Conceal || ItsFunneh AU

02 | (chill) party

I make my way over to the art building, letting my hair hang around my face like a protective shield. This is what I do everyday: believing that if I don't make eye contact with anybody, nobody will notice me.

A warm gust of AC hits me, thawing me from the thin layer of ice that managed to settle over me. Winter here is no joke.

"Lunar! Hello!" A friendly voice cheers. Rosa, her strawberry blonde hair tied up in a messy ponytail, greets me with a hug.

I immediately tense up, fearful that she'll detect something, but Rosa doesn't seem to notice as she pulls back.

Rosa is exactly the kind of person I wish I could be. No secret identities, no baggage, nothing.

"Hi," I try to make my smile as warm as hers.

Rosa beams. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm, uh, working on a new painting, actually. Just something to get off my chest, I guess."

"Are you going to the art studio?" At my nod, she grins. " Me too!"

She leads me down the hall. As she does so, people walking by all wave and greet her, a chorus of "Hi Rosa!" following us. Rosa greets everyone back with equal enthusiasm while I trail behind, trying to disappear.

Our destination on the second floor, which consists of only one open-ended room. Easels and chairs are scattered around, all facing the huge glass window—the best view in the whole campus.

A small group of people sitting by the window stands up as we arrive, waving at us.

"Oh, there's my group!" Rosa exclaims, stopping to give me a goodbye hug. "We're planning on entering the annual comic contest this year! It would be great if you could give us some pointers, since you're one of the best artists here!"

I blush, squirming uncomfortably at the compliment. "Thanks. I could give you some pointers right now?"

Rosa beams and grabs my hand, dragging me over.

"Rosa!" One of them greets her with an enthusiastic hug.

"Hi Millie. Everyone, this is Lunar"

They all turn to stare at me, recognition dawning on their faces.

"Lunar! It's so nice to finally meet you!" Millie grabs both my hands and shakes them, hard.

I let out what I hope is a friendly smile, though it feels tense. "Yeah, of course. I'm happy to help."

Millie explains. "Our drawings feel a bit... flat, even though we have shading and everything."

I stare at where the other group members are huddling around a collection of paper. They really gave their all for this comic, that's for sure. Walking over, I grab a pencil and add a few simple strokes, highlighting the contrasts.

"Oh, I see!" Rosa whispers behind me, and I jerk up, surprised. "Sorry," she giggles.

The group members high-five each other, grinning. "I think we're done! Thank you so much, Lunar." Millie says, opening her arms to hug me, but I quickly step away. Hurt passes through her face, and I've never felt more ashamed of myself.

God, Lunar, it's just a hug.

"You guys did great!" I say, offering Millie a pat on the back. "I just added a few pencil lines."

"Since we finished early, we can go to the party tonight!" Rosa exclaims, grinning. "Lunar, you should come!"

I shake my head. "Thanks, but I'm not really the party kind."

"It's supposed to be a chill party. You should relax, it's the weekend!" Millie joins in.

I bite my lips, but I can't bear to refuse. "Alright," I agree reluctantly.

The party is chill, to my surprise. Of course, I've never been to a party before, so I don't know what a not-chill party looks like, but this definitely exceeds my expectation.

There's food and drinks on the living room table. I spy Gold scarfing down a slice of pizza and I wave. Her eyes widen and she almost chokes on her food.

"Lunar! You came!" She screams, causing several pairs of eyes to look at us. "Thank God. Funneh and Draco are playing Minecraft with Alec, and I have no one to talk to!"

At that moment, the door opens again and a boy with messy dark blue hair enters, looking around nervously.

"Oh! Kyran came!" Gold whispers to me, then hurries over to greet him.

Welp. There goes my companion.

I help myself to a slice of pizza, observing the room. Gold's talking to a flustered-looking Kyran; Rosa, Millie and the other comic-people are talking in another corner; Draco, Funneh, and Alec are all squished on one couch, staring at the TV screen.

A plethora of voices fuse into a soft hum in the background as I eat my pizza, then help myself to a cup of fruit punch, enjoying the free food.

Maybe parties aren't so bad after all.

I walk over to the balcony at the back and slide the door open. A fresh breeze greets me and I breathe in deeply.

The view from up here is spectacular. Unlike my apartment, which faces the inside of the campus, this one faces outwards. I could see the small shops and markets surrounding the campus, scattered like colourful Skittles. The sky is a beautiful purple hue, reflecting on the windows of other apartments.

Ignoring the slight chill in the air, I sit down on the floor and pull out my sketchbook to capture this moment down.

I have my basic outline down when the balcony door squeals open behind me. Startled, I drop my pencil on the ground and it rolls away from me.

"Oh! Sorry, I didn't know anyone was out here." A voice, unquestionably male, says.

My guard immediately raises and I quickly reach for my pencil, wanting to get out of here. My hand reaches the pencil just as the stranger reaches down, and our fingers touch.

A jolt shoots through me and I pull my hand away like I'd been electrified.

"Here. Sorry, again." The pencil is handed to me and I take it, making sure our fingers don't touch again.

"Thanks," I mutter and stand up.

Much to my dismay, we make eye contact.