#len0306a

Stiles stood near the door, arms crossed over his chest andhunching in on himself like that might protect his heart from breaking. Maybeif he looked pathetic enough, Derek wouldn’t leave.

But no. Derek dropped his duffel bag by the door andshrugged on his jacket. “I think that’s everything.”

Stiles swallowed over the lump in his throat. “You’rereally leaving.”

To his credit, Derek didn’t look very happy at the prospect,either. “I have to.”

Stiles kicked at the door frame. “You don’t have to.”

Derek walked over and rubbed Stiles’s arms.“I do if I want to keep my job. And it’s only for a month at most.”

“A month is a longtime.” Stiles sighed. “You might…I dunno, find some really hotEuropean person who convinces you to stay in Paris. Or Athens. Or—”

“And then I’ll have to break their heart because I’lltell them I have to come back home to you,” Derek said. “Because Iwill. I promise.”

The words twisted Stiles’s heart. That wasn’t somethingDerek could promise. Not with this kind of a job. “This one’s dangerous,though, isn’t it?”

Derek hesitated, just enough that Stiles knew he wasthinking about whether or not to downplay the seriousness of this mission.“It is,” he finally said.

He closed his eyes, so Derek wouldn’t see the tearsthreatening to fall. “Then you can’t promise you’ll come back safe,” hewhispered.

Derek cupped his cheek. “Stiles.”

Stiles didn’t open his eyes, but he lifted his face andDerek kissed him, gently and thoroughly. A choked sob escaped his throat, and Stileskissed him back hard, trying to memorize every minute of how it felt to kissDerek: the scrape of his beard, the softness of his lips, the taste of hismouth, the way he nipped at Stiles’s lips. Just in case this was the last time.He never wanted to forget it.

“I love you,” he said when they finally brokeapart for air.

Derek pressed their foreheads together. “I love you,too. And I will do everything in mypower to come back to you.”

Stiles tried to laugh. It sounded hollow. “You’dbetter.”

Derek opened his mouth to say something else, but a carhonked outside and he cursed. “Looks like my ride’s here.”

Stiles nodded. This was it. This was goodbye. He’d knownwhat he was getting into when they started dating, but it still didn’t make itany easier to see Derek jet off to parts unknown, with no idea whether he’deven make it back alive.

He cleared his throat and jerked his head at the door.“Go on, go off and save the world.”

Derek kissed Stiles’s forehead. “Stay safe.”

“You, too.”

Derek picked up his bag and opened the door, but paused atthe threshold. He looked back to Stiles, his pale eyes searching like there wasmore he wanted to say.

“I’ll be back before you know it,” he finallysaid.

Stiles wondered if that was what he’d really wanted to say.“I hope so. That bed gets lonely without you.”

Derek smiled. “Then when I get back, we’ll have to makesure it’s not lonely anymore.”

With that, Derek left, and the door swung silently shut behindhim.

I’ll be honest with you, I don’t remember a time before I was drawing. But here’s what I can say: draw what you enjoy, because that’s what keep you going when you get stuck.

Draw it regardless of how it turns out, try to have fun, experiment! Use references! Study the theory, such as composition and colour theory, but feel free to make it your own thing rather than rote exercises. 

When you come up against an artistic roadblock (and trust me, you will, or you’re very lucky), don’t be afraid to take a break. Feel free to do something else for a while, or try a different medium. If you draw in pencil, try ballpoint pen or even photography. Sometimes it can actually be easier to draw when you remove the possibility to erase things, strangely enough. Sometimes starting over from the beginning will help you figure out what was stopping you from finishing something. Sometimes you just need to leave a piece alone for a bit and let it simmer at the back of your brain.