CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR – DREAMS AND AMBITIONS

The next few art classes were relatively uneventful without Diego's over-the-top presence. Jasmine led her students through some still life exercises and basic techniques with minimal drama. But it wasn't long before the chaotic energy returned with a vengeance. Two weeks after the blowup, Jasmine arrived to find Diego already holding court, sporting an outrageous new look - a skintight scarlet leotard, mismatched argyle leg warmers, and a vibrantly patterned beret askew atop his wild silver curls. "Ah, there she is!" he crowed upon spotting Jasmine, fuchsia lips quirking into an exaggerated pout. "Our delicate flower has deigned to grace us commoners once more with her cultivated presence!" Jasmine merely arched one eyebrow coolly. "It's good to have you back too, Diego. I trust you've...refocused your artistic energies in a more productive direction?" His amber eyes glinted with a hint of defiance. "But of course, ma chérie. I am the very vision of restraint and decorum!" To dem