Love Does Not Wait Forever

I gritted my teeth against the pain and drew a deep breath, my gaze shifting past Lennon to Mia. "Why should I be afraid of a woman with no talent?"

Mia’s face froze, her previous expression of grievance vanishing instantly.

Her lips trembled faintly as she glared at me, her anger boiling to the surface. Then, without warning, she stormed toward me and slapped me across the face.

Slap!

I was so stunned by the slap that the force instantly knocked me off balance and I staggered backward.

A stabbing pain flared in my lower back as I fell and the ringing in my ears subsided.

I gasped for air and glanced back, only to find the violin case toppled over, its delicate strings now crushed beneath the chaos.

But almost instantly, her expression shifted again, her face morphing into an image of fragile innocence.

She stumbled toward me, her body trembling and her voice shaking.

"Coach Claire, I... I didn’t mean to! I didn’t want to..."

A wry smile tugged at the corner of my lips. Without a word, I pushed her away gently, my gaze locking onto hers with a quiet, hollow pity.

The room fell into a heavy silence. At last, Lennon was unable to sit by any longer.

He walked toward me. Sliding an arm around me, he tucked my disheveled hair behind my ear and gently pressed my lower back with his other hand.

"Does it hurt here? Or anywhere else?" he asked softly, leaning in close enough that his breath brushed against my skin, causing a goosebump.

In a moment of daze, I foolishly believed that Lennon Sullivan's tenderness still belonged to me. That all his recent irritations were just his way of wanting me to take him more seriously.

Softening my tone, I sighed and began, "I didn't neglect you..."

But before I could finish, Lennon gently released me, his expression calm yet filled with an almost pleading softness as he stared at my eyes. "Don't argue with her, okay?"

I stared at him in disbelief, the man I thought I knew so well.

His tenderness, his care, his love… When had it no longer belonged to me?

I felt like a butterfly trapped in its own cocoon, unable to break free.

Tears welled uncontrollably in my eyes, spilling over and splattering onto the ground with a soft splat.

"Get out..." I trembled as I whispered, my voice breaking under the weight of suppressed anguish. I could not bear to lift my head.

I kept my head low until the door clicked softly as it was locked. The huge room was filled with silence and I was the only one left behind.

I touched my chest. The dull ache there throbbed inside.

Taking a few days off from the orchestra, I moved into a hotel.

During this time, Lennon’s messages kept coming without pause.

He asked about my back injury, where I was staying and how I was recovering.

But I frowned each time I read them. It was too late to laugh at his efforts now.

The violin that had been broken that day was the first handmade violin Lennon had ever given me. At the time, he had spent nearly all his savings on it.

I was reluctant to use it, but he had comforted me so gently, saying, "Claire, you dummy. I’ll only be happy if you use it. I’ll give you one every year from now on."

But after that, he never gave me another violin again.

He always had reasons. He was too busy, he had no time, he forgot... or he was attending Mia’s performances instead.

My gaze fell on the violin with its broken strings lying on the bed. Bitterness swelled in my heart.

I had believed in an unbreakable bond of love with Lennon Sullivan. I had trusted in the deep, nurturing connection between Mia and me as coach and apprentice. But in the end, it all felt like a puddle of mud, trampled and meaningless.

I had poured years of effort into apprentices I had carefully cultivated. I had placed my faith in a lover who was quietly betraying me, all under my nose.

Closing my eyes tightly, I resolved not to cry anymore. They were not worth my tears.

Later, during a rehearsal, I unexpectedly caught Lennon’s gaze from the audience.

His expression faltered briefly as he recognized me. For a long moment, he stared, then suddenly smiled and leaped down from the stage.

"Claire, how have you been? Why haven’t you responded to my messages these past few days?"