When Love Fades to Ashes

Sophie and Lily were the only two in the practice room.

Lily was playing the piano so aggressively that it produced an unpleasant buzzing sound. Stomping her foot as she stood up, she hurled a thick chunk of piano sheet music at Sophie.

"Your rhythm's off again! Are you sure you're as good a dancer as they say?"

Sophie hissed in pain and covered her bruised forehead.

She gave Lily a cold stare. "That's it! I've had enough of you!"

Lily wasn't actually complaining about Sophie's rhythm, but about her irregular movements. She would even accuse Sophie of being lazy if the latter needed to drink some water during breaks.

What was worse, Lily would sometimes whip Sophie with a cane on purpose.

One day, Lily deliberately threw away the warm water Sophie had brought in a thermos while Sophie was on her period.

When Lily saw that Sophie was in pain, she fetched a bucket of cold water from the washroom and poured it all over her.

Gleefully, Lily claimed she was only trying to help Sophie stay awake.

Now, Lily didn't seem affected by Sophie's retort. In fact, she seemed to take pride in what she had done, leaning in closer to Sophie.

Blinking her eyes like an innocent girl, she asked, "What's the matter? Are you angry at me?"

Sophie sneered and pushed her away. "You're not actually as good a pianist as they say, are you?"

Sophie had known from the moment she agreed to be Lily's dance partner that things would be difficult. Thus, she had memorized the piano sheet music and its rhythm by heart.

She had also watched many of Lily's performances in past competitions to study her playstyle.

In truth, Lily's rhythm had been far more sluggish and inelegant in recent days compared to her usual performances.

Sophie's rhythm wasn't off—Lily's was.

"Don't you dare blame me when you're the one who's dancing terribly!"

Lily pretended to be calm, but the brief change in her expression betrayed her.

'It's true I had someone else perform for me during my competitions, but I've been very careful. There's no way she knows about that!' Lily thought.

William could sense the tension as soon as he entered the practice room. "What's the matter?"

He seemed concerned when he saw that Lily was in a bad mood and quickly approached her. "Are you okay? You don't look so good."

Lily's heart raced. She was terrified that Sophie would expose her actions, and her hands were shaking uncontrollably.

Suppressing her anxiety, she noticed how worried William seemed and forced out some tears to appear pitiful.

"I'm okay. Sophie accused me of not being a good pianist because she can't keep up with the rhythm. I threw my piano sheet at her because I was so angry…" she replied. "You don't think it's my fault, do you?"

As expected, William noticed the bruise on Sophie's head and seemed sorry for her.

As he reached out to caress the bruise, he suddenly recalled Sophie's accusation and slowly retracted his hand.

Seeing this, Lily covered her face and made herself appear even more miserable.

Through sobs, she said, "I couldn't stand her accusing me of something so outrageous… Do you have any idea how much I had to suffer, learning to play the piano properly over the past five years away from home?

"I know Sophie dislikes me, but being a pianist is all I've got. I can't let her take that away from me."

William frowned and began to scold Sophie. "You shouldn't have said that to her, Sophie. I know Lily can be straightforward, but there's no way she would pretend to be a good pianist."

Lily froze for a moment upon hearing this but awkwardly laughed it off.

Meanwhile, Sophie sneered, wondering if William would still defend Lily if he knew her piano skills were nowhere near as impressive as they had been during her competition performances.

She looked at Lily with a smirk. "Is that so?"

Sensing the threat in Sophie's tone, Lily clenched her fists and shot her a dangerous glare.

Yet William remained oblivious to the change in Lily's expression.

'I've spent so many years reaching this point to gain Father and Mother's approval. I won't let Sophie ruin it all! I won't!'

At that moment, an idea sparked in Lily's mind.