Artgirl

19// asleep

"I'm listening."

"First thing. As you know, because you're nosy and well-informed, Elisa's lease is annual. It's approaching its end, which is, precisely, on the 30th of April. The fine for breaking the lease earlier is three times the rent, which you offered to pay, is that not true?"

"It's true," he cracked his neck. "But my patience is running low. Miss Hunter, you'll have to finish up."

"I'm only getting started. You believe that my store is less important than yours. Probably, because, again, you're aware of our financial status. My deal with you was that if Elisa made more than NASH in the next month, you'd leave us alone."

His eyes were a brewing thunderstorm. "Which is impossible. Therefore, this is a waste of time."

"If you agree to this deal, not only do you not have to pay the fine and save the money, but you save time. The chocolate shop opposing to the empty space you're using is owned by a girl and her grandfather. The girl got accepted in Harvard, but not on a scholarship. She needs the money to go there. If you buy the store from them, you'd be not only helping yourself, but helping her with her future. I'm hoping that there's some kind of heart under that suit," I said.

He shrugged. "I don't know her. Therefore, I don't care about her. Save me your pity stories."

"Okay," my view of him hardened. "Forget the girl. This is between you and me. When you decided to come after my store, you unwillingly declared a war. Because no one is letting this place go without a fight, whether it's Jessie and I or you. This bet, deal, whatever you want to call it is the last chance we'd have to win. If you think your place is worth taking Elisa away, you'll take the damn deal. We disagree on one thing and it's the worth of Elisa."

"Then we agree to disagree. Tell me, Miss Hunter. Why wouldn't you just take more money? It would save us both the time."

I smiled. "Because then, I wouldn't have the pleasure of winning against you."

"Ah," his jaw clenched, and he relaxed. "All right then. This will only be done because I believe I'll win."

"So do I," my smile felt sweeter than honey. I only hoped it made him as sick as looking at him did to me.

He clapped his hands together and pulled out a sheet of paper from a drawer. "I had a contract made."

The paper that I'd been quick to take out of my bag as well was laid out over his. "So did I," I said. "I insist using mine."

Half an hour of arguing later, we settled on his contract. Only because I changed a few sentences in it.

Coming out of that meeting, I thought over and over about everything that had happened. I wondered if there was anything that I would have changed. Nothing came to mind.

I didn't want to be apologetic for my words or my actions anymore. I wasn't going to stand in the way of myself again. Therefore, just like my art, I would be unstoppable.

That was the only way of saving Elisa.

-

It took a total of four days for everyone to be prepared for the war ahead. The sound of my blood beating my eardrums was one I'd gotten used to. The brushes in my hands were never held without trembling, but the zeal pulsing through them calmed them enough to create the posters, to keep painting, to create patterns that made me fall so in love with art that I wanted to climb into the paintings and live in them forever.

Without Nico, Adrian, Jessie and Camilla, the entire plan would've gone to waste. We all had a role to play, but the ties of our friendship were made out of steel, not nylon. The "MAKE THE ART, SAVE THE ART" posters spread all over Nico and Camilla's university, as well as in the streets of central London were our main focus.