One More Day

by Hadley, Auryn

  "The office is the first door," he said, moving past her. "Kinda cheating to get to know you like this. Although, I don't think the government asks what your favorite color is, yet."

  She'd expected him to be arrogant, self centered, or at least overly confident. Instead, he damned near blushed when he admitted that he liked poetry, but hadn't flinched away from the question. He seemed almost shy but not ashamed of who he was. It fit him, and unfortunately made him just that much more attractive. His awkward humor made her giggle under her breath.

  "Yellow. Well, highlighter yellow, but all yellow is good."

  "Wow." He paused with his hand on the knob. For a moment, he looked at her - his face showing a pleased surprise - then realized what he was doing. Pushing the office door open, he made his way to a desk. "Yellow. That's not a common one. You know they say the colors you like say a lot about a person."

  "So what does yellow say about me, then?"

  "That you're happy?" He grabbed a manila folder and dropped it on her side of the desk, then sat at his chair on the other side.

  Mack grabbed it, flipping to the first page and taking a pen from the container. "Yep, think they might have gotten that a bit wrong. What's yours?"

  "Red. Not dark red, but like, the sun sinking below the horizon red. The kind that burns holes in your retinas."

  Her pen stopped halfway through her name. Unable to hide the smile, she looked up. "So, you're supposed to be mad?"

  He raised his hands and shrugged. "Something like that. Yeah, so, the last form is medical. Um, the basic part's paid, but I can pull some out of your check and increase the coverage. Most people don't want it, not at our age, but - "

  "Yeah," Mack said quickly. "Wow, didn't realize you had insurance, too. Yeah, I want it."

  Ryan looked at her for a moment. "Really? You want the Cadillac package?"

  Focusing on printing clearly and legibly, she just nodded.

  "That's like a quarter of your check, Mack."

  She waved that away. "It's good. Learned the hard way not to take it for granted, ya know?"

  He nodded and turned his attention to the monitor on his desk, his hands finding the keyboard. While she completed the stack of forms, he lost himself on the other side of the screen. She'd done this all too often lately, filling out paperwork for a new job. It seemed like every time she found something that might work, it never did. This time felt different. Granted, she was grasping for straws of hope, lately, but a straw was better than the steaming pile of crap she'd been dealing with all week.

  It took less than thirty minutes. When she signed the last page, having read through everything, she stacked them neatly in the folder again, and dropped the pen in the wire container alongside the rest. Ryan's desk was shockingly organized, she realized belatedly. He had a small stack of files, the monitor, and that was about it. So far, nothing about this place was what she expected of a tattoo parlor. Not the owner, not the decor, nothing. He ran it like a business, and it showed.

  "So," she said, breaking the silence, "I thought tattoo artists were supposed to show off their tattoos."

  "Huh?" he asked, glancing over. He'd been absorbed in what ever it was he was messing with. "Oh, yeah. Um. I do, it's just too cold out lately to run around in a T-shirt. Once I'm working I usually pull off the long sleeve."

  "Can I ask how many you have?"

  He smiled and looked away. "Sure, but it depends on how you count. I really only have three. They're just kinda big."

  "Like the sleeve?"

  "Yeah. So, lemme show you the shop."

  She stood, and was falling in behind him when she heard the front lock click. The faint chime for the door sounded, followed by a loud voice.

  "What up, bitch?"

  "Colby," Ryan told her before yelling back. "Get the lights man, we're open in fifteen."

  "You lazy shit," the man yelled back. "What have you been - "

  When they walked into the room he paused. Colby was everything a tattoo artist should be, from the large curved ring in his septum to the ink crawling up the side of his neck. His head was shaved and his goatee was long. Without shame, he looked her over slowly and grinned.

  "Hey, baby."

  "Colby, meet Mack, she's the one that did the chameleon."

  "Dude! No shit? That's some kick ass work. Ryan said you can whip that shit out over and over too. Fuckin' impressive."

  "Yeah." She felt completely caught off guard. "Kinda why I'm here."

  "She'll be drawing for us tonight," Ryan added, before turning back to her. "You any good with a computer?"

  She nodded. Who wasn't these days? That didn't really require an answer did it? She kept her professional demeanor in place. Smile, nod, be friendly, learn quickly. That's all she had to do, and she had a full time job, with overtime. Sure, she didn't know a single thing about tattoos, but she could learn.

  Ryan led her to the monitor behind the counter and shoved at the mouse. The screen clicked and flared to life, showing a nearly empty time schedule. He gestured for her to come closer, and explained.

  "Yeah, so if we're in the middle of ink, just add them in. Most simple tattoos take about an hour. Not really, but it'll work for now. Um. Yeah, walk-ins come after scheduled appointments, piercings are usually thirty minutes. You're kinda going to have to wing it today. It's an art to knowing how long to schedule something, and if we go over, we'll just stay until we're done."

  "I can do that."

  "You're freakin' her out, man," Colby said. "Baby, this shit is easy. Find out what they want, run it past one of us - and yeah you can talk to us while we're skin deep - and um, it's like an hour for every four inches of one color."

  Mack pointed to a picture on the wall. "So, the skull and daggers would be an hour in all black, and two in color?"

  "She's got it, man. Nice fuckin' find. Where'd you come from, baby? His bed?"

  Her eyes went wide, and she looked at Ryan quickly. "No!"

  "Lay off," Ryan said, blushing. "Coffee shop. Just finally got the balls to snatch her up."

  "Yeah, if she drew the lizard. Oh, you want me to put that on you?"

  Ryan shook his head. "Not tonight. Week before finals, we're going to be slammed in a couple of hours."

  "Gotcha. Yeah, well, just lemme know when. When ya gonna draw me one, babe?"

  "It's Mack," Ryan corrected.

  "Yeah," Colby drawled. "When ya gonna do me a piece, Mack?"

  "What do you want?" She kinda expected the worst.

  With a devious grin, he pulled his shirt over his head without removing his arms, and turned, showing her his heavily inked back. "I got a bare patch."

  The art was amazing. Colors and vivid blacks wove across his skin, moving from idea to concept, weaving an almost dream like pattern in his flesh. Without reservation, she stepped closer and touched him. Her fingers lightly traced across metal rivets and industrial looking images then, spanning the gap, she caressed almost Asian blossoms and stylized waterfalls.

  "Can I trace out the gap?" Her mind whirled with ideas.

  "Fuck yeah!"

  Ryan made an appreciative noise and grabbed something. Before Mack could even reach for a pen, he passed her a thin type of paper and a marker, tilting his head at Colby.

  "Perfect," she said, smiling at him as she took it.

  While she made a rough but accurate tracing of the edges of his tattoos, she could almost feel Ryan watching. Colby never moved, holding as still as a canvas while she shifted her hold and realigned the paper.

  "How far down?" she asked.

  Colby shoved at the waist of his pants. "Not fucking tattooing my ass."

  "You should," she teased. "I hear the babes go crazy for it."

  That was all he could take. Ryan laughed and walked around the corner. She could still hear chuckling as he made his way up the hall.

  "You're good," Colby said softly, "but, ya know, if ya wanna fuck him, there's prolly better ways than workin' for him."

/>   The words kinda came out of nowhere, but Mack knew it was because they were finally alone. She sighed and continued to trace the last of the empty space, finishing before she decided to answer.

  "He's hot, yeah, but that's not why I'm working here. I need to pay the bills. That's it."

  "Serious?" He pulled his shirt on while she moved the paper to the desk. "Every woman that walks in here is damned near drooling over him. He fuckin' hates that shit."

  "I'm serious. I just gotta get some things together, and fucking my boss is about the worst way to even try to do that, ok?"

  Colby looked at her, crossing his arms over his chest. After a pause, he smiled. "So what about your co-workers?"

  "Not happening," she said. "Don't think it, don't even go there."

  "So you got a boyfriend, then." He nodded that away as if it was a plausible excuse.

  "Has nothing to do with this."

  "So you gonna flip out when we start talking crass in the shop?"

  She laughed. "Like about the chicks going crazy for your tattooed ass? No. I'm not some prude, and if I was, why the fuck would I be here?"

  "To pay the bills," he tossed back. "Last bitch who worked here fuckin' flipped out. We ain't had a damned receptionist since. Ya ain't got a drop of ink on ya, and I can't see any piercings either, so you can't really blame me for wondering."

  She just patted him on the shoulder. "No, I can't. I got the job, I'm thrilled about the job, and I'm gonna do my damned job. You guys just don't even worry about me being here, ok?"

  Colby nodded, smiling at her lazily. "I think you'll do pretty good, Mack. Oh, and we don't work on drunks. I mean, we can pierce 'em if they insist, but it's better to tell 'em to come back."

  "Can do. Anything I need to know about designs?"

  He gestured to one of the large leather chairs behind her and pulled her around the half wall. Squatting in front of a cabinet, he slid out a drawer, displaying inks of all colors, along with mechanical equipment that she couldn't even begin to describe. That led to a brief explanation of what they did and how everything worked, including the limitations. Sitting at the back of the shelf was a color chart.

  "Can I use that?" She pointed at the page with bars of color on it.

  "Yeah, we just need that for ordering. Sure, babe." He passed the ink chart to her.

  Taking it, she made her way back to the front desk, claiming it as her own space. There. she lay out her pens and moved a few items around, not even thinking about it when the phone rang.

  "Sterling Ink," she answered.

  A man was on the other end of the line, asking questions about pricing and how long it would take for a tattoo. She had no idea of what half of the words coming out of his mouth meant, so asked him to hold and pressed a button before turning behind her.

  "Colby?"

  He stood behind her, his arms crossed, his eyebrow raised. "Already out of your league?"

  She just nodded. "Oh yeah.

  He reached across her, grabbed the receiver, and mashed a button, answering with a rough "Yeah?"

  Mack tried to listen to his answers, since she'd already learned the questions, and was able to sort out a few things. She heard him mention a design session and discuss hours and days. With a smile, he pushed the hold button again.

  "Ya get brownie points for that. Schedule him an hour for design work. That's with you. He wants a piece that will go across his upper chest, like a collar, but stay under a T-shirt. If you can get him in early enough, we can start the first session with him."

  He patted her on the shoulder and left, whistling softly. She grabbed the phone, and hit the button. She might not be a tattoo artist, but she was at least a tattoo designer now, and she kinda liked the idea.

  Chapter 4

  Around five o'clock, business began to pick up. First it was a guy here or there, then small groups wandering in. Some were just lookers, and Mack spotted those easily. Others wanted to know about cost, usually passing a rough drawing across the counter to her. When she told one guy that she could do something similar, he shook his head.

  "Nope, want that, just like that. My kid drew it."

  She nodded and asked him to wait while she made her way up the hall. Colby and Ryan were lounging in the break room, laughing at something, when she walked in. Both stopped, and looked at her, their expressions guilty.

  "You both in trouble already?" she teased. "I got a guy wants this."

  She held up the piece of paper, and Ryan gestured for her to bring it over. He was reclined with his feet propped on the table, a cup of coffee at his elbow. When she held it out, he shrugged.

  "He doesn't want a better design?" he asked.

  Mack shook her head. "Nope, his kid drew it."

  "I got it," Colby said, listing off hours, colors, and a price for her to quote.

  She turned to walk out of the room, and the guys started laughing again. With a sigh, she turned around. "Ok, what?"

  Ryan blushed, and grabbed his coffee, taking a long drink. Colby just grinned. "I got caught checkin' out your ass. Bothered?"

  With a laugh, she pulled her loose shirt up and hooked it on the waist of her jeans, then walked out. Behind her they laughed louder. She could just make out Ryan saying something, but it was too soft for her to hear the words. If this was how every day of her new job was going to go, Mack could deal with it.

  By the time she'd quoted the price and got the client to fill out the necessary paperwork, Colby was there. With a kind hand, he escorted the man to a chair, leaving her to tackle the next. She turned down a few staggering drunks, and learned the names of more piercings than she even knew existed. Luckily the pricing for those was listed, and easy.

  She took payments, scheduled appointments, and designed twelve tattoos that night. The clients were in love with each one. Sometime around ten pm, Colby called her name, and gestured for her to come over.

  Mack pulled herself away from the clients, enjoying the laid back atmosphere, and wondered what it was that he wanted to give her shit about this time. As she approached, she saw the young man looking in a mirror at his arm, a pleased smile on his face.

  "It's perfect!" the client said.

  "Your first mutilation of the human body," Colby said, pointing at the tattoo.

  Looking closer, she recognized the conglomeration of dots and lines that resulted in a molecule of DNA as a whole, but individually looked like little more than a random mess. She leaned closer, and nearly touched the man's arm, but Colby stopped her.

  "Not without gloves, babe," he said. "Sorry, that's the rules."

  "Yeah," she muttered. "It's damned good. Very nice," she told the guy, patting Colby on the shoulder before she went to find her seat.

  His words made her realize one thing she'd overlooked when thinking about working at a tattoo shop: blood born pathogens. She started chemo in only a few days, and her immune system was going to tank. She had to remember that. She needed to get in the habit of being careful. While she couldn't stop working, chemo and radiation were going to kick her ass, but she had no other option. She'd been enjoying herself the entire evening, but that thought made reality slam back into her like a hammer to the head.

  She felt completely at ease with Colby and his teasing. Oddly it was Ryan who had her being self conscious. Maybe it was because he was the Super Hot Guy she'd spent so many hours staring at, or maybe it was because he didn't act like the typical boss. When she made a mistake, and she'd made a few, he simply fixed it, shrugging it off like it was no big deal. Thing was, he didn't joke with her.

  That's not to say he wasn't talkative, but it was always directed at Colby or the clients. She heard him chatting easily about most things, keeping the clients at ease and feeling important through out their session, but each time he talked to her, he seemed to get more and more reserved. She wondered what she'd done, or if he regretted hiring her already, but wasn't about to ask with so many people around.

  Finally, the shift came to a clo
se. She'd been drawing and scheduling clients, but at eleven o'clock, Ryan whispered in her ear to not take anyone else. She finished up the designs she was working on, and then picked up the paper for Colby's back.

  Biting her lip, she closed her eyes for a moment, remembering the tattoos he was covered in, trying to think of how to blend the concepts. The idea seemed to creep into her head like a vine, slowly winding around the harsh metals, retaking the nature on his body. Her pencil began to move, and she glanced up at Colby from time to time, trying to bring the emotion of his personality into the simple lines she was planning for his body.

  "Mack?" someone asked.

  She didn't hear it the first time, being immersed in the idea coming from her hands.

  "Mackenzie?" Ryan said, again.

  She gasped and sat up, dropping the page to her lap. "Yeah? Sorry?"

  "Lock the door, would ya?" He was smiling at her. "We're done."

  "Oh!"

  She set the paper aside and did that, picking up a few empty drink containers and other assorted trash as she made her way back. Both Colby and Ryan were leaned over her desk. Well, not hers, but she'd claimed it. It had become her work space for the night. They talked softly, so she tossed the trash in the receptacle and started straightening frames, deciding that some aspects of closing had to be universal.

  "It's good," Colby said. "That's fucking amazing actually. I mean, it's like the whole idea of what happens after humans. You see that one on the Discovery Channel?"

  "No," Ryan said with a chuckle. "I don't even have TV, bro, you know that."

  "Yeah, well it's like, what would the earth do if we weren't here, and shit. That's what this looks like. It's fucking amazing."

  "It's kudzu and honeysuckle," she said, making both of them look. "Both are invasive, both are Japanese."

  "How'd you know that?" Ryan asked. "I mean, you've been pulling obscure references out all night."

  "I dunno," she admitted. "Some of it came with classes. We'd study Japanese style, and they'd reference the types of plants, or Egyptian. Some of it is just too many hours bored surfing the web." With an embarrassed smile, she tried to shrug it away.