Chapter 2 The Painting

• It all felt so good.
• Elle was sitting on the green and vast grassland on the riverside, really enjoying her free time there. The weather in the morning leading up to the afternoon was so bright that she used it to bask in the blistering sun together with dozens of people who did similar things. Some sat in groups and enjoyed joking with each other. Some came with their little family and ran along the yard. Also, some came in twos or threes and looked more intimate in their casual chat. And some sat alone, like herself, and chose to enjoy their activities in silence.
• She lifted her head to look up at the beautiful blue sky. The white clouds that floated were also no less clean, showing that it was really bright today. And its brilliance spread to her mood, which was now radiant and happy. A smile crossed her lips due to the joy in her chest.
• Suddenly, an ice cream, out of nowhere, covered her view. Before she had time to find out who was interfering with her fun, the person stood before her and showed his face. A familiar man gave her a big smile. And she replied to him with the same wide smile.
• The smile was so broad that she could feel the corners of her lips pulled to the side. No, no. She was smiling even now. Although her beautiful eyes were still hidden behind her closed eyelids, her consciousness slowly returned as the sweet dream that colored her sleep ended. Yes, dream. The series of warm scenes was just a dream.
• The eyelids began to open and reveal her beautiful hazel beads. She blinked a few times to ensure she was fully awake and noticed a big smile still on her face.
• Then she positioned herself to sit and leaned against the back of the bed. She held her chest beating fast from the dream that felt so real as if she had experienced it in reality. The happiness had a strong trace on her heart. And somehow, it brought a bit of longing there.
• She turned her face to the right. Her eyes immediately searched for a familiar object sitting there for quite a long time. She deliberately placed the painting of a man with gray eyes close to her bed. She didn't hang it or put it in the corner of her apartment. Instead, she set it down on the easel that kept it standing and placed it within her sight.
• She liked the look of him. Her heart seemed to calm down whenever she saw his face, although it often caused a strange longing in her chest. And one more. There was pain that, again, she did not know why it appeared.
• Perhaps the gray eyes were the cause. His expression shown through that gaze was complicated. Elle was confused about describing it. Wounds, longing, love, sadness, happiness… All those feelings were in his beautiful eyes. The painting might also be unable to express the complexity of his emotion. However, her memory still clearly recorded everything.
• Then it broke. The ringing of the phone that came into her phone managed to break her reverie after waking up. She glanced, and it flashed Amy's name on the screen. A realization instantly hit her. She had an appointment with her best friend.
• "Hi," she greeted after receiving the call.
• "Elle, where are you?" Amy asked on the other side without greeting.
• "At home. I just woke up." Elle answered in a tone that sounded less than excited. But it was understandable. Her body still needed time to wake up completely.
• "Hey, are you okay?" There was worry in Amy's voice. But, of course, it was almost noon, and Elle had just woken up? It wasn't Elle's habit at all.
• "Yeah, I couldn't sleep well the last few days."
• "Was he still coming to your dream?"
• Hearing that question, Elle turned her face back to the portrait of the man. It had been in her room for the past two years. Yes, he was the figure who was present in her dream before. Not just once but many times, even though it was inconsistent.
• Surprisingly, the man always appeared whenever she had trouble sleeping.
• There was a time when she had almost three consecutive days of difficulty sleeping. And the man in the painting came to brush off all her worries and ended up putting her to sleep. She was so sleepy that her sleep rhythm could return to normal even without taking sleeping pills. It was weird, wasn't it? Elle herself was astonished at the effect made on her body.
• "You know he will," she answered, gazing at the man's painting.
• "Perhaps, you should see your doctor," Amy suggested.
• Yes, Elle should go to the doctor to consult about her insomnia. She already did. She had done it, even when the problem hit her first. The doctor prescribed her sleeping pills and some medicine because sometimes insomnia was present, along with excessive anxiety.
• "It has been better now." Elle chimed in. She didn't lie. Compared to when it first appeared, her sleep problem was much better. She also no longer needed pills after she had learned the pattern.
• "Are you sure?"
• "Yeah, I'm okay."
• Silence for a moment. Elle seemed still enjoying her reverie with the figure of a foreign but familiar man.
• "Then, are you coming? Lunch is almost ready," Amy asked again, this time asking something that was her intention to contact Elle.
• Elle gasped. She had already guessed the purpose of Amy was to call her. However, being too lost in her thoughts, she forgot about it.
• Amy invited her to have lunch together at her house. Something they did often. But, since she had made a promise, she needed to keep it.
• Elle must thank Amy for contacting her. If not, she might still be lulling in her sweet dreams. Well, even then, she managed to get up with no help. But, it was all uncertain, as the rhythm of her sleep.
• "Oh, yeah. Sure. I'm coming," Elle rambled, a little panicked after hearing Amy's last sentence. Lunch was almost ready, which meant lunchtime was closer. In other words, she was almost late, or already late, when she got to her best friend's house. "I'll be there in," Elle glanced at the clock hanging in her room, "twenty minutes." Then she threw the blanket away. Finally, she started to get out of her comfortable bed to get ready.
• "Okay. We'll be waiting for you."
• "Okay. Bye." And the call ended.
• Elle rushed to the bathroom to wash her face and remove her sleepiness. After that, she quickly changed into the first dress she took from the closet, a white knee-length dress that was perfect for summer. Before leaving her apartment, she made sure she had zipped her dress and put it on properly.
• Her footsteps quickly descended the stairs. A sling bag slung over her shoulder. She walked—nearly ran—while remembering what was inside her purse. It seemed nothing was left behind. She had her house keys, wallet, and phone in there. She should never forget three things and be with her wherever she goes.
• Elle turned on her gray SUV. She took a moment to look at herself in the rear mirror above the dashboard. Again, Elle wanted to ensure that her appearance was not bad. Who knew she was too excited to apply lipstick and color to the areas it shouldn't touch? But fortunately, none of that happened.
• Then she drove her car out of her apartment area. The journey to Amy's house was not far. It took about fifteen minutes to get to her destination. Of course, that was if she drove leisurely.
• But since she was already late, perhaps she needed to speed up a bit. No worry, she wouldn't speed up crazily. She wasn't a racer who was an expert at driving at extra speed. After all, she was not on the race circuit. It was only a regular road.
• Exactly twenty minutes, as she said, Elle arrived at a beautiful, modest residential area. She had even parked her car in front of Amy's house. Her footsteps were moving on the path her best friend had deliberately made between a fairly expansive lawn on the right and left. And because Amy's hobby was gardening, so there were several pots of various sizes scattered nicely there.
• In front of the brown door titled Grant Family, Elle stopped. She took a deep breath before pressing the bell right next to the door. Elle could hear it ring in a pretty loud voice. And soon after, she could faintly hear someone's footsteps walking toward the door.
• Elle was ready to show her big smile when Amy or Will, her best friend's husband, appeared from behind the door. But she failed to do all that. Instead, Elle frowned because the person who opened the door was a stranger Elle didn't know. She even blinked several times to confirm her vision. But nothing had changed because the figure was real and standing in front of her.
• One thing caught her attention. The man's gray eyes. They were so beautiful. And Elle recognized those gray eyes.