39 Princess Party
"It's so unfair!", Haley screamed, "You told me I could go!"
"I told you you could go if you got a B on your history exam", Claire replied, "Which you didn't", she added, turning to look at Haley from below the stairs.
"I have a learning disability", Haley argued, "The letters jump around on the screen and appear backwards".
"Honey, we had you tested, like, six times", Claire countered, "Trust me. I was praying for dyslexia".
Haley complained, "Oh my God! Why can't you ever let me have any fu-"
Phil interrupted by putting his hand on Haley's mouth and pulling her into her room. As he was closing the door, Haley remarked, "Ew. Dad. Gross. Your hand smells of cheese".
"I didn't want to dirty a knife. Sit", Phil responded, pointing at the bed that Alex and Luke were sitting on. "Now. We all know that whenever your Nana Dede visits, your mom can get a little ..."
"Psycho", Haley replied.
"Scary", Luke added.
"Drunk", Alex drawled.
"All of those are true", Phil agreed, "Therefore, I need you guys to be on your best behaviour".
"Don't worry. I won't even be in the house", Alex replied, "I'm going to be at Zephyr's to practice for my cello recital".
"Thank God", Haley muttered.
"That's great", Phil exclaimed, "As long as it keeps you out of your Mom's head, I'm all for it".
"I thought you were saying that because no one likes it when Alex practices the cello?", Luke asked.
"That's part of it", Phil explained, ignoring the look on Alex's face, "Luke. If your mom loses it, I need you to lighten the mood by being extra cute. Got it?"
"No problem. I've got some stuff prepared", Luke claimed, "'Hey Mom. I'm firsty'. Huh? Adorable, right?"
"Yeah. That's ... good", Phil replied, lost for words.
"Don't worry", Luke placated, "It works better in my jammies".
Hearing his words, Alex and Haley looked at him in contempt while Phil was shaking his head.
[Time Skip]
As she finished playing her cello, Alex looked at Zephyr, who was intently looking at her. "What's wrong?"
"Your rhythm's a bit off when you get to the crescendo", Zephyr commented.
"You play an instrument?", Alex questioned, somewhat shocked by his response.
"Yeah", Zephyr answered, "I can play the guitar and the piano. Vocals as well I guess".
Alex's eyes widened upon hearing his words. "Ooooh", she muttered, "Play the guitar and sing a song for me. Please"
"No", Zephyr replied.
"Please", Alex asked, staring at Zephyr with a determined gaze.
"No", Zephyr retorted, looking away from her eyes.
"Please. Pretty please", she begged, setting down her cello.
"Fine", Zephyr said, crumbling under the pressure. Getting up, he left the living room and a minute later, came back with a guitar.
After sitting down and taking a deep breath, he began strumming the guitar, a slow beat reverberating through the house. After a few seconds, he began.
♩ In the twilight glow, where stars unite ♩
♩ Two hearts entwined, dancing through the night ♩
♩ You and me, a love so sweet and true ♩
♩ Young hearts aflame, emotions brand new ♩
Matt, who had entered the house just before Zephyr began playing, had a large smile on his face while he recorded the song with his phone.
♩ In this world of dreams, we'll find our way ♩
♩ Hand in hand, together, come what may ♩
♩ With every beat of my heart, it's you I'll chase ♩
♩ Through the highs and lows, our love I'll embrace ♩
Hearing the harmonious words flowing from his lips and knowing how they were referring to herself, Alex couldn't help but release a few tears of happiness.
♩ We're young and free, love's melody ♩
♩ A symphony of you and me ♩
♩ Through ups and downs, we'll stand our ground ♩
♩ Our love, a timeless sound ♩
As he reached the chorus, Alex couldn't help but smile.
♩ As seasons change and time moves on ♩
♩ Our love will grow, forever strong ♩
♩ The laughter shared, the tears we've shed ♩
♩ Building memories, thread by thread ♩
Using her sleeves, Alex wiped her face of the tears that she had shed.
♩ In this world of dreams, we'll find our way ♩
♩ Hand in hand, together, come what may ♩
♩ With every beat of my heart, it's you I'll chase♩
♩ Through the highs and lows, our love I'll embrace ♩
♩ We're young and free, love's melody ♩
♩ A symphony of you and me ♩
♩ Through ups and downs, we'll stand our ground ♩
♩ Our love, a timeless sound ♩
Desiree, who had also just entered the house, whispered into Matt's ear, "He's so romantic".
♩ With each heartbeat, our love blooms ♩
♩ Like flowers in spring, it consumes ♩
♩ Forever, I promise, side by side ♩
♩ In this love's journey, together we'll ride ♩
"We have to send this to everyone", Matt mouthed, with Desiree nodding.
♩ We're young and free, love's melody ♩
♩ A symphony of you and me ♩
♩ Through ups and downs, we'll stand our ground ♩
♩ Our love, a timeless sound ♩
♩ So let the world see what we've found ♩
♩ In love's embrace, our hearts are bound ♩
♩ As the stars above light up the sky ♩
♩You and I, forever, you and I ♩
As he finished his song and set the guitar down, he was met with a black blur slamming on him. Wrapping her arms around his neck, Alex whispered, "Thanks".
Quickly responding to the hug, Zephyr wrapped his arm around Alex's waist and pulled her closer, an action Alex appreciated.
"That was amazing", Desiree squealed while clapping.
"Never knew you were an amazing singer", Matt added while putting his phone away.
"It's a talent I found out recently", Zephyr replied, rubbing the back of his head.
[Flashback]
"It's been a while since I rolled a Gacha", Zephyr muttered to himself. "System, roll me an Uncommon".
[Balance: 2612 GP]
[Deducting 1000 GP]
[Balance: 1612 GP]
[Rolling Uncommon]
[You've received Uta (One Piece)]
[You've received Uta's singing talent]
[You've received Uta's music theory mastery]
[Uta Uta no Mi (Song Song Fruit) exceeds world parameters]
[Singing talent and Uta Uta no Mi exchanged for the perk {Perfect Voice}]
"My luck with Uncommon Gacha is still as bad as usual", Zephyr remarked.
[Indeed. Apart from Hashirama Senju, all the Uncommon Gacha you've rolled have been low-level Uncommon]
"Whatever", Zephyr muttered, "I can't do anything about it now"
[Flashback ends]
"What song was that?", Matt asked.
"It's one I made", Zephyr replied.
"That's so cute", Desiree mumbled in awe, with Alex nodding along.
"I guess", Zephyr replied, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head.
"I'm starting to lose count of how talented you are", Matt muttered, "You're smart, good at sports, already making money, and now you're even capable of singing and playing instruments". Just as she was about to reply, Alex's phone vibrated. Taking it out of her pocket, she quickly read it, groaning. "What's wrong?"
"Nana Dede brought over one of Mom's ex-boyfriends and they're going to have dinner soon", Alex replied, "Dad wants me to go there for dinner".
"You don't have to go if you don't want to", Matt interrupted, "You can stay at ours and I will drop you off once the whole thing is over".
"I'd love to", Alex agreed, "But I'd need a reason not to go".
"Matt and I can message Phil and tell him that you and Zephyr are busy with your recital", Desiree countered.
"Really?", Alex asked.
"Yep", Matt replied popping the 'p'.
"We can make a video of you two playing together and send it to Phil as evidence", Desiree added.
"That'd be great", Alex replied, sighing in relief.
"No worries", Matt waved off her concerns.
"We wouldn't want to interrupt your fun time with Zephyr anyways", Desiree continued, walking out of the room with Matt.
"Gah", Zephyr groaned, "They're so irritating".
"They're not too bad", Alex remarked, her cheeks a crimson hue, "Although Matt is a bit annoying at times".
"I know", Zephyr agreed, "I just wish he could control himself and not act like some child all the time".
"At least he's not boring", Alex argued, "Most Dads are really dull but your Dad's not". Nodding his head, Zephyr agreed. "What did you guys get Lily for her birthday?", Alex asked.
"Desiree got her a cute dress", Zephyr answered.
"That's nice", Alex commented.
"How have you been?", Zephyr questioned, "I know that when your Nana comes, Claire tends to be more ... strict"
"That's a nice way of phrasing it", Alex murmured, "Mom's been getting on everyone's nerves and it's been unbearable staying at home".
"You can come over to mine whenever you want", Zephyr comforted.
"Thanks", Alex mumbled.
[Time Skip]
"Hi", Matt greeted, quickly shaking hands with Mitchell
"Hey", Desiree added, entering the garden.
"Yo", Zephyr concluded, walking towards Alex as soon as he was done.
"You guys are so lucky", Mitchell commented, "You missed the massive scene".
"What happened?", Desiree asked, curious to know the gossip.
"Claire had a breakdown because of Mom and then Mom had a fight with Gloria because of Dad", Mitchell answered.
"That sounds bad", Matt muttered.
"You don't even know half of it", Mitchell sighed.
"There's more?", Desiree asked in awe.
"Yeah-", Mitchell began.
"Sir Fizbolot, Royal Court Jester, at your service", Cam interrupted in a British accent, dressed as a medieval jester, "And methinks that there are some young ones in need of some royal entertainment", he continued, walking into the crowd of children that gathered.
"You know what", Desiree interrupted, "We can continue this later. I really want to see this".
Mitchell nodded, paying attention to Cam who was pulling a 10ft long handkerchief out of his mouth with a boxer tied at the end, with a smile.
