Feeling the faint but intense waves of vibration against the dining table, Selina collected the plates and walked to the kitchen sink. From the look on Jason's face, she considerately stepped away for him to pick up the phone call. Swiping his finger across the screen, he accepted the call and brought his cellphone to his ear.
"Bidder's name?"
Aaron replied, "Ken Sin."
His eyes wandered to the left where it paused at the cheerfully humming Selina. With a soapy sponge in one hand and plate in the other, she scrubbed the utensils squeaky clean. His intense stare caught her attention, making her tilt her head towards him.
She blinked a few times before breaking out a dazzling smile. Releasing the soapy sponge from her hand, she turned towards him and waved her wet palm in the air. Then, her index finger pointed to him and formed a cellphone call signal.
'Ah, she's asking if I'm still on the phone.' He thought to himself as he nodded to her and spoke into the call. As he provided further instructions to Aaron, his eyes couldn't help but wander off to her wet hands. The main point wasn't the soapy moisture of her hands, but the bracelet she was wearing.
"Hold on, I'll go to my study room now." To avoid her suspicion, he pretended to nod as he walked upstairs.
Once he was in his study room, his voice deepened as he instructed. "Listen well. There is no room for mistakes during this mission. During the auction, you will be attending in my place under a different guest name. Find any way possible to get close to Bryan and whoever he brings along. And then.."
Jason continued going through what Aaron needed to do. After he had been certain that Aaron had understood each word, he said, they ended the call. Selina had already finished washing dishes and proceeded to the art studio by the time Jason got off the phone.
He knocked against the door before entering to take a sneak peek of her next artworks. The colorful tainted tip of the paintbrush paused in midair, dripping stains of paint to the newspaper on the floor. The blue metallic silver mix on the brush followed her eyes and redirected towards Jason's direction.
"Finished with your call?" She squinted one eye closed and glanced through her other eye. With her vibrant brush, she straightened it with her thumb as its support. Rotating it sideways and back to ninety degrees, she nodded approvingly as if she had discovered a new species in her world.
"The call is done. I came to see what you're up to." He halted his steps when he saw her angling the brush at him. Though he didn't understand what that gesture meant, the way she licked the corner of her lips made him gulp unconsciously. His curiosity heightened; intensifying his urge to view her new diligent artwork.
"Hehe. Want to take a guess on what I'm painting then? You can't peek. If you peek, you'll be cheating." The dimple on her left cheek deepened as she curved her lips to a genuine smile. Compared to the time when she first woke up to how comfortable she felt now, he realized how much she loved smiling. Her jolliness always spread to him whenever she's around.
It made him wonder what magic dust she sprinkles on him to influence him this way. His lips sealed closed as he let out a guessing "mm" sound. A slight smile kinked up the corners of his mouth as he circled around the room in small steps with his eyes on the colors she was using today.
His eyes skimmed through the scattered jars, brushes, paints and palettes laying messily over the long table. "Hmm.. blues, pastel pinks, gold..." He mumbled to himself as he racked his brains for any traces of hints. After a few minutes, he shook his head and spread his arms out.
Shrugging, he revealed a lopsided smile. "I have no idea. What is it?" Her legs crossed relaxingly as her teeth bit on her bottom lip lightly. She waved her hand inviting him over to her side. Since her hands had paint stains, she didn't reach out to drag him over.
Hurrying his steps to her side, he bent his body slightly forward to take a peek at the canvas. Widening his eyes at the single dot on the entirely white canvas, his lips twitched. "Wow! What is this?"
"Hahahha, you really want to see? Give me 10 minutes. Watch carefully." She laughed nonchalantly as her brush strokes glided across the canvas randomly. He stood behind her as he watched her splatter paint on random spots without seeming to care where it lands.
Ten minutes passed, and all he sees are scattered drips and dots. While his brains were tossing words around and forming its own word bank to compliment her works, she turned around and placed the tools in her hands down on the floor.
"Now~ For the magical moment~" She raised her hands in the air like customers waving their hands up during roller coaster rides. Brushing her fingers on the sides of the canvas, she slowly peeled layers of tape off, revealing the paints underneath it. He didn't know how she created this without the paint sticking to the tape, but it was more fascinating to see her strip off the tape than the art itself.
She was giggling like a child opening her birthday presents despite knowing what to expect. "Tada~~~" She presented the artwork with a honey nectar smile; filled with overflowing sweetness. He could see bees chasing after her attractiveness. With a tightlipped smile, he averted his gaze to the painting.
Awestruck with the beauty and spirit of animals glowing like twinkling stars in the galaxy, his heart sped up as if the animals were coming out of the painting. On the canvas, a river of glowing light mixed with pastels and gold hues surrounded sharp strokes and highlights of a familiar face. Spirits of liveliness covered the corners of the canvas actively rushing blood through his bloodstreams.
"Me?" Still stunned by the painting he was seeing, he managed to ask this question.
Nodding, her smile palms spread as if she owned the world at this moment. "Yep! You! Aren't you handsome? Ah, but don't you think it'll be better if I added more details on your hair? It'll look more like the wind blowing or grass dancing in the wild. Adds more contrast."
While she continued speaking, she didn't notice the change in his glance. From behind, he could see the girl's tied hair and tangle knotted apron. He had a sudden urge to pull her in his embrace tightly. The emotions she expressed through her artwork deeply stirred his insides, shattering the alphabet in his mind.
Wrapping his arms around her from behind, he closed his eyes and whispered, "Thank you." If they were more than friends, he would have taken her lips with his and kissed her until they gasped for air by now. For now, this hug is enough. Just enough.
"Seriously, this is not good for my heart." He could hear the loud drums rumbling in his heart as he tried calming down. Even though she didn't say it, the colors on her artwork conveyed the best of her words. 'Thanks for everything you've done.' He repeated to his mind. That was his first impression of the painted work.
She opened her heart to him and trusted him wholeheartedly. He heard her whisper, "That should be my words. Thank you. But why is this bad for your heart?"
'This girl was clueless how effective her smallest actions could affect him!'
Sighing, he let go and smiled at the artwork. "I love it. I'll hang it up in my room when it is dried. By the way, the bracelet around your wrist is really pretty. I really like the design of it."
Holding up her wrist, she let the pieces of her bracelet dangle. "This bracelet?"
He nodded and closely observed it. Confirming his thoughts once again, he asked, "I want to have a customized one made for my younger sister. Her birthday is coming up, and I think she would love it. Can you lend me this for a week? I promise I'll give it back."
"Sure. My hand is full of paint, so you can take it off." She smiled and held out her wrist willingly.
"Thanks." Carefully, he unclipped the bracelet.
Since he had retrieved the bracelet, his job was considered done here. "I still have some work to do. If you want to go anywhere, just let the driver know. Remember to let me know if you are going anywhere."
He rubbed her hair dotingly before walking out of the room. As he closed the door to the studio, he couldn't help but give her a few extra glances. She was smiling sweetly with a thin brush in her hand as she bit down on her lips to add extra strokes to his abstractive portrait.
Subconsciously, he tightened his grip on the bracelet, "Don't worry, I'll make sure you meet your brother again...without harm." When she looked up again, he was already gone from the door.
Releasing a breath of relief, she patted the chest area of the apron. "I almost couldn't breathe when he hugged me just now. Hehe, well~ As long as he likes it. He must have been very happy to hug me like that."