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Matt walks into the studio on a sunny day and immediately notices three things. The studio is almost empty despite the time of day, there's a slightly annoying bell chime above the door, and there's a distinct smell of fresh clay permeating the air.
Matt’s already having second thoughts about this decision. A week ago his dad pressured him into exploring different career options. Becoming a lawyer was tough, Jack had said. Especially considering how isolating the field could be on a good day.
“Uhm, hello?” Matt asks gingerly to the studio. He can hear the turning of a wheel and soft labored breaths in deep concentration.
“Oh! Hey didn’t see you there, the names Foggy Nelson and…”
“Oh shit, you’re hot.”
Foggy immediately feels himself blush and turn red, momentarily grateful the other man couldn't see his embarrassment.
“Wouldn’t know, but I’ll take your word for it.” Matt replied, an amused expression across his face, despite the dark red glasses covering his eyes. He's dressed in casual clothing today. A pair of gray sweatpants and a worn out hoodie.
“Hah! Handsome and funny aren’t ya?” Foggy replied, still a little embarrassed from where he’s sitting.
Matt feels himself intrigued by this person, perhaps today wouldn’t be so bad.
“So, what kind of name is Foggy?”
Matt can sense a change in Foggy’s posture, “It’s an artsy name for an artsy guy. My real name’s Franklin but no one knows a cool artistic Franklin.”
“That’s not true.”
“Name one.”
“...”
“See? Anyway, I would greet you properly and give you the grand tour, but my hands are dirty and I’m sweating real hot over here.” Foggy gestures in the vague direction of where he’s sitting.
Matt shifts around, trying to gauge the open layout of the studio.
“So, what can I do for you?” Foggy asks as he sorts himself out.
“I’m looking to try out pottery. My father has been trying to get me to stop being a lawyer.”
“Oh snap? How come?”
“Broke, blind. Too sexy for it.”
Foggy snorts at the comment. “Oh yeah, for sure I see all of that for you. Except the sexy part. Definitely the right amount of sexy to be a lawyer.”
Matt chuckles at the flirting between them.
“Oh? Then perhaps I’ll be sexy enough to be a potter?”
“We can try it out, maybe you’ll reach my sexiness Mr. Blind lawyer.”
“The name’s Matt, Matt Murdock, people usually just call me a lawyer in training.”
“I’m not most people, Mr. Blind Matt Murdock.”
Matt chuckles at the name, somehow feeling refreshed at the lack of pensiveness from Foggy.
“So, what am I supposed to do?” Matt asked Foggy, despite coming here he wasn’t sure if he wanted to actually try it out.
“Ok Matt, what type of throwing are you thinking about?”
“Is there a difference in throwing…?”
“Yeah! There’s the type of clay you want to use. Ranging from texture, consistency, and color. What typically matters for pottery is the color and firing temperature.”
“Firing temperature?”
“Yep. Clay can fire to different temperatures to achieve different effects. There’s glazing, vitrification, refiring, and a whole buttload of other stuff to think about when working with clay.”
“Oh… how about something small to start? Like a cup.”
“Nice, we offer classes here based on what end product you're looking for, as well as what experience level you’re at with clay.”
“Oh… I was wondering if you guys did one on one classes?”
They didn’t. But if Foggy wanted to spend more time with Matt, so be it.
“Okay no problem! Cup’s are beginner friendly and are easy to repeat after you learn the basics. Do you know what color or texture you want your end product to be?”
“Not sure the color would matter. However, a softer texture would be nice.”
“Cool! Did you have time right now to start?”
Matt hadn’t planned on starting today. If anything, he wanted to come to the studio so he could at least tell his dad he tried.
“Yeah, I do.”
“Sweet! I’ll set up everything you need and then we can get started. There’s a wheel to your right with an empty chair. About seven steps.”
Matt was pleased to find Foggy’s directions to be accurate. Although he wasn’t entirely sure why he felt pleased by it.
“Okay, since we’re starting off, we have a basic throwing clay that’s nice and soft.”
Foggy’s heartbeat stuttered at the middle of the sentence.
Matt puzzles for a second, “Okay, thank you.”
“Yeah, so I’ve never taught a blind person but throwing can really be about the sensation and shape of the material as you move it.”
Matt hadn’t seen people throwing clay before his accident. He knows the theory behind it yet he’s feeling a little nervous. He doesn’t want to flounder in front of Foggy.
“So there’s a couple of other things to prep. First, wear this apron and then take a seat, there’s a foot pedal on your right that you step on to start the spinning of the wheel.”
Matt wears the apron and takes a seat to examine the wheel in front of him. He scoots forward more to have his knees touch a plastic rim. There’s a slight whirr and spinning sound when he applies pressure to the pedal.
“So, am I making a cup?”
Foggy lets out a bright laugh. There’s a pleasant timber to his voice.
“Oh yeah buddy, the best cup I’ve ever seen.”
“Okay, thanks for the lesson teach.” Matt makes an aborted move to stand up but is held down by Foggy.
“Not so fast Murdock. We have to make something for your dad now don’t we? That way he’ll know for sure that you should stick to being a lawyer.”
Matt frowns at the assumption that he won’t be able to make a good cup.
“I’m going to make a good cup.”
“Sure buddy.”
The silence between the two of them draws a tender tension.
“Oh shit, wait not because you’re blind Matt. But because everyone eats shit when they first try to make a cup.”
There’s a steady staccato to Foggy’s heartbeat and Matt relaxes a little.
“Oh okay, yeah then I’ll eat shit then.” Matt grins playfully at Foggy.
Foggy’s heartbeat does a slight uptick at the grin. Which Matt smirks a little more at.
“Alright, so there's a metal wheel in front of you that’s surrounded at the bottom by a plastic container. The metal spins at various speeds depending on the pressure on the pedal and the plastic catches any excess water and clay while you do so.”
“The clay is placed into the middle of the metal wheel and then we aim to center the clay in that spot. Centering just means making a mound of clay that looks symmetrical from all angles.”
Matt squints at the lengthy explanation, forming a muddled image in his mind about the clay.
“It’ll get easier to understand once we start using the clay.”
Foggy sets a couple of tools down near Matt’s wheel, and then thumps a large plastic bag next to Matt’s side.
“Alright, so we’re going to grab a single handful of clay and compress it to form a sort of ball.”
Matt does as instructed, the clay feels a lot smoother than he expected. It reminds him a little of cream cheese if it was firmer and didn’t melt.
“You’re doing great. Now what we wanna do is firmly press the clay into the middle of the wheel.”
Matt moves his hand along the metal of the wheel. Spreading his fingers out against it to gauge where the center of the wheel should be.
“Right there is perfect. Now we want to push down on the clay. Enough for it to stick against the metal but not enough to squish it completely.”
Matt presses the clay into the metal with a firm push. He can feel how the clay molds around his hand and loses its symmetry in the process.
“Don’t worry about keeping the clay perfect throughout. It’s supposed to move around and argue with you until you get more practice.”
Matt continues to focus his senses on the feeling of the clay. There are micro particles in the clay that feel slightly rougher to him. A distinction in texture but nothing to be considered annoying or painful.
“Okay. Is my cup done now?”
Foggy rolls his eyes and stares at Matt’s annoying yet attractive smirk.
“No, it looks like a flat piece of shit.” Foggy deadpans back.
Matt lets out a loud laugh this time, shoulders relaxing as he smiles. Small dimples show themselves.
He’s beautiful, Foggy thinks to himself.
“So, the pedal rotates the wheel. It’s easier if you start off slow and then work your way up towards higher speeds. It’s not a race and we should focus more on building up your skill level rather than making a cup right away.”
Matt gives an experimental push on the pedal. The wheel spins a lot faster than he expected, almost flinging his hand off the clay.
“Woah there Matt, a little slower and a lot more water to help out.”
“Water..?”
“Yeah, when we throw we use water as a lubricant to avoid friction and sticking against the clay.”
“Oh… do we just pour water onto the clay?”
“Essentially! There’s a bucket of water in front of you to the right, beyond the plastic rim.”
Matt reaches out and feels the bucket of water, along with some tools and a sponge.
“So, most people use their hands or a sponge to wet the clay. Just dip your hands into the water and see what feels natural to you.”
Matt dips his right hand into the water and lets it drip into the clay.
“Like this?”
“Great! Now what we do is place our elbows on our knees and center our chest to be above the clay. This way, we rely on the weight of our body to move the clay, rather than using our raw strength and getting injured.”
Matt moves into a slightly uncomfortable position, his elbows resting on the inside of his knees as he hovers over the clay.
“It helps to relax, think of your body as a guide for the clay. Rather than something that pushes and forces the clay into shape.”
Matt wraps his head around the idea. Guide the clay, ok, alright.
“Place your hands around the clay and put some weight into your palms.”
Matt pushes into the clay, body stiff and waiting for instruction.
“Here, Matt let me help you get a good feel for the clay.”
Foggy moves to sit behind Matt, wrapping his body around the other man’s back and arms.
“You’re a little stiff, just relax your entire body and let your hands be loose.”
Matt follows the instructions, although he feels his neck stiffen at Foggy’s words brushing his ear.
“That’s good, now apply just a bit of pressure to the pedal.” Foggy gently states to Matt.
Matt goes slower with the pedal, feeling the wheel revolve slowly as the clay begins to rotate in his hands. It’s a strange sensation, feeling the clay maintain its shape at the core as its outer layers morph against his hands.
“How’s my cup? Matt asks, a little distracted at the sensation of clay moving in his hands.
“Looking like a slightly better piece of flat shit, just remember to get more water when the clay feels like there’s too much friction and is fighting against you.”
Matt and Foggy proceed to go over various steps in throwing clay. Experimenting with the speed and texture of the material as Matt applies different amounts of pressure using his fingers.
“You’re actually doing pretty good! This step is called centering. It’s when we get the mound to look nice and pretty as it spins. Usually we can tell when it's ready by spinning it and seeing if there are any visual differences in the lump.”
Matt spins the clay at a decent pace, feeling around for any differences in the shape. He doesn’t find any, focusing on its smooth and inviting texture.
“You have a really good symmetrical disk right now, I’m sure you can feel how there's almost no difference as it slides along your hands.”
“Yeah, it's softer and smoother than I thought it would be.”
“Isn’t it? It’s really nice and meditative after you learn how to make them on your own.”
Foggy explains the next portion of building a cup, cradling the bottom of the clay with the space between both wrists and pinky finger. Then bringing the thumbs together and pushing downward to form a hole in the center of the clay as it spins.
“Looking good! Just go slowly and make sure to leave some clay at the bottom of the hole. This is to ensure that you don’t accidentally create a cylinder instead of a cup.”
Matt slowly pushed down into the clay with his thumbs, rewetting his hands every now and then. He focused on measuring the amount of clay left at the bottom, Foggy telling him that a few centimeters should be good enough for now.
“Dude, you’re like a natural at this stuff.”
Matt preens a little at the comment, suddenly wanting to impress Foggy even more.
“Okay, this is where it might get a little tricky. The clay now has an even crater shape from your thumbs. The walls of the crater are eventually going to become the walls of your cup.”
Matt feels around his clay and the walls that have yet to be properly formed.
“There are many different ways people throw cups. What's most important to start off is that you choose an intuitive pace and position with your body. Imagine what a cup at home feels like and try to emulate that shape.”
Matt feels around the walls, pressing at random points in the clay to try and force the walls to form.
“Not bad, what I would recommend is that you bring your left hand into the crater and then your right hand to steady the outer wall of the clay. Your right hand should stay firm as your left hand pushes towards it. Start from the bottom and feel out for an even thickness in the clay.”
Matt places his hands as Foggy instructed. The rotation of the clay takes some time getting used to. He manages to use the tip of his fingers to press the clay into itself and feels how the clay shifts upwards as a result.
“That's pretty great! You want to keep your fingers in that position for several rotations in order to ensure the clay stays symmetrical. Now, you just want to repeat the process but move your left hand into the clay as you move upward to make the rest of the clay the same thickness.”
Matt continues to follow Foggy’s instructions as the cup gradually forms. It’s not perfect, in fact it comes out more near the top and is thinner around the edges. Despite the imperfectness, Matt feels accomplished from their session.
“Do you want to keep it?”
“... Yes, I would.”
Foggy instructs Matt on how to release the cup from the wheel using a wire tool.
“It’s wonderful, look at our child Matt.”
“Our child? I believe Mini-Matt was all my hard work.” Matt says with a teasing grin.
“Well then, at least I don’t have to pay child support.”
Matt lets out an exaggerated gasp, “Foggy-dear, how could you not support Mini-Matt?”
“I’ll support Mini-Matt if he becomes an artist. If he ends up being a lawyer I’m divorcing you both.”
“Oh? And now we're married?” Matt grins at Foggy, both their hearts pumping a little faster.
“Hmm, a sexy artist with a sexy lawyer isn’t a half bad idea.” Foggy says as he slightly leans into Matt’s space as he examines Mini-Matt. Foggy hadn’t moved from Matt’s backside the entire time they worked on the cup, in fact he seems to have moved closer.
“Hmm, Mini-Matt can pursue whatever he likes. So long as he’s happy.”
“Deal.” Foggy whispers into Matt’s ear, making him shiver at the proximity.
Foggy presses his chest into Matt’s shoulder, leaning in to ask a question.
“Hey Matt, want to learn more with me?” Foggy asks, voice huskier than before.
Matt presses on the pedal suddenly without thinking, flinging the freshly cut cup off the metal and straight into the plastic rim.
“....”
“Fuck”
“...”
“FUCK”
“...Hey, Matt, it's okay!”
Matt simmers in his frustration, barely hearing Foggy. He liked that cup. He loved that cup. He may or may not have already planned what color it was and what cabinet it would live in.
“I killed my cup.”
“Yeah buddy, you body slammed it.”
Matt lets out a small laugh at Foggy’s bluntness. It's a welcomed feeling that’s a far cry from the fragility he usually receives.
“Hey but that just means you have an excuse to come back again! Next time, we can make a plate or stick to cups. Whatever you want.”
“That would… be nice.” Matt says earnestly with a small smile.
“What’s the price of today’s lesson, Foggy?”
They go over the costs and plan for another lesson later into the week. They trade phone numbers and Matt helps clean up the mess and each say their goodbye’s to Mini-Matt.
“See you around Matt!”
“I’ll try to see you around Foggy.”
“Oh you fucker, you know what I meant”
“Did I?” Matt smiles over his shoulder as he leaves the studio.
The bell chimes as Matt leaves the door, leaving Foggy alone in the studio.
“Fuck, he was so hot and I gave him free porcelain.”
Matt has a slight smirk and cocky gait as he walks back home. He’s got good news and a possible career change to tell his dad.