Mysterious Painter

by Lmb111514

Hobbies are something we each love to do; what one person likes, could be completely different from another person's. For the Seville's, each had their own individual hobbies- science for Simon and food for Theodore. But what is Alvin's? Well, let's just say it's not what everyone would expect from the confident, pranking boy…AU two-shot!

1. Chapter 1

Hey guys! I know, I have stories I need to work on, but I to this idea on the eighth of January and was sucked into it. This is the most I have written in one period of time- especially in just a week or so! I have always wanted to write one of those one-shots that are 20,000 words long. This, instead turned out to be almost 40,000 words, so I am splitting it in half, making it a two-shot. I hope you enjoy this story!

Disclaimer: I don't own Alvin and the Chipmunks!

Mysterious Painter

The hallways of the elementary school were packed, as students ran from place to place bouncing basketballs, chatting with friends, and messing with others. School had just ended, shown by all the cars pulling up to the building, waiting on their kids or younger siblings.

Off in one corner of the school, stood one group- consisting of two boys and three girls. They laughed and talked as they stood by the door to their last class of the day, waiting for the last of them to leave the room.

"Uggh, what's taking Alvin so long?" Brittany grumbled. They shrugged at the questioned, but continued to wait. As he finally stepped out of the room, the groups eyes all stared at the poster board sized paper under his arm.

"What's that, Alvin?" Theodore wondered. He bit his lip, uncharacteristically nervous for him.

"Just something I stashed here this morning. Why don't you guys head on home, I'll be there later. I have to do something first…" He brushed off. They group shared confused and curious looks, but nodded.

Saying goodbye, they left the school to head home. When they had left, Alvin quickly followed their path, but when he got to the sidewalk outside of the building doors, he turned left, heading towards the high school building.

The school they went to consisted of four buildings. The smallest was a little preschool and day care center for ages 2 to 5. At six, students would move from that building to the next one: the elementary school, ranging from kindergarten to fifth grade. Alvin and the others were currently in third grade, having been in that grade for two months now.

The third building was the middle school, going from sixth to eighth grade. And the final building was a High School, from grades nine to twelve- which was where Alvin was heading right now. Actually, he had been heading over to here repetitively since first and second grade.

Really, it only started because of Ms. Danvers. The Seville's neighbor had taken a liking to Alvin and often let him hide in her house when he was running away from his siblings, the girls, or some person he pranked. She ended up inviting Alvin over often to eat cookies, watch, movies, play games, and talk.

Ms. Danvers was a widow who had lost her husband a few years earlier to a heart attack. She was an English teacher for most of her life, but was retired now, staying at him and babysitting her grandkids. But, her husband's passion was painting.

She told Alvin that that was how they had met: she was writing a children's book and, when a friends of hers said they knew someone who was really good at drawing, they introduced the two to one another. They wrote and illustrated a few books together, continuing that into their married life.

One of the rooms in the house was her husband's art studio, untouched or messed with since his death. After seeing Alvin's look of awe and wonder, she often let him wander to that room and spend hours in there, reading through her husband's analysis and study of art. He'd often bring them with him when he left, reading them any time he could- in class, at home, before bed, after waking up.

It took a bit, as his reading still needed work, but Ms. Danvers and Dave helped him whenever they were near or he came to them for help with words foreign to his young mind. Thanks to his determination, his reading skills dramatically improved and he found himself reading faster and faster through each pamphlet and book.

He had started with small sketches, copying what the books showed, but soon he found himself struck with inspiration. He soon asked Dave to take him to the store so he could buy his first ever sketchbook. When he decided to show Ms. Danvers them, she smiled and said there was someone she would like him to meet.

So, with Dave's permission, she took him to school, to Alvin's confusion, and brought him into the High School Building. Everyone they passed greeted her, as she and her husband had taught here for decades before they retired; the staff either having worked with them or having been taught by them.

Soon, they reached the art classrooms that were Ms. Danver's destination all along. Encouraging him to follow her into the room, where a man in his late forties stood, sorting through papers on his desk. This was when he met Mr. Danvers, Ms. Danvers son and the art teacher at the High School. After hesitantly showing him his sketches at Ms. Danvers encouragement, Alvin agreed to come to the art room every other day to work with Mr. Danvers and shape his skills more.

They often called him a child prodigy, because of his art skills at such a young age; they said that his paintings rivaled professional artists work who had been studying for a lot more years than him. That was back at the start of first grade. Two years later, he was still coming and it was quickly becoming his favorite thing to do.

But, despite the regularity in which he came to the High School Art Classroom, he was really worried now, more than ever before. Under his arm was an art board. He had spent the past few weeks painting it; it was his first painting that he did independently.

He created everything himself, with no help, keeping the whole painting a secret from everyone. Now, he was finished and was bringing it to the art room to show Mr. Danvers. Reaching the classroom, he sighed before opening the door. Mr. Danvers was sitting at his desk, writing something down.

"M-Mr. Danvers?" Alvin questioned before mentally facepalming himself at his stuttering. Looking up, the man smiled at the young boy.

"Hello Alvin. Did you finish the painting?" He questioned, seeing the art board in Alvin's hands. Alvin nodded, walking towards the desk. Handing it over, he nervously watched as Mr. Danvers pulled back the cover to show the painting. He sighed, staring down at the painting in his hands. He appeared to think for a bit, before speaking.

"Alvin, do you mind pulling up a chair and sitting down?" Alvin gulped at the question, fearing the worst, but nodded, walking over and grabbing a chair behind an easel, sliding it in front of the desk before jumping up on it. Mr. Danver's stared at the art board for a little bit longer, eyes analyzing it, before looking up and smiling at Alvin. That smile made Alvin relax and stop worrying.

"Brilliant, Alvin- even better than I expected it would be; and I already expected it to be amazing." He stated, setting the art board down gently on his desk. He was silent for a while, lost in thought. Alvin, sensing the depth of his thoughts, took his gaze away, gazing around the room at all the pictures and art work from current and past students- some of them were even painted by Mr. Danvers when his father taught here and he still went to High School, looking as if they were just painted today, rather than decades ago.

"Alvin…your painting skills are amazing; they are even better than most of my high schooler's paintings- and they've been training under me and others for years. You have a natural gift, something you are born with and learn quickly- a true child prodigy." Alvin blushed; they always called him that, and every time they did, he remembered back when he asked Dave what it meant, and turned shy- something otherwise impossible to the suave chipmunk, "And I can tell you truly love art." Alvin nodded furiously at that; it was his favorite thing!

"Alvin, would you like to become a part of my annual art show?" He questioned. Alvin froze at that, shocked. The Art show was for Middle and High School students who, after taking art classes with Mr. Danvers and others, could request an audition of sorts. Then they would draw or paint a picture and submit it to Mr. Danvers. If he accepted, it would be their first art board in the art show and, over the year, they would continue making others to put alongside it. It was hard to get in- so the fact that Alvin even had the possibility of joining, was incredible.

"Y-You want me to join your art show?" He whispered and Mr. Danvers nodded, smiling.

"You can look at this painting as your audition piece." He explained, "The first piece of yours in the art show." Alvin was ecstatic at this; it was his dream that his art would go somewhere- he just never thought that would happen so early!

The thought of people walking by and stopping to see his art, see his…name…Alvin froze at that thought; he had yet to tell his brothers and friends about his art. Honestly, he was worried about what they would think- to them, he was the jokester, the one that could care less about school. What would they think if they learned of him painting? Would they think it was lame? Or ridiculous? Sensing Alvin's thoughts, Mr. Danvers spoke.

"If you are worried about what your friends will think, I have a solution to avoid that." He stated. At that, Alvin looked up, curious, "When I was a kid, I came up with an idea. I call it The Mysterious Painter." He started, "My plan was to find a student, incredibly gifted at art, and have them take on this…name. They would be a secret, submitting paintings into my art show, under their new name." He used his hands a lot, trying to find the right words.

"They would have their own section for their art, for them to use every year, with no hint as to who was really behind the paintings. I figured it would add something interesting to the art show, and help a student who has an amazing gift, but not the expected attitude to go with that talent." Mr. Danvers grinned here, obviously thinking about the mischievous things the boy in front of him has done over the years, "Or if they wanted to just stay anonymous, they could with this idea." He paused here, thinking.

"If you were to accept, you would take on this name, and submit your art work every year to my art show, for as long as you want. I, my mother, and Dave will help you throughout the year, planning this but still keeping up with your classes. It will also be like an extra class for you. Just like now, you would come to my classroom everyone other day after school and work on art, whether on the art show paintings or just practicing is up to you. And, after the art show, you would get a grade as if you had taken the actual art class yourself." He stated.

"If you were to say no though, I would understand. It is a big responsibility that is asking a lot of time and work. Despite your talent, you are only in Third Grade. The choice is yours to make…" He smiled warmly here, patient as always. Alvin folded his arms, furrowing his brows as he thought.

It was a big assignment, one that would take a lot of time. But, he already was coming here every other day to paint or draw anyway, now he just had a goal to work towards. It would be anonymous; and more than likely make people curious. What could be a better prank or more fun than keeping such a secret from everyone, even his own brothers? Having made his decision, he looked up.

"Sure Mr. Danvers, I'll be your 'Mysterious Painter'!" He exclaimed, grinning.

Life moved quickly after that; Alvin would often spend the days thinking about his art pieces, trying to figure out what he should paint. He planned to make about sixteen paintings this year for the art show which would happen in about six months time. Alvin was incredibly nervous about it and often spent his free time in the art classrooms or at Ms. Danvers, painting and sketching his plans.

Of course, he could abandon everything else, so he kept being the mischievous kid everyone met; playing pranks, making jokes, and teasing Brittany. It actually helped, doing all that; it kept his mind off the art show and allowed him to relax. But, though it was stressful, it was a good kind. Like an exciting buildup to something good. Alvin just hoped everyone loved his paintings.

Finally, the day came for the art show. There was three nights, three nights for anyone to come. If one night, they had plans and couldn't make it, then they had to other times to see it. It was always an event looked forward to. Mr. Danvers has been doing this show for almost 25 years, the first ten being with his father, and before that, his father did the art show throughout his whole teaching career. It was famous statewide and covered in dozens of papers for the time leading up to it and after it.

"Come on guys, let's go!" Dave called up the stairs as the boys were getting ready.

"So where are we going?" Theodore wondered, straightening his green jacket.

"To the art show. You know, the same one we went to last year?" Alvin sighed.

"Oh…" He added.

"It's at the High School; Dave said he's been going for years, since he was our age." Simon stated, fixing his glasses. Alvin sighed.

"Dave at our age; something I can't even imagine…" He muttered. Alvin was excited for tonight, and if he could, he would already be down the stairs and in the car, yelling for everyone to hurry up like Dave was doing. But, his place in the art show was a secret so he couldn't act too excited or they could start suspecting. Finally, the boys were dressed and in the car, heading to the High School.

They stopped for a moment to pick up Jeanette, Brittany, and Eleanor before continuing on. The place was packed as it was the first night of the art show. The boys and girls stayed close to Dave, walking from each section. Each section had a theme or different type of art. One section was based on clay creations, another on photography.

One section was a sort of bookcase with glass, holding dvd cases and covers. Eleanor was especially captivated by one section filled with rocking chairs or all different colors, carved beautifully. While Alvin was staring at one of the rocking chair at how the person fluidly blended their colors, Brittany noticed something.

"Woah…" Her voice was full of awe and wonder at what she was looking at. Curious, the others turned to see what caused such a reaction.

"Hmmm…The Mysterious Painter. We haven't seen this section before." Simon recalled.

"According to the plaque, it is a new section, an 'anonymous collage' of paintings from one student." Jeanette read, narrowing her eyes to read the plaque.

"One person painted all of these?" Eleanor was shocked. Dave sent a sly look to Alvin which was, luckily, missed by everyone.

"It would appear so. They seem to have a theme…Water, would you say?" Dave guessed, looking from each picture that focused on a different type of water- streams, rain, the ocean, etc. All the pictures were done in the same water colors, beautifully done to perfection.

"A High Schooler painted all of these?" Eleanor repeated, still shocked.

"Maybe Mr. Danvers painted these." Brittany wondered. Simon and Jeanette shook their heads.

"No, it specifically says 'student'." Jeanette countered.

"And it may not even be a high schooler. Ben Fuller from seventh grade made that clay pot over there." Theodore remembered, pointing over at it.

"At this skill…" Simon shook his head, "No, it has to be a high schooler." Alvin inwardly smirked, shows what you know Si…They stayed there for a little while longer, not blocking the paintings though as more people came to check and gasped in awe at the unexpected sight. Alvin hung back, resting against a brick column that went from the floor to the ceiling, filled with happiness at everyone's reactions of his paintings. He had worked so hard on them, and now his efforts were paying off. After another half hour, Dave and the kids all headed back to the car, heading back to both homes for the night.

The rest of the school year, about a month and a half more, passed by quickly. Alvin, of course, got an A on his extra class, thanks to everyone's response to the Mysterious Painter's section of the art show. The newspapers practically clawed the story up, writing about each individual painting, placing pictures of each one in their stories. Alvin secretly, got a copy of each newspaper involving his paintings, and taped them up on the walls of his painting room.

As they had two extra rooms down in the basement, Dave gave one to Simon for his science experiments, and the other he gave to Alvin(Theodore's room was more of the kitchen really, where he baked and cooked as often as he could). Alvin quickly set the rule up that no one was allowed to go into his room, as that was where he had hung up all his paintings that Mr. Danvers had given back to him after the art show and his other artwork.

Dave had taken to buying him painting sets for his birthday in secret, handing him the presents when Simon and Theodore weren't near. He even came home from the store with new paint brushes and colors, along with test tubes and baking supplies for Theodore and Simon. The floor was covered in news papers as was the tables in there, so as to not make a mess. For once, Alvin was determined not to make a mess and to keep everything clean.

As the years went on, Alvin kept improving his skills, working as hard as he could to learn everything there was to know about art. He studied countless artists in all ranges of arts, intently focusing on each one. But, his favorite by far was painting- pottery and carving didn't really call to him like painting did. Neither did the digital side of art; he preferred to work with paints and his hands rather than computer graphics.

His popularity grew; both as Alvin Seville, and as The Mysterious Painter. The two were so different from one another that no one suspected them of being the same person- he wasn't even in the polls. As for the polls, they were created when Alvin was in fifth grade.

People were so curious as to the identity of the Mysterious Painter. So the school newspaper had taken to keeping a yearlong poll and column listing people's speculations on who it was. They studied all the students in art classes, eliminating all the people who had entered other things in the art show. Alvin couldn't blame them for not figuring it out; he was only in elementary school and all the people they were searching were in High School.

Alvin took great pleasure in the fact that no one other than Ms. Danvers, Mr. Danvers, and Dave knew it was him. He frustrated all his friends when he often teased them about their interest in the polls, saying that he didn't see the point of the Mysterious Painter, all it was was 'a bit of colors swirled on a page'.

Brittany was especially furious at his mockery of the Mysterious Painter. She had become a big fan of his, one of the leaders in all the polls and the column. She was a part of the school newspaper, having joined to be a part of the Mysterious Painter section of the paper. Surprisingly, she found her passion there; in taking pictures and writing stories about what went on in school.

More often than not, Alvin and Brittany's fights involved the Mysterious Painter, something Alvin found incredibly ironic: Here she was, yelling at him for his 'idiocy', stating that he just didn't understand the meaning of art, or the effort put into just one painting. He knew those all too well, though Brittany didn't know that.

He often chuckled in the fight(much to Brittany's frustration) or randomly when thinking, at the fact that here they were fighting, and Brittany was both tearing Alvin down and raising him up on a platform without even knowing she was. In the end, she couldn't take anymore and would storm off in frustration.

All in all, life was good and getting better for Alvin. His art was no longer stressful because of nervousness. Instead, when he was too caught up in life, he would go to his painting room and draw for hours, focusing only on the art in front of him. When he was done, he would leave the room, a lot calmer and carry on with what stressed him out.

Middle School came, and with that came more homework, choosing electives, and joining clubs. While Theodore and Eleanor joined The Baking Club, Simon joined The Science Olympiad, Brittany stayed in the Journalism Club, and Jeanette became a Librarian's Assistant, Alvin decided to not join any club, choosing to stick with his hobby.

He was tempted to join the art club run by Mr. Danvers, but as he had put the idea into his friend's heads that he knew nothing about art, he figured it would be strange if he suddenly showed the desire to start painting. So, he stayed with the idea of going to Mr. Danvers room every other day(Tuesdays and Thursdays there, Saturdays at Ms. Danvers), ignoring Simon and the others when they said he needed to join a club and listed the clubs he could join.

Mr. Danvers already considered him an honorary member of the art club, and considered their afternoons together as private art lessons, so that was enough of a club for Alvin. Sixth grade passed, as did seventh, each year's paintings have different themes. Sixth was the moon; Seventh was cats(tigers, panthers, domestic cats, etc.).

Eighth year seemed as if it would be a sad one as Ms. Danvers passed away at the age of 84. She had died in her sleep in the summer between seventh and eighth year, sending a mournful tone throughout the town. Mr. Danvers was distraught, as was Alvin. The funeral was planned two weeks after her death and in that time Alvin kicked it into high gear, spending all day in his painting room, late into the night as well eating there to the concern of his family and friends: they knew Alvin had cared very much about Ms. Danvers and had spent so much time over the years at her home; they hoped the news wasn't hitting him to hard.

The day before the funeral, Alvin grabbed his skateboard and helmet(both designed like his cap and shirt) as well as his finished project, and skateboarded over to Mr. Danvers house. Leaving his skateboard and helmet on the sidewalk, Alvin knocked lightly as he rocked back and forth, nervous energy rushing through his bloodstream. He smiled slightly as Mr. Danvers opened the door. Though his mother's death had hit him hard, he was still just as happy as always, still the same old Mr. Danvers. He seemed surprised to see Alvin.

"Hello Alvin. What brings you here?" He wondered. Alvin bit his lip, holding the project vertically behind his back so Mr. Danvers wouldn't see.

"I…Well, I have a gift for you." Alvin admitted. Mr. Danvers raised an eyebrow at that.

"Really?" He stated, stepping back and holding the door open for Alvin to enter. Kicking off his shoes, he slowly followed Mr. Danvers into the living room. When Mr. Danvers sat down in his chair, Alvin stopped in front of him. Taking a deep breath, he pulled the art board from behind his back and held it out to Mr. Danvers. Both eyebrows shot up at that in curiosity and confusion. Reaching forward, he gently took the board from Alvin.

"Is this your first painting for the art show?" He wondered. Alvin paused here.

"Yes and no." At that Mr. Danvers grew even more curious. Reaching up, he pulled back the cover to see the painting beneath it. He sat there for a moment, staring down at the painting. Nervous, Alvin held his hands behind his back, wringing them nervously, rocking back and forth slowly. After a few moments of silence, Mr. Danvers looked up, eyes wet, a few tears sliding down his cheeks. He smiled bittersweetly at Alvin. As he wiped away his tears, Alvin spoke.

"It is a gift for you; a tribute to mama Danvers." Alvin explained, his heart panging at that name she always insisted he call her, "I got the idea after the…news, and just finished it this morning." He paused before continuing on to his next words, "It is for you to keep, but it does have a part in my art show section. It is the inspiration. This coming school year, the theme will be more of a tribute. A tribute to mama Danvers." He confessed, holding back tears. Mr. Danvers set the art board down in the table next to the chair, before standing up and hugging Alvin tightly.

"Thank you Alvin. Thank you so much…" He whispered shakingly. Alvin nodded, returning the hug, burying his head in Mr. Danvers shoulder as tears fell from his eyes. After a few minutes, they pulled apart and sat down, both of them this time. As they were about to speak, Mrs. Danvers walked into the room.

"The children are finally asleep; they kept trying to stay up late to play on their phones. Only ten and twelve and they already do that…" She sighed. They had two other children, who were already grown up, married, and having kids themselves. Looking into the room, she brightened when she saw Alvin. She had often visited Ms. Danvers when Alvin was there and knew about the whole Mysterious Painter secret.

"Alvin! What brings you here so late?" She wondered. She grew concerned when she saw that both had been crying recently. Sniffing, Mr. Danvers sat up and picked up the painting again.

"He brought us a gift." He explained, handing the art board to her. As she stared down at the picture, she grew emotional as well. Wiping away tears with her sleeve, she looked up at Alvin and beamed.

"Thank you Alvin; it is so beautiful…" She whispered. After hugging him as well, Alvin stood.

"I should be getting back, it's almost bedtime." He stated. They nodded and walked to the door with him. Pulling on his shoes, he stepped through the door held open by Mrs. Danvers. Before he left, he turned back to them, "I'll see you tomorrow." They nodded at that, smiling slightly. Reaching down, he strapped his helmet back on. Closing the fences gate behind him, he skateboarded home.

The funeral was beautiful; so many people turned up, past students and colleagues of Ms. Danvers as well as neighbors and extended family. Alvin was there with his brothers, Dave, and the girls, all dressed for the occasion. The flowers were beautiful; all of Ms. Danvers favorite kinds- Mr. Danvers had spent their married life bringing her that same bouquet randomly throughout the year as well as for special occasions.

What drew everyone's eyes though was the easel standing behind Ms. Danvers casket. Alvin had been quite shocked when he arrived and saw his gift to Mr. Danvers standing there behind Ms. Danvers casket. The painting was simple, done with pencils. In the painting stood Ms. Danvers, smiling and dressed in a beautiful gown.

She was standing in a beautiful field filled with beautiful flowers of all colors. She was standing sideways in the painting and walking towards the paintings other side. A bright light, shown from the direction she face, its light stretching across the page. The whole picture had a tinge of yellow to it, the yellow concentrating on the light as it slowly lit up the field, lighting up Ms. Danvers' face.

After seeing the painting, he met Mr. Danvers eyes, who grinned at him, mischief sparkling in his eyes. The ceremony that followed was beautiful, there was not a single dry eyes in the whole area. Silence filled the place, as peace and love filled each heart as they remembered the amazing woman that was Ms. Danvers.

A reception followed soon after, most of the crowd of colleagues and students heading home, leaving only family and close friends. Alvin, Dave, and the girls chose their table and sat down as the lunch started. Soft and beautiful music sounded across the pavilion as people chatted and laughed, reminiscing on Ms. Danvers and the beautiful ceremony as well as the painting that had been moved to the lunch and stood at the head of the pavilion. When Mr. Danvers walked over to their table, Brittany spoke up.

"Mr. Danvers," He turned to face her at that, "That painting, did you draw it yourself as a tribute to your mother?" She wondered. He smiled at that, looking back at the painting standing on the easel.

"No, it was actually a gift. The Mysterious Painter gave it to me as a way to remember my mother, but I couldn't bear the thought of not letting everyone else see it. My wife and I figured it would fit well into the funeral." The pavilion was silent at that, just at the mention of the Mysterious Painter. Alvin inwardly grinned, but blushed, at that.

"It was a gift? From the Mysterious Painter?" She wondered, as if she had just realized that, for the Mysterious Painter to be in the art show, Mr. Danvers would have to know who they were. He smiled and nodded. Looking over at Alvin briefly, who nodded his consent, figuring what was going to happen and trusting Mr. Danvers to not reveal his secret.

"Yes, I believe..." He leaned forward as if he had a secret to tell; which he probably did, "I believe they said it was the inspiration for this coming year's art show section." Brittany's eyes were wide at that, the possibilities racing through her mind. Alvin also noted that everyone else was shocked too, thinking over what Mr. Danvers just said.

"Inspiration? So this year's theme will be a tribute to Ms. Danvers?" Jeanette wondered. Mr. Danvers smiled at that and nodded.

"Well, I must be going. I believe my wife is signaling to me that she needs my help with our kids." And with that, the teacher was gone, leaving a shocked table behind him, excluding Alvin and Dave of course. Alvin spent the rest of the summer mostly in his painting room which had steadily grown more filled over the years.

All his past art show paintings were now hung on the walls, five years worth of them, decorating the room. He had also been given a lot of late Mr. Danvers art books and paintings, most of them his favorites. The rest went to Mr. Danvers, which he said he would display around his classrooms. Soon, the school year began, the girls and boys excited for their last year of middle school.

Brittany, fueled by Mr. Danvers words at the funeral lunch, made it her goal to get information from him on the Mysterious Painter. The second she got back, she wrote an article of this year's Mysterious Painter section theme for the art show. It raised a lot of excitement across all the buildings at school; everyone excited for the next art show.

Now, you could constantly see following Mr. Danvers around the school, asking for any bit of information on the Mysterious Painter. Alvin often teased her about that, saying that she was absolutely obsessed with The Mysterious Painter. He found it quite funny when she defended those statements, pretty much confirming that fact that she was obsessed with Alvin.

The others in the group had taken to joining the move to find out the identity of the Mysterious Painter. Simon and Jeanette had made some really good ideas as to who they could be, sometimes getting closer to the truth and sometimes moving further away. Alvin had learned to relax, as sometimes they got a little too close to the truth. One time was at lunch in October as they were talking about the Mysterious Painters identity.

"You know, I think the Mysterious Painter may be different than we think." Theodore stated, taking a bite of his pizza. Alvin stayed silent, but raised an eyebrow at the random statement.

"Why would you say that, Theo?" Eleanor wondered.

"Well, it's obviously all a secret. If I were them and wanted to keep the secret would I act like an art student? Or would I act as if I could care less about art as to not make anyone suspicious?" Alvin froze at such a statement, not liking what his thoughts were making of this new idea. Everyone paused at Theodore's words, thinking it over.

"He could want to keep it all quiet. Maybe he never wanted to tell us their identity; just wants to be anonymous…" Simon added, furrowing his eyebrows. It was silent as everyone thought that over.

"What, so you think they are someone like Alvin?" Brittany wondered. Alvin tensed even more at that; not liking that his own name had come up in a conversation to compare him to the Mysterious Painter. He tried to act as casual as possible and untense his shoulders(which he failed) as everyone turned to face him, lost in thought.

Was this it? Were they going to find out the truth right here, right now because of only one statement? He pushed his food around his plate, trying to ignore the stares and pretend like he wasn't even listening. To Alvin's immense relief, they all started laughing.

"No, not like Alvin. I don't think a painter as good as The Mysterious Painter would be as rude about art as Alvin is, even if he was trying to hide his identity." Brittany chuckled, shaking her head as they all turned back to their food. Well you're wrong about that, Alvin thought as he took a drink from his milk carton to hide his smirk from them.

"But you are on to something Theo. We keep searching the Art students, and so far have come up with nothing. I'll talk to the Journalism club about it tonight at our meeting; see what they think about that idea." Brittany concluded. And with that, lunch carried on smoothly as before.

The school actually changed their directions, listening to Theodore's idea and looking at other students besides the ones in art classes and the art club. The rest of the year followed quickly and soon, it was the first day of the art show.

Everyone was amazed by the Mysterious Painter's section once again, Alvin took pride in as he stood back and watched while his family and friends walked from picture to picture, studying them; Brittany was taking pictures of them for the newspaper. Mr. Danvers statement that summer was true, to Brittany's excitement. The theme was a tribute to late Ms. Danvers.

She was especially excited to see the painting from the funeral standing in the middle of the section, Mr. Danvers having loaned it for the art show. And below it was a note, written by the Mysterious Painter. Brittany read it aloud to everyone who was near her, reading it over and over again in her head.

This past summer, as many of you know, Ms. Danvers passed in her sleep. She was a beautiful woman, with a kind heart and brilliant mind. She was one of the best teachers here at our school; and throughout her life she changed so many people's lives for the better. She always sought to help anyone she could; no one was a lost cause in her mind. She was dear to many people, including myself. It is because of her that I got into painting; she showed me this amazing world and helped me navigate it and learn whatever I could. She never thought that I couldn't learn something- she just believed I could do whatever I wanted. The world has lost a beautiful person- Goodbye Mama Danvers, and thank you for everything.

The Mysterious Painter

Brittany took pictures of it, more than likely making it the focus of her next article for the school paper. Alvin wasn't concerned; he spent hours on it, making sure to keep it personal, yet vague. And as for the 'Mama Danvers' part, he wasn't the only one who called her that.

Many past students called her that, as did their children- Alvin was just the one of a few that truly saw her as a surrogate Grandmother and called her nothing else. But, the list was too broad for her to narrow it down to him. And Ms. Danvers had taught so many people about art alongside her husband and son that she couldn't find him out that way either.

Finally, they all headed back home for the night. The rest of the year was busy, as they all finished creating their school schedules for next year when they would start high school. To everyone's surprise, Alvin was taking P.E. along with Art as his electives. When asked about Art, he stated that, 'He might as well try to see what the big deal about it was.'

Summer went by slowly, each spending the day around town at the beach, the mall, at diners, etc. The group of friends stuck together, enjoying their time off from school. But, school slowly crept up on them and the first day of school started.

Art was Alvin's last class of the day, which made it easier to spend Tuesday and Thursday afternoons with Mr. Danvers; he would just take longer to pack up then everyone else on those days, or lean back in his chair and watch everyone else pack up and put away their art boards with a condescending smirk on his face.

Then, when they were all gone, he'd go to the closet, pull his hidden art supplies out, and get to really working. The students in his art class hated him. They saw him as an arrogant jerk who was in there just to get a quick grade as he usually just sat in the back, teasing everyone- not about their paintings(he wouldn't ever do that; that was taking the game too far), but if they snapped at him for not working or for making stupid stick figure paintings, he was tease them about how 'he still did not see the point of art'.

After a few weeks, they all ignored him as if he wasn't even in the class, which allowed him to actually work on his artwork in the back of the classroom, away from curious eyes; making his paintings get finished quicker than just having his afternoons and time at home to paint them.

There were a few close calls at times, when people glanced over, saw him painting, and grew frustrated at him painting 'stick figures and squiggly lines' and stood up to check what he was drawing. But he always dodged them from seeing his work, keeping them occupied with his words and soon they forgot about wanting to see his paintings and went back to work.

The few times they insisted on seeing his paintings that 'mocked art', Mr. Danvers would stop them and ask them to go back to their seat which solved that problem. There was a really close call one day though; Mr. Danvers son got sick and had to go home halfway through the day. Mrs. Danvers was visiting her parents a few towns over, so he had to leave school early, leaving a substitute in his place.

Usually, Alvin would just spend that class painting stick figures again, but the teacher had not been in the classroom when class started, having gone to print something out up at the office. None of the class knew about the sub, so they got to work; Alvin working on one of his last paintings for the art show that was in a month or so.

Imagine his horror when he saw an adult coming into the room, glanced over, and saw their usual substitute. His name was Mr. Truman and he was incredibly passionate about art- one of those teachers that took their subject incredibly serious and hated anyone who made a mockery of their subject and didn't care.

So, of course, he absolutely hated Alvin, having subbed for Mr. Danvers a few times over the year, and had no clue why Mr. Danvers hadn't kicked him out of the class. According to Mr. Danvers, he had often urged him to drop Alvin from the class, but Mr. Danvers always held tight to his class and said no.

Alvin's mind whirled as Mr. Truman sat down at Mr. Danvers desk. The students, noticing they had a sub, sat up straighter and stopped talking- all of them knew Mr. Truman enough not to mess around in the classes he subbed.

Alvin knew that if he just covered up his painting and sat back in his chair to play his usual persona, it would infuriate Mr. Truman and he would march over to see his work. But, if he started working, the man would grow suspicious and curious and walk over to see what he was painting. Alvin had no clue what to do…

If he got up to put the painting back, Mr. Truman would stop him and check his painting, ruining that idea. He was definitely not going to paint over the painting; this one had been the toughest painting so far- he had spent the past month on it, trying to figure out how to finish it. Now, he was so close to being done and was not going to scrape his hard work. But what could he do?

He ignored the grins everyone in the class sent him. They could not understand why Mr. Danvers never talked to Alvin and stopped him from making a fool of his class. But Mr. Truman always did when he taught; not letting him get away with it. Of course, they would never tell Mr. Danvers this; they respected him immensely and knew he probably had his reasons, reasons he hadn't told them.

Mr. Truman looked up at Alvin; apparently Alvin had been sitting still for too long, thinking on what to do, showing by Mr. Truman's frustrated gaze. The student's eyes ping ponged between the two; it was rude how they acted to him, but honestly, Alvin knew he deserved it. They didn't know his whole attitude was an act, they thought he was truly that horrible and awful- if he was them, he would act the same way to them. But it still hurt to see the looks of hate.

Alvin froze in his seat as he stared intently down at him almost finished painting as Mr. Truman stood and made his way over to Alvin's easel. Suddenly someone came into the room. Everyone's heads snapped over to look and Alvin sighed in absolute relief at Mr. Danvers, holding the hand of his youngest son.

His eyes, looked between Alvin and Mr. Truman, taking in everything going on(especially Alvin's look of panic and Mr. Truman's stance that signaled he was making his way over to Alvin. Glancing at Alvin's art board, his own eyes widened at seeing the picture there, now understanding Alvin's panic.

"Hello Mr. Truman. Sorry to come unannounced, but my car won't start, so I have called a mechanic who won't be here for another hour. My son, Jeremy, wanted to come to my art class until then, if that's alright with you. He's following in my footsteps with a love for art." He explained. Mr. Truman smiled at that, looking down at the young boy.

"Of course Mr. Danvers, it is your classroom after all. I do have some things I have to do down at the office that I didn't finish this morning. If you want, I could go get those done. It will only take a few minutes and then I'll come back. But the class is yours until the mechanic comes." He pleasantly stated.

With that, Mr. Truman left the room, and Mr. Danvers took a seat at his desk, his son sitting down on a chair next to him. Alvin sighed and mouthed thank you to Mr. Danvers, who nodded and smiled in understanding. The rest of the class went smoothly, Mr. Truman returning about thirty minutes before the bell rang.

About five minutes before class ended, when everyone was putting away their supplies, Mr. Danvers got a call that the mechanic had arrived and left with his son. All in all, it was incredibly close, but Alvin managed to keep everything a secret.

A month later, the art show came: this year's Mysterious Painter theme was Locations. Each painting showed a lifelike picture of the big cities around the U.S.(Los Angeles, Chicago, Phoenix, New York City, Las Vegas, etc). Something different than previous years, but breathtaking to everyone who saw them and how real each picture looked- as if they were actual photos.

Alvin chuckled as once again, Brittany was walking around, taking photos of each of the paintings while staring in awe at each one she saw. A blush rose on Alvin's face and he frowned, confused. Shaking his head, he focused on everyone marveling at his paintings, wondering just who was behind them.

The night ended and soon the rest of the year came. Finals were stressful to everyone; most complained why they had to take finals both in first semester and second as well, and no amount of logic from teachers or other students made them stop complaining. For art, they were to create a painting of a famous artist, which Alvin passed, having chosen Picasso.

The rest of the finals were finished quickly and Summer started once again, new classes already chosen for next year. Alvin kept art, to everyone's confusion and frustration, figuring it was because of the fact that, no matter how he acted, Mr. Danvers kept him in the class and gave him good grades. For Summer, they all went to New York City with Dave, the girls included.

They stayed there for a few weeks, visiting all through Manhattan, Brooklyn, and the other parts of New York City. The airport was chaotic; Theodore couldn't stop commenting on how big it was. Finally, the vacation was over and they headed home, relaxing for the next few weeks at home and around the town.

Sophomore year came and it was back to art class again; Mr. Danvers had arranged it so that he would once again have it as his last period. His other elective was Introduction to Film, which was a fun class where they watched old films and learned about the beginning of movies.

The newest topic on the Mysterious Painter was if they were male or female. There was quite the debate as each side studied the paintings to show if they showed anything. It was a common conversation at lunch between everyone; Alvin just sat there eating and tried not to laugh or show his amusement to the people who were defending the idea that the Mysterious Painter was a girl.

As for Brittany, she continued with asking Mr. Danvers for any information, which he of course never agreed to. It changed though when one Tuesday afternoon, when Alvin was packing up his painting supplies.

"A certain friend of yours has been asking me to get in contact with The Mysterious Painter." Mr. Danvers stated. Alvin paused in his actions, curious.

"Who? And why would they want to talk?" Alvin wondered.

"Well, besides the obvious," He grinned at that, thinking about everyone's thirst for more information about him, "They were wondering if you could paint them copies of past artwork. They said they really liked your paintings, a few in particular, and that photos didn't do them justice." He explained.

"Who was it?" Alvin questioned. Mr. Danvers grinned here; a sly, knowing grin.

"Brittany Miller." Alvin, who had went back to pack up, paused again, shocked.

"So she wants copies of the paintings?" Alvin knew a lot of people wanted that; he heard a lot of conversations between people who wished they had a copy of a certain Mysterious Painter's painting, but this was Brittany. He froze at that thought; what did it being Brittany have to do with anything? Simon had wanted his New York City Painting from this past year, but he never felt the urge to make him one, and he was his brother! "Which ones?" He wondered. Mr. Danvers grin widened here.

"So you're going to make them for her?" He inquired. Alvin shrugged, not sure, "She didn't tell me, but I'm sure you can get it out of her." With that, they were silent once more. Alvin finished packing up and left to go home, thinking about what Mr. Danvers had said.

Alvin wasn't busy right now; the art show was far away- he was mostly just throwing around ideas and making sketches- so he had the time to make the paintings. But, what if he made them for her, she told her friends, and then he was constantly getting requests on copies of paintings? But, Brittany was a lot more of a fan of his paintings than most people.

She had been a fan since the start of the section and defended his paintings, especially to Alvin. Would one or two paintings hurt? And besides, he could just write a letter saying not to announce it all as he didn't want request after request for his paintings, especially when he got busy.

"They'll be a Christmas Gift." Alvin decided right as he got home. Now he just had to figure out which ones were her favorite- he'll ask at lunch tomorrow.

Halfway through lunch, Alvin decided to find out now, while she was lost in thought.

"So, have you got any information on The Mysterious Painter?" He kept the teasing tone in his words, despite actually being curious about the answer. She paused in eating, glaring up at him.

"No I have not. But I'm going to keep trying. You may not understand, but it's exciting, trying to figure everything out." Brittany snapped.

"Any other angles you're going at? I mean you follow Mr. Danvers around all the time, you can't just be asking about his identity repeatedly!" Alvin exclaimed, grinning. Brittany glared at the dig.

"For your information, I'm also asking if I could possibly get copies of The Mysterious Painters paintings." She answered quickly.

"What? All the paintings? Just one? Your favorite?" Alvin feigned boredom, pushing his food around his plate.

"Just two; my two favorites. The painting with the panther in the tree and the ocean one from first year." She explained, smiling slightly as she remembered them. Bingo! Alvin thought in excitement. But, outwardly he just shrugged taking a bite as if he didn't think much of it. She growled slightly.

"You just wouldn't understand…" She muttered, stabbing a peach and eating it quickly. Over the next few months, Alvin focused on making those two paintings once again; making sure they were exact replicas of his first version. He spent hours on each, wanting to make them perfect for Brittany(A fact he tried not to think about too much).

He was nervous as, each year on Christmas, The Miller's and Seville's got together at her house to open presents. So he would be there when she opened them. But, he tried not to focus on that and more on the paintings and his finals coming up.

When school let out, he was almost done with the second paintings- the panther in the trees. He was going as slow as he could, not wanting to finish them and have them sitting right there for months, building up his nerves everytime he walked in the room.

Finally, the week before Christmas, they were finished. Borrowing some wrapping paper and tape from Dave, he carefully wrapped both gifts in his painting room(choosing the most common of all the wrapping papers as to not make people suspicious), writing a note for the gifts, same as the writing from the note to Ms. Danvers(thank goodness he learned Calligraphy…).

When he had finished, he sealed the note in an envelope, wrote 'Don't Open Until Christmas' one it, taped it to one of the presents. After writing Brittany's name on both presents wrapping paper, he set them aside and headed up to dinner, excited to sneak them over to Brittany's house later tonight when his brothers were busy and not paying attention.

Later that night, while his brothers were busy playing an intense game of slapjack, Alvin grabbed the presents and left the house on his skateboard. Their house was about three streets over so it only took a few minutes to get there.

Stashing his skateboard and helmet in a bush at the start of the street, he made his way on foot to their house. All the blinds were closed up and down the streets, so no one would see him unless they looked. And even if they did, he was wearing a black jacket with the hood up, instead of his signature jacket and hat- so they wouldn't know it was him.

Arriving at their house, he walked up the sidewalk. Looking around, he set the gifts down on the porch. Taking a deep breath, preparing himself, he rang the bell. He could hear it echoing around the house and heard a door open and footsteps get closer.

Turning on a dime, Alvin raced down the sidewalk to the street, running as fast as he could to get back to his skateboard and helmet. Hiding behind the bush, he watched as Ms. Miller opened the door, looking around. Frowning at seeing no one, something out of the corner of her eyes caught her interest.

Looking down, her eyebrows rose at the presents. Smiling, she bent down to pick them up. Before closing the door, she looked up and down the street once more and, finding nothing, went back inside. Sighing in relief, Alvin strapped made his way around the corner, away from the street, strapping on his helmet and riding his skateboard all the way home.

The rest of the week passed by fast, the excitement of Christmas building and building. Music played, songs were song, cookies were made, and presents were wrapped. Dave, Theodore, Simon, and Alvin spent the week watching Christmas movie after Christmas movie.

Theodore went crazy with the baking- cupcakes, cookies, cake pops, fudge, chocolate, ice cream, etc. They had so much left over that they ended up leaving them at people's doorsteps at night, which Theodore loved doing.

Finally Christmas morning arrived and, after packing up all their presents, they made their way to the Miller's house. Though Alvin was excited about his own presents and for his family when they open to presents he got them, he was incredibly nervous about the presents he got Brittany.

He knew she would like them, he just didn't know if he could keep his emotions in check and not freak out or give anything away. Calming himself, he instead focused on his brothers. Simon was rambling about the history of Christmas to Dave. Theodore was bouncing up and down in his seat, excited to open his presents and spend time with Eleanor.

Both Simon and Jeanette and Theodore and Eleanor had started dating this past year and spent most of their time over at their house. They watched movies, went on dates, played games, and fell more in love with one another.

Alvin took pleasure in teasing them about it all, but he couldn't help but noticed that every time he saw both couples together, a pang of sadness and longing went through him. Brittany was single too, surprisingly. There were a lot of guys at school who were interested in her, but she always turned them down.

The few times Alvin would ask her why she did that, she would just smile and go back to whatever she had been doing before. Alvin found it frustrating; he just wanted an answer, any would do- but the silence was agonizing.

On top of that, he always felt weird whenever he saw someone ask Brittany out, and the second she denied them, a shot of happiness went through him. It was strange so Alvin tried not to think about it, wanting to ignore it all. Alvin was shaken out of his thoughts by Theodore's voice.

"We're here!" He exclaimed as the car pulled into the Miller's driveway. Dave and the three boys got out of the car, grabbing the presents from the back. Ms. Miller, having heard the car pull up, opened the door and smiled at that.

"Hey boys." She greeted. They all smiled at her, grabbing the presents.

"Hi Ms. Miller." They chorused as they made their way into the house with all the gifts. Ms. Miller closed the door as they set the gifts around the tree. Alvin smiled as he saw the two couples shyly greet one another. Though they had been dating for months, they were still incredibly shy and awkward around each other.

"Funny how they're still acting like that, huh?" A voice behind him stated. Turning to face Brittany he smirked.

"Yeah, but a guess that's what makes them both such good couples." Alvin stated, shrugging.

"You out looking for any girlfriend yet?" There was a careful note to Brittany's voice, a wariness. Alvin brushed that aside though, snorting.

"Nope. Still as single as ever." He stated. He hesitated, but plowed on, "You?" She shook her head.

"Same here." They were pulled out of their conversation as Ms. Miller announced that it was time to open the presents. Soon the room was filled with gasps of excitement, laughter, and rushed words as tearing paper littered the room. After about thirty minutes, all the presents were unwrapped, the gifts set in piles by the person they belonged to.

"Well, that's all the Christmas presents till next year." Dave stated.

"Nope." Ms. Miller stood up at that, walking to the back of the tree, "We still have two more presents to open." She sat down on the floor again, holding two long, thin presents. Alvin's heart thudded as he recognized them as the one's he had dropped off. Everyone grew curious at seeing them.

"Who are they for?" Simon wondered.

"They are for Brittany. Someone dropped them off on our front porch the other day." She explained handing them to Brittany, who was confused, "I've been hiding them in the other room since then and put them behind the tree last night." As Brittany started down at the two gifts, everyone grew excited.

"Read the card first!" Jeanette exclaimed. Smiling in excitement and curiosity, Brittany pulled off the envelope, opening it and holding up the note inside, clearing her throat to read aloud.

"'Hello Brittany. I heard that you have been trying to contact me. Someone told me that these were your favorites, so I figured 'why not'? I hope you enjoy them, but please don't spread this around school; I couldn't imagine making even more replicas for everyone who would want one. Merry Christmas!

The Mysterious Painter'"

Brittany's voice was laced with confusion as she read, wondering what they meant. But, as her voice made to say the signature, it trailed off as her eyes widened.

"Brittany?" Eleanor wondered in concern. Brittany didn't seem to hear her though as she reread over the note again and again, mouthing the words to herself.

"Is there no signature?" Simon wondered.

"It-it says it's from 'The Mysterious Painter'." She whispered, but everyone heard. Eyes widened at that in shock. Alvin didn't acknowledge Dave's side glance over to him as an eyebrow rose in question and wonder. Staring down at the two presents, she moved to open the one in front of her.

She and everyone near her gasped at what was revealed- the ocean picture from Alvin's first art section. Brittany stared down at the replica, blinking wildly as if she couldn't believe what she was holding. Suddenly remembering she had two gifts from The Mysterious Painter, she sent that one gently on the floor next to her. Ripping open the last gift, she saw what she guessed she would see- the painting with the Panther in a tree at night time.

"He actually painted them for me." She whispered faintly, looking dazed. Dave chuckled lightly.

"It seems someone has a crush." He teased. Hearing his words, his brothers and the girls teased Brittany, assuming that's what Dave meant. But, according to the knowing and pointed gaze he sent to Alvin, he meant him. Alvin froze at the implications of that statement. He had a crush on Brittany? No, no he didn't.

But, why else would he make these paintings for her when so many others also wanted some? And what about how he felt when he saw other boys asking her out? Was he actually feeling jealous? It was with those thoughts, that the realization hit Alvin. He had a crush on Brittany! When did this start? He demanded of himself.

But, thinking back, he couldn't pinpoint where it started. He had always paid more attention to Brittany than to any other girls, and loved when he got to speak to her, whether they were fighting or not. He shook himself out of his thoughts as Jeanette spoke.

"Hey, there's something on the back of the note." She stated, having picked up the note. Alvin smirked; he had forgotten about what he had written on the back.

"'P.S. So as to stop the absolutely hilarious conversations, and get things cleared: I'm a guy. Also, we have a lot of amazing teachers here at our schools, throughout all four buildings. I think they deserve something special at this year's art show, don't you?'"

"Well, that certainly changes some arguments going on. And I'm assuming his theme this year is the teachers at school." Simon figured. Everyone nodded at that. After a few moments of silence, Ms. Miller stood.

"Well, I'm off to get Christmas Breakfast started! Eleanor, Theodore, and Dave would you care to join me?" All three nodded at that, heading to the kitchen to get breakfast started. The rest of the group sat in a circle and played apples to apples.

The rest of the day passed by slowly, each person caught up in the Christmas spirit before the day would end once again. Finally, later that night, the Seville's bid goodbye and headed back home, their gifts in the trunk. The next few days passed by slowly, Alvin not really sure of the date, but knowing New Years Eve was almost here.

When the day finally came, the Miller's came over to the Seville's house. Theodore had spent all day making food for the event, the other boys cleaning and decorating the house for the party later that day. The Miller's arrived at their house at six, just in time for a light dinner. They spent the night, playing games, eating snacks, and blasting music.

The hours passed quickly and soon it was almost midnight. Dave and Ms. Miller were standing away from the kids, laughing and talking about their time at school. The two younger couples had taken to the backyard, sitting down and cuddling. Alvin and Brittany were inside, playing a few card games which, with both of them being competitive, were pretty hardcore.

They were in the middle of a game of war when Dave and Ms. Miller called them to the backyard as the countdown began. They chuckled as the other members of their group excitedly yelled out each number, themselves just muttering the numbers. When New Years finally hit, they all yelled, 'HAPPY NEW YEAR!"

As the town fireworks exploded into the sky, shimmering with different arrangements and colors. Alvin smiled as he saw the two young couples shyly kiss. He heard a sigh next to him. Glancing over, he saw Brittany staring at the two couples, a look of longing on her face.

An idea shot into his head, and before he shot it down, he acted upon it. Turning to face her, he leaned forward and gently kissed her cheek. She froze, eyes wide before turning to look at him. Dropping his usual persona, he smiled lightly at her, taking her hand.

"Happy New Year, Britt." He whispered sincerely. Her still shocked eyes followed him as he turned and made his way into the house. Unknown to him, Brittany smiled faintly, reaching up and touching where he kissed her. Love shining in her eyes, she whispered, 'Happy New Year, Alvin.' Shaking her head, she made her way inside as well, determined to finish this game of war with him.

School restarted a few days later. Britt quickly made it known in her paper that the Mysterious Painter was a guy and that his art show theme this year was the staff of the school. When asked how she knew, she only brought up that she got a note from him this past Christmas break revealing those things.

Those facts soon became common knowledge and everyone was speculating on which teachers would be featured in the Mysterious Painter's section of the art show this year. Everyone figured Mr. Danvers would be in it, and more than likely the principal. A lot of the guesses ranged throughout all four school buildings, with the most loved teachers in each.

Whenever the teachers heard they were in the poll, they grew embarrassed and quickly changed the subject, or they glowed with pride and said thank you. As the months moved along, Alvin grew busy with classes, homework, and his paintings so he was quite surprised when he walked into school one day and saw all the decorations- apparently it was February Fourteenth, Valentine's Day.

He walked past couple after couple, half of them seeming like they had only been created today- people being a lot of lovey dovey today than usual. Alvin honestly had no clue there were so many couples in school. He was shocked at some of the people he saw cuddling- he didn't even know some of them were dating at all.

Alvin himself had never really taken an interest in dating. Sure, a lot of girls were interested, but he just never thought about dating. He was too focused on life, on his paintings. And he never regretted that choice.

But as he stood there, he felt a pang of sadness, wanting what they had. Sure, pretty much the majority of these couples will probably not last longer than a few months(Hey, despite his creative attitude, he's a realist), but would be nice to have someone like that.

He only just realized that he liked Brittany, and for quite some time he figured. Dating her right now didn't seem right; he wanted to figure out his emotions- he cared a lot about Brittany. She was his best friend, so he wouldn't let hasty actions ruin their friendship.

Shaking his head, he made his way to his first class; the bell would ring in a few minutes anyway. The day went by slowly, Alvin quickly growing nauseous as classes came and went. Ok, he knew it was Valentine's day, the decorations in every classroom and hallway made that very clear, but all the couples were ruining his day.

And the teachers just let it happen! No matter how many notes were passed, whispers sounded, and kisses happened, they stuck to the lesson. Then again, they have been dealing with High School romance for years, so they were probably immune to it all by now. Alvin wished he was too…

No wonder Valentine's Day is also called Single Awareness Day; you can instantly pick the single people out in the room, Alvin thought to himself. He didn't care before that he had no girlfriend, but today made him wish he did. Alvin was getting annoyed because the girls that were in a relationship were sending him shocked looks, and the girls that were single were giving him googly eyes and interested looks.

So, it was understandable that, by the time lunch came by, he was not able to eat. Especially when he looked at the food and saw that most of it was cut or had something to do with Valentine's Day. Buying a granola bar from the vending machine, as well as some chips ahoy cookies and a ginger ale, he sat down at his usual table.

Even Jeanette, Simon, Eleanor, and Theodore were being all cutesy; not as bad as everyone else, but still enough to make his stomach turn. He turned to Brittany as she sat down with food similar to his, sending her sympathetic looks at the queasy expression on her face. Seeing his own meal and expression, she returned the look.

"I hate Valentine's Day…" She grumbled. Alvin raised an eyebrow at that.

"Really? I always thought this would've been your favorite holiday." He stated. She looked up from where her head was resting on the table and glared at him.

"Sure, it's a good holiday, but when you're single, it's terrible…" She muttered. He shrugged.

"Well then, why don't you date? There hasn't been a decline in the number of dates you've been asked out on this year, so why not say yes to one of them? Why do you keep denying?" Alvin wondered, ignoring the tightening feeling in his gut. Though he hated asking about the guys who wanted to date her, he was determined for her to answer his question. She shrugged and took a sip of her coke, once again choosing not to answer.

Alvin opened his mouth, about to say something else, when he paused as two girls(obviously single as they weren't attached to the hip with a boy) walking by their table, stared at him with googly eyes and giggled before carrying on through the Lunch room.

Alvin groaned, resting his head in his hands as he ignored Brittany's raised eyebrow, not noticing the flash of jealous that shone in her eyes. When he focused back to her, the flash was gone, as if it had never been there in the first place.

"Do you happen to have anything hard? Like a bat, a text book, a crowbar? If so, I would ask you to please repeatedly hit me upside the head with it until I am knocked out. Then I can spend the rest of the day in the nurse's office. And, if I'm lucky, maybe I'll be injured enough that, when I wake up, I won't remember any part of this day." Alvin asked. Brittany rolled her eyes at his dramatics.

"As tempting as hitting you upside the head with a bat is, I'm going to have to decline. Sorry." She answered, not actually sorry at all.

"Why not?" Alvin whined, muffled as he head was once again buried in his hands.

"Because if I have to go through the torture of this day because I'm single, then you have to too. I am not going to be the only one in our group suffering." She explained. Alvin grumbled.

"You're the worst, Britt." He fired out, looking up at her. She just shrugged, taking a bite of a cookie.

"I know." Pushing off the dramatics, having tired of them, Alvin went back to his 'lunch'. It was silent for a while before Brittany spoke up again.

"Have you ever thought of dating anyone? Found anyone who interests you?" Her voice was soft as she spoke, curiosity painting her words. Alvin paused at that, thinking it over.

"To be honest, I've never really thought much of dating. It just never came to mind- I was always too busy." Brittany raised her eyebrows at that, as if to ask, 'busy? With what exactly?' "But, yeah, I guess I have been thinking about it lately." He confessed, flipping the pop-top to his soda back and forth as he spoke.

"…Anyone in particular?" She innocently wondered, thought something was lying underneath those words. Alvin went silent at that, having grown uncomfortable at the idea of talking about him liking Brittany, with Brittany.

"Yes, there is someone I have been thinking about." Alvin stated after a few moments of silence.

"Do I know them?" Brittany wondered, spinning the lid of her soda open and close. Alvin bit his lip at that question- sure, he wanted her to know sooner or later about how he felt about her, but he did not want her to find out, or figure it out in the middle of a crowded lunch room while they were both in a bad mood. So, he shrugged.

"I'd rather not talk about who it is. What about you? Anyone in particular you've thought of dating?" Alvin wondered and felt pleasure as she tensed; now it was her turn to be uncomfortable.

"Yes…There is someone in particular that I like." Alvin ignored the pang that went through his heart at those words.

"Do I know them?" He countered with her same question. She smiled up at him, seeing what he was getting at.

"I'd rather not talk about who it is." She repeated, grinning.

"Why haven't you tried dating him?" Alvin wondered. She smiled.

"He's not really interested in dating. That's why I haven't dated anyone- I'm waiting for him to ask me." She stared intently at him, as if she had just given him a big hint. Alvin furrowed his eyebrows, not understanding what she was getting out. Seeing he hadn't gotten the hint, she changed the subject.

"What about you? Why haven't you went after your girl?" She wondered. Alvin shrugged.

"To be honest, I've never really been interested in dating." A little bell rang in the back of his mind, but he brushed it off and continued to speak, "And I only realized I liked her a few months ago."

"Only like her? Nothing more than that?" She wondered. Alvin shrugged.

"I don't know; I think that's why I haven't asked her out yet- I want to figure out my feelings for her before I try to date her. I really care about her, she's a close friend and I would hate to ruin that with a random relationship." He admitted. For some reason, he was not as tense as he probably should be. Here he was, sitting with the girl he liked, and talking about her to her face. But it seemed natural to him.

"Wow; Alvin Seville being careful and thoughtful for once. You must really care about this girl." She teased. He ignored the jab and smiled lightly.

"I do." He stated. Their conversation stopped at that, as the rest of the group at the table realized they were there, broke apart, and started to speak about their classes that day, and upcoming projects. The day continued on slowly from there.

Alvin was tortured through each class as the same giggling and looks continued, but he just thought back on his conversation with Brittany and smiled, having finally been told why she said no to all those guys- she was waiting for a specific one to ask her. He felt jealousy at the thought of Brittany liking someone else, but he also felt happiness-she deserved to be with the person she loved, even if that person wasn't him.

Finally the day was coming to an end and then Alvin could go home; all that was left was his art class. As he set up his easel and art board, opening up his art supplies, he paused. Brittany had been in such a bad mood this morning, at seeing all the sad couples. Grinning at his idea, he got to work with his pencils.

He spent the entire class time focused on his idea, not caring if he was not carrying through on his usual persona- he was too focused to care. It was a good thing everyone was ignoring him as, if they had grown curious at his actions, they could have come all the way to his easel, stared at it, and he wouldn't have had any idea that they were there until they spoke.

Finally, about ten minutes before class was over, he was finished with the painting. It was on a sheet of paper, rather than an art board this time- a piece from his sketchbook that he had clipped to the art board on the easel. The picture was in black and white and depicted one thing: A rose.

Alvin had always loved drawing roses; they constantly covered pages throughout all his sketchbooks. But he had never used them in a painting before really; maybe small ones among the grass or something like that, but they were never even close to being the center of a picture. He had spent the whole class, making sure the picture was as life like as he could make it; he wanted it to be perfect.

Mind whirling, he did something he had yet to do in this class(or any class really…): He raised his hand. As if sensing something rare happening, everyone turned to look at him, eyes widening at what he was doing. Even Mr. Danvers was shocked; Alvin had strictly chosen not to participate in class as to keep his secret safe: This must be important for him to break that.

"Yes, Alvin?" He questioned.

"Mr. Danvers, could I be excused early today I have to get something to someone before they leave school and they are always one of the first to leave. Can I?" Alvin questioned, staying as close to the truth as he could without giving too much away. Sensing the truth in his words, Mr. Danvers nodded his consent.

"Yes you can, Alvin." With that, Alvin unclipped the paper from the art board, hiding it quickly behind the cover of his sketchbook(ignoring everyone's curious eyes at the fact that he had a sketchbook and had actually drawn something today).

Packing his art supplies box in his backpack, he quickly returned the art board to the classroom closet, before pulling his backpack over his shoulder and waving goodbye to Mr. Danvers on the way out as shocked gazes still stared at him.

Walking quickly through the hallways, he reached Brittany's locker and was relieved to see that the hallway was empty. Pulling out the drawing from today's class, and opening his art supplies box. As he stood there, he pondered over how to sigh the paper. He grinned as he went with his usual signature, in the lower right-hand corner of the paper.

Flipping it over so that the drawing faced the locker(blank side facing the hallway), he pulled some tape out of his art supply box and taped it to her locker. He signed Brittany's name on the back in the same style as his signature. Thinking quickly, he wrote a note on the back that said:

I saw you were pretty upset today; I hope this can cheer you up…

Looking up and down the hallway, he grinned. For the first time today he was glad it was Valentine's Day as no one would notice this and touch it; most of the other lockers had papers taped to them from friends and sweethearts. Brittany would be the first person to see it.

With that, he put away his art supplies, zipped up his backpack, and headed for his locker, reaching it just as the end of the school day bell rang. He was definitely happy that he was going home in a better mood than he had been in all day; he just hoped Brittany would be in a better mood as well because of his drawing.

The days passed by, and soon it was the art show yet again. Ranges of emotions filled people as they saw the Mysterious Painter's paintings. Brittany was excited that she knew the theme so soon. Others were excited about the guesses on staff being right, others sad they were wrong.

But, overall Alvin was proud of his work and loved watching people enjoy his art that he had worked so hard on. Looking at Brittany, he smiled lightly. He had figured out his feelings for her and could say for certain that he was in love with her. As for her loving him, he had no clue though, but who ever did in a relationship?

He blushed slightly as he remembered lunch the day after he had given her that paper. It had started off normally; everyone laughing and talking about things that happened since yesterday's lunch. That was how they had gotten onto the topic of the drawing he had left her.

"Hey Brittany? What was that paper taped to your locker yesterday after school?" Jeanette wondered. Simon and Theodore, not having known about that, grew curious. Brittany blushed.

"Ummm…It was a drawing from the Mysterious Painter." She confessed. The group paused and smiled at her, excluding Alvin.

"Well, I guess you're not the only one with a crush- it seems your crush on him is returned." Simon stated, grinning. Alvin feigned interest in the tables around the lunch room at that, trying to hide his blush.

Because of that, he didn't notice everyone at the table glancing over at him with a look in their eyes, as if looking for his reaction. Brittany's eyes widened and she shook her head vividly, not wanting Alvin to find out about her crush on him- it was bad enough everyone else knew about it. Even Ms. Miller and Dave did! But, of course, Alvin didn't know…

Shaking his head, Alvin glanced over to them when he noticed how silent everyone was. He grew confused as everyone suddenly looked away from him all at once, starting to eat their food. Why were they all staring at him? He wasn't even a part of the conversation! Well, at least he wasn't a part of it that they would know about. Turning back to Brittany, they continued.

"What was the picture?" Eleanor wondered.

"It was a rose." She explained, blushing deeply at everyone's teasing looks; even Alvin's this time, "He wrote that he saw I was in a bad mood because of all the valentine's stuff and wanted to cheer me up."

"Was it like his paintings?" Theodore questioned.

"No; it was more of a drawing, clearly torn out of a sketchbook." She answered, thinking back on the painting, "It was done in pencil, no color, and was so lifelike. It was absolutely amazing." She sighed, smiling. Alvin ignoring the happiness surging through him and took a bite of his pizza.

"Well that was thoughtful of him." Eleanor stated. Suddenly she sighed, "I just wish we knew who he was; it's been so long. We've tried for years and seem to be no closer to the truth! I mean, there could've been a new Mysterious Painter every year, and the one this year just has a crush on you."

"But, every year's paintings have a style to it that are all incredibly similar. And it just seems cruel of Mr. Danvers to let on Mysterious Painter graduate and tell no one their identity." Jeanette countered.

"But, let's say the Mysterious Painter graduates this year. That would mean that he started his secret identity in fifth grade! He would have to be a child prodigy to be able to do that!" Simon exclaimed, "I mean, in fifth grade, we were, what, ten-eleven? Sure it's a little out of the range for a child prodigy, but his skill then was professional level. And who knows how long he had been painting since then! It just seems too impossible…"

"I just don't know; if he keeps changing them and doesn't tell us, won't we soon grow tired and stop guessing?" Theodore brought up.

"Maybe he wants to release their identities all at once after every ten years or something?" Brittany figured.

"Then they won't be revealed until the year after we graduate…" Eleanor whined, frowning. Alvin snorted, ignoring everyone's glares at that as he took a sip of his milk carton. They hadn't really talked about it, but it was an unspoken agreement between him and Mr. Danvers that they would reveal his identity the year he graduates. So, they were close, but not quite there…

He couldn't imagine it though; after so many years of being the Mysterious Painter it seemed strange to think that, soon, he would not be them anymore. I mean, his paintings and identity has gotten so much fame that, even other schools all around this state and the few states around them started doing the Mysterious Painter section of their art.

But most of them revealed the person's identity as they were really only took on the pseudonym for a year or two before it would move on to someone else. They were the school who started it and had yet to reveal who the Mysterious Painter was- though that was because they planned to wait till Alvin was graduating to let the secret out.

"Well, we've already waited, what, six years? I guess we can wait for three more years if that is true…" Theodore reassured.

"Yeah, I guess so." Jeanette stated. And with that, they went back to what had happened the rest of the day. Shaking his head, Alvin focused back on the art show. They were probably going to stay for a few more minutes before they left. Alvin smirked when he saw Brittany glance over at him and furrow her eyebrows in confusion.

She could not understand for the life of her why Alvin kept coming each year. I mean, he disrespected art so much, mocking it and everything. So she could never figure out why he still came every year; sure it was a tradition for them, but she thought that Alvin would have gotten out of it by now.

But here he was, leaning back against the same column he always did, watching everyone enjoy the Mysterious Painter's section with a genuine smile on her face: she just didn't get it! She hid her blush as he noticed her staring and smiled slight at her, his eyes glinting with happiness.

It was hard for Brittany to pinpoint when she had started to love Alvin Seville. But she had always been closer to him than everyone else. He affected her more than anyone else did; just one comment can make her roar with anger, and one word can make her instantly calm and be content. It always seemed that Alvin knew her inside out; he knew just what to say to get her to where she will yell, or laugh.

But here she was, still trying to figure out the complex puzzle that was Alvin Seville. Half the time he was such a jerk, teasing her and anyone who was near. He didn't seem to care about anything then. But then, the next second, he would become incredibly sincere and kind. He was always there to help whoever needed it.

Often he would tease someone when they asked for something but, he would somehow phrase his teasing in a way that would answer their question and help them before continuing on to his class. It frustrated her all the time that she didn't seem to truly know the real Alvin Seville- who he really was behind all the games and taunts.

She knew he was a good person, but she couldn't understand why he hid behind this rude persona. Maybe it was what everyone expected; when Alvin was younger he was so kind and nice, but he was mischievous and sneaky. So, when he played a prank on people, they would think he was rude. Maybe he got tired of being misunderstood and became what everyone expected of him?

Brittany sighed, or maybe she was just thinking too hard about all of this…Shaking her head, she turned back to the drawing of the Kindergarten teacher Miss. Ginger, so much like her rose, that she smile. Picking up her camera once again, she continued taking pictures for the newspaper.

The next day at school, news quickly spread. All the teachers who were sponsored in the art show had walked into their classrooms to find art board replicas of the drawings of themselves from last night lying on each of their desks.

Even more, all the teachers opened the doors to find sketchbook papers with drawings of them in their rooms. Even the janitors and substitute teachers found some taped to supply closets and in their mailboxes. And taped to each one was a note.

I apologize for not being able to have paintings of all of you in my art show section, but unfortunately if I had tried to do that, I wouldn't have finished by now, let alone before the next school year started. So, though they are not art boards, I hope you like these pictures. I thank all of you for your hard work at teaching us students and running this school. I know we can all be a handful, especially some of us, but I appreciate all that you do and I know many others do too…

The Mysterious Painter

All the students thanked him profusely throughout the day, as even the strictest teachers were nice and accepting today. Less homework was to be completed at the end of the day as in most classes teachers spent most of the time going through tonight's homework all together in class. Fewer detentions were handed out- all in all, it was a great day.

Alvin himself had to constantly hide his embarrassment at every thank you he heard in the conversations he passed, just happy to finally be done with all the paintings and sketches- this was definitely the most demanding of all the art shows to this date.

But it was worth it to see all the happy teachers. To be honest, he classified himself as part of the group who were the most stressful for the teachers. Though he did all his homework and passed all the tests, he knew his attitude affected a lot of his teachers day. He had a lot of respect for teachers; after all, he himself wanted to be a teacher, an art teacher just like Mr. Danvers.

He was hoping to take over the school art section when Mr. Danvers retired. He was already in his fifties and planned to retire at 63. He would be out of school by then and hopefully working as an assistant to Mr. Danvers before he retired. He hadn't asked Mr. Danvers yet, but he planned to soon- he was just worried about what the man would say.

Alvin had noticed that time was passing faster and faster as the years went on because, before he knew it, the days had passed, he had finished all his finals, and the last day of school was over. They didn't have any plans this Summer like they did last year, so Alvin spent him time relaxing.

About a week after school finished, the Seville's drove over to the Miller's house to have lunch together and spend the rest of the day together. Lunch was delicious, as Eleanor and Ms. Miller made amazing sandwiches, fruit punch, and snacks. After watching a few movies they sat in the living room, laughing and talking about anything that came to mind. Alvin honestly had no clue how it ended the way it did with how good the day was going.

"So how are your relationships going you four?" Brittany wondered, grinning slyly. The four blushed at that, not meeting their boyfriend's/girlfriend's eyes.

"I-It's going good." Both Simon and Theodore stuttered, their girlfriends nodding in agreement. Brittany sent a sideways glance to Alvin, which everyone caught, but Alvin who was absorbed in a puzzle at the moment.

"Hey Alvin?" Everyone sat up at the innocence sounding in Brittany's voice. Alvin, continuing to search for a certain puzzle piece, glanced up to meet Brittany's eyes for a second to show he was listening, "Is there…anyone you are thinking of dating?" She wondered. Not really wanting to talk about the fact that he was planning to date Brittany, with Brittany, he shook his head. Brittany sighed, thinking on how to continue now.

"What about that girl you told me about?" Everyone's eyebrows shot up at that, not having known about this conversation, "Did you figure out your feelings for her yet?" She inquired.

"Yeah, I did." Brittany was quickly getting annoyed at the short responses from Alvin, but calmed and continued to speak.

"You know, you never mentioned who it was you were talking about." She brought up. Alvin shrugged, "Is it someone I know?" Alvin didn't answer as he finally found the right puzzle piece he needed for a spot. Brittany gave exasperated looks to everyone listening in, who all gave her encouraging looks. Steeling herself, she turned back to the object of her love, who had not noticed the exchange going on, having found another piece to place.

"Are they in our year?" No answer.

"Are they in any of the same classes as you?" Not even a glance up at her.

"Do they have black hair?" Just a shrug; which definitely did not answer her question.

"Brown hair?" Nothing. "Blond hair?" Nada. "Blue eyes?" Zip. "Brown eyes?" Zilch.

"Alvin?" Had he stopped listening? But, his look up showed he had not; he was just not answering any of her questions. Summoning up all her courage, she tried a different direction.

"The guy I like is in our year." Only a light tensing of his shoulders showed he had heard what she said. She continued to speak, determined to get him to react, "He had brown hair and blue eyes."Nothing yet again, "I have math with him, as well as English." He was still staring down at the puzzle, searching for a certain piece.

Alvin was determined not to look at her. He knew if he started to describe the person he was in love with, she would figure out he was talking about her in a heartbeat. And if she didn't, than everyone else would and would more than likely comment on it. But, now that she was talking about the person she liked, he could not meet her eyes, as she would see the jealousy clouding his eyes and figure him out immediately.

Just the fact that he had math and English with her made his mind whirl. He had those classes with her too, but had never seen her pay attention to any guys specifically; she mostly talked to him in those classes. He ran through his memory, trying to pinpoint a guy that was in both of those classes with them, but he came up blank.

"He has two brothers, just like I have two sisters." Her voice was careful here, as if it gave away a lot. Alvin tried to think of someone who had two brothers like him, but not many did.

Brittany was incredibly frustrated now; everyone else in the room was shocked that Alvin hadn't figured it out yet, Brittany was being pretty obvious. It was silent for a while, everyone staring between Alvin and Brittany, Brittany staring at Alvin who was still absorbed in his puzzle, having found four other pieces to place since the last one. Finally, Brittany stood, practically shrieking in frustration.

"You are absolutely oblivious, Alvin Seville!" She exclaimed before rushing to her room, slamming the door closed. Alvin's eyes were wide in shock, his jealousy forgotten. He definitely did not expect a reaction like that. What did she mean by oblivious? But, the little bell was ringing in the back on his mind once again, connecting dots that he could seem to place.

His eyes had followed her from the moment she stood, spoke, and hurried out of the room, his eyes currently resting on her closed door that was still shaking in its frame. He turned to face everyone else, eyes asking what was going on, but they just sighed, shock their heads, and spoke in low tones about meaningless things.

A few minutes later, the Seville boys headed home, the happy mood from the day lost. Alvin didn't speak to anyone the rest of the day until bed, replaying the scene with Brittany in his mind over and over again. What, exactly, was he oblivious about?

The next day, he spent his time in his painting room, only coming out to grab food to bring back down, having stored water in there before for days like these. At the end of the day, just before the sun was about to go down, he headed out, walking around town to clear his mind.

He didn't know why Brittany was so mad at him. Should he go to her house and apologize? No, he figured she wouldn't accept an apology if he didn't know what he was apologizing for. He sighed as he arrived at the corner of his street. Looking around, he froze as he saw a familiar figure sitting on the plastic steps of the park's playground, their back to him. Brittany.

Summoning his courage, he made his way over to her. They were the only two out there tonight, most inside, getting ready for dinner. His footsteps sounded against the wood pieces surrounding the playground, causing Brittany to snap her head around. Her eyes turned cold when she saw him.

"What do you want, Alvin?" Her voice was tired, as if she didn't want to deal with this right now. He almost hesitated, but he knew they needed to resolve this, so he continued, sitting down on the steps next to her.

"I want…to understand. I know I was being oblivious, but I don't know how." Alvin confessed. Brittany let out a short, fake laugh, sniffling. Alvin hadn't noticed, but she was crying, had been for a while it seemed.

"Alvin," She turned to face him, "I said the person I liked had brown hair." She reached up running a hand through his brown hair, "Blue eyes." She emphasized, staring him directly in his blue eyes, "Was in both my Math class and English class. And he had two brothers, just like I have two sisters." At her pointed look, Alvin finally clasped his mind around the little bell ringing, stopping it. Oh, she was talking about me…Alvin realized. Now knowing that she liked him, he smiled, which seemed to shock her.

"You know, the girl I like has light brown hair that she always wears in a ponytail." Alvin reached over, twirling his fingers in her hair, held up with a ponytail, "She had icy blue eyes, and shares the same Math and English class that I have. She has two sisters, like I have two brothers. In fact, both our siblings are dating each other." Brittany took a shaky breath in here.

"You like me?" she whispered. Alvin nodded, moving his hand from her hair so it held her face, wiping away the few tears that still lingered on her cheek. His other hand wiped away the rest of the tears.

"I have for a while, Britt." Alvin confessed, staring deeply into her eyes to show his sincerity.

"So it was me you were talking about on Valentine's Day." She realized. Alvin grinned and nodded, "So that's why you didn't answer me yesterday when I asked all those questions."

"I was afraid that you would figure it out, even if my answers were vague. Or, at the very least, the others would figure it out and blurt the truth out, letting you know." Alvin explained.

"Well, I was talking about you also on Valentine's day also, when I said I was waiting for a certain," She stared pointedly at Alvin when she emphasized that word, "person to ask me out." Alvin blushed.

"Sorry about that. I only realized that I liked you, and had for a while, at Christmas. I wanted to figure out just how I felt about you before we started dating or anything." Alvin apologized. Brittany nodded, smiling in understanding.

"And have you figured that out yet?" She 'innocently' wondered.

"Yes, I have."

"Good, because I'd hate to go through this whole thing again, as you wait to figure it out." Brittany joked. Alvin rolled his eyes but pulled Brittany to him, hugging her tightly, something that she instantly returned.

The two started dating then, spending the Summer together. They went on dates to the arcade, spent time at the oldest ice cream parlor in town, went to the movies, and just stayed together whenever and wherever they could.

When they told their family, they had all sighed in relief, exclaiming 'finally!', stating how they had known about them liking each other for years. Soon the Summer ended and they went back to school, both Alvin and Brittany chalking that up as the best Summer they had ever had.

School started same as always; people had learned by now to ignore Alvin in art class, resigning themselves to the fact that he was going to continue being in that class, and Mr. Danvers would allow him to. Even Mr. Truman gave up, his pleas to Mr. Danvers going nowhere. So, when he substituted he stayed at his desk, only giving Alvin a few confused and wondering glances.

That left Alvin to his painting, no longer worried someone would talk to him. It was a tad lonely though. Sometimes he would look over, see someone's painting and want to ask them questions on how they came up with it, or what they were going for.

A few times he saw a few people puzzled and frustrated, trying to get a certain look in their painting that they could get quicker and easier with different methods. But, he had made his bed and now he would have to lie in it. So, he focused on his own work, already starting his paintings for this year's art show.

His plan this year was Winter; and the first painting was a close up on a single snowflake, enlargened across the whole art board. It was one of his personal favorites so far… He was blending white, grey, light blue, and a bit of yellow to make it seem like the snowflake was shinning. So invested in his painting, he didn't notice some walked into the room until they spoke.

"Hello Mr. Danvers." Alvin froze, knowing that voice: it was his girlfriend. Sitting up straight, he tore his eyes from his painting. Looking up, he saw Brittany standing next to the door.

"Ahh, hello Brittany. What brings you here? Shouldn't you be in class?" He wondered, shooting Alvin a look before focusing back on Brittany.

"Well, I'm currently in Journalism right now, and they sent all of us around school to get interviews. I was wondering if I could get an interview from you?" She wondered.

"Really?" Mr. Danvers questioned, curious, "About what exactly?" Brittany chuckled here.

"The same thing I always bother you about." She stated. He sighed, sitting back in his chair.

"Well, I respect your determination, Brittany; but I don't feel comfortable divulging the Mysterious Painters secret's without their permission." He apologized.

"Well, why don't you call them so we can ask?" She wondered, but Mr. Danvers just chuckled.

"Sorry Brittany, but I don't like talking to them about their secret identity where people can hear; either the people near me or the people near him. Plus, most teachers don't like when student's phones ring in class." He denied.

"So it's still a 'him'!" She pointed out. He smiled and nodded, amused.

"Yes, it's still a him." He confirmed, "I wish I could tell you Brittany, but I can't." She sighed here, defeated.

"Ok Mr. Danvers; I understand. Thank you for being so nice about it." And with that she turned to leave the room. But before she could, she stopped and turned, smiling at Alvin. Uh oh…He thought, glancing at his painting- it would definitely not be what she expected to see him working on.

"Hey Alvin, what are you painting? You seemed pretty focused on it when I walked in here." She remembered. Alvin shakily chuckled, thinking fast on how he could stop her from seeing his painting.

"Oh, you know, just my usual stuff." Alvin stated.

"Stick figures and lines, right? Are you ever going to give art a chance?" She wondered, "It is quite amazing; I've only ever tried to learn a few things, but it's very interesting to learn about."

"For you, maybe. But not really for me." Alvin stated as calmly as he could, shrugging. She rolled her eyes, shaking her head.

"Oh Alvin; you're so stubborn…" She said. Alvin was calmer now, as she had stopped her trail to his easel.

"Hey Brittany!" Mr. Danvers stated, turning her attention back to him, "Is anyone doing a story on Mrs. Adelia's coming field trip for the French club? If not, you could go interview her- I believe this is her free period. She should be in her classroom, getting ready for the clubs meeting after school."

"Actually, I don't think anyone is. Thanks Mr. Danvers!" She exclaimed. Alvin froze for a second when she speedily made her way over to him, but all she did was kiss Alvin's cheek, before leaving the room to get her interview. Alvin quietly sighed in relief; that was too close.

As the months grew on, Alvin busied himself with his paintings for the art show. But, something started to nag him as time went on. It was October now, and he and Brittany had been dating for five months now(since the very end of May). Guilt was starting to eat at him; here she was, completely honest with him about everything in her life, yet he was keeping half of himself a secret from her.

He spent most of his day jumping from decision to decision. Should he tell Brittany he was the Mysterious Painter? Or should he continue keeping it from her and let her find out when everyone else did? The second option was rude and cruel of him- but he was nervous about the first one; on how she would react.

He had been keeping this secret from her for about eight years now, so she would be mad, especially considering how he teased her for liking art and the Mysterious Painter. But, to keep it secret for even longer, throughout their relationship and let her find out at the same time as everyone else- no, that wasn't fair to her…

But, he worried she would break up with him if he told her now, told her that he had been tricking her for so long. But, she did deserve to know the truth. And, to be honest, the secret was killing him- keeping it from everyone; he wasn't even allowed to talk about it with the people that did know. If he told Brittany, than he could finally have someone to talk to about it.

He had decided then: he would tell Brittany his secret. But how exactly would he? She may not believe him if he just came out and told her- she'd probably think he was just teasing her again about her love of the Mysterious Painter. So, how would he tell her the truth in such a way that would make denying it possible? And that was when the perfect idea hit him.

It was the weekend now, mid October, and Alvin was walking down to Brittany's house. He smiled when she opened the door.

"Alvin!" She exclaimed, beaming, "What are you doing here?"

"I was wondering if you wanted to come over to my house today? I have something I want to show you." He explained. A curious look filled her expression.

"What is it?" She wondered. He shyly grinned.

"You'll see when we get there." He vaguely stated.

"Ok…" And with that, she stepped out onto the porch, after yelling to Ms. Miller that she was going to Alvin's. They chatted as they made their way to Alvin's house, Alvin desperately trying to stop the butterflies that flew wildly in his stomach. Finally, they arrived to see Dave in the kitchen, cleaning, and Simon and Theodore immersed in a video game that was blasting through the room.

"Hey Brittany!" All they chorused. Brittany grinned, amused.

"Hey guys." Rolling his eyes at his distracted brothers, though grateful for it right now, he grasped Brittany's hand in his own and hurried through the room, ignoring Dave's knowing and excited gaze. Alvin pulled open the door to the basement and stepped in, turning on the light above the stairs and pulling the door closed behind him.

"Alvin..? Why are we going to the basement?" She wondered, unsure. Alvin chuckled.

"Don't worry, it's not as scary as it seems. There are two rooms down here; Dave renovated them for me and Simon when we were just starting school." Alvin explained, starting down the stairs.

"So this is where Simon's science lab and your secret room are?" She excitedly questioned. Alvin stopped at that, throwing her a surprised look, raising an eyebrow. She just shrugged.

"Simon and Theodore often talk about your secret room that you have never let anyone, other than Dave, in. They often speculate what your room is. I mean, Simon's is a lab that Jeanette has seen thousands of times, and Theo's is the kitchen. So what's yours?" She gasped here in realization, "Is that what you're going to show me?"

"Yup!" Alvin stated, smiling slightly at her reaction. She was practically jumping with joy now, mind swirling with what his room could be.

"Then what are we waiting for!" She grabbed his hand and pulled him down the stairs, no longer scared of the basement anymore. She pulled to a stop in front of the door marked with Alvin's name. She was suddenly unsure now, hesitating as she looked back at Alvin. Alvin sighed, wondering what he should say.

"Brittany? Before we go in there, I want to say that what is in here is definitely not what you or anyone would expect. I mean, Simon's convinced it has something to do with skateboarding, and Theo has no clue. You see…" He grew nervous here, not sure how to continue.

"You see, I have been keeping a secret from you guys. And not just for a few months, but since first grade." She frowned at that, realizing the seriousness of the situation.

"The secret wasn't fully finished until third grade, but I have been keeping a big secret from you, and hiding it in any way I could- even if it meant I had to lie and act like a jerk." He sighed here at Brittany's confused, upset, and hurt expression.

"Brittany; there are a lot of questions that you have had for years that will be answered when I open this door. And, when I do open it, I am sure you will have a ton more questions to ask me and will be pretty upset and mad, more than you are right now." Alvin admitted.

"All I ask it that you allow me to explain; to tell you why I have kept this secret for so long and in such a way." She hesitated, thinking, but soon nodded. With that, Alvin grasped the doorknob and turned it, opening it up a crack, waiting for Brittany's to start moving.

She finally shook out of her daze that his words had caused and took a step towards the door. Looking around the empty entry way, he pushed the door open all the way as Brittany stepped in, eyes wide. He followed her in, closing the door quickly behind him.

There's the first chapter! I hope you enjoyed it; I will put the rest of the story up tomorrow, I promise! Sorry about the cliffhanger; this was about halfway through the story and seemed a good place to stop the story in the middle. Good luck in life until tomorrow...