Coral Gables Miami, Florida. Three words sum it up: Exquisite. Exotic. Expensive. So of course this is where Victoria and Kellie decided to take me to find my dress.
Victoria agreed to meet us at one of the Starbucks that was located on the street. She had to help out at her mom's salon before meeting up with us in the afternoon. After Kellie's morning class let out, we hopped into my car and drove a solid twenty minutes. In reality, the shops weren't far away. But naturally we were stuck in traffic half the time. Kellie kept jabbering about how excited she was. I would be lying if I didn't say I was excited too.
When we arrived at the Starbucks, through the window Kellie and I could already see Victoria sitting at one of the tables. She smiled as soon as we walked through the door, then yelled to make sure everyone knew she had been waiting for us. "My amigas!" She said causing people to look.
I was used to her loud personality and Kellie was slowly getting accustomed to it. Occasionally, we would have to hush Victoria because she loses control of how loud she talks sometimes. Whenever we do hush her she defends her loudness by exclaiming she's Latina. "I'm going to get a drink before we head out," Kellie told me as she headed to the front. I followed her and ordered the Shawn Parris special.
"We should totally go see his new movie once we're done," Kellie said we both took a sip of the sprinkled drink.
"Yes," Victoria and I both agreed.
"I don't read ever," Victoria stated as we headed out the door. "But I did read his book. It's amazing. It's actually phenomenal."
We all agreed and once we were on the sidewalk, both girls pulled me along to hurry up. I couldn't help roll my eyes. These two love their shopping. They're always ordering things online and they're subscribed to about every store possible. The moment they hear the word 'sale' it's like a bloodhound suddenly finding a track to follow. Their heads go up and their wallets come out. We just all don't have enough money to come to places like this which is why I think they're even more excited.
Miracle Mile. Imagine an empty street in the middle of Kansas that just goes straight for what seems forever. You got that image? Good. It's nothing like that.
Miracle Mile is in fact, a straight road that goes on a for a distance. It's an outlet with beautiful stores that line up either side of the street. But it's not in the middle of nowhere. It's not desolate. And unlike Kansas, it's filled with an abundant amount of people. Girls our age were window shopping while drinking their own beverages. Occasionally, we would see a high school girl with her mom—probably looking for prom dresses. And of course, the women a few years older than us who were looking for wedding dresses.
"I don't know if this is the place for me," I answered honestly. Even just going down the sidewalk, I couldn't even find something that remotely interested me. Granted, a lot of the dresses were for weddings. But still, I didn't want to try on everything only to realize I don't like anything.
"You're going to find something here Parker," Kellie reassured me.
I took a deep breath but before I could say anything Victoria added, "If you don't I've got a few other places."
"More than here?" Kellie asked looking over me towards Victoria. We were all walking down the sidewalk before entering stores. This way we could eliminate stores we didn't want to bother going inside. As we walked however, I naturally placed myself between the girls.
"Yeah," Victoria shrugged. "But first, let's look here."
She opened the door to one of the many stores. I took a deep breath before walking in. There was a front desk where one of the employees asked if we had an appointment. That instantly sent me into a state of shock. I was bewildered. Appointment? Am I at the doctor's office or something?
"No," I said hesitantly. Would I need an appointment for all these places?
The lady gave me a bright and fake smile. "That's perfectly fine," she said. Then wrote a few things on a sheet of paper. I glanced at Kellie who had an eyebrow raised and then Victoria who was rolling her eyes and looking more annoyed than ever. "Follow me," the young lady finally said.
She asked what kind of dresses I was looking for before showing me the section of evening gowns. It was all color coded. And I wasn't surprised to see everything covered in a layer of plastic. The store itself—put in the simplest of terms—was a cliché modern white. It looked like I had just walked into a giant Ikea room. I wouldn't have been surprised to see half the furniture from Ikea.
"Just give us a call if you need help with anything," The employee said with one last smile before walking off.
"Why would I need an appointment?" I asked Victoria as we all started looking through the dresses.
Victoria shrugged, "You tell me."
We were probably shuffling through dresses for ten minutes, randomly gazing and trying to figure out which would look best on me. We eliminated a few that were not my taste whatsoever. I mean...some dresses were beautiful. And others were horrendous for my taste. "What does Aaron like about you the most?" Kellie asked, "And I mean physically."
I was very glad I was too busy behind a different rack because my neck suddenly turned red. "Um," I stuttered trying hard not to think too much about it. "I don't know."
Victoria scoffed, "Yes you do. You just don't want to tell us. Boobs or butt?"
"He doesn't really talk about that much," I admitted. They both gave me a deadpan look so I sighed—caving in their looks—and said, "Legs."
Both my friends took a step back to look at my legs. Victoria crossed one arm over her chest as she analyzed me in my shorts. I felt very awkward standing in front of them while they just stared. Eventually they both looked up at each other and nodded. "He's not lying," Victoria said.
"You do have nice legs Parker," Kellie added onto the commentary.
Now it was my turn to give them both a deadpan look. I was glad they were getting along better. It makes hanging out like this a lot easier that I don't have to worry about the tension between them. It's funny because between Victoria and Kellie I'm like a bridge. I get to hear both of their point of views. For example, Kellie is still bothered over the fact she thinks Victoria and Jackson are dating. Victoria, doesn't care. And she doesn't care because she isn't dating Jackson. Which means Victoria is quite aware of how jealous Kellie is. Yet, does nothing about it. Whereas Kellie just...well she's Kellie.
"What about this one?" Victoria pulled out a dress. "I like the white lace."
"I looks a bit..." I tilted my head to see it at different angle and frowned softly. "Beige."
"Yeah," Kellie agreed as she also stared at it.
Victoria reanalyzed the dress in a different light. "Yeah you're right. It's beige."
She put the dress back and we continued to look through the dresses. Finally, my friends each grabbed about three dresses. I stuck to the two I was holding in my own arms. Getting the attention from one of the employees, we got me a dressing room where I started trying them on. We hadn't decided on a color because we wanted to see which would look best. So at first look my closet was like the insides of a rainbow.
"Well they're not horrid," Victoria said as I walked out of the dressing room in the first dress. Her head was tilted like maybe if she saw it at a different angle it would be better.
I stood in front of the many mirrors and was able to see the dress in about every angle possible. "I kind of like it," Kellie added but then frowned. "It doesn't look bad it's just not...Parker."
"I agree," Victoria said. She waved her arms for me to go back in the dressing room. After getting her to undo the zipper, I did and chose the next dress.
From the dressing room, I could still hear the girls talking outside. I was too busy trying to get into a jungle of straps to add any commentary, but I did listen. "So how are you and Jackson?" Kellie asked.
How many straps do you need for a dress? I thought to myself. I wanted to rush out of the dressing room so I could prevent from the conversation from going south.
Victoria—who is surprisingly a great actress—said, "Good. I mean...he's always studying so it's not like I have the opportunity to see him very often. But we make it work."
"Yeah sounds good," Kellie said unenthusiastically. Victoria started to chuckle softly just as I walked out of the dressing room. "What's so funny?" Kellie asked unaware I had walked out. Her gaze was locked onto Victoria.
"You are," Victoria added before glancing up at me. Her face scrunched up and she shook her head. "Sorry Parker but no. You don't have enough boob to work it."
"I'm glad," I said turning back around going back into the dressing room. I didn't like this dress either. It was too complicated and Victoria was right. I didn't have enough boob to actually make it look good. It just looked flimsy and loose on me.
"How am I funny?" Kellie could just not let it go.
I decided to put my clothes back on and step out of the dressing room. I promised myself that I wouldn't tell Kellie how Jackson and Victoria weren't dating but I could already see it was exactly where Victoria was going. "You're just blind," Victoria said. She frowned when I stepped out. "You have a gazillion more to try on."
I shook my head, "I don't like them."
"You haven't even tried them," Kellie added looking into the dressing room that was filled with several untouched dresses.
I grabbed my bag slinging it over my body. "Let's go somewhere else."
The girls didn't argue with me. They picked up their own bags and we all headed out of the store. "How am I blind?" Kellie asked causing both Victoria and I to look at each other.
"You're kidding, right?" I said as we walked out of the store. I held the door for my friends, the air conditioning basically pouring out of the store. Miami weather is the best.
Kellie was absolutely bewildered. I've read about people like Kellie in books all the time. The kind of girls that are completely blind to the fact that someone is basically in love with them. Teen fiction novels may have prepared me with the signs but it did not prepare me for how to talk a girl into the fact that a guy likes her. I'm probably that annoying friend that says, "He likes you."
And then Kellie would be like, "No. No, that's just crazy."
Then I just stand here and give her a deadpan face with a raised eyebrow, thinking exactly what I'm thinking right now: You're so blind.
"Mi hija," Victoria made us stop and she placed her hand on Kellie's arm. "Jackson likes you."
"Well yeah," Kellie shrugged Victoria's hand off. "We're friends."
I started laughing while Victoria shook her head in bewilderment. Victoria face palmed saying, "Dios."
"Oh honey," I grabbed Kellie's hand. She looked confused. Afraid. But mainly confused. Now that the cat's out of the bag I have nothing stopping me. I promised Jackson I wouldn't tell Kellie over the whole Victoria thing, but telling her he likes her is the loophole I was looking for. "Jackson likes you."
"What?" Kellie was taken aback. She looked at me with wide eyes like a truck had suddenly hit her. How can someone who can actually see be so blind? But thank God we finally told her. I was tired of having to keep a secret from her. She's so sweet, funny, caring, but undoubtfully blind.
Kellie pointed her finger at Victoria who looked as amused as ever. "No," Kellie exclaimed. "You're dating him."
"No I'm really not," Victoria shrugged.
We kept on walking—slower than before—for Kellie to wrap her mind around something we all already knew. As soon as she finally seemed to absorb the information, she broke into a smile. "Wait," She said looking down to hide her smile. "So uh...you two aren't dating?"
Victoria gave her a soft smile, "We never were, amour."
I walked into another store while Kellie started asking us a billion questions. It felt so good getting everything off our chests. I'm sure Victoria was relieved as well. She was probably tired of having to pretend to be with Jackson. Especially when all of us decide to hang out together. She always has to hold his hand and act like they're together. Which wouldn't be so bad if she wasn't already in a relationship with someone else.
We told Kellie how Jackson was only trying to make her jealous. At first she was furious and then we explained it was so she would realize her feelings for him. She was still angry, but not as much as she originally was. The entire time I was trying on dresses at different stores, Kellie kept asking us questions. And when she was finally done she had a look on her face that made it seem like she was on cloud nine.
"So when are you telling him you know?" I asked putting another dress back on the rack after trying it on. None of these dresses looked bad on me. They just didn't look good either. They weren't me. Or Aaron.
"Now that I know I can play at his little game," Kellie crossed her arms over her chest. "It's only fair."
Victoria and I both smirked as we rolled our eyes at Kellie. "Where to next?" Victoria asked as we walked out of yet another store.
I groaned. I was starting to get agitated with trying on so many dresses. Some of the models I found at several stores—it just goes to show that the 'originality' pitch to get me to buy the dress is just a lie. "Can't we just go see the movie?" I asked. "We can come back some other time."
"No," Kellie said. "We're already here. Let's just get it now so you don't have to worry about it later."
I agreed with her on that level. I didn't want to come back and have to do this all over again. Especially because the gala was so close. I still had to get the dress altered if it was too long. But I was tired. I wanted to sit down for two hours and watch Shawn Parris' movie while munching down some popcorn. I had even texted Pierce to ask if he wanted to meet us.
"One more place," Victoria held up her finger to urge me for one more place.
"Fine," I caved with a sigh. "Which one?"
"We actually have to drive there," She started leading us back to the parking lot. She had taken the bus here so it was my job to later drive her back home and then drop Kellie off at campus.
I tossed her the keys to my car, "Then you drive."
***************
"Whoa," Kellie said the moment I stepped out of the dressing room. Victoria whistled and nodded her head in agreement.
We had decided to come to one of the stores Victoria loves. Turns out, it's where she got her prom dresses. It's a local hole in the wall, so I wasn't surprised she knew about it. Sure the dresses were pricey, but so were the others. The only difference is that these dresses were original. I hadn't seen any of these at the other stores. Some of them were strange and others were beautiful.
It didn't take me long to put all the pieces together. This store—the moment we walked in—smelled like herbs. It was a combination of jasmine, paprika, and something things I couldn't label. There was a lot of traditional wear and jewelry I had only seen in movies. And when Victoria talked to the lady behind the cashier it confirmed my suspicions. It's a gypsy dress store. And I'm not going to lie, it's beautiful.
It's small with only two dressing rooms. And unlike everywhere else we went to, it was empty. There weren't customers flowing in and out. Whenever I touched the dresses I could tell they were great material. They didn't feel like they were manufactured in great numbers. Maybe it was just an illusion of being somewhere different, but I liked it here. I wasn't surprised Victoria had bought her prom dress from here. This is far from typical but it still maintained a traditional aspect. By that I mean, it had dresses for literally everyone. There was a wide variety between gypsy dresses all the way to red carpet. The only downfall to having such an original selection was that there weren't a lot of sizes in the dress styles. I could easily choose a beautiful dress that just didn't come in my size.
"Do you like it?" I asked turning around to see myself in the mirror. This was the second dress I had tried on and I didn't have to hear their answers because even I was taken aback.
Oh yeah, I thought. This is the dress.
"It's beautiful," Kellie added.
"You look like the galaxy Parker," Victoria added. Which was exactly why this dress had caught my attention in the first place. "Will Aaron like it?"
I smiled at my reflection and ran my hand down the front of the dress. "He'll love it."
"We'll take it then," Victoria stood up and walked over to me. She grabbed the ticket stub that had the price hand written in a pretty cursive. Victoria's eyes instantly widened. "Uh...Can you afford this Parker?"
I looked over my shoulder and Victoria held it up for me. My eyes may have come out of their sockets for a solid second. No. No I can't afford this dress. But when I told Aaron I was going shopping today, he handed me a wad of cash. I mean a literal bundle of hundred dollar bills. I was so in shock that he gave me so much cash that I actually didn't think it was real for a second. Even Monopoly would be jealous.
I've been carrying around way too much money in my bag all day and it's been making me really nervous. I had brought my side-bag to make sure no one would steal it. Not that I think I was going to be mugged, but of course the first time I'm mugged I'd have cash in my bag instead of three one-dollar-bills and gum.
"It's doable," I said to Victoria.
"Really?" Kellie added on.
I hesitated, "A-Aaron is paying for it."
Both of them huffed. "I want a rich boyfriend," Kellie whined.
"I wish Carlos was rich," Victoria said about her own boyfriend. "Does Aaron know it's this much?"
I thought back to our conversation. The last thing I wanted to do was amuse his money. That's not what I intend on doing but he did hand me a huge stack of cash. He probably overestimated the price of a dress or maybe he wanted me to take the girls out to a five-star restaurant to celebrate the victory of finding a dress.
Maybe he just wants me to buy a yacht while I'm at it, I thought to myself.
"I don't think he minds," I said honestly. But now I was starting to hesitate. I quickly grabbed my phone and shot him a text.
How much would be the max I can spend on the dress? I asked him before adding, You don't expect me to use all the money you gave me do you?
Why? He texted back surprisingly fast. Usually he's in the middle of work or doing something risky with Pierce. Do you need more? I'm sure Pierce can head over where you are right now with more money.
No! I sent quickly. No no, there's no need for that.
Ok Birdie, He sent with a winky-face. Did you get something extraordinary?
I couldn't help but smile. You'll see.
I set my phone down and asked Kellie to help me with the zipper. Once it was off I quickly got dressed again. The girls were waiting for me at the counter. I quickly excused myself to the bathroom where I took out the exact amount I needed for the dress and put the wad of cash back in my purse. I wonder if Aaron just walks around with Benjamin's in his wallet. I think it's absolutely crazy. Where did he even get all this money?
I tried not to think about it too much and headed out. The woman at the counter had already rung up my dress. She was trying to sell jewelry and shoes that would match the dress to Kellie and Victoria. There was a set of earrings that would match well. And some shoes...
Oh my God, I thought to myself. Stop Parker this isn't your money.
Well I could afford the earrings...
Let's just say, I walked out of the store with the dress and the earrings. I paid for the earrings. Aaron paid for the dress. But I was glad that I found everything and it was out of the way. Now I could just relax until the actual day arrived.
"So Shawn Parris' movie?" I asked once we were in the car.
"Yeah!" Both my friends shouted together like a war cry. I couldn't help but laugh as I drove us all to the movies.
***************
"Parker you're not seriously going to go through with this are you?" Pierce asked me for what seemed like the billionth time.
Pierce had met us at the movies the night before to go and see the new Shawn Parris' film. It was absolutely amazing. It followed his book so well that people who hadn't read it were in absolute shock once it ended. They could not believe it ended the way it did. None of us could. But I was glad to say I read the book first and had already read the second one as well. Now I was patiently waiting for Shawn Parris to come out with his third novel. I'm sure that there will be a second film because he's already broken box office records.
Saturday rolled around which meant Pierce and I went to the beach while Aaron finished up a few things for Mr. Parris. He had to go inspect a few sites. I'm not going to lie, Aaron working over the weekends is somewhat of a disappointment. His schedule is very odd in the sense that he doesn't have specific hours. He also doesn't have certain workdays. It's basically whatever days they need him at whatever time. And they only let him know the day before whether he has to leave or not. It sounds like a terrible schedule but it also means he has a lot of free time when he does.
"Yes," I said to Pierce for what seemed like the billionth time. "I am."
Luckily, by the time Aaron finally did arrive Pierce and I had already showered and had dinner. It was still early in the evening which meant the sun was still up. Pierce and I were in the middle of doing our dishes when we heard the front door open.
"Marco," Aaron shouted into the apartment. I guess that's something I hadn't mentioned before, whenever Aaron comes home and he knows we're here, he shouts 'Marco.' According to Pierce and him, it was a tradition they always had while growing up.
"Polo," Pierce and I answered from the kitchen. Aaron followed our voice and came into the kitchen.
I was washing the dishes at the sink as Pierce dried them beside me. Whenever I handed him a plate or glass he would quickly dry it off before sticking it back in its right home in the cabinets. Aaron wasn't wearing his usual suit for work. He was in a pair of faded jeans with a black tight fitting t-shirt and his leather jacket. His hair was just as wild as it always is but before I could admire him fully he made his way behind me and hugged me tightly.
"You ready?" He said beside my ear just as I finished with the last dish.
I bit my lip to stop from smiling—it failed. "Now or never," I answered as I best as I could. That's the thing about Aaron. Or maybe just relationships in general, having someone make you so giddy and happy to see them. It's disgusting in the most beautiful way.
"You're sure you want to do this?" He asked while kissing the side of my neck.
I was glad he was holding me up because my legs suddenly felt like spaghetti. "Yes."
"Oh look," Pierce interjected just as Aaron placed another kiss below my ear. "I'm invisible."
"You're not invisible," Aaron lazily said to his brother. "You're just not worth acknowledging."
I had absolutely no words in my mouth as Pierce took a step back with his hand on his chest. He stuttered out a few breaths which only seemed to amuse Aaron even more. "That's just rude," Pierce finally said. "I'm wounded."
"I'm glad," Aaron rolled his eyes before looking back down to me. "If it's all the same to you I'm going to kiss my girlfriend now."
Aaron tilted my chin towards him by using two fingers. Butterflies erupted in my stomach and I felt my heart speed up. He placed his sweet lips tenderly on mine and for a moment I forgot we were in the kitchen. I forgot we were in the apartment. Heck, I forgot we were on Earth. I wanted to turn around and face him so I could put my arms around him. But my hands were soaked in water and dish soap. And Aaron's body was pressing me close into the side of the counter.
He gave me a few teasing kisses. Biting my bottom lip and opening his mouth slightly like he was about to add his tongue. Except, instead of going French he simply pulled away and I knew it was to keep me hanging.
His signature half grin appeared on his face when he saw my agitated one. "Come on," He said taking a step back. "We have to go."
"Pierce is coming," I stated quickly as Aaron walked off. Pierce gave me a looked that signified he was touched. He put his hand to his heart and gave me an approving nod.
"Fine by me," Aaron answered. He turned to look at the two of us and grinned. "But he's taking his car."
When Aaron went into his room, Pierce stuck his tongue out to his brother. It caused me to laugh which made Pierce smile. "He's a jerk," Pierce added. "I'm his brother he should be exceptionally nice to me. Why doesn't he treat me like he treats you, huh? Favoritism is stupid."
I smirked, "I don't think it's favoritism."
Pierce raised his eyebrow, "Then what is it?"
"I don't know Pierce," I wiped my hands on a nearby towel and crossed my arms over my chest. "Do you want to make out with your brother?"
Pierce's face instantly scrunched up in disapproval. He closed his eyes and started shaking his head as he repeated the word 'ew' about ten times. "You're right," Pierce gave me a pat on the shoulder as he walked past me. "I'll let you be the one that knocks up on his wood."
I punched Pierce for that. He laughed, I turned red. He said it was worth it even though I'm sure his arm was sore.
Pierce took his car to the tattoo shop. Aaron and I rode his bike. Pierce got stuck in traffic while Aaron zoomed past cars as best as he could. I'm pretty sure a cop was about to pull Aaron over but because of the traffic, the police car stayed situated where it was. He probably caught Aaron's plate though. Aaron told me not to worry about it when I asked him about it.
"So where'd you find this tattoo place?" I asked Aaron over the helmet.
"I made sure to ask around where the best place is. I wouldn't want my Birdie getting a shitty first tattoo," He answered. "Have you thought about what you want?"
"Yes," I smiled picturing how it would end up looking.
"I'm flattered Birdie. But I don't think getting my name inked on you is a good idea," Aaron said. My hand was resting on his abdomen, I moved it slightly and pinched him as best as I could. Aaron chuckled, "Ow."
"I'm not getting your name poked into my skin," I told him. There was no way I would ever—in a million years—get a name of anything tattooed on me. Could you imagine the consequences of that? No thank you. People occasionally regret getting regular tattoos. Getting a name of a person, band, or even city, is not something I would ever do.
"I guess I'll just have to wait and see," Aaron said as we both banked to the right so he could make a sharp turn. "I love surprises."
"I know you do."
Aaron and I arrived to the tattoo shop before Pierce. We got off his bike and walked inside. It was probably the most typical tattoo shop in the world. With fluorescent lights and hard rock and roll playing. The girl standing at the front desk had a short cut of hair that was dyed to the darkest black. Her body was inked entirely just like most of her face was pierced as well. There was a big buff guy waiting on one of the sofas. He looked like he belonged to a biker gang but the best part was he was reading a Cover Girl magazine. When the tattoo artist came out of the back, someone followed him. The artist called up the large biker man to the back and they both disappeared into the store. Ironically however, the tattoo artist himself didn't actually have any visible tattoos.
"Hi," The girl at the counter said putting her magazine down. She looked at me up and down before turning her gaze to Aaron. Just from her glance I could tell she was already judging me. "Do any of you have an appointment?"
Note to self, I thought. Always call ahead of time and ask if I need to schedule appointments because apparently, walk-ins don't exist in Miami.
"Yes," Aaron put his hands on my shoulders. I wasn't even surprised that Aaron had booked it without me knowing. "She's getting a tattoo. It should be under the name Birdie."
That made my neck turn red and cause the girl to raise an eyebrow at me. She marked my name off of a schedule on the desk before pulling out several binders that were situated underneath. "Do you have an idea of what you're getting princess?"
This girl had created an image of me in her head. Just the way she was talking to me and kept eyeing me like I was the dumbest creature to walk this earth. It's actually kind of hurtful because I was intrigued by her own style. Maybe I didn't look like I just rolled out of a punk concert, but that didn't mean I didn't know what songs were playing overhead. I walked over to the counter and leaned against it while lazily flipping through some pages in the binder.
"Um," I said in the most airhead voice I could muster. She sighed out deeply while glancing up at the ceiling. Aaron raised his eyebrow at me—obviously never having heard my voice reach such a pitch.
Oh this is fun, I thought.
"Do you like," I said twirling my hair. "Have any like...infinity signs? I want an infinity sign right next to a Starbucks tattoo with a little bird flying over it. And like...I want that all on my lower back. Not a tramp stamp, but kind of like one except like...I'm so not a tramp. But when people see it they'll like...read it like this, 'Infinite Starbucks Freedom.' I'm like...trying to start a trend. You know?"
First, I do not think there is anything wrong with any of those tattoos. Frankly, the infinity tattoo is really cute. The bird tattoo is awesome, I just wish it hadn't become so popular after Divergent. As for the Starbucks tattoo, you want that on you, by all means go for it. But I think the girl almost passed out she was astounded.
Aaron was standing behind me and I instantly heard him start to laugh. Hearing his own laughter caused my straight face to falter as I laughed along with him. God, Aaron has such a wonderful laugh. I don't understand why he doesn't smile more often.
"Breathe," I told the girl. She had the more horrified expression on her face. "I'm just kidding."
When she realized I wasn't serious she let out a sigh of relief. "You had me going there," She said pushing a small smile. "What do you really want?"
"A skyline," I answered. She nodded before going to a few cabinets that were situated behind her as she pulled out the binders. She placed them in front of me and I started flipping through. Some of the skylines were intricately detailed whereas others were simply one line that went up and down like a heartbeat except it formed the shape of a skyline.
"I want to be an architect," I explained to the girl who was eyeing me closely. Aaron was glancing over my shoulder and when I looked up at him he was grinning. "What?" I asked.
"That's a much better idea than a bird." He answered.
I smiled and flipped through two more pages. There weren't a lot of options. I don't think it's a very common tattoo to get. Sure, I've seen other people with them especially when I was looking them up. But at least it's something that means a lot to me. I pointed at the simplest skyline, "This one."
It was the Miami skyline. Although a lot of people wouldn't be able to tell because it's just one dark line that creates the shape of the buildings. At least I would know. I'd know that at some point in my life my building would have become part of that same skyline.
"Do you want any words underneath or anything else added to it?" The girl asked as she wrote the serial number of the tattoo on a sheet of paper. I shook my head and she simply waved her hand for me to sit down on one of the sofas to wait as the artist finished with his client.
I took a seat, Aaron beside me as he put his arm over my shoulders. "So where are you getting it?" He asked leaning into me. His hand interlaced our fingers together. While the girl at the counter wasn't looking he rotated my hand and lightly brushed his finger against my wrist. "Here?"
I licked my lips and shook my head. Aaron raised an eyebrow gently pulling my arm towards him. With the same feather like touch he ran his finger down my arm. His eyes never losing contact with mine. "Here?" He asked again with his low and dense voice.
My heart was beating loudly in my chest. The way he was looking at me. The way he was touching me. Yeah, I could kiss him right now. I leaned in closer to him, "No."
Bringing his hand up and keeping his eyes locked with mine he ran his finger across my collar. "Here?"
"Warmer."
The edge of his lip moved up and turned into a half-grin. His fingers trailed down lightly on my side until he stopped just below my breast. His eyebrow raised and his eyes looked as dark and desolate as ever. "Here," He didn't ask like a question. I had been planning to get the tattoo on my side for a while. Now my body felt warm and static where Aaron's fingers were drawing circles.
The bell of the entrance chimed and I quickly looked up. Aaron kept his gaze locked on me and he didn't bother moving his hand for a few seconds. Pierce took a look around the shop before seeing Aaron and I seated on the sofa. He gave me a reassuring grin as he took a seat beside his brother leaving Aaron in the middle.
"Did I miss anything?" Pierce asked.
"No," Aaron answered nonchalantly. "You just interrupted our soon to be make-out session."
"Thank God," Pierce muttered causing me to laugh. He smiled at me before asking, "You're one-hundred percent sure about this?"
"Yes," I answered him once again. "You two have taught me to take risks. You always tell me to live a little."
"Ok," Pierce sat back in the cushioned seat like he had finally made peace with the idea. A few minutes later the large man who looked like a biker was walking out of the door.
The tattoo artist, who's nametag read El, was calling my name. "Uhm," He said raising his eyebrow at the three of us. "Birdie."
Pierce scoffed and I shoved him lightly as I stood up. "Me," I said.
El smiled at me and asked me to step forward. "Do your friends want to come along?"
I glanced back at my roommates. They nodded that they'd like to so I edged them forward. The three of us went to the back of the shop. Unlike the front of the shop, the back looked like a doctor's office. There were several rooms that each had equipment in it. When I entered the room El led us to, he walked over to the sink, and washed his hands. I took it as the cue for me to hop onto the recliner that looked like a doctor's examination table.
"I'm Elliot," El said taking a seat across from me on a rolling chair. He was holding a clipboard in his hands. "I just want to go by standard procedure with you."
I nodded along as he read off of a sheet of paper. I was told to sign a few papers that Elliot handed to me. Basically, it stated that I understand tattoos can get infected. That they're permanent. How I have to take care of it the first few days or weeks to prevent infection. In summarization, I'm not allowed to sue the shop. Etcetera etcetera. By the time El finished, the sun was already setting through the small window we had in the room.
"Last and final question. Where do you want it?" He asked me. I pointed on my right side just below my breast. He quickly jotted it down, I'm sure he knew exactly the location I wanted it and before starting he also asked me if I wanted the skyline vertical or horizontal—just to confirm. I said horizontal, he wrote it down, and before I knew it was I laying on my side with my arms over my head and my shirt pulled up just below my chin. I was smart enough to wear my bikini as my bra because I knew where I wanted the tattoo would basically be under my breast. The last thing I wanted as to have to take my bra off. So all I had to do was pull the string of the back of my bikini and I was good to go.
"I'm not going to lie," Aaron said without any shame. "I didn't think I'd see you in this position in a room full of other guys."
I wasn't allowed to laugh while El had the needle on my skin. So I bit my lip which caused Aaron to tilt his head at me with an amused look his face. "I didn't think I'd ever see you in this position ever," Pierce added.
"I've seen too many people in this position," El commented as he removed the needle for a second. We all laughed which caused him to smile. "So first tattoo, huh?" He asked.
"Yeah," I said. "I'm surprised you don't have many."
"Oh I do sweetheart," He said putting the needle back on me. "But only the privileged—meaning my wife—get to see."
I had to breathe slowly to make sure I didn't shift for El and the pen. I know I probably should feel self-conscious around the guys, especially with me basically holding my bikini to my boob as the only piece of fabric. But both of them have already seen me in probably the slimmest bikinis ever. Perks of living by the beach.
Aaron kept his eyes locked with mine while Pierce watched the ink slowly appear on my skin. I was too busy focusing on my breathing and keeping my gaze locked with Aaron to really feel any bit self-conscious. I thought I would catch him staring at my body but instead he was waiting for a reaction. I licked my lips when I realized a few minutes had passed without either of us turning away. It was like I was held hostage by his gaze.
"Almost done," El commented as he placed the pen back on my skin.
"Does it look good?" I asked Pierce who was intrigued by the art.
He nodded, "I hate needles but not going to lie, it looks pretty badass Parker."
I let out a small sigh of relief and before I knew it, El was cleaning up my side and placing some gauze and tape. He told me to clean it up and to instantly get it checked out if it became infected. Everyone left the small room as I tied up my bikini and fixed my shirt. My side was sore but nothing I couldn't handle. I grabbed my leather jacket and as I walked out the room I could see Aaron paying for my tattoo up at the front desk.
"Whoa," I said quickly making my way to the front just as Aaron handed the front desk a Benjamin. "I don't think so mister."
"Don't worry about it Birdie," He said.
"Aaron," I put my hand on his chest causing him to look down at me. We locked eyes again except this time I was hoping mine looked a bit more threatening than usual. Just above a whisper I said, "I want to buy it."
Aaron seemed to have a battle with himself. He could either pay for it or just let me pay and avoid an argument. But I don't think it was an argument he was afraid of. The girl behind the desk raised her eyebrow at us before Aaron asked for his cash back. I smiled, leaning forward and kissing him lightly on the jaw. "Thank you," I said to him as I handed the girl my debit card.
"You're very welcome Birdie," Aaron said as he and Pierce waited for me at the entrance of the shop.
I was beaming a smile. Sure, I just got my first tattoo but also I was way too happy over the fact that Aaron let me pay. I could have easily let him pay for the tattoo and I'm sure Aaron truly wouldn't have minded. But it was my tattoo and even though my parents would disown me for having it, I didn't care.
"Ready?" I asked the boys as we all walked out of the shop together.
"I'll bet you the last box of mac n cheese that I'll win," Pierce said as he started jogging to where he parked his car.
That instantly got my attention. "You're on," I dragged Aaron to the bike, I wanted to drive but the last thing I needed was for Aaron to squeeze me too tightly on the sides. "We have to win," I said to him as I put on my helmet and he revved.
"We always do," He placed his hand over mine. "Hang on."
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Disclaimer: I would get a tattoo but I'm so indecisive that I'll probably regret it like a week later. Or I'd want a different one. This is why I stick to henna.
I was going to cut this chapter in half but then I figured I'd just give y'all an extra long chapter. I hope you enjoyed it. It was a filler but I promise all fillers have some sort of clue or something remotely important to the story.
Did you guys like it? Lemme know. Also, please click the vote button. Recent chapters have gone down on votes and I'm sad. But it's all good because I have fun writing. Hope you have reading it. Till next time :)
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