Chapter 92: An Unfinished Melody

Mr. Aditya and Mrs. Viona were attending a business associates’ banquet, so this afternoon I was spending time alone with Kevan. After a calm lunch at home, we decided to relax.

I stepped into Kevan’s room, picked up his beloved guitar, then approached the man who was sitting in the backyard.

Kevan, who saw me carrying the guitar from a distance, immediately stood up. He frowned briefly, though a few seconds later his smile bloomed as he welcomed my arrival.

“Do you want me to play the guitar for you?” he asked.

I nodded, then shook my head slowly. “More precisely, you have to teach me how to play the guitar,” I said as I stood right in front of him.

Kevan chuckled as he took the guitar from me. “That’s unusual. You’re asking to be taught?”

“I just feel like it. I see people who are good at playing the guitar look very cool,” I answered honestly.

“So, you want to be cool like them?” he asked in a gentle voice, hiding a restrained smile.

I stomped my foot, pretending to be annoyed. “Kevan, don’t laugh at me. I’m serious, I’m not joking.”

“All right, as you wish. I won’t laugh,” he said while lightly ruffling the top of my head. “Come on, sit here. I’ll teach you.”

Kevan positioned himself comfortably. I sat beside him, watching his expression turn serious as he was about to begin playing.

Sitting side by side accompanied by a light drizzle made every note that came from the guitar strings feel beautifully flowing.

Kevan patiently explained the correct way to play. He started with introducing basic chords, explaining the parts of the guitar, practicing plucking techniques, and how to tune the notes so they would not be off-key.

“Later, once you start getting used to it, you can learn songs that only use three to four basic chords as a start,” Kevan said.

The problem was, from all those long explanations, not a single thing stayed in my memory. I instead felt confused and could only scratch my head that was not itchy. In the end, I let out a long sigh out of frustration.

“Is it okay if I just smash this guitar instead?”

“Don’t. Why would you smash it?” Kevan smiled at me. “This guitar could get damaged later.”

“Learning the guitar is just so hard,” I said tiredly.

“Of course it can’t be instant. You have to practice consistently, just ten or fifteen minutes every day. Little by little, you’ll definitely be able to do it,” he said with extraordinary calm.

Meanwhile, I could not be as patient as him. Emotions were always my top priority. I felt like banging my head against the wall so I would not be so weak at memorizing things.

“That’s it, I give up. I’m lazy,” I said while pouting in annoyance.

“All right then, let’s take a break first.” Kevan remained gentle toward me.

A few seconds later, I suddenly smiled sweetly at him. I shifted my seat, moving even closer to him. “I just want to be consistent in loving you, Kevan,” I said while staring intensely into his eyes.

Kevan immediately chuckled softly. “You’re getting better at teasing me now,” he said as he lightly pinched the tip of my nose.

My face instantly felt hot. That was one of Kevan’s small gestures when he felt fond, and I liked it. That simple thing felt very sweet to me.

“Only to you,” I replied shyly.

“A promise?” Kevan returned my gaze. This time his look was deeper, with a glimmer of hopeful light in his eyes.

I jolted. Somehow, doubt crossed my mind for a brief moment, but I quickly pushed it away and nodded firmly.

“I promise.”

We finally ended the guitar lesson. I deliberately ran straight into the rain, then splashed water onto Kevan’s face. He was startled. Seeing me laugh freely, he did not stay still. Kevan immediately chased after me, trying to catch me as I ran away.

I kept dodging, but luck was not on my side. I slipped and fell into the swimming pool.

Kevan panicked and immediately rushed over to the edge of the pool. “Frel, are you okay?”

Seeing the very real worry in his eyes, a mischievous idea popped into my head.

I started crying loudly, as loud as I could. Kevan grew even more panicked and confused.

“Frel, please don’t cry. I’m begging you,” Kevan said anxiously. He reached out his hand to me. “Come on, I’ll help you get out.”

When that hand was extended, I took it while hiding a smile. The next second, I pulled his hand hard until Kevan fell into the pool with me.

I burst into laughter seeing the shocked look on his face. As soon as he realized I was pranking him, Kevan immediately lunged forward and caught me before I could escape. He hugged me, lifted my body, then spun me around in the water while we laughed together.

When he lowered me back down, our faces were extremely close.

The sound of Kevan’s breathing felt warm against my skin. He looked at me with a very deep gaze, then his face slowly moved closer.

Closer still.

Just as his lips were about to touch mine, suddenly a very loud sneeze exploded from my nose.

I sneezed repeatedly. One, two, then three times in a row.

Embarrassment washed over me, but Kevan instead looked very worried. This had to be the result of me playing in the rain earlier.

“Are you okay?” Kevan asked with a worried expression he could not hide.

“I’m not—”

Before I could finish my sentence, I sneezed again.

Without wasting any time, Kevan suddenly lifted my body and immediately ran in panic toward his room. I could feel his chest rising and falling, the rush of his breath right above my forehead, and the protective embrace of his arms as if he were carrying something extremely fragile.

Water from our soaking wet clothes dripped onto the floor, leaving a long trail behind us, but Kevan did not care at all. His eyes were fixed straight ahead, toward the tightly closed door of his room.

"I can walk on my own, Kevan," I whispered weakly behind my teeth that had begun to chatter from the cold.

"Quiet, Frel. You're already shivering," he cut in quickly.

His voice was not yelling, but there was a firmness filled with fear, perhaps afraid that something bad might happen to me.

Right in front of the bedroom door, he suddenly stopped. He did not go in immediately. Kevan lowered himself slightly, resting his forehead against mine, which had begun to feel warm. For a few seconds, time seemed to stop turning. The rain outside sounded like faint background music.

"Please, don't get sick," he whispered in a voice that suddenly turned hoarse, almost like a plea. "Seeing you fall earlier almost made my heart jump out, let alone seeing you sick with a fever."

At this close distance, I could see how much space I occupied in his heart. That sincerity felt more real than the cold piercing my skin.

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