Calvin Ian’s P.O.V.

I switched on the light once we entered my house. I was still too nervous to let her in because I was kind of not ready about this unexpected thing that happened today.

 

“Where’s everybody?” Ehlarie asked as she scanned my humble home.

 

“The twins are already back in Seoul for their private lessons. By this time…” I looked at my watch, it read 7:00. “Gran is still at our neighbour. She’s helping Aunt Edna take care of her kids since her husband’s always on a night shift.” I filled her in and she was just nodding.

 

“Your house feels warm…like it never underwent bad days.” She commented as I led her upstairs.

 

“Gran made sure this house will always feel like the home I grow up to. Here’s my room,” I said and opened the door for her.

 

Ehlarie Kate’s P.O.V.

I was greeted by a lot of paintings situated near the window. Some were hung around the wall, some leaned on the wall and some on his table.

 

“Wow” was the only word that came out of my mouth as I started to look closely at all his paintings. The first one I came across was the painting that hung near his bedside table. I guess it’s their family picture.

 

“I found the original picture at mom’s old photo albums. I decided I wanted to preserve it to I painted it. That was my first painting after mom passed away. Then I didn’t hold the brush for quite some time.” There was something in his voice that made me want to hug him but I stopped myself in doing so.

 

“What made you continue?”

 

“There’s this someone.” His answer just hang in the air as my eyes met his.

 

I decided to look away first before I could even entertain the thought that pushed its way to my mind and the sudden rush of heartbeat I felt for a second.

 

“So you’ve just painted all of these recently?” I asked as I busied myself in looking at the other paintings.

 

“Yup. Whichever made me interested, I painted it. Well, part of it is the drive to paint a better image for our Arts and Humanities project.” He replied.

 

My eyes stopped at a painting that looks so familiar. It was an autumn night and there were two people on the bench under the lamppost, the girl sitting on the bench and the boy putting a bandage on her feet.

 

“This was…” I took the painting and held it to him.

 

“Yup. That night… Sorry, I never told you but I painted it. I just wanted to remember it not as something horrible but as something that started our friendship. I hope you don’t mind. And I hope I painted it well.” He said apologetically.

 

“Are you kidding me? This cannot be collocated with “well” your painting is so real. I could even mistake it as a printed picture take through a DSLR.”

 

“Geez. You’re exaggerating.” He commented but I wasn’t exaggerating about what I said. It was so real that it felt like I was taken back in time.

 

“Let’s use this. I think I already have the words for this painting.” There was finality in my words and his smile that showed his dimples kind of made me lost in his eyes for a second.

 

“Are you sure you don’t want to use other paintings here?” He tried to show me some and I was tempted to look at the others because there might be something interesting other than this painting I was holding.

 

 

Calvin Ian’s P.O.V.

I kept on showing her the rest of the paintings I’ve been working on because even if I was excited to use that painting for our project, I was afraid it showed too much of how I felt for her. I was afraid other people would see right through the painting and she’d find out through them, not directly from me. And I don’t like that.

 

I was on the second to the last painting and when I realized what it was, I immediately took it away before she could have a good look at it. I can’t show Ehlarie her sleeping image or else I’d be confessing to her right then and there. I didn’t want to risk anything yet.

 

“What was that? I haven’t seen it yet. Let me see,” she insisted but I hid it at my back.

 

“That’s …that’s kind of private.” I stood up, still holding the painting behind me.

 

“What do you mean private? Come on…we’re friends. You can show me and I promise I won’t tell anyone.” She assured but I resisted.

 

She started to move towards me and try to take it but I held it away from her until she started chasing me as I try to run away and think of a place in my room where I could hide it but she was too fast and I could only think of running away. I was too exhausted and dizzy so I started to walk backwards so I could still see her and hide my painting of her.

 

“Careful!” I heard her say.

 

Not until it took just one second for her to pull me towards her and we both fell on the floor. I didn’t know how my right hand managed to protect her head from bumping the floor but it did anyway.

 

As my eyes looked at hers, the clock seemed to have stopped ticking.

 

There was just me and Ehlarie…and my heart about to burst from its fast beating.