Chapter 7
and enduring the pain.
No matter how hard it got, I pushed through.
And slowly, but surely, my perseverance paid off
The first time I managed to play a full piece of music again, tears of joy welled up in Maybe it was my mother’s blessing, but my hands healed faster than expected.
+25 BONUS
my eyes.
As I continued practicing, my piano skills returned, too. Though I couldn’t reach my former level, I had recovered about 80% of it.
Using the honors and certificates I had earned before, I found work as a piano teacher.
After leaving Ryan, life seemed to improve, little by little.
But sometimes, in the dead of night, I’d wake up from nightmares. In these dreams, Ryan stood coldly, holding a chair, advancing toward me step by step.
No matter how much I pleaded, he didn’t stop.
And then he raised the chair, smashing it down onto my hands.
The scene shifted, and in my screams, I could vaguely make out Miranda’s triumphant smile.
“Look, Ryan’s willing to break your fingers for me.”
I woke
up
from the nightmare, still shaken, drenched in sweat.
The truth was, not long after Ryan left that day, Miranda showed up.
She mocked my brokenness, ridiculing me for thinking I could stand a chance.
“Tsk, so pathetic,” Miranda said, lowering her head. Her innocent, beautiful face was now twisted with malice.
“Susan, look at you. Your hands are in ruins. How are you even going to perform tomorrow?”
I was filled with rage, desperate to lash out at her, but Miranda kicked me hard.
She looked down at me in disgust. “Don’t dirty my clothes!”
All I could do was lie there in the dirt, helplessly watching her walk away.
Even now, just recalling that memory, the pain in my body lingered.
Just then, my phone buzzed–it was an unfamiliar number calling.
