One Week of Art in Seattle
*An Intensive Life Drawing Course*

* * * * *

Day One (The Face):
Knowledge and understanding of the face and head are vital to a life drawing artist. Recognition of your model is unachievable without an accurate depiction of the face. With practice and an understanding of proportion and structure, we will attempt to be as accurate as possible in our creations.

* * * * *

My eyes were blurry as I stared at the blank canvas in front of me.

Jacob Black.

I have to draw the hot guy.

I peered in front of the room, and sure enough, he was sitting there. This wasn't a dream.

If I thought I might've been embarrassed with him as my classmate, then I was positive that the experience of having to see him every day as my own personal model would be pure torture.

Actually, the real torture was only being allowed to look at his face.

Professor Landing enlightened us that Jacob needed to be covered up, thus explaining why he was wearing a long sleeved shirt and jeans, so that we could properly focus on his face alone.

Just knowing that in four more days he'd be sitting up there naked made me ache for it to just be done and over with. I couldn't take the suspense.

I let my eyes travel down, away from his face to his arms. They were restrained by the tight material of his shirt- that much I could see. He appeared to be very muscular and fit.

Edward wasn't much into exercising. He had an amazing body but it wasn't big, as I imagined Jacob's was. Edward wasn't nearly as tall as Jacob either.

Why am I comparing them? I had no ties to this Jacob, he was simply a model for me to draw and in a week he'd be gone.

But I couldn't deny the fire that he had lit inside of me. The mere sight of him, his mere presence in the same room as me, made me feel alive and ready to explore these feelings.

After six months of misery I was ready to let go a little and feel again.

My eyes traveled further down his body, to his groin.

Four days.

Letting go would be easier than I ever expected, as long as Jacob was involved.

I smiled lightly to myself. The dirty thoughts running through my mind were a welcome distraction from the usual regrets that occupied my head on a regular basis.

But I couldn't dwell on them, as pleasant as they were. I had to focus on the task at hand; otherwise I'd be the laughing stock of the class with a stick figure drawn on my canvas.

I looked back up at Jacob's face, ready to begin.

His eyes were suddenly set on me.

Did he just see me stare at his crotch? I worried.

His expression didn't tell me much, other than the fact that pure heat could radiate from his eyes at will.

I felt my cheeks grow red, and I tore myself away from his stare.

How the hell do you draw somebody's face, without looking at their face?

"He's absolutely eye fucking you right now," Jessica whispered to me.

"Shut up," I whispered back in an even lower voice.

I was determined to not let him see how flustered I was getting. I composed myself, willed myself to be calm, and turned back once more to examine his attractive features.

The curve of his thick eyebrows, the strong definition of his jaw, the fullness of his lips- it all came pouring out of me onto the paper.

I studied his face so hard that I had practically memorized it.

His eyes captivated me more than anything. I spent seconds drawing them, and full minutes gazing into them. The back and forth of my eyes to his took up half of my time in the class.

And he never looked away, never took a second to glance at anyone else.

Each time I returned my focus to him- he was there, staring back at me.

* * * * *

Before long, the two hour class was over and Jessica was showing me her work of art.

"Isn't it an exact likeness?" she asked proudly.

I looked at her interpretation of Jacob's face and stifled a laugh. He looked more like a charcoal version of a nun wearing a habit, his long hair framing his face in womanly layers.

"It's good," I lied.

The professor was making the rounds, and he finally reached the two of us as I finished speaking.

"Your name?" he prodded, pointing at me.

"Bella," I replied.

"Very good, Bella. I especially like the eyes. You've really captured his intensity," he praised me before briskly walking by and gesturing to another student.

I beamed internally at his compliment.

"What am I, chopped liver?" Jessica asked sarcastically.

I tried to think of a witty reply but I became distracted when I noticed that Jacob was walking towards me again. I automatically turned away, letting my hair fall into my face as I whispered shhh to my loudmouth friend.

"How was it?" I heard him ask, and I knew he was talking to me.

I yearned to knock my canvas paper off of its stand just so he couldn't see my vision of him. What if I inadvertently made him too sexy?

Luckily, when I finally stared up at his face he wasn't even trying to get a glimpse of my drawing. He was trying to get a glimpse of me.

"It was good. You were good," I tried unsuccessfully not to sound stupid.

"Nah, I just have to sit there. The hard part hasn't started yet," he laughed.

The hard part? Jesus Christ.

Four days.

My thoughts were a mess.

"So," he began, not waiting for my reply, "what are you girls up to now?"

"I have to get back to my boyfriend Mike, but Bella is free," Jessica heard the plural, and took the opportunity to speak on behalf of the both of us.

I felt betrayed by her words. What made her assume he gave a shit if I was free?

"I don't think he was asking us to hang out, Jess," I clarified, trying to save face.

Then Jacob laid his hand on my shoulder. The warmth of his skin seeped under the material of my blouse and scorched me. I felt the heat spread like a wildfire through my entire body.

"Actually, I was asking. Do you want to go get something to eat, maybe?" he questioned, and my pulse quickened.

Say yes, say yes, say yes- my mind repeated over and over.

"Yes," I breathed before I had a chance to talk myself out of it.

His smile was infectious. I knew my expression was mirroring his as he said, "Okay, give me a minute, I'll be right back."

As soon as he walked away, Jessica grabbed my arms and turned me towards her.

"He is hot. You should totally go for it!"

"Are you crazy?" I implored, "I just got divorced. I can't exactly go for it. I'm damaged goods."

"Damaged goods my ass- your vagina isn't damaged, is it?" Jessica joked, her voice louder than I cared for it to be under the circumstances.

"Will you be quiet? Don't you dare say the word vagina again."

I could see Jessica's eyes glaze over with determination. She would not stand down, even if it was for her own good. Embarrassment was never a deterrent for her. If only I could be so brazen.

"Vagina!" she yelled. "Get over it."

I could feel his presence before I could see him. I brought my hand up to my face and covered myself shamefully before I felt the shadow of his form shading me.

"Wow, that's a rough thing to get over." Jacob's voice let me know I wasn't imagining the fact that he had indeed walked back over to us, right in the nick of time.

Jessica laughed loudly at his joke as I reached for his hand and gave him a pull.

"Let's get out of here," I pleaded, dragging him away from Jessica as fast as I could.

"Sure, sure," he snickered, letting me lead him out the door.

* * * * *

"Your friend is pretty funny," he told me as we walked to his car.

For a second I thought he was telling me that my friend was pretty, and my heart sank. Then the word funny fell from his lips and I scoffed at the idea.

"Yeah sure, she's a riot."

I had dropped his hand as soon as we were ten steps away from the building, but I longed to pick it up and hold it again. The tingling sensation of his skin against mine was like a drug.

"What kind of food do you like?" he asked me as we reached the parking lot.

"Any kind," I replied quickly.

"Okay, so if I said let's go get some snails and caviar you'd be all for it?"

"Well," I started, imagining high cuisine delicacies and suddenly feeling sick to my stomach, "no, not at all."

"I thought so. How about pizza?"

"Pizza is perfect," I jumped at the thought.

Pizza was perfect. It was cheap, so I didn't mind if he paid for the both of us. And it was friendly and fast, so this wouldn't feel like a date. I didn't think I could handle a real date.

After a few moments of silence we reached his car- a beat up, old, red Chevy truck.

"Sorry my truck is so crappy looking, but it runs great. I got it for a steal and fixed it up myself," he apologized but he really didn't have to.

It was perfect too- cheap friendly and fast.

"It's great," I exclaimed as I jumped into the passenger's seat.

Then a thought occurred to me.

I'm jumping into a stranger's car. Edward would have a fit.

Damn the constant thoughts of Edward. He was like my guardian angel, always protecting me from my own clumsiness and stupidity for all these years. Only now he wasn't around to protect me anymore. This was my first venture into dangerous territory.

Something told me I had nothing to fear with Jacob, though. I was sure I would be fine.

The loud engine fired up and we were off.

I felt anticipation creep into my blood now that Jacob and I were really alone, in the close confines of his truck.

I had to say something to break the tension that I was creating.

"So, you're a model?"

"No, not really," he chuckled. "I just do those classes for some extra cash. My real love is fixing things."

"Oh, like this car?"

"Yeah, and bikes- different things. One day I want to open up my own shop and do that full time. I just need to save up some money first."

I found his story endearing. He wasn't a sleazy, stuck up, nude model- he was a man with a dream, and goals.

"How about you, are you trying to become an artist?" he asked.

"Oh no, my friend just signed me up for that course so I could forget about Edward." I heard the words leaving my mouth and it was too late to stop myself.

I squeezed my eyes shut and prayed that he wouldn't try to investigate.

"Edward? Is he your ex-boyfriend or something?"

I could tell the truth, or I could lie. Who knew how long this friendship would last anyway. I'd probably never see Jacob again after my week was up at the Learning Annex. I desperately wanted to avoid the whole husband subject.

"Yup, ex-boyfriend."

"Oh, that sucks. So your friend thought that you should take a nude art course to cheer you up?" he asked, barely concealing his amusement.

"Hey, it's only nude for like two hours."

"Well, that two hours is gonna feel like two years for me," he laughed.

I imagined him, standing there in the front of the room, completely naked in a still pose, for hours.

"Me too," I whispered.

More words were leaving my mouth that shouldn't have. I was completely unable to censor myself around this guy.

I could feel him looking at me, but I refused to meet his eyes. I looked straight ahead but I couldn't see the road through my thoughts. I only hoped that he was a good enough driver and we wouldn't crash because of this awkward conversation.

I felt the same gravitational pull as I did earlier in the class, his hold on me causing my head to turn and my eyes to search for his. It was becoming painful to avoid his gaze, like I was going against some primal urge within me.

When I finally let go and allowed myself to look at him, he was back to watching the road. I wondered briefly if he could feel my gaze as much as I seemed to feel his.

Then again, he was used to people ogling him. It probably didn't even faze him.

His face, I thought as I stared, was impossibly perfect. Staring at it for those hours this afternoon and attempting to decipher the lines and the shadows gave me a real appreciation for just how beautiful he was.

Seeing him walk into the room was one thing, an instant attraction. But then taking him in and really seeing him became something else.

Now, looking at his face in this beat up old car was like seeing him in his prime. No white walls and artificial lighting, no squinting to catch every curve and every crevice- just taking him in- pure Jacob.

I could stare at him all day.

And that was a bad thing.

That was how relationships started, and hearts got broken. This was only supposed to be a week event to get my mind off of someone- not to get my mind hooked on someone else. My mind quickly left its happy place and took a darker turn.

"You should know, I'm damaged," I insisted suddenly, wishing that he could sense how important it was to me for him to be aware of that fact.

"You are?" he asked, his voice more even than mine.

"Yes."

"Is it because of Edward?"

Just hearing him speak my ex-husband's name caused chills to run down my legs.

"Yes… I mean… I guess."

"Well," he contemplated something, and his stare that I so longed to see finally turned back to me, "like I said, I'm good at fixing things."

* * * * *

When we arrived at Lenny's Pizzeria I realized that I was actually starving. The heavy aroma of the place made my stomach gurgle.

My cell phone buzzed in my pocket, and I wondered if it would be rude to see who was texting me with Jacob by my side.

This is not a date, I scolded myself. There was no need for date etiquette.

While Jacob scanned the overheard menu, I grabbed my phone out of my pocket and flipped it open quickly to view the message.

It was Jessica.

'Go for it. And tell me all about it asap.'

I had to smile at her insistence. Sometimes I thought she lived vicariously through me.

Then I noticed that I had another new text, from two days ago that I must have missed somehow.

'How have you been?'

That one was from Edward.

I shut the phone and stuffed it back in my pocket without hesitation. Edward wanted to know how I've been?

Why now?

I hadn't spoken to him in over two months and he seemed fine out there on his own without me- fine enough not to call or care.

I felt wrong blaming him for any of this, though. I left him. I was the one to blame. He was allowed to handle it however he wanted.

A part of me was happy that he had reached out. It let me know that he still cared despite me breaking his heart.

I still care too Edward, I wished he could hear my thoughts and get some kind of reassurance. I had to remember to text him back later.

"Everything is good in this place, not just the pizza. You want to split a pasta dish?" Jacob's voice rang out, breaking me from my daze.

I looked up at him, and upon seeing his smile all thoughts of Edward flew out the window for the time being.

"Sure, okay."

I watched him place the order with the man behind the counter. All of a sudden the man was asking if we wanted the food to stay or to go, and Jacob was hesitating.

"You want to take this to go?" he turned and asked me.

"Go where?" I asked in return.

"I don't know. We could go back to my place if you want," he answered. I could hear a slight change in his voice. It came out an octave lower than usual. But, maybe I was just reading into things too much.

Back to his place?

The idea lingered in my mind, but I knew I couldn't agree. I barely knew him and I wanted him too badly. It was a recipe for a one night stand disaster, and that was not my style- never mind the fact that I had to show up to the art class the next day and draw him some more.

"I don't think so. I mean, I have to go see my dad today and-"

"Say no more," he cut me off and turned back to the pizza guy. "We'll be staying."

"I'm sorry," I muttered, feeling embarrassed for some odd reason.

"Sorry? Don't be sorry. I should be sorry for wanting to monopolize your time and keep you all to myself," he said easily.

He had a way of making me feel more special than I ever had in my life.

However, this was definitely starting to feel like the date I'd been avoiding.

"Its fine," I assured him.

Once we got the food and headed to some empty seats in the back of the room, I started to relax a little more. Knowing the clear direction that things were going in made me feel more in control.

I was also pleased with the knowledge that I was going to be able to sit across from Jacob and take in his handsome features for a while longer.

"So what's on the agenda for class tomorrow, again?" I asked, taking in a bite of penne a la vodka as I finished speaking.

He paused, mid-bite and offered a muffled reply that I could barely hear.

"What?"

"Torso. You have to draw my torso," he clarified once he had the chance to swallow.

"Oh. So, you're gonna have your shirt off?"

"Yup."

He took another bite of food and then wagged his eyebrows at me.

"You want a little preview?" he suggested, reaching up and unbuttoning the top button of his shirt.

I felt my mouth drop open reflexively.

Say yes, say yes, say yes- my mind screamed again, but I fought against it.

"No, that's not fair to the other students. I should be surprised with the rest of them," I struggled to find an excuse not to see him shirtless.

Why am I saying no, again?

Oh right, because I can't afford to jump across the table and have my way with him.

"True," he sighed, redid the button and picked up his fork again. "But you're my favorite student so far. You're allowed special privileges if you want them."

"That's good to know," I mused, unable to stop a grin from spreading across my face.

* * * * *

The walk back to the car took much longer than the walk to the pizzeria door. Either we were both too full, or we both didn't want our time together to end. I knew which case was true for me.

"Thanks for the food. I had fun," I told him, glancing away towards a bunch of kids running down the street.

"I had fun too, but why don't you thank me when I drop you off," he insisted.

"Actually, I think I'm gonna stick around here. My dad works close by and I need to pick a few things up at the store."

"Oh," he spoke, his sad voice tugging at my heart strings. "Okay then."

He stopped at the driver's side door and turned to look at me. The sun was low in the sky and it framed his face like a halo of bright beautiful light. I stared up at him deeply, the vision of him so exquisite that it struck me like an arrow to the heart.

My mind stopped working, but my feet didn't. I was still walking towards him when my foot caught a crack in the sidewalk and I went flying forward, crashing face first into his midsection.

His arms grabbed me and held me up, but it couldn't stop the banging in my head. I almost wished that he would have let me hit the ground so I could lie still for a minute. His stomach was as solid as a brick wall.

"Jesus, Bella. Are you okay?" he asked, his voice laced with concern.

"Ouch. I'm okay- Just mortified," I answered awkwardly.

His hands let go of my arms and traveled to my face, holding me up steadily there as he examined my head. I knew I had no injuries but I wanted him to hold on to me just a few moments longer.

He leaned down intently, his face inches from mine- too close to not notice how badly I wanted to shut the space between us.

His thumb was at the corner of my mouth, rough against the edge of my lips. I could taste his sweet breath with every inhale. The banging in my head and the banging of my heart in my chest were at odds with each other.

I wanted him to kiss me, but I wasn't even sure if I remembered how. It had been a long time since I kissed someone. Was it like riding a bike?

Would I be able to face him the next day, or the likeness of his mouth on the paper before me as I stared at him in yearning for another two hours?

Would I just jump in his car and beg him to take me to his house after all- remind him that I should get the special privilege of changing my mind?

Before I knew it I was leaning closer and closing my eyes.

I felt the briefest touch of his full warm lips against mine before a loud honk tore me away from it all.

"Are you pulling out, or not?" an angry driver screamed from his rolled down window.

Jacob turned, startled and cursed at the man, telling him that he'd pull out when he was good and ready.

But the spell was already broken.

I had to get out of there fast, and get home so I could think about what the hell I was doing.

I pulled free from his hold and took a few unsteady steps back.

"Are you sure you're okay, you don't want me to drive you home?" he questioned me, his eyes dark and familiar after only a days worth of viewing. I could feel the desire radiating from them, causing all of my blood to rush to my nether regions.

"I'm sure. I've got to go. Thank you, again," I muttered, and turned to walk away.

I made it halfway up the block before I heard him call after me.

"I'll see you in class tomorrow, right?"

I took a deep breath, and glanced back at him- still standing in the same position under the midday sun.

"Right!"

The excitement I felt at the thought of seeing him again made me shiver.

I pulled out my phone and called Jessica as soon as I rounded the corner.

She answered after only one ring.

"Bella! How was your date?"

Date?

Oh, who am I kidding?

It was totally a date.

* * * * *

A/N: Thanks for the reviews, they are much appreciated and a driving force!