A Work of Art

Back to the Drawing Board

He stumbled into the alleyway, the din of the city giving way to piercing silence. The smell of rotting garbage and rat feces filled the air, but Reikas hardly noticed them. Instead, his attention was focused on a brick wall that dwarfed him. Much of the wall was overtaken by random pieces of spray painted graffiti. It was difficult to see clearly with the buildings blocking out the sun, but there were a few signatures here, some “ACAB” there. His gaze, however, was focused on a small piece off to the side: two blue stick figures, one smiling and the other frowning. The paint dripped and the lines were sloppy. His own work. 

A large part of Reikas wanted to turn away, to just convince himself it was perfect, and ironic, and deep. He wanted to move on, to ignore the work, ignore the pain he caused and suffered in the events following the tag. It took every piece of himself to stare at it, and beyond that, truly examine it. He reached his right hand up, throbbing with the memory of Seraphim’s assault, touching the smiling figure gently.

“I don't get it. I don't…”

Reikas’ voice quivered as tears welled up in his eyes. He leaned forward, raising his arm to his forehead as he pressed them against his work of art. His mind raced with thoughts, but they faded as soon as he tried to grab onto one. The ethereal and fragmented thoughts left as soon as they entered, all save for one question. He took a deep, shaky breath before backing up and taking a look at the wall in front of him.

“What do I want?”

The question seemed simple enough. An hour ago, the answer would be easy to answer. Fame, recognition, appreciation. For the first time, however, Reikas forced himself to dig deeper about himself. At the root of it all was attention. It didn't matter if it came from fans of his art, police chases, his friends, none of it mattered. As long as he had attention, as long as he had proof that he mattered in the world and wasn't being shoved under the rug, Reikas was happy. And yet… he had it. Eden, Seraphim, and now arguably Alexandra. Were they not enough?

He glanced at his arm. It looked real enough, but underneath he knew there were a few metal parts and wires. After his “fight” with Seraphim, it was either cyber replacements or be stuck with a limp arm the rest of his life. And as loath as he was to them, Reikas knew sacrifices had to be made for art. And yet, he's sacrificed so much already. His arm, his safety, his job, the time and money of Eden and Seraphim, everyone's safety… 

How much more would he sacrifice for his art? Where is the line drawn?

Reikas couldn't answer that question. Not with his bawling drowning out any errant thoughts. He couldn't think. He couldn't even try. By the time he had collected himself, the sun had fallen in the sky. With a deep breath, he attempted to piece together his thoughts. What was he supposed to do now? Despite how much his lust for attention brought him down, he couldn't deny the allure of fame, and although it wasn't exactly on display through his tags, Reikas simply knew he had talent. While it was hard to translate drawings in a sketchbook to a brick wall, he knew it was possible. He just had to face the reality that he didn't know how it was done. Eden's words echoed in his head. Studying art… that could really mean anything, but it's not like he had another idea. 

Picking up his backpack, Reikas left the alleyway, staring at the sidewalk as he scoured the block for a store. Eventually, he found a building that looked inviting enough, with a sign reading “Jade’s General Store” in plain red text. The store was essentially just a large one story square, and it was clear that the studio apartment was being repurposed as a store. Every single item inside was splayed out, nothing being organized or contained. A woman sat behind a folding table pretending to be a counter, sitting on a rolling chair and resting her blacks sneakers on the table. Her hair was a fluffy, messy black with streaks of pink, and a pair of pink rabbit ears flopped down along the side of her head. She wore a black shirt with an image of some green cartoon character on it, contrasting her pink and black striped fingerless gloves. The rips in her skinny jeans exposed her tan skin. Hearing the door open, she glanced up and gave a small wave.

“Hey. How's it-” She cut herself off, glancing over Reikas as her animal ears pointed straight up. “Oh, wait a minute! I remember you! You're the guy who got me sand all that time ago!”

Confused, Reikas stared for a moment. It didn't take long for him to connect the dots, though. “Oh yeah. Hi, Jade. Didn't think you were on the up-and-up now.”

“Oh, I'm not.” A quick glance at the several bags of sand on the table confirmed tmher statement. “None of this is, you know… legal. But it's Daybreak City, Nejunia stopped caring decades ago.”

“I vaguely remember my dad talking about that. Something about corporate-sponsored cities and Nejunia just not caring enough to do maintenance.”

“Yeah, it kinda sucks.” Jade sighed. “But hey, I can do whatever I want here! I got these ear mods a few days ago! Wanna pet?”

“No.”

“Whatever.” Jade rolled her eyes, keeping the smile on her face. “What's up? Need something?”

“Yeah, actually. Do you have like, a notebook and a pencil you could sell me?”

“Giving up graffiti, huh?” Jade asked as she got up, almost falling as she rose. She trudged her way towards a bookshelf, grabbing a notebook and a half-sharpened pencil, holding them out to Reikas.

“Nah, I just… gotta explore the next steps in my craft. And sometimes it involves going back to the basics.” 

“I don't get it, but okay! You can have them for free. A friend of Eden’s is a friend of mine!”

Reikas stored the items in his backpack, but the name drop caught his attention. “You know Eden?”

“Mhm! We're just like, friends with benefits. They talk about you a ton though.” A blush formed on his face.

“...what do they say?”

“Oh, just how cute you are. How proud they are of you. They hype you up a lot. And your art too!”

Silence filled the room as Reikas took it in. His quest for fame and recognition cost him and people close to him a lot. But through it all, he still had their support. They let him do this. He demanded much of them, and gave back so little. Reikas smiled. If he just actually applied himself, then surely he could give back what he's taken. He just had to buckle down and focus. 

“Oh, Reikas?”

“S'up?”

“Can you draw me? Like, maybe we can call that payment for the pencil and stuff?”

“You got it,” he said with a content sigh. Jade struck a pose, raising her hands with peace signs while winking. Reikas began drawing immediately, glancing up occasionally before looking back down. A few minutes later, he tore the page out of the sketchbook and handed it to her. The style was reminiscent of a simplistic anime look, yet there was an undeniable resemblance to its subject. There was a genuine look of quality to the sketch, rushed as it was. Jade gasped and hugged the paper to her chest.

“I LOVE IT!” she squeed, laying it on her desk. “Thank you so much!”

“No problem,” Reikas replied, heading out of her home. Although he wasn't sure of if there actually was a problem or not, he couldn't deny the comfort in knowing his next step in his goals.