Jinxed | Jinx Arcane Oneshots

Paint-Stained Promises | ROMANCE

ROMANCE

It was the sound that caught my attention first: a strange rhythm, like something metallic being tapped against the wall. Curious, I rounded the corner of a crumbling alleyway and froze.

Jinx.

She was crouched in front of a wall, surrounded by cans of paint and brushes scattered like fallen soldiers. Her hands were coated in vibrant colors, streaks of blue, pink, and yellow smudged across her cheeks and arms.

She was completely focused, her sharp eyes darting between the mural she was creating and the palette she'd made on the ground.

The mural itself was chaos, and somehow, it made perfect sense. Swirls of colors clashed and blended together, forming wild shapes that looked like explosions frozen in time.

Among the bursts of color, there were hints of something deeper, faces hidden in the strokes, symbols that felt familiar but unplaceable. I must've made a noise, because Jinx's head snapped toward me.

"What the hell are you doing here?" she barked, standing so fast she knocked over a can of paint.

"I could ask you the same thing," I said, raising my hands to show I wasn't a threat. "Didn't take you for the artsy type."

Jinx narrowed her eyes, clearly debating whether or not I was worth the effort of chasing off. Finally, she huffed, crossing her arms. "Well, now you know. I'm Picasso or whatever. Happy?"

I grinned, stepping closer. "More surprised than anything. It's... actually really good."

Her expression shifted, a flicker of vulnerability crossing her face before she quickly masked it with a smirk. "Of course. I'm amazing at everything."

"Need a hand?" I asked, nodding toward the wall.

Jinx hesitated, her eyes darting between me and the mural. For a moment, I thought she'd tell me to screw off, but then she shrugged. "Fine. But don't mess it up, or I'll use you as a canvas."

Working with Jinx was intense, she handed me a brush and immediately barked instructions, pointing to sections of the mural and explaining her vision in rapid-fire bursts.

"That corner needs more chaos. Like, BOOM chaos. But not too much. And over there? Make it look like it's melting. Got it?"

"Got it," I said, trying to keep up.

It didn't take long for things to get messy. My first brushstroke was a little too cautious, earning me an exaggerated groan from Jinx.

"No, no, no! You're thinking too much!" she complained, grabbing my hand and dragging it across the wall in a wild arc. "See? Like that! Don't be boring!"

Paint splattered everywhere. On the mural, on me, and on Jinx. She didn't seem to care, laughing as she tossed a brush aside and grabbed another can of paint.

Somehow, her energy was contagious. I found myself letting go, following her chaotic lead. We painted side by side, adding layer after layer to the mural until it felt like the entire wall was alive.

At some point, we both stepped back to admire our work.

"What do you think?" I asked, glancing at her.

Jinx tilted her head, studying the mural with a critical eye. "It's... almost perfect."

"Almost?"

She turned to me with a mischievous grin, holding up her paint-covered hands. "You're missing something."

Before I could ask what she meant, she reached out and smeared a streak of pink across my cheek.

"Hey!" I laughed, grabbing a brush to retaliate.

It turned into a full-blown paint war. Brushes were abandoned as we flung paint at each other, laughing so hard I nearly tripped over an empty can. By the time we were done, we were both covered head to toe in splashes of color.

Jinx collapsed onto the ground, her laughter finally fading into a breathless grin. I sat beside her, wiping a smear of blue paint from my arm.

"You're crazy," I said, though there was no bite to my words.

"Takes one to know one," she shot back, leaning back on her hands.

For a moment, neither of us said anything. The mural loomed above us, a chaotic masterpiece glowing under the faint light of Zaun's neon skyline.

Jinx broke the silence first.

"You know," she said, her voice softer than usual, "I've never let anyone see me do this before."

I turned to her, surprised. "Really?"

She nodded, her gaze fixed on the mural. "People think I'm just... boom-boom Jinx, right? Crazy, destructive, unpredictable. They don't see this side of me. And I like it that way. Makes things easier."

Her words hung in the air, heavy with meaning. I didn't know what to say, so I reached out, brushing a stray streak of pink from her cheek.

Jinx stiffened at the touch, her sharp eyes locking onto mine.

"I know you're not just the boom-boom girl," I said quietly.

For a moment, I thought she'd brush me off with a joke or a snarky comment. But instead, she grabbed a small brush and dipped it into the paint can beside her.

"Hold still," she muttered.

I froze as she leaned in, her tongue poking out in concentration. Slowly, she painted a tiny heart on my cheek, the brush tickling my skin.

"There," she said, sitting back with a smirk. "Now you're part of the mural."

I laughed, shaking my head. "You're impossible."

"Yeah, but you like me anyway," she said, her smirk fading into something softer. Her eyes lingered on mine, her usual manic energy replaced by a rare vulnerability. "You... make things brighter. Don't ruin it by leaving, okay?"

Her words hit me harder than I expected. I reached out, taking her paint-stained hand in mine.

"I'm not going anywhere," I promised.

For the first time, Jinx didn't try to hide behind her usual bravado. She just smiled a real, genuine smile that made my chest ache in the best way.

By the time we left, the mural was finished, and the paint on our clothes had dried. Jinx walked beside me, humming a tune under her breath, her fingers occasionally brushing against mine.

As we rounded the corner, she glanced at me with that familiar mischievous glint in her eye.

"Think they'll call it a masterpiece?" she asked, jerking her thumb back toward the mural.

I laughed. "Definitely. But they'll probably wonder who the second artist was."

She grinned. "Let 'em wonder. It's our secret."