To All The Ones I Still Have A Crush On [Legacies]

Chapter I - "Maybe I should just find a replacement for you"

Hope loved the way she felt whenever she had her paintbrush in her hand and a blank canvas right in front of her. The feeling was indescribable. She couldn't put it into words, but she knew it was always a good feeling. She looked right out of the window on her left to admire the beautiful, colorful garden that was laid out front. Even though it was pouring outside, the garden always seemed to be a shade brighter in the rain. Probably because of the magic coursing through the ground underneath the school. Certain leaves stood out to her, even from afar. The ones that were in different shades of yellow and orange even though it was almost near summer. Although, it wasn't really the color that caught her eyes, but the way they glowed. It seemed to her that each leaf had a different rhythm of brightness to their glow. She made a quick mental note of that and decided to somehow include that in her picture later. The auburn-haired girl swiftly dabbed her paintbrush into a color she mixed that was slightly grey and light blue, which would represent the grey, stormy clouds in the sky. She started to let her hand guide the paintbrush across the canvass. Her hand moved instinctively to the right spots without her mind even having to direct it. Once she was done using the color, she pulled back and smiled to herself, seeing how alluring it had already turned out to be.

"Hey."

Hope turned around as soon as she heard the voice she was had grown quite fond of over the past few months. She smiled at the person who stood in the doorway to her room. Of course, it was him.

"Hey." She replied back with the same warm tone in her voice.

"Can I come in?" Landon asked her politely.

"May." Hope corrected him. The boy stood there with a confused expression on his face. Hope sighed before grinning and explained, "It's 'may' instead of 'can'. But yes, you may."

Landon gave her a cheeky smile before he made his way to her bed to sit behind her and watch her. Hope turned back around to continue working on her painting while the boy leaned back on his arms that were extended behind him on the bed, his head tilted to the side to see what exactly she was working on. "You know," He spoke up, "I've never really gotten your passion for painting, but damn, you're really good at it. Have you taken lessons before or is this all just natural talent?"

"Thanks." She said as she smiled to herself after receiving the compliment. But her warm smile faded into a sad one once she acknowledged his question. "But, uh, it's both actually."

Landon made a weird expression with his face after hearing her answer. "What do you mean?"

Hope hesitated to speak. She felt as if her mind was suddenly split in half, both sides were fighting over what was wrong and what was right for her to do. Ultimately, she decided that maybe it was best if she let her guard down, for once. The auburn-haired girl sighed before putting her tools down on a table nearby. She turned around on the stool she was sitting on to face him with a half-hearted smile. "My dad and I used to paint together."

The boy's facial features changed into a look of pity. Hope grimaced a little at his reaction, mostly because she hated it when people gave her that same look. It made her feel weak, which was exactly why she didn't tend to open up about things. She hated the way she felt right now, so she decided to make it quick and simple for the boy, to get it over with. She took a deep breath, looking down at her hands in her lap.

"It was when I was only about 8 or 9 years old." She breathed out, taking a quick glance at Landon who stayed silent for her to continue. "We made a very beautiful painting, and it was the only one we ever made together. I had kept it for years even after his death. But just like everything else, it didn't last."

The boy furrowed his eyebrows, "Why? What happened to it?"

Hope finally made eye contact with him, but it wasn't long before she looked away again. The boy noticed this and leaned forward towards her with his elbows on his knees to listen in.