𝘐𝘕𝘒𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘦 | 𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯 𝘹 𝘣𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘰𝘤

'one'

the way to my job was literally on the outskirts of the city. new york was the city to be exact. i didn't necessarily like the fact that i had to drive from my apartment in manhattan to a tattoo shop that barely got clientele, but they payed well. i needed the money because i was always changing my major which cost me money that i didn't have.

college was a bore. i felt like they didn't have what i needed for me. so i was constantly changing what i wanted to do but my mom still thinks that i'm majoring in business. which is boring as hell. don't know how long that lie will go on to last.

i pulled into the parking lot of the tattoo shop, the neon sign flickering a little from no one fixing it in a while. i flipped the overhead visor, looking at myself in the mirror and poking at the heart shaped tattoo i had on my cheek. i was obsessed with draculaura, how could i not get something in her honor? the red ink on my face was the first thing people saw when they saw me, either pointing it out or shaming me for it.

i did it myself but it was still perfect to me.

i grabbed my bag and the rest of my stuff before getting out of my car. the shop wasn't near any gas stations or grocery stores so i brought my own snacks. it got tiring as i waited for clientele to show up and i would honestly be chilling in my client's chair if anything.

"good morning, or should i say afternoon," leia, the head receptionist, retorted. she was a bitch, there wasn't many things to say about her. she had long blonde hair, almost down to her butt and had a couple of tattoos littering her arms. leia thinks she is the shit but she isn't.

"your late. this is your 7th time." i shrugged, going up to the desk and signing in. "i barely get any people to draw on, being late isn't the biggest deal." i mumbled before placing the pen down.

"keep up with that attitude and john will get rid of your ass!" she raised her voice as i ventured down the hall to my room. that didn't sound like the worst idea she'd ever had. it was quiet as i walked, no buzz of a tattoo gun going off and no talking. this really sucked.

i sighed and flicked on my lights. i didn't decorate in my room, mostly because i didn't plan on staying long. but it did have a few things plastered on the walls to give me inspiration. "you're here." a voice stated. i turned around to see john, my boss. "what's up, john?" i already dreaded this conversation.

"leia was talking to me about you being late for the 7th time." he crossed his arms. i nodded, grabbing some fruit snacks and my sketch book before sitting in my client's chair. "that is spot on." i popped some of the gummies into my mouth.

"what are you gonna do about that?"

i shrugged, turning my head towards him, "john, we literally only have 2 or so clients that come around. and they don't even request me so i don't really know what you want me to do." i pursed my lip and john sighed. "you know we don't do request here."

that irritated me. if we didn't do request, i couldn't build a good clientele for myself which made my job really boring.

"maybe we should, it'll probably bring in more people. i'm bored john. all i do all day is sketch tattoo designs that you won't even hang up!" i got frustrated and slammed my sketchbook on my lap, crumping up my plastic wrapper. "leia doesn't think we need anymore designs hung up." i rolled my eyes, "that's because the only designs up there are leia's and her friend margo, who doesn't even work here anymore!"

john uncrossed his arms as i got up to through away my trash. "i've been complaining about how things are for months and nothing has been fixed." i stated. john shook his head, chuckling, "i'm not listening to someone who can barely make an effort to get here on time."