Chapter 1264 Aquarium

A silence fell over the studio. Gretchen sat back down at her easel, picked up her brush, and seemed to be truly beginning to create her artwork, using the photograph as a reference. Not wanting to leave immediately, Amethyst found a chair in the room to sit down so as not to disturb her.

His gaze would occasionally drift curiously to the easel, wondering how the "atmosphere reference" would be interpreted. But whenever he showed any sign of getting up, or his gaze lingered for even a moment, Gretchen, who had her back to him, would swiftly grab a canvas from the side and cover the easel completely with a "whoosh." Then she would turn around, puff out her cheeks, and silently "accuse" Amethyst of trying to peek with her large purple eyes.

Zijing touched her nose and awkwardly looked away. This little girl is quite guarded.

However, even more frequent than Zijing's curiosity were the distractions from outside the door.

"Gresh, Daddy cut some fruit for you!" Hen's loud voice rang out with a knock on the door. Before anyone could answer, he pushed the door open with a plate of fruit in his hand, his eyes scanning between Zijing and Gresh like a searchlight.

"Gresh, is the air conditioning too cold? Should we put on another layer of clothing?" Not long after, Hen appeared again with a thin blanket.

"Um... Zijing, are you thirsty? Uncle just brewed a pot of good tea..."

After Hen barged into the studio for the fifth time under the pretext of "checking if the windows were closed," Gretsch finally lost her patience. She put down her paintbrush, stood up, walked to the door, and as Hen tried to push the door open again, she slammed it shut with a "bang" and then deftly locked it from the inside.

A startled voice called from outside the door: "Gresh? Open the door! Daddy hasn't finished checking yet!"

Greta leaned against the door, angrily saying to the outside, "Dad! If you keep doing this, I... I won't come home to draw next time!" Her voice was unusually annoyed, and her cheeks were flushed with emotion.

The sounds outside the door stopped abruptly, leaving only Hen's aggrieved and helpless mutterings fading into the distance.

With the external disturbances resolved, the studio finally regained its true tranquility. Gretchen breathed a sigh of relief, turned to Amethyst, and smiled apologetically, "I'm sorry, Brother Amethyst, my father..."

“It’s okay, he’s just concerned about you,” Zijing said understandingly.

Over the next period of time, Greta asked Amethyst to try out several different poses, such as leaning against the window in deep thought or looking down at a book. Throughout the process, she was very professional and attentive. Although she still blushed slightly each time the poses were adjusted up close, it was much more natural than the initial "wall slam." Amethyst also tried her best to cooperate, but her curiosity about what kind of comic Greta was creating grew stronger.

As the clock struck nine o'clock, Gretchen finally put down her paintbrush, looking with satisfaction at the several dynamic sketches she had drawn on the canvas. "Hmm, I should have enough material for today."

She stood up, walked to Zijing, and solemnly thanked him: "Brother Zijing, thank you so much for today. You helped me a lot."

"You're welcome. I'm glad I was able to help," Zijing replied gently.

Greta hesitated for a moment, put her hands behind her back, twisted her fingertips together, and looked at Amethyst with a hint of expectation in her eyes: "Um... as a thank you, this weekend... can I invite you to go to the newly opened aquarium? I heard that the light and shadow exhibition there is very beautiful, and perhaps... we can find new creative inspiration."

Zijing was somewhat surprised, but looking into Gretchen's clear yet slightly nervous eyes, he smiled and nodded in agreement: "Okay, that sounds interesting."

"Really? That's great!"

The two walked out of the studio together. As soon as they entered the living room, Hen, who had been restless, immediately came to greet them, his eyes darting between the two.

Greta announced in a great mood, "Dad, Mom, I'm going to the aquarium with my brother Amethyst this weekend!"

"What? The aquarium? Just the two of you?!" Hen's voice instantly rose eight octaves, his face screaming "I disagree!" "No way! Absolutely not! The weather forecast says it'll rain this weekend! No, there might be a typhoon! It's too dangerous outside!"

Blanca sighed and rubbed her forehead, then stood up, walked to her husband who was so excited he was about to jump up, reached out and precisely grabbed the back of Hen's collar.

“Alright, darling, it’s normal for young people to have their own plans.” Blanca’s tone was gentle, but her actions carried an undeniable force. As she spoke, she easily dragged the tall man toward the kitchen. “Help me decide what to have for breakfast tomorrow.”

"But they're not young at all..."

"Oh? What do you want to say?"

"Cough cough, what I mean is... just the two of them! An aquarium! Is this acceptable?!" Hen's voice, accompanied by a struggle, gradually faded away and eventually disappeared behind the kitchen door.

Greta whispered to Amethyst, "Don't mind my dad, he sometimes overthinks things."

Zijing nodded, already used to this scene.

The weekend sun shone brightly, showing no sign of the "typhoon" that Hen had mentioned. Zijing arrived at the aquarium entrance at the agreed time and spotted Gretchen from afar.

She had clearly dressed up carefully today, not wearing her usual casual loungewear, but instead a light blue knee-length dress adorned with tiny white seashell patterns on the hem, over which she wore a thin, off-white knitted cardigan. Her smooth blue hair was naturally draped over her shoulders, adorned with a delicate starfish-shaped hair clip. She stood there quietly, her hands gripping the strap of her small crossbody bag, glancing around occasionally, looking fresh and with a touch of artistic sweetness.

"Gresh." Amethyst stepped forward and greeted her.

“Brother Zijing!” Gretchen turned around and saw him. A faint but obviously happy smile immediately appeared on her face. “You’re here.” Her gaze lingered on Zijing for a moment, and she blinked slightly, seemingly also thinking that his casual attire looked very refreshing today.

"Have you been waiting long?" Zijing asked.

“No, I just arrived too.” Gretchen shook her head, her tone light.

The two entered the aquarium after having their tickets checked. Inside the enormous glass tunnel, azure water flowed overhead, and all sorts of fish swam leisurely, casting dappled shadows. Gretchen was immediately captivated, tilting her head back and occasionally pointing to a uniquely shaped fish or a swaying jellyfish, excitedly sharing in a low voice with Amethyst:

"Look at that, Brother Zijing, its fins look like a gauze skirt!"

"Well, it's beautiful."

"Ah, penguins! They look so cute swimming!"

"really."

She even took out her sketchbook, capturing fleeting moments of inspiration and quickly sketching the shapes of the creatures before her. Amethyst quietly followed beside her, watching her focused profile and the occasional sparkle in her eyes when she discovered something new, and couldn't help but recall that she had indeed been going out quite frequently lately.