Scarred

Chapter 6

"Alex," Harry starts to say, but I cut him off.

"I don't want your sympathy. My life sucks, yeah that's pretty obvious. However, there are little kids around the world getting abused and starving, so I shouldn't complain. Don't feel bad for me. I told you so that you're aware, not so that you will treat me differently." I snap at him. He is still staring at me, and I can see his eyes are watering. I sigh and reach over towards him and use the sleeve of my jacket to wipe his eyes. I didn't want him to be sad, but I liked this better than him being rude.

"Also, I was born January 1st, and I'm eighteen-years-old." He laughs softly, and the tension between us starts to fade. I felt relieved finally telling someone what my life was really like. However, I didn't want to talk about it anymore so I decided to change the topic. I want to forget about everything I just told Harry.

"I want to do something completely crazy today. I want a piercing, or maybe a tattoo. Maybe both, I don't know." I started to get really excited and Harry starts to laugh.

"You? You want a piercing and a tattoo?" He says boasting with laughter. I playfully smack his arm. "Fine, I'll take you to a really nice place to get it done, whatever you want. I am paying though, no arguing." He demands as he starts driving again. I do not have any money with me, so I do not argue against him paying. I don't know if he is kidding or not, or if I am actually going to do this. Harry and I continue to sit in silence and listen to the rest of the 1975 album. After a short amount of time he pulls into a small shop with glowing letters on the roof that spell out TATTOOS.  My anxiety starts to take over my body and I suddenly regret saying I want to do this. Harry steps out of the car and walks over to my door and opens it for me. He grabs my shaking hand and practically drags me out of the car. I sigh when he lets go of my hand as we walk into the parlor. A beeping noise rings as we enter, and a girl with bleached hair and several piercings and tattoos greets us.

"Harry! It's been so long, how are you love?" Her accent is flawless, as well as the other feature on her body. Her tattoos are overwhelming, but truly beautiful. She hugs Harry for a little too long, and I feel myself becoming jealous. I shouldn't be jealous, right? I ignore the thought and return to reality when Harry's friend turns towards me.

"Oh my god, you are stunning! Why are you hanging around with Harry?" She jokes and pulls me into a hug. I awkwardly hug her back and I laugh, but Harry doesn't look amused.

"I'm Eden, it's so nice to meet you! What's your name?" She asks enthusiastically as she leads me towards and Harry to a room in the back of the shop. Her name is so unique and fits her perfectly. I envy her confidence and how kind she is.

"I'm Alex," I try saying with as much confidence I can muster.

"That's such a beautiful name!" She compliments me as she slips on a pair of latex gloves. I look around in the small room and notice every sharp needle. I look back at Harry with wide eyes and concern but he just laughs at my nervousness. I walk over towards Eden and place myself on the chair directly in front of her. Harry grabs a chair and places it next to mine and smiles at me. I start to relax, and I stop overthinking this.

"Do you know what you want done today?" Eden questions kindly.

"Uh, I want a nose piercing, on the right side. Possibly a tattoo as well." I tell her with a shaky voice.

"You'd look beautiful with a nose piercing!" She says, making me even more confident with my choice. I watch as she wipes the right side of my nose with a damp tissue and grabs a marker to draw a small dot. She closes the marker with the cap and grabs a needle and a corkscrew. I am shaking slightly, but I feel myself relax when Harry slides my hand into his.

"Ready?" Eden eagerly ask. I nod my head and squeeze Harry's hand. There's a slight pinch when she slides the needle through my nose, then clips the bar and closes the piercing with a back. She reaches over and grabs a mirror, handing it to me.

"Do you like it?" She asks with a huge smile and I practically sequel with excitement when I see my reflection. I really do like it, but I like over at Harry for approval. When I do he bites his lips and nods. I can't help but blush.

"Is the warrior ready for a tattoo?" Eden questions as she cleans reaches over and cleans around my nose piercing.

"Yes, definitely." I say, shocked at my own confidence. Harry's laugh at my response, which provokes me to get even more than one tattoo, but I am not that daring. Eden stands up and leads me and Harry to a separate room for the tattoo.

A young guy with plugs and a lip piercing is sitting on a chair in the corner of the room. He smiles at me and Harry as we enter.

"Harry, you're here for another tattoo?" He curiously ask as he gets up and walks over to the ink and needles.

"Actually, I wanted a tattoo," I practically shout before Harry can make another rude comment. I sit in front of the stranger like I did with Eden, and yet again Harry is at my side.

"Cameron, that's Alex. Be gentle on her, okay?" Eden sweetly tells him as she leaves the room and wishes me good luck. I always wanted a tattoo, and always knew what I wanted. I could never bring myself to actually do it. I watch as Cameron turns on a laptop, most likely to print out what I wanted tattooed.

"I want an elephant Buddha tattooed on the inside of my right arm," I shyly state. "If that's okay." I whisper.

"That's going to be wicked, babe." Cameron says as he searches for what I wanted. My cheeks are red after his sweet compliment and I cannot help but smile. I look over at Harry to see his reaction, and he is clearly not amused with Cameron at the moment. He seems jealous, but that cannot be possible. I ignore the thought and turn back to Cameron's laptop and stop him when I see the picture of the elephant Buddha that would look best. As he prints it out, he puts on a pair of latex gloves exactly like Eden did. I chose my right arm because my scars are barely visible; the damage is mostly on my left arm. I begin to tremble as I take off my- Luke's- jacket and hand it Harry. I place my right arm the arm of the chair and Cameron begins by cleaning my arm with a wet tissue. The liquid is cold and goosebumps run up my right arm. He places the printed picture in front of him and I watch as he delicately sketches the elephant Buddha. When he is done sketching I tell Cameron it looks beautiful. Instead of replying, a buzzing noise fills the room as he turns on the needle and gently picks it up, bringing it to my arm. I look back at Harry with nervousness and he smirks and starts laughing at me yet again. I decide to laugh with him because I am having a good day once in my life.

I am finally happy.