Page 187 of Without Fault

“I don’t need prac–”

“Liam.” She gives him a warning look and I feel my brows raise at how quickly he shuts his mouth. “Practice for an hour then you can go out with your friends.”

“Mom–”

“Now.”

He looks over at me, and I nod for the piano. “Listen to your mother, Liam.”

A smile grows on his pretty face. “Oh, don’t fucking—”

“Excuse me?” His mom steps in front of him with her arms crossed. “Don’t speak to her like that.”

I smile at him from over her shoulder. “Yeah, Liam. Don’t speak to me like that.” I try my hardest not to laugh, and he looks like he’s going to make me pay for this, but it’s too easy.

“You can forget about seeing your friends for your language. Go practice for the musical.” His mom flops onto the couch but keeps her eyes on the piano like she’s planning on watching him practice.

“You’re so lucky she’s watching,” Liam mumbles as he passes me, and I break into a laugh.

He sits at the piano before glancing over at his mom, but she only nods, and he lets out a sigh before he turns back around. I’m not sure what I was expecting, but when he starts flipping through the music sheet in front of him andactuallyplays, my jaw drops.

“He can play thepiano?”

Capri laughs from beside me, but I can’t shake off the shock. “He was in the Winter musical every year from sixth through twelfth grade. That’s what she was talking about before.”

“He was atheaterkid?”

Capri tilts her head back with a laugh and I also laugh at the idea. There’snothingwrong with being a theater kid. I actually think it’s cool, and everyone who can play an instrument is superior, but it’s hard to imagineLiamas a theater kid.

“Oh, don’t let him hear you saying that. He almost fired me when I said that. He wasnota theater kid. He only played the piano in a few musicals.”

I turn to Capri, and she smiles over at me.

“His words.”

We share another laugh and I get out my phone to record him play. He plays one song for a solid three-ish minutes and it’s like he went somewhere else as he plays. His mom ends up getting up and giving him tips about a mistake I couldn’t even hear.

She makes him do it again, and he has to restart twice when he messes up, but he gets it. I clearly don’t have a musical bone in my body because it sounds the same every time he plays, but he gets her approval once he finishes.

“And you said you didn’t need to practice.” She rolls her eyes. “Shanti can play better than that.”

“That’s hard to believe since she can’t read a music sheet yet, but okay.” Liam rolls his eyes, but I can tell they’re joking again.

“You know,” His mom turns to him with a smile. “I think she’s going to have perfect pitch.”

I feel my smile slowly fade at the hope in her eyes, and I hate that she lost her baby girl.

“You thought the same for me.”

“Yeah but Shanti is just perfect, she’ll have perfect pitch.” His mom nods like she’s certain, but Liam looks offended now.

“Wow, she’sjust perfect? What am I?”

She quickly realizes her mistake and hugs Liam, but he rises from the piano. “You know that’s not what I meant. You’re perfect, too, sweetie.”

“Nope, she’s your favorite, I understand.” He walks off, and she laughs at him as she turns back to the piano. When he reaches me, I smile up at him, and when he turns his head to the side, I know he can see right through me.

“If you’re going to get sad every time she brings up my sister then we may as well leave now.”

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