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==='Cause I'm feeling for her what she's feeling for me===
When Irene saw young, skinny girls on the road who dressed in a similar style to Lisa, she would stop and take a second glance.
Every day, she blanked out numerous times.
To the point that even her assistant asked her if she had been overtired out by the previous TV show and if she needed a short break.
Her friends knew that her time to "let loose" had come. They all came looking for her to hang out. Drinking and talking shit was exciting, but everyone else had someone in their arms. Only she was alone. Thus, the scene wasn't very appealing. They arranged for someone to accompany her, yet she wasn't interested in dealing with anyone. Prior to heading home, she felt the need to switch blouse first. The people at these clubs all smelled very strongly. It was very easy for Lisa to detect these fragrances.
Only upon returning home did she remember, Lisa wasn't actually here. Nobody cared where she had come back from.
Additionally, she had already stayed at the villa for several days. According to routine, she was supposed to be staying at the apartment next to her company during the work week.
Everything had truly fallen into disorder.
Just as she was feeling weary, Seulgi came looking for her: I sponsored an art exhibition. The most talented new artist, the centermost venue, the most impactful sculptures. We're still in the process of setting the exhibition up. Want to come get a taste?
Seulgi was the biggest playgirl among Irene's friends. She spent boundless amounts of money, but also had the keenest eye. To be praised like this by her meant that the person was definitely good.
Because of Lisa, Irene had gradually started learning about the arts too. She also made investments in this area. As long as she wasn't too busy, she would always visit nicer exhibitions to broaden her perspective.
She said okay.
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As expected, the artist lived up to expectations.
The exhibition wasn't completely finished yet. The lighting and atmosphere weren't right either. Even so, under this chaotic construction lighting, Irene could still feel the emotions emanating off of these pieces: a suffering from deep within the soul and a sense of rebirth that had formed because of this suffering. Irene slowly walked forward, step by step, and listened to Seulgi's introductions next to her ear.
"This person had just graduated from university, but had already caused an uproar outside of the city. If she continued making such progress, her future would be limitless. If Irene wanted to buy anything, now was the time. In the future, it was likely that even money wouldn't be enough to buy these pieces......Her experience was very amazing too. Apparently, she had a mysterious sponsor."
Irene listened while thinking about organizing a similarly expensive exhibition for Lisa in the future too. Suddenly, she stopped in front of an exhibition hall that was separate from the main hall.
"This is?"
"Oh." Seulgi took a glance. "This is an independent set, so they've been placed in a separate exhibition hall......"
That was a row of human body sculptures.
The medium was marble, which was the most classic.
In total, there were seven sculptures in the set.
The last one didn't seem to be finished yet. It was covered with half a piece of cloth.
All of them were in extreme postures that were basically impossible to accomplish. Even without approaching, she could sense the despair and struggle being revealed by these bodies.
A dark shadow climbed over Irene's face.
She took quick steps towards the nearest sculpture and took a careful look. Immediately, something exploded in her ear. She could no longer hear any of Seulgi's "a combination of traditional materials and modern expression" or other similar introductions anymore. The blood rushed straight to her head. The vein in her temple throbbed. A sea of red covered her vision.
This body had been sleeping in her arms mere days ago——at that time, it had been spread out comfortably, completely unlike how distorted it was here.
Irene now knew whose exhibition this was.
Irene only recovered from these aggressive emotions after Seulgi noticed something was off and waved her hand around in front of the other's eyes while calling out "Irene-ah" several times.
"Don't open this exhibition hall anymore."
"What?" Seulgi didn't understand.
"I want this entire set," Irene said. A moment later, she added, "If there are new pieces in the future, send them directly to my house too."
"Irene, you......"
"What? Scared I won't be able to afford them?"
"Of course not, but......"
Before they could finish speaking, they suddenly heard the thud of someone loudly slamming the door.
"You disappoint me so much!"
"Ah, artists." Seulgi explained to Irene, "They're always rather moody......" She made a hand gesture indicating big rises and falls.
Without waiting for Irene to respond, a soft voice sounded out too, "Chaeng-ah, I can't. I really can't do it anymore."
Irene felt like she had been whipped.
The red that had just faded out of her vision suddenly reappeared in an instant.
Irene only felt like the world had shattered under her feet. With her as the epicenter, everything silently collapsed and disintegrated. Everything around her faded away into illusions.
What she could see and hear became twisted by an unknown force, covering everything up with a hazy layer of fog. Shadows and silhouettes were sometimes nearby, but also sometimes distant. Like the evil aquatic plants of legends that latched onto people in deep ponds, they slowly and painfully tugged at her nerves.
She heard Seulgi's confused voice asking her what was wrong. Out of good intentions, Seulgi was trying to stop her, saying even if you like her work, you can't go over so suddenly. That's too rude. It's best not to disrupt artists when they're in the creative process——even though the studio here is only for temporary adjustments to pieces......Irene? Ah Irene, what's wrong with you? Fuck, these sculptures are really so powerful?
She didn't know what she said or did to Seulgi.
She only heard a voice that sounded like her own asking with urgency, "Where?"
She also saw herself furiously breaking free from Seulgi's hands that were stopping her
She didn't seem like herself at all.
Given her upbringing, she shouldn't be so emotional and impulsive, nor should she be acting so brazenly.
But who could ascertain this. After all, right now, she couldn't be bothered to care about being proper or polite in the slightest.
Irene was only thinking about Lisa.
The other was clearly the lover she had hidden in the most precious part of her heart.
When she touched the other, she was extremely cautious and held herself back from using her full strength. She could never bear to say anything harsh to the other. No matter what she did, she needed to incessantly ponder her actions over and over again, terrified that one wrong move would be irreversible......
But now she heard Rose and Lisa arguing.
The sentences were broken up as they travelled into her ears.
"Chaeng-ah, don't .... It's my fault, I know. Sorry I was clearly the one who suggested doing this set back then, but now that we're at the very end... this is my fault... but..."
"Do you know how much time I've spent on this set? How much energy? Now we're almost done... should I feet the ten meter sample pieces in my studio to the dogs? I even designed the lighting. You..."
"Sorry, but I've already......"
"There's no need to apologize. I won't accept it. Either you come back and finish this task, or you get out."
"Chaeng-ah......"
"Fine. It was my mistake for choosing the wrong collaboration partner."
"Hear me out......"
"Get out. Don't touch my hands. My hands are very precious."
Each sentence was like a spark of fire landing on Irene's heart, burning a black hole into it. Without even thinking, she pushed open the half-closed door of the studio. The scene in front of her eyes was like a mini bomb blowing up in her mind.
Lisa was completely naked.
There was oil and paint on her body. She was exposed under the bright lights of the studio. Each bone that stuck out under her skin was emphasized to an uncomfortable degree. She was obviously very cold. Even though it was summer, the air conditioning in the studio was set to a very low temperature.
Rose herself was wearing a long-sleeved work outfit that could cover her arms. Yet, she was letting Lisa shiver with her left foot placed on her right foot. Irene could imagine the stiffness and shakiness of her body, along with the sensation of goosebumps on her skin.
However, Lisa seemed completely incapable of feeling the discomfort in her own body. She was only chasing after Rose in panic, trying to grab her hands.
She got pushed away by Rose with a swing of the arm. She lost her balance, or, the oils and paints were too slippery——With a scream of "ah", she fell backwards.
"Lisa!"
Irene lost her mind. Without even thinking, she charged forward and caught Lisa in her arms, the mess of paint instantly got all over her.
Rose lost her mind too. "This fucking— who are you? How did you get in? Seulgi-ssi? Didn't I say that no one is allowed to disturb me when I'm working?"
Seulgi was even more confused. "Fuck...... Miss Park, the model you said was coming is actually......"
Irene wasn't in the mood to say even one extra sentence. She picked Lisa up and turned around to leave.
Only now did Lisa belatedly discover who was holding her. Her eyes suddenly widened. She instinctively curled up to protect herself. From the back of her throat, she emitted a sound akin to that of a small animal on the brink of death. Her body started uncontrollably shaking.
Rose charged forward. "Who are you?! What are you trying to do?! Put my model down!"
She was a whole head taller than Irene. Her legs that were wrapped in her work outfit weren't even as thick as Irene's arms. However, when she glared, she looked like a wolf.
Irene's expression darkened. Before she could blow up, the fabric covering her chest suddenly got forcefully tugged at.
"Miss Bae, don't. She doesn't understand anything. You......" Irene looked down. The rims of Lisa's eyes were already red with agitation.
"Seulgi, I need to take her back. Take care of the things you can for me. As for the things you can't, I'll take care of them later myself." Irene vigorously took in a deep breath and turned her face away.
A dark shadow instantly crossed over Rose's face. "Lisa, this is the sponsor?"
"I......She......" Lisa stuttered. She was at the end of her wits. She wasn't even able to catch her breath; her face was turning purple.
"Huh, so you've been corrupted by such things? You've abandoned your own original intentions? Huh huh, stupid. Don't forget that ever since capitalism has entered this world, from head to toe, each of its pores has dripped with blood and other dirty things." Rose bared her teeth, she narrowed her eyes and scoffed eerily. She shifted her thin, insect-like appendages and moved off to the side. "Go. Don't pollute my studio. You're weaker and more depraved than I thought."
"Chaeng-ah ......"
Irene didn't give anyone else the opportunity to speak up.
She unbuttoned her coat and wrapped Lisa up. After leaving a "don't try to save money for me", she directly carried the other away.
A human's patience was limited.
If she continued to stay, she – who was famed for being reasonable and in control – would likely be unable to stop herself from displaying the gory, dark, and cruel desires hidden deep in her heart.
The entire way, Lisa acted like someone had cast a spell on her and turned her into stone. She didn't say anything, nor did she move.
She allowed Irene to carry her into the car and put on her seatbelt for her, then carry her out of the car after reaching their destination.
The villa was very far away, but the private apartment Irene lived at during the work week was very close. Though it was a high-end apartment building, the elevator was ultimately still for public use. Irene took out the extra jacket she kept in her car and covered Lisa up completely before walking toward the elevator. The entire trip, she kept Lisa's head pressed against her chest. Each muscle was tense because of how alert she was. All the images flashing through her mind were primitive and barbaric. Even her expression became uncontrollably cruel and threatening. She seemed like a beast whose territory had been broached.
Fortunately, these were work hours. They didn't encounter any people during the trip. At the very least, Irene had managed to keep the dignity of a civilized woman.
As soon as she walked into the apartment, Irene stuffed Lisa into the bathtub, turned on the shower head, and simply ordered, "Wash it off."
Immediately after, she turned around and pulled her clothes off.
The suit jacket covered in paint was offhandedly thrown into a corner. The shirt's shell buttons broke off and landed all over the ground. Irene rested her hands against the ice cold walls of the bathroom and inhaled deeply to force herself to calm down.
She didn't dare to move too far away. She was scared that she would go crazy if she couldn't sense that Lisa was nearby. However, she didn't dare to turn around either. Lisa's body was covered in the marks that another woman had left.
In theory, she had always known this. But the impact of seeing it with her own eyes had far surpassed what she had imagined. It had been so impactful that even she, who had always believed herself to have great tolerance, hadn't been able to mentally accept what was happening. She feared that if she took an extra glance, she would be unable to control her impulse of wanting to run out the door and twist Rose's head off with her bare hands.
Very quickly, the steam from the hot water filled up the entire bathroom. It was soft and white, and it slightly calmed Irene down. The suffocating feeling was no longer so strong. She inhaled deeply, mentally prepared herself, and turned her head.
The shower head was very effective. In the blink of an eye, it had already largely cleaned off the entirety of Lisa's upper body, leaving slight remnants on the lower body and a puddle of dirty water on the ground. Lisa was standing in this puddle, dazed. She wasn't moving, nor did she have an expression on her face. Her big, round, black eyes were widened in vain, like a fairy that had broken free from a sordid life. Or, like a little puppet whose soul had been removed.
Irene's chest instantly twinged with pain.
Guilt and regret rushed into her heart. She hurriedly walked forward.
Lisa was entirely covered by her shadow. She shivered, but didn't dare to take a step back.
Irene easily pulled her into her embrace. She lowered her head and kissed the other's furrowed forehead.
"Did I scare you?"
Lisa trembled again. She didn't answer.
Irene had her arms wrapped around Lisa's waist. Stroke by stroke, she gently smoothed down the other's slightly shivering back while softly pecking at her nervously fluttering eyelashes.
"I was too impulsive. I'm sorry. Don't be scared, baby. Lisa? Lili?"
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