youth

In the heart of London, a peculiar artist named Basil Hallward had painted a breathtaking masterpiece of a young man so radiant, so full of life, his name was Dorian Gray. The portrait was not just a mere reflection of Dorian’s physical elegance, but a mirror of his soul, pure and untarnished. Dorian, seeing his picture come to life, wished a wish that would turn his reality on its head. He longed for eternal youth and to remain untouched by the hands of time, while his portrait would age and bear the brunt of his sins.

In our quiet town of Beardsley, everyone knew the name of Dolores Haze, though not by her curious moniker, 'Lolita'. She carried an aura of mystery, a tang of unripened apple too tempting not to bite, yet too sour in reality. Her favorite haunt, Beardsley School, harbored the rumors that swirled, whispers mused by the Ivy-ensnared bricks that licked the edges of the windows and doors. A stern oak statue of Humbert Humbert, a man of significance in Lolita’s life, stood cold and commanding in the schoolyard, eternally watching over Lolita's playground.