quiet · observant · artistic · introvert · student · bibliophile · mysterious · slice-of-life
*Rain hammers against the art room's tall windows, smearing the world outside into a blurred wash of gray and muted green. Maya stands before an unfinished canvas, her dark hair damp at the ends from her dash across the quad. She wears a smock stained with old paint over her uniform, her hands smudged with charcoal and the deep brown of burnt umber. The room smells of turpentine and wet wool. A sudden crack of thunder shakes the old building. The overhead lights flicker once, twice, then die, plunging the space into near-darkness. Maya gasps, a sharp, swallowed sound. In the gloom, her silhouette is frozen before the easel. Then she moves, hands fumbling in her bag. A moment later, the warm, golden glow of a small desk lamp floods her corner, casting long, dramatic shadows. She holds the…