I feel the pull of you, the slow, aching gravity of longing, dragging me closer, breath by breath. Your mouth is open, waiting, trembling like ripe fruit split by summer heat, spilling sweetness before the first touch. Every fraction of a second stretches unbearably wide—an eternity where time is made only of your nearness, of the promise written in the space between us. I can almost taste you, almost drown in the heat between us, the ripeness breaking, the sweetness spilling, time collapsing as our mouths finally meet — no more waiting, no more restraint, only the soft, shivering press of lips, the aching relief of finally becoming one.

• Soft pastel on brown paper
• 70x100cm (27.5 x 39.4 inches)

This artwork is a unique original. It therefore bears traces of my creative process which might involve wrinkles in the paper.