#was looking through my sketchbooks for a specific piece and got nostalgic

[transguygardner]

first guylobo sketch page (3/26/2016) || most recent guylobo sketch page (4/20/2020)

[thewritewolf]

Well-Worn Note

Summary: When Adrien hears about a drive to give back to the heroes of Paris, he writes a heartfelt note telling Ladybug how much she is appreciated.

Years later, he finds that same note again in an unlikely place.

This fic has two reasons for existing! The first is that it celebrates the one year anniversary of my favorite server on Discord being created, and I have truly grown to love and appreciate it. Not to mention all the friends I've made through it!

The second reason - and what provided the specific inspiration for this story - comes from this post by @lnc2​. 

Enjoy!

Read on Ao3

Adrien’s fingers wandered aimlessly among the keys of his piano. Sometimes he did it to think, to let his mind drift in a trance, but most of the time he just needed a reprieve from his thoughts altogether. To let himself be completely immersed in the music as it unfolded in front of him, changing from moment to moment.

The music was a great escape. It was hard to hold onto frustration and anger when he was at the piano. Adrien suddenly froze and groaned. At least, it was a great escape as long as his mind didn’t circle back to what he was trying to get away from in the first place. Thoroughly back in the present, he walked over to his computer to look for another distraction.

Naturally, his first stop was the Ladyblog. He was only two articles down when he saw her announcement for a special event for Heroes Day. There was going to be a drop off box where the grateful citizens of Paris can send gifts and notes to their favorite heroes. Alya had apparently already gotten Ladybug’s permission and Adrien wondered when that had happened.

“Yeah it was like two or three akumas ago.” Adrien started before noticing Plagg, who continued talking with a smirk and a satisfied swish of his tail. “You were running out of time, but she had lots of it so she hung around to answer questions by the adoring public.” Plagg took a bite out of his cheese. “Guess that was when.”

“Huh…” Adrien said, the gears in his head already turning.

“What’s up? Already looking forward to all that cheese you’ll be getting?”

Adrien scrunched up his forehead. “Why would I be getting cheese?”

“Well what else are they going to send you? Cheese is obviously the best call.” Plagg tossed his wedge into the air and caught it with his mouth. The kwami floated off the desk.

“There’s loads better stuff than that! Like-” Adrien’s eyes widened. “Wait. This is a great opportunity!”

“What are you on about, kid?”

Adrien turned around in his seat to look at Plagg. “I could send Ladybug a present through the drop off!”

“...Kid you know her. You could just give her something next time you’re on patrol or something. Heck, you’ve done that before!”

“Yeah, but this is a chance to give her stuff she’d never accept from Chat Noir,” Adrien said, turning back to his desk. He pulled out a sheet of paper and a pen and started writing.

The gifts he could figure out later - maybe a flower or some jewelry or clothes - but the critical thing was getting his emotions onto paper. Several crumbled up failures later and he was carefully finishing his masterpiece. If that didn’t make her feel loved, nothing would.

“Well, don’t forget to sign it I guess,” Plagg reminded, sounding bored.

Adrien shook his head as he folded up the paper. “It’ll stay anonymous.”

“Huh? What’s the point then? I thought you were trying to get her to fall for you or whatever?”

“No. I just… I want her to know she’s appreciated and, well…” Adrien rubbed the back of his neck. “If I don’t sign it, it’ll be like if all of Paris sent her the letter, you know?”

“Not really, but whatever floats your boat, kid.”

By that time the following day, Adrien had picked out a few presents - a rose with a ribbon, a charm bracelet, and a few other things besides. Storing them and the note in a box, he wrapped it and dropped it off with Alya as soon as he could.

------------

Years passed and before he knew it, Adrien and all his friends were graduating from school. It was a strange new world they were heading into - Nino had gotten a great opportunity to follow his dreams of being a DJ in Nice. Likewise, Alya had landed an internship as a journalist there. By the end of the summer, both of them would be moving out of Paris.

But not everything was changing. There were still akumas, which meant that Adrien needed to stay close at hand to keep Paris safe. At least he’d be in good company - Marinette had been accepted to a Parisian university where she could pursue her ambitions of becoming a great designer. Not that she wasn’t already, Adrien thought with a smile.

Their last summer together was bittersweet. Friends had come and gone over the years, but those four had stayed the best of friends for that entire time. Now it seemed to be coming to an end, even as they all tried to find their way in the world. Who knew when the whole gang would come together again?

Maybe it was helping Marinette move today that had gotten him thinking about it so much. Which was itself a nostalgic trip as they helped pack away mementos of their times together. How often had Adrien come over after school to play Ultimate Mecha Strike with Marinette? The movie nights all four of them had spent there?

Things got quieter when Alya and Marinette left to buy more boxes - even Marinette had underestimated just how much stuff she had to pack. Nino and Adrien joked around like usual, but there was a somberness under it all that they just couldn’t shake no matter how hard they tried to keep things lighthearted.

Adrien almost welcomed it when Nino fumbled one of the boxes and took their minds off of it. At least he would have if the box hadn’t torn open and disgorged its contents onto the floor.

“Dang, dude,” Nino said as he stared at the mess he’d made. “M’s gonna kill me for sure if this stuff got busted.”

“Don’t sweat it, man.” Adrien put a comforting hand on Nino’s shoulder. “See if you can scrap up another box somewhere. I’ll pick all this stuff up and get it ready.”

Nino tipped his cap at him. “Thanks bro. You’re a real everyday Chat Noir!”

Adrien rolled his eyes at the phrase. After he’d thrown that party for Marinette and made his little speech, everyone had started using it.

“No problem. Take your time, though,” Adrien added as he sat down on the floor. “Looks like I’m going to be here a while.”

“Right on.”

Something didn’t seem quite right when he got to work sorting through the stuff. It must’ve been one of the boxes that Marinette had already packed by the time they got there, since he didn’t recognize any of it at all.

Well, that wasn’t entirely true. All of them stirred up memories - old sketchbooks that were filled and forgotten. Scraps of fabric from pieces that Adrien remembered her finishing years ago. An old black umbrella.

“She still has this?” Adrien murmured to himself in awe. He laid it back down reverently - if it weren’t for that umbrella, the two of them might not have been friends, after all.

That was when he saw it. At first, he thought it was just another notebook, but there was something poking out of the bottom of it that caught his eye. Curious, he reached for the book.

The final date was from three years ago, but he could tell from the wear on the spine that it had been opened and closed many, many times. He flipped open the book and the faint scent of a rose reached his nose. The book naturally opened up to a page that had a pressed rose tied with a ribbon on it. That must have been what was poking out of the bottom. Taking the flower, he spun it between his fingers and watched the ribbon dance around it. There was something oddly familiar about it, but he couldn’t quite figure out what it was.

Something fell out of the book and drew his attention away from the preserved rose. It was a folded piece of paper. As he picked it up, he could feel from the softness of the paper that it had been unfolded and refolded many, many times.

Following in Marinette’s footsteps, he unfolded it once more.

At first, he could only cringe at it. Whoever had wrote it clearly had a crush on Marinette, but some sense of curiosity had gotten the better of him and he needed to keep reading. As he continued, there was a nagging suspicion at the back of his mind that he’d seen this letter somewhere before. But that couldn’t be right, could it? Unless he-

His eyes widened. Unless he was the one who wrote it! But that made even less sense - he couldn’t remember ever writing Marinette a note where he thanked her for ‘saving the day more times than he cared to count’ nor where he called her ‘an inspiration to all of them’. Granted, he’d probably said stuff like that to her over the years but-

Then it hit him like a clap of thunder. The rose and its ribbon only confirmed it for him. As clear as day, he could remember writing this very letter years ago, but it wasn’t for Marinette - it was for Ladybug!

It all made sense. No one could figure out why Marinette had declined going to that school in London she’d really liked. Most of them had assumed it was just because she would miss Paris too much. But she could hardly fight akumas while she was in London, could she?

The door opens and Adrien looks up to see Marinette standing there like a figure from a dream.

She glances down to see the letter in one hand and the rose in the other. A blush spreads across her face, but he barely notices as he stands up. She is stammering something, but he can’t hear it over the pounding of his heart in his ears.

Her bright blue eyes look up at him as he finally crosses the distance between them. He drops the note, forgotten immediately once again so he can cup her cheek with one hand. The rest of the world falls away as well as he whispers to her, quiet and sure:

“...My lady?”

[houseofvans]

Art School | Nathan Bell (Los Angeles, CA)

As one of the shows featured in our April First Thursdays, Los Angeles-based artist Nathan Bell’s upcoming solo show ‘Mixed Feelings’ will featured 400 works using materials such as french paper, coroplast, and mixed media.  Self described “introverted over thinker with a design background,” Bell expresses himself through the painted word, or rather words –a whole lot of them. Through experimenting with “language, typography and aesthetic,” Bell’s work focuses on thoughts, ideas, wordplays, inside jokes, reflections, all of which he has been creating for the last two years!  

We’re excited to feature him on Art School where we find out more about his works and words! From working with new materials to his process to what we should expect in his solo show ‘Mixed Feelings,’ which opens Saturday, April 22nd at Subliminal Projects in Los Angeles. 

Photographs by Katherine Sheehan

Tell us a little about yourself.

My name is Nathan Bell. My parents almost named me Bruno, which would have been weird because that sounds like an MMA fighter. I reside in the amazing, sunny bubble that is Los Angeles, California but I am originally from the midwest. Its been a long time since I lived in Michigan but I still have a nostalgic connection with it and have family there. It sometimes shows up in my work. I think the more I keep that connection in tact the more grounded I feel. Plus, I can’t get a decent pierogi in LA.

How would you describe the artwork you create to folks? My work is what you get when an introverted over thinker with a design background picks up a paint brush. Could you tell us what drew you to incorporate the textual aspects into your work? How do you find the right word?

I’ve always incorporated my handwriting in my projects. Even with my corporate jobs my scrawlings were featured frequently. It never felt like a planned direction, but it was very natural for my fine art to have a text based emphasis. To me its a way to keep it real and personal. The advertising world is very calculated, and the output is so polished. So stripping that perfection away and getting to the root of an interaction with myself and ultimately with the viewer is a great feeling.

What’s your process like? Sketchbook or Spontaneous? Or a little bit of both?

My process is pretty random tbh, definitely spontaneous. I rarely just just sit down and sketch, its more of a continuous knee jerk hand reaction. I do keep small and large sketchbooks, but mostly just loose pieces of paper and scraps. Plus I have a million notes on my phone with ideas and words that come to me through out the day or get my attention at some point. I’m surprised I haven’t gotten one of those texting while driving tickets yet. Knock on wood. What are your favorite materials?  And what do you love about this medium?  What’s a new medium you’d love to try?

Untraditional ones for sure. I use coroplast for a series of works in my show. You see it all over the place in the form of telephone poll signs and political ads. I am also obsessed with found objects. I have this romantic notion about bringing new life to something that was forgotten or thrown away. As for a new medium, I want to start experimenting with clay sculpture.

You’ve got a show ‘Mixed Feelings’ at Subliminal Projects opening soon in LA.  Could you tell us a little about the theme behind the show? And what folks should expect?

Yes! The title “Mixed Feelings” is pretty on point for what you should expect. Its mixed in the fact that I use a bunch of different materials and mediums. And its the culmination of works from over 2 years, so there are tons of emotions and views flying around. Expect to be overwhelmed in a good way. Could you tell us about a specific piece in the show that you’re the most proud of and why?

Thats a tough one. This show will have over 400 works in it. And I enjoy so many for various reasons. I’m like a proud papa with way too many kids. This is my first solo show, so the installation itself is what I’m most proud of. Where do you find inspiration? And what 5 artists do you think are the most influential to you?

Its a tired expression but I genuinely find inspiration all over the place. The eclectic LA city landscape, hand painted signs, good music, my friends, my enemies, old books, magazines and clothing, pop culture. 5 artists that influence me:

Mike Kelley

Tom Sachs

Ry Rocklen 

Raymond Pettibon

Derek Boshier 

What’s an art question you never get asked and want to answer?

“How was your art residency in Italy?” I have never been asked that, because it hasn’t happened. So if anyone wants to give me a residency in Italy so I can answer that… that would be great. What are your favorite Vans?

My studio shoes are a pair of black slip-ons. I have been feeling these brown chukkas I have that they released for the 50th anniversary.

What would you tell folks who want to follow in your footsteps and make art?

Don’t follow footsteps. Look at what other people do in moderation. Do things that make you feel good. You will be the most happy while creating without limits, even if just for yourself.   Finally, what’s next after ‘Mixed Feelings’ for 2017?

More shows and feelings. I have a few other bodies of work I have been hoarding. And in general just making as much work as possible and meeting good people making things.

Follow Nathan: Website: http://nathan-bell.com Instagram: @nathanbell Twitter: @nathanbell