Aspiring Artist
Aspiring Artist: New Adult. A man was trying to explore his talents and skills ended up in an unconventional job.
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The sun was glaring and the cloudless sky didn’t help ease the stinging rays. It was only nine in the morning but this type of heat was for midday.
Global warming at its finest.
Grayson couldn’t do anything about this heat just as he couldn’t do anything about the heavy traffic. Looking at his watch, he knew that he’d be late for his 10 AM appointment with the slow pace.
“Sir, I think I’ll just walk towards the address. You said it’s just a fifteen minute walk from here?” He asked the driver while he made sure that his bags were intact.
“Yes. Just go straight ahead and turn right on the second corner. The building numbers are posted on the gates so you can easily find the house that you’re looking for.”
“Thanks again.”
After paying for his fare, he walked down the road amidst the intense heat. Despite his confusion, he followed the driver’s instructions towards the address that his new employer gave him.
He got this new job after deciding to quit from his redundant work as a quality assurance officer in a food manufacturing company. He had always been passionate about drawing and painting. And even though he knew that the visual arts field didn’t pay much, he still packed his stuff and left his stable job of five years.
Grayson reached the neighborhood and the address but he was perplexed because he was expecting that the area would be full of business establishments. But instead, he was greeted by houses. As in those places for families and other types of residents.
Maybe the driver was wrong?
But when he looked at the business card again, he knew that the taxi driver directed him to the right place. And the right place was a two story house with a wide flower garden.
Since it was his first time in this city, he was unfamiliar with the customs of his future workplace. Maybe his employer wanted to meet him in private first before he was allowed to go to the office which could be located on the other side of the city, not here in the suburban terrain.
A woman walked towards the gate after he rang the doorbell.
She had a huge mass of very curly hair clipped on top of her head. Some loose curls were tucked behind her ear while the other ones were framing her cheeks. She was wearing a large T-shirt and torn jeans. She wasn’t even wearing shoes, only mismatched slippers.
Surely this couldn’t be her employer. Maybe she was the help or something.
“Good morning. I’m looking for Pen Ties and Co.” He said as soon as the woman reached the gate.
“You are?”
Despite her small stature and lack of height, her voice was full and a little deep. He even caught her sharp eyes as they scanned him through her round glasses.
“Uh… I’m Grayson Fuller. I was hired recently.”
The woman nodded and let him in.
“I’m Jovie, a senior artist and the department head.”
She looked too young to be in an executive position. He guessed that she was around three years older than he was.
“After you were interviewed by the human resource team, your portfolios were submitted to the art department team. I was one of the panel who reviewed your work,” she explained.
“Thank you for hiring me,” he said because he was really grateful for this opportunity.
“Nah. I wasn’t the one who hired you per se. I didn’t even know anything about you because I only judged your portfolio.”
“That’s even better because you weren’t biased when you were going through all the applicants.”
He thought that his resume wouldn’t make the cut in any art companies because he didn’t have sufficient experience. However, his portfolio could show his potential as an artist.
“Come in,” Jovie invited him.
The entire house was chaotic. Its interior was very untidy compared to the properly groomed garden outside.
“Oh, pardon the mess. The AC in one of the rooms on the second floor broke down, so one of the video editors camped here,” she gestured towards the living room with several curtains that created a makeshift cubicle.
“Hey Erwin!”
“That the new one?” A bald guy asked.
“Yep. Erwin, meet Grayson. Grayson, this is one of our video editors, Erwin.”
“Nice to meet you,” Grayson politely greeted him.
“Welcome to the team. Can’t tour you around because of loads of work.”
Grayson frowned and decided to ask what he was meaning to voice out earlier. “I don’t understand what’s going on here.”
“What do you mean?” Jovie tilted her head.
“Why do I need to be shown around here? In this house?”
This time, it was Jovie who frowned. “This is our work place. As part of the art department, you’ll be working with us. Here. In this house.”
“Oh,” he cleared his throat. “I thought we’ll be in some kind of office.”
“Technically, this is our office.” Jovie crossed her arms and stood straighter, but still shorter than him. “Grayson, we are artists. We don’t need to be confined in a cramped cubicle with bland walls. We need space. We need rooms.”
“I… but still. Why the beds and pillows?” He asked pertaining to a bed in the corner of the living room and many pillows scattered on the floor.
“Because Chris needs his inspiration.”
Just then, a very tall and muscular guy emerged from one of the makeshift cubicles.
“Hey man. I’m Chris,” he grabbed his hand and shook it firmly. “You gotta be used to these inspirational stuff. I can’t really work without models. Maybe you can draw from imagination, but for me? I need some tangible shit to get me started.”
“Nice to meet you. I’m Grayson. And I’m a little of both. I can draw from imagination and sometimes, I could use models.”
“Good. Now that you’re introduced, I’ll show you around,” Jovie said.
The woman explained that the art department was composed of four digital artists, including Jovie and Grayson, three video editors, and a music composer. They also had part-time voice actors if the films needed some dubbing.
“Before I was appointed as the department head, I trained and had experience in those areas,” she shared.
On the first floor, the rooms were occupied by the artists. And if inspiration was hard to find, the artists could camp anywhere just as Chris did.
The second floor was for the video editors, and music composers. Grayson was impressed because the mess on the second floor was a little tame compared to what he witnessed inside the artists’ rooms where drawings, papers, and several art supplies were disarranged.
“Now, let’s go to the attic which is my office. I will orient you more on how you’ll go over the work here.”
Both of them climbed a short flight of stairs into the attic. He was expecting a crowded, dark, and stuffy room. What he saw was the exact opposite.
The attic looked like a bedroom for a staycation—like a picture from Instagram with the wooden floor, fairy lights, shelf of books, and full-length window.
“Wow, it looks cozy,” he commented.
“Yeah, I like my place tidy. Not all artists are messy.”
Jovie was organized on the outside but physically, she looked like she hadn’t looked in a mirror for a week. But Grayson bit his tongue so as not to offend his superior.
“Have a seat please.”
Jovie plopped down a bean bag. Since there weren’t any other chairs, Grayson supposed that he was allowed to sit on the sofa bed which looked like Jovie’s sleeping place.
From his angle, he could clearly see the cabinets with glass doors. He was shocked to see whips, chains, and collars. Dildos of several colors and sizes were neatly arranged, too.
He cleared his throat because he felt an unnecessary dose of embarrassment for having seen those personal things.
“Oh those?” Jovie asked, fully understanding his feelings. “I let the artists borrow them if they are lost for inspiration. You can google them but somehow, the physical items spark naughtier ideas.”
“Borrow?”
“Of course. They are not my toys, they’re there for inspiration.”
Jovie said as if that clarified anything. She seemed to be unaware about his struggle to fully grasp what was happening.
“You mean, some of our clients ask for naughty artworks?” Grayson was afraid of the answer.
Jovie frowned at him. “Of course they do. Are you high?”
“What?”
“You applied to Pen Ties and Co.,” she deadpanned.
“Yeah?”
Grayson was referred to this company by his cousin and it was his cousin who submitted his application but he didn’t really know what to expect here. All he knew was that this company needed artists who were good at anatomy and making OG characters.
“You applied as a Hentai artist.”
“A what?”
He dropped his portfolio on the floor. The pages were opened, showing him his original digital drawings of males and females—fully clothed characters.
Jovie leaned forward to take a closer look at him. “Pen Ties and Co.,” she repeated. “Sounds like Hentai and Co. ‘Co’ could stand for copulation or cock or whatever for all I care.”
“Or it could mean company,” he murmured. “I thought I’ll be part of a team that will produce cartoons or short animated films. Or maybe develop video game characters. I even had suggestions for the plot of a story!”
By now he was talking more to himself. He was telling himself to calm down and re-evaluate his life decisions.
“That’s good!” Jovie exclaimed excitedly. She grabbed a pen and paper without standing up, then passed them to him.
“You have to write down the story. Now. Before your inspiration is erased to oblivion.”
“I’m still overwhelmed by all of this.”
“Porn can be really overwhelming for people especially if we’re talking about hard core Hentai. But as long as we create great storylines and erotic videos, even sensual and softcore Hentai will be marketable.”
He felt like he was about to be sick. Grayson looked at his superior once more. She was smiling at him, showing her teeth with braces. There was excitement in her eyes as if she couldn’t wait for him to work.
How could this tiny woman with an authoritative voice be so messy yet so organized? Naive looking yet wild deep inside?
She was a walking paradox.
Grayson shouldn’t be deceived by her innocent demeanor because for all he knew, she had the freakiest imagination around here. Jovie was the senior artist and department head after all. And she trusted that his art could be used in this field.
Then he shall try his best.
