Solitude || Evan Buckley [1]

chapter thirty seven

looking into the future

Sasha moved back placing the paintbrush down to examine the canvas in front of her. Despite the fact art is her leisure time, she'll always try to improve in her skills. Part of the time, she ponders what would her mother say, being the professional artist. Her train of thought had been interrupted when one of the artists said Ashley wanted to see her.

Wiping off somewhat of the paint off of her hands and removing the apron, Sasha exited out of the back room. She spotted her aunt talking to a tall dark curly haired man.

"Hey, Aunt Ashley, you wanted to see me?" She walked up to the duo.

The older blond woman perked at the sight of Sasha. She placed a and upon her shoulder. "Yes! I want you to meet Matthew Harris, an artist based in New York." She turned to the man. "Matthew, this is my niece I mentioned, Sasha."

"Nice to meet you, Matthew." Sasha extended a hand as an inviting gesture. "I've actually seen your work. You can't really miss it considering how popular you are on social media."

Matthew laughed, accepting the handshake. "I appreciate the compliment. It means a lot. It's nice to meet you too, especially knowing you're Sabrina Carter's daughter. You must already hear how great of an artist she was."

"I do, but it means so much to hear people who look up to her all these years."

Ashley interrupted politely, "Since you two are getting acquainted. I need to make a quick phone call."

"So, I've noticed you're an artist yourself." He motioned the paint markings smeared on her hands.

Sasha giggled, eyes trailing down at her hands. "Uh, yes. Not professionally though. I paint for fun or whenever I find inspiration."

"Oh, what do you do for work. If you don't mind me asking."

"I'm a 911 dispatcher."

Matthew's eyes widened slightly before his eyebrows furrowed in thought. He had his index finger tapping against his mouth. "I hope you don't find this weird, but did you answer a phone call from a guy who slipped on a cliff on a hiking trail, a couple of months ago?"

"My memory isn't that bad but yeah I remember." Sasha simply answered until her face lit in shock. "Wait, was that you?"

He surrendered, "An unfortunate day for me."

"Oh my gosh, wow." Sasha still stunned. "I'm glad that you're okay and back on your feet."

"If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be standing here. So, thank you."

Sasha shrugged, "All I did was answer. The people who helped you out and got you to safety did the hard work."

"But you were there when I felt alone like I was going to die out there." Matthew argued. "You saved my life, Sasha."