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“Painty!” Yang waved his arm frantically in the air to grab the tall brush’s attention, as if him hollering their name wasn’t enough. Paintbrush looked over at their name being called and looked down at the black orb next to them. The nickname used to bother them, but it was something they had grown used to. Only for Yang and Lightbulb, though. Anyone else calling them Painty felt wrong. And annoying.
“Hey Yang! What’s up?” Paintbrush asked, curious as to what it could be this time. It felt like they attracted the oddest friends imaginable, but they weren’t complaining. It was a nice balance.
Yang seemed to hesitate for a moment before speaking, as if he was planning what to say in his head before he said it. “Well- I was wondering.. what happened to your bristles? The bottoms are all.. black?”
Paintbrush felt their heart skip a beat. They knew Yang didn’t mean any harm, but it was a sore spot. They’d thought about trimming them off, but it’d probably just go to waste as it’s bound to happen again, whether it’s a big deal or just a little spark.
“Ah- uh, well.. it’s from my, uh.. ‘outbursts’? The fire, um, burns my bristles, so it looks like that.” They weren’t annoyed at the question, though, even if they thought it was a little obvious and it was a little uncomfortable for them to talk about.
“Oh.. I see..” Yang awkwardly shuffled a bit, looking down at his feet. “I’m.. sorry to bring up something that might be.. a sore subject. I meant no harm.”
The brush patiently smiled and sat down next to Yang, resting their elbow on their knee in a comfortable position. “No, it’s okay! I’m glad you felt comfortable enough to approach me. That means a lot, actually.”
Their words brought some ease to Yang, making them feel better about their slip-up. They’d always admired Paintbrush in the way that they took initiative in handling their emotions. Both of them had a similar issue with anger management, and they’ve both been growing at their own pace, but Yang did feel like Paintbrush handled it better at times. Admittedly, it did make him feel a little inferior at times, but Yin was always there to remind him that people grow at their own pace. It didn’t always help that much to hear those words, but they knew Paintbrush probably wouldn’t want Yang to compare himself to them in such a self-deprecating way.
“Well, I think it makes you look badass! And fierce! Like you own it!” Yang exclaimed, gaining a bit of his unfiltered and chaotic energy back. The remark caused Paintbrush to chuckle in amusement. Caught a little off guard by the comment, sure, but they definitely weren’t offended either.
“Thanks, I needed that,” Paintbrush replied warmly, fidgeting a bit with the burnt underside of their bristles. Maybe they wouldn’t cut it after all.