No one, including Tal, knew who would replace Felipe until the prince walked on stage and sat down in front of the piano. They exchanged glances, astounded to see the prince.
Tal leaned in and placed his mouth near my ear. "What on earth is he doing here?"
"He is our pianist," I said in response.
"But is he able to...?"
"You wait and see," I said proudly.
The pianist will play an introductory solo before the group begins to play. The prince slowly presses keys on the keyboard, and the reactions of people in the audience grow increasingly positive.
From what I could tell by looking at their expressions, everyone in the hall, including Tal and the members of the club, was enjoying his performance. Not only did I get to hear him play, but so did everyone else. On how good the prince is.
After that, Tal and I both started playing our parts of the song and then the rest of the band joined in. As the band played, I could not take my eyes off the prince as he danced to the music.
The band was ecstatic as we finished our first performance, while the prince stood to the side, watching our moment.
Tal approached the prince first, praising him until they approached one after the other.
Prince Augustus is gradually bringing himself closer to others, which I believe is good progress.
His performance isn't over yet. After some discussion, the club and I concluded that he should perform a solo at the very end of the show.
Just as everyone was about to get up from their seats, I hurried back to the stage. "Please don't leave just yet. If you could spare us a few minutes, we have a surprise waiting for you all.
Each person stopped what they were doing and returned to their seats.
"Thank you," I said after a brief pause. "I'd like to request that everyone give a warm round of applause to the crown prince, Prince Augustus Cynfael Clemente."
I turned in his direction, but he was completely clueless about what was going on.
The band dragged him up there, but I'm the one who makes him play the piano. As I walked off the stage, he followed me with his eyes, as though pleading with me not to go.
The surroundings fell into an almost deafening silence. There was complete silence, and even the sound of people breathing ceased for a brief moment. All of us are patiently awaiting his introduction.
The prince put his hand on the piano and got ready to play, but before he pressed the key, he turned his head back to me and mouthed the words, "I was made for loving you." He then started playing.
PLAYING I WAS MADE FOR LOVING YOU BY TORI KELLY AND ED SHEERAN
As I looked out at him, memories of the times I had spent with him came flooding back to me. Completely enthralled and captivated by everything that's going on. The gentle tones of the piano are hypnotizing me; it's as if they've made me fall even deeper in love with him.
Someone sighed heavily behind me.
While we were standing there together, the other guy turned to me and said, "He really loves her. Even after their breakup, Prince Augustus would play this song for Raeanna. Perhaps there is such a thing as a love that lasts forever, right?" He looked at me with a psychotic grin.
I have no idea what he's talking about and have never met the guy. All I know is that something isn't right about him.
I left the theater once he had finished performing on the stage. I know I shouldn't let what that stranger said get to me, but I can't keep pretending like it didn't.
I am disappointed because I believed that was for me, but it turns out that it was for Raeanna. So, it seems reasonable that I should be worried about how perfect they are when they are together. Lincoln is the only person who knows everything.
"Lincoln!" I exclaimed.
Lincoln indicated his presence by waving his hand up in the air and saying, "I'm here!"
I took a step closer to him.
"Has the show ended?"
"Please tell me more about them. I'd like to hear more about Raeanna and Prince Augustus."
"Are you... positive about it?"
"I am, so please tell me," I said desperately. "Yes, I am aware that knowing everything will cause me to overthink, if not worse. Just that I wanted to be sure that he saw me for who I am and not for Raeanna.
"Okay," he sighed. "Although it may sound cliched, the prince's entire existence is centered on Raeanna. They complete each other in every way, Gemma."
Lincoln grabbed one box from the cabinet. He set it down on the table. "That will answer all of your questions."
Fear is rising inside of me now that I've found myself in this situation. I hesitated for a moment before continuing. The box contained some sort of drawings that were predominantly composed of Prince Augustus's face.
"Did you draw this?"
A shake of his head indicated his disapproval. "What do you notice about the drawings?"
"There are dozens of portraits that feature the face of the prince.."
"Aside from his face, what do you notice about it?"
"This illustration features the prince and him alone," I gave each piece of paper a careful look. "Every aspect of the drawing leads me to believe that the person who created it is smitten with the subject depicted."
I paused for a moment.
"And it was Raeanna who did it."
Without a doubt, it was her. After learning this, I can't help but feel guilty. My chest felt like it was going to burst from the pressure of my beating heart. How can I possibly betray Raeanna? It should have been her, not me. Raeanna drew everything, but none of it was seen by the prince. Why did he notice what I drew first rather than Raeanna's hidden drawings?
I brought the box along with me. Because I want to put things right, I am going to do something that will probably shatter me into a million pieces. This box needs his true owner, and it belonged to Prince Augustus.
The prince is running toward me, and I can see him waving. "I was looking for you everywhere, Gemma," Prince Augustus said, grabbing my arm. "Let's go; let's sneak out as you said."
I held my body still to prevent him from pulling in any direction.
"What's the matter?"
I fought against his hold on me more than once. "I can't,"
"Don't go back on your word, neggie,"
I said to him in a hushed tone as I extended the box to him, "Here, take this."
"Does this matter more than your promise?" Prince Augustus began to feel a growing sense of rage.
"Please take it," I said again.
He asked, "What about this?" as he peered inside the box.
The prince flashed a grin when he thought I drew it. His grin faded when I revealed that Raeanna, not me, was the one who drew his portraits.
Prince Augustus seems to be looking around in the box as if he suspects there is more than just the drawing inside.
He was clutching Raeanna's letter. Instead of reading it, he took the box with him, turning his back on me. Shuffles off while looking weak and distracted, leaving me alone in the corridor.
I couldn't hold back the rage-filled tears that had accumulated since I left the art room. Seeing Prince Augustus's reaction to the letter made me feel weak all over.
Painful tears are finally streaming down my cheeks.
At the end of it all, I was on my own...