Aquarelle [h.s]

twenty

Monday came around with shiny golden shades not only in the bright sky outside.

When Harry came knocking on my door it was five in the afternoon and the sunlight outside had already started fading out.

I looked up from the stack of papers I'd been organising and checked the time, even though Harry's knock was a dead giveaway, considering that he was always perfectly on time. I rounded the desk and walked to the front door, opening it to reveal Harry's figure on the other side.

I'd ended up giving him my spare copy of the main door to the building so that he could let himself in as soon as he arrived if the weather was foul, and I'd taken to leaving my key to the studio under the doormat - when I was waiting for him - but he'd never used it, seeming to prefer knocking instead.

I inadvertently gave him a quick once over, he was dressed in all black on that day, the only spot of light being a burgundy scarf that was carelessly draped around the back of his neck, as if he'd taken it out of his house and only then realised it was too warm to actually wear it. His hazelnut hair was still messy, but seemed to have a bit more purpose than the last time I'd seen him, probably due to the fact he'd had to tame it to go to work.

I smiled at him, moving to the side to allow him to walk in, following him with my gaze as he did. He took off his coat and put it on the hanger next to the door, and I closed the door before turning around and gently surpassing him to get back into the studio, smiling again when I saw the pictures on the desk.

I'd adjusted the lighting and printed the ones I'd taken on Saturday, and I was still a bit surprised by how good they'd turned out. Simply looking at the first picture, that was portraying a very wet Harry side-glancing at me with the phantom of a smile on his lips, I was reminded of that moment, and I would've been lying if I said it didn't make me happy, because it certainly did.

I reached the desk, taking them quickly and putting them into a drawer, hiding them away safely. I still hadn't dared to tell Nicholas that Harry was the one I'd gone to the seaside with, and if I had to be honest I wasn't even sure I wanted to. I knew he would've surely ended up seeing more into it than there really was, which wouldn't have been beneficial to any of us.

I turned around, discovering that Harry had entered the studio behind me, and was now looking at me curiously from the doorway, not saying a word.

"Would it be okay if we used make-up again today?" I asked him, leaning back against the desk as I glanced his way. "Or were you uncomfortable the last time?"

He gave me a little shrug, covering the little distance between us and moving to stand closer to me. "It was fine" he replied, and I gave him a nod.

"So, today I was thinking of working with lighter colours. They really compliment you way more" I told him, pushing myself off the desk around rounding it, taking a bag I'd put under it. I put it on the desk under his curious stare, opening it and taking a champagne gold glitter powder out, putting it down on the desk. "This could be fun to work with, we just have to be a bit careful with it because glitter sticks everywhere and is hard to clean off."

He took it, tilting it slightly and looking at the content of the little round plastic box glisten under the bright lights of the studio with a little frown on his face.

"Don't worry, it's actually makeup. I didn't buy the kind kids use to make Christmas art" I told him to break the ice, not missing the suspicious look he'd sent it. "If you don't want to try the glitter, here's an alternative" I continued, taking out a shimmering champagne gold powder in a small round make-up box. It was definitely tamer, but still enough to highlight his best features.