2:36 A.M. (A Noco Fanfiction)

Chapter Thirty-One

Cody drove us through a suburban neighbourhood a few minutes away from our place. Krystal had gotten settled in. I smiled as she opened the door.

"Oh, come in," she exclaimed.

"It's a nice place," I said.

I took off my shoes and put them by the door. My back was aching from the last of the laser removal. My skin needed to heal before I could get that tattoo for my brother.

"How's your shoulder, Noah?" Cody asked.

"Little stiff, but that might also be the bandages," I replied.

Since Gwen got pregnant, she found a new job at the same tattoo shop Zoey went to. By the time my skin healed, Gwen wouldn't be able to do my tattoo, but Zoey would. I rolled my arm slightly to make sure it didn't stiffen up.

"Noah, how many tattoos do you have?" Krystal queried.

"I just got one removed to put a different one in its place," I said. "Here's Sonnet 18 on my ribcage. Yes, it took quite a while. Before Christmas, I got this neat arrow on my forearm. This one might be my favourite so far."

I took my long sock off to reveal a tattoo on my shin. It was an outline of the province of Ontario. Sure, it was cheesy. But I loved how it turned out.

"Did we show you a design for Noah's next tattoo?" Cody asked. "Gwen sent me the design. Here."

Cody handed Krystal his phone. She zoomed in closer to read the smaller writing. Under the wreath of flowers, there was an infinity sign, plus his childhood nickname: Sassafras. I had no idea how Ennis got the nickname, since it happened before I was born.

"Who is Ennis?"

"Noah's brother. He passed away from a heroin overdose."

"I'm sorry, Noah," Krystal said softly, putting a hand on my knee.

"Thank you, Krystal," I said with a smile. "I was, like, 12 when it happened. When I turned 16, I knew I wanted a tattoo for him."

"I think it's beautiful. Gwen did an excellent job on the design."

We sat and talked for a little while. There was a moment where Cody had to run to the supermarket to grab some groceries for Krystal. With Cody gone, I joined Krystal at the dinner table. Her sweet smile welcomed me with open arms as usual.

"You're awfully chipper," she chuckled. "That's not really like you, is it?"

"No, I guess not," I said. "Krystal, I have a few things to say. You know, while your son is out."

Krystal put both hands on the table, sitting up straight. She looked directly at me. There was no way to get rid of her smile.

"It's about Cody."

"What about him?" she asked.

"You raised a good kid, Krystal," I looked down and spoke softly. "I remember, when I first moved in, it was purely platonic. I didn't know I had moved in with my soul mate, even after arguably the worst breakup I've ever had."

"That's my Cody," Krystal chuckled. "He's been that way since his first boyfriend. I don't know where he got it from, but he's been a sweetheart ever since. And I'm glad he's such a sweetie to you."

"Thanks," I laughed. "I think about our first date sometimes. Like, as soon as I saw him in that white dress, that was probably when I was the most head over heels. Where'd Cody get that anyway?"

"It was my sister's."

I was intrigued by many of Krystal's stories. From the moment we boarded that train together, I knew we'd have a connection. I was happy to see her health had improved.