× l'impressionisme

@linong The responses that he received were very short-lived that it made Joshua chuckle lightly towards the student in front of him. "Just wanted to share a few moments from the past. It's nothing. You can excuse my talkative side." Another thing that helped him gain a few friends was how much he couldn't stop talking to the people that surrounded his area. He loves to venture through his surroundings and meet new people. His open attitude brought him to aspects that he never expected to reach and now it leads to the young artist named Linong whom he was aware has garnered a certain level of interest in him. It made quite an impression on Joshua but his decision never faltered even once.

A soft smile had found its way through the curvature of his lips. Nodding he beamed at the other and considered the artist's reminders on what he's allowed to do and not do during his time inside the art studio. He kept that in mind while proceeding to Linong's studio. What could it be like? Messy? Full of paint scattered around the floor? The walls, maybe? A few human figured models displayed on one shelf in a corner? Does he even still use those? Maybe he used it once when he was still a beginner at being an artist. He can only assume a few things.

His imagination did wonders across his head of how creatively a mess could be to artists. It made them feel less bothered and more eager to create something new using both their hands together. "For example, someone fixed your art equipment in one area inside your studio would you be able to locate it?" Joshua had picked up a few artist related facts online while he was scrolling through his phone on his social media account. He wasn't an artist but weirdly enough the internet decided to recommend him such content that he barely even relate to.

Instead of ignoring it made him curious if one of those lists of facts were true on Linong considering that he fit the title. According to the facts that were presented, wherever they left their belongings inside their studio and someone else fixed it rather than themselves would make it harder to search for as the artist. A meme was posted as well about a teacher giving an activity towards their students that involved drawing. The second panel showed children searching for an artist to "help" them with the task that was given by their instructor.

"Oh? Well, what do you need to submit? Do you need help? I could provide a few ideas for what you can create. Only if you let me do so at least." He'd love to offer Linong his assistance and didn't mind doing so. Two minds can be better than one and sometimes a few artists ask questions that relate to them making new artwork for a specific project. "Sorry, if I ask too many questions. I shouldn't have-." The least of his worries had to be possibly making the atmosphere awkward between both of them. He wants to say a lot of things to Linong and didn't want him to seem too quiet.

Joshua hummed while looking around his studio letting his line of sight explore the vicinity of the room that he's inside of right now. "Somehow learning to distinguish a modern and contemporary artwork confuses me." There he is beginning with the perfect topic that once circled his very brain. It made him wonder how he even aced this one assessment that he did about the exact lesson that his teacher taught about. A guess was present in his previous actions that involved his quiz about it. "Is there a specific style that makes their features different from the other? I just guessed in my art-related exams and got half of it correct. I passed but just half of what they gave."

A chance.

A chance that he's willing to take. Wherever this connection resorts to he hoped it would end well with Linong opening up to him. He was indeed curious about what was moving inside Linong's head that made him seem to be so mysterious and quiet. Well, he assumed he's quite a well-reserved type of person unless he was not.

Certain people are quiet at first but when they open up their ideas, their words are one of the most interesting things that ever come out from their mouths. They have a lot of things, ideas, opinions inside their head that's been dying to be unlocked by several people whom they consider and fully trust. In Joshua's case, he believes Linong was this kind of person by observation of his previous actions earlier when he approached him. He still felt guilty about how he could just barge in with so many questions inside his head just thrashing to come out any second.

"Is this another one of your projects that you'll be submitting soon?" He took notice of what Linong had mentioned earlier that he'll be working on while he chats with Joshua. "Ah, that was another question again. I do apologize again." Soon enough he'll be called as 'Sir. Questions' from the young artist himself. Ah, how chromatic to think after all his curiosity that kept biting him everywhere his mouth can take it. Let's be lucky he never mentioned the lewd sketches that he saw merely minutes ago from his approach to Linong.

I mean he could inquire him what his intention was that he would think that way of him. A thirst artwork. But would he question his antics? Right now? What would happen if he dared to do so? Will Linong pretend he never knew about the artworks that he just saw? It was no mistake that the man right beside him was the same artist who wanted him in bed or generally anywhere as long as his hands would do the work.

Would it be worth the risk to know?

@joshua ⌜ wonhoté™ ⌟ what has he gotten himself into? he certainly doesn't understand why he even ended up agreeing to speak to joshua in the first place. first of all, linong doesn't really like company and second, does he even want to hear what joshua wanted to ask? for sure he knew something- he wonders what he thinks about him right now, hopefully not something like him liking joshua because that... that is gonna be a headache. he knew people who would act like they don't think so when in reality they assume things with no factual evidence. drawings are just on a whim, ideas and thoughts that he couldn't get rid of.

thoughts. he wanted to laugh at himself, it's as if his thoughts were actually clean. the man right in front of him seems more curious than he usually would, linong could clearly see that curiosity and that shred of determination to know what he had in mind that's not-so-subtly etched on the features of his face. but would linong want to say it? would he want to tell joshua the whole truth? that he's your kind-of-basic fu'erdai who exists to spend and just wishes he could get out of this pressure and expectations that come along as a package? that the true and only sole reason for why he even thinks of joshua was that he's just a normal exchange student who isn't constantly reminded of his father's successes in the art field that he barely enjoys doing the art he used to love doing. whatever, he doesn't know what's in the other's mind anyway. hopefully it doesn't seem like it's *that*.

whatever, he probably shouldn't waste his time thinking about something so small. only time would tell, hopefully they never cross paths again after today.

"ah." his reply was short and dry, almost sounding uninterested. people have asked him something similar, curious ones poked even on his own art style and what he liked to do or draw. "that's nice, i guess." was the only thing he could say in response. it's not because he's good at what he's doing and that he was uninterested (though admittedly, it's true that the story wasn't something that intriguing. it's cute, but not enough for him to engage with), he simply didn't know what to say in response to that. what did joshua want to hear from him? amusement? amazement? perhaps he wanted to hear what actually happened earlier? the other might take it wrongly, probably get offended that he doesn't seem to care even a bit. he knows it's just an excuse, but he never spoke to people before, alright. he only knows himself, engaging with others is more of a pain in the neck than anything else. this is why he hates having all the attention, but it's just unavoidable when everyone's so amazed by something so simple.

there is a small nod. just a really small nod. "it really doesn't matter, i don't mind people talking to me as i work, as long as you don't touch anything then it would be fine." he assures. truthfully, linong never worked with people before. he doesn't know what to expect from his sudden act of friendliness, probably so he could get a feel of what joshua is thinking, that maybe he's waiting for the other to bust him so they could argue and promise never to even stare at each other again. at least then he'd have his peace, he wouldn't be so worried in case he ever thinks about joshua and decides to draw him... at least, if he could. being friends wouldn't be so bad either, but he knows that doing so could go one way or another.

wouldn't it be weird for them to be friends though? even just the thought of it just seemed impossible for linong.

whatever, come what may. he thinks to himself as he leads joshua to his studio, possibly the least organized place in the school right now as he'd been working on things he could submit to that one prestigious school he'd been aiming for since last year. working on his portfolio had been tough, especially when he'd been so slumped these past few days. "i apologize for being messy, i've been working on the things i needed to submit," he opens the door, gesturing at joshua to come in. "come in." before getting back to his work, he fixes joshua a seat, patting the chair before he takes a seat himself. "sit."

there's this feeling of excitement radiating from the exchange student. for some reason, he can't help but find it weird because he's never seen someone like this before- linong's so sure that joshua has seen it that's why he wanted to speak to him. is he being paranoid for nothing?

"so, what kind of art would you want to talk about? i pretty much have an idea on anything but i won't judge. art is anything manmade. we can talk about whatever you like, as long as i know what you meant."

and whatever comes after this, hopefully would help linong get his own *peace*.

@linong In times of such crisis such as these Joshua chose not to tell on Linong towards the teachers, let alone the principal. He decided on just leaving the whole situation be for Joshua to figure out on himself. Artists have the ability to express themselves in various forms that includes in the form of a song, dance or art. Did Linong really had affections towards him? It was apparent but he wasn’t entirely sure of Linong and his motives. The two barely talked enough to begin with. Ah, these might be just those regular crushes that he knew people would have on him. There was nothing to worry about except when Linong finally confesses his affection towards him.

Joshua had countless of admirers for the past few weeks in which he turned them down nicely. Doing an effort of trying to keep people in a good relationship wasn’t that easy for the exchange student himself to do. This deals with the issue of people’s hearts, you can’t expect people to actually just feel fine after a rejection so easily. Joshua kept his friendly stature between the people who had a crush on him and left them be with their own choices if they still wanted to talk with him or not. It was fine if a couple people ignored him as long as they felt comfortable after it all.

So, was Joshua here to bust Linong and his overwhelming desires over him? Not exactly. Joshua is the type of person to wait until the person was comfortable to tell him everything that they wanted to say when they were hiding it from him. Joshua was well aware of who develops a crush on him. Some of them were just too damn obvious for Joshua to figure out but on Linong’s case?

How in the hell did that happen?

He wasn’t expecting this entirely from the artist himself. There are different types of crushes, the people who admired you from afar but never talked to you before. The certain crush where they are your best friend or closest friend and a lot more to be mentioned. It seems like Linong fell under the first category being mentioned above from this short list.

Joshua blinked a few times before chuckling softly. “I apologize, I guess I was just a bit too curious on something new that you might have created. I know a friend who sketched something during class before and I just couldn’t believe how great it looked. It was just a simple blue-lace delphinium located on the upper left of their notebook next to their notes but I couldn’t help but feel at awe on how amazingly created it was even when the class was that boring.” Joshua explained remembering how it all happened and tried to figure out on how they still pass without listening to their instructor. They better be lucky that they had him and his other friends to help him out with the deadlines. That friend of his was always late in passing requirements due on the deadline.

“Alright, in your studio if you insist. You can still work on your project even if I’m there? I usually get distracted whenever I try to work on something in general.” Joshua asked in wonder knowing he can hardly do that with his friends around. He can never get anything done with all of them talking and then at one-point fooling around with each other until they never get anything done. Joshua would sometimes grab their attention and have them finally focus on whatever they need to get done by the end of the day or for tomorrow but sometimes it was just too unbearable. He had 6 friends and a few of them were just as chaotic as the last. They were one of the people that he’s trusted over the years though so he didn’t have an absolute problem with them much.

He felt absolutely pumped up over hanging out with the artist. He hoped he wouldn’t bother him too much by his presence while he stayed. If it did, he would’ve left in a hurry and leave Linong some alone time in order to get his stuff done. I mean, he could just talk to him when he’s not too busy if his schedule would allow him at some point. He can’t help but avoid being a bother to Linong if he had something important to do.

@joshua ⌜ wonhoté™ ⌟ it must be a joke that their professor had to send joshua to do something she said she’d do herself. perhaps it was karma, that he was put in this kind of situation because he had sinned too much. or maybe a blessing in disguise, but it’s obviously etched on the other’s face that there was something wrong. even if linong doesn’t ask, he already has a clue as to why the other’s expression is like that. linong thinks he’s doomed, that maybe joshua would spread this and end up going victim. just like how a lot of people do.

the thought of having to meet the person he had been drawing face to face holding his sketchbook never crossed his mind before. mainly because he was confident that they’d never cross paths. linong is mostly a loner and would prefer to stick inside the studio as he pretends that eating and sleeping were nothing more than a myth than something he actually needed. stupid him for being so confident that it will never happen. all he could do is blame himself for getting too carried away about drawing the exchange student. he should have been more careful because of course, he’d be that professor’s favourite too- a teacher’s pet. at least, that’s what he heard from everyone else.

maybe he should blame his professor too. how dare she hand the sketchbook to joshua? what happened to her ‘i’ll let you pick it up in the office’? he really thought he was safe from prying hands and nosy people looking at things they shouldn’t be looking at but what’s done is done. he shouldn’t have just drawn anything then he wouldn’t feel like… this. whatever this thing is.

but what’s so wrong with drawing joshua, right? it wasn’t like the poses were too suggestive for anyone else’s liking. it’s not like he had been illustrating kama sutra or something that’s just way too lewd that it comes off creepy. or at least, that’s he thinks. but what could he do? he just couldn’t stop himself from thinking about him no matter how hard he tries not to. somehow, joshua’s always there whenever he tells himself to stop.

and then it falls into another cycle, with him ending up drawing another image, scribbling down words that sounds nothing more than , lewd, whatever this feeling is in him that he couldn’t seem to figure out.

he really should stop before he ends up digging his own grave. you’re about to get yourself admitted to a prestigious art school, you’re ing your own chances up. no recommendation could make up for it if there’s gossip about you. he tells himself.

deny what needs to be denied in case he asks questions. he came up with that decision. image before people, school before friendship or something like that.

something in him just feels weak seeing joshua’s smile, a feeling of guilt that made his heart stop for a second. why is he feeling guilt for someone he barely knows?

the exchange student could have called him out on his bull, probably tell everyone else all while looking hurt and acting as if he really harassed him in real life but why is it that he’s asking a question like that? he’s sure that joshua knew something. he should be sighing in relief and acting like nothing’s wrong but he just couldn’t understand why the other had to ask him such words.

oh well, if he’s going to let him lie then be it. that’s more convenient on his side after all, he gets to control what he says. the weird feeling in his chest could easily be shrugged away and forgotten, everything else is alright.

they’re just strangers anyway.

linong makes sure to return the smile before reaching his sketchbook. calmly, calmly. he couldn’t act excited or worried because he knew that it’d spoil the act but he’s just thankful that it’s just back in his arms. “thank you. you shouldn’t have bothered though, i know you are busy with other stuff too, joshua.” the onslaught of questions that follow made him a little overwhelmed, like he was faced with an over curious toddler who couldn’t stop asking why and what. if he were honest, he would have walked out while the man was speaking, he was too curious for his liking. was he waiting for him to speak about how he drew him in such an evocative position? with a lewd look on his face? or how he drew flowers all over his body and went on about how flowers would make him look even more perfect? he himself should know that he wouldn’t be speaking, he’s just making it more and more obvious that he was touching someone else’s things.

“slow down, take a breath.” smiling hurts his cheeks, but he needed to keep it up in order not to seem weird or suspicious. “that’s a lot of questions, joshua. it was something very… interesting. an idea came into mind and couldn’t keep my brains off of it so i had to draw. it’s not true that creativity comes when you’re bored. you need a muse or at least an idea you really wanted to work on before drawing. else, nothing comes out.” at this point, he doesn’t even know what he’s saying anymore. more and more bull just comes out of his mouth as he talks about inspiration and drawing on a whim, yet never touches on what he drew the whole time. all he could hope is that the other doesn’t bring it up anymore because trying to make more things up is just hard. “it was just an idea i couldn’t stop myself from drawing.”

linong doesn’t answer the other at all for a good few minutes. it seemed like he wanted to discuss something about the drawings he made but in all honesty, linong’s up for anything but that right now. all he wants to do is to avoid being asked more questions and ending up spilling more unnecessary details about himself that could be used against him somehow.

trust no one. that’s one of the first few things he learned as a child.

before he could, he unknowingly finds himself nodding instead. image over anything else. he cannot be perceived the way he really is- selfish, arrogant, always annoyed, an for some.

“sure, we can talk about art. if you want, you can stay with me in the studio? i still have some painting to do, but it doesn’t matter if i talk to someone while doing that.”

all would be well.

oh, he can only hope he can keep things well enough for himself.

@linong They say, 'To see it is to believe it' but honestly in Joshua's situation. He's not exactly sure what he is seeing or wanted to see in. Does he feel awkward? Terrified? Disgusted? He wasn't exactly sure what kind of feeling that he ingested to feel this kind of way right now. Does he want to know? Probably, unless he intentionally wants to get his kicked into something, he doesn't want to in the first place. He could leave the problem be but would his whole head and mind would? In a couple of days sure, but not that fast!

With his own thoughts lingering, he knew for the least that he's just a normal high school student who transferred two years ago prior to his parents, business job that would be attending here. It had until the time that his parents decided to stay here and call it permanent made his stay much easier for him since now, he won’t keep changing schools all the time. After a few months his popularity grew from being the nicest person in school who helped anyone with anything. He wasn’t from the student council but a lot of people were recommending him the position lots of times but he wasn’t interested.

Joshua was not sure if he should take the drawings as something that he should be frightened of or not. It was himself begging in such a lewd way as possible. Begging for Linong to- Yeah, it’s better to stop there before he attempts to throw himself out of the bus. Joshua closed the sketchbook and opted to make his way towards Linong to return the sketchbook back. He gave him a light smile and stretched out his arm where there he held his sketchbook.

“Hey Linong, the teacher told me to give this back to you. Were you drawing in class? It must be boring huh? I’m kinda curious, what did you draw during class. Was it something serene? Depressing? Artists have a creative imagination whenever they’re bored, I believe. We could talk about it during break right now if you want. I don’t have any plans at the moment but if you do then we could do that in another time.”

And here he is, wanting to get to know the artist who was the same person who thirsted for him based from his sketches. How can he assess the situation when he himself doesn’t know Linong that much yet? Well, this part of the story just made everything feel a whole lot of sense. He doesn’t believe that Linong was that kind of person. Maybe it was a mistake, but no one said he was right in what he was thinking. It’s getting to know Linong time. Hopefully, he’ll accept his offer.

@joshua ⌜ wonhoté™ ⌟ if you see him from afar, linong is all soft and subtle . calm, gentle, too bright that a smile could melt someone else's worries. at least, that's what they all say. people never really saw the bold, inconsistent lines that made up the rest of him. impatient, annoyed and... pressured. he's been stressed, people expect too much of him and even he himself kept pushing himself too much that he's hardly even living like a normal human being.

not like people know about that part, they just stand right in front of his artworks in awe and wish they were him. oh, they'd like how he'd often been scolded for being only second good and challenged to do even better when they tried their best.

joshua hong, however, is a breath of fresh air. unlike the other kids who would be treating him like he were some art god (in which he isn't), the exchange student had been nothing more than just... kind. like he's there to help every time... approachable? he isn't sure how to put it into words, but there's something about him that linong really wants. whether it's his attitude or his freedom, it's uncertain.

or maybe he just really wants the other's body that bad.

linong's grasp on his pencil tightens, drawing even more aggressively as he imagines joshua in a rather suggestive position. completely forgetting his surrounding, linong gets lost in his imagination. joshua, joshua, joshua... they barely even talk but why can't he keep him off his mind?

and then he draws flowers adorned around his frame. he'd look so beautiful like that, reaching his arms out and calling out to him-

"leo chen!"

linong looks up, and the next thing he knew is that his sketchbook got confiscated. god, he could only hope that they never look inside because along with his random doodlings and daily musings, there's joshua. a lot of joshua. too many that one would think that he has some sort of crush on him or is doing really questionable things with him. as someone who's popular (he couldn't lie about it, not like he doesn't see the amount of people fawning over his artworks if not himself), there's bound to be gossip.

...

it seems to be even worse than that the moment their classes are over.

joshua hong is standing right there, holding his sketchboook.

[did this make sense,,, i tried my bEST]

@linong @joshua (Happy rping)