fixation | ljp [PREVIEW]

a bottle of jack

 it was the stench of cigarettes that burned orion gillespie more than any ashes ever could. the nicotine cloud that penetrated from the smoke on her lips evoked a small smirk to crease her features under the moon's light. because it was friday, the lot was empty and there was nothing more that she yearned for than the sense of solitude created behind druid's shoppe. somewhere behind her a grandfather clock chimed from within the store with its hollow tones reserved for every hour. without hardly flinching, she took notice that her shift had ended along with the isolation she seldom had the time to feel.

                the sun was a past spectacle and it was now time for the moon and stars to wreck their havoc on the city of marshall. an exasperated sigh escaped the pit of her tainted lungs as she took one last drag from the roll placed delicately between her lips. it was the last of darts she'd saved and it brought an itch to her scalp to have the thought of being dry for even a day. orion wasn't one to quit cold turkey.

                a flick of her wrist ended the lifecycle of the flame before her eyes and before the fag even had a chance to burn itself out, orion smashed it into the cobblestone and made her way back inside druid's. like every other shithole in this corner of marshall, druid's tattoo parlor was a ramshackle box built in the 80s and hadn't since been updated. if anything, it was a cess pool and every fiber in orion's body loathed it.

                at this time of 11 o'clock, the parlor had dwindled down and now its only occupants were orion and the boy with raven hair who went by zayn. from her spot under the threshold, a dark head of wisps was easily visible hunching over something orion only assumed was a new sketch. out of all the scum that worked alongside her, zayn was the only chap with real talent and a personality that brightened up your life with his art to match.

                almost as if knowing she had been thinking about him, zayn stopped his work to face her. "you done for the night?" he asked, although it was obvious they were the only two stupid enough to stay this late after closing hours.

                orion smiled without the use of her teeth. "yeah, are you sure you're alright closing up? you know i don't mind staying a bit."

                although druid's wasn't much to rave about, it did have a certain sense of home. lining the walls were countless pictures of people who'd been tattooed and were willing enough to be plastered on the walls of such a shady place. the thought made orion cringe, despite the fact that she'd done a great number of those pieces. she loved her art, but not much else.

                there were a total of five stations at druid's, which meant eight different people constantly at each other's throats. the only real friend she had at work was zayn; the rest were pathetic. not counting herself and zayn, the other three were ted, henry, sylvester, and winston. each of their stations were decorated according to their personality and the accountance of how wasted they happened to be while working. no matter the stations, every wall in the place was painted a teal which hid water stains and dirt rather well. what a lovely place druid's was, really.

                zayn chuckled and shook his head with a smile. "c'mon, orion? whaddya take me for, lettin' a pretty lady like you close up the shop after dark?"