ONE CHANCE, kotlc

Chapter 2: The Styles Of Art

Sophie walked home in a daze. Yes, Sophie and Tam were friends. Yes, now they were art project partners. They just . . . didn't have much in common. 

Tam was probably the person she conversed with the least in their friend group. It'd be odd, but something new. 

They decided to meet up at his house, approximately an hour after school ended.

Sophie went home, knowing her adoptive parents were working at the shop that day. She threw her backpack onto an empty, worn chair and tucked her shoes away. She whipped up a quick sandwich and quickly ate it.

Her palms were sweaty, so she rubbed them together and blew out a breath. Sophie put together a little bag of necessities she thought they would need for the project. Some paintbrushes, different types of paints, coloured pencils, and more.

Sophie spent the rest of the extra time she had reading a book on art, and when the time came to go to Tam's, she tucked the book away in her bag.  

She got her stuff together, with the bag slung over her shoulder as she slowly headed out and walked to Tam's, reading his address. 

Sophie's footsteps thudded across the sidewalk as she went around bends and up little hills. Finally, she made it to a tall house with Tam's address number. 

She gingerly tapped the doorbell, sending soft, melodic chimes ringing through the air. 

Sophie adjusted her grasp on the bag as a woman with long, black hair answered the door.

"Hi! I'm Mai Song!" She had an airy, intuitive voice and looked very similar to Tam.

"Hi, I'm Sophie Foster, and I'm here to work with Tam on an art project?" 

"Oh, right! Come inside. He's just in the living room." Mai opened the door, beckoning her in. Sophie took off her shoes and followed Tam's mother inside. The house smelled sweet, and the decoration was very homey. 

Mai led the way to the living room where Tam sat, flipping through channels with a blank expression on his face. 

"Hey Tam, Sophie's here." Mai paled when he didn't answer, so she mumbled a quiet excuse and left the room. 

"Um..." Sophie didn't want to intrude or sit there as if it were her home. 

Tam sighed. "You can sit down. Oh, and don't mind my mom. It's . . . we're not too close."

Sophie nodded and sat down across from him. "Okay, we'd better start. So, my art is more blended colours, pop-out things, and um, fun things. What's your style?"

"Darkness," He answered bluntly as he tugged on his silvery bangs.

"Maybe describe it more? The pictures, the . . . stuff," She encouraged him on, taking notes. 

"Well . . . It's dark," Tam continued, murmuring words that confused her.

Luckily, Linh walked in with a plate of snacks as she rolled her silver-blue eyes. "Don't mind Tam, Sophie. He's messing with you." She eyed her twin. "I'll explain it to you!"

"I know. It's darkness," Sophie sighed in exasperation.

"So," Linh plopped down lightly beside her twin. "Tam. His style. It's more . . . swirled. And dark."

Sophie nodded as if she were understanding, albeit she wasn't. "Maybe show me some of his artwork?" 

Linh nodded as Tam stood up, and Sophie slowly followed. Linh stayed and munched on the snacks instead of coming along. 

He led her up a tall, wide staircase and into a room filled with canvases and paints of all sorts.

Sophie gawked at Linh and Mai's paintings. Each picture, filled with love, each swish, soft yet striking. 

And then, she turned and saw Tam's art. Each picture was jagged, with many shades and layers of deep, dark colours spread along each canvas. They weren't large, but more so on the smaller side. 

Sophie traced her fingers lightly over each layer and each line. She had never seen any art much like what Tam made. It made her feel . . . a bunch of emotions. They tingled throughout her, showing her things and feelings she had neither seen nor felt before.