Chapter 71
It took Bryce almost a minute to recover from his shock. His eyes were fixed intently on Ashley, his face filled with disbelief. âAshley, you canât be serious? Youâre Ash? Stop kidding around!â
Ashley raised her eyebrow and found his reaction somewhat amusing. âWhy would I joke about this?â
Still in a daze, Bryce glanced at Laura and then back at Ashley.
Finally, he pinched the flesh on his arm.
âDamn, it hurt!â He thought.
That wasnât an illusion!
No wonder the style of these three songs seemed like Ashâs..
No wonder Ashley could write two songs in just 15 minutes.
No wonder, during that reality show, when Ashley played âThe Land,â it was identical to Ashâs performance.
All of it made sense now.
It turned out that Ashley was Ash!
Both excited and restless, Bryce began to pace around Ashley in circles.
Ashley felt dizzy as Bryce spun her around. âAre you okay?â She asked.
Laura grabbed Bryce firmly. âCalm down!â
Finally, Bryce stopped. Trembling, he reached out to touch Ashleyâs arm.
Ashley instinctively pulled away. âWhat are you doing?â
âIâm just touching the legend, Ash!â Bryce exclaimed.
Ashley was speechless.
The legend?
She was still young!
Bryce was overwhelmed with excitement. âAshley, do you know what Ash means to musicians? Sheâs like a legend! Let me touch your arm, just for a second!â
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Ashley remained silent.
Laura suddenly reached out and touched her as she stood there, lost for
words.
Ashley looked puzzled.
âI just wanted to touch you too,â Laura explained.
Ashley didnât know what to say.
By now, Bryce had processed the shocking news. Smirking, he said, âAshley, youâre really something for a minor celebrity. Oh my, I just asked Ash to write songs for me⦠It was totally worth it!â
Used to their banter, Ashley didnât hold back. She raised her eyebrow and replied playfully, âGlad you know it.â
Suddenly, Bryce leaned in. âBesides composing, how about you do the arrangement for me too?â
Ashley smiled with her eyes squinted, âSure, just dance a pole dance for me, and Iâll arrange it for free.â
Bryce remained silent upon hearing this.
It looked like she couldnât get over pole dancing.
Ashley was too obsessed with it!
As they were talking, Ashleyâs phone rang.
The caller ID showed it was Valentin.
Surprised for a moment, Ashley walked aside to answer the call, âHello?â
A manâs deep, magnetic voice came through the receiver, tinged with at slight electric buzz that tingled the ears. âStill busy? When are you coming back?â
Ashley replied, âAlmost done, finishing up soon.â
Valentin offered, âIâll come pick you up.â
Ashley declined. âNo need, donât trouble yourself to make the trip.â
Hearing this, the man chuckled, âHow is it a trouble to pick up my own
wife?â
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Ashleyâs ears heated up, speechless.
He insisted, âItâs late. Iâd better come get you.â
Glancing at the night outside the window, Ashley realized it was indeed late and instinctively advised, âThen be careful driving at night.â
The man laughed pleasantly. âAshley, you finally care about me.â
Ashley was puzzled and at a loss for words.
She quickly ended the call without responding.
âWhoâs caring about him, that jerk!â She thought
After hanging up, Ashley chatted with Bryce and Laura for a bit.
Î
As things were almost wrapped up, Bryce still had some final tasks, while Ashley and Laura left the building together.
Exiting the companyâs main entrance, she saw Valentinâs car parked a few
steps away.
Ashley and Laura said goodbye, and Ashley walked over to get into the
car.
Laura had thought that a friend of Ashleyâs was picking her up, but her gaze froze upon seeing the carâs license plate.
That license plateâ¦.
In all of Kilos City, only one person would use it.
The person picking up Ashley wasâ¦Valentin?
Lauraâs shock was no less than when she first discovered that Ashley was.
indeed Ash.
In just one evening, Ashley had twice overturned her understanding of things.
But then she thought about it. Ashley had been signed by Joseph to join. the company, so her status was extraordinary.
Now, late at night, Valentin would drive to pick her up. He was probably the most noble driver in the world.
It seemed that Ashleyâs relationship with Valentin was quite unusual!
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On the other side, once Ashley got into the car, the man naturally leaned over and carefully fastened her seatbelt for her.
Once Ashley was seated, she didnât have to lift a finger. She was taken care of very attentively.
After fastening the seatbelt, the man looked up at her, his eyes with warmth. âYou are working so late today. Are you hungry?â
Ashley did feel a bit hungry after Valentin mentioned it.
She glared at him playfully, deliberately being difficult. âItâs all your fault for making me feel hungry.â
Valentin found her pouty and adorable demeanor irresistible. Ruffling her hair, he said, âYes, itâs all my fault. Letâs go get something to eat, Ms. Ramos.â
Ashley turned her head to dodge his hand. âStop messing up my hair.â
He raised an eyebrow playfully and tousled her hair again.
Ashley slapped his hand away. âWhy are you so annoying? Just like when you were a kid.â
The man chuckled softly, mimicking her. âWhy are you so cute? Just like when you were little.â
Ashley was speechless.
In that instant, her face flushed red.
Embarrassed, Ashley lifted her right foot and kicked at his shin.
Valentin glanced nonchalantly at the spot she kicked, not angry or even somewhat pleased. âYou kick much lighter than when you were little.â
Ashley remained silent.
The day of the album release arrived in a blink.
The release was scheduled for ten in the morning.
It was just past eight, and curious netizens were already gathering to watch.
Bryce and Matthew, both famous stars with tens of millions of followers,
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were releasing songs on the same day, making it hard not to compare their sales.
The excitement was palpable.
Bryce and Matthewâs fans were eagerly rubbing their hands together, ready to buy their idolâs new songs as soon as they were released, with no one willing to be left behind.
At nine oâclock, Matthew posted a teaser on his Twitter.
[Every two years, I release an album, and today is the day for another one. This album contains a total of ten songs, and for one of them, Iâve invited a friend to help with the composition. I believe everyone will love. it! Looking forward to 10 oâclock!]
The fans excitedly screamed, their money ready for Matthewâs new song.
Online onlookers caught on to some important information.
[Wow, could Matthew have invited Ash? Matthew is Ashâs only student, so when he releases an album, Ash will definitely help, right?]
[Remember Matthewâs last album? He had Ash compose for it, which directly clinched the title of that yearâs top-selling album, even breaking records! Ashâs composition skills are genuinely impressive!]
[I donât mean to jinx Bryce, but Matthewâs album will have higher sales if comparing the two!]
[Speaking of which, who is the mysterious composer Bryce hired?]
[Itâs probably just an average composer. It wouldâve been revealed earlier to attract more attention if it was a big shot.]
Finally, amid the discussions and anticipation of netizens, ten oâclock arrived.
The music platform simultaneously released new songs by Matthew and Bryce.
Everyone was speculating that Matthewâs mysterious composer was Ash. They had no choice but to check out Matthewâs new song first. After all, Ashâs reputation was too prominent and highly attractive to everyone.