Death of a Bachelor

#15 Madrid

Simone scanned her already packed suitcase, making sure everything she needed was neatly tucked inside. She walked around the room, checking each corner, ensuring that all her supplies were stored properly and her unfinished projects were safely covered, her gaze fell upon the easel with Lewis's unfinished portrait. She walk over to it and scanned the painting, a chuckle escape on her lips while staring at the painting Lewis's face appeared very serious in the painting.

The clothes he wore in the portrait suited him perfectly, highlighting his natural elegance and clean, sophisticated style. Simone reached out and lightly touched the canvas, her fingers grazing the textured surface. She felt the roughness of the paint and the smoothness of the brushstrokes beneath her fingertips her gaze lingered on the painting for a few more moments, appreciating the intricate details and the emotions captured within the lines and colors.

"daydreaming while staring at my portrait is very bad" Lewis teased, his voice breaking through Simone's thoughts. She rolled her eyes and stepped back from the portrait, turning to face him.

"shut up" her gaze dropped to his hands, where he was holding a container full of different kinds of sliced fruits

Lewis had become so much comfortable in Simone's art studio that he went straight to her kitchen as soon as he stepped inside. He organized all the fruits he had bought and began cutting them without even removing his padded jacket. Simone who don't have a choice just shook her head and let him be.

"are you ready?" she asked, reaching for a slice strawberry and popped it into her mouth.

"yes! but first you need to eat more" he said holding out the container "the baby will love these fruit salad!"

"well well well..." she nodded and snatched the container on his hand

"No thank you?" he asked, crossing his arms and raising an eyebrow in mock offense.

"thanks"

Simone murmured, force a smile as she sat on her sofa and began eating, savoring the freshness of the fruit. She put several slices in her mouth at once, clearly enjoying the sweet flavors. Lewis sat beside her and watched her with a mixture of amusement and satisfaction on his face, as he observed her the questions and answers that had been swirling in his mind since last night suddenly entered his mind.

"can you tell me about your parents?" he asked, taking a piece of apple from the container "anything about them" he added.

Simone glanced at Lewis and swallowed before speaking "they are strict" she began "especially when I got cancer, my Dad is the sweetest man you'll ever meet. He is a engineer and he always put us first—like always! he sacrificed so much for me and my Mom, even his own dreams he got better opportunity to work in London but he can't leave us, he chose us." she smiled her eyes reflecting a mix of admiration and sorrow "maybe he was just scared that by the time he came back to Madrid, I would already be gone."

"your Mom?" Lewis asked softly

"My mom is a former teacher, she really loves children" Simone continued "she is the most caring person I know. She's always been the rock of our family, making sure everyone is taken care of, I remember when I was in the hospital, she never left my side her presence made me feel safe" Simone smiled, her eyes distant as she recalled those memories.

"Even now, thinking about it, I can feel how much she loves me. That's why it's so hard to think about telling them about the baby. I don't want to add to their worries or disappoint them."

Lewis reached out, gently taking her hand in his. "it's gonna be okay, you don't have to face this alone. We'll get through it together" he leaned closer to her and smiled "I'm not scared to meet them" he admitted and put a wide smile on his lips.