#beanwaitingforya

Art in Motion, Slowed to a Stop

Suga and Daichi meet in college, as art students, cue some mutual pining and art shenanigans.

Inspired by @priintaniere‘s cute art and hc’s

Some notes (and bonus) at the end :) Click for PART 1 and PART 2

all mistakes are mine

Sawamura Daichi was frustrated. 

Daichi had been itching to see Suga's sketches since the first time they were paired together for class. He knew it was a bit invasive to request such a thing, but he really couldn't help himself. Not after he barely got a glance at Suga's work in class, despite his insightful critique. Not after all those study sessions. Not after days of watching Suga out of the corner of his eye glancing surreptitiously over his notebook. To be fair, Asahi had to point it out to him. Daichi never would've noticed if his friend hadn't mentioned it at work after their first study group all together. They had been prepping dough for tomorrow morning's set of bagels, when Asahi had spilled the beans. Or rather, complained how every time he asked Suga a question, it took him an extra ten seconds to respond, and they usually ended up looking for the answer in the textbook anyway. Sure enough, the next evening when they were studying together in the library, Daichi observed Suga doing less studying and more scribbling, or so it seemed. The fact that he had to sit at an angle and use his the reflection of his phone screen to basically spy on Suga was something he was going to ignore. But he hadn't gotten any studying done in the past couple days, so when Asahi got up to get more coffee, he finally just asked Suga. "Suga, could I see your sketchbook?" He really needed to see what was in there. For art-related reasons, of course. "I know some people are protective of their work, but I never really had a good look at the portrait you did of me a couple of weeks ago." Daichi hunched his shoulders, bracing himself for rejection. For whatever reason, Suga looked absolutely terrified. His fingers turned white as he clenched his notebook to his scarf, as if to protect it from outside invaders. "Sorry if I'm being nosy, I just hoped..." Daichi mumbled, sinking back into his armchair and resigning himself to defeat. "Just forget about it, sorry, Suga." He rubbed his forehead, trying to smooth out the crinkle there, and reached over to open his textbook again. Daichi didn't want to screw up their tentative friendship, because here was one more person that didn't find him so intimidating. His serious nature and dedication to academics seemed to scare almost everyone else away. "Sawamura..." Suga whispered. Daichi whipped his head back up, slightly hopeful. Suga had placed his sketchbook on the table, as if to slide it to him, but had one hand pressed down on it. "Daichi is fine." What did he have in his sketchbook anyway, buried treasure? Daichi was growing more curious by the second. "Just...please don't laugh..." Suga breathed, so quietly Daichi barely heard. He slid the sketchbook over, albeit with the worst frown on his face, like he has to give up his first-born child. Daichi reached over to grab it and Suga finally let go, crossing his arms and dropping his head to the table. "Why so miserable?" Daichi chuckled. "It really can't be that bad- oh-" And he flipped open the sketchbook to see his own face staring back at him. Daichi blinked. Well, his likeness wasn't exactly staring back at him. It was staring at a book on a library table, exactly like the one they've been studying at for the past several days. Strong, definite, broad strokes surrounding careful lightly added details, like the molding on the table, or the hair at the back of Daichi's neck. He flipped to another random page. Him sipping a hot chocolate (he's never liked tea or coffee). A cartoon Daichi carrying his art portfolio. Another page, was that the back of his head? His hand? One small doodle of Asahi, looking a bit grumpy as he scowled at a textbook, chewing on the end of a pencil. But then another hand, a torso that wore a shirt that looked suspiciously familiar, and shoes that he definitely wore yesterday. "Suga," he started. Suga peered at him from the table, his face half-buried in his scarf. "Suga, these are amazing." Suga blinked. "Suga, you-" "Look, Sawamura, I know what it looks like, but I couldn't help it, I sketch all the time, I didn't even realize I was sketching you so much, but you're so nice to draw and you're just such a great subject, you even stay still for long periods of time and-" "Suga."  Daichi dropped his hand on Suga's shoulder, intending to steady him, but Suga flinched back. Daichi tried again, removing his hand and using it to slide the notebook back across. "It's Daichi. And if you wanted to sketch me for practice...well, just say so, I don't really mind." Gingerly, he bumped the edge of the notebook against Suga's nose. "Well, to be honest, it's kind of embarrassing, but I guess I'm flattered. I completely understand the need to practice, so just go ahead and sketch me." He paused. "I'd appreciate being able to see the sketches afterwards, though." Suga sucked in a breath as Daichi's face appeared at the other end of the sketchbook. Daichi had leaned in close to whisper, close enough for Suga to feel his breath, close enough for Daichi to smell Suga's distinct scent of mint and coffee. Suga's warm brown eyes sparkled, and it looked like he was about to say something when approaching footsteps startled them both. "Ahhh, they got my order wrong so I had to wait longer for them to remake it," Asahi said, plopping into his seat with a sigh. Daichi and Suga both jumped, straightening and staring at Asahi. Daichi let go of the notebook, and a soft thunk on the table made Asahi look up from his coffee. Too close, thought Daichi. He was way too close. He looked over at Suga, who was looking right back. "Did I...interrupt something?" Asahi said tentatively, eyes darting between the two. "N-no," Daichi stammered. Why did he feel like he had been caught red-handed stealing cookies from the cookie jar? "I was just asking Suga about his sketchbook," Daichi said, belatedly looking over to Suga, who was furiously shaking his head. "Ah, sor-" "Ah, so you asked him then? Hey, Suga, do you mind if I take a peek?" Asahi started to reach across the table. Suga's grin was lopsided and a bit forced, but he still smiled and told Asahi, "Sure, why not," as he reluctantly slid the book over. "After all, Daichi's already seen it." Daichi watched Asahi's eyes widen as he flipped through the pages. Asahi looked up. "Suga, do you-"

"Not another word!" He didn't yell, but Suga said it with enough force to close the book and slide it back across the table. Suga's defensive response surprised Daichi, but what really surprised him was Asahi's knowing smile as Suga stuffed the book back into his bag. Asahi opened his again mouth to say something but Suga was shaking his head again but this time it was slowly, accompanied by a scary smile. Asahi chuckled and turned to Daichi to ask him if they needed to know about Leonardo da Vinci for their test tomorrow. Suga sighed, tugging at his scarf and exposing a bit of creamy, pale skin. Daichi had the distinct feeling he had missed something. 

NOTES AND BONUS UNDER CUT :3

*drops this here quietly* I still don’t have a name for this halp? Inspired by @priintaniere‘s CUTE ADORABLE ART 

Part 1 Here and Part 3 Here

Note: This is from Sugawara’s POV, more notes at end, and this is pretty much unedited whoops, all mistakes are mine

Sugawara Koushi does not have crushes. He's had a few flings, to be sure, but nothing ever serious. Nothing that ever made his skin burn with excitement or had him dancing on his toes. He maintains this stance when his friend visits him at his part-time job working at the campus library. He's sitting at the front counter, doodling on a scrap of paper while he waits for someone to check out books, when Yaku Morisuke barrels inside. He leans against the tall desk, just barely able to rest his arms on the counter. "Suga, you would NOT believe what Kuroo said, I can't even - Hey, you're drawing that guy again!" Yaku stops mid-sentence to point at Suga's latest doodle, not much more than the back of a head and a well-defined back. Suga absentmindedly erases a bit, then thickens a few lines. "What?" "You know, muscles guy. You're always drawing this same dude. Anyway, will you listen to this? Kuroo said he'd wait for me after practice, but ditched me for Kenma again, the bastard -" Yaku kept talking but Sugawara wasn't listening. Muscles guy? Who was he even talking about? He supposed the dark-haired man he was currently drawing looked a bit familiar, but that wasn't too surprising. He flipped over the scrap of paper to some doodles he had done at breakfast and sure enough it was the same guy, dark, closely cropped hair, wide shoulders, and muscles. He was still admiring the biceps he had drawn when Yaku's voice suddenly dropped to a whisper. He tugged on Suga's sweater and pointed over his shoulder. "Hey, is that the guy? The one you've been drawing for weeks?" he hissed. Two guys with oversized art portfolios and messenger bags had just walked in, claiming a large table by the small corner cafe. One was tall, wearing a long coat, and had long hair pulled back into a ponytail. The other was wearing a dark beanie and navy hoodie. They had their backs to the counter, but looked strangely familiar... "What, the tall one with the longish hair? No, that's not the same guy-" Long-haired dude sat down while the other guy dropped his bags, taking off the beanie and ruffling his hair. As he turned to stand in line for the cafe, Suga finally caught a glimpse of his face. "It's him," Suga whispered. Sawamura Daichi, the subject of his sketches, was standing in line for coffee, just twenty feet away. "Yaku, stop staring!" Suga hissed. "Oho, he's pretty good looking. You should tell him to join the volleyball team, I'm sure Kuroo and Bokuto would enjoy that. That other guy is pretty tall too." Yaku ignored Suga to contemplate the stranger's ability. "We could use a few wing spikers-" "Yaku, cut it out, go home or go study!" Suga scolded. He was saved by a girl with an armload of books. "Shoo, I've got work now, Yaku!" He smiled at the girl while delivering a chop to Yaku's head. She looked slightly alarmed, but quietly handed over her mountain of books while Yaku sulked out the front doors. Sugawara was absorbed in scanning, so he didn't notice a familiar figure in line until he stepped up. "Hey, Sugawara. Didn't know you worked here," Daichi said quietly. A soft, gentle smile appeared on his face, and Suga was taken by surprise. He seemed much more...serious, the last time they were paired together for drawing class. Daichi handed over a few large books, then stuffed his hands into the large pocket of his hoodie while he waited. "Oh, you remember me! It's been a few weeks, huh? Yeah, this is my part-time job." He took the books from Daichi to scan. "It's a pretty easy job, and I can do some work if it's really slow here. These are over-size, so make sure to bring them back in two weeks to return or renew, instead of the usual four, okay?" He stamped the card on the inside of each book.

"Yeah, sure. How often do you work here? My friend, Asahi, will probably drag me back to study for the art history exam later this week." Daichi gathered his books as Sugawara finished scanning them. "Uh, just a couple of days a week. My next shift is on Saturday though, same time. I have that exam too! You must be in the Tuesday-Thursday class, right? I'm on Wednesdays and Fridays," Sugawara replied. "Yikes, that's a late shift," Daichi chuckled. His eyes crinkled, and Suga got the sudden urge to sketch the little smile lines on Daichi's face. Suga shook his head, partly to rid himself of the feeling, and partly to answer Daichi. "Well, if you're free, Asahi and I will be studying here all week, you're welcome to join us. He complains that when we study at work we always get flour over our stuff." Flour? "Ah, I'll take you up on that!" Another person began walking up with an armload of books, but Suga didn't want the conversation to end. He scribbled his contact information on a corner of the scrap paper he had hastily stuffed under a textbook and handed it to Daichi. "Just shoot me a message whenever you're planning on studying. Sorry, I should help..." his voice trailed off. Daichi looked over his shoulder, eyebrows rising when he noticed a line forming. "Ah, sorry, for keeping you. I'll let you get back to work, Sugawara." He turned to leave, but Suga called out to him one more time. "Just Suga is fine!"

He was hushed by three impatient people in line, his coworker at the desk beside him, and his conscience. 

He spent the rest of the evening putting books away, checking books out for people, and sneaking glances at Daichi, and wondering why in the world they had flour at work. 

Scratch that last part, he couldn't even believe his staring was subtle at all, he was just incredibly lucky that Daichi was intent on passing his art history exam. He had given up on scribbling on his small scrap of paper, so he dumped out a few sketchbooks from his bag, putting back the ones used exclusively for class. Computer graphics was a spiral bound, black cover that he slid back into his bag. His art history notebook had normal notes so he stuffed that one back into his bag as well. He finally selected a plain brown flip book, the size of a paper back and opened it to the first few pages. 

Shit, Yaku was right. Sure enough, the pages and doodles all starred one Sawamura Daichi. How did he even manage to draw him this much when they barely saw each other even with one shared class? Why had he drawn his hands so much? As he flipped through page after page, Suga's heart sunk. I've got it bad, he thought. Real bad. 

~~~

Suga had spent his precious few nights off attempting to study at the library with Daichi and Asahi. Attempting because as much as he tried to study, he just ended up doodling Daichi's smile, Daichi's hands, Daichi's neck, and Daichi eating a granola bar. He adjusted his scarf and his notebook, angling it slightly in his lap as he settled into a large plush chair. They had chosen a quiet corner of the library after Asahi had said the cafe smelled too much like work - apparently the two worked at a bakery down the street. 

They hadn't realized he spent the whole time sketching, so Suga figured it was fine to continue...discretely. 

But he hadn't anticipated Daichi asking to see his work himself. Asahi had just gotten up to get another coffee when Daichi had slid his chair over to Suga's. Suga quickly flipped the page, covering a doodle of Daichi's ankle, only to find another of the back of his head. Shit, really me? His face colored slightly as he shut the notebook completely. 

"Hey, Suga." Daichi whispered. Suga looked up, cocking his head to the side with a tentative smile.

"You might as well call me Daichi, Asahi does anyway." Suga let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. "And, this might be a bit forward of me, but well-" Daichi rubbed the back of his head, why was he so damn cute all the time? "I'd like to ask you something, if it's okay." Suga nodded, but he had a bad feeling creep up his spine.  Suga knew what Daichi was going to ask.

He knew and was still sweating. He ran a hand through his messy hair, prepared to come up with an excuse, any excuse, but he was still drawing a blank. Daichi was going to see and realize he had the biggest crush on him, and there wasn't anything he could do about it. He already felt the heat creeping up his neck, and Suga clutched at his scarf, clenching his teeth so hard he swore he could hear them rattling.

"Suga, could I see your sketchbook?"

Bean says: omfgsurghlsighvbneawrig it took so long? So I realized the stuff I had originally written for a part 2 were boring and hard to write because THERE WAS NO CLIMAX OR ANYTHING you know like problem -> solution type of resolution and while this doesn’t exactly have resolution I feel like it’s better than whatever I had before haha. So basically I scrapped the old part and rewrote the whole part (which was not too bad since it’s not so long). ALSO my tenses are probably all over the place welp @_@ ALSO I PROMISED A CUTE ANON I’D HAVE THIS DONE BY THIS WEEKEND I HOPE YOU ENJOY I WISH I COULD TAG YOU 

aklujhgklvjavg I wrote a thing inspired by THIS GO LOOK AT IT IT’S ADORABLE by @priintaniere

Edit for Part Two and Part Three

also this will probably follow the ‘slow burn’ stuffs so expect sloooooowww 

DISCLAIMER: using a western college (read: US) experience because that's what I'm familiar with :'] therefore the season is fall in this setting haha. Also I was not an art student in college so if there's something horribly inaccurate please feel free to let me know rip me

Summary: (do I need a summary??) Daichi and Suga meet at university as art students and have a fateful first meeting

They were first years in university when they first crossed paths. Sawamura Daichi had walked into his figure study drawing class with the hope and intent of honing his sketching and painting skills. Unfortunately for him, the class was filled with students taking the class for a general requirement. More often than not, Daichi was paired with someone whose constructive criticism amounted to "that looks good, better than mine at least." Two weeks into the semester and it was already his least favorite class, despite being a fine arts major. He sighed when the professor announced the day's assignment and posted the partner list on the white board. Daichi walked over to table 3, hoping that his partner had at least shown up that day.

Even though he was studying animation, Sugawara Koushi's favorite class was rapidly becoming his one drawing class. It was an excellent break from staring at screens all day, and he enjoyed dabbling in lots of different mediums. In his morning class, he had gotten a little too carried away with his ceramics class, making him rush towards the figure study class after grabbing a quick coffee. Brushing a few autumn leaves from his scarf, he ducked into the large studio, mumbling an apologetic greeting to the professor. He was only a few minutes late. 

Daichi scowled, staring at his watch. It was one thing to be late for a lecture, but how could you be late for a class that required participation? He sighed as he pulled out a sketchbook, looking around the room to see if anyone else was missing a partner. Perhaps he could just join a group. The sound of a bag dropping to the floor next to him made him jump a bit in his chair. "Hi, I'm Sugawara Koushi! Sorry I'm late. I don't think we've worked together yet, right? What's today's assignment?" A thin, lanky boy plopped into the chair across him, brushing silvery hair from his face as he pulled out an identical sketchbook. 

"Uh, portrait drawing, 3/4 profile. I'm Sawamura Daichi." 

"Thanks, Sawamura-kun. You can call me Suga, by the way, everyone does. Do you want to do this one at a time or take turns?" 

"How about turns, ten minutes each?" Finally, Daichi thought, someone who knows what they're doing. "Sawamura is fine, though. Is it okay if I sketch first?"

"Sure, sure! Gives me a chance to catch a breather," Suga said. He rotated his chair to the 3/4 angle for the assignment and sipped his coffee. "Guess I shouldn't have stopped for coffee. I didn't realize how much time I spent in the pottery room."

"Are you a ceramics major?" Daichi asked, beginning a rough pencil sketch.

"Nah, I'm doing animation. But I like trying new things and sketching has always been a hobby of mine." He grinned, one corner of his mouth lifting just a bit more than the other. It wasn't the first time someone had drawn him, but somehow Suga felt nervous, almost flustered, and he ran his mouth hoping to distract himself from the feeling. "What about you?"

"Fine Arts," he replied. Daichi let Suga chatter, content to draw in silence. When they switched, Suga finally stopped talking, concentrating intently on his drawing. Daichi let his mind wander, planning dinner for the night, when his next shift at the bakery was, and when he had time to go to the gym. Absentmindedly, he snuck a glance at Suga, wondering how soft his hair was. 

He was actually quite pleasing to draw, thought Suga. Strong jawline, tousled ebony hair, and eyes that pierced through you, that could pull out your darkest secrets. Probably. Suga liked to attach stories to anything he drew, and that helped him build his animations and videos. He traced over a few lines on his neck, making them stronger, more pronounced. Glancing back up at Daichi, he grinned before turning back to his drawing. Just a tiny hint of stubble, he thought, right around the lips...

Suga shook his head, erasing a few lines. Not quite. 

They switched once more and Daichi couldn't help but notice again how fluffy Suga's hair looked. He nearly reached out and asked if he could touch, but came to his senses and poured over his sketch instead. Running a hand over his head, he was in the middle of correcting a few lines when the professor called them to attention, asking for their work from that day. Daichi sighed, writing his name and class at the bottom and Suga did the same. 

"Hey, that wasn't so bad, right? Hopefully we can be partners again sometime. Here, I'll turn in your paper for you." Suga reached over to grab his drawing.

"Than-"

"Whoa this is good! Maybe you could try rounding out these strokes over here and softening your shadows for more emphasis but honestly this probably looks better than I do. Seriously, your lines are so defined, you made my eyebrows look sculpted and my hair doesn't look like I jumped out of bed this morning! Wait, what's this smudge on my cheek here?" Suga frowned, pointing at a small spot on the cheek of Daichi's sketch. 

"Ah, I forgot to mention, you have some clay on your face, hold on, I'll get it for you." Without thinking, Daichi reached over the table to swipe his thumb at the dab of clay on Suga's face. He wiped his hand on his jeans before realizing how very intimate that could have been. Blushing, he started to apologize, but Suga beat him to it.

"Ahaha, thanks! I had no clue that was there," the words rushed out of his mouth. "I'll just turn these in and maybe see you around? Bye, Sawamura!" Suga quickly grabbed his things, handing the sketches to the professor before bolting out the door, a hand covering the red creeping up his face. That was...unexpected, he thought. 

Daichi could've sworn he glimpsed Suga's ears tinged with red, but he was too busy trying to cool his own face to think much of it.

Post the first line of a work in progress and then tag as many people as words in that line.

You probably had made a horrible, terrible mistake when he had asked if you had dated anyone else.