Hearts Remember What Minds Try To Forget by Rex Wilder 40

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“Mr. Wilson! We found her! We saw Mrs. Wilson’s name on the participant list for a music competition. We’ve double–checked, and she’s definitely in Vienna right now!” 

The assistant’s message sent Ethan into a frenzy of excitement. He immediately arranged for a private jet to take him to Vienna. 

The day the plane arrived was the same day I was performing in the music competition. 

Ethan remembered how he’d first fallen for me–the dazzling way I looked on stage playing the piano. 

This current situation felt like a destined full circle, as if fate was giving him another chance to start over with me. 

He vowed silently to himself: this time, he wouldn’t let me suffer even a tiny bit of hardship again! 

He changed into the white suit he’d worn back then, holding a massive bouquet of vibrant, dewy roses. He planned to re–confess to me after my competition, just like he did when he first pursued me. 

He wanted me to see the suit, the flowers, to remember the Ethan who’d gone all out to win me over. 

He was sure that once I saw him like this, familiar and earnest, I’d be moved. I’d come back to him, after all, I loved him so much. 

Full of confidence, he walked into the concert hall and took the best seat in the audience. His heart pounded, anticipating my 

appearance. 

The lights dimmed, the hall fell silent, and a single spotlight hit the grand piano center stage. 

I walked out gracefully, wearing a simple white satin gown. Under the lights, my eyes looked soft and calm, yet my gaze was confident 

and firm. 

Ethan’s eyes were locked on me, filled with intense love, obsession, and the wild joy of having found me again. 

It was like his mind flashed back to the first day he saw me, no, I was even more dazzling now than I was back then. He couldn’t tear his 

eyes away. 

Polite applause rippled through the audience, but all Ethan could hear was his own heart pounding like crazy in his chest. He stared greedily at my radiant figure on stage, wanting nothing more than to rush up there and pull me into his arms. 

He gripped the bouquet tight, looking forward to our reunion after the competition. 

But on stage, I didn’t sit down right away. 

I turned slightly towards backstage, a familiar smile playing on my lips, full of ease and reliance. 

Then, Noah walked out. 

He was in a perfectly tailored black tuxedo, standing tall and straight, with a refined, graceful aura that also carried a powerful presence. 

He walked up to me, and we exchanged a silent, knowing smile. No words needed, just perfect understanding. 

We sat down side–by–side at the piano. 

The moment our four hands hit the black and white keys, a torrent of fluid, beautiful notes poured out like a waterfall. The audience collectively held their breath, completely lost in the musical feast. 

Ethan, though, was frozen in his seat, his blood seemingly turning to ice in an instant. The world in his ears went silent, all he could see was Noah and me, our movements so perfectly synchronized it was blinding. 

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We sat so close, our arms and bodies brushing lightly every now and then. Our fingertips moved across the keys with an intimacy and synchronicity that was palpable, and our occasional shared smiles were just… blinding. 

He felt himself completely consumed by a fiery mix of jealousy and panic. He fixated on the perfect pair on stage, watching how focused and happy I looked playing beside Noah. 

We looked so right together, so perfectly matched. The scene before him felt like a red–hot blade, plunging straight into his heart. 

His meticulously chosen white suit, the roses he held with such high hopes–they all looked so pathetic, so laughable, so utterly insignificant next to the perfect pair on stage! 

A massive wave of panic instantly swallowed him whole. 

What could he possibly offer that Noah couldn’t? 

When it came to the music I loved, he knew absolutely nothing. It took him months of hard work just to butcher a clumsy “Für Elise” for me. Back then, it was his passionate, unwavering love that had won me over. 

But now, for the sake of some damn kid, he’d broken his promises again and again, hurt me over and over. What little weight did he still hold in my heart? 

What could he possibly do? To make me come back to him? 

Ethan’s mind was a chaotic mess. The certainty and confidence he’d arrived with had vanished, replaced by an endless, suffocating 

dread. 

The piece ended, and the audience erupted in thunderous, sustained applause. 

Noah and I stood up together, bowing side–by–side to the fervent cheers of the crowd. 

As I stood up, Noah naturally reached out and gently touched my arm, a gesture both gentlemanly and intimate. I smiled back at him, and together, we exited to the applause. 

Ethan couldn’t sit still anymore. A massive wave of panic, coupled with the gut feeling that he was truly about to lose me for good, propelled him to his feet. Ignoring the bewildered stares, he clutched the bouquet of roses and stumbled backstage. 

Ethan’s eyes frantically scanned the backstage crowd. Finally, in a corner, he spotted me. 

I was half–turned away from him, my head slightly tilted back as I said something to Noah, a relaxed smile on my face, my eyes bright. 

Noah leaned in slightly, listening intently, his gaze soft, a gentle smile playing on his lips. 

They stood incredibly close, their unspoken connection seemingly creating a space solely for them. 

This warm, beautiful scene pierced Ethan’s eyes like a needle. 

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