7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAM9V5BXBp4
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0M8fBog5cB
The storm had passed.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq8phfAWeCR
But the echo still followed her.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqFJ27Ffuoe
Naomi moved through the halls like someone stepping into a new song—different rhythm, unfamiliar key. People looked at her longer. Some nodded in awe, others whispered. She didn’t flinch. She didn’t slow down.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzCj4vUaaTM
She was used to being *seen*.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvfpBSbNmsR
Now, she was being *heard.*
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg9TynALqtF
And it changed everything.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHZEeFX5BPh
Her solo had cracked something open. The reactions were immediate: quiet awe, admiration, envy. Someone even asked if she had a Spotify link. A few classmates glanced at her like she was someone they hadn’t truly known before.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm9IBcrTVgv
But none of that stayed with her.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb4IwkQ9j7c
What stayed was Levi’s face.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYv8gCD6Sqm
The way he’d looked at her—shocked, quiet, shaken. No guitar. No lines.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0wlDNefHlK
Just silence.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHh8atfM9nb
---
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3B8uERn3lP
He was waiting for her outside the practice hall.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUq2eXrj1Tl
“Naomi—can we talk?”
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡus25JtKNQH
She paused. Part of her wanted to keep walking.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6OnqSvyQa7
But something in his eyes—not fear, not charm, but **earnestness**—made her stop.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo8exQQQs2D
She nodded once. “Five minutes.”
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡontN8QbDi8
They sat on the back stairwell, where old flyers curled against the railings and music majors had once argued over chords.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkB1xO7nyV7
Levi ran a hand through his hair. “I wasn’t avoiding you. I was actually sick. Fever, sore throat. I didn’t think missing one rehearsal would become—”
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWG6ITBGfg8
He stopped.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR6B910MEs9
Naomi raised an eyebrow. “A song?”
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL3ktbguAjm
Levi sighed. “Yeah.”
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPuK4MOPCjx
“It wasn’t just a song, Levi. It was everything I hadn’t said.”
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp6yn9ov8x8
His voice was quiet. “I figured that out when the second verse hit.”
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt51WM5mWCB
She didn’t smile.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGnTpwpLHgV
---
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA5d8UOtCRN
A heavy silence.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ71OdvYUaS6
Then he said, “I didn’t agree to perform with Maya. She put our names down, and I… froze. I didn’t say yes, but I didn’t stop her either. That was cowardly. I see that now.”
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbdfOUeuJho
Naomi crossed her arms. “It wasn’t just about Maya. It was about you choosing *nothing.* Saying *nothing.* You left me to figure it all out in front of everyone.”
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxZF6cphRp4
“I didn’t mean to.”
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHnLm4mcZL2
“But you did.”
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaJfNegMaDx
He looked away, swallowing hard.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5Kl0skrRzZ
“I’m not used to feeling unsteady,” he said. “With you, I’m always off-balance—and maybe I was afraid of what that meant.”
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvOHB1GHBfJ
She didn’t respond right away.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqKqurxCLnR
Then: “You were afraid of the music.”
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡftUApf3ONV
“I was afraid of *you*,” he admitted.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡduz7wtNqBc
Naomi blinked.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2FZCOGHVQi
“I’ve never let anyone in like that. Not through music. Not emotionally. With you… it wasn’t rivalry. It was connection. And that scared me.”
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9IA9sVWgU9
She studied him. The realness in his tone. The vulnerability in his posture.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSozoDa9hR9
But something had shifted.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0lW2G3JZUe
“You don't get to ask for all of me if you’re only willing to give pieces of yourself,” she said.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXIOQXTuox4
Levi looked down, silent.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhOWeAuxI3v
“I can’t keep performing in a duet where I don’t know what key we’re in,” she added gently.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSeZDeRXGe1
He nodded.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqKx4Dx5jmj
And that was all.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqjTBtnJYoX
---
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6CyB6tHeSA
Later, as she was packing her things, Ms. Arinze approached her.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOe5AvgmGUh
“You’ve gotten the judges' attention,” she said. “They’ve requested a solo performer from our division. One with original material.”
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrqN2XwujUa
Naomi's breath caught. “They want me?”
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡojATD9YJPb
“They want *that song.* If you’re ready.”
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEdk0as9fy4
Naomi didn’t hesitate this time.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa6kWRN817a
“I am.”
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZRgrND7mHJ
---
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC6cCWAfs19
That night, Naomi stood on the porch beneath a quiet sky, her earbuds playing her recorded track.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBdlJvpgCpP
Her voice was a little rough. Her piano work not flawless.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNYWeHH5Rxg
But it was hers.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ226I614Bi8
She closed her eyes and leaned into the music—not to escape, but to *own* it.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFw6huDVwd2
She didn’t need harmony anymore.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwamtZiy2fU
Not to feel powerful.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwmQwR3rGGg
Not to feel whole.
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3h7wQBQ8ET
💬 So… Levi opened up, but Naomi didn’t back down.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpO9VfG1Ggw
Do you think they’ll find harmony again, or is Naomi better off solo?
I’d love to hear your thoughts — feel free to share your favorite line or moment! 🎶💔
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0GUQWwpJRS
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQb8IoPzNOX
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUQNyyxqCsD
7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGOgpYvoRRo
