Work Text:
“No, I told you, that isn’t how I wanna do this!”
Ena Shinonome was on a firm phone call, tapping her foot as she approached the Shibuya crosswalks. A small huff left her mouth as an explanation on the other side was given to her.
“C'mon, Ena! It would make the editing so much easier for me! Plus, it’ll look cooler!”
“Regular PNG files, Mizuki. Take it or leave it”
“Blegh. You’re no fun.” The one known as ‘Mizuki’ laughed a little, much to Ena’s dismay. When the light turned green, Ena started her walk. “Oh, are you at the scramble? Where you going?”
“The art museum. They recently held a contest for young artists in Tokyo and I got accepted, so I’m going to see it for myself.” Her small smile at this sentence could be heard over the phone.
“Oooooh, Ena’s going pro! I should’ve expected this of you though, you went and got into Kosei’s art course!” Mizuki giggled. Ena gave them a little bit more of the usual conversation, mentioning things like a pancake place she passed on the way and how she had to hide from her brother when he saw him outside an arcade. Eventually, though, she reached the museum.
“Just made it, Mizuki. I have to go. Make sure to get the first half of the video done!”
“Of course! Good luck, Enananananananan!~”
Ena hung up before they could finish. She tucked her phone into her handbag and looked up at the doorway to the museum, packed with people due to the event.
Oh boy.
The amount of crowding was overwhelming. Was this event really that popular? Ena swallowed down her nerves.
Just to rip the bandaid off, she dashed inside. Art competition or not, this museum was always gorgeous, so once she was inside she took her time looking at the art that wasn’t part of the event. There were several pieces here that she had already intensively studied, so it was nice to admire them just a little more casually.
Eventually, her feet led her to the event section. Affirming that she was allowed in with a creators tag, she took…a little less time to look around, admittedly. Instead of calm admiration, she skimmed the other participants' pieces in order to find her own. Ena simply wanted to see it in a gallery, see it be admired and discussed. Even if there is a bit of criticism, people looking alone was worth it.
She found her piece, hung up like all the others. ‘A Moonlit Day, Oil on canvas. Ena Shinonome’
It was a little depressing to see no one around it, no one actively looking at it or discussing it, but somehow, just seeing it here made her feel much better.
Dad’s going to freak when he sees how far I’ve come
She lifts her phone up, aiming to take a picture of the canvas as it hangs in the gallery, further proof that she had made it in despite everything else. Just as the photo is taken, though, a voice startled her.
“Ena Shinonome…so Shinei has a successor…”
“AGH-“ Ena stumbled with her phone for a second, nearly dropping it onto the wooden floors.
“Oh? Oh, sorry, did I startle you?” The voice that interrupted her mantra apologised, raising himself from the plaque beside her piece. A peculiar-looking boy with blue, side-swept hair was who she saw. He was uncomfortably tall and slightly lanky, but she hoped he was nice enough. “I’ll move, don’t let me ruin your photo!”
“It’s fine,” Ena mumbled, checking the photo’s quality. “I took it just before you spoke up”
“Ah, that’s good then. I noticed the creator tag you’re wearing, have you got something up here too?” He asked, brow raised. Now that she looked at him, he was also wearing one of the mandated lanyards. So he’s here for his piece too…?
“Yes, actually. This piece, it’s mine!” She pointed up to A Moonlit Day, excited to show it off. In response, his eyes widened and he took a small breath in.
“You’re Shinonome? That’s fascinating…you certainly retain your father’s talent!”
Okay, she was a little pissed that she was being compared to her dad, but she was getting complimented!! That was something to be excited about!!
“Oh, thanks!-“
“The emotions that come from this piece, I wonder if it would hurt to feel them all at once. There’s an indescribable loneliness in that child’s eyes, but something says that they hope it gets better…especially the brushwork around the eyes…” He kept speaking, rambling on about the composition and the emotions of the piece, not giving Ena a moment to think.
“Yes, I like to think that I-“
“Have you been through something terrible? The way you’ve framed this feels like the subject is trapped somewhere and hopes to get out..”
Okay. Fucking ow. She was sure this random man was approaching her piece with the best of intentions, but she couldn't help but let her eyebrow twitch when he made such a scathing analysis of both her work and her.
“If I may critique, though, you may want to work on your shading. The room the subject is trapped in doesn’t seem convincing…”
FUCKING OW
It was taking about ninety percent of her strength not to maul this man in the middle of a public exhibit, but she managed to put on a smile and accept the words of critique.
“I was a little disappointed by how that part came out too, but it was a little too late for me to fix it…” Ena fiddled with her fingers just so that she could focus on anything other than the pit forming inside her stomach. “I’m sorry, I don’t think I have your name..?”
“Oh?” The boy looked up, surprisingly embarrassed. “Right, how rude of me. I’m Yusuke Kitagawa. You might know me as a former student of Madarame?”
Madarame?
MADARAME?
“No!” Her mask slipped a little bit, reacting to the information as if Airi had told her about a scandal behind the scenes on one of her variety shows. “That’s…”
“This is actually my first exhibit after that chapter of my life. Please, no pity, it’s fine.” Yusuke told her, a sad look still on his face.
“I actually remember a lot about that whole…thing. My dad was up the wall with phone calls for a few days…” Ena replied off-handedly, causing Yusuke to wince out of guilt. “It’s all settled now though, right?”
“You could say that…would you like to see my submission and assess it for yourself?” He offered, gesturing his hand past her.
“Sure. I’d be willing to pick up a few things…” Ena lied, just feeling bad about the poor sap that had most of his life’s work stolen. Yusuke smiled and started walking, showing the way to where his piece was being presented. He walked pretty slow, so Ena had the time to look at the other submitted pieces. Many of them…yeah, they were good. Really, really good. That pit in her stomach was forming closer to her heart, but thankfully her mind was taken from it when Yusuke suddenly stopped.
“Here we are, Shinonome!” He announced with a smile. Ena glanced towards the named plaque beside it. ‘Desire, Oil on canvas, Yusuke Kitagawa’. When she glanced back at the painting, the title made just a little more sense. Maybe it was just jealousy starting to arise from within her, but she had a strong desire to punch something when looking at it.
The mishmashes of red, grey and other blended colours did manage to capture that pit in her stomach perfectly; Something in it was twisted. Maybe it was the way the colours swirled together, maybe it was the balancing, maybe it was just because it looked so real. It just…hit something within her.
Jealousy? Rage? Desire? She had no intention of finding out.
“It’s…It’s wonderful…” Ena found herself mumbling, her words making Yusuke’s eyes light up.
“Are you serious?” He asked, a little surprised.
“I…I don’t totally have an artist's eye yet so…I can’t say for sure but, something about it seems pulled from experience…” Ena kept talking for some god-unknown reason, not wanting to compliment someone she was getting so envious of. To what she said, Yusuke gulped.
“Well…this feeling of desire is one nearly everyone has, is it not? I simply pulled the colours and the shapes from the emotions that rise from it!” Yusuke explained even though it sounded just a little improvised. Ena decided to ignore his uneasy tone and continued admiring the painting, as much as she was beginning to hate to do so.
“You definitely captured it. Or at least some twisted form of it…” she was starting to become aware of time; She needed to be home pretty soon, otherwise, she’d miss golden hours for her photos. “Though…you might want to work on your improvisation more. There’s some meticulous planning I can see that may detract from the emotional punch of the painting…”
Ena had no idea she was throwing criticism back, but when she did, Yusuke seemed to soften down.
“You may be right,” he replied. “You might be better in the emotion department. I’ll be sure to heed your words, Shinonome!”
His gratitude, unfortunately, only pissed her off more. His words felt more like pity than anything. Thankfully, she noticed a text on her phone's Lock Screen that may give her an out.
K: Enanan? Can i call you on nightcord?
Sighing with relief, she typed a reply.
Enanan: ofc! Give me a sec, i need to leave this exhibit
“Uh, Kitagawa, was it? It was lovely meeting you and seeing your work, but I need to go…” Ena mumbled, trying to shuffle her way to the doors. “I…have to…take this call…”
“Oh? No worries, Shinonome. Get home safely, okay?” Yusuke called back, waving her off. Ena’s responding gesture was an awkward thumbs up as she backed away until she reached the distance where she could run. When she did, she bolted out of the doors and nearly collapsed on the gallery’s entrance stairs.
That guy…having the gall to pity her when he was so much more talented…
She decided to take her mind off of that topic by clicking on the nightcord app. She dropped a quick message to K to let her know she was ready to call, then popped her earphones into her ears and started the walk back home.
“I can’t BELIEVE that guy!!”
“Calm down, Enanan, aren’t your family asleep?”
“I DON’T CARE!! UGH!”
It seems that they called Enanan to the nightly meetup on a day that was absolutely not hers.
“Oi oi, can’t we see the good in this? You got complimented by a top artist in your field! Plus, your shit’s in a gallery! That itself is insane!” Amia tried to soften the blow, only to receive another haughty ‘UGH’ and some harsh keyboard clacks. They received a PM from Enanan that just said ‘GET OFF MY DICK’.
“This guy…Kitagawa, right? He said that you were better in terms of emotions?” Yuki spoke up, seemingly taken from her usual trance of lyric writing in dead silence. “Emotions are hard to capture from my experience…”
“Is that all I have though? Being depressed?!” Enanan huffed over the mic, snacking on a chip.
“I’m sure that’s not what he intended, Enanan.” K said, voice sounding slightly pale.
“Oh, it sure FEELS like it! You wanna know what he said about my piece? He had asked if I had been through something TERRIBLE!”
Amia snorted. K let out a nose exhale. Even Yuki made a small ‘That’s a little funny’.
“What?!” Enanan yelled. “WHAT’S SO FUNNY?!”
“It’s just- oh my god” Amia had to stop every couple words to giggle. “He got us in one!”
“That man has a sharp eye,” Yuki said, plainly. “That skill is very valuable in the art world”
“WHY ARE YOU ALL AGREEING WITH HIM?!?” Enanan kept yelling, clutching one of her plushies in rage. “Ugh, I’m gonna mute. I can’t STAND this!”
So she said and so she did, she quickly clicked the mute button and switched to her art software.
“Better at emotions my ass…”
“First off, you're talking to girls OTHER than Ann?”
The fresh smell of coffee rose into the air, and so did the spirits of conversation in Yongen-Jaya. Up in Akira’s attic, a peculiar group of four were talking about someone Yusuke had met recently.
“Oh lay off him, Ryuji. He just went big in a contest!” Ann giggled, sipping down on her sugary drink.
“Still though, that Shinonome girl fascinates me. She seemed…unconfident, even when her work was so profound. Maybe my comments were a little too scathing…” Yusuke rambled, trying to ignore how accidentally bitter his own drink was.
“Why? What did you say?” Akira asked, glasses shining a little.
“I told her that her piece contained a lot of loneliness, but that the subject of it seemed to wish for everything to get better. I also asked if she had been through something terrible…”
“YOU WHAT?!” Ann screamed, slamming down her cup.
“Holy SHIT” Ryuji guffawed, nearly spitting out his drink.
“Yusuke, you can’t just ask people if they’re traumatized,” Akira stated plainly, desperately holding back his own laughter. Yusuke himself looked like everyone else had grown a second head.
“Well, trauma is more common than many realise in the art world, just look at me! There was a lot of raw emotion in her piece, so I figured that was a source…” Yusuke attempted to explain himself, much to the dismay of his fellow phantom thieves.
“…Was she traumatized?” Ryuji then quietly piped up, his mouth halfway into a cup.
“I don’t know, she never said.” Yusuke put his drink down. “But I do feel that if we’re both artists in Shibuya, we may see each other again…”
Kosei art school. Kosei Art School.
Ena had to repeat that to herself many times. She had been going here for a week or so now, but it was still surreal to, well, be there. She stood outside the doors of the building, watching the other students come and go. Even if she had no talent, even if she had no chance, she had made it here in one piece. That was worth something.
That was when she saw him, just over the fence.
“No…”
Yusuke walked past her standing spot, wearing his own version of the Kosei uniform, tutting and humming to himself while carrying a vast canvas.
“NO….”
She kept mumbling ‘no’ under her breath, in complete disbelief about seeing that maniac again. He goes here?! Is he doing art here as well?! Jesus Christ how had she not seen him before, he is so TALL?!
Before her disbelief could physically kill her, a new friend tugged on her arm and brought her out of the trance.
“Why are you staring at Yusuke like you’re plotting to murder him?”
“GAGH! Hifumi!” Ena yelled, turning around to face her. “You know that guy?”
“Who doesn't?” Hifumi smirked, tugging at her blazer.
“Ugh, I saw him at the Shibuya young artists exhibition last week. He just pisses me off now! If he’s in my class I’m throwing a pot at his head” Ena started walking in with Hifumi, keeping her head low.
“You don’t want to throw out your scholarship that easily. Though it would be funny.” Hifumi moved herself and Ena to the left of the corridor so they wouldn’t hold up half the hallway.
“He said some shit about me being ‘very good at emotion’ and that ‘I may have been through something terrible’, I mean, who says that to a person?!”
“I don’t know, sounds like Yusuke.” Hifumi reached her classroom, so she tucked herself to the side of one of the lockers while Ena still talked.
“Does it? I’m dreading class with him then.” She rested her shoulder on the lockers beside the classroom, arms folded and a visible pout on her face.
“Just give him a chance if you have to, alright? You did so much to get here, you may as well get some friends” Hifumi let herself have a small smirk again.
“Do you want the pot?” Ena asked.
“My head can take it.”
“UGH! See you after class…” Ena huffed and walked away, waved off by Hifumi. The corridors were ramped and rowdy, she was fully remembering why she was taking night classes back in Kamiyama. This school didn’t offer those, however, so this was just how she was going to live. When she finally reached her art room, her body heaved off her school bag like it was a ten-ton weight. She wandered in and took her seat without taking note of any of her classmates or anyone else who could even be there. Her mind was simply blank with exhaustion.
Until she saw Yusuke on the table across from her, who gave her a gentle wave.
Ena had to hold herself back from tossing one of her brushes at him.
“Art theory is not just about the art process, but about the implications and politics around it!”
Yusuke listened in with half an ear, letting the pencil he was using to sketch for one of his projects graze over the small canvas before him. He had heard this stuff before from this teacher, so he had no obligation to fully pay attention. However, someone he knew was listening very intently.
Ena Shinonome, the daughter of Shinei, had all her notes strewn about on her table and she was letting her pen run a mile a minute. It wasn’t common for a student to come in on a scholarship part way through the year, but it seemed this girl was a special case if the talk about her was anything to go by. Seemed she was taking this opportunity for everything it was worth.
“How a person such as an artist uses their experiences to create their works can tell you so much about how you can do your own!”
That’s something interesting. Ena seemed to agree too - if the speed of her pen was anything to go by. She would make a pretty good model for a clothing study, how clothing folds and falls with different positions especially since her own position right now was of a hunchback.
Eventually, the class concluded and Yusuke let out a relieved sigh. He was meeting with Akira and Ryuji later for beef bowl so he couldn’t be here too long. However, he took a moment to observe Ena’s movements. Maybe a burst of inspiration would come to him from her behaviour. She seemed to be asking the teacher a lot of questions, notepad and pen in hand. If nothing else, it was good to see a student be, well, studious. He smiled to himself, an idea coming to him, and left the room with his bag and canvas in hand.
Just as he left, he heard the opening of an easel and a small sniff come from the classroom
The dorms were basically attached to the school, so Yusuke found his way back to the building before long. He padded down the now empty corridors, his shoes clacking against the shined wood. The corridors like this, he much preferred it. Quiet and peace gave him time for introspection, for artistic thought.
Then a sniff cut through the silence.
Yusuke stopped in his tracks, glancing around. That noise…it sounded caught up in something.
A sob this time.
Someone’s crying.
“Hello?” Yusuke called out. “Is everything okay?”
The quiet sobs continue with no response. Yusuke decided to follow them.
The sounds took him further down the corridor, slowly getting louder and louder as he got closer. His concern rose too. Who would be crying at this time while still in school?
When he got to the door that led to the source, his question was thoroughly answered.
Ena Shinonome, having hijacked one of the art classrooms for a personal project, crying at a canvas and easel. She’s covered in paint and keeps wiping the tears from her eyes, even though her hands are covered in blue. Her phone is lit up, but it’s strewn to the side, abandoned in exchange for art materials.
“Shinonome?”
“Huh?” She looked up from her canvas and gained a face resembling disgust. Then, a paintbrush flew at his head. “What are you DOING here?!”
“I…live here” Yusuke answered, ducking out of the way.
“Aren’t the dorms further down?!” There was an undeniable venom in her voice. “Go there!”
“Are you okay first, Shinonome?” Yusuke tried to walk in, stopping when Ena held up another paintbrush.
“What’s it to you?!” Ena growled, trying her best to hide her teary eyes.
“I’m a fellow artist, am I not? Please let me-“
“GET OUT!!” Ena then tossed another paintbrush, which Yusuke also managed to dodge. All that Mementos grinding was working his reflexes, it seems. He stayed quiet for a few seconds as Ena hyperventilated, trying to scare him off with a venom-laced stare.
“…Can I at least see what you’re painting? You seem very invested in it” Yusuke started to slowly approach her. His tone of voice changed to be slightly more casual. As much as he could, he tried to treat her normally.
“…Do what you want…you’re going to anyway…” Ena backed off from her work in progress, finally getting a cloth to wipe her face with. When he got to walk over and observe her piece, his eyes widened slightly. The piece had a small bit of writing in grey in the corner that read ‘Close to Grey’. A girl in a flowery, puffy dress was wandering around a swamp-like area made out of crayons, pencils and other art materials. It seems to have just rained, judging by the reflective, soaked floor. However, daybreak seems to have come for this poor girl.
“…Impressive” He mumbled.
“What?” Ena looked up from her shrunk position.
“It’s impressive. The tone this piece sets is captivating. Plus you are much better at clothes than me!” He giggled a little forcefully, trying to keep the mood light.
“Well…It’s based on a dress I actually own, so it was pretty easy to depict. Matching the rest of the scenery around it was another challenge entirely…” She started explaining in a meek voice.
“The background and scenery…It’s so evocative. I can’t describe the emotions I get from this piece, but they’re very overwhelming…” Yusuke rambled a little, pointing out different parts of the artwork.
“Let me guess…I’ve been through something terrible?” Ena’s venom slightly returned as she turned away.
“Of course, yes, but…this subject’s found the peace after the storm. She’s still treading in mud, but she’s looking towards the warm light of the sky. She’s recovering…”
Yusuke. He always gets them in one. Ena had nothing to say to that but a muffled sob.
“You have an artist's eye…”
“The teacher today was talking about the context around a piece, no? An artist's life experiences, politics and perspectives, all of it can affect their artwork. You’re clearly inspired by your experiences. That’s a wonderful trait for an artist to have.” He smiled, sitting himself down somewhat near her.
“…You’re right. Of course, someone like the daughter of Shinei Shinonome would’ve been through something.” Ena choked out her sentences as she uncurled herself from her cramped crouched position on the floor. “Of course you, the pupil of Madarame, you’ve been through some shit too?”
“The word ‘shit’ doesn’t describe half of it, if I were to be honest.” Yusuke laughed a little, looking at his own bag and canvas that he was carrying before.
“…Shit indeed. The fact that I’m a talentless sap is just one out of so many things…” Ena blurted out. Yusuke raised his brow.
“Talentless?”
“Mhm,” She wiped her eye with her sleeve. “I’ve been talentless since the day I was born. All my artwork, all my effort, it was twice what someone like you has to do to get anywhere. My dad kept telling me not to bother to apply for art school - because I’d fail and crumble…”
“Look where you are now, though. You’re on Kosei’s art course!” Yusuke encouraged, which made Ena sigh.
“Yeah…I am. My lack of talent seemed to get me somewhere. My dad…he didn’t react in the best way though.”
“Why?” Yusuke shuffled a little. “How did he react?”
“You’d think a father would jump for joy if his daughter got into the school she wanted, right? He just shrugged. He shrugged and said ‘Good luck there’.” Ena sniffed, tapping her chest since her breathing was getting out of pattern. “He sounded worried too, instead of happy…I don’t know why he can’t just support me…”
“That is truly tragic. The life of the artist is never the easy one…”
“You probably have more right saying that than me, to be fair,” Ena commented, causing Yusuke to laugh slightly. “It’s true! That whole Madarame thing was an utter nightmare!”
“A nightmare…yes, that might be a suitable word. Covers a lot of bases and can be used for artistic inspiration!” He tapped on the easel, checking the quality of the wood. “Nightmares are often things you cannot escape from unless the universe lets you out…yes, nightmare is a most fitting word.”
Ena looked down at her palette, blotched with greens, pale reds and whites.
“How long was it?” She asked suddenly. “The nightmare. Or at least, how long did it feel like?”
“I’d say…I’d want to say I’ve woken up but,” Yusuke stopped abruptly in his sentence, trying to find the right words. “Well, sometimes it still feels like I’m asleep in his shack, half-starving and wondering when the light will break…”
This sentence disturbed Ena greatly. She huffed, wiping the last of her tears, and stood up. This sudden take in action made Yusuke jump, he asked what she was doing when she hauled herself over to a stack of blank canvases and took two off of the pile.
“Kitagawa, your calm tone when talking about that…it’s a little disturbing.” She said, tossing him the canvas. “How long has it been since you had gotten visibly angry at your situation?”
Yusuke thought for a second, placing his thumb under his chin. “When I last got angry…” Memories flashed to when Yusuke had awoken his persona, the bitter tone he had talked to shadow Madarame at, how much venom and contempt he felt in his bones. “It was back when I had confronted Madarame myself. I haven’t let myself be corrupted by such emotions since.”
“Nuh uh, Kitagawa. That isn’t going to slide with me. You see that painting I did?” She pointed towards the work in progress they were admiring before. “That painting was made because of how angry I got at my dad the other day. He still hasn’t mentioned the fact that my work was in a gallery! So, I painted and I cried while painting.”
“Like…as an emotional outlet? I used to do that when I was still under Madarame but…more as a quiet rebellion than anything…” Yusuke pondered, stomach weak.
“You said I’m better at emotion out of the two of us right? Well, this is how I do it. Grab a palette, grab some paints, an easel is optional, start letting your anger out!” Ena yelled, tossing her own canvas to the floor and stabbing the poor thing with her heel. Yusuke flinched but seemed to be getting the idea. Ena was able to express and feel her emotions much better, so she obviously had that leg up, even if she was ‘talentless’ (which, in Yusuke’s opinion, was false).
She set herself down by her ruined canvas and pulled out a paintbrush. Seems that was Yusuke’s cue to do the same.
It seemed she was rubbing off on him; He felt more fired up than he ever had before.
Yes. This was an absolutely amazing therapeutic exercise. No wonder ‘art therapy’ required its own degree.
“You finished, Kitagawa? I was worried I was keeping you here too long…” Ena spoke up, touching up her piece.
“Yes, I believe I am finished. Anything else I could do would just be arbitrary” Yusuke tidied his brush away, a satisfied and relieved smile on his face.
“Your vocabulary is almost as infuriating as your skill” Ena replied bitingly, but there was much less venom in the sentence. “What’d you draw?”
“Come and look for yourself!” He offered, shuffling aside from his canvas. Ena crawled over, still covered in paint, flopping down when she saw what Yusuke had painted.
A beautiful, messy, rage-imbued piece of artwork, half traditional Japanese, half surrealist. The subjects were the silhouette of a young boy, the only other colour being the red marking his eyes, as well as an eerie-looking white kitsune with one eye and an uncountable amount of tails. The textures and colours looked almost dreamlike, her brain was having a hard time filling in gaps that weren’t even there. The emotions in this piece were personal; fueled by rage, shame and sorrow. The child is crying, the kitsune wrapping its many tails around the child as he wails as if trying to comfort him. However, the kitsune also seems distant, unable to relate to or understand the child.
She was developing her artist’s eye.
“It’s beautiful, Yusuke. This was from your emotions?” Ena asked, trying to hold back her pride.
“I did exactly as you said. I must admit, I cried a little while painting it. Going through such mixed memories while drawing something puts you in quite a vulnerable position” Yusuke explained, choking up a little. Ena smiled, patting him on the shoulder.
“Vulnerability is a huge part of art. It’s oddly enough my favourite part of the process” She laughed, gently and calmly. “I guess the word is catharsis? You’re getting out those horrendous emotions in a way that is not only healthy but productive!”
“...May I see yours? I’m quite curious as to how you painted with a shattered canvas…” Yusuke asked with a quiet lilt that might’ve indicated shyness. Ena nodded, mumbling a little ‘of course!’ before huddling back to her canvas. She lifted it up, causing Yusuke’s face to lift too.
“Wow…”
The painting was a portrait, though not of Ena herself. That much was clear when the long, flowing locks the subject had were purple instead of Ena’s chestnut brown. The hair was stained with splotches of washed-out colour, the background was something trying to be psychedelic, but due to the lack of saturation, it couldn’t glare and blind one's eyes. The hands of the subject seemed to be wiping away something from the face. That was ambiguous though because, right where the face should be, there was the hole Ena had made in her canvas. It created something unfinished, something broken.
“It’s not actually me, this piece…is based on a friend of mine…” Ena eventually said, having watched Yusuke’s reactions for a few minutes now.
“Is it from her emotions then?” Yusuke asked, dumbfounded.
“Partially, yes. She is…not in the best situation. I really wanna help her but it was hard for me to empathise with her at first. I’ve gotten better but…I think a piece like this was needed.”
“I imagine the hole where her face should be means something?” Yusuke asked, curious about that crucial artistic context.
“Yup.” She rested down, slightly apathetically. “To say this friend is a troubled person is…an understatement. But, when I first met her, I was unfathomably jealous of her. She had everything I wanted, including talent. As it turns out, most of that was forced on her…” Ena’s face drifted into a look of sadness and worry.
“So, her lack of face here is…?”
“A lack of identity. Yeah. I want to say she’s improved, she definitely has, but it’s been baby steps for our group of friends. She’s still around though, so we must be succeeding somehow!” Ena smiled, looking back at her piece with a sense of pride. “I should send them a photo, maybe we can get a song out of this…”
“A song?” Yusuke looked up.
“Uh well…the same friends sometimes make music and I help them along with it so… I figured this could be…uhm…inspiration?” She shrugged, trying to sound convincing and failing. She was NOT explaining her underground music group to Kitagawa, not for a million years. Thankfully, he seemed to take that at face value.
“Fair enough. Music is a very valid and powerful form of art, so that’s very inspiring of them!” Yusuke smiled, his statement cheering Ena up about the whole thing. Music as a form of art too…Yeah, I guess all of N25 were artists. Their artistic context being disappearance. That was, oddly enough, a nice thought.
“True. They’re wonderful artists as well. I should introduce you some time!” She said, knowing full well they already know enough about him and would roast him on command.
“It would be a pleasure. I’m often at LeBlanc in Yongen-Jaya with my own close friends if you’re ever inclined for coffee?” Yusuke extended the offer, which Ena responded to with a nod.
“I’ll see if I can drag Mizuki along, they’d love to meet you!” She giggled.
“Just come up whenever! I’ll be there!”
The gentle air of Leblanc, the smell of coffee, the comforting atmosphere and the owner that kept side-eyeing the two at the middle booth. Ena wasn’t the biggest fan of coffee, but she could become a fan of here.
“YAHOO!” The door swung open and a shrill voice rang in. “Where’s the weird pretty boy, eh?”
“Mizuki!” Ena stood up immediately, signalling her position to them. “Over here! And be quieter!”
“Why are they dressed like a Victorian child?” Yusuke asked, not even bothering to mentally check that sentence before it went through.
“Oi oi, this is the height of fashion pretty boy!” Mizuki folded down their parasol and swung it over their shoulder, a wide smile on their face. “Is this pretty boy?”
“Yup!” Ena nodded. “This is Yusuke Kitagawa. Kitagawa, this is Mizuki Akiyama, one of my close friends!”
“It’s lovely to meet you, Akiyama. You certainly have an artistic sense in fashion!” Yusuke did not register that the sentence he just said kind of sounded like an insult. Luckily, Mizuki didn’t take it as one.
“Well, look at me! My clothes gettin’ called artistic by an artist!” Mizuki grinned, sitting down by Ena. “I made a good bit of this outfit myself, so that’s good to hear!”
“Sorry, you made that?” Yusuke looked over the table, trying to get the full outfit within eyeshot.
“Well I made this blouse, the jacket, the parasol is one I modded and these shorts I found in a charity shop, I added glue-on jewels to them!” They went through each part of their outfit, marking out how original it was.
“Fascinating…art comes in so many forms…” Yusuke pondered into his cup of coffee.
“They edit videos too, you know. Really good and everything!” Ena called them out, punching them lightly in the arm as she said it.
“Well, I don’t mean to bluff myself, buuuut…” Mizuki tried to calm the situation down, only to see Yusuke’s eyes glowing.
“Do you have any examples, by any chance?” He was nearly trembling in his seat.
“Of course I do!” Ena said, pulling up her phone. Mizuki tried to wrestle it out of her arms, but with no luck.
The coffee was left to fill the air along with their laughter and yells. LeBlanc just kept getting more and more lively.
Yusuke had found a solid new friend.
So did Ena.
Thankfully.