Chapter 9 — Celeste's Offer
The news spread across Lyric Academy like wildfire.
Ren and Kai — the unlikely duet — had been personally chosen by Celeste Aragon, the academy's most feared and respected composer.
By Monday morning, their names were posted on the bulletin board under a golden header:
> SPECIAL DUET PROJECT – APPROVED Ren Evander & Eris Lian Supervised by Celeste Aragon
Kai stared at it for a long time, feeling both pride and panic swirl in his chest.
Ren, as always, stood beside him — calm, unreadable, but his eyes sparkled in quiet excitement.
"Looks like we're official," Kai murmured.
Ren smirked. "Guess there's no turning back now."
---
Later that afternoon…
Celeste's private studio was nothing like the classrooms.
It was darker, lined with glass walls and glowing softly from floor lights. Instruments surrounded them — pianos, violins, cellos, even old analog recorders.
Celeste sat by the window, tapping her pen against a notebook.
When they entered, she didn't greet them right away. She just listened — as if measuring their silence.
Finally, she spoke.
"Tell me," she said, eyes still on the page, "why do you play music?"
Kai blinked. "Because… I want people to feel something."
Celeste nodded slowly. "And you?" she asked Ren.
Ren hesitated. "Because when I play, I don't feel alone."
Celeste looked up then — eyes sharp but kind.
"Good. You both understand what most people forget: music isn't heard — it's felt."
She stood and walked toward them, handing each a sheet of paper.
"Your task," she said, "is to compose an original duet in two weeks. No help, no prewritten scores, no samples. Just raw sound. The theme is truth."
Kai frowned slightly. "Truth?"
Celeste smiled faintly. "The hardest note to play."
Ren looked at the blank staff paper, heart pounding.
Truth — that meant no hiding behind perfect chords or polite melodies. It meant showing what hurt. What healed. What they feared to say out loud.
Celeste turned away, her voice softer now.
"If you can make me feel something real, I'll personally sponsor your debut performance in the Academy Gala."
Kai's eyes widened. "The Gala? That's—"
"The stage where the world listens," Ren finished, barely breathing.
Celeste nodded once. "Make me believe in you."
And with that, she left the room, the faint click of her heels echoing like a metronome of destiny.
Kai exhaled slowly, staring at the paper in his hand.
"Truth, huh? Sounds easy."
Ren chuckled, sitting by the piano. "It's the hardest song we'll ever write."
Kai smiled, lowering his bow. "Then let's start now."
And as the first note filled the silence, something invisible shifted — a melody neither of them had written before began to take form.
A song that wasn't just about music anymore.
It was about them.