Too Short to Paint

Mint

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It had been a productive day by Carmin's standards. He'd finally gone into the city to pick up a cellphone, something he'd been meaning to do for a while. For the longest time, he was afraid of leaving the school, but after a couple close calls he felt it was probably a safer move. They had set the phone up for him and everything, so he was all set to use it. Though it was still going to require some figuring out. Missing six years had left him a little out of the loop when it came to technology.

But that was a problem for later. For now, Carmin decided to reward himself. He'd passed a cute little art shop on the way down and figured he'd hit it up on the way back. He'd never been particularly interested in art, but was getting tired of just reading all the time. He used to really like sports such as swimming, but that was more humiliating than fun nowadays. Which left him with the decision to take up art.

He looked a little out of place without an adult beside him as he made his way down the sidewalk. He usually wore something a little more, adult-like, but he was behind on laundry and

After what felt like an eternity on his stubby little legs, Carmin finally came across the art shop again. He hesitated a little when he got to the door, but quickly moved on to opening it. A little bell chimed and he stepped inside, receiving a glance from the cashier as he took a few more steps inside.

There were art supplies everywhere. Markers, crayons, paint, pencils, clay, you name it. They even had drawing tablets and the like for digital artists. He wasn't totally sure where to start, the shop certainly seemed way larger on the inside than the outside. With what he'd seen at the island so far, that wasn't totally out of the question either. He decided to start at one end of the store and work his way through. And after a thorough browsing, he decided he'd start with painting. He already had pencils in his room, he figured sculpting might be tricky without a sense of touch, and he wasn't too caught up with technology to try digital art. Thus, painting was the logical choice.

He grabbed a sampler kit filled with all sorts of paints and then a large booklet filled with paper meant for painting. The last thing he needed were some brushes. He looked around a little and an issue quickly came into view. The brushes were up a little high. Too high for any amount of tippy toes to fix. One quick attempt proved that he needed at least a couple more inches to make it a possibility. His face blushed a lighter green as he stared up at the little art sticks. He wasn't sure he'd be able to swallow his pride and ask someone for help.
 

BlancBlack

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It was that time again. Finding herself with more free time than normal, Ellen found herself glued both to the glowing screen of the tablet neatly position across a specially designed desk in her room, as well as the silky white canvas that rested on its easel right to the side. She was a girl of many different hobbies and passions, a product of her unfortunate upbringing that left her unable to run around outside like most children. Not that she was ever sad about it. Quite the opposite, she looked at those days fondly now, realizing just how many areas of productivity it allowed her to explore.

But painting, drawing in general, truly was among her most favorite. Not to mention that it helped her earn some money on the side, too. Some people were surprisingly eager to purchase her art, especially online, and for fairly decent prices as well. However, she felt like trying out the more traditional style of painting today. Tracing her fingers over the somewhat rough surface of the canvas, she sighed ever so slightly. She was in quite a rush the last time, not realizing that her brushes became far too worn out to be used again until this very moment.

That meant going outside, to the city. She was a regular at an art shop there, where she got pretty much all of her supplies. Thankfully the academy, as well as most of the island, provided plenty of access even for someone like her. She still wasn’t quite used to that and mostly didn’t feel like going outside as a result, also partly because of her being a bit of a shut-in with some of her interests. She found herself on the way from the school grounds soon enough, heading to the city that was not that far away.

The path to the shop was plenty familiar to her by now. She still had a lot of the town to explore, but she could not get lost at least with this one. A cozy shop that brought a lot of people to it with its homely and charming visage. Pushing the doors open, she would force the wheels of her chair to move, getting through the only obstacle in the way effortlessly. And as soon as she did, she was happily greeted by the man behind the counter. He was also the owner and given how many times she visited, he already remembered her well.

He also knew that she would need help reaching some of the supplies she usually bought but still asked. “Yes please, if you could.” One small bow of a head later, they were headed toward the exact same place Mint was. And while the shop owner seemed to pay him little attention while reaching for the brushes, Leila noticed him quite quickly. “Oh, hello! I’m sorry if we’re in the way, I’ll have all I need really soon. Actually, is there anything you want, I’m sure that mister here can get it for you.

The girl was smiling and her tone was as friendly as she could possibly make it. The boy appeared quite young to her eyes, but she didn’t want to come across as a condescending adult since she knew full well what her own views were just a few years ago. But if he was choosing from the same shelf, then there was no reason why he should wait his turn, especially since he was the one who had arrived at this place first.
 

Mint

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While Carmin stood there, plotting what he was going to do, the man from the front and a girl in a wheelchair showed up at the aisle. He just sort of walked to the side a bit to get out of the way and then watched as the man easily grabbed a few things. It wasn't long before the girl started talking to him, catching him a little off guard.

Carmin looked up at her as she spoke, then to the man who seemed to turn and give a small but cheery smile back at him after she finished speaking. "Uhm." He gripped the paint and paper he had tightly while he decided that he might as well ask them since they were already there. "Would it be possible to get three or four different sized paint brushes, maybe."

The man smiled again, easily picking out four different brushes and then handing them to Carmin. "Here you are."

Carmin gave a quiet "thank you" to the man then quickly made his way out of the aisle and toward the cash registers. Unfortunately, the quick getaway was for nothing, as that man was the only one working at the moment. He had to wait for them to come so that he could check out anyway.
 

BlancBlack

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When the boy told the cashier what he wanted and got just that, Ellen would give him a small nod and a smile, almost like a thank you that he was willing to step aside and let the man get those things for the both of them.

In the past, she had run into rather rude individuals all too often, ones that were not even willing to step to the side or would barge in front of her or other people when standing in a line. Folk on this island appeared much more tolerant and pleasant, at least so far.

And since she was pretty much moving around right behind the cashier, he would process her payment first, before the boy. It made Ellen want to say that she was fine waiting, but the deed was done so quickly that she didn’t even get the chance. She wasn’t really buying much.

Paying with her credit card, she then placed the brown paper bag with the goods onto her lap as she wheeled herself out of the shop. The pleasant warmth of the Sun quickly washed over her as she stopped right in front of the door and started somewhat blankly staring up at the sky.

The day was a beautiful one and the forecast mentioned that it should stay that way. Going back into her room to paint might have been a waste of a good day after all. But wherever else would she go instead, exactly? She still didn’t orientate herself around very well… it was a bit of a dilemma that had her stuck there.
 

Mint

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Carmin stood and watched as the man made his way over shortly after with the girl in the wheelchair trailing behind. Naturally, he checked her out first, but it didn't take long and he moved on to him. Carmin placed the collection of paint supplies on the counter and dug through his backpack as the cashier tallied up the price. Then Carmin got out a wallet and paid the man with a couple bills. When all was said and done, Carmin jammed the supplies into his backpack, zipped it up, and headed out of the store.

When he made it through the door once again, he was surprised to see the girl in the wheelchair from a few moments ago. Why was she still here? Either way, he hadn't thanked her for saving him earlier, so this was possibly a good chance to do that. He didn't like talking to people, but he felt he needed to. If it wasn't for her he'd probably still be staring at the brushes.

"Hey." He walked up to beside her "Uh, thank you for getting that guy to help get the brushes for me."
 

BlancBlack

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No matter how deep in thought the girl was, a voice of another would always easily tear her back into reality. And Carmin’s words did just that, making Ellen’s ocean-blue eyes quickly affix to him as her body turned slightly to face him in the chair. A smile quickly replaced the daydreaming expression.

Ah, hey there! Sorry, I’m in the way, aren’t I?” But to her surprise, he wanted to say something completely different. She didn’t even realize that she had done something thanks-worthy. To her, she just got some things for herself and got the cashier to help a kid along the way.

Moving a bit of her hair from her face and behind one of her ears with a quick gesture, the girl merely shook her head and laughed softly. “You really don’t need to thank me for something like that. I just figured he could get whatever you wanted since was already going through all of those products.

For some reason, she didn’t want to make it seem as if she was going out of her way. But this child in front of her, he seemed a bit different, somehow. Well, people, in general, were different in this place, but that was not what she meant.

By the way, my name is Eleanor. But you can call me Ellen if you want. And you are?” A college student like her talking to a kid might have been a bit strange from the outside perspective, but she was really curious now.
 

Mint

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"Well, alright then, if you say so." Carmin wasn't about to explain the reasoning behind being so thankful. He didn't want to reveal how unwilling he was to go ask for help, he considered it humiliating.

"Oh." So this girl's name was Eleanor. He didn't expect to be trading names with the stranger, but figured it wouldn't hurt. Besides, they'd been nothing but kind to him, it would be rude to decline. "I'm Carmin."

He couldn't help but notice the awkward position of the wheelchair. He had no clue how they worked, but it seemed like it'd be difficult to turn herself sideways. He typically would've just gone on his merry way and forgotten about something, but for some reason he felt the urge to at least ask. "Umm, are you gonna be okay to turn yourself in that chair?" Even he felt it sounded weird coming out of his mouth. Odds were that she was totally fine to do it on her own, so why did he even bother?

Perhaps he felt the need to repay a debt for what she did in the store. Or maybe it went a little deeper than that. Deep down, part of him was worried. Ever since he'd been trapped in his current circumstances, he'd been running into obstacle after obstacle that he couldn't handle. He saw some of that in the girl having to deal with being stuck in a wheelchair. It was the second time now that he felt bad for someone other than himself.
 

BlancBlack

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Carmin, that’s a lovely name!” The girl exclaimed as she gently clapped her hands together, a bright smile from ear to ear covering her face. While it was still surreal for her to see individuals who were not human, the exotic nature of it all was at least somewhat alluring.

She hoped to learn more about these non-humans and work alongside them, be friends with them. Which was not always easy, but this boy was still in front of her, seemingly willing to entertain at least some small talk. That made Ellen happy, as being alone in her room started to wear her down.

But his next question was not one she expected. Or, well… perhaps she did, in a way. He looked much younger than herself and children would sometimes ask her about the wheelchair back home, since it was something new and unknown to them.

Though, his question was more about her than the strange contraption of a chair she was sitting on. It actually made her chuckle a bit as she leaned on one of the armrests to get slightly more comfortable while talking to the boy. Not that she had that many options when it came to sitting positions.

As long as I’m on flat ground and have enough room, I can turn and do anything else just fine. It’s kinda like driving a car I suppose. Without anyone pushing me or turning me on the spot, I need a bit more space.

She tried to explain as best as she could, but maybe she went a little too technical there? A simple yes would have probably sufficed to someone like that, no? Given his looks, he couldn’t have been more than eight years old, after all. Or maybe she was mistaken?

Once again, he was not a human like she was. And she had learned that while certain species might look young, they can very well be hundreds of years old already. Compared to them, Ellen herself was almost nothing more than a freshly born babe that could never hope to match them.

Banishing those thoughts from her mind, she simply patted the wheel closest to her leaning body. “Were you interested in how these things move or work, maybe?” She hoped to learn whether he asked out of concerned or interest for the ‘toy’ she had, that would probably give her the answer she was looking for.
 
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Mint

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Hearing his name referred to as lovely got his face to blush a little, though he tried not to acknowledge it. He still hadn't exactly remembered how to take a compliment yet.

The explanation on how well she could move around was interesting, probably more than he needed to hear, but still good to know. He'd seen plenty of wheelchairs in the past, but he knew very little about them. His only response was a quiet "Oh, okay." He felt embarrassed for having asked at all, but wasn't totally sure why he felt that way.

"I was uh- wait." He didn't want to admit that he was concerned, but then the question about his interest in the wheelchair made him realize that she probably thought he was a kid. He had never told her otherwise, how could she possibly have known he wasn't. His face blushed a much lighter green as he looked down at his clothes. A turquoise shirt and a pair of grey shorts. He wasn't exactly dressed to look especially mature at the moment. "Uhm, just so you know, I'm not a kid. I'm eighteen." He was nervous, mostly about how this girl would react.
 

BlancBlack

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The boy seemed to be at least a little bit bashful, given his reaction. But Ellen did not mind that in the slightest. She merely smiled at him as she did before. But that expression crooked a bit when the boy took his time to explain that he was considerably older than the girl had assumed at first.

This prompted a metaphorical facepalm that hit Ellen’s face pretty hard. At least in terms of imagining it, she didn’t actually slap her face against her face in the real world at all. But the pain might have as well been real, given the embarrassments she now felt.

I’m, um… really sorry. I shouldn’t have assumed anything.” The worst part was probably that Carmin was able to tell how Ellen perceived him. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have correct her like that out of nowhere, it was almost like he read her mind.

Only she had things that were on her mind also written on her face, it appeared. Scratching the back of her head, she had no idea what to do now. All she could think of was to try to limit the damages, though some were probably already done. “I hope you’re not too offended that I thought… well, that you were younger? I’m not from this place so people like you who are different from how they look, I’m just not used to it yet, I suppose.
 
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