The Lost Girl (Complete)

Chapter Twenty Seven - The Hand of Friendship

"This piece of work was done by a local artist who has chosen to remain anonymous but you'll be able to find a number of his paintings in galleries throughout Charleston. He's got an amazing amount of talent and the starting price is below what was recommended," trying to keep her attention on the couple contemplating the purchase of a brand new artwork, Celestia deliberately frowned at the guy kicking his feet nearby.

When she'd met him in class, Riley had seemed like one of the laidback types of people but in truth he obviously enjoyed peppering his friends with an abundance of attention. As enthusiastic about art as herself, when she'd mentioned where she worked, he had insisted that he be allowed to drop by one day.

That had been a week ago and this was now his third visit. Normally he spent his time squashed in beside her at the reception desk, doing homework and drawing random things that had managed to spark his interest but today his body moved restlessly, eyes following her as she continued speaking to the potential buyers. It would be a huge accomplishment if she could call Gabe and brag that she'd finally managed to sell a piece without his help.

Something he was obviously confident of since he'd finally let her open the gallery alone.

"It'd look amazing in the living room," the woman admitted, eyes tracing the bright colours that seemed to be jumping off of the canvas.

"If you'd like I can give some time to talk it over. We have a sitting room available with drinks and snacks." Gabriel had designed the place to go above and beyond when dealing with clients no matter their social status – if you walked through the door, you were treat with all due importance.

Smiling, the couple accepted her offer and made general small talk as she led them into the glamorous receiving room, her hands moving steadily as she prepared coffee and iced tea. Even these small, menial things gave her a ping of joy – who would have thought a year ago that she would be standing here.

"Please take your time and I'll be at the reception desk if you need to ask any more questions," her low-slung heels barely making a sound as she stepped back out to where her newest shadow was busy examining the piece in question. "What do you think?"

Shrugging his wide shoulders, Riley barely spared her a glance as he frowned over something on the canvas, "It's nice. A bit whimsical and you can tell that the artist is still a student rather than a master but I suppose it's got something that draws the eye."

"Are we even looking at the same thing? I think that it's magnificent – I wish that Uncle Gabe let people pay the paintings off because if I could, I would definitely buy it."

"It's a picture of a tree."

"It's not just a tree! It looks so alive and if you look really closely, the artist has managed to paint different shapes and figures amongst the greenery. I have already spent ages staring at it but every time, I manage to find something else."

Another shrug, "I did say it was good."

Feeling comfortable enough to poke her tongue out at him, she checked that the couple hadn't wandered out of the other room before turning back to her desk where a small pile of paperwork sat ready to be sorted and filed for the upcoming showcase that Gabriel had planned. It was enough to have goosebumps rising along the length of her arms – rubbing elbows with some of the local elite while looking around rooms upon rooms of art was an amazing achievement when she had next to no formal training and even less high-class blood in her.

"So what are you doing here on a Saturday anyway? Surely you can't want to spend time with me that much."

Dropping down onto his previous seat with a sigh, Riley ran a hand over his spiky hairdo, "I just seem to get more done here. Even the library at school is too loud sometimes and I like seeing all the new paintings every time I come by. Am I bothering you or your uncle too much? He seemed pretty cool when I stopped by last time."

"Uncle Gabe said that he has no problem with you being here as long as you behave yourself and don't interfere when I'm working." There seemed to be something off about him this time though, a jittery anxiousness that was affecting her in turn – she couldn't seem to concentrate since some part of his body was always moving as he shifted papers around and grunted with dissatisfaction. "Ok," she slapped her hands down on the glass-top desk, "what is going on? You're jittery."

Tossing the papers aside, he dropped his head back, "Sorry. It's just irrelevant shit that's been bugging me since last night. I didn't mean to bring it with me today."

"Anything I can help with?" Not that I'd be able to offer any advice, she thought, noticing the slight paling of his face and the dark rings beneath his eyes.

"It's not really an 'I can talk it out' or quick fix kind of problem," he muttered, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Umm, excuse me, we don't mean to interrupt but we made our decision," a timid female voice interrupted from the side of the large entrance. Celestia jerked up, inwardly chastising herself for almost forgetting that she was in the middle of a sale. Really good job, she winced, putting on her best smile as she approached the couple, "I'm sorry for not making it back in to check up on you. So," she bounced, "will that lovely piece have a new home?"

... ... ...

Closing the large front door with a satisfied grin, Celestia was finally able to turn back to the unfinished conversation, Riley still sitting in the same spot even though she had told him that he could head upstairs to her Uncle Victor's old study. A room which had not been touched since the time when he had lived in the mansion with his parents.

"All done?" His voice was a smooth, gentle change after the excitement of working through the paperwork of her first solo sale. "It'd be about time for you to head home."

She watched as he began to gather the half sketched pages that were obviously for one of their upcoming projects. "Yeah. I got told to close after I'd finished everything for Monday. We never did get to finish that chat though."

He smiled wryly, "Not sure chatting would really help anyway, I just wanted someone calm to hang out for a little while. Sorry if I got too annoying."

Biting her lip, she started to tap her fingers rapidly in indecision – Riley could honestly be considered her first real friend and even though they still didn't know each other very well, she could see that something was bothering him. If they were closer and she wasn't so socially awkward, she would probably know exactly what to say or do.

This was wrong. Being a part of the Sorenson clan had begun to teach her something about never turning away someone important when they were in need.

"Ok, wait. You don't have to talk to me if you don't want to but your face tells me enough. I'm not good with a lot of things but if what you need is somewhere to study, I can help. I mean, my cousins usually invade but I own a house with three rooms and a ridiculous amount of beds now that I have an army of relatives." Breathing deeply after that, she smiled with a twitch, "Wanna come crash at my house?"