170 Paintings of Him

February 7, 20XX (Thursday)

The Palace Residency- Condominiums

Mei Li faced the canvas with a face full of eagerness. It has been a while that she had picked up the brush and started painting. When Yang had started to go back to work and begun to tackle the towel-like paperwork in his desk, Mei Li had taken this chance to go back to her condo. It was time for her to do so too because one more minute with Yang and she would have used his hair as a paintbrush and his blood as paint.

Painting was not just her work; it was also her hobby and her stress-reliever. She breathed, loudly. Mei Li's hand dipped the clean brush into grey and started to make bold strokes on the canvas as if the image was already in her mind.Her movement turned fluid and her strokes alternated between bold or light and long or short. Seconds became hours fast as her state of mind entered into a peaceful and calm place.

Once finished, she stepped off of the long seat and viewed the painting from afar. She swooned at the finished product. It was a scene where she vividly remembered happened in the car crash. The painting depicted a man and a woman inside a car wrecked by a larger van. A being cloaked in black floated in front of the woman ready to take her head, but the man beside her covered her with his back to the scythe that almost pierced him. This scene was Yang protecting her. She had been scared to revisit this scene because Yang could have died with that crash, but now that he was starting to heal, she was comfortable enough to paint it. Once she saw it, she felt the warm protectiveness Yang had for her.

Suddenly her eyes slide to see her phone ringing. When she answered, Yang's whining voice had greeted her as his hello, "I am hungry. I was food, let's eat together. Where are you?"

"I am in my condo, painting." Mei Li deadpanned, "I told you I would be here. You weren't listening, were you?"

Mei Li could imagine Yang would have touched his nose, helplessly by now. She smiled at her thoughts; Yang would be so adorable like a puppy being denied treats when he does it. Hearing Yang complaining about missing her, Mei Li sighed. She put her palette in a solution to help dissolve the residual paint before saying, "I'll come back up and cook. What do you want?"

February 11, 20XX (Monday)

The Palace Residency-Condominiums

Another chance came for Mei Li to paint again when she was done grocery shopping, yesterday and Yang had to work again. She had bolted out of Yang's condo after she had pushed his chair to his office. Mei Li had never run like that before. She had not wanted Yang to distract her again because he has been constantly in her mind for the past few days. Mei Li had thought that spending your every day with a person would lessen your thoughts about that person, but it turns out that wasn't the case with her and Yang. He was the waking person in her thoughts and the man in her dreams protecting her from all her nightmares.

Once in her condo, she settled to paint again with a new canvass and a cleaner palette. It was not long before she picked the brush and begun to paint. Mei Li's hands moved fluidly as if she had done this painting before. The image of what she wanted to paint was evident in her mind. She ignored the noises her phone was making and painting like a madwoman who can only know how to paint.

Four hours passed after she was done and sudden knocking on her door bothered her from truly appreciating the finished painting. She walked the space between her and the door to open it. Seeing the face of her bodyguard, Mei Li lowered her head to see a grinning Yang.

Yang grinned at her, "I'm here to pick you up! Let's go eat at Zhao Manor!"

She rolled her eyes and closed the door. Before completely going out, Mei Li peeked at the painting on her easel. She nodded in approval of the image she had painted; an injured man who was carrying the weight of a woman in her shoulders.

She turned to Yang and said, "Did you tell Mother Zhao that we were coming?"

Yang shook his head, "You can call her for me."

Mei Li sighed. Sometimes she felt that Yang was carrying her, but right now it feels as if she was her shield. She dialed Mother Zhao's number and chatted with her a little.

March 8, 20XX (Friday)

The Palace Residency-Condominiums

Mei Li woke with her phone ringing. Her hands patted the side table to find the annoying device. Once found she looked at the caller ID and saw her agent, Elias' name. She answered it delightedly, "Hello?"

"Mei Li, I wanted to tell you that all the painting on your third collection had not been delivered safely to the people that bought it. I want to ask you what you plan to do next? Are you going to wait another year to release your next collection?"

Mei Li tried to get out of the bed but was forced down when Yang's arms snaked into her waist, bringing her closer to him. She sighed as Yang cuddled with her and pressed his nose in her neck. Mei Li ignored Yang and replied to Elias, "I am starting to paint my next collection. I have two art pieces now. It'll continue to grow; I might start the third piece this week."

Elias hummed in contemplation. Inside he was surprised because Mei Li had not started and finished pieces this easy and this fast. She must have a wonderful inspiration at her side as she had with the first collection with Yue.

Mei Li continued to talk to Elias and had even announced that she was debating about shifting the base of her painting to Beijing now. Elias had been supportive and made sure Mei Li decided what she wanted and what she thinks was right. Mei Li smiled at her agent and asked, "If my paintings will be sold here in Beijing, will you still be my agent?"

Elias assured her immediately, "Girl; I have been ready to move to Beijing after I had sold your first collection. No country is going to hinder me to be your agent."

Mei Li jumped and giggled. She giggled because of Elias' answer, but she jumped because of Yang's hands beginning to room on her body. It had stayed in her waist before but then grew bolder to spun circles, racing her arms, then to the curve of her side profile, and then groped her breast with a forceful squeeze.

Mei Li hastily said her goodbye as she ended her conversation with Elias. She glared at Yang as she settled the phone. His hands still at her boobs. With a loud snort, Mei Li inserted her very cold hands into his brief and touched Yang junior with a forceful tug. Yang yelped and tried to move away, yelling mercy to her. Why the heck is her hands as cold as ice? Not attractive at all!