Sebastian The Traveler ✔ (EDITING)

Chapter 4 - Avery

I flipped on the stereo looking for inspiration through the melancholy music that now filled the room. Turning around to head to my easel, I stopped abruptly. My eyes focused on the dresser to the right of me. I cocked my head to the side trying to remember if I had absentmindedly forgot the shut the drawers once I got my clothes out. Sometimes, I tend to do things on autopilot without being consciously aware, so it was possible...

But not probable.

I didnt open all the drawers. I was organized and tidy with everything. Even my clothes. My painting shirts were seperate from my regular shirts and those were seperate from my shorts.

Two drawers.

I had only opened two drawers. Which meant I also only needed to shut two drawers. All six drawers were out. I did not do that...

I looked around my apartment in pure confusion. Was someone playing a joke on me? I listened carefully, trying to determine if someone was in my apartment. There werent a lot of hiding spots in a studio apartment.

I slowly crept closer to the closet beside the dresser. Quietly placing my hand on the knob and preparing my body for a fast movement, I inhaled as silently as I could. What would I do if there was someone in my place? What could I do? I would be no match for a man. A woman I could take but statistically, females were not the most likely to be intruders.

Shit.

One quick turn of the knob and a hard yank...  no one. No one was in there. I pushed some clothes aside just to quell my uncertainty, finding only what I had already known.

No one.

Slowly, I turned around, scanning my room again looking for another possible hiding spot. My eyes fell on the bed. I quickly tiptoed to it, falling on my knees I flipped the draping covers over and peered beneath it. Again, nothing. Well, not nothing. A few of Milo's missing cat toys but no body.

I stood up, confused. Was I going crazy? Had I lost my mind? Maybe I did open the drawers for some reason and just spaced it...

...The bathroom.

Panicked, I ran to the bathroom and flipped on the light. No one. I looked behind the door. No one. I went straight for the tub and yanked back the curtain. Again, No one.

I dont know how long I stood there, staring at the empty shower tub, trying frantically to wrap my mind around how I could have opened all of those dresser drawers and not retained doing so.

You're gonna make yourself insane, Avery.

Finally, convincing myself it was some weird fluke, I returned to my easel. A little shakey and full of adrenaline, I took a few deep breaths to calm myself down. I was being silly... letting my imagination run wild. It had been a long day and I needed to redirect that over active imagination.

I needed to paint.

I sat at the stool infront of my easel, mixing colors on my palette, aimlessly. I never intentionally picked out colors. I just grabbed and began to mix. I had the amazing ability to mash together unique blends without muddying them into a brown or black mess. It had impressed my professors.

My brush swiped the white canvas effortlessly. I never had a plan for any painting. I just started working and it created itself. I found out long ago if I mapped out a specific scene, it would never turn into the beauty my brain had intended. This was just my process, so I embraced.

***

I crawled into bed, pulling the covers up to my neck. I felt Milo curl up on the pillow beside me, his normal spot.