Paintbrush

↬epilogue.

He walked into her apartment, and locked it behind him. They both had keys to each other's apartments now.

  Hearing a soft tune coming from one of the rooms, he already knew what she was doing. He followed the sound, tiptoeing. Slowly, he pushed open the door, and smiled at the sight before him.

  She was painting on a large canvas, her eyebrows furrowed in concentration. She backed up to peer at it, moving her hips slightly to the beat of the song. Then, she added one more swipe of her brush to the masterpiece, and sighed in satisfaction.

  He gazed at it, awestruck as always. In every stroke, he heard her voice. Her words. Little did he know, he was the only one that truly listened.

  "You're magical, " he said, and she jumped in surprise.

  "Jack! Wow, you sure are abusing your key."

  He smirked. "Right, because I'm the one that comes into your apartment just to get a snack and sneak into bed with you every night?"

  "You never complain, " she shrugged casually, although a light shade of pink tinted her cheeks at his comment.

  "Can you blame me? I'm kind of in love with you, " he grinned playfully as he pulled her closer to him.

  She narrowed her eyes at him. "Kind of?"

  A whirlpool of butterflies formed in her stomach when his hand tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. He welcomed the electricity that passed through him when they touched.

  He leaned down, so his face was inches away from hers. "No, my little mermaid. I'm completely and utterly in love with you. Trust me."

  Dimples shown, skin glowing, and heart pounding, she pulled him into a kiss. His lips desperately met hers; their souls yearning for each other.

  "I love you. I love you, " she whispered in between kisses, and he smiled.

  "Hey, hey, " he paused, distancing himself slightly. "I have something to tell you. Something exciting."

  "Oh? Okay, what is it?"

  "Alright, so you know how I love your artwork? And that I'm the executive assistant for Sight Gallery? And that I love you so much, just enough to reserve a wall for your own paintings there?" he drawled, and her eyes widened in realization.

"You didn't! Oh my— Jack, did you?" she exclaimed.

He nodded, and she let out a joyful squeal. She began to jump up and down, making random dance moves.

He chuckled as she grabbed his hand, dancing with him. They moved around the colorful room; laughter filling the apartment.

Then, she pulled him down to the ground, sighing. He put his arms around her as they laid on the floor, staring up at the ceiling with hand painted stars.

"Thank you, Jack, " she murmured, and he kissed her cheek in response. "I probably wouldn't have made it this far as P.B. or myself if it weren't for you. You helped me achieve my dreams."

He turned to her, his eyes boring into hers. "Of course. You're doing all the hard work yourself, Noelle. I'm just giving you a platform to show it all."

Her gaze held a certain vulnerability at that moment that had him falling deeper in love with her. With her raw soul. He replied by revealing everything in his own orbs, and she smiled softly.

"You know, " he cleared his throat, caressing her cheek. "You never told me what P.B. stands for."

"Oh, it's basic, actually. It stands for paintbrush, because I like to think of myself as a paintbrush. I have the ability to paint the world with beauty, like a paintbrush on a canvas, " she explained, and he leaned his forehead on hers.

"Well, you definitely paint my world, Noelle. But you're already art yourself, and I'm glad you finally learned to see yourself that way too."

She felt his words in the depths of her heart, and she sighed. "So am I. Now, I just need to tell that through my artwork, so other people know the same."

"You will. I know you will, " he encouraged.

Tilting her head slightly, she planted a delicate kiss on his lips. "I love you, my Eric."

"I love you, my little mermaid...and paintbrush."

THE END

A/N: and it's over! Wow! Let me just say, this was a hard book to write and I'm proud of myself for completing it just the way I planned.

I'm very grateful for all of you that stayed by me, even through my late updates! All of your beautiful comments are in a special place in my heart. Thank you!

If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, don't hesitate to say so!

I'm happy, yet sad, to say that Paintbrush is complete!