He Says He's Just A Friend

Chapter 81 - Crazy

- Clay -

I stirred my straw around my iced latte, eyeing the sign in the shop window next to the weird ass gas-station-turned-coffee-house Emmett adored (I kind of did too), while he finished his second chocolate chip muffin. He looked adorable. It was kind of chilly today, so he was wearing a navy cardigan over a Taylor Swift Fearless tour t-shirt. He paid $147 for it on eBay last week, outbidding someone called t_swizzle13 at the last second. After he won the bid, we had very enthusiastic sex. I figured I could deal with sharing his love with Taylor if it got me that kind of action. I couldn't wait until Christmas, so I could finally give him the red, heart-shaped sunglasses I bought, identical to the ones Taylor wore in the "22" music video. He was going to freak out.

I leaned forward in my seat, folding my arms on the table. "If I wanted to do something kinda crazy, would you do it with me?"

Emmett glanced up. "I told you I'm not going bungee jumping with you. Flinging yourself off a bridge with a rubber band attached to your feet is not my idea of fun. I mean, what if it breaks? What if you bounce back up too high or the wind is too strong and you hit the bottom of the bridge?"

"You worry too much, baby. And that's not even what I'm talking about."

"Then what?"

I pointed to the shop I'd been staring at for the last ten minutes.

Emmett turned to look. He spun back, gripping the arms of his chair, his face a mask of shock. "You want a tattoo?"

"No." I squinted, tilting my head. "Well, yes, actually. I kinda do. But that's not what I'm talking about. I was actually thinking something a bit less permanent that won't give my parents a heart attack. Like maybe getting my ear pierced. You said you wanted one, right?"

"Yeah, but I didn't know you did, too."

"I didn't know I did either until you talked about it." I took a deep breath. "I've been sitting here staring at that sign, and I really want to do it."

"Are you serious?"

"Yeah. And I thought we could do it together. For moral support."

Emmett's wariness quickly turned to excitement. "Really?"

"Uh-huh." I said, chewing on my straw. "What do you think?"

"I think, hell fucking yeah!"

In the lobby of the tattoo parlor, we examined the wall of pictures of the artists' past work. Emmett moved over to the glass case of piercings on display. I joined him, pressing against his back, wrapping my arms around his waist. I peered over his shoulder at the selection. Particularly the ear studs.

Emmett pointed to something-his nails were still red from homecoming last week. "What about those?"

"For you?" I asked.

"For you."

My eyes bugged out as I shook my head. "I'm not getting my nipples pierced."

Emmett grinned and leaned back into me. "I'm just fucking with you, love." Emmett put a hand on my head and pulled me closer to kiss my cheek.

A beautiful blue-haired woman in a cleavage-bearing tank top walked out from behind a curtain on the other side of the case. She gripped the edge of the countertop, leaning on it, her tattoo sleeves on full display, as well as the hawk inked across her chest. Her artwork was so detailed and intricate. I averted my gaze, worried she'd think I was staring at her boobs. If I were to get a tattoo, I'd want it done by whoever did hers, not that I would tell her that. I wasn't sure about the etiquette of tattoo artistry. She might take it as a slight against her skills.