Over the next three weeks, Patch keeps working on a painting of Grace in Sammy’s studio, while Sammy drifts in and out, drinking and telling stories about famous painters and their lives. Sammy’s lessons mix technique, gossip, and cruelty, and Patch measures every improvement against his own impossible standard. When Sammy believes Patch is making progress, Patch tears one canvas in half because he knows it still does not look like Grace.

As fall turns to winter, Patch builds his life around the painting. He begins sleeping in the studio, keeps out of Sammy’s way, and works before and after school until his fingers are raw. At school, Patch sees Misty and wants to tell her that he still cares about her, but he stops himself because he believes he should no longer disturb the life she is rebuilding.

During this period, Patch also spends time walking with Saint across the fields. Saint finds reasons to visit and be with him, but Patch is so consumed by Grace and the painting that he barely notices Saint’s efforts or the ways she is changing. His fixation narrows his world to work, memory, and survival.

When spring arrives, Sammy orders Patch to stop cleaning and start helping in the gallery, giving him better clothes and more responsibility. The change lets Patch contribute more to the rent and bills, and Sammy also feeds him, even as the financial debt between them keeps growing. Saint sometimes comes to the gallery hoping to see Patch, but Sammy watches her closely and drives her away with his disapproval.

All the while, Patch’s skill steadily develops under Sammy’s harsh instruction. He learns how to build a portrait piece by piece, shaping Grace’s face, skin, hair, and light until she seems to emerge from darkness. The work becomes emotionally punishing because some moments look almost exactly like Grace, forcing Patch to leave the room when the resemblance hurts too much.

By early summer, after ten months of failures and relentless practice, Patch has ground out real ability. Sammy, who has offered almost no praise, finally takes the brush from Patch’s hand and tells him the painting is finished. Whether or not it fully captures Grace, completing the portrait marks the end of Patch’s long apprenticeship and obsession-driven effort to hold on to her.