ValoriezStuf

for the freaks out there💪

• Post your art on literally every platform you can. Personally the only ones I avoid are the AI heavy ones like X, Facebook, Insta, etc.

• Don't solely post stuff about comms, let people have a relationship with your art outside of that.

• Look in unconventional places like Reddit and on Discord. Most of my comms are from posting my art in Discord servers and people liking it enough to reach out. Just make sure the space explicitly allows self-promo that way you don't get banned.

• Be super up front about payment and pricing. If you want to get paid half first and half later, say that before you even pick up your pen.

• Put a link to your kofi or a little caption at the end of each post that says something like "btw I do commissions!"

• Be specific about what you want money for. Are you saving up, paying for medical treatment, repairing your car, paying rent, etc. The more people can relate the better your chances

• Okay so the last one is kinda just a teeny bit "bad" but: sometimes when you post something, say it's a commission. If people think you get comms already it makes their brains more curious about getting their own if that makes sense.

They just want to live🥀

grace sings quite prettily. his voice is low, not smooth like velvet but rather reassuring, soft. it suits him. his students used to tease him when they caught him humming a melody or singing under his breath. dr. shapiro didn't stop pestering him until he sang at that little karaoke party they had, and the applause was never-ending.

he hasn't heard applause in so long.

yes, rocky can hear him sing, but the way they used their voices was completely different. their thrum was beautiful, but it didn't share the same emotions as human singing did. they didn't know songs as he did, it wasn't the same.

and while he is not an artist by any means, there's something about the mundanity of singing and having someone following his voice that he misses. it made him feel human, feel connected to others. such a human activity as singing, how he missed it.

it all changes when they meet simon.

he can sing, too.

and no, he's not a singer either, but his voice is nice to hear. low, rougher than grace's, but soft as only simon could be. sometimes he's a bit off-key, just like grace is, and he doesn't know that many songs either. the coi and eden only had access to earth songs from before 1992, and ofc he didn't have acces to all those songs either, but that's still a pretty wide catalog. they, too, have all the data from the hail mary til 2023 ad.

and simon, oh sweet simon, is pretty interested in singing. he seems to like it; it makes him relax, he says. grace notices that simon chases almost any activity that could grant him peace of mind. after the hell he went through, it was only fair. he deserved to get his little sunshines.

he realizes that he enjoys those activities, too. maybe he likes sunshine as much as he likes the fog.

and so, now there's someone to hum alongside him while taking care of the plants on their dome. there's a lullaby waiting for him to fall asleep, and happy songs when they walk down the beach. there are silly song references and karaoke nights -rocky is, of course, invited too-. there's music in their lives, more than grace could've ever imagined. sometimes, when he's lying on top of simon, his heartbeat feels like a part of the songs they've been discovering. the prettiest, softest lullaby the man could ever offer him.

Grace staring at Simon after he mentions his age at the time offhandedly, Simon thought Grace looked horrified before but now he may as well be completely white in the face with how pale he is.

Grace who brings a hand up to his eyes, using his elbow to lean against the lab table, his toes barely touching the ground from his stool. “Rocky- Rocky can you go? Human privacy.”

For once, Rocky doesn’t object and rolls away into the dormitory. That alone sends Simon’s pulse sky high, has he done something wrong?? Is Grace upset with him?? Did he say something offensive on accident? He doesn’t know old earths customs!! What if he-

“It’s fine!” Simon insists, his palms facing outward. “I’m sorry Ryland I shouldn’t have brought it up-“

“What? No no- Simon I’m not mad at you. Jesus Christ- you were a child.” Something about the words, or the sincerity in which he says them, cracks Simon’s chest open down the middle.