Chapter 1
“Oh don’t you wonder when the lights begins to fade?
And the clock just makes the colours turn to grey”
It was dark in Elaine’s apartment. A little bit of sunshine was coming through the shutters, reminding her that it was broad daylight outside. It had snowed the day before, taking root almost immediately: soon enough the external world had disappeared under a bright, white coat.
Another empty day that was the spitting image of the ones that came before.
Thirty days had passed since he left.
The girl froze her movements, the brush tip hesitant against the white canvas. Her hand was shaking relentlessly, preventing her from painting. In the distance, her old stereo was playing “Golden Days” as to mock her.
“I fell in love with you”
“Elaine, I’ll be leaving in a week. I’ll be gone for months, maybe a year even”
And that was it. He set off, only leaving behind their old friendship broken into thousands of pieces and a playlist full of songs that Elaine couldn’t bear to listen to anymore.
“...All the memories that we make will never change...”
“Memories…” whispered Elain with a broken tone in between sobs, while a river of tears run down her face.
“I loved you the same way. I’m sorry, Elaine, I’m so, so sorry”
With a sudden movement, she let her brush fall off her hand, the tip still wet with blue colour.
She stood up, looking around for a particular paint can. It hadn’t been touched for a long time: gold was not a tint she was used to work with. It had too many hidden shades in its folds; she usually favoured more classic hues. At least when it came to her painting, she preferred to keep everything under control, simple, less erratic than her messy life.
She didn’t hesitate: as soon as the can was open, with a quick movement she threw the whole paint jar against the canvas. Every bit of white disappeared in an instant, including the sketch she had drawn the day before.
In its wake stood a canvas smeared with a deeper, beautiful gold: big drops of colour were dripping heavily from the stand, while a few splashes had landed against the studio’s wall.
She slid a hand along the fresh paint, leaving behind a long, nebulous handprint.
She hadn’t put down a protective sheet first, so the damage had been done.
However, Elaine couldn’t care less to be perfectly honesty. She felt better.
Through hazy eyes clouded by tears, she sat down on the floor with caution, admiring the absolute mayhem she had created with a hint of satisfaction.
The memories had turned into an intense golden glow, as Brendon Urie was singing with such raw emotion. The gold to represent better days, days gone by, happier days.
Lost days that probably only time could give her back in the future to come.
Days in which she would be whole again maybe, her broken heart healed.
“...Let the love remain and I swear that I’ll always paint you golden days...”
