Tainted

Chapter 20

The rays of sun shining through my window illuminates the studio , lighting it up with its warmth . The familiar atmosphere calms me down , almost causing me to forget about last night .

"Use whatever you like . I wont go against anything that would help with your creativity. Just dont mess with my painting and I wont mess with yours ."Vincent explains , while flipping through the stack of blank canvases , picking out the size he wants.

I cant help but observe him in this casual moment . Vincent is a peculiar character and is often finding himself in odd situations. Seeing him dressed in a plain t-shirt and trousers casually getting ready to paint something is so weird to see . It all seems so normal on the surface , however knowing what he'll be using to paint taints the picture.

I follow his lead and take my time to think about what I'd paint on the different sized canvases , not settled on anything just as yet .
Maybe I'll go for something not too big , yet not small . An A2 sounds safe .

The sound of Vincent opening the wooden box with the paints from Damien catches my attention and I cant help but watch as he sets it carefully on the table next to him before prepping his canvas and getting his paintbrushes ready .

I find myself intrigued by his movements but I force myself to get back to work , picking a random set of paints and brushes before making my way to my easel and setting up .

"You're procrastinating ." Vincent announces as he picks up his palette .

"No I'm not." I protest and sit on the stool . I stare at the white canvas in front of me , my thoughts drifting to Vincent and his paints.

I wonder how it feels to paint with them .

I'm well aware that blood clots together when on it's own and isn't thick when added to water . In fact I dont think it is possible to paint with blood . How in the hell did Damien make paint out of blood without changing anything about its colour and texture ?

"Vincent ." I call softly , careful not to ruin his mood.

"Yes Love?"

I take a deep breath in , preparing myself for what's about to come out of my mouth. "May I experiment with your ...paint?"

A moment goes by with no answer . I find myself regretting ever asking .

"Like I said , use whatever you want."his voice is light but his tone is dangerous , as if anticipating my next action .

I get up from my stool and slowly make my way towards him and find that he has already started painting. A pale red circle is dabbed in the centre of the canvas . I wonder what hes painting .

"If you'd like a lighter shade , mix a bit of water with it . But only a bit."he directs and hands me three tubes of paint . I hold the tubes in my palm and find myself entranced by them .
It feels whimsical in a way , like a rare resource I shouldn't be playing with.

"Thank you." I squeak and rush back to my seat before plopping myself down in excitement.

I carefully open one of the tubes and squeeze out a blob of the red paint onto my palette. I stare at it , bewildered and curious . Every red I've seen cannot compare to the one in front of me. No matter how well people have mixed colors together to create one for blood , they were never accurate enough. The blob of paint in front of me looks exactly like blood , the colour and the texture . However the thickness is that exactly like oil paint . Damien is definitely some other worldly being if he is able to create something so complex .

I pick up a number five paintbrush and carefully press it against the blob of paint , spreading it down the palette, amazed by its appearance.
I immediately bring the brush to the canvas and let my hand flow freely , allowing it do as it wishes without any protest or second thought from my brain.