Fundamentals of Marriage | Suarez I

Chapter 42

I dipped the brush in the glass of water to wash out the soft paint on the bristles and then to the cloth beside it to remove excess water and paint.

Tale as old as time. A story that has been told for many generations--the brush always finds its way to the plain surface of the canvas. They are two things made for each other--destined.

Like how someone who's meant for you changes your life In the art process, we call love. Someone will come and will fill your emptiness. He will bring color and life to your existence. It's not always red, green, or yellow, not only orange or pink but also the shade of blues, greys, and blacks, sometimes sad and dark. Still, at the end of the last hour, all colors will make sense and you'll realize both white and black are important. Both lighting and shadows are necessary.

I painted his neck and his face last though it's not vivid because I want his identity a secret. Tinapos ko ang obra sa harapan ng mga estudyante na sinusundan ang bawat dampi ng kulay sa puting kuwaderno. I finished the painting without him in front of me but with the help of his image in my memory.

"Woah."

They already celebrated in synch when I put down the brush and stood out of my seat. Kahit sila ay hindi pa tapos, huminto ang mga estudyante sa pagpipinta para palakpakan ako.

I moved to the side, allowing them to see the finished painting. No one will know who is on the piece but realizing that they're staring at my man's body with a mesmerizing look on their faces makes me feel proud.

"Ms. Era, how can you work without a model or a reference? Hindi po ba kayo nahihirapan?" tanong ng isang estudyante.

"That's what I was thinking, Ms. I can't paint or even draw without a picture for reference."

The truth is I have my reference. I'm halfway done when I brought it here so it wasn't that hard to finish.

"I also have an image inside my head. A reference." I smiled. "The only difference we have is that you work with printed copies or tangible medium, while I work with this." I pointed my mind. "Don't worry, I've been there? It will take courage to grow as an artist. If you aim to work without reference on your hand, you have to put it down and challenge yourself."

"Ang galing lang, Ms. Era. Kasi kahit nasa isip mo lang parang kabisado mo bawat anggulo ng pinipinta mo. Nag-aral ka ba ng anatomy?"

If she means Franco's anatomy, I should say yes. I studied his proportions and his corners. I memorized every inch of him. I didn't know I'm capable of that until it happened in the studio last time.

Nag-init ang mukha ko nang maalala ang nangyari. The kiss and how he helped me learn every part of him.

He took my hand and placed it on his face. H was moving it with his hand. From his forehead down to his nose then to his cheek. It also stopped at his lips before dropping to his neck.

I kept aiding my thirst with the fluid my tongue was making while watching his palm on the back of my hand and my hand on his skin. He let me touch both of his shoulders and his chest too. When it reached his abdomen, I looked at him and realized he didn't remove his gaze from me.

My hand has already explored the first half of his body when he stopped to grin at me. He pulled me closer for the next step. The rest of what happened is now history.

"Ms. Era?"

Bumalik ako sa huwisyo nang muling marinig ang pangalan ko.

"I can say I studied anatomy on my own," sagot ko sa tanong niya kanina pa. "It's a critical step, the first step of painting is to find, observe and learn your subject, right? Especially if you're aiming for detailed and realistic art. What I am trying to say is that you can't paint an umbrella if you don't know how it looks."