Chapter 199 - A Friend's Input
As December began, winter was even colder in London. People, who move about, wore thick clothes to protect themselves from the cold air that was enough to make a person shiver if they stood for too long at the bus stop. Since morning, Anne had received a reminder from Jack, asking her not to go anywhere. Anne, who was lazy to fuss, agreed with all of Jack's words. She didn't want him to come to her apartment and do what he did to her last night in the car. That was why Anne chose to obey all of Jack's prohibitions.
Linda and Paul, who had been noisy since three days ago, were already at Anne's apartment this morning. They both rushed to Anne's apartment after Anne gave the news that she had returned to the apartment.
"Are you still feeling cold, Anne?" Linda asked curiously. She felt strange seeing Anne wearing a thick jacket in the apartment.
"Yes, are you not?" asked Anne innocently by repeatedly straightening the position of the collar of her jacket.
Paul shook his head and so did Linda. They were comfortable enough wearing long-sleeved sweaters and socks, so it was strange to see Anne wearing a thick jacket.
Anne cleared her throat, then sat down on the sofa and started looking for her favorite TV broadcast. Idol recruitment events in Korea were very booming in the ginseng country. Meanwhile, Paul and Linda chose to continue their activities in the kitchen. They wanted to make pizza that they planned to enjoy together while watching a horror movie. That was why they both let Anne watch her favorite show, before they mastered Anne's big TV.
While watching her favorite program, Anne smiled to herself. She was happy to see the struggles of young people who were trainees at an agency that would turn them into K-pop idols. At first, Anne did not like events like that, but after finding out that becoming an idol was not easy and there were many twists and turns, Anne finally liked the show and it became her favorite show, as it showed the struggles of the trainees.
"Do you really want to be an idol, Anne?" Linda asked, suddenly surprising Anne, who was focusing on watching a prospective girl group practicing their dance moves. Linda came in front of the TV to put the freshly cleaned and peeled kiwi and apple slices on the table.
Anne turned to Linda with a big smile." If you like to cook, do you want to be a chef? You're not, right? So it's not that everything we watch or like will make us obsessed and want to be like them, Linda. I just like to see their struggle to achieve their dreams, which are unlike me, who give up easily." Anne answered in riddles, to Linda's previous question.
"Easy to give up? What's your dream, Anne?"
"To be a pianist. I want to be a great pianist who can create many legendary works like Beethoven and Mozart." Anne answered excitedly with sparkling eyes.
Linda burst out laughing when she heard Anne's words. She laughed very loudly.
"That sucks," Anne was exasperated. She commented on Linda's laugh which was full of ridicule.
Linda wiped her tears from laughing. She then sat beside Anne and hugged her tightly. "Come on, Anne, don't dream too high. We can dream, but don't be too high, lest when you wake up from the dream and fall, you will get hurt and disappointed, Anne. It's better to be normal like me. We live with what we are doing right now, instead of having to get a disappointment that will scar your heart. Isn't that a pointless act?" Linda asked softly, while pinching Anne's cheek.
"Aren't you going to support my dream, Linda?" asked Anne quietly with her head down.
"It's not that I don't support you, Anne. It's just that your dreams are too high! Look at Edward. He comes from a very rich family in London. Both of his parents have a business in the music sector. They are also known as a family of classical music lovers so Edward was influenced to become a pianist. But as you can see, Edward is mediocre, isn't he? He doesn't become a famous and great pianist like Beethoven or Mozart that you admired, does he? So you better not dream so high, Anne. It's not that I don't support your dreams, I just feel sorry for you if you have to experience disappointment. Believe me Anne, competition in the music world like that is terrible. I've read that many people are willing to steal works from other people for their own sake and you know, Anne, how the fate of the people whose works were stolen? They were killed and were driven mad when they tried to claim their works that were used by others to raise their names. Yes, that's why I advise you not to dream too high. I don't want to see this beautiful you go crazy because of that thing called piano. We better live with what we have now, Anne. You already have a flower shop that is selling well. Isn't it better for us to expand the shop even more than you thinking about your dream to become a pianist. After all, can you play the piano? I've known you for almost six months, I've never seen you touch that thing or play it for a minute," said Linda at length in response to Anne's question.
Anne shook her head slowly. Hearing Linda's words made Anne unsure about telling Linda about her ability to play the piano. She kept this secret to herself for now, whereas previously Anne wanted to tell Linda her little secret.
Linda chuckled at Anne's body movement. She then hugged Anne tightly. "I love you, Anne, I don't want to see you in trouble. It's better if we live like this. Believe me, Anne, being famous is difficult. They must have lost their privacy, Anne, so we'd better stay like this. Live quietly without having to think about heavy things like them, competition in the entertainment world is very crazy, Anne," said Linda again, trying to convince Anne not to continue the dream which she thought was unreasonable.
"How do you know that competition in the entertainment world is crazy?" asked Anne quietly.
"If the competition in the entertainment world isn't crazy, there wouldn't be many artists, singers, actors, or other famous people who work in the entertainment world who chose to commit suicide, Anne. They must have had a lot of pressure from many parties that made them end up depressed and couldn't find a way out, so they decided to end their life in an instant like that," answered Linda slowly. "If they didn't choose suicide, many end up venting all their emotions by using illegal drugs, things like that are not a secret anymore, Anne. And I don't want you to go through something like that, I don't want to see you suffer. I don't want to see my beautiful Anne have to be like those people who are constantly being chased by journalists, have no privacy and her life is always the target of camera flashes," added Linda again, adding some facts that were common in the entertainment industry.
Paul, who had been silently listening to the conversation between Linda and his boss, just smiled. He then brought the freshly baked pizza and put it on the table in front of the TV where Linda and Anne were sitting.
"Sometimes listening to people who do not have the same dream with you is difficult, Miss. So you better not listen to what Linda said. If you really want to be a pianist to pursue your dreams, Miss. After all, you are beautiful and smart, I don't think it is difficult for you to practice the piano in a short time," said Paul, suddenly intervened on their conversation.
Linda immediately turned toward her boyfriend. Annoyed, she threw Anne's favorite hello kitty doll at Paul, which he managed to catch. Paul, who was not injured by the doll, stuck his tongue out to tease Linda and it irritated Linda. Linda finally got up from the sofa and chased Paul to hit him. Suddenly, inside Anne's apartment, a chase scene occurred between Linda and Paul. Even though Linda shouted at Paul who ran away from her pursuit, Anne knew that Linda wasn't really angry with Paul. Anne, who was used to seeing Linda and Paul like this, could only smiled.
Each of Linda's words replayed in Anne's mind, "You're right, Linda, I was one of the victims. My mother's original work was taken by a friend who already I considered a sister." Anne wondered, quietly remembering what was done by Selma and her parents a dozen years ago.
To be Continued
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