Filed To Story: The Scarlet Vengeance: Justice of a Framed Beauty Novel (Grace & Jason)
“Wow, I can’t believe Roger can play this kind of music,” Meave whispered to Jasper.
Jasper nodded, she hadn’t thought of it either.
Moreover, Roger playing this piece looked different from what she usually saw. His face was adorned with a gentle smile, making him appear much softer as a whole.
And after a song ends, the children chatter excitedly about what song they want to hear next.
Of course, what they’re saying are just some songs from children’s cartoons.
At that moment, as if sensing their gaze, Roger turned his head and looked towards Jasper and
Meave’s direction.
Jasper’s body immediately stiffened.
“What a coincidence to run into you here,” Roger stood up and greeted them proactively.
“Indeed, what a surprise!” Meave said, then nudged Jasper with her elbow. “Jasper, don’t you think so?”
“Yes, it’s really unexpected to see you playing the piano for the children here,” Jasper said, considering how different this was from Roger’s usual image.
“There are many things you haven’t thought of,” Roger said calmly.
Jasper frowned, not understanding what he meant.
Suddenly, Roger asked, “Can you play ‘On My Way’?”
Jasper was taken aback. This was the theme song from the animated series “Pleasant Goat and Big
Big Wolf”. She had watched the show when she was a child and had naturally played the song before.
Especially now that she was at the welfare home, she had prepared many songs suitable for children to listen to before coming.
“Okay,” Jasper replied.
“Let’s play together, four-hand duet, is that okay?” he said.
“Hmm?” Jasper was taken aback. Before she could react, Roger had already grabbed her wrist and led her to sit down at the piano.
Playing a piano duet with four hands is not a difficult task for her.
However, she had not practiced with Roger before and was unsure if they could work well together.
After Roger explained the parts each person would play, he said, “Let’s begin.”
As soon as he finished speaking, his fingers pressed down on the piano keys.
Beautiful and lively music flowed from his fingertips.
Jasper pursed her lips and began playing along with Roger, matching his playing on the keys.
Even though it was their first time playing a four-hand piece together, they had an unusual sense of harmony, as if they had played together many times before.
The children listened with great interest, and some even sang along happily with the music.
After the performance, Roger turned to Jasper and said, “You played well.”
“Thanks, you did a good job too,” she replied. “Do you…um, often play duets with others?”
“No, you’re the first,” he answered.
She looked surprised. So, he had never played a duet with anyone else before?
The performance just now was a bit…
“But after playing the four-hand piece with you, I feel like it was pretty good. Don’t you think we had good coordination while playing the piano?” he said.
Good coordination? Indeed, they did. After all, it was their first time playing together, but the final result was quite impressive.
Even Meave, who was listening on the side, pulled Jasper aside and whispered, “Did you secretly contact Roger beforehand? Your coordination in the four-hand piece was too good.”
“No, today was the first time,” Jasper replied.
Meave was speechless, and Roger went on to play several songs for the children. When there was a break in the middle, Jasper gave the small gifts he had brought to the children.
One little girl who received a gift didn’t leave, but kept looking at Jasper and asked, “Do you like Roger?”
Jasper almost choked on his own saliva and asked, “What do you mean by ‘like’?”
“I mean, do you want to marry Roger?” the little girl explained.
Jasper was sweating profusely. Are children nowadays so mature at such a young age? She’s only a few years old and already asking these kinds of questions!
“Of course not,” Jasper quickly replied.
The little girl looked at her skeptically, clearly not believing her words.
“I really… um, just see him as a friend. I definitely don’t want to marry him,” Jasper said.
“But I do hope she can marry me,” a voice suddenly sounded coldly from the side.
“But I do hope she can marry me,” a voice suddenly sounded coldly beside them.
Jasper’s face immediately turned red with embarrassment as he looked over to see Roger, who had appeared out of nowhere.
The little girl looked sad and asked, “Roger, do you… do you like this sister?”
“Yes, I like her,” Roger walked up to the little girl and crouched down, saying, “But she only sees me as a friend.”
Jasper felt awkward as the two of them, one big and one small, chatted away as if no one else was there, with her being the main topic of their conversation.
“So I like Roger. Roger, will you wait for me to grow up and marry you? I will definitely grow up to be very beautiful, more beautiful than this older sister!”
Roger smiled slightly and said, “I believe that you will grow up to be very beautiful. But if liking someone can be changed so easily, then it cannot be called liking at all. I think that when you grow up, you will meet a boy whom you like and who likes you back. That boy will surely be better than me!”
The little girl listened with a mixture of understanding and confusion.
Jasper was somewhat surprised by Roger’s words. He had always given her the impression of being rather cold and difficult to approach.
Even though he had told her to become friends, Grace didn’t feel like she could open up to him like she would with a close friend.
It’s like Roger always gives her a sense of distance, as if there’s a gap between them that’s not easy to cross.
But now, as he speaks gently to the little girl, she suddenly feels that maybe he’s not as difficult to approach as he seems on the surface.
After the little girl runs off, Jasper turns to Roger and says, “You don’t have to use me as a shield.
When a child says she wants to marry you, it’s just because she likes you, not because she’ll actually marry you when she grows up. Children’s words aren’t always true.”
“Do you really think children’s words aren’t always true?” he stands up and asks, his deep black eyes staring straight at her.
Jasper’s heart skips a beat and she feels inexplicably that his gaze is silently accusing her.
But…what is he going to condemn? Just because of what she said earlier?
“Adults don’t take children’s words seriously, but children take them seriously. Sometimes, they even engrave a sentence in their hearts for a lifetime,” he said.
“Did you…have any words that were engraved in your heart when you were a child?” she couldn’t help but ask.
“Yes,” he replied, “I had words from someone that I kept deep in my heart. Even if I wanted to forget, I couldn’t.”
In an instant, she had a feeling that the person in front of her was like Lawrence! If…if he really was
Lawrence…
“Also, what I said earlier wasn’t to use you as a shield. I really like you and naturally, I want you to marry me in the future.”
She was stunned, her cheeks suddenly turning red.
“Or maybe you like William?” he asked.
She thought about what William had said to her before, that he would wait for her to make a decision.
She knew she liked William, but was it the childhood crush kind of like or did she like him as a man?
She is not sure.
“If you don’t like William that much, why not consider me instead?” Roger approached Jasper, suddenly leaned in, his head close to her cheek, and his lips close to her ear, whispering softly.
His gentle voice was almost like a charm!
Jasper’s face turned even redder! She instinctively turned her head away, covering her hot ears,
“You–”
“Of course, if you’re not interested in me at all, you can just say so,” he said. “Jasper, do you really not have any feelings for me at all?”
She was speechless. “I just… see you as a friend.”
“As a friend?” He suddenly chuckled. “Do you really see me as a friend? Do you see Roger as a friend?
Or are you just looking for a shadow of ‘Lawrence’ in me?”
She froze, not knowing how to respond to his words.
From the beginning, she had only approached him because of his similarities to Lawrence.
And his piano, his appearance, and the mole on his neck all seemed to prove that he was Lawrence!
After a while, she spoke, “Roger, if you really are Lawrence, why won’t you admit it? Is there some hidden reason? Or do you hate me? I…I just want an answer, I…I just hope…you’re living well…”
Her voice was already choking up.
But he looked at her expressionlessly, as if he didn’t care about her sadness and distress. “Do you want Roger to live. well? Or do you want Lawrence, as you call him, to live well?”
She looked at him in confusion.
“Jasper, I am not Lawrence. Why do you refuse to acknowledge that? Do you have to project
Lawrence’s traits onto me? Is it only if I were Lawrence that you would feel better?” he said.