Deceret Series #2: Bleed for Love

Chapter 5

Chapter 5

One look at the woman I encountered in the farmer's market and I knew she's going to be my muse. I stared at her, trying to memorize her distinct features, admiring the soft bounce of her curls, before I quickly averted my gaze when she turned my way.

Dali-dali akong umuwi ng mansion, hinihiling na sana hindi ako biguin ng memorya ko. I dumped the groceries at the kitchen and headed straight to my studio at the tower. I locked the door as soon as I got in and dropped to the floor, pulling a white, linen canvas.

I started working with oil and brush. Her beauty is goddess-like, and she would've looked good in a misty watercolor but I wanted to challenge myself. I want to capture her soft features in hard strokes and hopefully, my painting will exude the same air of intelligence and sophistication she had. I noticed she had a small, playful bump. She must be pregnant. The yellow, linen dress she wore made her skin glow. Her cheeks are naturally flushed and her eyes, lethal. She's a sleek sophisticate who can carry both gentleness and power in her own hands.

Halos hindi ako humihinga habang pinipiga ang utak ko sa mga nasagip kong larawan niya sa isipan. I was so busy and concentrated on the wooden floor, barely moving and holding my breath. Stroke after stroke, I started to form an intricate image. It pleased me, but it also urged me to go further, so I became bold and tapped into stronger hues and continued painting.

Muntik na akong mapamura nang makarinig ng katok mula sa pinto. Glaring, I lifted my gaze to the heavy wooden doors. It's only him who would dare knock and disturb my peace while I am painting.

"What?" irita kong tawag.

"Nagrereklamo si Manang sa baba, hindi mo raw tinapos ang listahan ng dapat bilhin sa palengke." His bored, flat tone sounded on the other side.

"Just tell her to send someone else to run the errands, I have an important task to do!" I shouted. Hinawi ko ang takas na mga buhok at binalikan ang ginagawa nang magsalita na naman ulit siya.

"Hinahanap ka ng anak mo."

My hand stopped mid-air. I stared at the unfinished painting and sighed, admitting defeat. Rarely could I ever find myself in this surge of inspiration, and when I do, something always happens. It's like the universe itself is trying to manipulate fate into killing the artist in me.

"Papunta na." Ani ko. Today, I wore a pair of tattered denim jeans and shapeless black, wool sweater. I didn't wear any perfume, so I only smelled of soap and nothing else. My long hair is in braids, it's almost reaching the back of my knee. I twisted it in a bun as I stepped out of the studio.

He threw me an uninterested stare and glanced at the mess inside. Before he could comment, I immediately slammed the door shut and stared at him blankly.

"Where's my son?"

Iginiya niya ako sa malawak na bakuran. When I woke up earlier, Castian is still dozing. I wasn't expecting him to wake up early because he slept past his bed time last night, sifting through my books and begging me to read him the tales he found with interesting pictures.

I found him in the corner of the rusty swing, kicking pebbles with his chubby hands stuck into the pockets of his brown suspender. He's pouting. The sun made his cheeks turn a bit red and the wind blew into his bed hair. Na-guilty ako bigla. Ni hindi ko man lang naayusan bago ako nagbalak na magkulong sa studio.

"Baby..." malambing kong tawag sa kaniya.

He instantly jumped from the ground and came running to me like an unfrenzied train. Before I could even react, he wrapped his hands around my legs.