"Open your throat, stabilize your larynx!"
In an off-white music practice room, Taylor Swift stood in front of Matthew, looking quite focused. "Pay attention to your breathing rhythm! Breath control is the most important aspect of singing; it's the foundation of the entire vocal structure!"
She glanced at Matthew, who was listening attentively, and said, "Let's go through it again with me."
"Ah... Ah... Ah..."
Taylor Swift's voice was rhythmic, sounding as melodious as a nightingale.
"Oh... Oh... Oh..."
As soon as Matthew opened his mouth, his rough voice was completely off-key, causing the entire practice room to tremble as if an ancient beast was awakening from hibernation.
"Stop! Stop!" Taylor Swift was completely defeated. "Matthew, all your notes are off!"
Matthew stopped, adjusted his breathing, and felt pretty good about himself. "I think I did well."
Taylor Swift slapped her forehead. "Oh, my God." She looked at Matthew, "It's been all morning, and you haven't made any progress."
"How about we take a break?" Matthew suggested.
"No way!" Taylor Swift had a serious teacher's demeanor. "I'm determined to teach you the basics of vocalization today."
She circled around Matthew, her face tense. "Focus!"
Matthew nodded. "I'm very focused."
Taylor Swift stood five feet in front of him and said, "Before practicing your voice or singing, you must clear your mind, stabilize your emotions, have a strong desire to sing, be confident, and enter a relaxed state. Otherwise, you won't be able to sing well."
Matthew kept nodding. "I understand."
No matter what Taylor Swift said, he agreed, though he felt like he might be hopeless.
"After inhaling, keep your chest still, let your vocal cords naturally close, then use just the right amount of breath to make your vocal cords vibrate. This will produce a strong, solid sound," Taylor Swift explained some of the most basic vocal techniques. "This method can correct the problem of breathiness."
She pointed at Matthew. "Your vocal cords are leaking air badly."
"I understand." Matthew cleared his mind and prepared himself. "Let's start."
As they repeated the vocal exercises over and over, Taylor Swift's face grew increasingly tense, her expression darkening, and her voice rising, seemingly on the verge of losing control.
While Matthew practiced, Taylor Swift turned away, muttering to herself, "Stay calm! Stay calm! You're the teacher, you have to stay calm! You're teaching the world's dumbest and most untalented student, you have to be patient."
"Howl..."
A rough, wolf-like howl echoed from behind her. Taylor Swift gritted her teeth. Even a wolf's howl had rhythm, but this sound was more terrifying than a wolf's howl. If there were a real wolf here, it would probably be scared away.
She turned back to Matthew and asked, "How do you feel?"
Matthew nodded vigorously. "I've improved; I can feel it."
"Oh, God." Taylor Swift nearly fainted, waving her hand. "Let's take a break."
After a whole morning, her ears were tortured. If this continued, she wouldn't be able to hear the melody for a week.
It was too terrifying!
Matthew followed Taylor Swift out of the music practice room and into the lounge.
This was Taylor Swift's music studio in Los Angeles, which also served as her residence. Located on the Malibu coast, the lounge offered a view of the Malibu seascape through floor-to-ceiling windows, perfect for relaxing.
Matthew accepted the water cup Taylor Swift handed him and thanked her. Just as he took a sip, a small cat suddenly jumped onto the sofa next to him.
The cat's ears drooped as if broken in the middle, giving it an adorable appearance.
"This is Meredith," Taylor Swift introduced, sitting across from Matthew. "A Scottish Fold."
"She's beautiful," Matthew complimented casually.
He reached out to touch the cat's ear, but the cat immediately jumped off the sofa, ran across to Taylor Swift, and leaped onto her lap.
Taylor Swift gently stroked the cat's small head and said, "Were you scared today?"
Hearing this, Matthew protested, "Taylor, it wasn't that bad, was it?"
"It was worse than I said," Taylor Swift replied with unusual seriousness. "Matthew, just getting you to produce basic notes correctly is an impossible task."
Matthew thought for a moment and said, "Maybe we should give up."
Taylor Swift waved her hand. "We can't just give up like that." Her blue eyes locked onto Matthew. "How can you quit halfway? How can you succeed without effort?"
Suddenly, Matthew felt like he was back in school, being lectured by a teacher. It seemed that Taylor Swift really enjoyed teaching.
"This is my first time teaching someone," Taylor Swift added. "I have to make sure you learn!"
Matthew took another sip of water and said, "Alright, if you're brave enough to teach, I'm brave enough to learn."
Taylor Swift deliberately sighed. "I'm risking my life to teach a student." She glanced at the wall clock and said, "It's almost noon. Let's go out to eat. You're treating."
Matthew put down his water cup and stood up. "No problem. What do you want to eat?"
"There's a nice Italian restaurant nearby," Taylor Swift suggested, obviously on purpose. "Their white truffle dishes are excellent."
The house wasn't very large, and the car was parked outside. As Matthew and Taylor Swift walked out to the car, there was a faint flash of lights, but neither of them paid any attention, getting into the car and driving off.
Recently, "Inception" had started its preliminary promotion, and "Fast & Furious 4" had also begun a series of publicity campaigns, increasing Matthew's media exposure. As they left, some paparazzi followed them.
Some might have been there to follow Taylor Swift, too.
Of course, he couldn't be sure if any of them were deliberately arranged, but he didn't care.
There had been rumors of him dating dozens of women in the tabloids; adding one more wouldn't matter.
Driving the car, Matthew glanced in the rearview mirror and saw many paparazzi following.
Taylor Swift noticed as well and said, "So annoying, having tails whenever you go out."
Matthew turned the wheel and said, "That's the price of fame."
"Do you think they'll start rumors about us?" Taylor Swift didn't wait for Matthew to answer and continued, "They definitely will."
"Whatever," Matthew shrugged, "We'll just pretend we don't know."
The Italian restaurant was close to Malibu's beachfront luxury district. A few minutes later, Matthew parked the car and entered the restaurant with Taylor Swift, who didn't hold back, ordering the most expensive dishes.
Dishes with white truffles were certainly included.
Matthew didn't order any. Although he came from a place where people ate almost anything, during his impoverished childhood on the other side of the Pacific, he'd eaten all sorts of wild things. Now that he had the means, he avoided foods he didn't particularly enjoy.
Just like most foreigners couldn't handle authentic Chinese food, Matthew also had a strong aversion to some Western dishes.
"Are we continuing this afternoon?" Matthew asked while eating.
Taylor Swift swallowed her food and nodded. "Of course we are!" She took a sip of water. "I cleared my schedule today just to teach you."
"Alright," Matthew agreed, having nothing else to do today. "We'll head back and continue after we finish eating."
Over half an hour later, they left the restaurant and drove back. The paparazzi seemed a bit more excited, with some even riding motorcycles to snap pictures through the windshield while Matthew waited at a red light.
Matthew didn't even need to look to know that tomorrow's entertainment headlines would likely feature something like "Matthew Horner Falls for Country Pop Princess."
In this era of mass entertainment, paparazzi were enjoying an unprecedented golden age.
Back at Taylor Swift's place, as they entered, she glanced back and said, "Don't those people ever get tired?"
She pulled out her phone. "I'll give my agent a heads-up so she doesn't complain when those gossip pieces come out."
Matthew wandered around the living room and spotted the Scottish Fold again. From behind him, Taylor Swift suddenly said, "If you ever do an interview and the reporter asks about me, make sure to clear things up."
"Ignore them," Matthew replied without turning around. "The more you deny it, the less they'll believe you."
Taylor Swift huffed, "So they'll just assume I'm your rumored girlfriend? I'm your teacher!"
Matthew joked, "Isn't a teacher-student romance even more exciting?"
"Teacher-student romance?" Taylor Swift looked at Matthew. "Hey, what do you mean by that? You never even pursued me!"
With that, Matthew walked over, stood right in front of Taylor Swift, and with a playful grin, lifted her chin. "Little Taylor, how about you be my student this afternoon?"
Taylor Swift was momentarily stunned. "Wouldn't that be moving too fast?"
Suddenly, her eyes widened. "I just got an idea!"
Without waiting for Matthew, Taylor Swift turned and headed to the music practice room, saying as she walked, "Matthew, hold on, I just got inspired. I need to write a song."
Matthew felt a strange sensation and asked, "You got inspired from that?"
"Yes!" Taylor Swift replied, "You inspired me."
She gave Matthew a thumbs-up. "You're amazing! You're my muse."
Matthew nodded but couldn't shake the feeling that something was off.
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