City Girl

A New Look

Chapter 3 - A New Look

It hadn't been long since my last visit to the tattoo parlor, but it felt like ages. As I stepped inside, I could feel the weight of everyone's gaze on me. Jax followed closely behind, his laid-back demeanor instantly drawing the attention of the staff.

"Jax," a girl with striking short red hair said, sizing us up. "Is this Mal?"

Jax nodded, a proud smile breaking across his face. "Yep! This is Mal, the one I told you all about."

The girl with the vibrant red hair stepped closer, her friendly grin lighting up her face. "Nice to meet you, Mal! I'm Ruby. Thank goodness I'm not the only girl around anymore—this place was starting to feel like a real boys' club," she said, waving her hand towards the two tattoo artists perched on their stools. One of them was all goth style, while the other had the rugged appearance of a tough biker.

"Great to meet you, Ruby!" I said, feeling a wave of relief wash over me at her warm welcome. "And I can see what you mean about the boys' club"

Ruby laughed, her energy contagious. "Trust me, it's a wild ride with these two. They may look tough, but they have a soft spot for good music and bad jokes." She gestured to the goth artist, who was currently working on a sleeve tattoo, and the biker man, who had a rough exterior but an easy smile.

"That's right," the biker said, leaning back in his chair with a grin. "I'm Sam, and I promise we're not all bad. We're just misunderstood artists." He winked, and I couldn't help but smile back.

"And I'm Caleb," the goth artist said, his voice low and smooth as he finished up his work. He glanced up with dark, piercing eyes. "Just don't ask us to sing. That's where the real horror lies."

I laughed, feeling the tension begin to melt away. "I'll keep that in mind," I replied, glancing back at Jax, who was watching me with that proud smile of his.

"I thought you weren't starting until next week," Ruby said, a look of confusion crossing her face. "I thought you and your boyfriend—" She trailed off, her gaze shifting to Jax behind me. I could only assume he had made some kind of gesture, signaling her to steer clear of the topic.

"Uh, yeah, plans changed a bit," I said quickly, wanting to steer the conversation away from the topic of Trent. "Turns out he was a complete asshole"

Ruby glanced at me, clearly unsure of what to say next.

"I thought Mal could just come by to meet everyone and maybe start tomorrow. What do you think, Mal?" Jax suggested, his hand resting reassuringly on my shoulder.

I appreciated Jax's attempt to shift the focus away from my awkward situation with Trent. "That sounds great!" I replied, forcing a smile to mask the unease still lingering in the back of my mind. "I'm really excited to be here and get to know everyone."

Ruby's expression brightened again, and she clapped her hands together. "Awesome! We could definitely use some extra hands around here, and I'm sure you'll fit right in. Plus, we can always use a fresh perspective!"

"Exactly," Jax added, his excitement contagious. "Ruby is our best piercer here, and she's also fantastic with hair! She's the one who gave me this purple," he said, playfully waving his hair around.

Ruby laughed, flipping her bright red hair over her shoulder with pride. "What can I say? I have a knack for color. But trust me, Jax's hair was a bit of a project at first. He came to me with a wild mess and left with this masterpiece."

Jax feigned offense, placing a hand over his heart. "Hey! I'll have you know that I was going for an artistic look. The chaos was all part of the plan."