"Lavi, breakfast is ready," her mom's voice called out from downstairs.
"Got it, I'm coming," Avril responded loudly, sticking her head out of her room.
It took her another two or three minutes to get dressed before she finally came downstairs. By then, the rest of the family had already started breakfast. As the middle child, Avril, like all middle children, received far less attention from her parents compared to her older brother, Matt, and younger sister, Michelle. Of course, this didn't mean her parents didn't love her, but there was indeed a difference compared to how they treated the oldest and the youngest.
However, Avril, who was naturally confident, didn't complain about it. With a strong desire to perform, she often stood on her bed and sang loudly, even when she was alone. Her obsession with music had reached a fever pitch. If she knew what she would achieve in the future, would she be so excited that she'd blow the roof off the house?
"After breakfast, make sure to tidy up your rooms. The New Year holiday is almost over, and they're a mess. Okay?" her mom said after breakfast.
Avril immediately raised her hand. "Mom, does the first one to clean their room get to listen to music?"
"Oh my gosh, all you think about is listening to music!" Matt exclaimed before their mom could even respond.
"If you don't like it, then don't listen to it ever again," Avril shot back, rolling her eyes at her brother before darting upstairs. Michelle clapped her hands in delight, chanting, "Matt's losing again! Matt's losing again!"
Matt glared at his little sister and hurried back to his own room. Unfortunately, in most of these frequent competitions, Avril was usually the winner, and this time was no exception. Matt was left fuming as he watched his sister take her C's album to her room.
Hearing "Complicated" playing from Avril's room, Matt felt like covering his ears. He actually really liked C's songs and had bought the album too, but if he played it now, it would make him seem untrustworthy. No matter what, Avril had always followed the rules on the rare occasions she lost, never sneaking to play music. Though, according to Michelle's "reports," Avril was always quite upset whenever she heard music coming from his room, she never secretly listened to music herself. Since his sister could stick to the rules, as her older brother, he couldn't lose to her in this regard.
Although Avril was enjoying C's music right now, she wasn't satisfied. The initial excitement had faded, and the passion sparked by Catherine's encouragement was also gradually waning. She needed more guidance. But why hadn't Catherine contacted her? She had promised she would. And there hadn't even been a single phone call. Avril always included her phone number in the letters she wrote, but Catherine had never called.
She sighed, picking up the guitar she had saved up her allowance to buy, and tried to play "Complicated." Of all of Catherine's songs, this one was her favorite. She felt that "Complicated" was more relatable than the other songs. Unfortunately, she could only play some simple fragments of the song right now and couldn't yet play the entire piece. After several attempts, she threw the guitar aside in frustration and lay on her bed in a sullen mood.
Just then, her mom's voice called from downstairs again, "Lavi, your friend is here. Come down quickly."
A friend? Who? Annie or Liz? Were they here to ask her to do something boring again? Avril lazily got up, looking for her shoes under the bed. Then her mom's voice came again, "Hurry up, will you? It's your friend from America."
A friend from America? Do I have a friend in America? Avril pouted as she continued searching under the bed for her shoes. Suddenly, a thought flashed through her mind—Catherine?! She screamed and jumped up, ready to run out, but she forgot she was still under the bed, and with a loud thud, she banged her head on the wooden frame, bringing tears to her eyes from the pain. But she didn't care about that. She got up, ignoring the pain, and dashed downstairs barefoot.
When she reached the bottom of the stairs, she saw an 11-year-old girl sitting primly on the sofa, chatting with her parents. Her bright green eyes sparkled, and who else could it be but Catherine, whom she had met at Niagara Falls?!
Without a care for appearances, Avril let out a cheer and lunged at Catherine, landing squarely on top of her, startling everyone on the sofa. Her parents, John and Judy, exchanged wide-eyed looks. They knew their daughter could be a bit wild sometimes, but they hadn't expected her to be this wild.
"Hey, Avril, you're crushing me," Catherine protested, raising a hand. Only then did Avril sheepishly climb off her. Looking around, she noticed her parents, along with her brother and sister, who had come running at the noise, all staring at her in surprise, making the usually bold Avril feel a bit embarrassed.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Benjamin. Our child… she's just… very enthusiastic sometimes," her father John explained with a wry smile to the man sitting next to Catherine.
"No problem, Mr. Lavigne. My goddaughter is like this most of the time too," Mr. Benjamin chuckled, glancing at Catherine. "That well-behaved act you just saw is just a facade."
This made the Lavigne couple laugh. Catherine, who had been about to protest, could only shut her mouth in frustration. Avril tugged at Catherine's sleeve and asked her parents, "Mom, Dad, can I show Catherine my room?"
"Of course, dear," her mom nodded. Avril immediately grabbed Catherine's hand and eagerly pulled her upstairs. Catherine had wanted to greet Matt and Michelle, but Avril was pulling her so quickly that she only had time to give them a quick smile.
Once they were inside the room and the door was closed, Avril gave Catherine another enthusiastic hug, only letting go after a long moment. She looked at her with a hint of grievance and said, "I thought you were just brushing me off."
"How could I? I remember saying in my last letter that I would definitely come, and look, here I am," Catherine replied with a smile, shrugging her shoulders.
"Alright, let's not talk about that," Avril said, grabbing her guitar and looking at Catherine hopefully. "Could you play 'Complicated' for me again?"
Catherine looked at her in surprise, and after a moment, she chuckled. "Alright."
She took the guitar, tuned it a bit, and then looked at Avril as if something had just occurred to her. "You didn't tell anyone else, did you…"
"I swear to God, I didn't," Avril interrupted before Catherine could finish. "When I got your EP, I knew you wouldn't want anyone else to know who you really are, so I didn't say a word."
She looked so proud, puffing out her chest, as if her face was saying, "Praise me, praise me." Catherine couldn't help but laugh, and seeing Avril's face start to fall, she held back her laughter and began strumming the guitar.
This time, "Complicated" wasn't the fast-paced version she had sung at Niagara Falls but the full version recorded for the EP. Listening to the album was one thing, but hearing it live was a completely different experience. By the end, Avril couldn't help but sing along, and even after the song finished, she was still craving more.
Seeing Catherine looking at her teasingly after finishing the song, Avril blushed a little. Was she showing off? But Catherine didn't say anything, instead, she cleared her throat and said, "Alright, as a reward for keeping my secret, I'll sing you a new song."
Avril's interest was immediately piqued. "Really? What song?"
"Everybody."
"Everybody?"
"Yes, listen closely." Catherine gave Avril a meaningful look before strumming the guitar again, playing the tune of an electric guitar.
From the moment the music started, Avril was completely captivated. The wild and unrestrained style seemed tailor-made for her. Though she might not fully understand the meaning of the song right now, it didn't stop her from resonating with it.
"This is amazing, just amazing!" Avril nearly jumped up after Catherine finished singing. She grabbed Catherine's hand excitedly. "How did you know I like skateboarding?!" She must have thought Catherine had written the song just for her.
After asking several times, Avril finally noticed that Catherine wasn't listening. Instead, she was staring at her with a distant look in her eyes, her green gaze seeming to hold a special kind of magic that made Avril's heart race. Fortunately, Catherine snapped out of it quickly, turning her head away and coughing lightly. "You mentioned it in your letters, so I… I wrote this song."
Once Catherine had come to her senses, that heart-pounding feeling disappeared, and Avril breathed a sigh of relief. Hearing what Catherine said, she immediately brushed off the discomfort she had felt and didn't notice the awkwardness in Catherine's tone.
"I don't even know how to thank you, Cathy. I wish I could be like you, releasing an EP at eleven years old. You're amazing! Are you planning to release a full album? I'll definitely support you," Avril said, excitedly shaking Catherine's arm.
"Not for now… Actually, Vivi, I never planned on becoming a singer. Releasing an EP as Miss C was just… for fun," Catherine replied seriously, though she didn't dare meet Avril's eyes.
But the disappointed Avril didn't notice and instead spoke anxiously and earnestly, "Cathy, how could you not become a singer? Oh my God, look at you! What other eleven-year-old has your talent? Not becoming a singer would make the whole world cry!"
Catherine couldn't help but laugh, finally turning to meet the little one's gaze. "You know, Vivi, I think you're the one who's meant to be a singer. Really! I'm not lying."
After a pause, she continued, "How about this, dear: when you're old enough to live on your own, come to Los Angeles and find me. Then I'll write songs for you, okay? But until then, you need to keep practicing." She said, lifting the guitar in her hand.
"Re… really?" Avril could hardly believe her ears. She looked at Catherine with wide eyes.