These two stories were written for artists on DeviantArt, as a personal challenge to create a story for their favorite piece of art. They are both shorter (~250 words), but just as wonderful.

Em D's Eyes by Nanosichi on DeviantArt

Em D’s Eyes

She was use to long days and strange outfits, but Emily could not have imagined today’s gig. She had been modeling all over New York for a few months now, and when her agency said that there was a photo shoot just off of Times Square, she knew it was going to be big. When she walked into the studio, the large windows overlooking the square had the drapes pulled back completely, letting the room fill with the light of all the electronic billboards. The room had mirrors, prisms, and all sorts of colored glass dangling in front of the window.

She was handed a vibrant pink coat with small mirrors covering it and instructed to put it on while they, “finished setting up the room”. When she walked out again, the room was awash with every color of the rainbow. “Just stand on the X over there and let’s get started,” said the photographer.

Emily moved from the darkened hallway to the spot, and immediately her outfit exploded with color. I’m a professional. I can make this work. She tried to ignore everything and focus on just the camera man, moving in and out of the shadows with every click. She grabbed a bit of her sleeve and put it between her teeth and stared at him, the blue of her eyes resisting the room’s fragmented colors. The camera clicked three times in rapid succession, and in that set of pictures, Emily had moved from struggling model to Em D, supermodel.

The apartment tiles were small on the patio, leaving marks on his heels as he pressed his weight against them. It had been 6 years since he had been back at his parent’s place, and it brought back ill memories.

He stood on the other side of the railing, his toes dangling over the edge. As he glanced down at the world below, he could see the courtyard was empty, save a few trees and many more stark white tiles. His hands were gripping the railing behind him as he leaned forward, shifting his weight out into the open air. He thought it would make him nervous, but instead he was content. It was 6 years ago that he stood at this exact same spot and thought about ending his life.

Today wasn’t going to be the same. Some words a friend shared with him that day had brought him inside, and today he wanted to come back to the same place where so much pain had gathered and let it free. He could feel the weight of it lifting away from his body, guilty wings soaring into the open air. He tightened his muscles and pulled his body back toward the railing, his heels bearing his full weight on the edge.

“When you can’t run, you crawl, and when you can’t crawl, you find someone to carry you,” he said to himself as he looked out on the sunset falling behind the opposite building. He had found someone to carry him for a while, and now he could run again.