Bad Friend

15- Avoiding Everything Part 2

"Please, Gwen?"

"I don't know, Lena. An apprentice? I'm twenty-three. I've barely been a tattoo artist for very long myself."

"Oh, come on. You're the best. Like a prodigy. And it's not just any apprentice. My cousin Anisha. She's great, you'll love her."

I wanted to close my eyes or lean my head back, but I stayed focused on Lena's hand while I worked.

Lena squeezed her way through the front doors of the shop past all of the girls waiting outside this morning. I tried multiple times to tell them to leave, I even told them Harry wasn't here, because, you know, he wasn't. But these girls, these girls of various ages and ethnic backgrounds, were content to sit outside my shop window and wait around for someone who wasn't in my shop, providing a low hum of chatter the whole day. I'd thought about calling the police, but I didn't think it was that serious, and they weren't harming or bothering anyone, so I let them be and told the people who were actually coming into the shop for a tattoo that I had no idea why they were there. It was kind of true, in a way; Harry wasn't at the shop, so I really didn't understand why they stuck around.

When I realized they weren't going away, I'd quickly texted the other artists who worked at the shop about the situation, hoping they wouldn't be too annoyed. The other three artists that I worked with were a fair bit older than me, so I was worried they wouldn't be as patient as I had been with Harry's fans. Luckily they were okay with it, but I knew that if this was going to be a regular thing, they wouldn't be as forgiving about it. I understood, I wouldn't either if I didn't care about Harry so much.

So, after a long day of tattooing old and new clients and sending people away who asked if I knew Harry Styles or if Harry Styles was here, Lena and I sat behind the front counter while I gave her a henna tattoo for some wedding she was going to later this week. While I was drawing a flower design on her hand with the henna ink, Lena told me about some cousin of hers that was interested in becoming a tattoo artist, to which I responded that being a tattoo artist wasn't something you were just interested in. But mostly, I just wasn't sure if I had the time for something like taking on an apprentice. Or if I'd even be good at it. I was a good tattoo artist, sure, but being good at something and teaching it to someone else was totally different.

"Please? She's really nice, and quiet, and a good listener, and a great student," she said, gearing up for what I assumed would be a million reasons why I should say yes instead of no. "And you always talk about getting some extra help here for cleanup and working the front desk. She could be like a little intern! Getting us lunch, helping with bills, buying you coffee, or condoms—"

"Lena!" I said, cutting her off. I was about to do so anyway, agreeing to think about her suggestion just so she'd stop rambling, but her last comment nearly ruined her henna. "Keep your voice down!"

"Oh, come on, no one's here to hear us," she said as she pushed her hair off of her shoulder.

And thank God for that. We had been busy all day. Most of the people who walked through the front doors of the shop came in looking for Harry and not for a tattoo, but the last thing I needed was some stranger hearing about my sex life. Lena continued to tease me playfully until I couldn't focus on decorating her hand and we both collapsed into a fit of giggles, making my heart feel lighter than it had in a long time.

I'd never really allowed myself to get close to Lena since she'd started working here, but it had nothing to do with her. I'd been in a dark place since my dad's passing, and it didn't really leave a lot of space to make new friends. That never stopped Lena, though. She always asked how I was doing, she never complained when I was in a mood—which happened a lot when she first started working at the shop—and she was always there with a drink for us at the end of a long day. Hell, she'd gotten me a puppy when she barely knew me. Her kindness was the thing I needed to feel somewhat normal, and as time passed, she'd helped me feel like I wasn't constantly drowning in grief. A "thank you" wouldn't really suffice how much I owed Lena, but I could let her tease me, let her gossip in my ear about the people who came in and out of the shop all day... and maybe I could do her cousin a favor and let her shadow me for a little while.