Forever in Ink

by Jude Ouvrard

  I stopped running mid-track and turned around to get back to her. Somehow, my body gained speed with this newfound eagerness to get her out of the house. She needed it. Her upper body was still sore from her injuries, but her legs were fine. We didn’t have to run, we could walk together and hold hands. Do normal things.

  Running down the corridor to my apartment, I went inside and found her in the kitchen cursing at the coffee machine. Impatience echoed in her voice, and flags went up. It wasn’t like her to get irritated.

  “This machine will be the death of me,” she said on the verge of crying.

  “Tiff, get dressed. You need fresh air as much as I do. That’s why I came back for you. Now, come on. Put on a sweater and come out with me.” I didn’t want her to argue with me. My main goal was to get her outside.

  She started to cry, breaking my heart.

  “Why are you crying?” Wrapping my arms around her, I did my best to comfort her. “How about we go get a coffee, okay?”

  “You’re going to think I’m crazy now,” she blubbered.

  “I’m not thinking anything right now. We are all allowed to have tough days. You’ve been through a lot lately. Don’t be so hard on yourself.” With the tips of my fingers, I caressed the curves of her cheek. “When you feel like this, you have to tell me, though. Trust me, I’ll make sure to turn your day around and make it better.”

  “Why are you doing this for me?”

  “Because I care. Oh, and because I love you.” Her arms tightened around me, silently telling me she appreciated my words. Tiff spoke through her actions more often than not, but it didn’t bother me. She gave me plenty to be happy. “Now, please, my beautiful Tiff, come outside. You need to see something other than the walls of my apartment.” When she laughed, I knew I’d won.

  I waited while she went and got her special hoodie. She gave me a brief smile as she wriggled into while I watched, ready to assist if she needed it.

  “How’s the arm and neck this morning?” I asked as we headed down to the street. She seemed a lot better, walking with ease by my side, and full of enough spunk that she’d been ready to throw down against my coffee machine. That said a lot.

  She hooked her arm with mine. “Much better, almost back to a hundred percent.” Her head leaned toward mine and she lowered her voice as she said, “Almost time to head back to my place.”

  “No,” I blurted. My voice was calm but my heart thrummed against my rib cage as the panic grew by the second. “You… you don’t have to go, Tiff. Actually, I don’t want you to.”

  “Be serious, Kyle.” She kept walking, but I wanted to stop and throw a fit.

  Why couldn’t she see how good we’d been these past few days? Was I naïve to think we had something better than most couples?

  “I don’t know what to say or think, Tiff. I think we’re pretty good together, and to be honest, I wasn’t expecting you to leave after you got better. Why don’t you want to stay?”

  She frowned while my eyes were frozen on her face. Knowing her predisposition to hold back words, I was watching for any little sign that might help me understand what the hell was going on in her beautiful, but lost, mind.

  “You find so many different ways to show me you care, and that you love me. It fills me with hope and fear at the same time. Hope that not all men are assholes, and fear this isn’t going to last. That you’re going to wake up one morning and decide you’ve had enough of me. Enough of showing and giving when—”

  “You give me enough, Tiff. More than I thought I’d allow someone to give me ever again.” Sighing, she stopped walking and turned to face me. Her eyes were focused upward, at the perfect blue sky. God, she looked so beautiful under the morning sun.

  “I love you, Kyle.” Every word carried the weight of the emotion behind it, and although she bit her bottom lip, I still caught the way it trembled.

  “Look at me, Tiff. I need to see you.”

  She didn’t move, but a lone tear rolled down her cheek. So, I took her face in my hands, brushed away her tear, and then kissed her trembling lips. She tried to resist, but within seconds, she was kissing me back with lips every bit as needy as mine. Tiff’s fingers tangled in my hair while our lips and tongues danced together. Her perfume and the scent of her shampoo invaded my senses, and I welcomed them.

  “Kyle.” She backed away panting, breaking off our intense kiss.

  “You’re going to have to stop pushing me away, Tiff. I’m not going anywhere, and I’m not letting you go.” Not now that the words had been said. As if I would let her when she’d finally opened up to me. Hell, no.

  “I’m not pushing you away intentionally. I’m scared. So scared, Kyle. I trust you, but I don’t trust the future and what’s waiting for me. Relationships never end well for me. They treat me like trash.”

  “I would never—”

  She stopped me with a kiss on the lips. “I know you would never, Kyle, but it doesn’t mean that I’m not scared.”

  “All I’m asking is you to trust me. I know what it’s like to feel alone and to deal with the anger inside. You make me forget all of mine. Let me do the same thing for you.”

  “Do you really want me to live with you? We’re not going too fast?”

  She had me there; I couldn’t say we weren’t going too fast. We were. But after spending all this time being friends and getting to know each other, I felt ready for this.

  “For me, it’s where I’m at with you. I think your place is with me. I don’t care if it seems like this all happened quickly. I’ve known you for a while. It’s not like we’re strangers. Tiffany, I want so much more with you. This is just the beginning.”

  She chuckled. “Just the beginning, huh? I wonder what you have planned. Are we getting married this weekend or something?”

  “I wouldn’t be opposed.” Right then I realized I would marry her. That I wanted to marry her. Enough time had been wasted, I had to take action and do something.

  She started laughing. “You’re crazy.”

  “I bet that’s what you like about me, right, beautiful? I’m crazy for you.” She blushed and became even more beautiful. The green of her eyes caught in the sun while the brown intensified. It added to her charm, which I’d lost myself in a long time ago.

  “Stop looking at me like that or you’ll be responsible if I combust. We haven’t had any action since before the accident.” Tucking her hair behind her ears, she groaned. “You look like you’re ready to eat me alive.”

  “Okay, fine. So maybe the sidewalk isn’t the place to talk about our sex life, but I will say this. It’s clear you’re feeling much, much better, and I promise, I’ll make it all better later. Right now, though, we have to keep walking before I turn around and take you home. You… you need fresh air and exercise.”

  She laughed louder, making the people around stare straight at us, intrigued. Despite her wrist being in a cast, she attempted a pirouette, and failed, falling into my arms while we both laughed like complete idiots. Her move had reminded me of Cassi for a brief second, but Tiff liked to dance, too, which I would have to get used to.

  “Maybe I’m not quite ready for this. I think I pulled three muscles. Bloody hell, my body feels like I gained ten years to a week.”

  Laughing with her in the early morning, before either of us had any coffee, showed me anything could be possible. Or maybe I was blind. I couldn’t tell. Life once threw me the worst pain possible, but then, it gave me Tiffany. While I wasn’t sure what to think, I wasn’t going to question it. All I was going to do was promise myself to love her every single day of our lives. The way she smiled, the way her hair fell on each side of her face, it made me weak in the knees. And that didn’t even include her eyes, which were amazing. Amazing didn’t cover it. They left me speechless.

  I know, I’m pussy-whipped.

  “I think we should stop by the shop. We could take breakfast and coffee to Val and Levi.”

  Really? She’s so thoughtful.
<
br />   “That’s a good idea. I’m pretty sure they’ll be happy to see you, too. They’ve been asking about you a lot.”

  Nix, Val, and Bekka had been texting me non-stop for the past couple of days. They missed their friend, but they were also curious as hell. It dawned on me then that Tiff’s cell phone had been broken when she was hit by the car, and that I should get her a new one.

  “I’ve never had as many friends as I have now. It’s… I don’t know? Nice to know that they care.”

  Apart from her exes, I didn’t know much about Tiffany’s past or the type of life she once had. “What do you mean? How many friends did you leave behind when you moved here?”

  It took her a moment. As her eyes lifted up to the sky, she took a deep breath. “My life back in London was… quiet, for the most part. My job brought friends, but with my personal issues, I didn’t trust many people so I spent most of my free time alone. I don’t want your pity or anything because it wasn’t bad, I was fine with my life. Moving here brought me more than I expected, that’s all. It overwhelms me, still to this day.”

  “What did you do outside of work?”

  “I trained myself a lot, and taught gymnastic classes to young kids at the Sports Center. My youth was spent working hard to be the best gymnast in the UK, but when I messed up my knees, my dreams went out the window.”

  I knew all about that. “I don’t mean to bring her up but I know how it is. Cassi would dance with or without injuries. The physical extremes she put herself through to be the top ballerina seemed kind of crazy to me, but she loved ballet that much.”

  “Unfortunately for me, I couldn’t continue training. It became too much for my knee.” She squeezed my hand. “As my father likes to say, everything happens for a reason. Everything that happened to me back home brought me here. To you.”

  “And I’m so very thankful for that.” I kissed her cheek, then kept my lips on her skin long enough to breathe her in. So thankful.

  After stopping by the coffee shop for coffees and pastries, we entered Ink Me Tattoo Shop with our hands full to see our friends. Tiff was beside herself as she laughed and hugged Val again and again.

  Val gave me a look. One that asked how I was doing. I answered with a nod and a smile, and she smiled back before asking, “How are you two doing? You look great. Both of you.”

  I intended to answer but Tiff beat me to it. “I’m very happy. We’re doing great.” She turned to me and eyed me for an approval. It was funny because I never thought she would need my approval for this.

  “We are, beautiful,” I added, wrapping her in my arms.

  Levi watched me, and shook his head in disbelief, but the look on his face told me he was happy for me. Us. Of course, it would take some time getting used to all this, but I had no problems with that.

  Tiff came into my life one lonely night and made an impact on my world. From her cold attitude to her beauty, I’d gotten to know her and feel for her. She still had her own issues to face, of course, but I had no plan to let her face them alone.

  “How are the cuts? Any better? Are you still in pain?” Val chuckled. “I’m sorry, too many questions all at once.”

  “Everything’s healing and doing much better. Pain is almost gone now. I have had some bad headaches, though, and dizziness.”

  “You tell me if Kyle is being a jackass. Nix would be way too happy to have you home.” Levi said.

  “No worries, I’m staying with K. He’s treating me like a princess.”

  Tiff picking me over her friend made my whole fucking day, and I grinned. “We brought coffee and breakfast. I don’t know about you all, but I’m starving.”

  We opened up the box of pastries and the buttery smell spread into the room. “It better taste as good as it smells or this will be my biggest disappointment of the year.” Tiff licked her lips.

  “No doubt it’ll be delicious. That bakery is the best in town.” At least, I thought so.

  Ten minutes later, the box sat empty on my work table. I looked around while drinking my coffee, thinking about the old days. Yes, I missed the shop and working long hours, but I was also enjoying spending time with Tiffany and getting to know her more.

  “How are you two holding up? Has it been busy?” I asked Levi.

  “We have plenty of work to fill our schedule, but we’re not overbooking, yet, so don’t worry about rushing back.”

  I nodded. Like I wouldn’t worry about my business.

  While Val and Tiff talked in the back of the shop, I sat with Levi and made sure everything was going fine. Val had always been a quick learner, but she was still an apprentice, so I had to check on her progress.

  “Deciding to make Val our apprentice was the best thing we could’ve done for this shop. She’s amazing, K. Patient, devoted, and creative. Trust me, two years from now, she’ll be traveling the world with her art.”

  “I say we keep her here if she’s that good,” I said laughing. Levi knew I wished her the best, but we’d both love if she stayed.

  “I know. Nix feels complete with her here. She struggled a lot when Val was in Boston. Her family is still not talking to her. Fucking idiots. How can they do that to her? They raised her. I thought maybe after a year, but no, still nothing at all. They moved, she has no idea where they are.”

  “I’m sorry, man. If there is any way I can help your girl, I’m here.”

  “I know. Same goes for you. We all love Tiff. She’s one of us.”

  To that, I couldn’t find the words. His admission touched me more than he’d probably meant, but Tiff being considered part of our group was everything I could ask for.

  “You’re so whipped, dude. Pussy-whipped Kyle in the house,” he teased with a loud laugh.

  I punched him in the shoulder hard enough for my joints to crack. “Shut up, man.”

  “You know I’m right.” Levi laughed louder than loud. “Welcome to the club. It’s the best thing that ever happened to me.”

  “No more being a vulture. I just want her. I’ll never forget Cassi, but I can admit Tiff makes me happy and I want a future with her.”

  “I can tell she does, and you deserve it.” Levi gave me a hug. If there was anyone on this planet who knew my pain, it was him.

  “Thanks, Levi.”

  Val and Tiffany returned then, talking about a possible trip to England.

  “When I left my parents, I was in a very bad place. They’re worried about me, so I was thinking a visit to show them how happy I am would be good. I tell them over the phone, of course, but I can still hear their doubts from across the ocean.”

  Hearing her speak, I wished she would have told me about wanting to visit her parents. Aren’t these types of things discussed between couples?

  “Are we going to England now, or what?” I couldn’t hide the sarcasm in my voice, but she laughed, thankfully.

  “Would you come with me, K? To meet my parents?”

  I crossed the room to her and took her face in my hands. “Of course, if you want me to.”

  Her small finger brushed against my lips. “You’re serious? They will probably ask you a million questions, but only because they want to make sure you—”

  “And I’ll answer every one of them if that’s what they need. You know that, don’t you?”

  She nodded.

  “Hey, lovebirds. Big night at Black Shakers tonight, are you in?”

  I gave Tiff a kiss on the lips. “Maybe. We’ll have to see. She tends to have bad headaches at night.”

  “Come if you can. There will be a live band and Nix is going to sing a few songs.”

  So many things to think about all at once. England, the Black Shakers… hanging out here had to be draining Tiff’s energy; she looked tired. Her lingering concussion was wearing her out, even after days of resting. She needed more time to heal.

  Levi and Val both had appointments due soon, so we said our goodbyes and left them to get ready. We walked slower than earlier, and Tiffany yawned a couple of
times. I offered to get a cab but she refused, saying she was enjoying being outside in the fresh air.

  As soon as we got home, however, she passed out on the couch. After staring at her for a while, I placed a blanket over her. She shivered.

  Lost in my thoughts, I dosed off on the floor next to her listening to her breathing. No other melody equaled the sound in my ears. Strong and alive. It made me beyond blissful.

  Tiffany

  Sitting at The Black Shakers, I couldn’t stop thinking about the conversation I’d earlier with Val and Kyle. The ear plugs I’d worn to block out the noise helped me get lost in my head.

  England. Am I ready to go back?

  I missed Mum and Dad more each day, but all the unfinished business I’d left behind worried me. With no notice, I’d left my job and the few friends I’d had. Before coming here, I hid and cried myself to sleep for weeks. Losing my boyfriend the way I did, and then our baby, shattered me. So, I’d come to the States without telling anyone except my parents.

  No sooner had I stepped off the plane than a new chapter began for me. Kyle’s chapter. I didn’t want the pages of my old life to bend what I had with him now. Perfection. Every day we spent together, our relationship deepened. Kyle had promised he wouldn’t give up, and he hadn’t. Not yet, anyway, and with each day that passed, the feeling that he wouldn’t ever, grew.

  Last night, cuddling together with our bodies entwined as a haze of warmth surrounded us—the best! No man had ever treated me as good as Kyle, and for that, he deserved my heart and soul.

  And to come with me to England. Besides, facing my family and the old neighborhood would be much easier with him by my side.

  A hand touched my backside, startling me off the stool I had been sitting on for at least an hour. Seeing Kyle, I took out the ear plugs.

  “It’s just me, beautiful. Are you okay? You look sad. Do you want to head back home?”

  I shook my head. “I’m fine.” Fine? I lied. “Just thinking about going back home.”