Chapter 269: Break Up
International music platforms, festival forums, and foreign media music headlines were all sharing clips of her performance.
No one remembered who was originally supposed to fill those two critical positions.
Everyone only remembered that tonight's stage had one protagonist.
And that was Aria.
The entire international performance came to a perfect close, with the audience reluctant to leave, applause and cheers echoing endlessly.
Backstage was a lively scene of celebration, with all orchestra members, instructors, and staff crowding around Aria, their faces full of excitement and admiration.
Everyone praised her top-tier composure and solid professional skills, crediting her with single-handedly saving the entire performance and earning the school its best international reputation ever.
Media reporters jammed the backstage entrance, competing for interviews, all cameras trained on Aria.
Trending topics continued to surge, traffic exploding both domestically and internationally.
Aria politely accommodated everyone's congratulations and brief interviews, her face showing not excessive joy but the calm of someone who'd laid down a heavy burden.
Months of late-night vocal practice, grueling rehabilitation, and emotional exhaustion had all paid off in this moment.
She'd won on her own terms, independent of anyone else.
Just as everyone was immersed in celebration, Lucas pushed through the cheerful crowd with a cold expression, walking straight up to Aria.
He offered no congratulations, showed no remorse—only twisted resentment and indignation.
The surrounding excitement seemed completely irrelevant to him as he stared at Aria, his tone icy and sharp, opening with accusations.
"Aria, are you satisfied now?"
His words left several nearby teachers and classmates stunned.
Everyone was baffled, completely unable to understand his attitude.
Aria looked up at him, her heart utterly calm, left only with numbness.
She thought after everything that had happened, she'd become completely indifferent to this man.
But hearing his distorted accusations, her heart still ached.
Lucas completely ignored the onlookers and continued with hostility.
"I deliberately skipped rehearsals and refused to perform just to see if you'd come back to me. For days I didn't reply to messages or answer calls, and you never once took the initiative to reach out. In your heart, the stage and glory will always matter more than me. Aria, you don't care about me at all."
He spoke as if completely justified, whitewashing his deliberate boycott and disregard for collective honor as grievance and testing.
He never thought he was wrong—instead, he felt Aria didn't love him enough, didn't accommodate him enough.
The surrounding teachers and classmates all changed expressions, embarrassed and speechless.
Everyone finally understood completely—Lucas's days of absence and the near-collapse of the performance weren't accidental.
He'd deliberately thrown a tantrum, gambling with everyone's efforts.
Aria watched him quietly, seeing this man who only knew emotional manipulation and always put himself first, finally seeing through his true nature.
He needed her unconditional compromise and accommodation, expected her life to revolve entirely around him.
The moment she showed any independence or persistence, it meant she didn't love him, meant she was wrong.
This relationship had never been mutual—it was her one-sided tolerance and compromise.
She was tired, truly exhausted.
She was sick of the endless cold wars, sick of always paying for his emotions.
Aria showed no anger, her tone calm to the point of coldness.
"Lucas, let's break up."
Lucas froze in place, the hostility and grievance on his face instantly solidifying.
He thought after throwing his tantrum and venting his complaints, at most they'd continue the cold war.
He never imagined she'd actually suggest breaking up directly, with such decisive finality and no room for reversal.
He froze for two seconds, then immediately darkened, his tone carrying threats and unwillingness.
"Aria, are you sure? Just because I threw a little tantrum? Because I didn't perform? You want to break up with me? You're being too heartless."
Just as the two confronted each other, the backup singer who'd been keeping her head down, full of guilt, couldn't hold back any longer.
She'd been living in guilt and anxiety these past days.
Watching everyone's months of hard preparation nearly collapse, her conscience couldn't bear it.
She could no longer keep the secret. Stepping forward and gathering her courage, she confessed in front of all the teachers, orchestra leaders, and members.
"That's not how it was! Everyone's misunderstood. I didn't skip rehearsals on my own—Lucas forced me to!"
The girl's voice trembled as she laid out the entire truth.
"Before the performance, during the final rehearsals, I showed up on time every session, constantly coordinating vocal parts and adjusting my performance. I never intended to boycott. Lucas kept approaching me privately, constantly pressuring me to skip rehearsals with him, and he promised me that if anything went wrong, he'd take full responsibility and wouldn't let me take the blame."
"I was confused then, swayed by his manipulation, and afraid of offending the core performer, worried I'd have trouble standing in the orchestra afterward, so I foolishly agreed."
"I know I was wrong. I'm so sorry to the entire orchestra, to all the classmates and teachers who worked so hard, and especially to Aria. Watching her shoulder all the pressure alone and save the entire performance, I've been consumed with guilt and remorse, so I can't keep this secret any longer."
The truth was out.
Complete silence fell over the scene.
Everyone was utterly shocked.
So this wasn't a simple absence at all.
Lucas had deliberately pressured the backup singer to boycott together, all to satisfy his twisted obsession and manipulate Aria.
He did this solely to feed his pathological need for control.
How had the once gentle and considerate Lucas become like this?
The orchestra instructor turned pale with rage, trembling all over, unable to believe a student she'd trained could do something so absurd and malicious.
The orchestra director erupted in anger on the spot, immediately stating zero tolerance.
Aria listened to the entire truth, and the last trace of lingering affection in her heart shattered completely.
She'd thought he was just jealous and sensitive—turns out he'd been selfish and self-serving all along.
For his own emotions, he could disregard all consequences, could sacrifice everyone's efforts.
In that moment, Aria didn't hesitate. She pulled out her phone and contacted her personal attorney, handling everything in a purely professional manner without any personal emotion.
"Please come here immediately to handle a formal termination agreement. I want to hold Lucas fully accountable for all his violations!"
The lawyer quickly arrived backstage and drafted the agreement on site, compiling all evidence.
The girl's voluntary confession recording, chat records, and rehearsal absence documentation.
The evidence was conclusive and irrefutable.
The backup singer kept her head down throughout, sincerely apologetic, voluntarily accepting all penalties and contract termination, willing to bear all consequences of her foolish mistake.
Only Lucas, even at this moment, still hadn't realized how outrageously wrong he was.