Gazing through the window at the sparse clouds in the whitening sky, he lets his mind drift towards Loris’ hometown, by the Seine River.
It sounds peaceful, if not really eventful. Loris’ favourite place is an island, only accessible by boat, that hosts a sculpture exhibition every year. Charles would love to see that. And he would love to stroll along the quays where Loris used to sketch barges and market scenes.
The more Charles learns about Andrésy, the more he pictures it like an Olwinski painting, imagining himself in this Land of Loris.
A safe harbour, away from his golden world.
A golden world he’s growing convinced his brother was dying to escape.
‘S’il te plaît!’
‘No. It’s a mess of a draft for now.’ Loris slips the drawing into his portfolio. ‘I’m not gonna show you until it takes real shape.’
Charles scowls but surrenders, still unwilling to play his trump card. He’s confident he doesn’t need it to consolidate Loris’ interest, and it’s revivifying to feel this confident.
He changes back into his clothes while Loris scrambles to get ready for his shift. His preparation includes running his hands through his hair in front of the wardrobe mirror. Such technique would makeCharles look like he wedged his fingers into a wall socket, but Loris pulls off the dishevelled style.
‘What do you do with your art?’
‘I post my completed pieces on Instagram. Not really to show them, but to move on to the next. Otherwise I’d try to perfect them forever.’
‘And what’s the goal?’
‘To challenge myself.’
‘And then?’
Loris frowns, lacing his trainers. ‘That’s not enough?’
‘Yes. Yes, it is.’
Charles bites his cheek, tempted to bash himself with the easel.
Focusing on endgames and profits is an awful Ledwell habit. He would hate to give the impression that he thinks Loris is unambitious.
‘What’s your account?’
‘Shades of coloris, all one word. And yeah, I had to go American for the pun to work.’
‘Unforgivable…’
Charles smiles and follows Loris down the staircase, where a logical conclusion hits him and has the corners of his lips drop a bit more with each step.
‘Will you upload the drawings I’m in?’
‘Only if you consent.’
‘Can I think about it?’
‘Of course. No rush. And no pressure!’
‘Thank you.’
The idea and its consequences will give rise to some squabbling with his inner voices, and Charles doesn’t want to ruin his mood by launching the argument now.
‘You seemed nervous at first, but it wasn’t too bad, right?’ Loris asks as they exitthe building.
‘It didn’t completely register that I was posing. You’re quite good at distracting me from all the noise in Charland. That’s what I call my brain.’
