Denial

Chapter Twenty Seven: Albert

Quincy

It seemed to have gotten a lot colder during the time Reed and I spent in the restaurant. I wrapped my jacket closer to my body as we walked through the decently crowded parking lot.

"Are you cold?" Reed asked me.

I shrugged. "I'm fine." He started taking off his jacket anyway, but I stopped him. "Keep that on, Reed. I'm fine. Really. Just wasn't expecting the temperature to drop this much."

He nodded, adjusting the jacket so that it sat properly on his shoulders once again just as we got to the space his bike was parked in. I seriously hated this thing, but the more I've been riding it, the more I've grown to tolerate it.

"I wanna stop somewhere real quick before we get back," Reed said, handing me my helmet.

"Alright. Where?"

Reed only shrugged, sitting down on the bike and starting the engine. "Just a quick stop."

I got on behind him and said loudly so that he could hear, "If it's the liquor store, I'm not buying you beer." He didn't need to drink so much anyway, especially not when he wouldn't be turning twenty-one for another four months.

I felt, rather than heard, Reed laugh as we peeled out of the parking lot. I was clinging to him for dear life. He thought it was so funny to drive like a maniac sometimes just to mess with me. It wasn't very nice, but then again, it is Reed.

It was probably only about ten minutes later that Reed finally slowed down, pulling into a small, not very well-lit parking lot. This wasn't the liquor store, unless this was a different one. But I couldn't even really tell what was here, let alone what wasn't here.

"Where are we?" I asked once we both got off the bike. "This looks kinda sketchy, Reed."

He laughed, grabbing hold of my hand. "It's fine. Don't worry."

We started walking towards the door that had a small 'open' sign hanging from around the handle. There weren't any other signs indicating what this place was or even windows to see inside. Needless to say, I was kind of worried.

"Reed, are you sure this is safe?" I asked just before he pulled open the door.

He turned to me, a smirk on his face, before he gave me a quick kiss. "Yes. Now come on."

He didn't even give me another chance to voice my concerns when he opened the door and pulled me inside the surprisingly well-lit room. I took one look around and immediately knew what kind of place this was.

"A tattoo parlor?" I questioned. "If you expect me to get one, I'm not going to."

Reed laughed. "Nah. I am." He seemed so causal about it, but I guess since he's already gotten one, this time was easy. I don't think I'd ever be that nonchalant about getting stuck a thousand times with a needle. Even just being here was creeping me out, although that was probably because we seemed to be the only two people in the whole place.

"So what are you going to get?" I asked Reed, following him over to a wall that was covered in various designs. "Do you know yet?"

He shrugged. "I have an idea. Not gonna tell you, though. I wanna see your face when you realize."

"How can I help you gentlemen?" a voice asked from behind us, making me jump slightly. Turning around, I saw the source of the voice: a woman probably no more than five years older than us, covered in so many tattoos, I wasn't sure she had any space for more, at least, visible space.

"I want a tattoo," Reed answered. "Here." I looked over at him to see that his was pointing to his left shoulder.

"Alright," the woman said. "Follow me."