Petals and Ink

Flannel and Customers- 1

Chapter the First

I smacked my alarm clock off and pulled myself out of bed. My closet yielded many similar clothes, so I threw on a red flannel and some skinny jeans, hoping I didn't look too stupid. I grabbed my wallet and hairbrush on the way out, then hopped on the bus. I spent the long bus ride running the brush through my shoulder-length black hair for a good thirty minutes and leaving it smooth and shiny. I wasn't bad looking at all, but I'd long considered my hair to be my best feature.

Almost forgot- I pinned up my sleeve, revealing the tattoos that covered my forearms. There were an assortment of them- a beach scene, decorative flowers, a mermaid, a pair of Ray-Bans (I was drunk. Thankfully drunk me was smart enough to make sure it looked good), a dragon, and a few small filler ones. I had a few on my chest as well- roses, mostly, with a moon in the middle because why the hell not.

Finally my stop came. I hopped off and inhaled, the flower shop's fragrance mingling with the London smog. Wonderful.

Inside, I put my brush in the break room, slipped my wallet into my boot, and started working on a new design, a tiger. We had a lot of tiger designs, due to their popularity.

At nine, the door opened. We saw a steady stream of customers- a couple young kids looking for some first-time ink, a woman more heavily tattooed than myself, and someone obviously hungover who wanted a refund- apparently, he didn't like the hyper-realistic penis that now adorned his forehead. I remembered that- I'd done the drawing myself. Eventually we cleared him out, and my lunch break started up.

I always took lunch with Lily, my best friend at the place. She had red hair and insanely green eyes, was about 5'6" (a couple inches less than me), and had quite a few stencil-and-watercolour flowers and vines on her arms. We had the same routine- scones and paninis down the street, a brief smoke in the alley, and back to work. Today, however was different.

Well, not entirely. Our lunch was the same, as was most of the day, during which I sketched some new designs and Lily added text. However, just as the clock struck seven and I was preparing to close up, there was a new customer

"Can I get a tattoo?" said the tall man with dusty red hair and impossibly pretty blue eyes. Why he was getting one was not of interest to me. His pleasant scent was, unfortunately.

I was momentarily speechless. Lily was not. "Fascinating." she drawled. "Crazy idea, showing up in a tattoo parlor with that kind of business. Real unique." I'd long admired her thick Cockney accent. My upper-class Londoner speech reminded my of my family, who didn't much approve of anything from my job to my previous boyfriends. Or girlfriends. They just didn't like me much.

Hopefully Lily wouldn't go driving him away. Awkward, that would be.

Thankfully, he wasn't in the mood to exit. Rolling his eyes, he turned to me. "Ah, where should I sit?"

I pointed him toward one of our many open chairs, next to the dusty window showcasing the darkening London sky. He seated himself. I quickly stalked over to Lily.

"Ey, Lily." I said, trying to keep my voice down. "You can go, we're closed in five."

She looked a bit puzzled. "Look, you're going to let this guy keep you late?"

"Lily, look at him. No shit I am."

She gave me a meaningful look, smiled, and left with her tote slung over her arm.