Will had indeed struggled to read Fang Zhao, but he had been able to capture the complexity of his inner turmoil—not entirely, but at least a part of it. That was already a big success. To capture the full extent of Fang Zhao's complexity would require further refinement of his painting skills.

So for Will, the painting was a form of incremental progress, the equivalent of a draft. He hadn't taken it too seriously.

Will had attained his short-term goal of tackling a portrait of Fang Zhao. At least Fang Zhao was within his grasp. He could produce some semblance of a portrait of Fang Zhao. But Curly Hair fell outside his comfort zone.

Others might not be able to detect that complexity. More often than not, Will only sensed that the dog was a bit special, but when he picked up his paintbrush, he realized that he had no idea where to start. The more he pondered the matter, the more confused he got. This was a challenge unlike any other he had faced before. No one had taught him how to h