All The Arts That We're Not

Chapter 38

Arkin

Arkin's feeling lighter than before the who time he was sitting while painting. It's already seven in the evening and Zeke hasn't come back which made him decided to do painting.

Unlike before, Arkin felt much at peace as he paints. His painting is still dark as it has always been but the message and story behind it is just complete opposite of how people perceive it.

It felt much lighter doing something that you loved and you enjoyed without having to worry about anything. And that's what he's been realizing lately in life.

Few minutes later, Zeke enters the front doors just before Arkin had looked for him.

"Where have you been? I was looking for you, but Richard told me you left already." He said but Zeke remain quiet as he looked at Arkin's painting.

"Hey, you know what? I had an idea!" Arkin then grab a blank canvass and made him sit on the couch and Zeke didn't looked away from Arkin as he settled back on the chair. "You can do a pose."

"Just do it this way." Zeke aid plainly and Arkin nodded his head as he began to paint.

The next moment was just consisted of silence as Arkin would look at Zeke and to his painting. Zeke who's been quiet the whole time remain looking at Arkin.

"How do you feel being around me?" Zeke asked out of nowhere and which made Arkin knitted his brow.

"What do you mean?"

"Am I scary?"

"You were. I mean, I've been seeing you around before and I always thought you were kind of scary." He said with a chuckle.

"What if... I was a bad person?"

"Everyone's a bad person." He said without paying too much attention on how is Zeke is getting serious at this point. Or maybe he's just being too excited of painting him that's why he doesn't notice anything.

"What is that one thing that would make you hate me?" His next question made Arkin paused to look at Zeke who's waiting for his answer.

"What are you talking about? What's with all these question anyway?"

Zeke shrugged. "Nothing serious. I just like to know."

Arkin stared at him for a few seconds before he spoke. "As far as I can remember, I've already hated you once in my life before so I don't think there's some other reason why I wouldn't hate you." He laughed at the end of his sentence but immediately stopped once he notice the expression on his face doesn't changes.

He put down his brush and leveled his eyes to meet Zeke's. He tried to study his face and thought how is he acting differently all of a sudden.

"I'm sorry. I don't think I can't thank you enough for what you've done to me. You let me stay here and I'm just so thankful. If you're worried that people would hate you then I know whom I would hate too."
He said and Zeke just smiled at him.

Arkin had no idea what happened but he just know something's bothering him. As much as he want to ask he felt like letting him talk about it when feel like it.

.

The next day, Arkin was sitting on his chair while waiting for his next class when he overheard a conversation from his classmates.

"Have you heard about the gossip?" One of his classmate asked and Arkin tried to keep his nose out of their conversation.

"What gossip?"

At this point, Arkin doesn't have the slightest interest of eavesdropping from someone's conversation but not until he's hard the mention of Zeke's name that caught his attention.