Love Like Cyanide
Art Can Be Inspired By Music
I tapped my fingers on the kitchen table, thinking.
“So,” I finally said after a couple minutes of unpleasant silence. “What did you want to show me?”
Derrik’s smile was very wide as he just said, "Come on." I chased him up the stairs, taking two at a time, to his extra room where he painted. Before I walked into the room he pivoted on his feet to look at me. He held out a smock and said, "If you value your outfit, I suggest you put it on." There was definitely humor in his eyes as he spoke.
"I'll take my chances."
"Suit yourself." He shrugged and we entered the room (which was huge by the way). It was a very plain room. The walls were just white with nothing on them, not even his art work. There wasn't even any furniture in the room. The only objects in the space where dozens of paint bottles and paint brushes. I noticed that the only colorful thing in the room was the rainbow mess on the floor.
"What happened?" I asked, shocked. Paint was squirted out on a large piece of tin foil and splattered around in little piles of color.
"I was mixing colors."
Well, that explained why he had paint on himself. "For what? I don't see a canvas or any paper for that matter."
He chuckled wickedly. "I'm a man of many surprises, Cyanide. I'm also an artist. And to an artist, the whole world is his canvas. We will be painting the walls." He gestured with his hand around the perimeter.
"Huh...Cool." But then I asked, "Wait. You said we."
He looked at me from the corner of his eye and smiling he countered, "And? I said what I meant and I meant what I said. You're helping me."
"Oh. Um...that's very nice of you, but are you sure? I'm not the world's best artist..." I bit my bottom lip, completely unsure. I didn't want to mess up his walls.
"No, but you are my daughter." His voice wasn't teasing or holding any humor this time. He was quite serious. "I don't know when I'll see you once Kathryn gets you back...I want to remember you. And I think this is the best way to do it. I'll see your style of art on the walls of my work area and think of you each and every time I put my pencil and/or paint brush to paper."
I looked down and flushed. "That's nice of you." It was extremely nice of him actually. He was so perfect; inside and out. "So, let's get started then."
"That's the spirit!" He bent down, picking up a paint brush then removing his own from behind his ear. He kicked the stereo in the corner lightly with his foot and it started playing some up beat music. "Get started," he told me and he got some green paint on his brush.
I got some purple paint on my own brush and hesitated in front of the very blank, very white wall.
It took a while but after not painting and just listening to the semi familiar music, I recognized the singer's voice and what band we were listening.
"Blue October?" I said and smiled crookedly.
He turned back to face me. "Yeah? So what? I can like music too. Just because I'm old..."
What a silly thing for him to think. He looked like he was in his early twenties. Surely he realized that.
"No, of course you can like music. It's just...Blue October?" I laughed a little. Okay, so it wasn't like I hated that band or thought it was retarded. No, no. It's just that I've heard this band many times on the radio (mostly they had their songs "Hate Me" and "Calling You" playing). They were...okay. Not really what I like. But it was just ironic then that my father liked a band that wasn't an oldie. If I recall correctly, they have a new CD out. Well, not that new. It came out a couple months ago before school ended.
He narrowed his eyes at me and his mouth went into a hard line. "Just for saying that I'm going to make you listen to them." He stood up and walked to his stereo.
"I already know what they sound like," I said.
"I'm going to teach you a song of theirs..."
"Oh no."
"Yes." He smiled that wicked smile again. He turned the volume up and changed the song. He started to bop his head up and down. "Okay. You're going to sing with me."
I laughed a startled sound. "No way! I don't even know this song!"
"Learning never hurt anyone." He stood up and started to sing along with the lead vocalist. "Remember how you used to say 'you couldn’t wait till tomorrow for a brand new day'. No fuss when ya had to ride the bus you could add a little blush just to paralyze your school crush..."
Was there anything he wasn't good at? Jeesh. Okay, so he was obviously very rich, was an amazing artist, a very kind person, and now he was a singing freaking god! He had the voice of an angel. I have to admit, it's his singing that got me to want to learn some of the songs.
He set the song on repeat and we sung along as we painted. I had started painting some lavender flowers. He was doing a much better job than me. He was painting some jungle animals hiding in the grass. I was completely and utterly mesmerized and not embarrassed to admit it.
I was having an insanely great time, believe it or not.
"'Cause life's like a jump rope! Up down, up down, up down!" we sang the chorus together as we did what the song told us and jumped up and down, trying to paint the ceiling.
My side hurt from laughing so hard. I had to stop what I was doing and just breathe for a moment.
"Did anyone ever tell you that your laugh is contagious?" Derrik asked me, taking a break himself.
"No," I breathed, "not really." I thought about that then said, "Maybe it's because I rarely laugh, so when I do, it's such a unique noise that you just have to join me." I quote Mark's words he once said to me on a rainy day. I think that was really truly the first time he's heard me laugh.
"That's probably why," he said and smiled. "Should we eat something and continue this later? Take a little break?"
I nodded and grinned. We set down our paint brushes, turned off the music, and went down stairs. The rest of the house seemed much cooler than the room we were just in. It felt exceptionally nice.
"I never want to leave," I said to Derrik.
He stopped to put a hand on my shoulder. "Then don't."
“So,” I finally said after a couple minutes of unpleasant silence. “What did you want to show me?”
Derrik’s smile was very wide as he just said, "Come on." I chased him up the stairs, taking two at a time, to his extra room where he painted. Before I walked into the room he pivoted on his feet to look at me. He held out a smock and said, "If you value your outfit, I suggest you put it on." There was definitely humor in his eyes as he spoke.
"I'll take my chances."
"Suit yourself." He shrugged and we entered the room (which was huge by the way). It was a very plain room. The walls were just white with nothing on them, not even his art work. There wasn't even any furniture in the room. The only objects in the space where dozens of paint bottles and paint brushes. I noticed that the only colorful thing in the room was the rainbow mess on the floor.
"What happened?" I asked, shocked. Paint was squirted out on a large piece of tin foil and splattered around in little piles of color.
"I was mixing colors."
Well, that explained why he had paint on himself. "For what? I don't see a canvas or any paper for that matter."
He chuckled wickedly. "I'm a man of many surprises, Cyanide. I'm also an artist. And to an artist, the whole world is his canvas. We will be painting the walls." He gestured with his hand around the perimeter.
"Huh...Cool." But then I asked, "Wait. You said we."
He looked at me from the corner of his eye and smiling he countered, "And? I said what I meant and I meant what I said. You're helping me."
"Oh. Um...that's very nice of you, but are you sure? I'm not the world's best artist..." I bit my bottom lip, completely unsure. I didn't want to mess up his walls.
"No, but you are my daughter." His voice wasn't teasing or holding any humor this time. He was quite serious. "I don't know when I'll see you once Kathryn gets you back...I want to remember you. And I think this is the best way to do it. I'll see your style of art on the walls of my work area and think of you each and every time I put my pencil and/or paint brush to paper."
I looked down and flushed. "That's nice of you." It was extremely nice of him actually. He was so perfect; inside and out. "So, let's get started then."
"That's the spirit!" He bent down, picking up a paint brush then removing his own from behind his ear. He kicked the stereo in the corner lightly with his foot and it started playing some up beat music. "Get started," he told me and he got some green paint on his brush.
I got some purple paint on my own brush and hesitated in front of the very blank, very white wall.
It took a while but after not painting and just listening to the semi familiar music, I recognized the singer's voice and what band we were listening.
"Blue October?" I said and smiled crookedly.
He turned back to face me. "Yeah? So what? I can like music too. Just because I'm old..."
What a silly thing for him to think. He looked like he was in his early twenties. Surely he realized that.
"No, of course you can like music. It's just...Blue October?" I laughed a little. Okay, so it wasn't like I hated that band or thought it was retarded. No, no. It's just that I've heard this band many times on the radio (mostly they had their songs "Hate Me" and "Calling You" playing). They were...okay. Not really what I like. But it was just ironic then that my father liked a band that wasn't an oldie. If I recall correctly, they have a new CD out. Well, not that new. It came out a couple months ago before school ended.
He narrowed his eyes at me and his mouth went into a hard line. "Just for saying that I'm going to make you listen to them." He stood up and walked to his stereo.
"I already know what they sound like," I said.
"I'm going to teach you a song of theirs..."
"Oh no."
"Yes." He smiled that wicked smile again. He turned the volume up and changed the song. He started to bop his head up and down. "Okay. You're going to sing with me."
I laughed a startled sound. "No way! I don't even know this song!"
"Learning never hurt anyone." He stood up and started to sing along with the lead vocalist. "Remember how you used to say 'you couldn’t wait till tomorrow for a brand new day'. No fuss when ya had to ride the bus you could add a little blush just to paralyze your school crush..."
Was there anything he wasn't good at? Jeesh. Okay, so he was obviously very rich, was an amazing artist, a very kind person, and now he was a singing freaking god! He had the voice of an angel. I have to admit, it's his singing that got me to want to learn some of the songs.
He set the song on repeat and we sung along as we painted. I had started painting some lavender flowers. He was doing a much better job than me. He was painting some jungle animals hiding in the grass. I was completely and utterly mesmerized and not embarrassed to admit it.
I was having an insanely great time, believe it or not.
"'Cause life's like a jump rope! Up down, up down, up down!" we sang the chorus together as we did what the song told us and jumped up and down, trying to paint the ceiling.
My side hurt from laughing so hard. I had to stop what I was doing and just breathe for a moment.
"Did anyone ever tell you that your laugh is contagious?" Derrik asked me, taking a break himself.
"No," I breathed, "not really." I thought about that then said, "Maybe it's because I rarely laugh, so when I do, it's such a unique noise that you just have to join me." I quote Mark's words he once said to me on a rainy day. I think that was really truly the first time he's heard me laugh.
"That's probably why," he said and smiled. "Should we eat something and continue this later? Take a little break?"
I nodded and grinned. We set down our paint brushes, turned off the music, and went down stairs. The rest of the house seemed much cooler than the room we were just in. It felt exceptionally nice.
"I never want to leave," I said to Derrik.
He stopped to put a hand on my shoulder. "Then don't."
♠ ♠ ♠
Blue October is the best band ever, dude! The song that I mention in this chapter is from their new album that was released today (3/24/09). So I thought it was appropriate to have my favorite band in this part of the story. =D You should really check out their song Jump Rope. It's amazing and fun. ^^(Comments are nice. Thanks.)