Chapter 268 She Is Certain She Can Do It

Chapter 268 She Is Certain She Can Do It

Becky wished she could crack Lucas's skull open to see what was inside.

"Didn't you see how dangerous that was? If Larry hadn't rushed forward, Aria would've been in serious trouble tonight!"

"He risked getting injured, even permanently disabled, to save Aria! He's been silently protecting her all this time, asking for nothing in return. What more could you possibly suspect?"

"Can you please stop being so paranoid? You're jealous and suspicious every single day, but when Aria was actually in danger, where were you? You were watching from the shadows while someone else risked his life to protect the person you claim to love most! Can't you just cherish what you have and stop torturing yourself?"

Becky's words were earnest and truthful, desperately hoping her brother would finally wake up and let go of his toxic possessiveness.

But none of it reached Lucas's twisted mind.

After hearing all her advice, not only did he fail to see reason, his suspicions became even more deeply rooted.

He coldly shook off his sister's hand, his eyes dark and cold, devoid of any warmth.

"He did it on purpose. He's using this rescue to worm his way back into her world. He's watching over her because he won't give up. As long as he's alive and still thinking about her, Aria and I will never have real peace."

At that moment, Becky felt complete despair.

She finally understood.

Lucas wasn't temporarily confused—his mind had become thoroughly warped.

No person or event could break through the prejudice and suspicion in his heart.

This was truly hopeless.

……

On the day of the International Music Festival's official performance, the venue was packed.

This was a high-profile stage broadcast globally, with international judges, professional musicians, media, and audiences all in attendance. The livestream numbers were through the roof.

Everyone knew the core program of this performance was a male-female vocal duet, with Aria playing piano while singing lead, and Lucas as her fixed duet partner and the orchestra's officially announced core vocalist.

Besides them, there was also a backup singer designated to cover the vocal parts if needed.

Two people—one fixed partner, one backup safety net—occupied the two most critical supporting positions in the entire program.

But no one expected that starting from the final rehearsals before the performance, Lucas would completely flake out and disappear.

He was still trapped in the paranoid suspicions from that night, unable to break free.

He had witnessed Larry risk his life to save Aria with his own eyes, yet felt not a shred of guilt—only deeper resentment.

He was convinced Aria's heart still held someone else, convinced that the more he compromised and tolerated, the less she appreciated him.

So he deliberately threw a tantrum, deliberately sulked, deliberately played hard to get.

He was certain he was the orchestra's irreplaceable core vocalist, that this high-profile international performance would be incomplete without him.

He wanted to force Aria to give in, to come begging him, to coax him back to rehearsal, to completely cut off any thoughts she had of anyone else and make her revolve entirely around him.

To manipulate her, he skipped all the final rehearsals entirely.

He didn't answer calls, didn't reply to messages, turned off his location—essentially vanished completely.

And the backup singer who was supposed to cover the vocal parts saw the core partner missing and mentally collapsed.

Afraid of making mistakes on stage, she also threw a tantrum and disappeared, claiming illness and refusing to show up for coordination.

In just a few days, the two most critical male vocal positions for the entire performance were both vacant.

The orchestra teachers, conductor, and directors were frantic, searching everywhere for replacements, but no one could handle these two highly difficult vocal parts.

Everyone panicked.

The duet vocals were complex, the harmonies extremely difficult, the rhythm timing tricky, and the breath coordination demanding.

Finding someone last-minute was simply impossible.

Forget international judges—even domestic professional audiences would spot the flaws immediately.

With only half an hour until showtime, backstage descended into complete chaos.

The entire orchestra crowded around Aria, faces full of anxiety.

Everyone assumed the same thing.

With both core performers absent, this performance was completely ruined.

At best, they'd make mistakes and be mocked across the internet; at worst, the school would lose its honor and the festival results would be voided.

All those months of rehearsal would be for nothing.

Only Aria remained unusually calm.

She had completely let go of Lucas in her heart and no longer had any expectations of him.

He wanted to manipulate her? Force her to give in?

She refused.

With her own abilities, she could still carry the entire performance.

Facing the teacher's anxiety, the classmates' panic, and the backstage chaos, Aria said only one sentence, calmly.

"Don't find replacements, don't change the program, don't lower the difficulty. All the vocal parts—I'll handle them myself."

Everyone instantly froze.

Converting a duet to a solo, combining two vocal parts into one, shouldering all the harmonies alone, switching between high and low registers, controlling the stage presence, coordinating with the instruments, stabilizing the rhythm—the difficulty multiplied exponentially.

It was nearly impossible.

The conductor looked incredulous.

"Aria, it's too risky. No one can single-handedly carry such a complex international performance piece. If it falls apart on stage, you can't bear the consequences."

Aria's expression remained composed as she reviewed the sheet music one last time.

The lingering stiffness in her left hand was still aching faintly, but there wasn't a trace of panic in her eyes.

All these years, she'd gritted her teeth and carried on alone.

The stage was the one thing that would never betray her.

"I can do it."

Her tone was calm but extraordinarily firm.

She wasn't being stubborn or trying to prove something.

She was certain she could do it.

Soon, the opening countdown ended, the lights positioned, and the curtain rose.

The spotlight instantly fell on center stage, illuminating Aria alone.

The audience was packed, domestic and international cameras all focused on her, and the livestream viewer count broke records.

The moment the prelude began, the entire venue fell silent.

The dual vocal layering that should have opened the duet, where male and female voices should have intertwined and overlapped with complementary high and low registers, now left only the empty space of instrumental solo.

Everyone's hearts tightened with worry.

But the moment Aria opened her mouth, she commanded the entire venue.

Alone, she forcefully produced the layered separation of two vocal parts while simultaneously playing every piano note with perfect precision.

All the parts originally meant for the male voice were filled in entirely by her vocal technique.

The entire performance was controlled by her alone.

The international judges in the audience froze on the spot, sitting up straight, their eyes full of amazement.

Domestic professional musicians were all moved. The live audience held their breath, no one speaking.

When the final note fell, its resonance lingering, the stage lights slowly dimmed.

After two seconds of dead silence.

The venue erupted in thunderous applause and cheers.

The applause continued for a full minute.

The livestream chat exploded, bullet comments instantly flooding the screen, popularity skyrocketing.

#AriaOneWomanShow

#SoloCarriesInternationalDuet

#PureSkillDominatesStage

Hashtags about Aria's performance shot straight to the top of trending topics.