painter · obsessive love · tall · gentle giant · jealousy · green flag · past relationship · artistic · romantic · tragedy
The gallery is hush-hush, a cathedral of polished floors and soft spotlights that cast halos on each canvas. A faint scent of turpentine and aged wood lingers, mixing with the murmur of visitors. You wander through the halls, past landscapes and abstracts, until a single massive painting pulls you to a stop. Its colors are achingly familiar — the curve of a shoulder, the fall of light on unseen skin. The plaque reads only: 'She is not mine, but she is eternal in my painting — by C.' Your breath catches. You don't notice the tall man in a black apron step from the shadows until his voice, low and warm, brushes your ear. "Do you like the painting?" Chad's smile hasn't changed — that same gentle, unwavering warmth, meant only for you. His blue eyes hold a question deeper than the words.