'Til Sun Beams Find You [COMPLETE]

One

"Will you say something?"

"No. That'll make it weird," Nico whispered lowly at her best friend, her voice barely audible beneath the consistent buzzing in the room. "I wonder if he's single. He probably isn't."

"You won't know unless you ask."

Nico scoffed. "I'm not asking him that."

Jada shrugged. "If you don't, I'll do it to put you out of your misery. You're moaning from him touching you. You want him. You think he can't see you doing all that squirming?"

Nico's face flushed red. "Shut up. Pour me another shot and hold my hand... this shit stings." She lifted the handheld mirror up to her neck to examine the nearly finished tattoo of a few roman numerals.

IV・XXVI

The date was one special to her, a day that her entire life changed for what she initially thought would ruin her. The thing about grief was that it wasn't something you grew from but rather, something you learned to incorporate into your life. That date that she would dread to come around was now one she looked forward to, because it was another year of her growing from grief.

Jada plucked a solo cup from the complimentary table the tattoo parlor had set up and poured out another shot for her friend before her eyes bounced over to the man that had been keeping them company for the last hour.

It was a spur of the moment decision to get the tattoo, and they were lucky enough that the original appointment had cancelled at the last minute. There wasn't usually drop-in availability but a few lines wasn't that much of a commitment to someone as talented as the artist that had agreed to it.

Carter.

His name was Carter.

"For your information, I'm not moaning. He's gripping my neck a little too hard is all," Nico shot back, making Jada laugh.

"I bet your freaky ass like that, huh?"

Nico smirked. "You don't wanna know. Plus he's fine," she whispered the last part.

"Which is why you should say something!" Jada whispered back at her. "Come on. Isn't that why we said we'd be going out tonight. Please Nic? I really wanna see you put yourself back out there. It's been months. I don't wanna have to get you on the apps but I'll do it if I have to," she threatened.

Carter returned to them at that moment, silencing any response she may have had. He pushed his stool towards them with a bit more of the ink he'd grabbed from his work station.

Nico looked into the cup Jada had poured for her, measuring what had to have been more than one shot like she asked, but she knocked it back all the same.

Jada did a little dance just as Carter smiled.

"How you doing with the pain? That's your second shot."

"Pain is negligible. We're pregaming early," Nico clarified as she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. She turned her head away from her best friend and towards the curtain shielding her from the other artists and people getting tattooed.

The buzzing turned on again and she took a breath just as Jada grabbed ahold of her hand.

"Where are y'all headed tonight?" Carter asked as he pressed the needle into her neck and Nico's eyes shut closed.

There it was again... his hand holding tightly onto her neck.

"Bar hopping is the plan," Jada answered, as if their choice of scantily clad clothing was enough of an indicator.