All The Colors Of You || Bang Chan

Chapter Six - Chan

My phone rings.
"This is Channie," I say as I answer.
It's almost midnight, I'm still at the studio, working on some tracks. I've been here all day.

"Hey, we're home now." It's Felix.
I lean back in my chair and rub my face.
"How was it?"
"It was great," Felix answers, "She's so nice, bro. We talked the entire time, she's so cool. Jeongin and I felt really comfortable the entire time."

It was Felix and Jeongin's turn to get painted today. They're the first ones to do it, and I'm not going to lie: I was so nervous about it all.
When you're famous, you never know how people will treat you.
And though I've had a good feeling about Perrie, I asked Felix to call me and tell me everything that happened.
I want my brothers to be well taken care of when I'm not around.

"I'm happy to hear that," I say then, "Did you get something to eat?"
"Yeah, we got something on the way home." I can hear something crack open in the background of his voice. "But, oh, my god, Channie. Perrie is so pretty! I can totally understand why you like her."
"I don't like her. Not like that," I murmur trying to defend myself, "I just think she's pretty. That's all."
"Sure," Felix doesn't sound like he believes me, "And the fact that you can't stop talking about her means absolutely nothing."

I swallow thickly.
There's some truth here.
Something about her makes my head fuzzy. I can't stop thinking about her and the last time I saw her.
The way she danced through the room in her overalls trying to get the perfect shot of us for the composition picture.
How her red hair looks a bit like fire when the sun shines through it.
The way she winked at me, telling me I looked pretty - successfully sending palpitations to my heart.

"Anyways," Felix says now, "She was still at her studio when we left half an hour ago. Jeongin and I are tired so we're going to bed now. Are you going home soon?"
I look at the clock on my wall.
After half past eleven.
"Sure. I'll be on my way soon."
"Okay. Goodnight, Channie!"
"Goodnight, Lix."

He hangs up.
I stare at my computer screen for a moment, thinking of what to do.
Then I open my phone and tap over to the chat I have with Perrie.
We've only exchanged seven texts in total.

I send her a message.

Hey! Thank you for taking such good care of Felix and Jeongin today. Have a good night :)

I try to go back to work.
I don't even care if she read the message or if she's typing a response right this second.
I am not even that interested in her all that much.

I almost drop my phone when her message finally flies in, trying to open her chat with shaky fingers. 

It was a pleasure working with them! They were on their best behavior ;)
I'm surprised you're still up.. Guess you're a night owl like me

I purse my lips.

I always work late. Everything just comes easier to me during the night lol

I know what you mean.. that's exactly what it feels like to me too :)
does get lonely sometimes though

I stare at the last sentence in her message.
Is this a hint?
Does she want me to come over?
No, we barely know each other. I have to work. She's probably too busy, anyways.

I start typing an answer, but she's quicker.

do you want a change of scenery? ;)  i heard creative minds help each other create better results

My mouth falls open and I can feel my heart pick up speed.
I'm so bad at flirting. What do I say?
I want to see her. But it would be just us two. Would it be a date? No. No, it's just a business meeting.
Oh, God, I need to make a decision before she thinks I'm blowing her off or ghosting her.

I'm on my way ;)

Twenty minutes later, I stand in front of Perrie's workshop.
My heart is beating like crazy when I raise my hand to ring her doorbell.
I stopped by a convenience store on the way here. The bottle in my arm is cold and heavy.

Perrie opens the door with a sly grin on her face.
"Hey there, stranger," she says and leans in the doorway. "Nice to see you."
I chuckle and clear my throat, before I sheepishly hold up the wine bottle I got.
"I brought this," I state as if it's not obvious, "I thought you might like a refreshment."

She reaches out to grab the bottle and exclaims, "Oh, I love a good rosé! How did you know?"
I shrug helplessly, but I blush. The bottle said 'sweet, fresh, and bright in taste' and I would use all those words to describe Perrie, so I got it.
She ushers me inside.

"Excuse the mess," she says, "I needed to take a break after Felix and Jeongin left. I guess it got a little out of hand."
The big canvas for our portrait is leaning against the wall, a sheet hanging over it, covering most of it.
As before, there are paint tubes and brushes everywhere. It smells like the chemicals in the paint, and there are tubs of tarp or water everywhere.

However, this time, there is a new smaller canvas on an easel by the back.
There's paint on it, but it doesn't really show anything specific. It looks like tufts of differently colored clouds are all intertwining with each other. Soft, abstract.
"Here, let's sit outside," Perrie says and crosses the room to the balcony door, "It's so nice out."

The balcony is small, but magnolia trees are growing, reaching their arms over the balcony fence. Their flowers are in full bloom and the air is heavy with the scent of them.
Perrie sits down by the wall and leans against it, holding the bottle and a bottle opener in her hands.
"Unfortunately, I don't have any glasses here," she says as she looks up at me with big eyes, "But I'm not sick, so we can share this bottle."

I sit down next to her.
The only light comes from inside the workshop, but there are stars everywhere, and the moon is bright tonight.
And Perrie was right, it is nice out here. Calm. Peaceful.
I watch as Perrie struggles to open the bottle, until she finally huffs and offers it to me with the screw still intact.
I open it easily.

"Thank you," Perrie says as I offer the bottle back to her for the first sip, "I'm glad you're here."