Please, Take It.

~Part 1~

You'd think that after having this mysterious man around for a while that he would have gotten used to him but no, Shawn was still extremely cautious of the man from the painting called Dark.

It was supposed to be just another day at the studio. Design ideas came in, ideas were scratched, and like normal, ink was spilled. But sitting at his desk Shawn could feel the eyes of Dark boring into his back.

"Don't ya' have anythin' better to do then watch me like that?" He turned away from his latest idea to glare at the man standing in the corner of the room.

Dark just grinned and shook his head, not saying a word.

It had been like that for days. Some days he spoke to him, wanting to know more about him and some days he just watched. His dark watching eyes sent shivers up Shawn's back. He had asked him when he first appeared what he wanted. His answer was something Shawn didn't expect. Dark wanted a companion. So much so that he had spelled him. Forcing his body to do what he wanted. It took so much fight on his part to combat it and break the hold. Dark found that amusing as well as impressive. So much so that he didn't feel the need to do it again since. Though Shawn could tell that Dark really wanted to try again. Sometimes he felt Dark's lingering gaze focused on him so much that his skin felt like it was on fire.

Shawn did his best to ignore him but he couldn't shake the feeling of the kiss they shared the other night. Lying to others was one thing but lying to himself was harder to do. He couldn't deny that the man in the corner didn't stir up emotions that he did his best to conceal from the judgmental world.

Turning away from Dark after receiving no verbal answer he returned to the work that laid before him. The Bendy dolls wouldn't paint themselves. The thought of one of the Bendy dolls coming to life and painting faces on the others made me laugh. He hadn't noticed that he was softly laughing to himself but Dark had.

Dark noticed how Shawn's smile changed how he looked. Slowly he walked towards the artist to look carefully and quietly over his shoulder.

"What an odd looking demon," he commented, looking at the toy Bendy model Shawn had on his desk as a reference. The deep low voice startled the toy maker so much it caused him to practically jump out of his seat, sending his paintbrush flying into the air.

"Could ya not sneak up on me like that!" He huffed as he bent down to pick up his brush from the floor. "Gonna give me a heart attack."

"My apologies."

Dark's face only displayed a smirk that Shawn would have gladly slapped off his face if only he could work up the nerve to do so. Looking at him Shawn couldn't tell if he was sorry or just humoring him. He was about to question Dark's apology but decided to calm his shaken nerves. Without saying a word, Shawn walked to where his messenger bag hung on the coat rack in the corner of his tiny office.

Dark watched with curiosity as he saw Shawn pull out an unmarked glass bottle of amber colored liquid.
"Medicine?"

Shawn chuckled, "You could say that."
Taking the cap off the bottle and placing it to his lips he took a very long swig of his favorite kind of 'medicine'. He expected more questions but Dark stayed quiet. Watching Shawn as he took one more drink before returning the bottle to it's hiding place.

Stretching as he walked back to his desk he could feel the whiskey start to send a warm relaxing feeling through his body. His muscles relaxed as he returned to work, finally able to ignore the being that continued to watch him closely.

Dark was curious as to why the artist felt the need to drink so early and at his place of work. At first glance he thought the liquid in the bottle was some sort of medical remedy but when Shawn opened the bottle the familiar scent hit him. It was whiskey. A strong one at that from the relaxed look of Shawn's face.

"Should you be drinking while at work?" He finally asked, breaking the silence with his deep calming voice.

Shawn took a minute to compose his answer. Ignoring how Dark's voice sent emotions he didn't want to deal with through him.

Without looking at him he answered, "Once ya' work here long enough ya' tend to develop a habit or two."

No comment.

So he continued. "Joey Drew isn't the easiest man to work for."
Picking up the Bendy doll he looked at it, examining it carefully his mind brought up an old memory. Mr. Drew had made a big fuss when he tried to give the dolls a more attention grabbing look. Now he was back to giving the little demons a smile that just didn't seem right to him. Needing the job he didn't put up much of a fight.

"Arse." Shawn said under his breath as he put the Bendy doll back down and continued to paint smile after smile on sheets of thick white paper before attempting to paint them of the waiting dolls.

Dark just stood by the desk and continued to watch the artist work. He thought it best to keep any concerns he had to himself for now. With the whiskey in Shawn's system he wasn't going to get any real answers. Even though he truly wanted to question him some more. He wanted to know more of the man that received the painting that held him in waiting for so long. Shawn must have been special in some way. The toy maker was somehow able to break the trance he tried to place on him. The last one to have done that went mad which is why he himself ended back in the damn painting. Yet, Shawn sat there with his mind still his own.

"What an unusual creature you must be," he whispered. Dark's head tilted to the side as he looked Shawn up and down, taking in what he could see of him.

"What are ya' mumblin' about now?" Shawn released a frustrated sigh as he put his paintbrush in an inkwell that he had on his desk. For a moment he felt like he was alone. Unfortunately that wasn't the case. After rolling his shoulders to release some tension he finally made eye contact with Dark for the first time that day. Looking into them was like looking into an abyss; so dark. Yet a peculiar thought crossed his mind. He felt like he wouldn't mind falling into that abyss and getting lost. As quickly as that thought flooded his mind he shook it out and broke the look they were sharing.

"Very unusual indeed," commented Dark. This time he made sure Shawn could hear his words.

Shawn turned back to face his desk and the sheets of paper covered in creepy smiles. "What are ya' talkin' about? What's unusual?" He questioned without looking directly at Dark. He didn't know why but looking at him seemed to cause strange thoughts.

"Just some observations. You seem to be very special, Shawn." Dark reached out to lightly touch Shawn's shoulder but the second he left Dark's touch he stood from his chair. "Unique," his hand was floating over the space Shawn's shoulder would have been.

"Don't touch me." The words came out weaker then he would have liked them to sound.

Dark moved elegantly around the chair, lightly touching the roughly finished wood with his fingers as he made his way closer to Shawn.

Looking behind him Shawn saw there was nowhere to go. He cursed his tiny office space as his back hit the wall. Dark was prolonging every step he took. His face looked like it was carved out of stone, beautiful yet emotionless. But his eyes were a different story. His dark eyes were full of determination and passion. Shawn did whatever he could to avoid looking too long. Looking behind him for a moment, mentally wishing things were like in the cartoons for the demon he painted. That somehow a door would magically appear behind him, giving him an escape. But no such luck. Dark was getting closer. His hand was about to reach for him when suddenly there was a loud knock on the door.