ALANA'S MISTAKE ✔

Chapter 19

Alana stood in her studio, talking with her tutor, Tatum Dahlia, discussing the end of year exhibit. The whole college was full today, the studios were teeming with students. Music systems played different songs in various corners. Everyone painted, drew, chatted, sat, wrote and arranged materials in different ways to create sculptures and installations.

Alana wore denim dungarees, with her hair pinned up, curls hanging down around her face and neck. She had a white and red striped top underneath the dungarees, with a pair of white trainers.

She was trying to convince Tatum to make sure she got the ceiling space for the exhibition. He was her best bet, she knew that. He didn't have decision making power but he could put in a good word for her. The two of them had a solid relationship, she liked him and he liked her. He was African, in his early fourties, with a warm smile and a gentle manner that always made Alana feel so relaxed when she was around him.

He talked quietly, thoughtfully, often with a hand close to his face, perhaps with a finger resting on his lips. He was tall, Alana had to look up to him when they spoke. It was obvious that many of the girls had silent, unrequited crushes on him, but he was very much a taken man; married with three children, all of whom she had met when they visited the college one day with his glamorous wife who wore bold prints and had extraordinarily long eyelashes.

That was one of the reasons they got on so well, Tatum understood what it was like to have a child. He knew how much Alana loved Snow, he knew exactly how important she was to her and how that meant she couldn't go to every college social and that she constantly had to balance all the different parts of her life. None of the other tutors seemed to understand, or care.

'I will try my level best to get you that ceiling space, Alana. You deserve it.'

She smiled gratefully.

'I just think I can shine from up there, you know? I've already got Noah signed up to help me install. I can't do it without him.'

Tatum nodded, absorbing her words carefully, then she went on to describe her vision: how she wanted the entire ceiling covered in circles made from bright lines of tape. She wished that the space would be entirely empty apart from her work. A completely white space apart from the ceiling would have a huge impact although she knew she wasn't there yet. But she would be.

Tatum was getting it, nodding along with her impassioned descriptions of how she wanted the viewer to feel when they looked upwards in the exhibition. They were still caught in deep conversation when Tatum stopped talking and looked up. Alana spun round to follow his gaze.

There were four guys there. Her breath caught in her throat. The band, Silence. All of them looking at her expectantly. Elias was in the middle of them, his chin held low but his eyes catching hers, his dark eyebrows slightly lifted. He wore a jacket with the collar turned up, a plaid shirt beneath and black jeans that sat tight along his hips and legs. He winked at her, so quickly probably no one else noticed. But she did and it filled her with dread.

It was undeniable, he looked great. And she clearly wasn't the only one that thought so. Practically every girl in the room was staring at him, some of the boys too - not even hiding it, just watching him as though they couldn't help it.

It wasn't the other band members they were looking at, who were all definitely cute in their own ways, it was Elias. His charm somehow spread across the room like smoke from a fire. Alana could hardly believe it, considering the last time she had seen him he was half dead in a hospital bed, only one week ago.

'We're here to talk about the stage design,' he said, flashing her a mischievous grin.

'Oh.'

It was all she could say. She appeared to have forgotten how to speak. Tatum turned to her, obviously expecting an explanation, but before she a chance Elias stepped forward and began to prowl around her studio, explaining that his band had chosen Alana to design their set.

As Tatum found out about Silence's success and what was being asked of his student he grew increasingly enthusiastic. Meanwhile Alana felt like biting off her own fist. She had completely pushed aside the idea that Elias would still want to carry on with the project. But now she thought of it, she realised how stupid an assumption that had been. As they all chatted about what would be expected of her, Alana frantically tried to think of ways to back out of it. But the more Elias talked the more involved Tatum became.

'It will mean many hours of working together,' said Elias, looking right at her. 'But I think that could only be a good thing, for all of us.'