The inherited vow

chapter 3 : Alina

It had been three days since I went to Bella's house, and today, we were finally going out like she'd promised.

She called it an art date.

You know, one of those places where people went with their lovers or friends to paint, draw, explore art, and basically do whatever creative people did.

Honestly, I wasn't exactly sure what to expect.

But Bella had been talking about it for days, so I agreed to go.

Besides, I needed something to take my mind off things.

I was standing in front of the mirror, trying to decide what to do with my hair, when Irina appeared behind me.

“Don't move.”

I frowned at her reflection.

“Why?”

“Because I'm saving you from yourself.”

I turned around slowly.

“That sounds threatening.”

She ignored me and walked closer, already studying my hair.

My dark brown hair, almost black under the light, fell loosely around my shoulders.

Irina picked up a section and ran her fingers through it.

“You're wearing it down?”

“Yes.”

“No.”

I blinked.

“Excuse me?”

She grabbed my brush from the table.

“You're going to try something different today.”

“I don't want to try something different.”

“That's exactly why you need to.”

Before I could argue, she started brushing my hair.

I watched her through the mirror, already suspicious.

“Irina, what are you planning?”

“Nothing dramatic.”

“That answer has never meant anything good when it comes from you.”

She smiled.

A few minutes later, she held up two hairstyle ideas on her phone.

“Okay. First one is simple. You can leave your hair down with two pieces framing your face.”

I nodded.

“That sounds good.”

“And the second one…”

She paused dramatically before showing me.

I stared at the picture.

It was a half-up hairstyle, with the top section pulled back neatly while the rest of the hair fell naturally over my shoulders.

I actually liked it.

“Hmm.”

Irina immediately caught the hesitation.

“You like it.”

“I didn't say that.”

“You didn't have to.”

She turned the phone toward me again.

“Second one.”

I looked at her.

“First one.”

“Second.”

“Irina.”

“Second.”

I sighed.

“Why did you even ask me if you've already decided?”

“Because I wanted to hear your opinion.”

“And?”

“And I disagreed.”

I stared at her for a moment before laughing.

“You're impossible.”

“I know.”

She went back to my hair before I could protest.

And, annoyingly, she was good at it.

As she worked, I looked at myself in the mirror again.

My warm brown eyes stared back at me, and for once, I actually looked happy.

I'd chosen a simple sunflower dress for today, paired with a light scarf and white flats. The little yellow sunflowers made the whole outfit feel bright and cheerful without making me look like I'd tried too hard.

Irina finished the hairstyle and stepped back to admire her work.

“There.”

I tilted my head from side to side.

I hated that I liked it.

“It's not bad.”

“It's beautiful.”

“You're exaggerating.”

“I'm never wrong about fashion.”

I rolled my eyes.

“That's debatable.”

She ignored me and adjusted one small section of hair.

“Now, don't touch it.”

“I wasn't going to.”

“You were thinking about it.”

“Irina.”

She laughed.

I picked up my bag and looked at myself one last time.

Cute. Comfortable. Nothing too complicated.

Exactly what I wanted.

“Okay, Alina,” I murmured to my reflection. “Let's go have some fun.”

I smiled.

For once, I was actually looking forward to going out.

Maybe today wouldn't be so bad.

When I reached downstairs, I immediately spotted Lucian and Irina sprawled across the couch, completely absorbed in a video game.

I stopped halfway down the stairs.

I stared at Irina.

She hadn't even moved from the couch.

“So you came down here before me?”

She shrugged, her eyes still fixed on the screen.

“I needed to finish my game.”

I shook my head and walked the rest of the way down.

Bella sat beside her, watching the chaos unfold on the screen.

“Okay, I'm ready.”

All three of them looked up.

I turned around slowly, giving Bella a full view of my outfit.

For a second, she said nothing.

Then Lucian covered his eyes dramatically.

“Your dress is burning my eyes.”

I rolled my eyes.

“Shut up, Lucian.”

I turned toward him.

“And why aren't you working with Papa today?”

“Oh, I will.”

The smile that appeared on his face immediately made me regret asking.

It wasn't a nice smile.

I knew that look.

Lucian did some of the dirty work for our father. The kind of work nobody asked too many questions about, especially when the answers involved blood.

And the worst part?

He enjoyed it.

Sometimes I wondered what kind of woman would ever fall for him.

Whoever she was, I already felt sorry for her.

“Girl, you look gorgeous!” Bella exclaimed, finally getting up from the couch.

I smiled.

“Thank you. At least someone here has taste.”

“I didn't say she didn't look good,” Irina cut in, still holding the game controller. “I'm just saying she'd look even better if she actually listened to me.”

I stared at her.

“You mean the hairstyle?”

“Exactly.”

Bella looked between us.

“You two were fighting about her hair again?”

“She wanted the first hairstyle,” Irina said.

“Because I liked it.”

“And I knew the second one would look better.”

I sighed.

“I didn't know I had a choice.”

“You did,” Irina said.

I raised an eyebrow.

“For about three seconds.”

Bella burst out laughing.

I shook my head.

“Irina, I'm not your student.”

She shrugged.

“You should be.”

I laughed under my breath and looked down at my dress.

“And I'm trying to look simple today.”

“You can look simple and still look good,” Irina said.

“Thank you.”

“But you could still dress better.”

I stared at her.

“There it is.”

Bella laughed again.

I grabbed my bag from the side of the couch and slung it over my shoulder.

“Bella, let's go before my siblings completely ruin the mood I've set for today.”

As I passed Lucian, I stopped.

“And Lucian?”

He looked up at me.

“Learn how to compliment a lady, even when you don't mean it. It'll help you in the future.”

I gave him the sweetest fake smile I could manage.

His lips twitched.

“Noted.”

“Good.”

I turned toward the door.

“Bye, guys.”

“Have fun!” Irina called.

Bella followed me out, laughing under her breath.

The moment the door closed behind us, I looked at her.

“What?”

She shook her head, still smiling.

“Nothing.”

I narrowed my eyes.

“Bella.”

She laughed.

“I'm just wondering how long it took you to get ready.”

I groaned.

“Don't start.”

We got into my car, but Bella was the one driving because, apparently, she'd decided she was the planner of the day.

I wasn't complaining.

For once, I didn't have to worry about where we were going, what we were doing, or whether we'd somehow end up somewhere neither of us wanted to be.

I could just sit back and enjoy myself.

Bella started the engine, turned up the music, and immediately began singing along.

Badly.

I glanced at her.

“Do you actually know the lyrics?”

She didn't even look at me.

“Of course.”

“You've gotten at least half of them wrong.”

“That's your opinion.”

“It's not an opinion if you're objectively wrong.”

She laughed and turned the volume up.

I shook my head, settling back into my seat.

Maybe this wasn't such a bad idea after all.

We drove for a few minutes before Bella finally turned onto a quieter street lined with small shops and cafés.

“Here we are,” she announced.

I looked out the window.

At first, I wasn't sure what I was looking at.

Then I noticed the large glass windows of the building beside us.

Colorful paintings covered almost every visible wall inside. Some were bright and messy, while others were detailed enough to make me stop and stare.

I looked at Bella.

“You actually found this place?”

She smiled proudly.

“I told you I did my research.”

“You said you found it on the internet.”

“Same thing.”

I laughed as we got out of the car.

The moment we stepped inside, I knew I was going to like the place.

It smelled faintly of paint and something sweet, probably from the little café tucked into the corner. Paintings covered the walls, hung from wooden frames and displayed on small stands.

There were abstract paintings, landscapes, portraits, and pieces I couldn't even begin to understand.

I slowly turned in a circle.

“Okay.”

Bella grinned.

“I know.”

“I actually like this place.”

“I told you.”

“You did.”

She looked extremely pleased with herself.

We walked toward the reception desk, where a young woman sat behind a laptop.

“Hi,” Bella said brightly. “We're here for the art class.”

She pulled our tickets from her bag and handed them over.

The receptionist took them, checked the details, and typed something into her laptop.

After a few seconds, she looked up.

“The class is over there.”

She pointed toward a door on our left.

“Someone will be with you shortly. Enjoy your day.”

She gave us a polite smile.

I smiled back.

“Thank you.”

As we walked away, Bella leaned toward me.

“Why did she smile like that?”

I glanced back at the receptionist.

“Like what?”

“Like she wanted us to leave.”

I laughed.

“Maybe you're just paranoid.”

“Maybe.”

We pushed open the door.

And immediately, I realized something.

Almost everyone in the room was with someone.

A couple sat together near the window, whispering to each other while sharing a paintbrush. Another pair were arguing over which colors to use. In the corner, a guy was trying to paint while his girlfriend kept correcting him.

I looked at Bella.

She looked at me.

“So…”

“So?”

“It's a couples' thing.”

I looked around again.

“It seems like it.”

Bella shrugged.

“Who cares?”

“Exactly.”

We found two empty seats near the middle of the room and sat facing each other.

In front of us were paintbrushes of different sizes, small containers filled with paint, water cups, and blank painting boards.

I picked up one of the brushes.

It felt familiar in my hand.

I'd always liked drawing.

There was something peaceful about it.

When I was drawing, I didn't have to think too much. I could focus on the lines, the colors, and whatever I wanted the picture to become.

Bella, on the other hand, looked like she was already regretting coming.