Midnight Shades

Chapter 12

"Is that why you kind of made the parlour's wall out of glass?" I ask in curiosity. I'm grateful that he did. I wouldn't have laid my eyes on him if it weren't for those transparent walls.

"Exactly, so I can feel like I'm not in a really closed place." He nods with a smile.

"I applaud you for doing so," I take a bow with my head. "Great job."

"Why thank you, Tallulah." He laughs and I join him a little.

"How long have you been a tattoo artist?" I ask, genuinely interested in knowing this information.

"Uh, since I was fifteen." He tells me and I raise my eyebrows in shock.

"Wow, you started young." I say and he nods with a smile. "Is that your first tattoo parlour or..?"

"No, I had my first one back in California." He informs me. I heard about California before, though I have never been to it. I have never been to any place out of the village, except the city.

"Oh, that's nice." I smile widely.

"Yeah, I loved it back there." He grins.

"So, what brought you here?" I want to know everything, literally everything.

"Nothing specific, I just wanted to go to a new place." He shrugs casually and I nod.

"Do you like it here better than in California?" I ask him, crossing my arms as I relax my back on the chair.

Something flashes through his eyes, making them glow like magic and dance in happiness. A wide grin spreads across his facial features. He laughs slightly and shakes his head before saying, "Moving here was the best decision I have ever took."

I give him an amused smile before asking, "And why is that?"

"Because I saw you," he smiles before continuing. "I know I'm probably really forward but... It has been a year, four months, one week, and two days since I first saw you at that tree."

My heart literally stops beating, as the smile on my face vanishes from my face. I keep my eyes focused on his blue one, not being able to move them anywhere else. Everything around me moves so incredibly fast that I feel like there is nothing moving around me. How is that even possible?

It has been a little more than a year since I first saw him, too. I have spent my day and night thinking about him, dying to know his name, to hear his voice, dreaming of being close to him. I never thought that it might happen. My heart would ache from the thought of not being able to do so, but I picked up my strength and power and did it, and that is something that I will forever be proud of.

But having him, the man I love, saying those words is something that I cannot believe. He saw me for the first time almost a year ago, and he has been counting the days, and he saw me more than once. He called me beautiful and he kissed me. Is this too good to be true? I'm afraid that something bad might happen, because there is no way I deserve such a beautiful man or beautiful things like these.

I remember when he told me about seeing me a few months ago, and how he only saw me three or four times. It's confusing, but then I remember how nervous he was when he told me that he is not stalking me, so maybe that's why he chose to keep these detailed informations out, so he wouldn't scare me. How ironic.

"Say something?" His plead brings me back to the real situation in front of me. This unbelievable, beautiful situation.

"Do you always see me?" My voice is barely audible as I speak into the silenced air between us.

"Always," he barely smiles before he licks his lips and looks down. "After every midnight, you would sit there staring at the skies or you would play with something on the ground. The yellow light of the street would make your face a little clearer but I never got a clear vision of you. I would only notice your black hair was crowning your face like a damn princess and..." he lets out a breathy laugh before connecting our eyes. "I hated it when your friends would arrive and you would leave, I just... I thought that I wasn't given much time to look at you."