Take Out Chef

Chapter Twenty-Three

Chapter's song: Stand by you by KHS Cover

Mark was really nice, he talked me through it the whole time. He drew a stencil to transfer it to my skin. He wanted to make sure that I wanted it. The transfer was just the habanero's outline, but as soon as he finished, I knew it was perfect. Even though he wanted me to take a moment to think it through, I beamed at him.

"I love it."

Mark's eyes were assessing. "Are you completely and utterly sure?"

I couldn't keep the smile out of my face, "yes."

He crossed his arms, "do you want Bryan to see it?" His tone was loud, and we both heard the shuffling of feet on the other room.

"No." I blushed profoundly. Not yet.

Mark's bushy brows furrowed. "I thought you two..." he trailed, gesturing with his hand between me and the door.

My cheeks warmed even more. I shook my head, "no, we're not. He's my boss."

He raised an eyebrow. "Is that so?" A knowing look played in his face. I frowned at that. Shaking his head, he grinned as he rubbed his hands together, "Let's get started, then."

I swallowed hard. "Okay."

He washed his hands and put on gloves. Then, he took out all his equipment and I tried not to look much at his side, where he was putting the needles out. However, I peeked once or twice and my eyes widened each time.

He made me lay down on my side, so he could have perfect access to the place I wanted the tattoo in. He cleaned the area, and the little thing that looked like a pistol started to make a noise. "This might sting a little," Mark looked up at me for a moment, before glancing down. I didn't nod or say anything. I was bracing myself for the imminent pain from the needle.

Surprisingly, it didn't hurt that bad. My skin did feel tender and soar as he finished the outline, but it was manageable. The ink had smeared and it looked like a complete mess, yet he explained that it was normal. He cleaned the area and you could see the perfect outline of my pepper. I smiled excited.

"Now, this might be a little bit painful," he added as he took out the colored ink. He was using red, orange and yellow.

It did hurt, though. Nothing unbearable, but it was uncomfortable. I had to hold my breath when he started and I winced at the feeling of the needles. Okay. I might be a crying baby when it comes to pain, but still...

When he finished, he told me to let it rest for a few minutes as he went to get an ointment for later. He also told me that he would need to put a sort of plastic cover so the tattoo wouldn't touch my jeans.

While I was alone, I blinked the few tears that had pooled in my eyes from the pain. A soft knock played from the door. "How are you?" Bryan's deep voice resounded in the small room. I sniffed while he added, "can I come in?"

My left hand was gripped my jeans. I'd simply pulled it down on the side where Mark had drawn the tattoo. I knew it wasn't such a big deal, but I felt self-conscious. No sane girl would want her boss/teacher/crush to see their hip.

"I'm not sure." I said looking at the tattoo, feeling my cheeks warm.

His laugh sounded through the doorframe. "You're not naked, Jess! And you did tell me I would get to see the tattoo!"

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, okay. Point taken."

A bright smile played on his lips as he peeked in. "Can I see it then?"

His eyes looked darker as they ran through my face to my hips. My heartrate spiked to the roof. I felt like I couldn't breathe as he took a step closer to better examine the tattoo. I was probably blushing like crazy too. He stared at my hip for a long moment and I tried not to squirm under his gaze.