I was seventeen the year my mother finally pushed me to take piano lessons. I had fought taking them my entire life, but when my grades at school dropped she made me an ultimatum. Take piano lessons or be transferred.
Sometimes it really sucked having a world-renowned concert pianist as mother.
I was on the street on my lessons when I finally heard the music. Beautiful, sweet music. Intrigued, I followed it to the building where my lesson was to be held. The door was cracked open and I could have easily gone in, but I stood outside of it just listening to the notes pour into the street.
"Are you going to come inside or just stand there all day?" I was jostled out of my thoughts by the voice inside. With his harsh tone, he took the music away.
Looking at my watch I realized I was late. "Sorry about that, I got held up with school." I bowed low when I entered the room in apology, not bothering to look up at what was bound to be another old fart of a teacher.
"Don't make a habit of it Higurashi-san. I don't have time for people who don't appreciate my time." His deep voice was curt and rude. Frustrated, I finally looked up at him.
He was gorgeous. He had already turned to walk back to the piano by the time I rose, but I caught a glimpse of his face as he sat down at the bench. He was tall, tall than most people, but he held himself with an air of confidence and authority that made him seem graceful. His hair hung to his waist in a silky sheet of black that was reminiscent of the piano sitting in front of him.
"What are you waiting for, get over here." He was cold for someone so young.
Finally finding the ability to move, I strode to the piano and set my bag on the chair beside it. I slid next to him on the bench, but kept enough distance between us so we didn't touch.
"We're going to start with chords." He said. He didn't look at me as he placed his long fingers on the keys. Pianist fingers, as my mother used to call them.
On his left ring finger gleamed a wedding ring. Oh, how I pitied his wife.
Without skipping a beat, I followed suit, but I didn't wait for his instruction. Instead, I began playing a verse of Debussy's Clair de Lune. It was heavy in chords and had a nice melody.
The sound of bass keys being slammed made me stop. "Have you finished butchering such a beautiful piece of music?" He sounded angry. I froze and took my hands off the keys.
I looked over at him from the corner of my eye. His beautiful face was tense as he ran a hand through his hair, but I could see the unmistakable lines of annoyance etched across his face.
"I don't know what my mother told you, but I do know how to play the piano. I'm not the incompetent idiot you all make me out to be." I didn't care that he was annoyed. I was too. Everyone was always looking down on me because I wasn't the master my mother way and I couldn't stand to see him do the same to me.
"I don't care if you're the best. When you walk into my studio as a student you start at the beginning." I looked over at him and his golden eyes met mine with a harshness I didn't understand. "Are you ready to listen now?"
I flushed with embarrassment. "Yes, Takahashi-sempai." I said. I felt defeated and childish under his gaze.
Over the next hour, he went over finger placement and chord progression. He made me repeat scale after scale until it sounded perfect to him. When we finished my hands were shaking and my fingers were numb. I knew from that brief hour that he was a man of no mercy.
As I stood at the door to leave, his voice pulled my attention away from my daydreams of a warm bath. "I expect you to have mastered those chords when you get here tomorrow. Those exercise books should be enough practice to get you through until then."
I turned to look at him, stunned. In my arms, I held the exercise books that he was speaking of. They were beginners' books, but even still there was enough material in them to cover a weeks worth of lessons. "I'm only meant to have weekly lessons." I retorted. "Besides, I have other homework I need to work on."
He was leaning over a piece of sheet music, not paying any mind to me. That was, until I spoke back to him. He looked up at me and stared. I could tell it wasn't very often someone stood up to him.
"If that's how you feel Higurashi-san, by all means don't show up tomorrow. But if you're not here, and with those chords perfected, you won't be welcome in my studio again." His face was expressionless. Factual and to the point. There was no room for convincing.
I turned on my heel and left, not giving him the satisfaction of a retort.
I hadn't touched a piano once I got home. I took that bath I daydreamed about and finished up my homework instead. I even climbed into bed at a reasonable hour. But after fifteen minutes of restless tossing and turning thinking of his golden eyes, I got up.
As I walked down the hallway to my mom's soundproof practice room, I wondered why I was even bothering. The man was an ass; I didn't have to submit myself to his punishing ways.
But I picked up my music books off the hall table anyways and made my way into the room. I wasn't about to be beaten by him.
The next morning my mother woke me. A warm smile on her face and laughter in her voice. "I never thought I would find you asleep in here."
Not understanding what she meant, I slowly opened my eyes and took in where I was. The practice room stretched out around me, the warm winds of summer blowing in from the French doors that dotted around the outside wall. My head was laying on my arms on top of the piano keys, a small pool of drool the evidence of my sleep.
It was only then that I remembered that I had played until dawn.
School was rough that day. Even though my homework had been completed and I understood the course material, my mind was on piano keys and my golden-eyed teacher.
When I showed up at the studio after school, I didn't even bother saying hello. I dropped my bag on the chair next to the piano and sat down at the bench. I played then. I played every damn note from those exercise books with flawless perfection.
When I finished I was out of breath. My frustration-fueled energy had been spent in my wild display. "Are you proud of yourself?" His tone was bored. "You mastered the book that five year olds play off of."
My spine straightened at his words. Slowly, I turned and looked at him. I met his eyes with fierce determination and a little bit of disbelief. How dare he. How dare he criticize me for doing as I was told. Sure, I had made quite a spectacle of myself but that wasn't the point.
"What more do you want me to do? " I finally snapped at him. "I did what you asked me to, and I've proved I'm not incompetent. So shut up and teach me something that isn't intended for a five year old."
His gaze didn't waver as he took me in. It was almost like he was sizing me up.
Finally, he got up from the chair he had folded himself into and walked over to me. My eyes followed him until he was standing right in front of me. He took my chin in his fingers with a harsh grip.
My heart pounded in my chest as he leaned toward me, his eyes boring into mine. As quickly as it started, he pulled his hand back and sat down next to me on the bench. "All right. Let's begin by cleaning up that Debussy piece you played yesterday. Your finger work was sloppy and can use some work."
I stared at him in disbelief as he put his hands on the keyboard, his face trained at the sheet music. When I didn't move, he tilted his head toward me, his hair falling away from his shoulder. That was the first moment I was jealous of that ring on his finger.
"Are you going to join me, Higurashi-san?" He asked.
Pulling myself from my thoughts, I nodded and we set to work.
A month later and I had had a lesson almost everyday after school. It seemed I was improving with incredible leaps and bounds. I was my mother's daughter after all.
I was packing up after a particularly grueling lesson when I found his wedding ring sitting on top of the piano. "Do you love your wife, sempai?" The words were out of my lips before I could stop myself.
Everyday I had felt my heart growing closer to him, and that mysterious ring on his finger had torn at me every time I saw it.
It was wrong for me to feel this way, but I couldn't help myself. There was something in his eyes that pulled me to him.
My back was toward him as I held the ring in my fingers. Before I realized what was happening, he had reached down and pulled the ring out of my hands from over my shoulders. I froze at his proximity.
"I love my wife more than anything." I turned to find a soft look in his eyes as he lovingly put his ring back on.
With tears in my eyes, I grabbed my bag and left. I didn't bother to look back as his eyes darted after me.
I skipped my lessons the next day for the first time since I had started going. I just couldn't bear to see his face. To think about that loving look that he held only for his wife.
In an attempt to forget him, I went to a house party my friends had been begging me to go to. They had been relentless in their pestering, and today I finally broke down and accepted. It was the perfect distraction to keep my mind off of the gold in his eyes.
The party was being held in a quaint suburb. I didn't even have to check my phone for the address again, it was obvious which house I was meant to be at. It was lit up like a Christmas tree with all of the lights turned on and the sounds of a remixed playlist reverberated through the street. There was definitely a party going on.
Inside was packed. There were people everywhere. "Kagome!" Someone yelled as they spotted me. A tall, dark haired boy was waving at me furiously as he pushed his way through the crowd.
I tried to suppress a laugh as I saw his lopsided grin get closer. "I see you found some inner strength."
He laughed at me. "You have to if you want to get anywhere in here. I didn't know you were coming tonight."
His dark eyes were warm as he smiled down at me. They were brown. Warm, muddy brown. Brown, not gold. "Well someone has to keep an eye on you, Kouga."
"Well then, you're going to need a drink." He grabbed my hand and pulled me along behind him. It was warm and reassuring against my palm. The further into the house we went, the more people we found. Half of them didn't even go to our school. The noise was deafening around me, the bass beat of the music rocking through my body.
He pulled me into the kitchen, which was serving as the one stop shop for snacks and drinks. The crowd wasn't as congested in here and there were some boys playing a game at the table. "Ah, Yuka!" I called to one of the girls talking around the large kitchen island.
She turned toward me and beamed. "You came! I didn't think you would." She came over to me and wrapped me in a warm hug. Seeing I was in good hands, Kouga left me with her to find us drinks.
"I didn't think you'd ever let me live it down if I didn't." I laughed as I wound my arms around her.
"I wouldn't have." She was practically glowing as we talked about the gossip and the whose who of the party.
I felt something getting pushed into my hand and looked down to find a red plastic cup being pressed into it. Kouga was already drinking from his as I wrapped my fingers around it. I smiled and brought it to my lips. The taste of liquor assaulted my taste buds as I took a drink.
"Bottoms up, Kagome!" Kouga bellowed over the music before he finished his drink.
I looked at the cup again and eyed the dark liquid inside. Without thinking, I downed it.
The next three hours went by in a blur. Kouga and Yuka stayed by me most of the night. They always kept my cup filled as we danced and talked. Slowly, the world around me was starting to become fuzzy, but the pain in my chest was going away with every sip.
At around eleven thirty, Yuka left in order to meet her curfew. My world was spinning by this point, every step was a struggle and I was becoming more and more unsteady on my feet. With a soft hand on my lower back, Kouga guided me toward one of the bedrooms upstairs.
I stumbled going up the stairs though, and found myself too dizzy to get back up. Kouga lifted me in his arms and carried me the rest of the way afterwards. I snuggled my head into his chest as he walked. He smelt nice.
I didn't remember the rest of the walk. I opened my eyes again when I felt Kouga lay me on the bed. It was a mistake though. The ceiling tilted violently above me, making my stomach turn.
Kouga's hand on my thigh pulled me away before I could get sick though. It was warm and a bit sweaty, but it was comforting. "Kagome, you're so beautiful." He whispered. The door muffled the music outside and the room was dark. I could feel the lure of sleep calling to me.
When I didn't say anything, he leaned over me and kissed my lips gently. My first mistake was not pushing him away. His lips were so warm and soft though. I kissed him back, not entirely processing what I was doing.
His kiss grew insistent and forceful. I didn't really know what was happening. My head was spinning. His hand on my thigh ran up my leg, pushing my skirt to my hip. I gasped against his lips, but he didn't stop. Rather, he used the opportunity to inserted his tongue into my mouth.
My alcohol-addled mind was screaming, but my body wouldn't respond. When he pulled back for air, I coughed as oxygen rushed into my lungs. His hand started to pull my underwear to the side as his fingers quickly entered me.
It was like a bucket of fear had been poured over me. "No!" I cried as I attempted to sit up. I couldn't. Panic was starting to envelop me as he continued to push ahead with what he was doing.
I was a rag doll under his hands.
"Kagome…" He breathed as he kissed my neck. He bit it hard, causing me to whimper and attempt to push against him harder. "I've wanted you for so long."
I yelped as he pushed into me harder. His other hand pulled open my button up shirt, exposing my breasts. He twisted one of my nipples cruelly.
The pain was numbed by the alcohol, but the fear at what was happening was getting stronger. "Kouga. Kouga, stop!" My hands pushed against his chest, but I had no strength. No power to get him to stop.
I continued to beg him to stop, but my voice sounded weak. I wanted this to stop, wanted him to let me go, but the world was starting to spin faster around me. I don't know how long he kept going.
When I heard a zipper, I fought harder to sit up. My brain was screaming now. I had to get out of here. I had to push harder. I tried to scream, but my voice was too quiet. I felt something warm and hard position itself against me and I started to cry. No one was going to help me. I was alone.
As he went to thrust, the bedroom door flew open, light and music spilling in from the hall. There was an angry man with long black hair standing in the doorway, but I couldn't recognize him in the shadows of the room.
Everything that happened next went by in a blur. Before Kouga could yell at the man, he was ripped off of me and thrown into the wall. I heard a few bangs and the sound of Kouga crying out.
The next thing I knew, I was being lifted from the bed, a warm jacket was wrapped around me. "Damnit Kagome." He murmured as he pulled me tight against his chest. He carried me from the room. I kept my eyes closed tightly and my head buried in his chest as he took me through the crowded house.
Sometime on the walk, I passed out.
When I woke up, I rolled over and vomited into a bucket that had thoughtfully been placed close to me. I felt a pair of warm hands pull my hair away from my face and twist it into a ponytail. When the heaves stopped I looked up to see where I was.
I was laying on a small single bed in what was obviously someone's guest room. I had been covered with a blanket in the night and was wearing a pair of pajamas. In a chair in the corner of the room sat a man I recognized well. I gasped. "Takahashi-sempai."
He was leaning forward with his elbows on his knees. He looked dishelved and his hair was pulled back at the nape of his neck. He was covered in sweat and looked as though he had slept in that chair.
"How are you feeling?" He asked, his gold eyes locking onto mine. I was still dizzy and a new feeling was starting to take over me as I gained consciousness. Pain.
My abdomen, my head, my chest, and my…between my legs. I must have whimpered because he came toward me, his hand softly brushing the few remaining strands of hair away from my face.
"Lay down, Kagome." He said softly as he gently pushed me down. He had a soft look on his face.
"Why am I here? How did I get here?" I obliged to his request and laid back. I was confused, but I was happy that he was taking care of me.
"What do you remember from last night?" He sat down on the edge of the bed next to me and ran his fingers through his hair again.
I tried really hard to remember, but it was all coming back to me in flashes. "I went to a party and hung out with Yuka and Kouga…" His face twisted at his name. "Then Yuka went home and…I was in a bedroom…and Kouga…and he…." I started to jolt upright at the memory, but he softly held me down.
"Did he? Did he get it…." Takahashi-sempai shook his head.
"No, that was when I got there. Kagome, what were you thinking drinking that much?" There was worry in his eyes, and it broke me.
I started sobbing from everything that had happened. He pulled me into his arms and rubbed my back softly as I cried into his chest. "I'm sorry," I cried. "I'm so sorry."
He didn't try to get me to stop; instead he gently stroked the top of my head and planted a gentle kiss on my forehead. When I quieted, I didn't attempt to move and he didn't push me away. We stayed like that for a long time, not talking, just relishing in each other's touch.
I pulled away from him suddenly as a thought dawned on me. I felt like cold water had been dumped on me.
"You're wife must be furious with me. I'm sorry for intruding." I scooted past him on the bed and stood up. My head spun as I did and pain rocketed through me, but I ignored it.
I had to get out of here before my heart could beat any faster.
His hand shot out and grabbed my wrist as I moved to walk past him. I turned and looked down at his face. "She's not here." I could tell from the way that he said it that that was all the information I was going to get from him.
"I should get home." I was fumbling, but I needed to get out of here. I was still uneasy on my feet and the events that I remembered from last night were still fresh in my mind. All I could think about was him, though. "My mom is probably worried."
"I already called her to tell you were here." His hand was still on my wrist.
"But-" I tried to protest.
"Come here before you fall over." His gently commanded me as he pulled me toward him. I stumbled and fell into his lap, but when I went to move his arms became iron around my waist. "Now, just relax. You're still not feeling well."
It was hard to though with his arms around me. As I looked down, I remembered that I was in different clothes than the ones I was wearing last night. "Did…did you change me?"
"Yes." His chest vibrated against my ear. "Yours were," he chose his words carefully, "unwearable." I flushed.
"Taka-" He cut me off with a finger to my lips. I froze.
"Inuyasha. Call me by my name today, Kagome." I couldn't see his eyes from where I was, but his jaw was set firmly.
"Thank you, Inuyasha." I whispered his name softly, but I felt him relax as I said it.
Once I was feeling better, he drove me home. We had stayed on the bed with me on his lap for a while. We talked occasionally, but it was just casual nonsense. The whole car ride back to my house, we didn't speak and he drove off as soon as I got out of the car.
I watched as he drove off until his car was out of sight, then I went into the house. What had happened this morning began to overshadow last night in my mind as I went into the house.
At school on Monday, I avoided Kouga like the plague. When he tried to approach me, I turned the other way. When he slipped notes into my desk, I threw them in the trash. I did not want him around me.
Yuka came to my desk at lunch, her face full of unanswered questions. "What's up, Yuka?" I asked her.
"Spill the details. Whose the cute guy with black hair?" She had a smug look on her face.
"What are you talking about?" I was lost, how did she know about Takahashi-sempai?
"There was this cute guy who lived next door to the house the party was Friday, and I was on the phone with Ayami as I was leaving. He was on his way to tell them to turn down the music when he heard me tell her that I had left you inside with Kouga." She smiled at me. "He then started asking me all these questions about where you were and how much you'd had to drink. When I told him you'd been drinking most of the night and that I'd left you with Kouga, he raced inside. You didn't tell me that you had such a cute boyfriend Kagome!"
"He's not my boyfriend, Yuka." Surprise was running through me. Takahashi-sempai had raced into the party, for me? I had wondered why he was there at all, but I hadn't thought to ask that morning when I woke up at his house.
"He sure acted like it Friday night." She was looking at me like she thought I was lying.
"Yuka, he's my piano teacher. That's all." I felt like I had to get her to understand that, but after Saturday morning I was beginning to question a lot of things about him too.
When I walked into the studio after my classes, I couldn't find Takahashi-sempai anywhere. In his absence, I opened the piano and began to play. I didn't hear him enter, but I saw his head as he leaned down to pick up a piece of paper off the floor that had fallen from the piano.
I stopped and turned to say hello, but I stopped when I saw his face. "What's wrong?" I asked. His face was pained as he read the little card he had in his hand.
"Get out." He said quietly, not bothering to look up at me.
"What?" I was confused.
"Get out!" He yelled.
I didn't bother grabbing anything as I ran out of the door. I was too shocked to even process that they were still inside. His words had hurt like a slap in the face. I didn't even know why he was so angry with me, unless he just didn't want to see me because of what happened on the weekend and that was his way of telling me to never come back.
When I got home, I collapsed at the piano that had become my second home in the house. I sobbed then. Body wracking sobs that made me feel like I was splitting in two.
My fingers moved on their own over the keys. For years I had played when I was at my lowest. Composing without purpose. The notes that came from the piano were sad, sorrowful sounds. The sounds of a broken heart.
I don't know how long I played, but my tears had dried up. When I stopped, I felt a pair of warm arms wrap around my shoulders.
"Did you have a fight with Takahashi-sempai?" My mother asked as she squeezed me in a warm hug.
"Something like that." I whispered back. I gently patted her arms around me.
She pulled back and smiled at me sadly. There was something in her hand. "Don't think too much of his harsh words. He really does have a kind heart." She held out her hand to me and I took what laid in them.
It was a photograph on her one and only piano class. There were six people in it, but the only person I saw was Takahashi-sempai.
He had his arm around the dark haired girl next to him, a loving smile on his lips that mirrored the one I'd glimpsed today.
"I didn't know he was your student, mom." I said. I looked up at her; she had a sad knowing smile on her face.
"They both were. Him and his wife. Her name was Kikyo." I looked up and then back down at the image. I had been twelve when mom had held the class, meaning he couldn't have been anymore than twenty.
"He looks…happy."
"They were." Mom's eyes had a sad faraway gaze. "They were my best students and their love for each other pushed their playing."
"Why did you show me this, Mom?" My heart was clenching tighter the more I looked at the photograph. I didn't want to see him with her. Having to see his ring everyday was torture enough.
"Because I wanted you to understand why he's the way he is." She rubbed my shoulder gently. "This was the last photo of them."
The…last? I couldn't process what she was saying. "Why?"
"He hasn't told you?" She looked surprise. "His wife died of cancer six months after this photograph was taken. We found out the week after the class ended that she had a stage four carcinoma."
I went back to the studio a few hours later to get my bag. I'd realized I'd left it when I went to do my homework and couldn't find it. He was sitting at the piano with his back to me when I walked in. "Your wife is gone." The words came out of my mouth before I could stop myself.
"Yes." He didn't turn toward me.
I walked toward him, anger building inside of me. "You let me believe she was alive. Even when you held me! It would have been kinder for you to just tell me you weren't interested!" I was almost to him when he stood up, knocking the piano bench over in the process. He spun around quickly when I was within arms length and grabbed me. His lips came down over mine before I could process what was happening.
I kissed him back, my hands coming up to tangle in his hair. He lifted me up and spun me so that I was sitting on the piano keys. The loud sound of notes that had no right being played together rang through the room.
I wrapped my legs around him and pulled him closer to me. I held onto him tightly, afraid he was going to push me away. "I'm sorry." He whispered against my lips.
His hands cupped my face as he looked into my eyes. "I shouldn't have yelled at you." He stepped away from me to grab something off of the end table next to his chair. I slid down off of the piano as he did.
He handed me the card from earlier, along with another one. Each one only had one sentence written on them.
I love you. –Kikyo
Be happy, Inuyasha. – Kikyo
He had begun explaining everything to me as I looked over the cards. "I snapped at you earlier because I found the first one. When my wife died, I closed this studio and didn't step foot in it until the day of your first lesson. She had hidden the notes inside the lid for me to find."
"I had been trying to hard not to care about you because I still love my wife. I always will, Kagome. But I felt myself beginning to care for you and just as I was beginning to let my guard down and thought I was going to be able to open up to you, I found this card. I thought it was my wife looking down on me and punishing me for thinking about someone other than her."
I stared at him. He took a deep breath and then continued, he was looking at me like a crazy man. "I was so upset when I found the card Kagome that I just lashed out at you. As soon as you left, though, I found the second one. That's when I knew that it wasn't my wife's memory holding me back, it was myself. I was just using her memory as an excuse to push you away, and when I saw that guy taking advantage of you I lost it. I knew then I couldn't keep you at arms length anymore. I don't want you to be with anyone else. Ever."
"I love you Kagome." I could see the vulnerability in his tough exterior then. My heart soared at his words. He started to say something else, to begin another rant, but I stepped forwards and placed my finger on his lips, cutting him off.
"I love you too, Inuyasha." The words were barely out of my mouth before he kissed me again. That was the end of the conversation.
We stood there and kissed for what seemed like ages, but I didn't care. His lips were better than the air that I had to keep breaking away from him for.
When we stepped back and hit the piano bench he'd flipped over, he broke away from me and righted it again. He sat down on it and pulled me on top of him so that I was straddling him.
His hands tangled in my hair again as he pulled my lips to his. They were fervent and unrelenting as he ran them down my neck and over my body. Exploring me. He rested them on my waist finally and pulled me against him. He broke the kiss and looked up at me imploringly. "I want you Kagome." His voice was deep and husky, raising every hair on my arms.
I gently kissed his lips and stood up. He looked at me. He was the confused one for once, and I took satisfaction in that fact. Slowly, I ran my fingers up my hips and under my skirt, looping them through the sides of my underwear. Then I dropped them. Understanding washed over his face as he grabbed my wrist and pulled me back on top of him, his eyes ravenous.
I kissed him deeply as he undid his pants, my hands pulling his shirt above his head between kisses. Once he was free, he grabbed my hips and lifted me. Slowly, he positioned me above him.
He looked at me for permission and when I nodded he brought me down slowly. When he was partially in, he pulled me closer to him and whispered softly, "This will hurt, Kagome." With one hard thrust he broke through my hymen.
I cried out as pain flooded my pelvis. Blood stained his pants that were still under me, but he wasn't paying attention to that. He kissed my head gently as I laid it against his shoulder. He murmured soothing words to me and stroked my hair until the pain went away.
"Are you okay?" He stroked my cheeks as he looked at me. I nodded and he kissed me again, making me forget there was ever any pain at all. I brought myself up and down on top of him, pleasure flooding through both of us. I moaned against his lips as he moved my hips faster.
He was gentle with me, careful not to hurt me. He was right on the edge of completion when he pulled me off of him. I shakily reached my hand out and stroked him as I sat on the edge of his knees. He laid his head back as his orgasm rocked his body, a moan leaving his lips.
He leaned forward and kissed me gently. "I love you Kagome." He whispered as he ran his hand through my hair.
"I love you too Inuyasha." I smiled at him and kissed him once more. I didn't want to get up, but I disentangled myself from him and went to the bathroom to get cleaned up.
Three weeks later, I was running late for my lessons, again. Inuyasha stood at the piano facing me, an impatient look on his face. "You're late Higurashi-san."
"I'm sorry." I threw my bag on the chair next to the bench and sat down at the piano, ready to play.
I set my fingers to work over the keys as he sat down next to me. The warmth of his hand on my inner thigh made me stumble over my notes. "Play it again." He ordered in my ear as he slid his fingers over me.
Trembling, I obliged. As he rubbed me over me, I faltered again. I looked at him with a blush on my cheeks. He smirked at me sexily. "We're going to keep going until you can play this piece flawlessly." He kissed my neck gently. "Now play it again."