Angevil's Portrait of Portals

Chapter 7. Angevil

I looked back at the museum from behind while we rode the carriage back home. Bisig talked nonstop about how incredible of an experience we had during this whole trip to the museum. I couldn't follow through his every word because I was thinking about the man in my painting. "Angevil." I mumbled to myself. When Ginoong Marso said that he can't tell if that man was an angel or a devil, I came up with the name Angevil. But I could tell that he was definitely not a devil. It just so happened that he was there at the perfect time to help him. It was all a mere coincidence. But could it also be a coincidence that we have met each other in the past? Or was I daydreaming? I kept on thinking about him like he was a real person. Maybe my painting of him just resembled the man who helped Ginoong Marso. "Diwa? You are not even listening to my story." Alon said. "Oh, I am sorry. I was just.." I didn't finish when he interrupted me and said, "Yup. I know. You were thinking about the man in your painting, right? I mean, I saw you talked to your painting and it seemed like you were seeing something that I couldn't, so what was it that you saw?" He halted the horse to a stop and looked at me with curious eyes. "I don't remember." I answered. No matter how hard I try, I just couldn't remember. I was even more curious than Alon. He looked annoyed then he said, "You are weird, you know? Anyways, today was great and you did a great job so it's time for us to relax and go home." I was left thinking about it until we reached home. Back in the city, I saw grandma outside of our home sweeping the leaves from the ground. She waved and greeted us happily. It was late in the afternoon when we got home and with such great news, Alon spoke endlessly about each painting he saw and all that was inside of the grand museum. I noticed that he never mentioned about the man in the painting but maybe he just forgot about it. In the evening as the three of us were having dinner, a sudden knock on the door made us all quiet for a few seconds and as soon as grandma opened it, a mailman handed her an envelope. She tore it open and read the letter then looked at us with utmost joy. "Your painting was their number one pick for the exhibition. Congratulations, Diwa. I am so proud of you dear." Grandma said. I was in awe and had tears of joy. I ran up to grandma and hugged her. She handed me the prize money that I won from the art exhibition and gave her half of it and also some to Alon but he politely rejected it saying I deserve it more. I looked back at Alon with a huge smile and saw him smiling back at me. We ended the day with extreme happiness.
Another day had past and a new set of bright rays from my bestfriend, The Sun, awakened me one beautiful morning in this wonderful city. It always gave me hope and so I usually start my day with a prayer. "Diwa, Good morning!" It sounded like Alon again for sure. I peaked outside of my window and replied, "Good morning, Alon." He would usually pass by my house since he was always on a running spree every morning or he would go jogging around town. He lives a block away from my house. I went downstairs and saw grandma preparing some bread rolls for breakfast. "Come my dear, let us eat." She said. I then saw the letter from yesterday on top of a desk in the living room and opened it. On the bottom left part was a small handwritten message which said, "Come see me." I was shocked but then I realized that grandma might have not seen it since her eyesight has gone quite blurry due to her old age. After breakfast, I planned to go back to the museum in search of Ginoong Marso. I needed to know what his message meant. I showed grandma the letter and she said it looked suspicious in a way that the text was too tiny to be considered as an appropriate invitation, given the fact that it was written at the bottom left part of the note sort of like a hidden message. Grandma did not allow me to go back to the museum because she thinks it could be dangerous for me. I thought the same way too, but I have this urge to decipher the meaning behind this text. I had to make up an excuse but for a good reason. I told grandma that I will try to sell some of my paintings around the city. She finally agreed. I soon set off to the museum with my trusty horse, 'Unicorn'. Venturing out of town, a voice called out to me. "Where are you going, Diwa?" Alon asked as he jogged behind me. "To sell my paintings, maybe?" I replied. "But you just won the exhibition yesterday. I bet you are up to no good this time. You are not such a good liar yourself, Diwa. Where are you heading?" He asked with a sarcastic smile. "Here, read this." I stopped and handed him the letter and told him to read the bottom left part of the it. He had a surprised reaction and commented, "You better not go there alone, Diwa. You didn't tell your grandma the truth, didn't you?" I shrugged my shoulders in reply. "I am coming with you." He said. "Hop on." I replied.
When we got to the museum, I immediately recognized Ginoong Marso and ran up straight to him. He was staring at my painting. I was about to show him the letter he sent me but to my surprise the text below vanished out of thin air. Alon and I looked at each other in shock. "Hello there. What brings a young talented artist here in the gallery at this time of the day?" Ginoong Marso asked with a welcoming smile. "Uhh, I was just wondering if you'd want to talk to me about something important?" I asked. He looked a bit confused with one eyebrow raised then he replied, "None at all my dear. Is everything alright?" Then I said, "Well, I decided to name this portrait, 'Angevil'. Just like what you said yesterday about him being an angel and a devil at the same time. How come you thought he was evil after he had saved you from your chest pain yesterday?" He crossed both his arms and his eyebrows narrowed as he looked at us, then he started to think deeply while resting his chin on top of his right hand.
"You kids must have been imagining things lately." He said as he started laughing. "Art is a product of our imagination. I know you worked so hard for this and it really payed of, so now is the time for you to wake up into reality and separate yourself from all of the artistic images that are still lingering in your mind. We are our own masterpiece. You did great in this painting. The Angevil you say?" He concluded as he tapped our shoulders then walked past us. Alon asked, "What happened yesterday that I didn't know about?" His question left me dumbfounded. After a few seconds of silence he then added, "This is getting so weird. Maybe we should head back home right now. What are we even doing here in the first place? I don't remember how you managed to drag me into this anyway." But I can't remember either. None of us remembered why we were all in the same location and what motive we had for being here altogether. All of a sudden it all felt awkward. All I knew was that this letter in my hand was the reason why I came here. "Wait. I just need some time to look at my painting before we leave." I said to Alon. "Okay. I will be waiting outside. I need to get some fresh air." Alon replied. I nodded in return. I slowly walked towards my painting. I reached out my hand to touch it. "Who are you?" I asked while looking at the man in a hooded white robe in my painting. It was the exact same hill in my hometown. On top of it was a big old tree and from up above was the beautiful blue sky. "Come see me..." An unknown voice whispered into my ear. I looked around but saw nobody. When I looked back at my painting, I saw that it was moving. It looked as if it was real. The leaves from the tree were heavily blown by the wind, the clouds were floating on different sides, the colors began to deepen and the man's robe was flowing dramatically in the painting. "Who are you? What do you want from me?" I asked. As the painting moved, the ticking of the clock got louder and louder until it finally came to a stop and everything went back to normal. The whole place was quiet again. I was left wondering whether I was losing my sanity or if it was a sign for me to go back to my hometown. I figured that I only have one choice and that is to go back to the starting point. The hilltop.