After a few minutes of walking, Arlene led Marco to an empty grassy park with a big, old oak tree at the center, though its leaves were still pretty green. Marco sat at the bench, settling his bag beside him, while Arlene sloped against the oak tree, admiring the natural beauty of the sunset.
From the oak tree, you could still barely see the large school campus, as well as tall skyscrapers and mountains from afar.
Marco leaned against the bench, his hands clasped behind his head in a relaxed posture, and he took a deep breath before silently observing the aroma of peace and quiet around him. The rustling of leaves and the feeling of someone with him felt peaceful.
"Hey Arlene," Marco started, a faint grin to cover up his 'loner face'. "I've never admired a sunset like this before."
"Really?" Arlene chuckled quietly. "Well, the sun sets everyday, you know."
Marco blinked, caught off guard by how simple yet deep it sounded. He opened his mouth to reply but found himself only nodding, his eyes drifting back to the horizon.
"Yeah, I know." He replied gently. "I like it here. Calm and all."
"Then you've got to come with me again." she said, her gaze fixed on the orange sky. Her voice was soft, but certain.
"We'll see." Marco grinned unknowingly. He really did. It wasn't much, but it was real.
Silence filled the air surrounding them, only the sounds of birds chirping and the faint muttering of passersby were heard. The sunset slowly began to move, its radiance fading away.
"Do you ever feel like... I don't know, what you're drawing could come to life?" Marco asked, his voice quiet as he flipped open his sketchbook and picked up his pencil.
"That's called talent." She replied.
"Maybe passion's a better word."
"Well, maybe it's both." Arlene replied with a smirk.
And so, without a word, he lowered his pencil to the pad. His stare flicked between the fading horizon and the page. His strokes were deliberate, and each line caught the blazing glow of the sun.
"What'cha drawing now?" Arlene asked tenderly, taking a brief look at his incomplete yet already delicate work.
"Just something." Marco said, his gaze fixed on the page.
As Marco drew, a strange sensation crept over him, like a gentle wind guiding his hand. Each stroke felt instinctive, as if something hidden flowed through him.
Arlene hesitated before resting her arm warmly on his shoulder as he drew, her gaze steady on the page as quiet minutes passed swiftly. She stayed there with him until he finished as the last gleam of the sunset disappeared.
"Wow… That's amazing, Marco." she said, her eyes widening from the outcome.
Everything, from the soft ground along the riverside to the clouds in the sky looked so finely drawn as if it was almost alive. The scenery was a picture of what was a calm and serene reflection of everything they had just seen while the sun was dipping. For Marco to be able to draw this within a couple of minutes indeed was amazing.
He turned his head. Arlene still sat beside him. "You're still here?" He asked.
"Of course I am," Arlene answered, her voice unexpectedly confident. "You expect me to leave so suddenly?"
He closed his sketchbook gently, squeezing it back to his bag. "Well, it's getting late." Marco finally said as he zipped his bag.
"So?" She replied, smirking. "If I leave, you'll be alone. You wouldn't want that, would you?"
He paused for a moment, and so Marco didn't reply, but her statement couldn't help but make him smile. For the first time in a long time, Marco felt just a tiny bit less lonely. It was slightly ecstatic.
"The sun's setting," he said, his voice serene. He stood up and turned his gaze to her. "It's nice meeting you, Arlene."
His eyes were unusually wide and bright, like there was a faint glimmer of hope illuminating his face.
"Yeah." Arlene muttered quietly, her voice barely audible. "You're going?"
Marco stood up and patted her shoulders, giving her a grin. "I'll see you tomorrow," he whispered.
She didn't reply, letting Marco walk away to the distance. As Marco walked away, giving a final wave of goodbye, her expression softened, and she turned on her heel, heading toward the school parking lot.
A couple minutes passed, and the dusky sky cast long shadows throughout the sidewalks. The light posts had just turned on, guiding Arlene back to the school. The air was also quiet, with only the rhythmic chirping of crickets breaking the silence. Warm white lights glowed from the houses beside the sidewalk, their covered windows hinting at the cozy interiors.
As Arlene arrived at the parking lot, there was a black, sleek Shelby waiting in the corner, its engine roaring as Arlene approached. Along with that was a woman that leaned against the front of the shiny Shelby.
She looked like she had stepped off the cover of a fashion magazine, her long blonde hair softly settling on her shoulders, and her high heels that looked impossible for an ordinary person to walk in.
"Arlene," she greeted, her tone warm. "Finally. I thought I'd have to wait all night."
"Hey! I'm here, don't worry!" Arlene said as she quickened her pace, the rumble of the engine vibrating through the air.
The girl had a confident smile, the kind inherited from people with full pockets and bloated stomachs. Yet, her smile faltered when she looked at Arlene.
Her chin remained up, and her shoulders relaxed. The slow clacking of her heels echoed as she walked towards Arlene, her presence growing more imposing with each step.
"Well then… How's family business going, Arlene?" she began.
"It's doing better than I thought. How about you?" Arlene asked with a lively smile.
"Same! So great to hear that from you," she congratulated, extending her hand for a handshake. There was a momentary pause, a silent challenge in the air.
Arlene chuckled softly, then, with a straight and upright face, she gently accepted the handshake. "I'm sure we'll both keep pushing each other to do better," she said, her grip firm.
"Yep," the girl replied, her smile never reaching her eyes.
There was peaceful silence filling the air after her reply, and the Shelby's roaring engine was the only sound breaking the silence. Arlene and the girl leaned against her car's front, and the girl reached out her pocket, bringing out a pack of cigarettes and a lighter.
She attempted to give one to Arlene, but she turned away in disgust.
The girl chuckled softly and brushed it off and lit her own. The light gust of wind led her to cover the cigarette as she lit it up. She bit it between her lips, the smoke of the cigarette spreading throughout the evening breeze.
Meanwhile, Arlene leaned there, gazing at the lit neon city lights from afar. She had her shoulders rested on the car's sleek surface, and a faint grin wrapped around her lips and as the silence continued on.
"So Arlene, I saw you hanging around with some guy earlier. Is he your new boyfriend or… something?" she questioned, her stare flicked to Arlene.
Arlene paused for a moment, and she chuckled softly. "Just a friend." she murmured.
The girl's eyes narrowed in suspense as she glared at Arlene with a grin on her lips. "That's unusual of you."
Arlene didn't answer, but rather she nodded in silence as her gaze turned to the night sky, filled with gleaming stars and little to no clouds in their area. In the distance was the moon, its shadows creating a crescent.
The girl took a long drag of her cigarette, her eyes never leaving Arlene. "Just a friend, huh? You guys seemed pretty close."
"We've known each other for sometime. He's a nice guy." she replied, her gaze fixed on the distant city lights.
"Sometime? Like what, a week?"
"Well, just today." Arlene looked away.
"Only today? That's not 'sometime'." The girl replied, her voice unexpectedly raised.
Arlene turned her gaze back to the girl. "But hey, he's gentle and easy to talk to, you know?"
"There's hundreds of people who're gentle and easy to talk to." The girl chuckled quietly. "Besides, what's so unique about him?"
"He's good at drawing stuff."
"Drawing…" she muttered, then she looked up, her eyes gazing throughout the night sky. "So, what does he draw?"
"Anything. He's good at drawing anything." she immediately responded, her voice uptight.
"Interesting." she murmured, taking another long drag of her cigarette. She stood straight and threw the cigarette at the nearby can with a flick of her finger. "Don't let him slow you down, Arlene. You've got bigger things ahead."
"Cause us two, Ria and Arlene, we're unstoppable." the girl added.
Her name was Ria. Richer than most folks out there, but the red-haired girl was richer.
Arlene was silent once again, though she couldn't help but chortle at her comment.
"Well, I'll be going.." Ria said as she opened the car door of her Shelby, its engine still grumbling.
"I see then. See you... maybe." Arlene's grin softened as Ria left.
Somewhere across the city, Marco was probably lost in his own thoughts, just as he always was.
Neon city lights cast the whole area with different hues, and the bustling sounds of the streets at night were consistent. Yet here Marco was, sitting at the middle of his dimly lit, cluttered, and silent mess of a room.
His desk was full of empty ramen cups, unfinished food, and crumpled paper of his sketches. The only noise that was present in his apartment were the distant noises of the streets outside.
Hundreds of filled sketchbooks were stacked haphazardly at the side of his desk as he meticulously drew more portraits and landscapes. Even though his place had an ungodly amount of cluttered mess, this... This was his sanctuary.
Here, he felt the weight of the world lift from his shoulders.
That night, Marco was deep into his own world, as if the pencil had possessed him as he drew. The faint noises of the city outside blurred as he continued, and all he could hear was the scratching of his pencil.
He'd occasionally find himself grinning more as the landscape formed. Every line he drew felt like a piece of himself, something the real world could never take away.
As he finished the drawing, he looked out the window with the moon at its peak.
The drawing was a picture of a long crippled alleyway, and the buildings surrounding it were tall. There was a burning man at the center of the alleyway, kneeling and reaching out his hand for help.
"What the- What am I drawing..."
For Marco, sleep had become a distant memory, and all he wanted to do was draw. But that night, for the first time in weeks, Marco set down his pencil and let sleep take him, though it was the dreams that would haunt him next.
It always took him an unusually long time to sleep comfortably. But this time, it felt instant, as if his body gave up as soon as he rested.
Then he dreamt of something strange.
That same alleyway.
The man burning in front of him.
The figure crawled towards Marco, reaching out a charred hand. "H-help m-me…"
His chest tightened as he stared at the burning figure. He didn't remember imagining this.
But here it was, vivid and raw, as if it had been lurking in the recesses of his mind, waiting to escape.
He wanted to run, yet it felt like his feet were stuck to the ground. He wanted to speak, yet it felt like his mouth betrayed him.
The figure drew closer, the intense heat pressing against his face. Its cracked voice broke the silence. "P-please…"