Damaged

No Mercy

"Your mom and dad are going to kill me when they get back," Fitz groaned, watching as the short blonde began swiping at Olivia's wrist. Olivia giggled at Fitz's statement – he was probably right. Her dad most likely would kill him. But she was an adult. This was her choice and there really wasn't anything or anyone that could convince her to back out at this point. She took a deep breath and watched as the petite woman before her placed a piece of transfer paper on her wrist. She waited a second before peeling the paper back, leaving a purplish outline on Olivia's wrist. Fitz glanced over the woman's shoulder.

"I like it," he commented, reading the loopy letters that said, 'I'll see you on the other side of the stars' surrounded by what would become stardust.

"I like it, too," Olivia smiled, "Don't worry about my mom and dad. I'll tell them I drugged you."

"I feel like they won't believe that," he laughed, watching as the artist carefully dipped her needle into the small container of black ink before swirling her chair toward Olivia and bending her head over Olivia's wrist.

"I'm going to do the period first so you'll know what it feels like." Olivia nodded at the statement and squared her shoulders, jumping when the petite woman grasped her wrist. "Relax. It'll hurt if you're tense."

Olivia took a deep, shaky breath and nodded. She didn't know what to expect. She'd asked a couple people, but they had had differing opinions on the pain associated with getting a tattoo. She'd always heard that it hurt, though. Nervously, she watched as the blonde bent back over her wrist and placed the tip of the tattoo needle against her skin. She grimaced at the first feel of the needle, staring at her wrist at the site of the small, black dot.

"What do you think?"

"It's a ..."

"Different kind of pain?"

"Yeah, different. It's not bad, Amanda." Amanda nodded at that assessment and bent back over Olivia's wrist, continuing on to the lettering. Olivia watched as each purple line slowly became a dark, shiny black. Fitz took a seat in the corner, quietly observing the two women. Olivia watched as the Amanda lowered the needle once more. It didn't take long to finish the small tattoo and as the tiny blonde was busy putting her equipment away, Fitz admired the sweet token on Olivia's wrist for their child. Amanda had done a fantastic job.

"Alright. So, I just need to wrap this and you can be on your way." Amanda placed a linen bandage over the newly completed tattoo before wrapping Olivia's wrist with saran-wrap.
"You can take this off in about an hour. Make sure you dab, don't rub, unscented lotion a couple times a day while it's healing. You also need to make sure you're washing it with antibiotic soap, avoiding water – a shower or bath is fine, but don't submerse it for long and avoid any river/ocean water. Avoid direct sunlight as much as possible. This is especially important during the first two months, but even after it heals, you should make sure you're putting sunscreen on it before going out."

"Thanks," Olivia nodded along to the information, jumping from the table and grabbing Fitz's hand. He smiled at the gesture – she had become his shadow lately. After paying, the two found themselves walking the snowy sidewalks, hand in hand, and chatting amicably. Occasionally, Olivia found herself leaning her head against Fitz's shoulder, her eyes drooping.

"Ready to go home?" Fitz gently probed as Olivia yawned.

"If you are." She wrapped her arm around his waist, her fingers gripping his hip and holding him to her.

"You look like you're about to fall over," Fitz chuckled, guiding her toward his parked SUV.

Back at the apartment: