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 Posted: Sun Jun 04, 2023 6:11 pm
Quote: Prompt 1: The weatherman said it was going to be a nice day today. Perfect time to go get some of those errands taken care of. Unfortunately, while you were shopping, heavy clouds rolled in and it began pouring outside. Do you chance it and run for your car or duck inside the nearest shop until the weather clears up?
The weather app he used predicted that it would be a nice day. It was.
It predicted that it would be a nice evening, too.
It wasn’t.
Devyn was on the tail end of running a few errands, and he’d been carrying around an umbrella since he first went out this afternoon because he didn’t exactly trust the weather report. His chest ached a bit, in a spot that always seemed to get sore just before a storm.
He’d checked the radar, he’d been thorough.
The sky seemed clear, but the clouds must have rolled in while his eyes were focused on the path in front of him, because one minute it was a nice summer evening, and then suddenly it was cold, and then suddenly it was wet, too.
The umbrella wouldn’t have saved him. At first, it blocked the light sheet of water that fell from the sky, but the strength of water increased, and increased, and increased, until he could barely see the path in front of him.
What he did see was a bus stop ahead of him, but the light seemed dim in the walls of water.
He made it under the cover just before things really got worse and wasn’t surprised that there was another person already here. He’d jogged here and slowed only when he was under the overhang. He kept enough space between himself and the stranger, partly out of habit and partly because he thought it smart to shake out the umbrella so he could close it up.
He wasn’t the sort to stand in silence, although he supposed he did need to send at least one text to assure he was fine. Just so Michael knew he hadn’t been swept away in the water. The rain was loud, but not so much that he felt the need to yell to be heard. He half turned, ready to just offer some polite greeting–which seemed reasonable given that he didn’t know how long they might be stuck here waiting out the storm–but paused because she looked very familiar.
Devyn tilted his head just slightly and wracked his brain to figure out why she looked familiar. She made him think of fancy frames and paintings, and bright lights and–oh, the art gallery he liked to visit. He hadn’t been in a few weeks but was pretty sure he’d seen her every time he’d been there.
He wasn’t the best at directions–especially not when the weather was so bad he couldn’t really see anything–but now that he thought about it, he figured they were probably actually pretty close to it.
“Were on your way home from the gallery when this broke out?” he asked, although quickly seemed to realize that might have sounded a bit strange and added, “Sorry, I think I’ve seen you there a few times. Devyn,” he introduced, and held out a mostly dry hand to shake.
Or, maybe that was weird too; he didn’t seem uncomfortable or nervous, but Earth customs and standards were still a bit strange to him sometimes.
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Posted: Mon Jun 05, 2023 5:31 pm
Florence had expected the weather to be nice all day. The report must have said so, or her mother would have mentioned something and made her take an umbrella. Instead, here the lanky blonde was, wet all over and clutching a large, white paper bag while she waiting for either the bus to come or the rain to let up while water dripped from the ends of her short hair.
Someone else must have gotten caught in it too, because it wasn't long before she had company. Hopefully the art paper she'd bought hadn't gotten wet through the bag... She didn't dare chance the rain again with her precious cargo. There were paints in there too, but those wouldn't mind a little moisture... though the bag that held it all wasn't too happy about being wet, any more than the paper was.
Flo hadn't intended to greet the stranger, but a warm, masculine voice pulled her out of her thoughts. She turned wide, blue eyes on her company, blinking through water spotted glasses, and searched the features she could see for some sense of familiarity. Devyn? He looked a little familiar... Ah! She did recognize him. He was that handsome man that came to the gallery... and he remembered her too, even though her pastel unicorn t-shirt and marker-doodled jeans ensemble was nothing like the neat, black, a-line dress she wore when she was working.
She shook her head as she shifted her grip on her bag from Artful Imaginations, their logo printed big across the side. He offered his hand out to shake and she responded automatically, remembering only belatedly that she was soaked. Pausing, she assessed the state of her outfit for any even semi-dry spots to wipe it on, and came up with nothing. It left her staring a little blankly down at herself, and then back up at her wet hand before meeting his gaze.
"I'm wet." She said softly, unsure if she should rescind her hand or not.
He'd always been so neat and tidy when he'd visited the gallery... she felt like a drowned kitten beside him. If this had been a made-for-tv movie, they would have called this a 'meet-cute'... but even as Flo thought that, she acknowledged the ridiculousness of it. He was far too dashing, and she would never have been a main character in one of those shoes. More like one of the nameless background characters who move around keeping the scenery interesting while the main characters interacted. It wasn't a painful thing to think, just simple facts, but it made her wonder if maybe someone else might join them and really sell the tv-in-real-life-ness of this. It would be awful interesting to observe up close.
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Posted: Wed Jun 07, 2023 11:51 pm
Devyn wasn’t the least bit worried about a little water, and he laughed softly and took her hand anyway. “We have that in common, then. I don’t think a little more water will do either of us any harm.” His grip was firm but not demanding, and it wouldn’t have been a stretch to assume that he was probably being a little more gentle than usual given the circumstances. “This came out of nowhere, didn’t it?”
He released her hand and leaned over a bit to peer up at the sky. It didn’t seem like there was going to be a break any time soon.
He didn’t want to trouble her with being polite when she had to manage her bag.
It wasn’t difficult to miss the store name on the side of it, nor was it surprising. He’d been to the same store a number of times. “It’s good weather to be creative, at least. Well, if you’re home. Bit of a pain if you’re not. Are you working on a project now?”
He nodded towards her back. For as much as he liked to talk and tell stories, he was genuinely interested in the goings-on of those around him, too. They hadn’t ever spoken much at the gallery, but he’d never been shy to offer praise or ask questions. Sometimes he was just quiet and contemplative, but he was never unfriendly. There was a sort of reverence that any gallery demanded. It wasn’t unlike a library in that regard and he never wanted to be an unwelcome imposition.
Here, it was only them and the rain, and he was determined to pass the time until the weather cleared up a bit.
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Posted: Fri Jun 09, 2023 10:09 am
His grip was warm despite the wet and Flo found herself smiling gently at his comments. Devyn was a nice man... he didn't unintentionally bowl her over with his talk or grip her hand too hard. He seemed unusually perceptive, and she felt flattered by it. People rarely paid her much mind, men especially, so it was quite novel to be the sole object of his attention.
When he asked about her project, a bit of life and animation came into her face, her eyes brightening. Pushing her glasses up with a finger, she nodded eagerly.
"Some paintings." She said, pleased to be asked. Part of her whispered he was just being polite, she shouldn't unload all over him about her special interest, but there was a greater part of her that just... wanted to share her passion. "I found hydrangeas at the conservatory. I'm going to paint them. I want to try water color and guache. I might try gold leaf too."
The flowers were in full bloom and the spectrum from pink to blue had been enchanting. Like a rain fairy's garden. They always look particularly vibrant in the rain, and she'd wanted to capture that. She hadn't done a lot with water colors, since she'd grown up with oil and acrylic, but she'd watched countless videos of artists painting with them online and it had inspired her to try them out. She was hoping the medium would lend itself well to that blurry, watery idea.
"The flowers were so pretty... the color was like magic."
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Posted: Thu Jun 15, 2023 10:28 am
Her enthusiasm was contagious and her smile was bright enough that Devyn nearly forgot about his discomfort with the poor weather entirely.
“Hydrangeas?” he prompted, because for as familiar as he’d come to be with Earth, there was still so much he felt like he had to learn. There were plenty of flowers here that they didn’t have on Earth, and some of the flowers that were similar had entirely different names.
He had a vague idea, but he didn’t pull out his phone to confirm. “I don’t think I’ve seen them blooming yet, I’ll have to head over there and see. I’m particularly fond of watercolor already, but you really can’t go wrong with gold leaf. Tastefully, of course. I can’t be trusted with it, I like gold too much so I always overuse it on my projects.”
He wasn’t a painter, not like how she was. He did projects, crafts. A different sort of artistry altogether, and it was obvious from the way that he spoke–the way he admired the paintings in the gallery–that he had true respect for artists and their craft.
“Will you have it at the gallery when you’re finished? I’d love to see.”
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Posted: Fri Jun 23, 2023 9:50 pm
He didn't know what Hydrangeas were? Flo found that quite odd, but wrote it off quickly as just... someone who didn't spend much time around or consider flowers. She dug into her damp pocket and pulled out her phone, determined to find and pull up a photo for him. He had to know what a Hydrangea was, or he wouldn't understand at all what she was trying to do with her painting. The whole point of it was the type of flower she wanted to paint and how that related to and worked with the medium.
He was saying something about how he used too much gold leaf and she couldn't help her little grin as she typed and swiped through google images. She had to find just the right one to really convey the idea... Ah! There.
Flipping the phone around, she held it out to him where he could see the photo on the screen of blue, pink and purple flowers in the rain. Everything had that gray, rainy feel to it, but that only seemed to compliment the colors and add an ethereal quality to the whole thing.
When Flo registered his last question, she paused to think about it, considering the space in the gallery and paintings of hers that were already displayed there. Having anything of hers in her mother's gallery was more of an indulgence of her mother's than anything else. Flo's paintings didn't really sell much, or for much, so there was a limit to how much space her mother could realistically devote to her daughter's good, but amateur, work. Finally, she lifted one thin, angular shoulder in a shrug.
"Maybe if it comes out well." She said. Maybe if they liked it more than the oil painting that she'd done last week, or if they wanted to replace the acrylic she'd done last month to keep the gallery's content fresh.
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Posted: Tue Jun 27, 2023 10:45 am
With the picture offered, Devyn leaned forward a bit so he could better see the flower. Recognition immediately set in and he nodded approvingly. “Oh, those–yes, I’ve seen those. Thank you.”
It was a beautiful picture on its own, and he wasn’t even just being polite when he said, “I’d really like to see it. I hope you put it up. I’ll have to keep my eye out the next time I stop by.”
He was hopeful, but there was no pressure to his statement. He knew how difficult artists could be on themselves and he wasn’t going to demand to see artwork. His curiosity was piqued, and he would always be a stout supporter when it came to encouraging more beautiful things in the world.
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Posted: Fri Jul 21, 2023 7:55 pm
Though Flo's expression didn't change, a soft shade of pink crept up her neck onto her cheeks. She dropped her eyes to her phone as she wrapped both hands around it, cradling it close to her chest.
Of course people said they liked her work, that happened all the time. This felt different though, and she couldn't help the way it made her heart beat flutter in her ears. She determined then and there that she would put all of her care and effort into it. If she made it good enough, then she'd put it up in the gallery for him to see. That thought made her warm all over...
Talking like this offered a good distraction, and without the young woman noticing, it had begun to slacken and stop, leaving everything dripping. It was the fresh smell that eventually alerted her, drawing her attention away from her phone to the world outside the bus stop. Unfortunately, the end of the rain meant the end of their little meeting. She still felt like some pretty lady with no umbrella should have shown up, curls plastered to her cheeks as she held a newspaper over her head. It was too bad, really. Devyn had just had to put up with one awkward, geeky artist girl while he waited, instead of the meet-cute that he deserved.
"I should go home before it starts raining again." She said softly, turning her gaze back to her shelter partner. "Thank you for talking with me."
Her wet shoulders and hair were uncomfortable, but she could fix that when she got home. Hopefully Devyn had better luck on his trip back. It would be a shame to see his nice clothes get wet.
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Posted: Mon Jul 24, 2023 3:27 pm
Devyn looked beyond her, judging the risk of trying to make it home in this weather. A break in the rain meant he could at least see where he was going.
He supposed everyone back home was probably waiting for him. Probably worried that he’d wandered into some river and been swept far away. The corner of his mouth twitched into a little smile.
“The pleasure was all mine. Goodluck getting home, I’ll see you around. Be safe.”
If she was going to head out now, he could make a good effort to do the same. He was always up for a little competition; he might challenge himself to a race just to see if he could get home before the clouds split open again.
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