Haunting; Noren NCT

♱•Twenty-Nine•♱

Renjun sits in front of an easel, his mind completely blanc. The bright white shade of the canvas was almost mocking him as he struggles to think of how to fill the space.
"Are you okay?" A voice asks, shaking the boy from this zoned out state. His eyes move up to the redheaded boy peaking his head over the top of his canvas. "You seem spaced out today". Donghyuck moves to take a seat next to Renjun, his eyes also travelling to the blank canvas.

The brunette sighs and discards his paintbrush onto the table beside him "I'm lacking inspiration is all" he mutters, picking up his sketchbook and flipping through for some ideas. "It's like I knew exactly what I was going to do for this project but now it doesn't seem very original".

Donghyuck snatches the book from the other boys hands and begins flipping through the sketches himself. The readhead had already shown he lacked any kind of artistic talent but Renjun was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. He flicks through the pages, going and backwards to a few he'd already gone past, his brows scrunched a little. "What about these, you've drawn a lot of these, you could make a series of them" he says, showing Renjun the book.

All the sketches he had pointed out had been ones he'd done whilst bored in class. A sketch of his circular bedroom window and a shadowy figure sat beside it. Another sketch of a human hand reaching out for a scribbled mass of darkness that seemed to reach out also. Turning a page was a sketch of his house and in his bedroom window, a hunched dark figure of a boy, trapped inside.
They were all of jeno. He couldn't use these, people would question his sanity.
He quickly shakes his head laughing awkwardly "they're um not great, they're not going to attract much attention" he snaps the book shut and stuffs it into his backpack.

Donghyuck only shrugs before standing "well I think they're interesting, it'll stand out more than everyone else's work" he nods his head in the direction of all the other easels, most canvases depicting a landscape or portrait of some sort. He was right it would stand out but maybe not for the right reasons.

"I'll think about it, thanks" he offers the younger boy a smile. He watches as Donghyuck wanders back to his own canvas, which was currently just painted pink.
Renjun leans down and picks up his paintbrush and quickly mixes up a black ink wash before getting to work.
•••••

"How was school?" Jeno asks as Renjun walks through his bedroom door and throws himself onto his bed. The boy only lets out a groan that's muffles by his pillows as a response "that good huh?".

Renjun looks up at the ghost who wore an amused expression on his features "I'm having trouble completing my art project" he sighs, forcing himself to sit up "my mind is just blank"

Jeno shrugs a little, clearly not knowing what advice to give the other boy "can you not just paint something you love?" He asks "like a view you love or a food you love, your friends maybe?"

The suggestion causes Renjun to look down at his hands, he begins pulling at a hangnail, watching as a bead of crimson blood wells up on his skin "w-well I've sort of already started painting it, well I mean I have ideas" he says nervously forcing himself to look up at the ghost "I don't know if I'll stick with it"

Jeno only nods in understanding as he takes a seat on the bed next to Renjun "well I'm sure it'll come to you eventually" He reaches out and grabs the boys hand, observing the blood "I'll get you a plaster for that" he says before standing and making his way to the bathroom.

Why did things feel so awkward between them? Or maybe it was just Renjun. Jeno seemed to be handling this all well and it hurt a little to know how easily Jeno could see them as friends and nothing more, no matter who's idea it had been.

He quickly shakes the thoughts from his head, they we're friends, nothing more. Not now, not ever. He was fucking dead.

Jeno came back and leant down in front of Renjun taking his hand and dabbing the blood away with a damp cloth. He grabs the plaster and gently wraps it around Renjun's finger, although the job was done his hand lingers a while longer, their fingers intertwined ever so slightly.

The ghost looks up and the brunette boy, their eyes searching each other face. It took every ounce of Renjun's willpower not to lean down and capture those lips with his own, he longed for those days when they could do that with no problems, but Renjun knew Jeno had set boundaries for a reason and he had to respect them. But that didn't mean he couldn't at least try.

Slowly he leans down, their faces inches from one another and Renjun can feel Jeno's cold breath on his face. 
"Jeno I-"

"Stop" the ghost says, dropping his hand and scooting away from him "stop you know we can't".

"Why?" Renjun asks his chest aching slightly as how quickly the ghost and moved away from him.

"You know why!" His voice wavers slightly "please Renjun just don't bring it up again"

Renjun only nods in understanding and stands from his bed. He grabs a hoodie from the hanger and tugs it over his head before reaching for the door handle.

"Where are you going?" The ghost asks, pushing himself from the floor and moving closer to the boy.

"Im going out" he says, his eyes narrowing slightly at Jeno "away from this house and away from you"

With that Renjun leaves his room and slams the door behind him, leaving the ghost stood staring after him.