Entry for Gayby <3 :3

Instructions

(Click space or tap the screen to advance :3) Ahhhh heyy!! It's been a bit since I've entered for a contest. I hope I'm doing this right <33 So far, I only have two entries but mark my words, there's gonna be at LEAST one more lol. (Edit: There is now a third <3) I'll stop yapping xx, here we gooo!! Name: Mint Trèfle, representing a chill personality with some flares of flavour. Trèfle translates from French to "Clover", Mint's favourite plant. Sexuality: Gay & Demiromantic (Under the aromantic umbrella, can only be interested in romance with people who have deep emotional bonds with him.) Disabilities: Insomnia, depression, BPD (Borderline Personality Disorder, associated with chronic feelings of emptiness and intense emotional fluctuations, difficulty regulating emotions, and impulsive behaviours.), and anorexia. Likes: Plants, sweaters, crocheting (Specifically sweaters or other warm clothing), scented candles, fragrances related to warm or leafy scents, his acoustic guitar, and Summer. Dislikes: Loud noises, waking up early, nightmares, being forced to do anything, dissonant sounds, and sudden (physical or verbal) interaction with strangers, and Winter. Backstory (Really long :'D): Mint grew up in a rather lonely household. Not a toxic or abusive one, just... empty. His mother left the moment he was born, leaving him under the care of his father, who worked long shifts at his job as a nurse to maintain the household. As such, Mint grew up almost alone, used to staying by himself in a dark room into the wee hours of the night whilst waiting for his dad to come home. Until one day, at 10 years old, a winter storm hit their house. His father never followed him out of the house. There wasn't much to mourn. However, the loss still took a toll on him as Mint secluded himself even more, his empty room providing him a safe place from the world. He filled the space with plants. Living creatures under his own care that would never hurt him, or worse, leave him. Mint dreamed of friendship, even though he knew it would never happen if he never went out. At 12, he learned to knit sweaters for his "future friends", slowly becoming a pile of knitted sweaters for nobody in particular. As he knitted into the morning, his insomnia grew. He hardly got sleep at all, getting dangerously close to passing out by the time he finished each cloth. He only came out for knitting supplies and food; and even then, the latter was less important compared to the importance of knitting. That is, until the money left in his dad's will began to get low. As Mint scoured the streets for a steady source of income, he spotted a clothing donation store. He saw the needs of the lonely children; like he once was. No one helped him then. Perhaps he could help these kids. Mint donated his hand-knit sweaters to the store without a second thought, and as he watched the kids excitedly pull the coloured soft fabric over their heads and squealing, he felt something flutter inside. The kids' caretaker, a guy named Sasha, took a liking for him, asking to meet Mint at the local coffee shop. Mint slowly but surely, with almost daily meets with Sasha and the kids, began to get out of his shell. He crocheted and knitted sweaters, scarves, gloves; you name it. Mint learned to play the acoustic guitar after finding out that Sasha enjoyed the sound, and found himself a new passion. For the first time, Mint allowed himself a fleeting glimpse at romance with Sasha. He's still not completely better, and still struggles with insomnia, loneliness and nightmare-filled sleep. Afraid of connecting with those he cares for in fear that they'll leave him too. Believes the world is a bad place filled with deceit. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sorry for the roller coaster :'D I'm not sure how obvious this is, but Mint actually kind of reflects how I once felt at a point in my life. I've gotten way better, but I know if I win him he's still gonna be my ultimate comfort character <3 The first piece is a rather lazily put together montage of the steps I took to draw the main piece (Took about 30 minutes anyway TuT"). The second piece is the human version of Mint that I plan on making his official design :D <3 The third isn't really a piece, but rather a collection of doodles I drew of Mint, including an interaction with Sasha (Based off of the character for Bisexual :)), Mint knitting sweaters at 3am, him chilling in his fragrance and plant-filled room, playing his guitar, me giving hugs to him (xx) and a humanised version of Mint <33 (Will very likely become his official design if I happen to win him since I'm not very good at drawing cats lmao </3) Sorry, that was a lot :') I'm sure you can tell by now that I love Mint a lot already lmao. I'll probably include an animation next <33 But anyway, I hope I win and good luck to all the other contenders! xx -Bread