"This is exquisite!" a pretty lady said to me, after gazing at a sculpture I had made. "It looks so life-like! You truly are the modern Michelangelo." "Ah, you flatter me, ma'am," I said to her, while studying her proportions. "You know, you would make a beautiful sculpture, too." She flustered, and a beautiful smile spread across her face. "Do you want to grab a coffee, maybe? I need a little break," I asked, looking expectantly at her. "Oh, yeah! Sure!" she said, lighting up. I signaled to a worker to take care of the exhibition, and left with her.

"What are all these little stories you write for your sculptures?" she inquired as we made our way to the nearest coffee shop. "I like to give them lives of their own. It enhances the effect, doesn't it?" "Well, it surely does!" We entered the coffee shop and sat at the table near the window. This is one of the oldest coffee shops here. The staff keeps constantly changing. I see new people almost every month. "Take, for example, that nice young man's sculpture. The one that's standing near the entrance. His back story is that he used to work in this coffee shop, smiling all day at the customers. A genuinely good person. But sadly the poor boy didn't have any relations to look after him." "He used to work in this coffee shop?" she asked, confused. "Yeah! All my sculptures are real people, just not the famous ones. I like ordinary people. Like that young man, and you,"  I smilingly said. "It's too sad I cannot capture that blush of yours. You look beautiful with it." "Thank you," she said, reddening. "Where did the boy go? Doesn't he work here anymore?" she questioned. I shrugged and said, "No. He stopped working here just after I made that sculpture. People simply assumed he went away." Just then a waiter came and took our orders. I always order a black coffee. It adds to my artistic character. At least that is what I like to believe. "So, tell me more about yourself!" she asked me after giving her order, a cappuccino, to the waiter. "Well, my name is Gabriel, as you already know. I am a sculptor, you know that too. What you don't know is that I move around a lot. I don't like to stay at a place for more than a couple of months." "Oh? That means you're gonna leave this place as well?" she asked me, as the cheerfulness on her face turned to sadness. "I'm afraid, yes," I sighed. "It's your turn now," I said, nodding my head towards her a little. She cleared her throat, and said, "My name's Cate Orlena, and I own a small flower shop on the other end of the town. I shifted here last week, and wanted to explore the place. I saw your advertisement a couple of meters from this place, and so here I am!" "What about your family?" I asked. "I don't have a family. I live alone. My parents did not want me, so they left me at an orphanage. I left that place after I grew up, and did a couple of menial jobs. As soon as I saved enough, I moved here," she said with a sad smile on her face. "She's perfect!" I thought to myself, as I gazed into her eyes. I couldn't afford her meeting someone else. I had to act fast. We finished our coffees and left the shop.

We wandered around a little, until she really had to go back. "Will we meet again?" I asked her, with hopeful eyes. "I would love to!" she said, beaming. "Same time, tomorrow?" I asked. She nodded, looking at me with the now familiar shyness. We exchanged our numbers and I gave her a little kiss on her forehead as we parted for the night.

The next day, I invited Cate over to my workshop. "Close the door behind you, please," I requested her, as she entered the room. I had cleaned up the place before she arrived, so there was no mess. "Make yourself at home. Would you like a drink?" I asked. "Yes, please." I prepared a drink, suitable for the occasion. As we sat talking to each other, I looked at her, gently sipping away her drink. She really was beautiful. As I witnessed the familiar scene of my partner in conversation dizzily falling to the floor, I smiled sadly. After a minute or two, I checked the pulse to make sure it was safe to begin my work. I picked her off the floor and laid her down on my work table. After a little deliberation I decided to let her wear the same clothes she was wearing. I poured the cloth-hardening liquid over her and side by side prepared the 'sculpting' solution. It usually takes a half hour for all things to be ready according to my needs. I fixed her face as I wanted it and set to work.

"I really liked that girl's sculpture!" a pretty lady said to me. "The sad smile on her face really fits in with the story." "Why, thank you!" I said to her, while studying her proportions. "You know, you would make a beautiful sculpture, too." She blushed, and a beautiful smile spread across her face. "How do you make all your sculptures look as if they were real?" she asked me. "If I told you, I would have to kill you," I winked. "Do you want to grab a coffee, maybe? I need a break," I asked, looking at her expectantly. "Yes!" she beamed. I signaled the worker to take care of the exhibition, and left the place with her. "Did you just move here? I haven't seen you before," I asked her as we made our way to the nearest coffee shop. "Yeah, I shifted just last week--"