Life is a Portrait (Zouis au one-shot)

Life is a Portrait (Zouis one-shot)

Life isn't simple.

When you’re young it may seem like it is; like you know exactly what you want to do with the rest of your life and you know exactly how you’re going to do it and it's just that easy. As you grow up, however, everything changes. Obstacles are being thrown at you left and right, people are in and out of your life in a blink of the eye and all you’re trying to do is find yourself without wrecking someone else's life so terribly that you have to worry about them too.

Being an adult isn't all it's cracked up to be, so don't let those movies fool you. Finding a job isn't that easy, finding love isn't that easy, having kids is definitely not that easy. Life just isn't that easy.

Zayn Malik wished he knew that before he was thrown, no, chucked into the black hole also known as adulthood. Moving out of his mom's house at barely seventeen and moving across the country to pursue his interest in art wasn't exactly a picnic for him.

Here he was, two years later at age nineteen, eating cheap, pre-packaged meals multiple times a week and wearing the same pair of pants two days in a row, sometimes longer. He didn't really mind doing things like that; he wasn't very materialistic but he did mind his status in the art industry.

Zayn was good at what he did and he knew that. He wasn't cocky about it per say, but he won many awards and scholarships from his work in high-school so he knew his work was exceptional. He had originally planned on going to art school; to try to learn more things and potentially get better at his craft but his dream school, Lancaster(1), had put him on the waiting list. After reading that letter, he packed up his things, said 'fuck this' and moved two hours away to a small flat in London.

From doing random jobs, all the way from babysitting to working in a cafe, he was able to pay his way and supply himself with all the necessary tools to get started with his career. Sure, his bed consisted of a twin sized mattress on the floor and a few pillows and sheets and he only had three channels on his television so he was stuck watching Netflix that his mom was still paying for but so what? He was okay with it all. 

He loved being able to be on his own and create art whenever and where ever he felt like it. Sometimes he would bring his little easel to the park and paint portraits for some extra cash. Sometimes he would bring his sketchbook to the library and just draw whatever he was thinking about at that very moment. He wanted to make art where ever he was and he wouldn't let anyone stop him. Art was his passion and he wanted his big break to come soon. Not for the money, although the money would be great, but because he wanted to share his handiwork with the world.

And he had a feeling that day would be coming in the near future but until then, he decided to go on with his life as normal. Today he would be going down to the park and draw more portraits like he had done many many times before. Zayn packed up his art supplies and a snack for the ducks who adored him (probably because of the snacks) and he walked two blocks from his building to where the public area was located. 

As he walked along the grass, he noticed all of the people who were out. It was a beautiful day in London, surprisingly, and everyone wanted to enjoy it. Kids were playing on the swing set, busy moms were pushing strollers and talking into their cellphones loudly and couples were eating lunch on their picnic blankets near the pond. 

Zayn smiled to himself and set up his easel, stool and pencils in a dry, flat area. He placed a small sign on the backside of the canvas that read "portraits - 6 pounds"(2). People all around watched him curiously, wondering what he was doing. It wasn't common for someone to come to the park to draw something properly; maybe sketch the trees or pond in a small notebook but that was about it, and when he put the sign up he immediately attracted a small crowd.