𝐅𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐕𝐚𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐬𝐨'𝐬 𝐒𝐚𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐠𝐞|✓

xxx.

♔✙ 𝐑 𝐄 𝐈 𝐃 ✙♔

Blame Me ~ Sarina

There was a lot of action taking place in the gallery. Ever since we opened, we had sold over ten thousand portraits and gotten so many artists who wanted to contract with us, both famous and underrated.

I had been in and out of meetings for the past week and I was so glad that the Valdivieso Gallery was growing.

I had so many other businesses, both handed down to me and those that I opened up or took over, but this one was extremely sentimental to me.

This had been my dream business, and it was such a cathartic experience to walk through each and every aesthetically set-up room. It was mainly themed gold, silver, cobalt and slate; it was my definition of Heaven.

The Venus Collection, themed deep green and gold, had a clear glass barrier now. It was the entire highlight of the reason why I started this whole project.

It was a section of so many emotions. A lot of people loved to stand or sit and stare at it, especially couples.

For me, that collection was an indication of my growth in love. A reminder of how hard I fell for the beautiful black girl I fell in love with at first sight on a balcony.

It was a very intimate story that only my therapist knew. In fact, he didn't know the whole story. He didn't know about how I first approached her, how I initiated our first kiss, or how we first made love on my private island. Or when I first declared that I loved her.

These were the little things that I kept to myself, because I knew no one would understand the emotions that Iris put me through, or how she made me feel so fulfilled and loved. No one deserved to know, no one would ever know.

We had played a very dangerous game; risking our lives for the perilous thrill of committing saccharine sacrilege.

In the end, I'd say it really paid off. It taught me to grow emotionally: that meant I'd follow my heart from now on. It wasn't always safe, but it was worth it.

Working with my heart meant I was moving out of my comfort zone and associating with danger. Most people used logic because they loved to play safe; they didn't want to go into the deep end in fear of the detrimental repercussions that would come with it.

I admit, I was a victim of that. I wanted to stay safe by hiding behind a holy façade. I tried to escape my true colours, but in the end, I relapsed. Rosalie was right: a leopard never changes its spots.

One may do something or make calculated attempts to disguise their dark and twisted truth, but in the end, it unfolds, with tenfold power.

You can run, but you can't run forever.