Secrets of Adeline (Book 2)

Chapter 45: Ink

I made it through another day of school even after last nights crazy adventures, finding myself walking home with Zack since he lived only a few houses away from mine.

"I can't believe we danced on stage with them, that was wicked!" Zack exclaimed in amazement as he adjusted his book bag. "Same, it was crazy!" I jumped excitedly, reaching into the bag of gummy worms I was carrying, passing one over to him. We chewed the candies, laughing as we recounted the previous nights adventure.

I waved him off once we reached his house, continuing home. I reached my house, making my way to the back gate and entering the back door. Once inside, I placed the bag of gummy worms on the counter, heading upstairs to my room where I sat quietly on my bed. I sat my bag by my shoes on the floor, picking up my phone and dialing the number on the napkin I had saved. At school, Kat had convinced me to call Alejandro and tell him the truth. I had to tell him that my name wasn't actually Yvoni.

I bit my lip nervously as the phone rang in my ear. Twiddling my fingers in my sleeve, I waited for him to pick up. "Hello?" Alejandro's voice sounded. "Hey it's me, Yvoni. Well, kind of." I searched for words. "Kind of?" I heard him ask awkwardly. "There is something I have to tell you." I stated suddenly. "How about you tell me on the boardwalk tonight? A lot of people are going, if you would like to go with me... The band hasn't left Wyoming yet so I figured why not spend my last night here with you." He asked. "Well... Okay, but I seriously have to tell you something." I tried to explain. "Tell me tonight, I can't wait." He answered before hanging up. I sighed defiantly.

I had to look decent tonight, since the last time he saw me I was in a sweatshirt and leggings along with a messy pony tail and high tops. Unsure of what to wear, I finally decided on a short sleeved tight fitted dress that puffed out at the bottom just a bit, like a skirt, that was a matte black color, along with a pair of short black high heeled boots. I even took the time to curl my hair, which was unbelievably long after so much time had passed.

I looked myself up and down in the mirror, finally satisfied with the look. That was when my eyes caught contact with Jake's cologne sitting on my dresser. It looked the same as always, untouched since I had first sat it there. Flashbacks popped into my head of him, reminding me of how he made me feel. My stomach turned, knocking the breath out of me. I gasped, calming myself. "Fight the pain." I whispered. "You are fine, Adeline." I reminded myself under my breath. I couldn't smudge my mascara.

My nails were black, my makeup was black, my arched eyebrows were the darkest I had seen them, my sharply winged eyeliner was as dark as my darkening pupil, my dress and shoes were black. I had died my hair a darker brown since his funeral, I had lost the weight I had wanted to lose and I was confident with myself, curves or no curves, whatever I had. The only problem was, that I was going on a first date with a guy looking like I had just left a funeral, looking as if my outfit and style was darker than coal itself. Why couldn't I have realized how much black I had picked out, I groaned. I decided to forget about how I looked, it didn't matter. Spraying perfume over my dress, I was out the door.

I found myself parking my jeep in the parking lot by the lake. The river walk was full of couples, holding hands or kissing. Little strings of lights and lanterns lined the boardwalk, creating a beautiful scenery. I had never seen the boardwalk before at night. Alejandro sat on a bench, gazing at the lights. I smiled to myself as I took a seat beside him just before he turned his head to face me.

I could see the stars reflecting from his eyes, he smiled confidently. "You look beautiful." He smiled wider. "Thanks." I smiled at the ground, tucking a strand of curly hair behind my ear. "Shall we?" He asked, holding out a hand. "We shall." I smirked, lacing my fingers into his. He stood up, leading the way down the boardwalk. I felt his thumb softly tracing the back of my hand. "How often do you find yourself in Wyoming?" I asked him. "Well it's where I'm from, I moved to California when I was ten so I could be more successful in the music industry. I come as often as possible." He exclaimed. "Oh, I love California." My eyes lit up. "You've been there?" He asked. "Yep. I went with my best friends." I smiled. "Oh, well if you ever find yourself going back sometime, shoot me a text and we can meet up." He offered. "Okay." I agreed with a nod. "So, Yvoni..." He started. "Wait." I stopped him. "What is it?" He stopped to face me. "Here's the thing I have to tell you." I crinkled my nose with uncertainty. "Okay, tell me." He raised an eyebrow. "My real name isn't Yvoni... I just had to say it was because that's the name I had on my fake ID... So my friends and I wouldn't get kicked out of the club." I bit my lip. "Your kidding? How old are you then?" He asked in confusion. "Sixteen." I furrowed my eyebrows. "How old are you?" I asked quickly. "Seventeen." He sighed with relief. "Oh, thank god." I let out the air I held in my mouth. "Tell me about it, you really freaked me out there." He laughed nervously. "I'm really sorry. I should have told you sooner, I just didn't know how." I gazed at the ground. "It's okay, I get it. I have had a fake ID before. It's no big deal." He shrugged. "Are you sure?" I raised an eyebrow. "Positive." He nodded. "Thank you." I glanced back up at him with a smile. "What is your real name?" He asked me with curiosity. "Adeline. My name is Adeline." I admitted. "I like it, it is more interesting than Yvoni." He exclaimed. "Not really." I laughed. "Well Alejandro and Adeline sounds better than Alejandro and Yvoni, don't you agree?" He flirted. "Sure." I crinkled my nose at him with a giggle.

We sat down at a table on the other side of the lake from where we started. "Tell me something about you, like do you have any tattoos?" He asked me. "None, but I want one. How about you?" I exclaimed. "Well since you asked..." He started before he stood up, pulling up his shirt a tiny bit. I bit my lip, trying to not let my eyes wander. Right above his hip was an unfamiliar symbol. "What does it mean?" I asked him. "It's an old sign I used to trace on my papers as a kid, I don't know why. I got it to remind me of home, so I don't ever lose my true self." He spoke softly. "That's actually really cool." I admitted. "You said you wanted a tattoo?" His eyes glimmered. "Yes... Why?" I narrowed my eyes at him. "Come on." He took my hand suddenly, pulling me along.

He lead me down the lit up, glowing side of town, with lights and lanterns and neon signs as far as the eye could see. Shops lined the sidewalk, people scattered all over. "This is where I got my tattoo." He stopped in front of a building. "Really?" I asked excitedly. "Yeah, you want one? I can pay." He nodded towards the door. "I don't know... You really don't have to." I bit my lip nervously. "It's no big deal, come on. My buddy owns the place." He slid through the door. "But don't you need a parent's permission?" I asked. "Not here." He stated excitedly.

The door chimed as we slid through, glowing lights lining the wall. "Alejandro, my man! Good to see you in town, what's up bro?" The store owner asked, shaking Alejandro's hand. "A tattoo for her, where did you want it?" He asked me. "Oh, um... The back of my neck." I decided quickly. "Yeah, what she said." Alejandro nodded. "Ight, we can get you in right now or in three hours." The store owner exclaimed. I analyzed him, tattoos covering his body. "Um... Right now?" I felt a shiver run up my spine.

A few moments passed, I found myself holding my hair across my shoulder as the man doodled on my neck. "How's that?" He asked, holding up a mirror. "Looks perfect." I laughed nervously. "Have you ever gotten a tattoo?" He asked, clicking the pen he used to doodle the outline. "Never." I swallowed hard. "Well you picked the spot it would hurt the least, you are lucky." He explained to me as he got the needle ready. "Yeah, good." I stated, unsure of what I just got myself into.

Alejandro must have sensed my nervousness, he held both of my hands in one of his, his other holding my curls out of the way. Buzzing filled my ear as a pinching sensation struck me in the neck. It felt like hundreds of tiny bees were stinging me as fast as they could, I squeezed his hand and breathed slowly with my eyes closed. He traced my fingers with his, calming me.

An hour had passed, the man finally turning the buzzing off. I sighed with relief, glancing at my neck in the mirror. A small black anchor was carved into my skin. He patched it up so it wouldn't get infected just before Alejandro handed him some cash. "Thanks bro." The man pocketed the money and threw the needle in the trash. "Of course." Alejandro nodded, leading me out.

We walked back to the boardwalk, my nerves calming with every step. "I underestimated your bravery." He admitted. "I honestly thought you were going to chicken out as soon as he pulled out the needle." He added with a laugh. "Shows you not to ever underestimate me." I smiled with satisfaction even though really, I was freaking out inside. "So what made you choose an anchor?" He asked me curiosity. "Well it's sort of like a metaphor, you know like 'refuse to sink' or whatever. Like no matter what I go through, nothing can pull me under." I explained to him. "Ah, I see." He nodded. My boots clicked beneath me on the boards as we walked back to our cars.

Once standing in front of my jeep, our lips touched slightly. I turned away, about to slide into my jeep and drive away from him, panic mode consuming me. But his hand shot out and wrapped around my arm, pulling me back for more. The second kiss wasn't like the first, it was longer and better. I didn't try to run away. Once our lips pulled apart, he looked me in the eye. "Come with me on tour." The words flew out of his mouth. I gasped with shock. What could I say?