☂︎︎
𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝟐: 𝐏𝐀𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐀 𝐌𝐔𝐑𝐀𝐋
written by: peachyhxlland

You put your painting supplies on your desk as Cindy kept an eye on you. She was aware of your and Xavier's scheduled meeting in the Quad. Cindy originally assumed that you were on a date but you explained that it was just the two of you working on his mural.

"You gonna promise me that you're going straight to the Quad and meeting Xavier?" Cindy asked worriedly. "I don't want to see you on the roof again."

You giggled as you set your materials in your tote bag. "I'll be fine, Cindy. And again, I was just helping a bird to fly."

"You can help them from the ground, bestie."

You abandoned your school vest on your bed and wore your school blazer. "Where are you off to again?" You asked curiously.

"I'm going to meet Yoko," Cindy replied. "It's about our group project for our botany class. We don't wanna submit our paper too late."

"I'm sure Ms. Thornhill won't mind."

Cindy chuckled. "Even if she's a normie teacher and a really kind person, I don't want to get into her bad side because of our late paper about plants." She grabbed some papers and looked at your desk. "Speaking of Thornhill, have you collected your medicines from her?"

You thought for a moment and shook your head. "Mm... not yet."

"Well, you better get it. Your father might scold you for not taking them."

You nodded and reached for the door. "Don't forget to accompany me tomorrow in the woods!"

"Okay!"

"Bye!" You waved at Cindy before going out of the room.

Keeping a tight grasp on your tote bag, you skipped over to the Quad. You and Xavier sometimes paint together. While Xavier prefers painting and drawing as a habit and profession, you do it as a way to pass the time.

You've always admired Xavier's artistic talent. You find it fascinating how he can bring his creations to life. Even when he doesn't utilize his powers to move the drawings in his artwork, they always appear to be alive and have a lot of detail.

When you came searching for Xavier, you spotted him painting a large raven in his mural by the wall. His shoulder-length hair was tied up into a small bun, which you always noticed whenever he draws or paints, and is dressed in the same indigo Nevermore uniform as the rest of the students, with the exception that he is wearing a hoodie underneath his blazer.

You have a customized blue uniform though as requested by your father. Although you two were estranged, he still makes sure that his daughter receives special treatment.

You were on your way to Xavier when Bianca stopped you in your tracks and stepped in front of you. "(Y/n)," She greeted in her sweet voice. "In a hurry?"

You cast a quick glance at Xavier, who had turned to face you when he saw you close by. "I'm just going to help Xavier, that's all." You told Bianca.

Xavier didn't bat an eye at her as Bianca nodded and sent a glance his way. Bianca cleared her throat. "You two have been very close lately, huh? How odd."

"He and the others are keeping a close eye on me lately." You explained. "I think they're just being nice."

"Too nice if you ask me." With her pale blue-green eyes, Bianca moved closer to you, giving you a scorching look of jealousy that penetrated the very core of your soul. "Too nice that you just have to be in his arms all the time, huh?" She asked bitterly.

"I'm..." You frowned. "I'm sorry if that's upsetting you. It's just that... Cindy does that too and I thought it was normal—"

"Whatever pathetic act you're doing right now? Drop it." Bianca hissed. "It looks desperate and it just looks like you're an attention seeker."

"Okay, that's enough." Xavier grabbed your arm and drew you away from Bianca. Bianca withdrew her attention from you and turned to look at Xavier. She received a stern glare from Xavier. "What the hell's wrong with you? She had done nothing wrong towards you."

Bianca tightly pursed her lips and closed her mouth. Your shoulders were enveloped by Xavier as he groaned and led you over to his mural. While you assemble your supplies, Xavier moved back to pick up his paintbrush. Your legs, which were concealed by your skirt, were crossed when you sat down on the ground.

Xavier glanced at you. "You okay?" He asked worriedly.

Your eyes rose to meet his. You were literally raising your head too high because he was too tall for you. "Yeah, why?" You asked as you tilted your head curiously to the side.

"What Bianca said..."

He received a little smile from you before you took your paintbrush from your bag and dipped it into the black paint. "It's fine, Xavi." You reassured. "I don't think she really meant that..."

As he watched you skillfully put a stroke of black paint to his mural, Xavier arched an eyebrow. "How do you know?"

"She's jealous maybe." You stated, focusing on what you were painting. "And maybe her emotions got the better of her that she started saying words she said out of spite or she really didn't mean."

Xavier continued painting as he smiled at your words. "You always look into positivity, huh?"

You tucked your hair behind your ear and shrugged while carrying on with your painting. "This world is already a cruel place to live in. Why add more negativity to it rather than bring positivity?"

Your words stunned Xavier, who then eventually stopped painting and just stared at the wall in front of him. Aware that paint would splatter all over his painting, he cautiously tapped his brush in the air. You were fixated on the painting while Xavier cast a low glance toward you. He walked over to you and knelt down behind you with a warm smile.

You tensed up as soon as you sensed his presence behind you. "What are you doing there?"

"I'm going to tie your hair," As he spoke, Xavier reached into his pockets for a spare hair tie. "You'll get distracted and annoyed if your hair is all over your face."

You felt his fingers brush your hair making you freeze on your spot. Your stomach was filled with butterflies while he continued to brush your hair using his fingers. After quietly clearing your throat, you resumed your work.

As he started to pull your hair back into a ponytail, Xavier clasped his hair tie between his lips. You shivered slightly when he pulled a few stray hairs from behind your ear and the nape of your neck. Feeling satisfied, Xavier pulled his hair tie from his lips and started tying your hair. "Tell me if it's too tight, okay?"

As you dipped more black paint, you nodded quietly. You winced as a result of Xavier accidentally pulling your hair tightly. "Ow."

"Sorry." He mumbled apologetically and returned to tying your hair. After finishing, Xavier leaned back to examine and appreciate the work he had done on your hair. "I think I did a pretty good job."

"You're lucky there isn't any mirror for me to judge your good work." You teased with a giggle.

Xavier gasped loudly while pretending to be upset. "You wound me, Alice."

Alice. After you two grew close, he gave you that nickname. You are now also referred to as Alice by Cindy and Enid. You questioned Xavier's decision to give you the nickname "Alice" and why. He explained that the black ribbon around your head makes him think of the animated Alice in Wonderland. He also believes it was a huge coincidence that you just so happened to own a pet cat named Chesire and a rabbit plush toy.

Xavier was ready to stand up when he had an idea after recalling what you had stated earlier.

"This world is already a cruel place to live in. Why add more negativity to it rather than bring positivity?"

Xavier took a closer look at his mural and noted the ambiance of gloom it exuded. He has a history of consistently employing gloomy hues, as though he has never experienced color. Perhaps it reflected how he feels about his life, especially now that his house feels so empty even though his cold and distant father was present.

"(Y/n)," Xavier called out. You turned your attention to him. "You can paint some flowers in my mural if you like."

You almost broke into a grin. "You serious?"

Xavier nodded and smiled widely. "Yeah."

"Are you really, really, sure?"

"Fine, I'm taking it back."

You point your finger at him while wearing the biggest grin he had seen yet. "No take-sies!" You exclaimed before taking out some of your other paint, ready to give the mural some colors of life.

While you and Xavier continued to paint, Enid brought someone to the Quad. You were mixing some paint when you saw a person with two braids and a half-dead look on her face. You got the girl's attention, and she gave you a dead, cold, and blank look in return.

"Xavier?" You squeaked.

"Hm?" He hummed, not taking his eyes off the painting.

"I think the new student's here."

-•-°-•-°-☆

OKAY SKDDKSJDKSJ THE ORIGINAL IDEA WAS (Y/N) WAS GOING TO GIVE XAVIER A HAIR TIE BUT I REALIZED IT WAS TOO CLICHÉ. SO, OUT OF NOWHERE, I JUST MADE HIM GIVE ONE OF HIS HAIR TIES TO HER ADKHCKSJDKS IT WASN'T PLANNED AND SKHSSKHEJSHEN

I DON'T KNOW WHY I'M FREAKING OUT BUT FOR SOME REASON IT'S CUTE, OKAY? Yes, I'm freaking out on my own story lmfao

p.s. I am trying not to make long chapters for the sake of my sanity. However, I have a feeling the next chapters will go longer in progress because I like to torture myself.