PAINTER'S MODEL

06: PAINTING

CHAPTER 6: PAINTING

Silence continues. The sound of the sloshing paint remains. Calvin's face is kept cold and focused, just as he usually is, with you in your fetal-like position with a distressed face. You kept this on for another twenty minutes. 

Calvin clears his throat. "Done," He announced. 

You sighed and got up from your chair to stretch, once again, feeling your bones pop back into place. "Can I see?" You were curious as to what his idea is for this collaboration.

He darted his eyes to the side, "Sure." He hesitantly said. You walked over to him and checked out the painting. 

The background seems to almost match the color of your dress, though its shade is darker than your attire. The light yellow color of the candles around you gave lighting to your figure, making your pained face and revealing attire of yours visible to the viewer. 

The candles are lined up well, somewhat making the portrait appear to be from a one-point perspective. The complexion of the painting shows misery in an eerie yet celestial way. 

"Damn," You awed. "I mean, you did well! This looks amazing." You repeated. You gotta keep your professionalism as you promised whenever you're around him.

You gulped when you received nothing in return. No sound came out of him. You turned around to see him blankly standing in one place.

"Mr. Doris?" His eyes are kept on your figure. Mindlessly staring at something right below your neck. You looked down and noticed you were still wearing that revealing dress. 

You immediately covered your cleavage, "Mr. Doris?" You called out again, and finally, he blinked his eyes after staring at something for too long. "Ah, yes, with the way you acted out the facial expression from earlier, I wanted to test out creating this though with another emotion of yours." He explained.

"You seem to execute it well." One corner of his lips turned upwards, giving a small smirk. "Good job," He patted your hair.

Retracting his hand, he said, "Let's give yourself a break." He walked over to the door, opening it widely, letting in light that almost completely brightens up the whole room. "What would you like? Coffee? Tea?" He asked.

"Um," You pondered. You took the time to scan around the different objects in the room. The walls are painted white, with different paintings hung in different areas. Boxes full of paint littered some parts of the floor.

As you thought about a particular drink or a snack that Calvin might possibly have, you spot something in the corner of the room. There sat a painting, the largest of them all. There's no other painting near it, giving the painting its own space and emphasis. You squinted, that figure looks familiar.

"Please!" You were startled. "Please, don't mind that." Calvin continued, hastily walking towards the painting, covering it from your view with his own body. You were confused. Not only does that painting has a figure wearing an outfit that you remember using before, but this guy seems very shy about it.

You decided to leave it be, but your suspicions still remain. "Alright." You looked away. "Do you have any apple juice?" 

"Yes," Calvin coughed. "Come with me." He walked towards the door, making gestures for you to follow him promptly. 

You walked down the flight of stairs with Calvin leading you to the way. You gazed at various designs and paintings. There are frames of artworks, even those that are foreign, such as a painting with the illustrious ukiyo-e art style, a replica of the famous Mona Lisa painting by Leonardo da Vinci, and a replica of the well-known The Starry Night, painted by Vincent van Gogh.

This man sure does value art history, even when he himself is currently making the history. 

After walking for a long time, you finally reached the kitchen. He opened the double-doored refrigerator and pulled out apple juice stored in a pitcher. He brings out two glasses and filled them both up with the liquid. 

Pushing one filled glass towards me, he pulls on a tiny smile. "Here." 

You grabbed the glass and began gulping it all down. You were really thirsty after being in that room for almost an hour since it contains nothing else but candles setting the temperature of the room. 

Your mind drifted back towards the painting you saw earlier. The woman looks very similar to you. The hair, the figure, and the clothes. The clothes she wore are the same clothes you used when you went out on a date with Lois a month ago. Not only that, but the surroundings were familiar too. 

Everything in it is familiar, though, you know you couldn't accuse Calvin and boldly confirm that it was you, since the portrait only shows the back view of the woman, and the facial characteristics are not visible. Thus, you're not exactly sure if the woman was you or not. 

But what if the woman was actually you? Why would Calvin do this? Is this allowed? Would you consent him to do this? Maybe, he's a fan of yours.  You shook your head, let's not get conceited now, (Y/N).

But even if he could be a fan, how did he illustrate the setting well? Was he perhaps present during that date and you were not aware that he was behind you?

You glanced at Calvin. He seems contented, though his eyes remain intensely staring at your own.