Dinner Party

Chapter 2

Hallie's POV

I was pissed. No, more than pissed. I was furious at him for being such an ignorant idiot who couldn't keep his hands to himself when he saw a girl in a short skirt. That was probably one of the weirdest experiences I've ever had, I though to myself as I put my earbuds in. God, I hope he just leaves me alone from now on. I don't need more of that in my life. 

Through the window I could see Beck and Mr Smith talking in his office. Suddenly Mr Smith laughed, and my hope for him to get punished was snuffed out. Then again, what did I expect? He was a new student after all, and clearly very good with words. 

I saw Mr Smith point over to a table, but Beck shook his head, pointing at me. Mr Smith laughed and nodded, shaking Beck's hand before they walked out, standing in front of the class. 

"Alright, everyone, we have a new student today, his name is Beck, so be nice to him. Beck's been an artist for as long as he can remember, apparently, so feel free to not take it easy, y'know, amp up the competition. Don't forget, I'll be picking the winner at the end of next week, so work hard. Alright, get to it." Mr Smith said, smiling widely, running a hand through his salt and pepper hair.

Beck sauntered over to my table where I had sat alone for the past two years and sat, his chair grinding on the concrete floor. "Hey sugar." He said, manspreading widely, leaning back against the chair, clearly a power move. "Whatcha working on?" I ignored him, standing up to grab fresh charcoal pencils and a ruler. 

Sitting back down, I flipped over my canvas to reveal my half-finished portrait. It was just the rough outline, small details added here and there, but an audible gasp was heard, and I realized Beck was in awe. "Woah..." I looked over at him, confused at his reaction. The portrait was a man, slightly hunched over, though his face was still visible, bloody nubs erupting from his back, feathers and drops of blood on the ground around him. His face wasn't drawn yet, but I had planned to make it scrunched up in pain, tears flowing down his cheeks in his agony. 

I used rulers in my work to make my lines more geometric, sharper for the outlines before going back later to curve them out and perfect them, simultaneously adding detail and taking away by creating shadows to obscure and smooth out any imperfections. 

"Did you draw that?" He asked, pointing to my artwork. I nodded slowly, pondering over which pencil was needed for the feathers. "It's really good." Beck sounded awed and in shock, but I brushed it off.

"I'm not done with it yet. It'll be better once I add more detail. I don't think I'm really conveying his pain yet." I said simply before putting in my other earbud to drown him out and got back to work. He was getting to be a bit tiresome, and it was only ten am. I needed to save my strength to get through the rest of the day, and he was quickly sapping it, though at the same time filling me with light and making me feel... it was indescribable. I didn't like it, but when I was with him I felt free and light; something about him made my head quiet down and let me live. 

No, I thought. He's just the new kid, and you aren't going to have a chance with him once people start to notice him. Whatever he makes you feel must just be your breakfast not settling well. Pushing my thoughts away, I turned up my music a little louder and drowned everything out, the lines and shadows taking over for me, my hand moving unconsciously on its own, without my command. 

I didn't pay attention to how much time passed, knowing Mr Smith would find me when class ended, and if he didn't, he'd just write me a pass to my next class. Someone tapped on my shoulder and I looked up, Beck smirking down at me. He started to say something, but sighed and pulled my earbud out when he realized I couldn't hear him.