The Tattoo Parlor

Snoopy

I just went to my favorite tattoo parlor, Get Inked,  and was driving back to my apartment to show my friends my new tattoo. It was Snoopy with his butt in the air on the outside of my right foot. It was my third, my first was my favorite song lyric (sometimes you gotta fall before you fly, Who Are You Now by Sleeping With Sirens) on the inside of my left foot with a feather and a semicolon on my left wrist was my second. I want to get sleeves and many more tattoos on my legs.  I walked down the stairs to the first floor/basement where Derek and Aaron's apartment was. They lived across the hall from me.  "Hey guys!" I said walking into their apartment and dropping my black purse on the floor by one of their recliners.

"Oh my gosh it's so cute!" Hannah squealed. Hannah lives above Derek and Aaron. She's a writer/poet and loves sci-fi. I don't know anything about Dr. Who but she can go on and on about it. "Why Snoopy?" Derek asked leaning over the couch to see. Derek and Aaron are like brothers,  they met when they were like 5 and have considered themselves brothers ever since. They listen to the same music as me (Asking Alexandria, Green Day, Black Veil Brides, Bring Me The Horizon, etc.) and just watch YouTube all day.

"Because Snoopy is the bomb!" Aaron teased Derek.  "Where's Polly? She could have gotten her fairytale tattoo!" Polly lives next to Hannah, likes anime,  vocaloid, undertale, and will randomly burst out in song and dance whenever she gets a song stuck in her head. I looked around the apartment. "In here!" she shouted. She came out of the kitchen with a Dr. Pepper. "I'll tell you why I didn't go with you... It's bad. Before you hear the bad news go show Adam cause you're gonna freak the fuck out. You too Derek." Polly said opening her pop. We all stared at her in disbelief, she RARELY cusses.

I walked out of their apartment and up the first set of stairs to Adam's apartment. I consider him my annoying uncle. He gives me advice or just lets me go on and on about the problems on my life. He's probably 12 years older than me. I'm 24. He was about 25 when I first moved here.  I've been here since I was 12 and Adam is the only one besides me that has stayed. All of our other neighbors moved out and we had new ones move in. My mom used to live in my apartment but she said that since I'm in college now she would move out. This was 2 years ago. She let me keep almost all of the furniture but I got to redecorate! No more baby pictures! I still don't really use my mom's old room because whenever Hannah or Polly stay the night we sleep in my closet. I've known Polly since 6th grade and finally convinced her to move into my apartment complex 4 years ago. When we were little we always slept in my closet. She said it was like having her own room. But enough of that,  back to Adam!

I knocked on his door and opened it. Unlocked. Like normal. "Hello youngster" he said taking a sip of beer. "Check it out!" I put my foot on the arm of his couch. "Another tattoo. You really have grown up. I've noticed you're taller,  more mature,  more umm... PMSy" It was always a weird conversation with him. "That's not even a word and you know I've had my period since I met you" I replied awkwardly. "How long ago was that?" he asked giving me a confused look. "We met probably 12 or 13 years ago. When you broke up with your like 6th girlfriend. Natasha I think,  she had-" "Yeah we just had the baby" he cut me off. "You mean your 7th" I corrected him. "Yes miss smarty pants, and all of those girlfriends had periods,  so I got hurt along with those cramps" "Just wanted to show you I'll see you later" I said heading towards the door. "It's been 12 years and you and your emo friends have still not gotten out of your emo phases yet." "Yeah and we probably won't." "Well tell them hi for me. Except the boys! I still think they're making moves!" "Whatever!" I shouted back closing the door behind me.

As I walked down the hallway I pulled out my phone and began to text Madi and Ally, me and Polly's other middle school friends. They live out of the country and visit every now and then. When I got to Derek's door I stopped to take a picture of my tattoo and sent it to them.

"That was quick" Hannah said. "And weird" I muttered under my breath. "So what's the bad news?" I asked hesitantly. "Well... I would have gone but I want to connect with a tattoo artist... Particularly an artist that is NOT moving out of the country" Polly said. The room went silent. "What does that mean?" Derek asked confused. "I looked up their website and... the shop is moving to Canada"