Chapter 63 - A Lot Of Progress

When Yvonne woke up the next morning, she felt like her entire body had been wrung like a wet cloth and her brain had been put in a blender.

"What is wrong with me today?" She groaned as she held her head in her tiny hands.

Feeling something amiss, she retracted her hands and brought them before her eyes.

She stared at them intently as though there was something wrong with those tiny yet chubby hands.

'Why do I feel like I had prettier nails than these?' She brought her fingers closer and made a disgusted face when she saw the tiny stubby nails that Mrs. Jacinth had cut for her.

Remembering Mrs. Jacinth, she felt a strange ache in her heart that she couldn't understand nor could she pinpoint why it had suddenly arisen.

The knock on the door brought her back from her thoughts and after giving permission to the person outside, Yvonne was overjoyed to see the old maid she was just thinking about entering the room.

"Young Miss, please get ready. Your piano classes will begin in an hour's time." The maid urged the little girl to get off her bed and begin her day.

Yvonne wordlessly did as she was told and after completing her morning routine, she sat before the mirror and watched as the older lady combed her long violet tresses.

Once again the feeling of something being different from earlier popped up in her mind.

Gazing at her reflection in the mirror, Yvonne smiled at it and watched how her eyelids would slant ever so slightly while deep and prominent dimples emerged on her cheeks.

Mrs. Jacinth chuckled and connected her Young Miss's actions to those of a mere child playing with her reflection.

Yvonne ignored the old maid's giggles and blankly stared at her reflection.

The image of a similar-looking beauty flashed in her eyes and before she could make out who it really was, the image vaporized.

Yvonne narrowed her eyes and associated the image of her past life with the one that had flashed before her eyes.

'Maybe I have put on some weight?' She wondered and pulled her soft and full cheeks.

Deciding that she needs to lose some weight if she wanted to look like how she did in her previous life, Yvonne pondered on how to ask Rutherford permission in this regard.

'Working out for hours really did help me maintain my figure even after my glory days on the runway. However, I doubt that Rutherford and Raylene would agree to anything that seems so unladylike for their daughter.' She shook her head while thinking of this.

Yvonne had been trained by her grandfather to be his heir apparent after her parents died but when she turned 18, he suddenly stopped training her and asked her to do whatever she pleased.

The person who had been through hellish training for the past 6 years was asked to choose any career they wished for and this stumped the young adult.

At that time, Butler Powell the movie buff had suggested that she try her luck in the entertainment industry.

Following his advice, Yvonne auditioned for a small-time model's position and secured it with ease.

Her genes gave her a gorgeous face which could make heads turn, her figure was the definition of perfection and her posture was impeccable after numerous hours of training that she underwent.

That was how Yvonne St. Claire had started her career as a model and later on went on to become the youngest supermodel to ever walk the runway.

Like all things that come to an end, she too left her high heels on the runway to take the seat of CEO of St. Claire Group and brought it to new heights before handing it over to Vince whom she had trained herself.

'If I hadn't taken over the role as CEO then Grandpa would have made Vince go through all the training that I had to suffer through.' She grimaced thinking of the day that she had had this conversation with Grandpa Leo.

He had told Yvonne that she could do whatever she pleased and that he would train Vince instead.

Not wanting to ruin Vince's childhood, she had fought tooth and nail to save her brother and took up that position instead.

She made a deal with Grandpa Leo that she would train him and make him capable of running the entire business by himself.

Until then, she would be the acting CEO of St. Claire Group and never let it be put to shame.

Her plans came to fruition without much struggle because Vince was bright to begin with and under her guidance, he learned the ropes within a few months.

Handing over the business in his safe hands, she focused her attention on the company she had started after her modeling days, Platina Entertainment which went on to become one of the best in its own right.

"Young Miss, are you alright? Did I hurt you?" Mrs. Jacinth's frantic voice brought Yvonne back from her memories.

She shook her head in reply and glanced at the mirror only to find tears rolling down her eyes.

'This body really is susceptible to expressing its emotions freely.' She cursed the little body she was inside right now and wiped those pesky tears away.

She knew that missing her brother and her grandfather would do nothing in her favor but she just couldn't stop her heart from yearning for the love she felt when she was with them.

'Why did I remember them out of the blues?' She wondered but had to stop when she heard Mrs. Jacinth urging her to hurry along.

"Let's go." She looked up at the maid and followed after her to the place where her class would be.

Today she was dressed in a pure white dress that dragged along the floor as she walked.

'Raylene went a little overboard with shopping that day.' She glanced at the dress and remembered the carriage full of clothes that her mother had brought back with her after their trip to the Commercial District.

Thinking of that place, she was reminded of the boy named Damien.

'Those eyes!' She exclaimed in her heart but stopped her thoughts because she had reached her destination.

The moment she entered their music room, she glanced around and sighed when she did not find Governess Lester anywhere.

"The class hasn't started yet and you seem to be tired already?" A sweet and mellow voice was heard from behind.

'Think of the devil!' Yvonne reluctantly turned around and curtsied to the elderly woman who was nothing but a devil in disguise of a sweet grandmother figure.

"Let us begin the class. You will need extra attention anyway." Governess Lester waved her wrist and walked towards the grand piano placed by the large window.

Yvonne glanced at the sun-kissed piano and cursed in her mind.

'It isn't my fault that my fingers are so damn stubby! Let them grow a little and then I can master any score she asks me to play!' She harrumphed in silence in order to not let the strict lady hear it.

Walking towards the seat, she took a deep breath and then sat next to the woman who by the looks of it took pleasure in hitting Yvonne whenever she messed up.

"Play this." Governess Lester handed over a brand new sheet and waited for her to read it.

Yvonne took a moment to read the entire sheet and then placed it on the piano.

'There's no pressure! Take your own time and just ace it in the first go!' She gave herself a pep talk to calm herself and remove the fear of the inevitable strikes that her pitiable fingers would receive.

"Hurry up, child! I haven't got all day!" The annoyed voice of her teacher brought Yvonne back from her thoughts.

Looking at the dreadful ebony and ivory keys before her, she took a deep breath in and then laid her little fingers over them.

Governess Lester who had already kept her favorite stick prepared to smack Yvonne's fingers the moment she messed up was left untouched until the entire score was completed.

Flabbergasted at how impeccably she had played the brand new piece without any pauses, the old lady's jaw dropped and she watched the child in awe.

Until the piece was finished, Yvonne was not aware of what she had been doing or how she had been playing it so effortlessly.

Once she was done, the tears that once again streamed down her cheeks brought her back to her senses.

'Tsk! Again with the tears!' She complained and wiped them away.

She was surprised to see that she had already cried twice in the past half an hour.

"I am so proud of you!" Governess Lester exclaimed and pulled her in for a tight and warm hug.

Yvonne curbed the annoyance she felt at being in such close contact with the lady and sighed when she was released from it.

"I knew you had it in you! You felt the pain in the music and it led you to get immersed in it." She nodded while explaining to her why she had wept while playing it.

Yvonne looked at the music sheet and after a few moments of contemplation, she turned back to face her teacher.

"Can I know what the name of this piece is?" She inquired and received a bitter smile.

The governess took the sheet and then caressed it before placing it back in her bag.

"It is called 'Tears of our love', a famous musician wrote it after his wife died in the plague that devastated Rosenhyde a few years ago." She shook her head while recalling the sad tragedy that accompanied this great musical piece.

The moment Yvonne heard the name of the piece, she felt a painful throb in her chest which disappeared just as quickly as it had appeared.

'I need to know more about this musician and this plague.' She decided to investigate more about this matter.

Following the lady's instructions, she played the next piece and the result was the same as before.

In the span of one hour, Yvonne had played six pieces that she had never practiced before and all of them were played in perfection.

"You seem to have made a lot of progress during the weekend." Governess Lester praised her wholeheartedly as she bid her goodbye.

Yvonne stood at the door and waved as the lady's carriage drove away from St. Claire estate.

'How exactly did I play them without a single mistake?' Yvonne mulled over as she made her way back to the study room.

'I sure as hell did not practice during the weekend and was fretting when that dreadful stick would strike me, so how did this happen?' She rubbed her chin in bewilderment as she waited for the next tutor to arrive.