Archive of Our Own ^beta

We’re sitting against a tree, shoulder to shoulder. I’m sitting with my knees folded up, while Tsukasa splayed his legs out  to sit comfortably. I have in my hands my sketchbook, my watercolour palette next to me, a few pens and brushes sitting on me; Tsukasa is holding his script for his upcoming show. He’s mumbling his lines, working hard to memorize them. He looks so focused… I reach for my phone and snap a quick picture for myself, making sure not to disturb him. He’ll sometimes look up, and I can only guess it’s to test himself, to see if he knows his line enough to not use the script. Sometimes, he’ll add a gesture or two to accompany his text. He’s in his element, and I think that’s beautiful. I let out a small exhale, content. I chose the right way to spend this evening.

I return to my painting. When I came to the park, I came with the intention of painting in watercolour. Stepping out of my comfort zone a little. Using a medium that can either be controlled or let free on the page. And I feel inspired by the view. The tree leaves gently rustling in the wind. The pond’s surface only disturbed by the ducks peacefully swimming in it. The sunset is particularly beautiful this evening… Its yellow tint fading into an orangish… pinkish… peach? Oh!

I bring my knees closer up to my chest and start sketching again. I’m challenging myself to start directly with inks, an exercise to be more confident with my lines.

The curve of the face. The eye shape. Two pupils. A nose. A mouth. His bangs. The two little unruly strands of hair that rest against them. His ever so slightly messy hair.

I grab my paintbrush and wet it. The bristles are a little frayed, so I bring the tip of the brush to my lips, just to give it a better shape. The paint gets soaked up between the bristles and gets laid down delicately as I drag the brush across my paper. I’m in the mood for experimenting right now. I paint my shadows with hues of purple and red. I add pops of colour where I deem necessary. Some blue light, yellow accents, pink, red, even green. In the span of a few minutes, Tsukasa has materialized in my sketchbook. And over my shoulder too, it seems.

“Is that me?!” he asks, his eyes sparkling. It may seem crazy, but I feel like I’m about to be blinded by the sight. It’s almost like his glowing aura doubled or tripled in size simply from seeing what I painted. But I will say, I’m not against having my ego flattered.

Despite the eye roll I give him, there’s a sheepish smile on my face. “What do you think?”

Tsukasa looks like he’s about to cry. His expressions usually give away what he’s thinking. So I think I can safely assume that he likes it. I laugh softly, a small blush spreading across my cheeks. Subtle. But present. “Do you want to keep it?”

“DO I– YES!”

I’m sure that if he wasn’t sitting, he’d be jumping up in the air. Maybe I’m painting Tsukasa as an overly energetic person, I admit. But he’s really not helping his case. It’s endearing.

I rip the page out of my sketchbook along the dotted line. When it’s finally in Tsukasa’s hands, he holds it out, his arms fully extended. Admiring. He tucks the painting safely between two pages of his script, then practically leaps in my arms. I was not prepared. I fall backwards as he holds me tightly, laughing. After a few protests, I give in and put my hand in his hair, ruffling it slightly.

“How do you expect me to draw like this?” I say with no real annoyance behind my words.

Laughing, Tsukasa sits up and holds his hand out for me to take. I huff slightly, but take his hand nonetheless. His hands… They’re really soft and delicate. I remember being surprised by that fact the first time we held hands. I don’t know why, but I’m pretty sure I expected him to have rugged, used up hands. But of course, Tsukasa is full of surprises. I’ll ask him how he takes care of them if he invites me over. 

“How could I ever resist the pleas of such a lovely young lady?” Tsukasa replies. His tone is grounded, charismatic. I’m so taken aback I almost fall over again. 

“What?!”

Tsukasa laughs proudly. “It’s a line in my play! I guess I got the character down, seeing your reaction!”

I swat Tsukasa’s hand away and turn my head to the side, hoping it’ll hide the blush quickly forming on my face. Maybe the red light of the sunset will conceal it better. Oh, if I don’t hear this line in the show, he will hear about this! I shake my head. 

“How far are you in memorizing your lines?”

“Getting close. Just a few left. The ending, mostly,” Tsukasa tells me as he lays his head on my shoulder. I lay my head over his, looking out into the sunset.

“I’ll bring everyone to the show, then. I’m looking forward to seeing you, future star.”

Tsukasa beams at me. His usual smile. It makes me melt, but I don’t think I’ll tell him anytime soon. Maybe he’s already figured me out…

───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────

25 o’clock.

Amia

<Hey Ena!>

<That new post of yours with Tsukasa-senpai is awfully cute, isn’t it?>
<It’s like the most real smile you’ve posted on your page!>

<Who’d think you’d be head over heels for Kamiyama troublemaker #2?>

enananan

<DELETE THAT!>