Inaccessible color options

Trying to get an drawing colored in Photoshop Essentials 2019, but for some reason; it doesn't allow me to use any color besides some form of grayscale. I used the Color Picker and selected some different color (ie a blue or red), but upon doing so; the Picker translates and uses a gray that I never picked. Has this been a problem before? Is there any way to fix it? Just disheartened how I've used this program for a while now and for some reason it never gives me a choice in color selection.