Da Capo

Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Kyle simmered with suppressed rage for the rest of the day. He tried his best not to come off as terse or unpleasant when he sat down with his manager Reg and with the BBC producers later that day to talk about filming the rest of the documentary, but it was difficult. It was their fault he was in this predicament in the first place, and he couldn't help but feel angry and resentful toward them. If they hadn't duped him into having that interview with Chloe, then she never would have blatantly flirted with him on camera, and Stephanie wouldn't be upset with him right now.

Stephanie was the one acting like a child, though. How was it Kyle's fault Chloe wouldn't leave him the fuck alone? Chloe knew as well as him that their relationship was a disaster – there was no way in hell she actually wanted him back. If she was acting affectionate toward him, it was probably just for the cameras and the attention it would undoubtedly bring.

Surely Stephanie knew that. Right?

Of course she knew that. Kyle had been honest with her from the beginning about how he really felt about Chloe, and if Stephanie saw them being interviewed in the auditorium today, she clearly would have seen him not returning Chloe's affection. Stephanie would have had to be blind and dumb to not know how he felt toward Chloe.

But Stephanie wasn't blind and dumb, and her seeing how Chloe acted around Kyle during the interview had clearly upset her anyway. Kyle remembered back at the pub a few nights ago, Stephanie had confessed to him about her experience with her ex-boyfriend Leon. She had found out he was cheating on her, and she decided to leave him, quit her job, and come to London for the summer to immerse herself in classical music.

It was obvious that Stephanie's experience with her ex had deeply affected her. Seeing Chloe and Kyle together probably put her in mind of being cheated on again.

Suddenly, Kyle felt like shit.

Of course, Stephanie had told him she was nervous about jumping into a new relationship after her ex completely fucked her over. Trusting a guy again clearly wasn't easy for her, and Kyle's blasé behavior toward Chloe probably hadn't helped build trust with her. He may not have returned Chloe's flirtatious behavior, but he didn't discourage it either, and that had likely hurt Stephanie just as much.

Goddammit

Kyle suddenly felt awful that he had gotten so angry at Stephanie, and he wanted to find a way to make it right. He had always felt that ignoring Chloe was the best method of dealing with her, but maybe he needed to take a different approach, especially if he wanted to have any chance of being with Stephanie in the future.

Maybe he needed to have a real face-to-face conversation with Chloe so he could lay it all out on the table. He wasn't sure if it would work, but it was worth a shot.

He would finally stand up and face his shrew of an ex-girlfriend. For Stephanie, he would try.

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Kyle got to the Academy early the next morning, knowing that Chloe was teaching a masterclass soon; his own masterclass was starting in about half an hour, so he hoped they could keep this conversation brief. He walked into the administrative office and asked a young woman there which room Chloe would be teaching in. With a lot of star-struck stammering and giggling, she eventually told him Chloe was teaching in a small performance hall on the fourth floor, and Kyle thanked her before heading upstairs.

He found the performance hall quite easily – he could hear violin music coming from the one at the far end of the corridor, and he walked over to the doors. Without hesitating, he opened them with a loud slam and strode into the performance hall; Chloe, who had been standing and playing violin up on the small dais at the front of the room, paused as she looked up at the doors.