Another Lifetime

Chapter 12

DeAnna Kastell

Jessie and I had worked up a crazy bill on my card and now we were in a fast food join m because we were seeing how much money we could waste right now. Also, neither of us wanted to go home just yet because I'd be alone and she'd be surrounded by siblings.

"Okay, NYC BFF or me?" She asked me as she threw food at me. I caught it in my mouth; it was an easy decision.

"I didn't really have friends in New York, so you," I told her and picked up another piece, throwing it up into my own mouth.

"Which was your first tattoo?" She asked me and I lifted my foot up onto my table. I'd stopped wearing my tights because of the trying on loads of clothes thing, and it was just effort to keep putting them back on.

"Prison tat, the guy dug the needle way too hard when he did it," I said and traced over it before dropping my foot off the table.

"That's terrible," she said and I knew it was.

"It's a memory though, so I'm going to touch it up in the next couple days, rework some wonky lines and hope it comes out with the same design just a little better," I told her and I was drawing again, another stencil for my penultimate scholarship project.

"Are you sure you want to own a gallery?" Jessie asked me, "why don't you just become a famous tattoo artist instead?" She suggested and I cracked a smile but tattooing wasn't my calling.

"If I couldn't have my own shows then I'd become an architect," I told her and I finished drawing out the stencil. "What about you?" I asked her, "if you couldn't join the Navy, what would you do?" I asked her.

"Join the Marines," she answered quick as a flash. "What's your ex-gang beau plan on doing for his future career?" She asked me.

"I think he'll probably become a fixer, even when his juvie record gets sealed, he has a massive Kings tattoo on his scapula," I told her, "or become a sober companion," I said and it would be a good career path. He was excellent with former junkies, and I wasn't just talking about me.

"Did you have a sober companion?" She asked me.

"He basically was mine then Frank took over and I've got my NA and AA support networks too if I can't reach my sponsor," I said and it felt good to be honest with my best friend.

The door chimed and we both looked to see Brian, "I'd cover as much ink as possible," she suggested and I did as she suggested, pulling my jacket on and we switched sides too so my leg piece wasn't facing him.

"What's he doing here?" Jessie asked me.

"I told him I was shopping with you but that was like hours ago," I said and checked my watch. It was exactly two and a half hours ago that I told him I was shopping with Jessie with no mention of running into X or Sarah's dad.

"Hey Brian," Jessie said awkwardly, "what brings you by the Fried Food Temple?" She asked him.

"I checked at Dee's and she wasn't home so I figured you guys were still here somewhere," he told us and I just wanted him to leave right now. I just wanted to avoid my soon to be ex-boyfriend as much as possible before the dumping occurred; it would give the whole thing a sense of growing apart rather than I never felt an emotional connection between us because he was just a beard until I never got over Xavier.

He was giving Jessie signals to give us time alone but she knew I didn't want to be alone with him.

'Sorry,' she mouthed to me, "I'm going to go pee, don't eat my food or I peel your skin off," she threatened,