A Happy Glow

His head was down, his cheek resting on his arm as his pencil scratched across the paper. The cafeteria noise melted away to a dull whisper as he concentrated on his design.

His food sat ignored near his elbow, his shaggy black hair nearly dipping into his mashed potatoes.

A shadow fell on his paper, in the shape of a humanoid head. He jerked up, but it was already too late. A large lean hand was snagging a corner of his paper and snatching it out from under him.

“Hey!” He wanted to reach for the paper, to reclaim it, but he was afraid they would rip it. ‘Just crumble it, please don’t rip it.’

The student looked at the hand drawn picture, his two friends looking over his shoulder.

“Can’t get a human girlfriend so you going with goats now?” One laughed not bothering to keep his voice down.

The artist’s face flared with color as the students that heard the comment turned to look at him.

“How is that goat p*ssy?” The other boy asked, making a crude baying sound, much like that of a jackass.

“Shut up.” The student holding his picture turned his head, studying the design.

The artist could see it so well, it was a goat girl, with long curling ears going down her shoulders, with soft white hair flowing down her back, her swept to one side. She had a modest humanoid body, but her lower legs were that of a sheep. She was standing in a field with a basket of flowers scattering around her.

“I don’t know why you are laughing XYX, I’ve seen your browser history. You are a huge hentai tentacle fan.”

His friend gawked in embarrassment, “That wasn’t...I wasn’t looking it up…..it kinda popped up….it was ad…..”

His other friend snickered until it was his turn. “You are no better YxY, you like lolitas and tomboys.”

“So what, what about you. I’m sure not even goats are something you are into.” YxY went to jerked to paper out of his hand but he gave it back to the artist, who quickly put it away in his notebook.

His two friends left, snickers and catcalls following them out of the cafeteria. The artist was in a happy glow; his work had been complimented by someone he never suspected. He had even stood up to his own friends for his art, it almost made the artist’s head spin.

“Hey,”

The artist looked up, confused to see the student still standing over him. “I really like your art Jack, don’t let them idiots get to you.”

He started to walk away, but for some reason Jack found himself speaking up, “What are you into Jamie?”

The star of the soccer team looked over his shoulder and smiled secretly, “Artists.”

Jack felt a blush crawl up his neck, not sure what he had meant. He didn’t have long to dwell on it, the dismissal bell rang and the cafeteria was suddenly a cacophony of noise as students finished their lunch break.

AUTHOR’S NOTE:

For a full look at my little illustration you can go here

<a href="https://www.deviantart.com/lamiaeblackstone/art/A-Happy-Glow-754672718">Happy Glow Picture</a>

The image was created on Paint. That’s right default paint, it’s nothing grand, but it is mine. So be nice to her.