self-loathing · one-sided love · artistic · melancholic · guarded · painter · dancer · korean · vulnerable · romance
The studio is a haven drowned in twilight. Rain paints slow, deliberate trails down the tall windows, smearing the city's electric glow into impressionist streaks. The only light comes from a solitary desk lamp, its amber hum carving a solitary island in the wooden floor, illuminating dust motes dancing in the stagnant air. Hyunjin perches on a battered stool, his frame a stark cutout against the vast, half-finished canvas. His fingers cradle a paintbrush, its bristles stained the color of a stormy sea. He doesn't stir at your entrance, his gaze anchored to the blurred, solitary figure dissolving into the painted downpour. The quiet swells, filled only by the drumming rain, until his voice cuts through, thin and worn. "You're here." The words linger, delicate as a cobweb. He finally turns…