Thank you, again, for all the lovely reviews I have continued to get. Those of you who have reviewed, (Dianne, candc, Mr. Bean, Kougagurl666, rozamatic90, sunni07, Sarai, chidi, Hillton, Rachel, Perfectme100, legofiance, Marimba Panda, BambooShoots, Hillary, harrys little helper, Dara finVidya, Jill, HyperClayrPrincess, Beena-Pani and SilverLockk) you guys are great. BUT I would like to send an extra special thank you to Insync91489 for sending me a personal e-mail telling me to start writing again. You are amazing. I have an excuse- I just moved and have not been able to find my computer in all the boxes, but still, I have let you guys down. As of now, I will be trying to do weekly updates. Of course you must notice the word trying. But I will do my best. And on with the show! Err.... chapter.

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She loved that sound. The sound of paint hitting canvas with the aid of a brush. That was the one sound that could- would – take her troubles all away. In her mind, there was no Kostos. There was no Paul. There was no one; just Lena mixing colors on a lovely summer day.

But somehow, this time there was more. Because although Lena's mind was just mixing paints to cover the stark white of bare canvas, the combination of smears began to take shape. It was as if her body was on autopilot. It formed three distinct images. One was a man's silhouette with animated features and the clear details of a Greek nose. Although there was another male head to face the first, this one differed. It was made of small, shy strokes and more delicate features. In the middle of the pair of dominant figures, there lay an almost hidden heart with a slit down the middle painted in "Red Rose." And if you looked closely enough, you might discover the petite broken heart mirrored in two celery green eyes that threatened to water.

Carmen drove as quickly as possible over the speed bumps that lined Lena's neighbor hood. With her, she had brought the Pants. Carmen, who was to have the first shift of ownership, felt that Lena needed whatever support she could get. After getting an S.O.S. call from Effie saying something along the lines of, "Come. Lena. Both boyfriends. HELP!" Carmen was positive that this was a pants-worthy situation.

"Effie, I came as soon as I..." Carmen's booming, worried voice trailed off as soon as she say the tall stranger sitting calmly in the middle of the expansive kitchen. Carmen, although surprised, was trying to figure how she could meet this new person but get to Lena as swiftly as humanly possible.

"Hi, I'm Carmen," she began slowly, still working things out in her head.

"Hello, Carmen, I'm Kostos," Kostos said politely but simply, nodding his head in recognition. Ah, so this is the infamous Kostos. I would stay and get to know this polite sleaze-bag, but I have to go help his ex-girlfriend. Poor Lena.

"Um, Effie?" A little help here? Carmen tried to signal Lena's younger sibling with her non-existent mental powers.

"Oh, yeah. I think Lena left your sandals in her bedroom." Carmen thanked Effie silently for being so intuitive. And clever. Well, whatever she was, it got her to Lena.

"Nice meeting you, Kostos!" Carmen called as an after thought, running up the stairs. She heard a faint, "You too, Carmen," from below her but continued on her search.

Finally, she reached for Lena's doorknob and pushed her door ajar. She breathed in sharply, her eyes widening at the sight. After swinging the door completely open, Carmen sighed. She was surrounded by paintings and the smell of turpentine filled the air. Carmen could recognize the same three images over and over again. Her eyes were drawn to the flaming red hearts. The bright red broken hearts. Eventually, she discovered the artist buried behind two large canvases, finally noticing the intruder.

"Oh, Lena," Carmen breathed before rushing over to give her friend a sisterly hug. She could already tell there was much to this story, and if it was anything like last summer, Lena was soon going to hit rock bottom. In fact, Carmen thought she had seen a picture depicting that exact thing. Oh, this was bad.

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