Eyes Wide

Chapter 1: First Glance

Art is never finished, only abandoned.

- Leonardo da Vinci.

The atelier was filled with the sickly odour of over-roasted meat, but when the late autumn breeze passed through the withering gardens of Rosevald, in came a refreshing scent of freshly cut grass. Sometimes the breeze would travel just far enough to trickle a shiver down Tsukiyama's back, jolting the painter into 'correct' posture every few minutes.

From the corner of the workroom, a slither of wind would spill through the slit of an opening in the window only to tease the loose strands of hair on Kanae's head with some relaxation. He would look up every so often to check on the young apple tree, whose frail branches began to fail on keeping hold of the scarlet beads of it's first fruit, proudly and selfishly clinging on to them, putting itself in danger of snapping to a side. Returning his head to the previous position, Kanae resumed the work at hand.

Standing straight, putting the artist to shame, stood an easel in the center of the room, which clutched a canvas proudly for display while Tsukiyama peppered it with an array of colours one by one. The image held a full-body portrait of a young man of completely supernatural beauty and as the painter occasionally inched back to observe his own progress, an innocent smile of happiness lingered on his face for a while until he realized that he ran out of his red paint.

"How are the cochineals coming along, Kanae?" The artist broke the silence, startling his cousin with his deep and raspy morning voice.

"They take a while, Shuu, you should take a break from the painting. It is your best work yet, there's no need to rush." The young man briefly looked up to check on the health of his uncle before directing his eyes back to his over worked fingers, which seemed to become more red with every bug.

"My dear Kanae, of course I'll wait for the process of extracting to go as smoothly as possible. After all, quality is always above quantity - that's what I always tell you. But I mustn't spoil myself with extended breaks between each stroke or else my rare inspiration will wander." The artist sighed out, words escaping his mouth as swiftly as the smoke swirls around his recently lit pipe, beginning to add tobacco to the cocktail of odours that filled the studio to begin with.

Kanae coughed at the addition and pulled a face of disgust but kept on working. He glanced at the half finished painting in curiosity and raised an eyebrow. "Who is it that you're drawing, Shuu? He is quite stunning." An involuntary blush creeped onto the cheeks of the younger interlocutor, his eyes drifting slowly away from the half unbuttoned shirt of the man on the painting. Tsukiyama strolled slowly to the work desk, at which his cousin stood.

"Indeed he is. That is my current model and acquaintance, Haise Sasaki."

"Sasaki.. That's his name? Quite odd."

"Yes, that is his real name. Though I didn't plan on telling you just yet, Kanae." He exhaled the smoke in the direction of the young man, who coughed once again and turned his head to avoid any more, nodding. "In fact, you'll have to leave the room soon."

"How come..?" A pang of hurt rippled in his voice at his uncle's utterance. "Do you need to be alone again?"

"No, it's just that Sasaki is on his way here and I need all of his attention to paint. I'm sorry, Kanae, but I do not wish to share my muse with even you just yet. He has a very fragile and peaceful nature and is very dear to me. So I don't want you, or anyone for that matter, to influence him. No one but me to use him as their inspiration -" The artist was cut off by a gentle knock on the studio's door from the outside and through the front window the two relatives saw the white-tipped hair of Haise Sasaki fluttering in the wind, waiting for an invitation to enter.

"You've got to introduce me now, Shuu.."

(A/N: Yooooooooo, thanks for reading this. Imma upload more chapters soon. Probably 2 more because I cannot write a thick book. But yeah, hope you enjoyed this chapter).