Lana and Hailey went down the stairs to get a good view over the paintings.  Hailey's sprang down to the lowest stair as she analyzed the painting by Ethan but Lana was stuck on a painting which was confusing yet attractive to her.
It had vertical thick lines with branches diverging from each section. The gray, black and white contrast brought out an immense train of mixed feelings. The painting gave out an aura of eerie but a familiar sense of victory.

Kelly called them and broke them off their trance. It's been 15 minutes since Lana had been staring at the same painting. Hailey pulled Lana to show her Ethan's art. He had re-painted The Starry Night by Van Gogh. It looked like a complete replica of the original.

Hailey was so impressed that she talked about it without breaks on their way back to their room.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Rebecca had called Lana to inform her about the schedule for next day and to discuss it with her boss the same evening. Lana skimmed through the pages as she prepared and put them in order.

The sudden commotion outside her room made her curious as she peeked through the door only to find the Fonsekas Stepping up the mansion stairs. Her eyes met with Liam's for a fraction of second before he turned to his back on his way to the top floor. He had taken of his blazer and had his shirt out instead of tucked in. She could even make out the blurry but toned back muscles which moved while he walked up the stairs.

Lana's  eyes grew wider at the thought that she was being ridiculous. She closed the door and looked at Hailey who was puzzled. A wide grin appeared on her face and she was about to run up to her when there was a knock at the door. They looked at each other as Lana straightened her dress and opened the door.

Rebecca cleared her voice, " You can go to Liam's room in an hour and explain tomorrow's schedule to him."
Lana nodded with a small 'yes' and closed the door when Rebecca left. She glanced at the clock which was glowing at 8:35pm. It was almost dinner time.

She sighed and looked at Hailey.

"You could've taken up a sleep job where they pay you as how fast you can fall asleep. You would've aced it."

"And you could stop roasting me every two seconds whenever you're with Ethan." Lana bickered with her sister and went on, " Let's eat dinner early. I need report in an hour and I've to wake up early tomorrow."

"You and your mood change..." Hailey face-palmed, " I seriously sometimes can't understand you. "

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

The dinner included rice and chicken with some veggies. Swetlana and Hailey sat side by side. The whole table was empty other than two plates at one corner of the table.

The chef came up to them.
"Do you.." he motioned towards the sisters and continued, "like it?"

"Definitely! The chicken tastes amazing! Healthy and tasty foods aren't on market these days." Hailey munched  on the veggies.

The chef felt comfortable, "I'm Ryan. You can call me by my name."
He flashed a cheeky smile. His dimples were so deep when he smiled.

"I'm Lana...short for Swetlana and she's my sister Hailey. Glad to meet you, Ryan."

He smiled at them again.
"Have you been working here for long?" Lana asked.

"Yes. Actually I've been here longer than anyone else. My dad was a chef here too..." he laughes.

"Wow family business" the sisters giggled.

"I'm done! I'm so full tonight." Hailey puts up her hands in defeat.

"See you around then, Ryan" Lana puts the dishes in the sink.

Ryan waved at them after fixing his bunch of blonde hair which covered his forehead.

Lana entered their room and looked at the clock which now read 9:15pm. Hailey locked at the door behind as she plopped on the bed after a good dinner.

Lana walked towards the window as she took in the beauty of the woods outside. She could hear the crickets singing outside and locate a few fireflies flying around in the dark.
The first floor seemed higher than normal first floor at an apartment.
She was lost in her thoughts. Everything she had been going through wasn't normal.

"Should we go home for a few days?" Lana turned to ask Hailey.

"We didn't even come for long. Maybe you're homesick. You'll get used to it."

"Hmm hmm" Lana  nodded.
Maybe she was being delusion. Maybe it was homesickness.

"You should get going now." Hailey reminded her sister.
It was 9:30 already.

Lana grabbed the files, " I'll try to come back ASAP but don't stay up waiting for me. Go to sleep when you're sleepy."

She closed the door behind her and walked up the stairs, making a tap sound with each step. The whole mansion was so quiet. It's completely different from her nature. She preferred noisy places. It didn't make her feel lonely.

She walked up to Liam's room and knocked on the wooden door, waiting for a response.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Author's Note:: Hey Guys! How do you like this chapter? It's been a while since I wrote but I'm back! Tell me your opinions on this chapter as I would be waiting for your precious responses. Do you have ships for the characters in this book?

Thanks
~Wendrilla 💜