chapter498

Lydia nodded softly. "Sure."

Alexis lit up and quickly handed over a pen, barely able to contain her excitement. "Thank you so much, Lydia. My daughter absolutely adores you. Honestly, I do too. I love your piano music."

The other staff in the house, seeing how approachable Lydia was, started forming a line.

"Could you sign one for us too?"

"Yes, please. My son's a huge fan."

"My sister and my little brother are obsessed with you. I can't play piano myself, but I love your music."

Lydia just smiled and signed for everyone, no fuss at all. It was like a dream come true for them. An actual autograph from Melody Mastro. Most people could only dream of even seeing her in person, let alone getting her signature. Yet here they were, holding it in their hands. They felt unbelievably lucky.

Alexis was overjoyed, but what she felt most was a newfound admiration for Lydia. She couldn't help but compare her to Lucinda, who was the same age but always seemed so arrogant, always treating the staff like they were invisible. Lydia, on the other hand, had accomplished so much at such a young age, and yet she never put on any airs. She was easy to talk to and genuinely kind. At first, she might seem a little aloof, but once you got to know her, you realized she was just a warmhearted girl with an angel's spirit.

At seven that evening, Blake came home from work, with Lucinda by his side. This time, Grace wasn't trailing after Lucinda like usual. Blake must have told her to stay back. Otherwise, knowing Grace, she would have been glued to Lucinda all night.

Lucinda! You're back. Come watch your performance from today. You were amazing."

Kylie and Cameron were in the living room, watching a replay of the live broadcast.

Lydia was there too, but she wasn't interested in the TV. She was lounging on the sofa, head down, fingers moving quickly on her phone. Looked like she was in the middle of a game.

In the past, Lucinda would have rolled her eyes, thinking Lydia was just a country bumpkin with zero appreciation for real music or high art. But now she saw things differently. Lydia understood music just fine. She just didn't care about showing off.

"Dad, Mom, I'm sorry. I let you down."

Kylie and Cameron were both relieved and a little heartbroken. Relieved because Lucinda finally realized her mistakes and seemed to be coming around, but also sad, knowing she probably felt insecure about not being their biological daughter. That was likely why she'd always tried so hard to compete with Lydia, to prove herself. They realized they hadn't given Lucinda the sense of security she needed.

"Lucinda, we're just glad you've thought things through. We don't blame you for anything. Next time if you're feeling upset or have something on your mind, please tell us right away so we don't

misunderstand each other Oka

Lucinda's cheeks flushed with guilt and she nodded. "Okay."

"Come on, let's all watch together.

Kylie pulled Lucinda down onto the couch. Lucinda couldn't help glancing over at Lydia.

Lydia was sprawled out, looking effortlessly cool, totally absorbed in her own world and not even noticing Lucinda's presence.

Lucinda understood Lydia a bit better now. She hesitated, then said quietly, Lydia, thank you for helping me revise my score."

No matter what, Lucinda had to admit, she owed her championship to Lydia's help.

Lydia didn't even look up. "I was helping Richie. If you want to thank someone, thank him."