Go StrongIndependentWoman Hayi is what she likes to call herself. From thesis to commission works, she's got it under control. But, there's one thing she can't control-Song Yuvin. How can someone so annoying exist in this world?
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"Wow..." Inside the art room, Sejin finds himself captivated by the beautifully painted canvas in front of him. "I've seen all your work in the past, but you definitely outdid yourself this time!" Hayi can't help but agree with this statement. Even she herself is surprised when she finished painting a few days ago.
"This is definitely the most challenging piece I've worked on, but look at it now... this may be my best work so far!" Hayi happily exclaims. Today, she will be meeting Sejin's uncle to officially give the painting to him. Dongwook has been nothing but patient, and Hayi is extremely thankful for his endless understanding.
"How did you come up with this, Hayi?" Sejin wonders as he continues to examine the painting. They are now both inside one of the art rooms as they wait for Dongwook to arrive."Your uncle was very particular with what he wants, so I just followed it and voila!" Sejin gives her an amused look and says, "Or maybe you were just romantically inspired."
Ping! Sejin suddenly receives a message just before another wave of teasing starts, and Hayi is relieved to easily dodge it. "He's in the lobby now. He'll be here soon!" Hayi suddenly feels her heart pounding. Although she is very proud of her work, she still feels nervous about presenting it. "I'll wait for him by the elevator." Hayi nods before Sejin excitedly goes away.
Hayi has done a lot of research to make sure everything in the painting will be significant. She made sure to be as accurate as she can be, and hopefully, she can at least meet Dongwook's standard.
Soon after the door opens, and two gentlemen walk in the room. Hayi sees Dongwook, looking as dashing as ever. "Good afternoon, Hayi." He warmly greets her before his eyes naturally drift to the painting beside her. Hayi expects him to speak out his opinion, but she receives nothing but silence.
The air feels colder than before as Hayi's confidence shrinks. Dongwook stands in front of the painting, unmoving. Both Hayi and Sejin, don't know what to expect next after the silence that envelops them. They aren't sure if the silence is meant to be a good or bad sign. "My goodness, I think my career will end just before it begins." Negativity floods Hayi's mind and Sejin senses it. He tries to relieve the unspoken tension by asking, "What can you say, uncle?"
Dongwook immediately snaps out of his unwavering gaze to look back at the two. "It's..." He begins but fails to describe his own thoughts. He returns his gaze back to the painting and draws out a deep breath. "This is exactly how I imagined it, and it's even better than I expected." The good news brings happiness, not only to Hayi but to Sejin as well. "You scared us with your silence! We thought you didn't like it!"
"I apologize for that. I'm just speechless seeing it in person." Dongwook says. "Didn't Hayi send you pictures of the progress? Why are you still surprised?" Sejin asks out of curiosity, knowing that his uncle rarely gets dazzled.
"That's because I only sent him parts of the painting and not the whole. I wanted it to still have an element of surprise when I present it." Gaining her confidence back, Hayi briefly explains to her best friend the reason behind the big reveal. "I wanted to incorporate all the ideas you have mentioned. The background is my surrealistic attempt to showcase how different your worlds are." Hayi points at the mixtures of nature-inspired elements from the high mountain that frames the corner of the canvas to the calm water meeting in the middle.
"I've noticed that you and Ms. Hana loves plants, so I did my best to include that as well." Hayi, who is now in high spirits, explains the symbolism of the plant-related element of the realistic portrait in the middle. "You're right, we really love plants and flowers," Dongwook confirms.
Hayi nods in relief. "I added cactuses around both of you as a symbol of endurance. That no matter what's thrown in your way, you'll survive and make it work." Knowing the meaning of the plant by heart, Dongwook says, "They're actually Hana's favorite plant. I'm sure she'll love it."
Feeling a little bit left out, Sejin asks the artist another question, "What is the bouquet of purple flowers she's holding?" Dongwook looks at Hayi, not recognize the flower. "They're Heliotrope, and they symbolize an unchanging love that will never cease; eternal love."
As an artist, Hayi takes proud of the outcome of her work, but as a woman, she feels her heart warms. When she did her research about the symbolism of flowers, it was difficult to pick only one. However, when she came across this specific flower, she knew it was the perfect one to describe Dongwook and Hana's everlasting love for each other. Hayi also longs to have such pure love in the future.
"Hayi, I want to thank you for doing such an excellent job even though you are very busy with your thesis." Hayi's heart swells with happiness as Dongwook expresses his gratitude. "The symbolism you added fits perfectly to our love story. Thank you for the time you poured in researching about it."
"She has the energy to do that because she's inspired." Sejin silently snickers at the corner and Hayi glares at him with the tips of her ears turning red. Good thing, the side comment was left unnoticed by Dongwook. "You're an exceptional artist, and I'm sure you have a bright future ahead of you."
"Thank you for your kind words, Sir Dongwook." Hayi can finally feel at peace, knowing that she accomplished the task with flying colors. Being appreciated is such a rewarding feeling after all the time and effort she has put into this piece. Now, there's just one last thing to check on Hayi's to do list; and that is to execute her thesis in the way she has planned it.
"Sir Dongwook, I would like to invite you and Miss. Hana to my thesis exhibition." Hayi suddenly says as she remembers her thesis. "Oh yeah! It'll be soon. Uncle, you should definitely come!" Sejin joins in while he carefully wraps the painting. "Of course, I'd love to see more of your work. Just message me the details." Hayi happily nods as they finish wrapping the canvas.
Dongwook takes the canvas and says, "Good luck with your exhibit. I'm looking forward to being blown away again." Hayi can feel the pressure rising, but our heroine is a strong woman. She is up for any challenge, especially if it's about arts. Hayi is ready to push herself beyond her limits and produce the most remarkable thesis yet.
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