Narumi fetched Mikan to the same place they first met with his own car. Today, she will finally meet his nephew.
"Are you nervous?", Narumi asked, gazing at Mikan who was looking out through the window of the car.
"Quite."
Narumi only chuckled in response. Mikan looked down at her lap, fumbling the hem of her navy blue polo.
"Can I..."
"Yes?"
"Nothing."
'You cannot back out now, Mikan! This is just a one-time thing and that's it! You'll just pose naked and he'll paint you. What's the big deal about that? But in front of a man?! A compete stranger even!'
Mikan was snapped in her thoughts when the car's engine stopped and Narumi spoke.
"We're here!"
It wasn't really an art studio. It was a small house, at least that's how it looks from the outside. They went inside and Mikan quickly surveyed the area. It is big enough to accommodate a large group of people. The design was minimalist. The floor tiles and walls are immaculately white. There aren't a lot of home appliances except those that are generally found in a house. In every part of the house, art stuff can be seen. Books about art. Cans of paints messily placed on old newspapers. A palette that hasn't been cleaned near the kitchen sink. Paintbrushes of different sizes dabbed in a jar containing water. Sketches of naked women posted on the walls. Some only shows their back but mostly are facing front and detailed.
'It's true. From the looks of it, his nephew must've mastered nude painting', Mikan thought. Surprisingly, when Mikan stares at it, she doesn't find it inappropriate. It doesn't evoke a sense of eroticism. Just pure art. Its rawness is what makes it beautiful.
She noticed a painting stand beside the window with a canvas covered with cloth on it. Curious what's inside, she gently lift the cloth.
'So he's also painting sceneries?'
"What are you doing?", a deep voice spoke behind her.
She turned to face the owner of the voice and was greeted by a raven-haired lad with an earring on his right ear, leaning against the wall and crossing his arms. He is only wearing a sweatpants so his built chest were clearly visible to Mikan. His red pools was staring deep at her amber ones.
"I...I'm sorry. I'm just...I just wanted to see it, that's all. Sorry for-"
"Oh, Natsume dear! There you are! Don't you miss your uncle? Come here!", Narumi interfered, aiming to embrace Natsume but he was able to dodge it.
"Save it, bastard."
Natsume grabbed his white shirt hanging on the lamp stand. Even with clothes on, his fit body is still noticeable. He plopped his body on the couch as he lazily took the remote control and switched channels, putting one arm behind his head.
"Natsume, this is Mikan Sakura and she will be your model. Mikan, this is my nephew and the artist himself, Natsume Hyuuga. We will divide it in two days so two paintings at a day. It'll probably take 3-5 hours. Anyway, I already discussed the terms and conditions regarding this matter to the both of you so I hope there wouldn't be any problems. Now that's everything settled, I'll be seeing you guys later because I still have an errand to run. Mikan, goodluck! And Natsume, you behave. Take care of her. If something happens, call me. You two get along! Adieu!", Narumi said as he dashed out of the house.
'Now what?', Mikan thought as she found herself standing mercilessly before Natsume. Her knees feel like buckling.
The television seemed to bore Natsume as he pressed the off button on the remote and landed his gaze on Mikan. He stood up and walked toward her, putting an ample distance between them.
"Remove your clothes and wear this. Turn to your right, the CR's there", Natsume said as he handed a white, knee-length robe to Mikan.
Mikan stepped out of the comfort room and tugged on the hem of the robe. The robe is so flimsy and thin that it felt like it doesn't really cover anything at all. She folded her clothes and carefully placed it inside her backpack.
Seeing the door of the room where Natsume entered left opened, she knocked and let herself room was spacious. The three walls were painted with different subjects except for one which was left blank. Aside from the plain canvas readily prepared, a large sofa bed and a long table at the center occupied the room. Natsume looked up, noticing her presence.
"I'm done", Mikan meekly said.
Natsume took his art kit with him as he made his way to Mikan who backed away.
"Sit there", Natsume ordered as he closed the door.
Mikan sat at the sofa bed, keeping her legs together. She was finally face to face with Natsume. The thought of being alone with a guy in a room terrifies her.
"Uhm, why do you have to lock it? I mean, nobody will come", Mikan spoke first, trying to break the awkward atmosphere.
"You sounded as if we're going to do something that no one should see", Natsume teased.
"What do you- That's not what I meant!", Mikan retorted in defense, blushing madly when she realized what he meant.
"My friends usually come to my house unannounced. You wouldn't want to be walked on to naked, would you?"
"I-I see."
"You can now remove the robe."
"Pardon?"
"What? Didn't you heard what I just said? Or do you want me to do it for you? I don't mind at all."
"I... No! I can do it by myself!", Mikan replied, muttering "pervert" at the end.
Natsume smirked as he watched her.
"Stop staring at me! It's becoming uncomfortable."
"Nevermind. I would still see that", Natsume said idly, tearing his gaze away from her.
Mikan sat there completely naked in front of Natsume. Her head is lowered, unable to directly look Natsume in the eyes, as she tucked her hands between her thighs.
As for the first session, Mikan placed her chin on top of her hands settled at the headrest. Natsume instructed her to sit with her back facing him and bend her torso to the right. Unsatisfied, he walked toward her and absent-mindedly placed his hand on her hips to adjust her torso a bit more to the right. Mikan jolted as she felt a calloused hand on her hips. A surge of electricity passed due to the contact of skin to skin, taking them both in surprise.
"I-I can manage", Mikan said as Natsume retrieved his hand.
Natsume has returned to his seat. It was a fleeting moment yet he could still feel the smoothness of her skin against his palm. 'What was that?', he thought.
Meanwhile, Mikan was having the same thoughts as him. Good thing, he cannot see her face. 'His hands... They're so cold, yet I...I feel warm... and tingly', Mikan thought, feeling a burning sensation on the part where he had touched her.
He began to draw the outline of her body onto the canvass. Natsume's eyes followed the curve of her hips, dangerously reaching her buttocks. His eyes flickered and went back to the canvass.
After that, Natsume started mixing colors. Even with the absence of light, Mikan has a naturally fair complexion so he add more white. When he has finally laid out the colors he needed, the brush strokes finally do its magic. It took him half an hour to finish the first painting.
"Turn around", Natsume said who busied himself in putting back the caps of the tube paints he used.
Mikan squeezed her eyes shot as she spun around. When Natsume was done, he lifted his head and his breathe hitched for a moment. Unintentionally, his eyes trailed from her head to her toe. Mikan noticed this, suddenly feeling conscious of her body. She was about to cover her bare chest but stopped herself from doing so by gripping the soft cushion of the sofa bed she was sitting on.
'Be professional', Mikan mentally reminded herself.
Regaining composure, he cleared his throat before speaking.
"Lie on your side. Bend your left knee. Your chin must be angled on top of your right shoulder supported with your right hand."
Mikan did what she was told. 'This is so embarrassing! I feel like I'm committing a sin!', she thought, curling her foot. Fortunately, she was able to hide the worry in her face and put on a blank expression.
Natsume was having a hard time concentrating on sketching, pretending that he was examining the contours of her body when in all honesty he was admiring it. Mikan has a slim and healthy figure. Her stomach was flat. Her chest is neither big nor small, just the right size. She got toned thighs and legs. Her most precious area was neat as if she really prepared herself for this. 'Not bad', he thought to himself.
The second session took longer than the first. From time to time, their eyes would accidentally meet until one of them breaks it. They will both act unaffected by it as if nothing happened but deep inside, they are being taken up by a variety of emotions they can't decipher...
For now.
•••
A/N: I'm actually an arts student (still developing) myself and I experienced nude drawing. It seemed normal to me, maybe because the model was of the same gender as me. Anyway, this is how I got the idea. :)
