Chapter 9

The top ten spots on the overall music charts were dominated by famous artists. Their songs were everywhere, and every move they made was the talk of the entertainment industry. It was tough for a newcomer to break into the top 50, let alone the top five. "Time" was already a hit, and at this rate, the singer looked set to become a superstar, with the potential to evolve into a true legend in the music world. However, the song was still new. Even though everyone loved it, not many people could actually sing it. Wesley suddenly pointed at Jack. "Jack knows the song!" he said. All eyes turned to Jack. Jack felt a wave of nervousness wash over him. "Me? No way!" he protested. Wesley grinned. "Remember? On the night of the college entrance exams, you told me you could sing it." Jack shot Wesley an angry glare, unable to believe that he had spilled the beans again. Jack wanted to refuse outright. He knew that becoming famous before he was ready could be more of a curse than a blessing. But his classmates started cheering him on. Phoebe, who was standing next to him, looked at him with expectant eyes. "Jack, can you really sing this song?" she asked. Not wanting to disappoint her directly, Jack quickly came up with an excuse. "I can only sing it if there's a guitar," he said. Who would bring a guitar to a party? It was obviously just a way to avoid singing. "There's one here," someone unexpectedly called out and brought over a guitar from the corner. Jack almost wanted to kick whoever had brought the guitar to the party into the river. Who would be so full of themselves as to bring a guitar to a party? But now, the guitar was in his hands, and he had no more excuses. He took the guitar with a bitter smile, and the crowd applauded. They were eager to hear the song. As graduating students, they were filled with bittersweet emotions. Soon, they'd scatter in all directions, each of them going their separate ways. When they heard this song in future, it would surely bring back memories. Jack strummed a few chords, tuning the instrument, and familiarizing himself with it before he began to sing softly. "Time flows like a river, words scatter like sand, and youth is like a fleeting dream… As we all head in different directions, do you remember the school's beauty in her white dress? Do you remember the boy who raced with the wind? Everything will eventually fade with the summer breeze…" The melody of this song was catchy. When Jack first wrote it, he had only sung it with the guitar. He had added the production later when he uploaded it online. As Jack played the guitar and sang, the feeling of parting hung in the air. They were about to finish high school and head off in different directions. The song brought back memories of their time together. As the song reached its peak, the students were deeply moved and began to sing along with the melody. Jack played with ease, and his soulful voice, even without any post-production, still managed to captivate everyone. Despite the river breeze and the sound of the waves, his voice resonated with everyone there. When the song ended, the breeze still swept across the river, but the students remained caught up in the moment. It felt as though they were still lost in the melody. Jack's heavenly voice touched everyone deeply. Someone suddenly exclaimed, pulling everyone out of the beautiful melody. "This is… so amazing! Jack sounds just like the original singer!" Those who'd listened to the song countless times began to doubt their ears. Indeed, Jack's voice was remarkably similar to the original. "Seriously? He sounds exactly like the original," one student said. "No way! This song is a mega-hit. How could Jack be the original singer?" another chimed in. "If he is the original singer, he's a legend," someone added. "But Jack's performance was outstanding, and his guitar playing was incredible. How did I not realize he was so talented before?" another student remarked. "Unbelievable…" someone else whispered. A few students even pulled out their phones to search if Jack was the original singer. Even Feena, who'd always been indifferent to him, now stared at Jack in complete shock. Feena was a student of Donald, a well-known musician. He'd recently heard the hit song "Time," which had taken the music world by storm, and gave it incredibly high praise. Once, in front of Feena, he commented, "If a renowned singer performed this song, it would undoubtedly be considered their masterpiece. If an unknown singer performed it, the result would be legendary." Feena had always been drawn to talented and good-looking guys, but someone who could write a song like this deserved to be called a genius. If Jack was truly this talented, her rejection of his confession might now seem rather ridiculous. At this moment, she felt a flicker of regret. All eyes were on Jack, waiting for him to clear their doubts. "Jack, did you really sing that song?" Eddie blurted out. Jack shook his head lightly. "After the song was released, I spent about two weeks practicing it." As soon as he said that, the tension in the air vanished. "I knew it! There's no way Jack could have pulled that off," someone said. "You scared me for a second. I thought we had a superstar among us," another chimed in. "No way someone that amazing could come from Perthter," someone else joked. "Haha! But Jack, your imitation is really spot on. You should consider joining a talent show," someone added. Even Feena let out a sigh of relief. If Jack had become a legend right after she rejected him, it would have been a blow to her pride. Fortunately, it didn't happen. Wesley patted Jack on the shoulder. "By the way, your guitar playing was really good. When are you gonna teach me?" "Sure! If you want to, I will, but it's just this one song," Jack grinned. The classmates around them burst into laughter again. As the graduation celebration drew to a close, the students started to head home. Feena was leaving too; she was heading to the hospital to visit her grandfather. A few days ago, Feena's grandfather came to Perthter to visit her, but he was attacked on a bus by an assailant. In fact, he was the first person to be stabbed. Feena heard the story from her grandfather. It had been a very close call for him. Luckily, a high school student had bravely jumped in and took the assailant down on his own. The situation was incredibly dangerous. The assailant was armed with a knife, and confronting him barehanded to disarm him required immense courage. Both Feena and her grandfather deeply admired the young man's bravery. She had pictured his tall, heroic figure countless times, longing for the chance to thank him in person. But regrettably, the student had left in a hurry to take his college entrance exam. To this day, Feena still didn't know who the hero was.