Clumsy Little Cloud [Naoya]

Dark, baggy lines were under his eyes as he stared out a window, into the campus. He had to squint a little as the bright golden sun flowed into the hallway. Sighing, started walking down the hall again, trying to relax a little. It was days like these when he would forget to eat, sleep, or even take a shower.

Yawning, Naoya's mind wandered everywhere as he put one foot in front of the other. Being accepted to this school was something important to many people, but to him, it was just something else in his life. It was on days like this, when his work shirt was stained with paint, and his hair was ruffled, that the painter wanted nothing more than to make something beautiful, regardless of the stress it caused to achieve that.

Walking down the hall to the art room, Naoya found himself caught in a yawn as he rounded a corner, straight into a nervous looking girl. He didn't stumble too much, but he saw many detailed pieces of paper fly into the air and float to the ground. The girl in front of him sure did seem anxious as she stood back.

Simply nodding at her question, he kneeled down and carefully picked up the papers, trying to keep them organized. His eyes caught the well detailed panels. Even if he wasn't a fan of the art style, these weren't bad at all. Standing up, he carefully hand out his hands that now held a pile of manuscripts.

"It's fine, just try and watch where you're going." He looked down at the papers one last time, thinking that maybe saying something that was pretty uncalled for when it came to a neurotic girl like this. Looking up again, he spoke. "You didn't get hurt, did you?"

Raising an eyebrow, Naoya looked down at his shirt. It was almost some sort of child art piece of it's own at this point. Looking back at the shorter girl, he nodded lightly. Judging by what was on those papers that had just been on the ground and a few stains on her shirt, he guessed she may be some sort of mangaka. Well, while he wasn't really a big fan of manga or anime, the student cracked a subtle smile for a second, surprised to have met another artist.

After a moment, he took a step back, giving her some more room in the hallway. It would have been bad if she dropped what she was holding again. He quietly cleared his throat a little, internally cursing himself for not getting some water earlier. "Yeah, I am. I was just taking a break for a few minutes." He looked down again, and tried to straighten his shirt. "Sorry for my.. untidy look. It's been a bit of a long day." Normally, Naoya wasn't very talkative most of the time, but he felt the need to explain his disheveled appearance.

After at least making sure the messy shirt was on straight, he bowed slightly. "My name is Naoya Akamaru.. I'm the Ultimate Artist." That was it. No 'nice to meet you' or anything. He just simply thought he might as well introduce himself considering they've both been standing in the hallway for a while now.

It wasn't that he disliked her, or anything. The artist just was never someone to be very social to people he just happened to bump into. Though, he did have some respect for her already considering she was a fellow artist, and seemed nice enough to talk to.  

It had seemed that any discomfort in the air from their accident a few minutes ago drifted away as the conversation went on. He listened intently to what she was saying, watched her actions and mannerisms, noticing that his classmate was at the very least becoming more comfortable around him. In fact, a bright smile had appeared in place of the nervous and apologetic looks she was giving him earlier. A bit of relief washed over him, thankful that this girl wasn't going to be constantly nervous around him. 

As Naoya tried to sort out his borderline disastrous appearance, he payed attention to the girl's dialog. Even if he didn't look very interested, the artist was happy to learn even a little more about her. As she introduced herself, and continued to chatter on, the splotchy student felt confident that she was some sort of mangaka, judging by a few faint ink stains on her clothes. It was fairly easy for two artist to spot each other, even though Ayaka hadn't stated her talent. Nodding at her introduction, he couldn't help but feel like he's heard her name before. Ayaka Umino. It was more than likely that he would have heard it at some point while coming to this school, but he doesn't think he's met her before. 

Clearing his dry throat again, the artist spoke. "It's a pleasure to meet you too, Umino." She was certainty polite. More than most people he's come across in.. well, a while. Finally, his classmate raised her question. A surprised look broke out on his face as she asked if he was alright. Either she was just really good at reading people, or he was in a bad shape. The latter wouldn't really surprise him. When the blue-haired boy set his mind to a project, he'd often forget basic necessities. It's made him seriously sick more than once. 

After getting over his initial shock from her question, he answered swiftly, feeling almost embarrassed by the subject. "Yes, I'll be fine. Like I said, it's been a busy day." While most people may have found it nice to have been shown this kind of concern, he was taken aback. This girl had just met him, and she was already concerned about his health? As she posed her next question, he took a moment to think about what to say. "Well, I was thinking of getting something to drink and eat right now.. As for sleep, I'm used to staying up for.. a while." Naoya saw it as almost a bit shameful that he'd let himself get so deprived in a day, but when it came down to working on something, all other concerns went out a window. They simply would become irrelevant. The only reason he had even taken a break in the first place was because he had at least gotten to a good point to stop. 

Shaking his head at Ayaka's final question, he tried to reassure her. "No. I'm not in a hurry right now. It's fine.." His tone was a bit softer due to the previous inquiries. None of those concerns were even on his mind until she brought them up. Suddenly, he could feel how hungry he was, how heavy his eyes had become. Considering he was already on a break, the tall student figured he could spare a few hours to reinvigorate himself. 

After a long moment of silence, a chuckle escaped the painter. He stifled it pretty quickly, before looking away for a moment, thinking. Ayaka had shown a lot of concern for him without a second thought, and she had hardly even met him yet. Whether that said more about her naivety or his cynicism, he didn't know. The man simply stood there for a moment, before nodding lightly. 

"Okay.. lead the way, Umino." He tried to give a weary smile, though the painter wasn't really the smiling type to begin with, though this was a sort of special case. Even if he wasn't really a people person, Naoya did find some comfort with this girl. Maybe it was just her personality; she was pretty harmless. Though, his look grew solemn for a split second, as the girl before him reminded him of someone close to him. Shaking off the feeling, the tall student started walking, listening to her suggestions. At least she seemed excited. He shook his head at her question. "I haven't really tried much of the school's food. The cafeteria's filled to the brim with people a lot of the time, so.. I normally just go out to town and get something."

Their footsteps echoed throughout the hall. Two artist, on the way to get some lunch. Or dinner. Whatever it was time for. The walk wasn't too bad, though his legs did ache a little from not getting all that much use that day. And the artist couldn't help but beat himself up internally for his, quite frankly, sloppy appearance, but he tried to ignore it, just trying to have a good time. Which, if the shorter student kept talking like this, wouldn't be a challenge.

Ayaka Umino

They both made there way into the cafeteria, the smell of food still cooking and the sounds of a few people still talking as they enjoyed their late meals. Luckily, the crowds had died down quite a bit by that point, so Naoya didn't feel like suffocated by a bunch of loud teenagers. Resting his left hand in his pocket, the student stepped forward, looking up at the menu. It certainly wasn't any ordinary school menu, luckily. 

After she spoke, he looked over at the mangaka, noticing she still had a look of joy on her face. She had been grinning like a child in a candy store the entire walk to the cafeteria, even though he had hardly really talked. After placing her order, his classmate looked at him, waiting for him, obviously. Having already read over the menu, he realised that he didn't really care all to much we he got. After such a long day, all he wanted at this point was some food.

"Same as her, Kings Penguin sandwich, please." Well, why not. Ayaka seemed to hold the food in high regards. Still, he wouldn't be ecstatic if this sandwich's only selling point was a drawing of a penguin, artist or not. After their orders had been placed, he stood there, taking a breath. It had been such a long day for the painter, filling in commissions. Still, he was grateful for the unexpected company. After they got their food, he motioned his head towards a nearby table for them to sit at. 

Unwrapping the food, he took a bite, his eyes gazing at the manuscripts that Ayaka had set down on the table. Silently thinking to himself, wondering what kind of person Ayaka was outside of a situation like this, he raised his head, meeting her own gaze. 

"So.. I assume you've been enjoying your time at this school?" Sure, the girl seemed nervous earlier, he thought to himself. However, she really did have a carefree aura about her. He admired that, yet it still pained him a little with memories. He wondered if his emotional mask held up. "Did anything specific make you want to attend the academy?" The student hoped this line of questioning didn't come off wrong. He was just curious.


Ayaka Umino