elope, addressed to me. I drifted over Mark's shoulder as he pi

small, local

our work shows immense talent and a unique emotional depth. We would be honored to feat

really bad, I had started painting again in secret. I rented a tiny storage unit a few towns over, and a few times a week, I would tell Mark I was go

wrong. The sky was a bruised purple and orange, the houses were leaning, thei

I never got to enter. A small flame of hope ignited in the cold emptiness of my bei

He didn't look sad. His face was blank for a

nd. He clicked on the gas stove, a blue flame springin

a silent, us

at had given me so much hope. He held it until the fire licked at his fingertips, then he dropped t

ce.' He had silenced it, j

icked up the phone a

hat's right... Well, I'm afraid there's been a misunderstanding. Ava is... she's not well. She's been suffering from some delusions late

is voice was filled wit

from your list," he continued. "Any further con

troyed the opportunity, he had destroyed my credibility. He had painte

tle piece of me that existed outside of him, outside of this house, was my art. It wa

he have to be

n with thoughts, with talents, with a life of my own. My existence, separate from his, was a threat to his story. Any accomplishment