/Eashell.

=this will be all 5 chapters in one because i'm too lazy tbh=

→ First blink.

I’m so, so sorry.
Kei screams over and over in her head as her eyes burn into the back of her head, thirsty for a blink. Whale noises shadow through the back of begging to squawk right out of her.
This is completely aggravating.
The tension, the eyes, the pressure. It’s an artist's purgatory. Her eyes are burnt wood- extra roasted and ready to just crack. Can her partner see the tiny prickles of tears gathering in her eyes?
AHHH, I’M SO SORRY JIAE. I LOVE YOU, PLEASE DON’T HATE ME-
And Kei takes a blink.

→ Second blink.

Kei vows to not let Jiae down this time.
As her partner pulls out her selected 4B lead, Kei gulps at the approaching torture once again about to befall her. She clears , stretching her back as her head angles to the correct position before giving an internal cry.
She can see Jiae in her peripheral vision and there’s that burning feeling again. The pressure on her balls harden in an attempt to not blink- but at the last moment she see’s Jiae lose focus on her.
She’s not looking. Green light!
And Kei takes a safe blink.

→ Third blink.

Her eyes are super moist today- trusty eyedrops in her pocket. Kei feels like she’s ready to tackle the world
Well, the world of Art Studies: Sketching 101 at least.
She’s had a good 4 hours of sleep to decide distractions can keep her from blinking more. As she settles in her usual stool, her hands tinker with a tiny fidget cube. It helps, but the incessant clicking noises end up being a disturbance to others and so she’s stuck burning once more.
Kei cries inside feeling like burnt wood all over again.
And she takes a dramatic blink.

→ Fourth blink.

It’s extremely hard to stay still today.
An USH paper was due earlier that day and if Kei wanted to pass her GE’s she needed to befriend coffee to get there. Current regret fills her core as she trembles and tangles her fingers constantly in effort to exert her extra energy.
I wonder if it’s hot outside. MAYBE I SHOULD GET MCDONALD’S LATER? No.. how about Taco Bell? I wonder how Jiae’s drawing of me looks like. I bet I look like a dog- that BURNING is back again.
Oh man, oh man. Screaming. SCREAMING.
And Kei takes another blink.

→ Fiftieth blink.

“I’m so, so, so, so sorry.” Kei urges against her partner’s easel. Her partner reassures her with a smile.
It’s switching day. Kei shall draw Jiae and she bets her money that she’ll be a much better model than her.
4B in hand, she starts off at the nose- simple- then the lips. Kei squints when she finds a wet trail leading there.
“Uh, are you okay there?” She looks up and Jiae’s eyes are red, frantically shaking, and teary.
“I’m so sorry, give me a moment.”
And Jiae takes fifty quick blinks.