Alice’s POV
They reviewed all the paintings carefully, eliminating one from each pair.
My two submissions were matched against each other.
They chose the portrait of Brian.
The second one—the dark night forest under a sky scattered with stars—was quietly removed.
The process continued until the selection narrowed to 29.
One by one, the judges removed paintings, deliberating with furrowed brows and exchanged glances, until only five remained.
Mine was among them.
This time, the judges chose three finalists, and the audience was asked to vote for the fourth. The crowd murmured, some whispering names, others simply watching with bated breath.
With that, it came down to four.
We were given a short break before the final winner would be announced.
I grabbed my little silver purse, sl
