Southhope City was a place with beautiful scenery and a pleasant culture.

Nevertheless, no matter how picturesque a place was, it could not cure the pain of being broke.

Thanks to a friend's recommendation, I found a job as a model.

First thing the next morning, I stood at the door to an artist's studio. To my surprise, the artist did not look like the image of a typical artist I had in my mind.

The pale-looking Matthias Finley had black-framed glasses perched on his nose and wore a casual cotton shirt and pants that gave him the bearing of a stoic man.

Even though he had the same face as the elite businessman who saved me from my predicament in the corridor, he carried a completely different air as the man the other day.

After staring at me for a long while, he uttered courteously, "You have stunning eyes."

Perhaps an artists' way of thinking was different from an average person. Uttering a compliment came so naturally to him.

With a smile on my face, I said, "How could you tell? I've got such thick makeup on."

"Although you have thick makeup on, you have a really pure gaze. Us artists are best at identifying the nature of someone through their appearance.

"Of course, your beauty will remain the same no matter what makeup you have on."

What he said touched me deeply.

When I was with Tyler, he said that he liked it when I had thick makeup on. Light makeup made him disinterested, and he wouldn't allow me to go barefaced. He would call me ugly, albeit in an indirect way.

He did not like it when I wore plain-colored clothes. My wardrobe was filled with dresses of bright colors, given to me by him.

After all these years, I had gotten used to wearing clothes according to Tyler's preference. I had long forgotten what my preferences were.

After loving him for years, I had forgotten to love myself.

"So, do you mind removing your makeup? Even though I have a strong foundation in drawing, I hope that I can work with fewer distractions," Matthias requested in a sincere yet cautious tone.

I hurried into the washroom to remove my makeup. As I lifted my head to look at my bare face, I could see how pale I looked, thanks to all the foundation I wore all year round. The bags around my eyes were also more obvious now.

This was the real me.

When I emerged from the washroom, I could clearly see the amazement and excitement in Matthias' eyes.

Contrary to my expectation that being a model was a boring affair, it turned out to be fun thanks to the humorous Matthias.