. Alex also looked up but instantly regretted it.The person was none other than Derek.Alex cursed his luck. Why Derek of all people? And was that guy stuck performing free shows or something? Both times Alex had seen him

  • 88

    They dropped the lawyer at home and drove off immediately."So spill it, Alex. What is it that you have to do so urgently?" Anna asked with a frown after they dropped the judge."I don't know how to explain this to you, but instead of questioning me, can you just believe in me and help me out?" he said calmly."How can I help you when I don't even know what you're planning?" she sighed."Don't worry about it. Just believe me, like you always have," he replied.Anna studied him for a moment. "Alright, I believe you. What should we do?""Let's drop Jude at home first," he suggested."No way. I'm also involved in this case, so I must be part of everything that goes on. Are you trying to sideline me?" Jude said angrily, his fat body shaking violently.Alex also felt it wasn't fair and apologized to him."Alright, Anna, can you find me a place where I can perform today? Anywhere with maybe over two thousand people in attendance. If there are fewer people, I can accept it, but it means I wi

  • 87

    "Frederick, please. This is our son Jude we are talking about. Let's put aside our differences and do something," Mrs Agnes said, kneeling and clutching the legs of a tall, fat, middle-aged man."Get away from me. Now he's my son? But you were the one who instigated him not to come back. He even rejected a house and a sixty-thousand-credit car just to do that DJ work.""He's not a DJ. He's a producer," Agnes explained."Whatever. I don't care. All I know is that I don't have such a shameless son. He couldn't even be man enough to chase women and instead resorted to forcing himself on them. What a disgrace." He spat the words out."What are you saying? You and I both clearly know that he didn't do it," she said angrily."You and I know? How would I even know? I didn't raise him," he interjected."Yes, probably because you were busy impregnating a whore outside wedlock," she snapped."A whore? How dare you call my wife a whore?" he snapped back."So what? Isn't she a whore? You know wha

  • 86

    They both looked toward the door as the police officer pulled out a pair of handcuffs.“Come on, someone wants to see you. I don’t have all day, so let’s get this over with so I can go back to what I was doing,” he said impatiently.Alex and Jude were handcuffed again and led away.“Sorry to ask, but didn’t you say earlier that the station commander was coming and wouldn’t like us seeing people?” Alex asked, confused.“Yes, you’re right. But that only applies to people who didn’t come through him. This person came with the commander himself,” the policeman explained roughly.Alex immediately understood.They were taken back to the same room as before. This time, however, someone was already seated at the table in front of them. Alex couldn’t see her face because she was facing the other direction, but he could make out enough of her figure to tell that she was a woman.They were brought in front of her, and he finally saw her face.“It’s you.” Alex frowned as the police forced him to

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    They were brought to a room and left there after their handcuffs were removed. They didn’t wait long before a crying Amber burst in and lunged straight for Alex, hugging him tightly.“Amber…” he said softly, his voice breaking.“I’m trying my best, Alex. I begged my father as much as I could, but he said that with the evidence it will be really hard to get you out. I know you didn’t do it. I’m sorry I didn’t warn you about how dark the industry is.” She cried.“It’s not your fault. I was too careless. Also, stop asking your father for help. You might make things too difficult for him, and he might end up loathing me.”She didn’t reply and only hugged him tighter.“Amber, I thought the first thing you would ask the moment you saw me would be for me to tell you the truth about whether I truly did it. I never knew you believed in my character so much,” he said calmly. If there was one silver lining in all this, it was seeing at least one person believe in him completely, even with eviden

  • 84

    "You really think there’s any amount you could offer that would move me?" the black-haired girl sneered, her arms folded tightly across her chest.Her apartment door hung half open behind her. A few curious neighbors lingered in the hallway, pretending to check their phones while listening closely."He tried to rape me. No amount of money can erase that. He deserves to suffer for it," she said sharply.Anna stood calmly in the corridor, unfazed by the hostility."Both of us know very well he didn’t force himself on you," Anna replied evenly. "But let’s set that aside for now. Tell me what you want.""I don’t want anything," the girl shot back immediately. "I want him to rot in prison and suffer for what he did."Her eyes narrowed as she leaned slightly closer."And if you keep pushing me, I might just tell the police that you’re threatening me."For a brief moment, the hallway fell silent.Anna studied her quietly, then nodded."Alright. I’ll be leaving," she said. "But believe me, yo

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