After Graphic Novels & Stories

I don’t fantasize, exactly. But I ... wonder. “What are you...” Nathan trails off. He snaps his fingers in front of me, and I blush. “You said after hours favor.” “What...Jesus! No.” Nathan moves behind his mammoth desk and sits down firmly. “Your mind is a terrifying place, Nicole.” “You said……” “I meant, a graphic design favor.” He steeples his fingers and looks at me sternly. “A work graphic design favor. With numbers. And graphs. And absolutely no serial killers or otherwise inappropriate activities.”

Once you had stepped onto a path, there was no longer any chance for you to regret it. Molly's face turned red. "Mrs. Heath, you know about the alias I use to enter competitions?" "Not just that, I've even bought your artwork. It's a small world, isn't it? I even tried to ask around for information on you. I can't believe I get to see you again so many years later." "Thank you for your approval, Mrs. Heath. I was just painting for fun." Molly was talking, but her hands never stopped moving. In just a few minutes, she completed a sketch of a person's face.

"Lead us to the heart of their territory, Alex. We will follow your lead." With a confident grin, Alex stepped forward, his senses keen and his resolve unwavering. "Follow me," he said, his voice steady and assured. Tension crackled in the air like lightning as we ventured farther into the enemy's territory. The forest echoed with the distant sounds of the Rival pack's movements as shadows swirled among the trees. Suddenly, Alex held up his hand, signaling for us to halt. "They're close," he whispered, his eyes narrowed in concentration.

Then after that, “Elexier, pose again! Let’s take pictures together,” I said to him and smiled. He smiled at me too and nodded. I clicked the phone’s camera many times and when I’m already satisfied, I already stopped. I looked at the pictures and saw that in some other shots, Elexier isn’t looking at the camera, he’s looking at me. And somehow, that brings butterflies in my stomach again. And I can’t believe that.

Daisy still kept silent, calm as if nothing had happened. Dash’s head was like mud, he couldn’t remember anything. He quickly rushed into the bathroom and poured cold water on his head. A few blurry, fragmented images exist in memory. To stop Daisy's annoying crying. Dash sees Daisy as nothing more than a stuffed animal. Cover her nose, pinch her cheeks, spread her mouth, strangle. Being bothered too much. Daisy also reacted a bit. Mumbling something, she turned over and leaned in the other direction, continuing to sleep.

Consider it done. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I swallowed hard, and I breathed deeply. Unlike other paintings this painting was unique, it wasn’t just blue and black and white, it was pink, violet, blue, red, white, it had everything. It depicted a universe. It was full of life. And when you look closer to it... I could see a faint image of a face. Like the whole galaxy was just a whole facade, to hide what the painting really beholds. Anamorphosis. “I’m sorry for asking.” I heard Geoffrey. Then I looked back at him.

Not close at all. ***

Before they knew it, the conversation ran smoothly as they went on talking about the project and the modification the Aira’s sketches. Soon Sia joined them and they went on discussing the introductions to the graphics team. “Ah, that was some good work getting done,” Vincent sighed leaning back on his chair, “True,” Carter answered standing up, “With this much material, the graphic team would have enough to work with for a while. I will go deliver this material to them right away.” “Alright, thanks,” Vincent responded, “Aira, would you like to grab some lunch after this? My treat,”

The upbeat pop music playlist had automatically transitioned into a slower, moodier R&B vibe that felt entirely too intimate for the current seating arrangement. My final client of the night was a sweetheart named Maya, a young college student who wanted a custom, hand-painted editorial graphic liner look for her upcoming engagement party. She was sitting in my hydraulic chair, completely relaxed, her eyes closed as I worked. I was currently hunched over her face, using an incredibly fine, pointed detail brush to sketch tiny, intricate white floral accents onto a sharp, jet-black winged eyeliner base. This required absolute stillness. A single breath too heavy could ruin the clean geometry o