Painting Class

Ayane Selznick

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STANDARD DISCLAIMERS APPLIED

Pairings: Hiwatari Satoshi and Harada Risa

Summary: In the art of painting, the artist freely releases their emotions with a flip of his brush. But it never mentioned to release that emotion in another method.

Author's Note: One-shot fluff begins!

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"Daaaanggg…"

They were inside the Art Room once again, taking up that particular subject to boost up "inner creativity skills" that their professor ought to ascertain in all of them. Fatefully, it was Risa Harada's most pathetic inability. Well, next to culinary subject, of course.

The class was told to draw and paint a perspective. It depends how they will project that perspective in what may appear as though they were reminded of having an artist's eyes.

I have an artist's eyes but I have no talent in recreating it!

She had chosen her subject – their room's window, more likely, the scenery behind the window. Risa always loved to look at the nature outside their classroom's window. She felt contented and peaceful. All her problems and worries would disappear like a popped bubble.

But her problem today will not disappear easily.

Their seatwork, turned homework, will be passed tomorrow and yet, here she is, doing nothing in front of her blank canvas.

She glared at the poor blank art object in front of her.

"Hey Daisuke," Her ever dearest twin sister called, "how's your work?"

Risa heard her sister walked briskly towards Daisuke. She turned her head to where her sister and Daisuke are to see and hear what Daisuke had accomplished.

"Wow! That's amazing, Daisuke!"

Daisuke Niwa smiled cutely to his girlfriend. He had received several comments here and there, but it looked as though he was never accustomed being admired. His cute red blush, the color similar on his hair, crept up to his face.

"You don't have to say that Riku. You're doing well, too."

"Not as good as yours!" Riku grinned.

When all of their classmates weren't looking at them, Riku secretly gave Daisuke a peck on the cheek. This made the boy blushed even more.

"Riku…"

Risa, from her stool, rolled her eyes.

They are so in love!

But she honestly couldn't stop grinning at them. They looked so cute together. Riku, her sister, being the smart and responsible person is paired up to Daisuke, a clumsy and friendly boy in the neighborhood. What a great combination.

She returned her attention to her blank canvas, and of course, she didn't miss glaring at it. The more she looked at the white material, the more she felt like ripping it apart. Why couldn't she start drawing?

Trounced, she sighed at her antics. She won't be able to pass this subject unless she started scribbling. A light bulb brightened in her head.

That's right. Let's start with some doodle first. If it turns out okay, then I'll start painting it no matter what.

She smiled at the canvas.

As long as I have something in that canvas, then I'll have something to submit for tomorrow.

And so, Risa Harada started her… messy… pointless… non-perspective… artwork.

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The last class for today was dismissed.

As always, Riku told Risa that she'll practice with the team. Risa doesn't have the authority to say "no, let's go home!" or "screw the team, help me with the painting!" so she gave her sister a smile and told her to be careful.

She looked around the room, hoping to see someone that would be able to help her for that painting project. The first person that came in her head was…

Niwa-kun!

Risa started searching for her sister's boyfriend, only to find him running outside the school in a hurry.

Why of all time must you run away!

She was left all alone in their classroom. Her classmates must have left already. As for her, she has to go back to the Art room to retrieve her messy canvas and start painting it.

Frustratingly, she put her notebook inside her bag, and then walked out of the room with a scowl in her face.

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Risa already saw the door of the Art Room, so she fished out the card that will authorize her to enter, but when she stepped right in front of the door, she couldn't help but be surprised.

Somebody was inside.

Cautiously, she slide open the door. There was no creaking nor had she created an obvious sound, and she was proud of how sneaky she could be. However, when she let herself in, she undeniably turned into a stone.

There, staring quietly at her messy canvas was Satoshi Hiwatari!

She shook herself to wake up, and then made a mad dash as if to protect her "incomplete" work. Satoshi could lonely raise a brow at her.

"Whatareyoudoinghere!" It was as if she wasn't panting when she dashed to shield her work from his scrutinizing eyes. She voiced out her nervous statement without breathing.

He was staring at her wild brown eyes before looking at the window.

"Your concept is different from any other female students we have in class." He pushed up his glasses from the bridge of his nose. "The scenery past the window, huh?"

Risa gave him a look before uttering, "My sketches are messy, even so, you found out that it's my subject. I'm grateful for that." She glanced at her canvas beside her. "If you will excuse me, I have to take this home so I'll have something to submit for tomorrow."

At long last, Satoshi turned his face to give another calculating look at Risa.

"Painting isn't about submitting last-minute activity. You wouldn't be able to show the meaning of it when it's rushed."

Risa sighed, "If you didn't notice, Hiwatari-kun, all I have is a messy sketch. Do you really think I can finish everything in one sitting?"

Out of the blue, Satoshi Hiwatari smiled at her, and she couldn't help but feel strange.

"That's why I'm here."

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Wow… his hands are magnificent!

Satoshi was currently sitting at her stool, in front of her once messy canvas, doing some retouching. His hand that held the pencil was gliding expertly at her not-so-blank canvas. Sometimes he will use the other hand that held a kneaded eraser. He didn't erase his lines though, he was erasing hers.

Risa didn't know when Satoshi looked at the window, for he had been drawing the entire moment the minute he sat on that stool. It was like he had memorized the scene past the window.

While he was sitting, Risa was standing beside him. She was watching how his hand, with the pencil, stroke successively. It was like he knew what he was doing… he knew exactly what he was doing.

Not so soon though, when Satoshi put down the pencil and stared at his work that Risa once did. He didn't hear any complaints from her, she simply watched.

"In drawing perspectives, you must know how to look at the subject you're aiming to draw. You must be aware of how your artwork will turn out once it's done." He wasn't even looking at her when he continued his explanation, rather short tutorial. "Since you took the view past the window, you should be aware of what will be your background and your foreground. Your intention was to capture the subject from the outside, so, that view is your foreground while the window frame is the background." He pointed at the supposedly view from the window and dragged his finger to the supposedly window frame. "In capturing that perspective, you can always start by drawing a line from the center then away from the view. It will turn as your skeletal frame before you start the actual sketching."

Risa didn't know what to ask when he started talking, so all she could do was to nod apprehensively. She continued staring at work he had improved, and couldn't help but feel light. At least, all she will do was to paint.

"Am I going to paint it myself?"

She loved colors. She always loved to color something even if in the end it will turn as another thing that will be thrown at a random trash bin. So she was hesitant if she will paint his clean line art all by herself.

"I'm going to teach you how."

Satoshi stood up from the chair, allowing Risa to sit on it. Risa gave him an incredulous look before settling herself on the chair. The innate artist/painter splashed three colors on the palette, then hand it over to Risa. Risa held the palette. Then resumed watching Satoshi moved from taking another tool then walking back to her. The moment he arrived, he showed her his painting tool, a brush.

He held it to her, allowing her to take it from his hand.

"How are you going to teach me when I'm holding both the palette and the brush?" Risa inquired, feeling rather worried that Satoshi was letting her ruin the effort he made for that simple drawing.

Satoshi walked behind her, while she could only stare at him. But the moment his hand warmly clasped around the hand where she held the brush, she suddenly felt like she was a doll. Staring at his guiding hand, she watched as they damp the brush at the color on the palette.

Carefully, Satoshi guided her hand to locate on the drawn canvas. In a matter of seconds, they were starting to brush away with colors.

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They didn't spend more than two hours in her artwork. They spent less.

Satoshi withdrew his guiding hand, much to Risa's discontentment, knowing that she would be able to color it on her own. He patiently watched her dab the brush on the pigment, colored the spot with care and looked at it as if she was a professional artist.

Soon enough, Risa had finished her artwork. She smiled at the result of his short tutorial and hand guiding and of course her patience as she worked. Gently putting down the mixed color palette and brush, she stood up from the chair and stared at the finished work with Satoshi beside her.

"In painting," he started once again, "you need not to be tensed. All you have to do is picture the image you want to paint and go with it smoothly."

For the last time, Risa could only nod in agreement. All he said was true. And whatever he said, she carefully followed.

"What will happen to me if you didn't come in?" She joked freely, placing both of her tired hands behind her.

He didn't answer instead he looked at her from the side of his eye. It was amusing because she was predictably unpredictable. She was predictable, in a way that her nature was easily expected. And she was also unpredictable, because her nature would sometimes jump from being expected to unexpected.

But what he admired the most was her blitheness and her freedom to show or speak whatever she has in mind… or in heart.

"You know, Hiwatari-kun, I've always thought you're a nice person."

He raised a brow.

"But I never thought that you're such a fine artist like Niwa-kun! No, you're much better than Niwa-kun!"

"You didn't have to compliment to the person who helped you. Besides which, you shouldn't compare my talent to Daisuke."

"But it's true." She looked up to him, noticing the twinkling pale blue orbs behind his clear glasses.

Satoshi sighed. Fine, he will not argue with her anymore. Even at the littlest of things, she will find a way to make it big. She pulls an argument only to have it an advantage for her. And besides, it was pointless to explain to her the difference of an innate artist, who was keeping and protecting his artworks to an artist, who had a thief inside him.

"Hiwatari-kun." She called once again.

But this time, she smiled warmly at him before pushing her toes up to kiss him on his lips.

The sudden electrical discharge turned his whole body numb. But the beat of his heart went at fast pace. So as his pale cheeks that produced a tinge of red upon contact.

She pulled away quickly. She didn't want to shock him more. The red tinge of her cheeks was the same as his.

"Thank you very much."

A small tug pulled his lips into a smile. He never smiled to anyone but Daisuke. Now, he was smiling genuinely at Risa Harada.

"You're welcome."

THE END

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Author's Note: Cheesy! Oh, you must have noticed that the two of my one-shots were relatively connected to painting. Well, as I see it, both Daisuke and Satoshi loved painting more than anything else. Don't you think so, too?