**Chapter 200: Compared to You All, What Am I?**

"Wow~ Luca's here, everyone, welcome him!" 

At the front, Christina smirked and clapped when she saw Luca arriving.

The response from the crowd was sparse.

"Thank you!"

Luca smiled slightly and responded to Christina.

Christina was stunned for a moment. "You're thanking me?"

"Yes, you're too cute. If we were in the bathroom, I'd give you a kiss."

"Why the bathroom?"

"…"

Luca didn't know how to answer. He expected Christina to snap back at him and walk away, but he didn't think she'd actually ask.

Boom boom!

He made his way to the microphone, nudging a reluctant Christina aside.

"Hello, ladies and gentlemen, good evening. I'm Luca Kelly."

After that, he tilted his head back, raised a hand towards the sky, but the room fell into complete silence.

"Ahem, ahem!"

He shrugged his shoulders. "I thought there'd be applause at this point!"

"Snort!"

"Haha!"

A few stifled laughs escaped from the quiet crowd.

Clap, clap!

A small handful of people who knew him—Rachel, Ryan, Fanny, Britney—began to clap, although rather half-heartedly.

"Thank you!"

Luca loosened his tie. "Thank you all for the applause, and thank you, Miss Christina, for the grand introduction. Truly, it was something: an excellent writer, composer, talented, young, and promising.

If Miss Christina hadn't said all that, I wouldn't have realized I'm already so amazing."

"Snort~"

Some disdainful laughs rose from the crowd.

"Hey, kid, quit the nonsense. Among us, there are record-breaking album sellers, the youngest composers, and the most popular singers. Compared to us, what have you even achieved?"

A rock singer holding a bottle of liquor asked dismissively.

"What am I? Now that's an interesting question!"

Luca clapped his hands and laughed. "Tonight's party has gathered many great people. Yes, great. We have the legendary Madonna, who at the age of 30 was certified by Guinness as the best-selling female artist globally. Miss Madonna, your achievements are renowned."

"Hey, kid, it was 33!"

Madonna sipped her drink, leaning against a tree.

"My apologies, Miss Madonna, you always look so young."

Luca chuckled.

"Are you flirting with me?"

Madonna raised an eyebrow.

"Hahaha~"

The audience burst into laughter.

Luca shrugged and moved on, turning his attention to Britney.

"And here we have the beautiful Britney Spears. We're friends, but that doesn't stop me from respecting you. At 18, you became the world's most popular teen idol. At 19, you became the youngest female artist to go platinum. I'm proud to have a friend like you."

"So am I!" 

Britney placed a hand on her heart and smiled gently.

Luca nodded, "Then there's the esteemed Justin Timberlake, who became the most popular young male singer in the world at 20. And Christina Aguilera, who won four Grammys by 19 and has sold millions of records. Avril Lavigne, Norah Jones, and many more. All of you are remarkable people.

I admire and respect each one of you, but I'm not intimidated by you.

Yes!

I'm 21 years old. As an athlete, I've played in 12 international soccer matches for Brazil, scored 10 goals, and earned two top scorer titles.

I've given it my all, so I'm not ashamed.

I'm 21 years old. As a model, I've worked hard for two years, sticking to strict diets and workouts. This year, I topped the global male model income rankings.

I've put in the effort, so I'm not ashamed.

I'm 21 years old. As a screenwriter, I've written five scripts. Three are in production, and two have caught the attention of Tom Cruise and Jennifer Aniston.

I've tried my best, so I'm not ashamed.

I'm 21 years old. As a part-time songwriter, I wrote a song that Britney Spears happened to pick up."

"People say I only got the song because we're friends," he added.

"No, Luca, the song was genuinely great. It wasn't my choice, it was the team's," Britney called out.

Luca spread his hands. "What does it matter? Being 21 and able to be friends with Britney, standing here talking, isn't that something to be proud of?"

Clap, clap, clap!

Many people couldn't help but applaud.

"Thank you! Thank you for the applause!"

Luca raised his hands and smiled. "Facing all your extraordinary achievements, I'm sure not many people in the world would dare boast in front of you.

But I did anyway.

Why?

Because I'm not ashamed, I'm proud.

Not proud of my small accomplishments, but proud that I'm standing here.

I'm 21 years old. I lost my father at 8, my mother at 15, and for years, I've only had my sister by my side.

I'm 21 years old. I was in a serious car accident, broke my back twice, and spent three years in a hospital bed.

I'm 21 years old. I once fell into the abyss of drugs, alcohol, and lust for months, nearly losing my life.

I'm 21 years old. Trials and tribulations haven't broken me. I gritted my teeth, fought back, and survived."

Clap, clap, clap!

Before he could finish, the audience burst into enthusiastic applause, with some tears and shouts.

"Yes, I'm still alive. I'm still here. Isn't that something worth being proud of?"

Clap, clap, clap!

The applause grew louder.

In the crowd, Britney's eyes brimmed with tears, a smile spreading across her face.

"Uncle Luca, I love you!" Fanny cried out, wiping her eyes.

"What a charming little guy, isn't he?" Madonna swirled her glass gently.

"He's super sexy, I suddenly really like him," Avril said with a wink.

"This guy~" Christina bit her lip, her gaze complicated.

"Luca's really impressive!"

Ryan remarked.

"Yeah, but you're pretty impressive too!"

Rachel said with a smile.

"Thank you!"

"Thank you, thank you everyone for your support, and thanks to the Academy for giving me this award, but... where's my Oscar?"

Luca looked at his hand, then suddenly smacked his forehead, "Sorry, everyone, I thought this was the Oscars and jumped ahead with my acceptance speech. How embarrassing!"

"Hahaha~"

The whole room erupted in good-natured laughter.

Luca shrugged, "I just remembered, I'm here to sing, to perform for Britney. I'm not a professional songwriter, but I love listening to music and creating.

I was reading William Butler Yeats' poetry the other day, and it moved me deeply — so many people loved your fleeting beauty, loved your face, whether with true passion or with lies.

And while reading Francis Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, I couldn't help but reflect on his obsession with love, and the fickleness of the human heart.

At that moment, I had a flash of inspiration. I wanted to write a song, but the inspiration came and went so quickly that I missed the chance. What a shame.

But when I saw Britney's performance just now, inspiration hit me again, and I wrote a rough draft of a song called Young and Beautiful."

He bent down and picked up a guitar. "Fanny, my dear, can you help me out with the accompaniment? I've only learned how to pluck one string after three days of practice. I need your help!"

"Sure, I'm coming!"

Fanny eagerly ran up to the stage, grabbing a big guitar and standing next to him.

"Fanny, can you listen to me sing it once, then play along?"

"No problem!"

Fanny lifted her chin confidently. After all, nothing could stump the talented Miss Fanny.

Ding ding dong dong~

Luca sat on a high stool, plucking at the guitar strings—he could only manage one string, barely enough to accompany himself.

"Here's Young and Beautiful for the beautiful Britney!"

This song, from The Great Gatsby movie, won the Oscar for Best Original Song.

"I've seen the world, done it all,

Seen the world, but lost the innocence…"

"Haha~"

As Luca began singing, many people were amused by his rough voice and unrefined technique. It was clearly someone who didn't know how to sing, singing in front of the world's best singers.

"Everyone!"

Madonna clapped her hands. "Let's quietly appreciate his talent and courage, shall we?"

The audience quieted down. After all, compared to courage, technique was nothing. The fact that he dared to sing here meant he wasn't just here to joke around.

"And Bel Air now, hot summer nights, mid-July,

You and I were forever wild…"

By the time Luca reached this point in the song, many couldn't help but start clapping.

"The lyrics are beautiful, too bad the singing's not up to par. With the right person, it could be a great song!"

"Yeah, he's a musical poet. I'm definitely talking to him after this."

"Talking? Haha, you mean you want that song, right?"

"Haha, of course not!"

In the back of the room stood several of the most famous music producers: The Matrix, Moby, RedZone.

"You dressed up for me, sang only for me,

Your exquisite beauty, your wild, untamed soul,

That elegant glance back, I'll never forget…"

Britney softly whispered the lyrics, watching the man awkwardly singing with his guitar, her heart stirring.

She blinked, then smiled brightly, "Justin, you know we're not getting back together, so why are you still doing this?"

Justin snapped out of it, frowning, "Because of him?"

"Yes, because of him, but not entirely. A broken mirror can be pieced together temporarily, but it will eventually fall apart again. How many couples who reconcile last? Besides, I've gotten used to having him around."

"We were together for over two years!"

"It feels different. I feel more grounded with him."

"Grounded? Don't forget, you're not even his girlfriend yet!"

"What does that matter?"

Britney clenched her fist playfully, her eyes sparkling. "There's never been something I, Britney, couldn't win if I set my mind to it!"

"..."

Justin looked at her—the woman he once had, cared about, and then didn't care about—and realized that their brief separation had turned into goodbye.

"I wish you all the best."

Justin tossed the roses in his hand aside and walked out.

"Justin, I'm sorry!"

Christina quickly caught up to him. "I didn't mean to ruin your chances. I just wanted to embarrass Luca. I didn't expect him to really have a new song."

"So you're saying you just shouted something, and then that guy pulled out a brand-new song?"

Justin frowned.

"Uh... yeah, pretty much!"

Christina twirled her fingers and looked down.

"You..."

Justin pointed at her, then waved his hand and left the mansion.

After he left, Christina slowly lifted her head, a sly smile on her lips.

"Hmph! Reconciliation? Did you even ask me first?"

Turning around, she saw Britney standing beside Luca in the middle of the lawn, singing with him sweetly.

"Those two!"

Christina angrily clenched her fist. She hadn't intended to help Luca at all—it was supposed to be a double-edged move. But she hadn't expected him to be so talented, creating a new song on the spot.

"Damn it, I'm not letting you two off that easy!"

"Will you still love me

When I'm no longer young and beautiful?

Will you still love me

When I've got nothing but my aching soul?"

Clap clap clap~

The song finished, and applause filled the room.

Although his voice and singing skills were lacking, there was a deep, emotional undertone to his performance. It was remarkable that a 21-year-old could sing with such feeling.

Even the high-and-mighty music producers couldn't help but applaud him. He had talent and emotion, though his voice was regrettable—a real shame.

"Sorry, Britney, I didn't sing well."

Luca put down his guitar.

"It's okay, I really liked it!"

Britney stood on her toes, wrapped her arms around his neck, and gave him a kiss.

Clap clap clap~

(End of chapter)