Calvin - Feb. 16, 2018
"What about 'Player 1' and 'Player 2'? With some controllers next to it, what do you think?" I ask, showing Cameron a picture on my phone.
Being the older brother, I was always player one whenever Cameron and I played any type of video game. I'd usually win most of the time too. It took awhile before Cameron learned not to be such a sore looser. He is five years younger than me after all.
Childhood was a bit rough, we fought a lot. I feel like most brothers are like that though. Besides, he knew that I always had his back if someone besides me was picking on him. When we got older, around the time I went off to college, we began to fight less. We became pretty close if I say so myself. I gave him his first drink at one of my house parties. He was not so good with handling his liquor back then, but I have to give him props, he didn't throw up at all that night.
He came over to my place to hang out quite often. We were trying our hand at making our own electronic dance music with some apps we had found on our phones. We'd spend so many hours just messing around, trying to make a cool sounding beat while eating Oreos and drinking chocolate milk. Nothing ever came of it, but we had fun doing it. I think that's the most important part.
All of our hanging out came to an end when he enlisted in the Army after high school. I was in the Army too, but I was just in the reserves, whereas he chose to go into active duty. We both grew busy and the FaceTime calls became few and far between, but somehow I feel like our bond never faded. Especially not when he showed up on my doorstep a week ago, dressed proudly in his uniform. It was a total surprise for everyone. He didn't even tell our parents he was coming home to visit.
We had been talking about getting matching tattoos for a couple weeks, but now that he was home, we were on a limited amount of time to get them done.
"Nah, I don't want to be referred to as 'Player 2' for the rest of my life," Cameron says, letting out a little laugh.
We're both scrolling through our phones, looking for any ideas that might catch our eye and spitting it out when we find one.
"Spongebob and Patrick?" He asks jokingly.
"Funny, but maybe not," I say with a laugh. "What about something to do with the Army?"
"Umm, no, maybe if we were stationed together or something that'd be cool but I think it should be something that's more us, ya know? Something a bit more personal" Cameron says, making a valid point. This tattoo is going to be on us for the rest of our lives, it should be something more meaningful.
I keep scrolling through my phone, seeing a few more suggestions for the 'Player 1 / Player 2' idea and keep on scrolling past them. There's a few that have to do with superhero's but that's not really my thing. I find one about peanut butter and jelly and laugh a little but refrain from bringing it up. Then I find one that really sticks out.
"What about 'We'll always have each other, when everything else is gone'?" I ask him, showing him my phone so he can read the quote for himself.
"I like that," he says with a smile.
"Yeah? You'd wanna get that one?" I ask, wanting to make sure we're both on the same page.
"Yeah, I like it. Let's get it," Cameron says, seemingly ready to head out the door.
"What part would you want?" I ask him, showing him my phone again. "'We'll always have each other' or 'When everything else is gone'?"
He takes a moment to think before saying, "When everything else is gone."
As soon as he answers, I begin researching tattoo shops in the area. This will be my first tattoo which means I'm not too familiar on where to go to get them done. Cameron has a half sleeve on his right arm but he got all of his tattoos done down South, which means he doesn't know where to go either. Eventually, I find a place that can get us in today and we hop in my truck, eager to get our matching tattoos.
From the outside, the place looks like someone's house. You'd never know it was a tattoo shop if you didn't do your research beforehand. I guess you'd also have to ignore the sign in the front yard that reads 'MECA Tattoo'. I park on the curb and we head inside to meet the receptionist.
"I'll just need you to pick a font," she tells us after I explain to her what we want.
She hands me a double sided sheet of paper with at least thirty fonts to choose from. Cameron and I step to the side and look it over, eventually deciding on a fancy looking cursive font.
"We'll go with this one," I tell the receptionist, pointing to font number nineteen.
"Great!" She says, taking the laminated piece of paper from my hand. "I'll let your artist know. You can just have a seat in the waiting area."
Cameron and I walk into the next room and occupy a pair chairs right next to each other. The walls are filled with odd looking paintings and a TV playing some show I don't recognize. There's a glass cage in one corner that houses an exotic looking lizard. I reach down to the coffee table and pick up one of the thick binders labeled 'Portfolio'. I open it up to find pictures of all sorts of tattoos. Everything from small little ankle tattoos to full on masterpieces that look like they'd cover someone's entire back. Cameron looks on beside me as I flip through the pages.
"Hey guys, I'm Rob," a man says, catching both Cameron and I's attention away from the binder.
Rob has tattoos that look like they cover him from his neck all the way down to his toes. He has a thick brown beard with a slicked back haircut that I'm guessing helps him fit in with the younger crowd. Not that he's super old but he looks like he's at least fifteen years older than me, possibly in his early forties.
"You ready to do this?" He asks us, leading us back into his room. "Who's going first?"
I take my place in the chair while Cameron waits on a stool in the corner of the room. I'm the oldest, so I might as well go first, right? Rob places the stencil on my right forearm and makes small talk with us while it dries. After a few minutes, he dips his needle into a tiny cup of black ink and begins sticking it into my skin.
For it being my first tattoo, it wasn't bad at all. I've definitely had worse feelings in my life. After all, I did have to get tased after I enlisted into the military. It's a mandatory part of the training for all Military Police, which means Cameron got the same treatment when he joined.
After we left, Cameron informed me how he's taken care of all of his tattoos in the past and gave me a couple tips. We headed right back to my place afterwards, having no plans for the rest of the day.
"Hey, can you take a picture of us?" I ask my roommate as soon as we walk in.
He's just sitting on the couch watching some TV show, so I figured he wouldn't mind.
"Sure," he replies as Cameron and I get into position.
I place my right forearm over Cameron's left and we both look into the camera with a big smile, displaying our new tattoos.
'We'll always have each other'
'When everything else is gone'
YOU ARE READING
Got Your Six
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