This story was inspired by a role-play my friend and I are currently doing on twitter. For anyone interested, you can follow our characters, Shizuka Nagayama ( LonesomePainter) and James Lovelace ( LawlessBrunet)

The cafeteria was busy as always, packed with people talking mindlessly to their friends about the day's events. Alone at a table off to the side sat a thin, pale boy with hair dark as the night sky which masked his face that held an emotionless gaze that shifted from one table to the next. A few faces stood out as those of his classmates. Some had faces dusted with chalk, others with paint chips stuck to their clothes. It was a testament to the hard work they'd put in that day at the Art Academy, where every person present was attending in hopes of bettering their works of art.

This person sitting alone at the table, staring at those around who were laughing and having fun, was names Shizuka Nagayama. Though he always held a sour expression, he wasn't an unhappy person. For as long as he could remember, Shizuka always had trouble physically expressing all of the emotions he felt. The only way he could express himself was through his paintings. However, this lack of emotion caused those around him to feel he was unapproachable. The fact that he was sitting alone at a table was not by choice, but he's long since gotten used to the solidarity. There was a time in high school where he had a small group of friends that he's talk with every day, and even a boyfriend whom he loved very much, but those blissful days were now almost a year behind him. He was now a young adult of nineteen years old and more alone than ever.

As Shizuka continues with his daily routine of people watching, one man in particular catches his eye. He was unfamiliar, probably a prospective student or friend of someone already attending the school. He was standing by a vending machine with a very frustrated look on his face. Upon seeing this reaction, he stood from the table and gathered his things then walked over to this person. As Shizuka grew closer, a few things became more apparent; the first being that this man was tall; taller than himself by at least two inches and that his skin was tanned. It wasn't every day Shizuka saw someone without the normal creamy white skin similar to his own. The last thing he noticed was that this stranger wasn't a person that lazed around at home. Even through the semi-loose fabric, he could tell this man had muscle. Shizuka found himself staring from a few feet back. This muscular man was now getting outraged by the stealing machine. He was kicking and shaking the stiff metal box in hopes of getting his drink, yet it remained stationary. Shizuka shakes his head of his previous distracting thoughts and closes the distance, clearing his throat to notify this man of his presence.

"You have to hit it… here," Shizuka mutters quietly and bangs the side of the machine with precision. The can of coffee that had previously been stuck now fell to the bottom. This man looked elated and snatched the can from the bottom before shouting, "Whoa! How'd you do that?!"

"You just have to know how to hit it…" Shizuka says quietly while lifting a hand to brush his hair from his face, revealing his large, dark brown eyes.

"Can you show me again? In case I want something else to drink and you aren't around to unstick it," This man says while fishing out more money and shoves it into the machine. Sure enough, when he tries to retrieve another can of coffee, the springs are stuck so it just hangs there in some sort of drink limbo. Shizuka was always happy to help, but he couldn't help feeling nervous. It's been a while since he had a proper conversation with someone, not that this should be considered a proper conversation. His heart was beating faster as he struck the machine again in a slower motion than before. Just as it had previously, the sticky springs release the drink and it falls to the bottom once more. "D-Did you catch it that time?" He asks and leans down to grab the can, handing it over to this person, but he simply shakes his head. "Keep it. It's thanks for getting this one," He grins and holds up the other can.

"A-Ah… Thank you," Shizuka looks up, manages to make eye contact with this man, and suddenly blurts out without a second thought, "My name is Shizuka Nagayama." This stranger just beams, most likely happy to learn the name of the person that helped him. "Nice to meet you, Nagayama. My name is James Lovelace," He returns and holds out his hand, which Shizuka immediately shakes in return.

"It's nice to meet you as well. Are you a student here?"

James just scoffs and shakes his head, opening up the drink he held in his hands. "No, just having a look around. You're a student here though, right?"

Shizuka nods and casts his gaze downward, playing with the tab on the can. "Yeah… Oh, I'm sorry. You're probably here with someone; I'll let you get back to them." He turns to make a hasty retreat, but feels a hand reach out to grab his arm.

"I'm alone actually. I have a few extra minutes if you want to hang out and chat?"

Unable to say any more, Shizuka just nods and turns back to face this person. He motions for them to walk out of the cafeteria since he could barely hear himself think. It was a great place for most people, but he preferred quieter venues. As he walks, he feel James' gaze on his back. The silence almost makes him crack as they arrive at the quiet, grassy area just outside the doors of the cafeteria. Shizuka takes a seat under a tree that provides the perfect amount of shade for a day that's getting to be a bit warm. Upon seeing the movement, James joins him on the grass and turns to take in their entire surrounding.

"This seems different from the average school."

"Un…" Shizuka gives a small nod and finally opens the drink. "It's an art school. People here are trying to refine their talents."

"Including you?" James tilts his can up and drinks a large gulp, keeping his intense gaze on Shizuka all the while.

"Y-Yes, including me. I'm a painter, but others use chalk or they sculpt. It doesn't end at the conventional arts."

This seemed to catch James' attention and he leans forward, resting his hands in his lap. "Oh, you look like you'd be good at painting. I have to leave in a few minutes, but I'd like to see something of yours in the future."

Shizuka feels a little disappointed from hearing this person has to leave soon and for once feels appreciative that his features won't show this. He takes a tiny sip of his drink and nods in agreement. "That sounds nice. However, if you have something to do I'll leave you for now. I wouldn't want to keep you." Shizuka stands up and brushes off the grass from his uniform, then bows his head lightly. "It was nice to meet you, James." Before he can say anything more, he leaves the area. When he chances a glance back, he can see James giving a small wave good-bye with an utterly confused look on his face. It's cut short however, when James checks the time on his watch and stands to walk away as well.

Shizuka sighs internally and wishes he were able to click with people better. He walks through the halls of school, letting these thoughts fill his mind. His feet carry him to the art room, where a few wet canvases stood to dry. Shizuka walks to one particularly vibrant painting sitting by the window in the back of the room. He gives it a quick look over to assure himself it remains untouched before sitting on the stool next to the window and looks out of it. He surprises himself when almost immediately, he locks on to the figure he'd just parted with moment before. James looked nervous; constantly switching his weight from one foot to the other and scans the campus as if he was looking for someone. A person approaches and taps his shoulder to gain his attention. The man was dressed in black clothes and carried a briefcase, which he handed over to James. This hand-over just screamed suspicious and Shizuka couldn't let it be. He hopped up from his stool and quickly walked through the halls again, hoping to catch James before he left the campus. As he reaches the front gate, he notices the newly familiar figure turning left onto the main street. Now Shizuka runs and quickly closes the distance. To make it seem natural, he slips his arm around James' and greets him with an obviously forced smile.

"James! What are you doing?" He says while looking up at the newly met man who looks back down at him with utter and complete confusion.

"What the hell are you doing?" James says, almost in a growling tone as he tries to unlink their arms.

Shizuka just sighs and looks around for suspicious figures. Seeing none, he wipes the smile from his face and whispers, "What's in the case? I saw that exchange. Could you be more obvious?"

The man scowls and forces Shizuka away. "It's none of your business. Just go back to your classes, Nagayama."

Shizuka knows he crossed a line by coming down and jumping into someone else's life, but he just couldn't curb his curiosity. Nonetheless, he nods and backs away with a defeated look. "Fine, I'm sorry," He mutters while looking at the ground. However, as he turns around to walk back to his classroom, a man suddenly grabs him around the neck and points a gun to his head. Shizuka immediately freezes and looks to James who has a horrified expression. "Give me the case!" The man shouts to James, tightening his hold on Shizuka to the point he could barely breathe.

"Leave him out of it! He has nothing to do with this."

"Give me the case and I'll let him go."

Feeling his consciousness start to slip and hearing the conversation that was going nowhere, Shizuka mustered all the strength he had and slammed his foot into the person that held him. It was enough to loosen the man's grip, but a moment later, he felt something hard strike the back of his head. Everything slowly turned black and aside from a ringing in his ears, the only thing he heard was James yelling, "Shit!" Shizuka had passed out against the hard concrete, lying motionless and unaware of the events occurring around him.