Chapter 24: Oops

Mary is stunned.

The first thing the artist had to explain to Anne is that not every painting has to align with an outline. Especially when working with abstract or non-realistic artwork, an outline might introduce boundaries that can hamper the visual experience of an image.

In particular, a mosaic involves irregular pieces that, up close, don't reveal any information and instead reveal the artist's intentions from afar. As such, Anne quickly understands that her son's method of preparing a portrait wouldn't work for this type of painting. While she can still create a sketch to help guide her, her strokes on top would have to diverge.

Grasping the chaotic nature of Mary's rose as an inspiration, she starts a painting of a cat. It's a simple focus with various colors crossed and specked, but with contrast that would allow one to tell the difference between the background and multiple features of the pet.

The painting itself is simple. A beginner might draw a similar work in a few hours with some trial and error; however, Anne seemed to know where to paint. Her strokes start off random, but shortly with other brushes and specific coloring, a cat becomes evident in a half-hour. Everything else after that is a background that hides away the feline.

"A-are you sure you haven't done this before?" Mary asks, watching the slime girl tap a few areas with her brush.

Anne blinks, breaking away from the canvas, then smiles brightly. "Yes, but this is really fun!"

Mary has to look away and shut her eyes tightly. She can't dwell too much on the slime girl's efficiency with the brush, but rather...

'How can someone be so cute!?' she squeals in her mind, shivering with delight.

Nearby, Daniel has a hard time focusing on the Stonehenge painting. With Mary's disbelief on display, he's worried about any growing suspicions his former girlfriend may have. Although, he fails to see how enamored his artistic friend is with his assistant's cheerful personality.

He flinches when his ex opens her eyes and directs a glare at him. He gulps, wondering if she has caught on to something.

"Daniel," she begins firmly.

The said painter gulps. "Y-yes?"

"This girl is too good for a boring guy like you. Give her to me."

Daniel pauses for a moment before relaxing, breathing out easily. He then stares back at his ex with a tiny smirk. "And here I thought we were past feelings of jealousy."

"Fuck you. Give. her. to. me."

Sometime later, a delivery service brings sub sandwiches Mary ordered to Daniel's apartment. At the table, the female artist starts asking questions about the couple's relationship. But before that, she sips a can of soda at the kitchen table and slams it down. She can no longer deny her jealousy that Daniel found someone nice, one who is not only open about painting but a genius too!

Why can't she have her own Anne?

Groaning with displeasure, Mary leans forward and rests her chin on her palm. "Well, care to give me a story? When did you meet and how long has it been?"

It amuses Daniel that Mary sounds so down again. He's about to tell a story he's prepared in his mind, but Anne beats him to the punch.

"We first met on Tinder about two months ago, was it? Like most people, we hooked up, and...well, we simply discovered we liked each other. That's about it."

Daniel blinks with surprise before smiling to himself. 'Nice!'

It's a very bland, generic story, but Daniel is proud that the slime girl can make it sound normal. But of course, Mary isn't about to accept that. Instead, she points her finger at him and narrows her eyes.

"That's not all, is it? Didn't you tell me once that you're going to avoid other artists since it seems to be a clashing trait that never works out?"

Daniel flinches, sweating a little. "Er, well...Anne never disclosed she painted as a side! She..."

"I wasn't very confident in my skills, you see," Anne jumps in, looking embarrassed.

Mary now stares at Anne in disbelief. "So, you're saying in two months, you improved yourself using your boyfriend's studio? I highly doubt it's that. You probably set up low expectations of yourself."

Anne fidgets her hands underneath the table. "I...guess."

The female artist shakes her head and clicks her tongue. "Well honestly, you'd be better off in my studio. I could use an assistant-"

Daniel coughs. "Actually, she's already helping me with my backlog."

Mary growls. "So? If she wants, she can still help me out and broaden her skills. Are you even paying her?!"

"Of course I am!" Daniel quickly lies while feeling guilty. Granted, it's only been a week since he accepted her as his assistant. He thought of giving her a fair share of the cash for the paintings she completed, but it would be unwieldy without a bank account, which can't be opened without proper identification.

Mary seems convinced but crosses her arms. "Well, it'd be good for her to do more than just portraits-"

"Did you not see the landscape painting she's doing?!" Daniel cuts in, offended.

Mary waves her hands. "It's all run-of-the-mill art! Now the Stonehenge painting of yours must be the most exciting thing I've seen you take on!"

"Oh, come on! This run-of-the-mill stuff you claim is quite in demand! Not everything has to be spicy as you like to take!"

Anne laughs nervously as she starts to understand why Mary and Daniel split. It really is as her son says. Even as artists, their specific interests simply clash.

Mary huffs and backs off. "Look, fine! Sorry, I didn't mean to argue. Just...your girlfriend seems to really pick up different styles easily. It's a good idea to try exotic, unique paintings every now and then."

The slime girl heeds that and beams. "Yes, and I think I'm feeling more confident thanks to you, Mary."

The female artist blushes a little, then rubs her neck. After some silence, she stares at her ex-boyfriend. "Like I said, can I have her?"

"Find your own."

"Inflexible as always," Mary grumbles, clicking her tongue. "Anyways, do you have a kitchen knife I can use? I swear these sub sandwiches are larger than I remember."

Anne quickly stands up. "Oh! Don't worry, I'll grab one for you!"

Mary's eyes smile. "Appreciated, love."

The slime girl moves to a drawer that contains all knives, but as she tries to open it, it only comes out a quarter of the way. It seems like something is hitting the top and preventing full access.

'Ah, I must've placed the stirring spoon in here,' Anne thinks, embarrassed.

Since she's flexible and facing away from Mary, she takes the chance to slip her hand into the opening and stretch her fingers to the top. She detects the handle of the large spoon that prevents the drawer from opening. While gripping the face of the drawer, she pulls down the spoon and causes the drawer to come out with force.

Hearing the clanging of steel knives, Daniel raises an eyebrow. "Anne?"

"I got it!" she reassures. "I accidentally put a large spoon in the drawer with the knives, so it was stopping the drawer from opening."

Daniel blinks, realizing he never really told her where to put things. "Ah, there's a bigger drawer for the stirring spoons in the drawer to your left. All the knives are in a smaller drawer."

"I'll remember that!"

Humming happily, Anne returns to the table with a bread knife, but before she can hand it over to Mary, the female artist's eyes gaze lowers, then contracts in horror.

"Oh my god, Anne!"

The slime girl flinches at the outburst, then shifts her eyes at her equally stunned son, who is frozen and staring towards her abdomen.

With a nervous gulp, the slime mother tilts her head down to the source of shock.

Simply, one of the smaller knives seems to have bounced out of the drawer and impaled itself into her stomach.

"Oh."