Even a Scream Has A Musical Scale - Chapter 17

The roar of excitement was deafening, like a thunderclap in the room. The guys whistled and stomped their feet, and she, trembling on her high heels, pressed her lips firmly against Duncan’s cheek. How long should she keep this up? As Dani pondered, she counted to three and slowly pulled her lips away, setting her heels down.

“This is my mission,” Dani said, looking up at Duncan. He was suppressing his laughter behind a fist pressed to his mouth.

“That’s cheating, Dani. You’re just too cute.”

His eyes were wide, fixed entirely on her. It was the look of someone who had just spotted their prey. The moment Dani realized something was going wrong, the surrounding guys started stomping and cheering louder.

“Duncan! Duncan! Duncan!”

The air shifted instantly. Panicked, she tried to step back, but Duncan grabbed her wrist and pulled her into his embrace. Dani found herself enveloped in his arms in a heartbeat.

“I’m one lucky guy. The moment I showed interest, you just rolled right into my arms.”

Duncan tightened his grip around her and looked down with a smirk.

“So, what was your mission?”

“…A kiss.”

At those words, Duncan laughed even harder.

“Then it’s a mission failed, Dani. What you just did was a greeting, not a kiss.”

Duncan’s arm held her tightly as he used his other hand to lift her chin. Dani couldn’t struggle, and it happened so fast that she couldn’t even scream.

But just as Duncan’s lips were about to reach Dani, someone grabbed her wrist and Duncan was thrown to the ground.

“Ugh… Who the hell?”

Duncan glared at the figure who had intervened.

“It’s me,” came the reply, and Dani saw Remington shielding her with his broad back. Even among the big athletic guys, he was strikingly tall. Dani stared at the back of Remington’s head in a daze before looking down at his hand, which was gripping her wrist. His strong hand showed pronounced veins under the skin.

“Forced touching is against the rules, Duncan. Just because Jeff is out doesn’t mean the party should turn into a mess.”

Remington tightened his grip on her wrist and warned Duncan. At the mention of “assault,” Duncan sprang to his feet, protesting.

“Assault? When did that happen?”

“Look at Roderson’s face. Can’t you see she’s startled?”

“Hey, it was you who told Dani that she liked me first!”

Duncan tried to argue back, but Remington ignored him and turned to address the other guys.

“And for those taking sneaky photos—keep your phones in check. Distributing such photos is a crime, and sometimes even possessing them is illegal. You all know how conservative and relentless Roderson is.”

One by one, the phones pointing at us were lowered. Remington shot me a sharp look, then pulled me by the hand.

“Come with me.”

Remington dragged Dani to the back courtyard of the chapel. The grass glowed under the yellow streetlights, casting a pale green hue, while the cool night air brushed against her cheeks. Once he confirmed they were alone, he seized her shoulders with a firm grip.

“Are you out of your mind? Do you even realize what you just did?”

His face was unfamiliar to Dani. His furrowed brows, glaring eyes, and lips set to snap at any moment made it clear he was furious.

“What did you eat at the party? Did you just accept whatever they handed you?”

“I didn’t eat anything weird. I just had a bit of the punch that everyone else was drinking.”

“Do you know that punch usually has alcohol in it?”

“I know! I’m not your little sister!”

As Dani bristled, Remington finally released her shoulders. He leaned against the railing, exhaling in frustration. His face was flushed with anger. Dani struggled to understand why he was so upset.

“Thanks for helping me out, but I wasn’t drunk or acting impulsively. It was a bet with Eleanor. If I liked Duncan, I had to kiss him in front of you.”

“Ah, a kiss. So that’s what you call a kiss in the South?”

“Look it up. Even kissing the back of a hand or a cheek counts as a kiss by definition.”

“Right. I hope that wasn’t your first kiss.”

“How long are you going to keep mocking me? I was just following through with our plan!”

“I told you the plan was canceled! You’re unbelievable…”

Remington pulled his incessantly ringing phone from his jacket, turned it off, and shoved it back into his pocket with irritation.

He was acting strange. His usually neat shirt was disheveled from the earlier commotion, with part of it hanging out of his pants, and he seemed oblivious to it.

“Are you worried about me?” Dani asked.

Remington’s eyes alone moved as he looked at her.

“Am I worried about you?”

“Yes. If you’re concerned that this might get back to my father, then thanks. But I can handle it. It’ll be a pain, but I can deal with it.”

Remington stared at Dani in silence. His eyes were like an abyss—impossible to peer into or understand.

They seemed to say:

‘I never should have gotten involved with someone like you…’

Remington straightened up from the railing. His beige hair fluttered in the breeze, and his blue eyes fixed on Dani with unwavering intensity.

“Duncan is much worse than he’s known to be.”

“What?”

“And the reason I canceled the plan was because Duncan showed more interest in you than I anticipated. I didn’t want to be the one who put Roderson’s daughter in danger.”

Dani struggled to process his words.

“So… you knew Duncan was dangerous but still tried to get me involved with him?”

“Exactly.”

In the soft glow of the moonlight filtering through the windows, she couldn’t help but feel a surge of frustration at his nonchalant response. If only he were a bit taller, she might have dared to give him a piece of her mind. Her fists clenched at the thought.

“Why didn’t you tell me earlier that he is dangerous?” she demanded.

“Because then you wouldn’t have followed the plan,” he replied coolly.

She wondered how long he would keep surprising her. It almost felt like she wanted to delve into his mind, searching for how many more twists he had in store. A tinge of sadness lingered. She had thought they were getting close.

“Well, if you knew I’d be in danger, why didn’t you just leave me to it? Whether I’m in trouble or not is none of your concern, right?” she challenged.

Remington’s deep, sapphire eyes drifted over her face like a slow, unwelcome caress. His gaze left a trail of discomfort, as though it were sticky and unpleasant.

“Maybe. I don’t like this side of myself either,” he admitted.

Even in moments like these, his self-deprecating smile was both frustrating and strangely captivating. His face remained infuriatingly handsome, no matter the situation.

Despite having spent just over six months together, the weight of his feelings seemed to carry over the years. She was curious about the source of this dark, old stench. And she wanted to ask him why he harbored such hatred. Why did he push her into danger only to rescue her, and why did he keep circling her, shoving her away while staying close?

The ground beneath her seemed to be a deep, menacing swamp, threatening to swallow her whole with its vast, blue expanse.

At that time, she hadn’t understood a single thing about Remington’s mind. More accurately, she hadn’t even begun to notice. She couldn’t fathom the dark thoughts he harbored, nor could she grasp the contempt he held. She was too young to understand such petty disdain.

After that day, things changed as she had hoped. Eleanor, who had previously shown her such intense anger, became unexpectedly gentle. The transformation was sudden and striking.

“You need to talk to me,” Eleanor said firmly when she returned to the lobby after parting ways with Remington. Eleanor led her to her room and began a lengthy lecture.

“Duncan is that awful bastard’s name. He’s my half-brother. Our parents divorced, so we have different last names, but that’s beside the point. What matters is that you like that pathetic excuse for a person. When you started following Remington around right after transferring here, I thought you had some taste, despite his background. Turns out I was wrong! Duncan, really… Roderson, I can’t just overlook this as a fellow woman. I’ll introduce you to someone else. If you like fit and simple guys, I can find you one. But not Duncan. Things should be decent, not just simple! He’s not only simple but stupid too! He doesn’t care about women at all. Do you know how many girls have been expelled because of him? I bet all the local gynecologists made a fortune thanks to Duncan!”

Eleanor’s expression of genuine concern was astonishing. She had never imagined Eleanor could make such a face. It was a time when she didn’t yet realize that a person could be both bad and good at the same time.

“Roderson, you need to broaden your understanding of men. And honestly, tell me this: are you still a virgin? Have you ever kissed anyone?”

When she shook her head, Eleanor was genuinely taken aback. For the first time, she looked at her with a mix of surprise and condescending admiration, as if to say, “What on earth have you been doing with that pretty face of yours?” Though the words were blunt, they carried a strange, begrudging respect.

As Remington had predicted, Eleanor had completely softened toward her. No longer did she see her as a rival or a threat. Instead, she was viewed as a pitiful, hopeless girl. That’s exactly how Eleanor regarded her—needy and pathetic.

In a way, she found this role easier to accept. Winning, trampling, and dominating weren’t her strengths. What she desired was simply a small peace—a personal space, adequate silence, and a state of calm, free from emotional turbulence. She had, perhaps naively, believed that she could achieve this.

Change arrives with an impassive face. At the time, she was unaware that she was stepping into a storm. With each step, she was being pulled toward the eye of the storm, and when she reached the center, the surroundings were eerily calm.

She had believed she was resolving her issues, but in reality, everything she did was pushing her deeper into the “real” problem.

“Daniel, I have something very important to tell you. It’s a story about my ignorance—how I thought I knew everything but knew nothing. It’s also a story about the beginning of everything, the raw truth behind it all. It’s a tale of collapse and the rebuilding of my fortress. I don’t know if I can do it well, but I will make every effort to detail what I saw and heard.

Remington Howard—about the truths he hid.”