CHAPTER 38: CARLA WAS DONE FOR

Elara got dressed in a peach sundress for her first recording practice and tone setting.

The sunlight peeping through the window shone brightly on her face, making her look even more enchanting.

She wore her pearl earrings before combing her hair one last time. Rather than tying them up immediately, she put the scrunchie on her hand, liking the feeling of her hair being free, just like she wanted to be.

Once she wore her wedges, she stepped out of her apartment, where Antonio was already waiting for her.

"I can carry that for you. Give it to me." He took the shoulder purse from her and walked ahead.

Elara smiled at his thoughtfulness. While it was true he was getting paid handsomely for his job, the man had a good character and really cared for her, like a brother.

"Did my brother contact you? He was pretty much excited about hearing me sing after such a long time," Elara said as she sat in the back seat of the car.

She looked at her phone when it chimed with an incoming message.

It turned out the venue of her practice had changed. And to her surprise, she was supposed to practice in Noah’s studio today.

It made her furrow her brows, but she didn’t think much of it. Maybe the studio on Nate’s floor was occupied. Besides, no matter the differences, they were still brothers.

"Yes, Miss Elara. Unfortunately, due to some business work, he won’t be able to see you sing today. He said he will be there for the final recording for sure," Antonio said.

Elara pouted but nodded nonetheless.

After some time, Antonio parked the car before the building and stepped out to open the door for Elara, who was dozing off a little.

He looked at the girl with a sigh. The doctor had indeed warned them that the medications might affect her like this. The painkillers in them will make her sleepy most of the time.

"Miss Elara, we are here." Antonio gently tapped her shoulders, and Elara blinked her eyes open before nodding.

"I am sorry. I don’t know why I feel so sleepy even after having a proper night’s sleep." Elara stepped out of the car.

After parking the car, Antonio walked behind Elara. This time, no one dared to stop him on the first floor.

Nate and Noah, who had heard of the incident after she had left, even scolded her for not bringing her bodyguard upstairs and said she was different from others after Elara refused to tell them who pushed her.

She didn’t want to let Carla off so easily. Rather, she had different plans for her.

Since she was the one who took Carla from the bottom to the top, always making lyrics for her, setting the tone and everything for her, she wanted to ensure she would make her fall to the pit from which the girl wouldn’t be able to stand again.

The little sympathy she had for her as a human being vanished the moment Carla decided to push her, even after she warned her she was wounded.

Elara blinked her eyes and got on the elevator to reach the third floor, where Nate was already waiting for her.

At the same time, Daniel, who had come to the building because he had a meeting on the seventh floor with a real estate company.

He never attended such small meetings, always leaving them to Vicky or Arnold, but when he heard the meeting was in this building, where he might have a chance to see Elara, he came in person.

Alen followed his boss silently, deep in thought about one of their projects.

He was snapped out of his thoughts when someone nudged him, and he looked at the other man.

"Boss is asking something," the man whispered.

Alen raised his gaze to Daniel. He looked annoyed but not angry.

"I asked if she was here already," Daniel said.

Alen looked at his watch and then nodded.

"From what we gathered about the schedule. She should be here already," Alen said.

Daniel nodded.

"That old man might panic if he sees me attending the meeting personally. It isn’t good at this age. I shall leave." He said and pressed the third-floor button.

Alen couldn’t help but suppress the urge to roll his eyes. When his boss asked for the address and immediately said he wanted to come, he knew going to that meeting was the last thing his boss would really do.

"You are right, sir. We’ll see to it that the meeting ends quickly," Alen said.

Daniel nodded with a serious expression.

"Yes, do so," he said before he exited the elevator.

He saw Elara walking inside a room with Nate and was about to follow when his phone rang. He exhaled, annoyed, before picking up the call and walking to the backside.

"How are you feeling, Elara? I heard what happened." Nate looked at her hand with pity.

Elara shook her head.

"It’s fine and will heal soon. Don’t worry about it. Why did you change the venue, though?" She asked.

Nate shrugged.

"I don’t know. Noah just came by last night and literally begged me to let you shoot in his studio. Sometimes it’s getting hard to understand him. He almost looked possessed, as if his life depended on it," Nate said.

Elara rolled her eyes at the exaggeration of words, but she didn’t doubt him. She has seen how Noah can be when he wants something.

"Okay. So when do we begin?" She asked.

Nate looked at his watch; his lips thinned.

"He should’ve been here. I don’t know what’s taking him so long," he said before dialing Noah’s number.

Nate took a couple of steps from Elara when he saw her looking at the lyrics sheet she had submitted—the one she was going to give to Carla earlier.

"Hello? Yes, okay. What? Why? Ohh. I didn’t know. Yeah, we can wait." Nate talked to Noah before ending the call.

Elara looked up when the man walked to her with a sigh.

"Is everything alright?" She asked.

Nate looked at her before nodding.

"Yeah, everything’s fine. It’s just Mr. Andrew is here to talk to Noah about why he dropped Carla as their artist," Nate said.

Elara’s brows shoot up at his words.

Carla got dropped? Just like that? But why? That girl might not have the lyrics to present now, but they could’ve given her some time to show.

She didn’t know Noah was so strict with work ethics.

Elara thought.

"Do you know anything? I mean, you are acquainted with Andrew, no?" Noah asked.

"I didn’t know," she shrugged before going behind the partition to check the mic and listen to the time that she had in mind and had sent to Nate to get it developed.

Nate looked at the girl and was about to sit behind the chair, put on his headphones, and listen to the tunes and how she adjusted her vocals to them when he saw his phone vibrating on the table.

His brother was calling him on the fourth floor, where he was meeting with Andrew.

Noah signalled to Elara that he was going out. He nodded at Antonio, who was sitting outside the room, on guard, before leaving.

As soon as the man left, the back door of the room opened.

Daniel didn’t step out immediately. He watched Elara try to adjust her voice to match the tone, wincing in pain whenever she moved her hand.

The sight of her in pain made a nerve on his forehead twitch, and he wondered if he went easy on Carla.

Elara pouted when she couldn’t adjust the tone of her voice to the tune.

Though it sounded good, it wasn’t satisfactory, so she walked around the partition and stood behind the system to adjust the tunes herself, headphones pressed against her right ear and shoulder as she adjusted the tone with her right hand.

It was hard to do it herself since she couldn’t move her left hand much, but there was no other way. Since she was alone, she could concentrate even more.

Immersed in the tune, she didn’t even realize when someone walked behind her until the man leaned forward, breathing right on her neck.

Startled, Elara stumbled back and would’ve hurt her left hand as she moved it by instinct, but the man who already predicted it stopped her from moving by turning her softly.

A gasp left her mouth when she noticed who it was.

She was about to open her mouth to call Antonio, and as if the man knew what she was about to do, he smirked, beating her to it.

"If you scream, I’ll kiss you," he threatened, leaving Elara speechless.