The Art of Ink

Chapter Thirteen - Interruptions

Da Wei Usalev walked unhurriedly into his employee's building entrance at 11am.

Why was it so hard waking up lately? Last night he went to the bank, got food on the way home and then sat for about two hours doing his accounts until his eyes felt like they were bleeding. Owning a business was a full on, 24hrs a day job. The shop may shut but he was always dealing with shit. Being a tattoo artist suited his lifestyle, but he didn't have the luxury that his employees had, coming into to work to fully focus your whole day on art. He had to limit his love to when his clients came in or first thing in the morning when his mind was clear of any interruptions. That was his time, sitting in his shorts with a huge mug of black coffee and a big sketch pad.

Today he was wearing a crisp white shirt with sleeves neatly folded at the elbow, black braces and long skin tight washed out blue jeans turned up at the bottom. On his feet he wore he usual loosely tied black lace up boots. His black hair was so easy to do in the morning, he just slicked some gunk on it to keep it in place. Nobody ever questioned why he was always covered, his arms being the only part of his body he was willing to reveal for the general population.

Tattoos were steeped in ancient history dating back thousands of years ago. His own dual culture each had its own tattoo traditions, with a Russian father and a Chinese mother he was a result of their affaire. His mother was a mistress of a Russian mafia Pakhan, his papa was the boss or the 'Avtoritet', top in the syndicate chain of authority. It was nothing to write home about, he was a bastard, his father's wife ousted them both from Russia when she found out about her husband's infidelity. Da Wei Usalev was eight years old when they returned to China.

His piece of shit dad abandoned them for many years.

Usalev shook his head, it was ancient history which had raised its ugly head again and again over the years. He had to grab the shop keys and get to work, he was opening this morning and he wanted to put his own music on for a change. He had picked Mo Guan Shan up a few times on his way to work or if they were off to a tattoo convention as a group so he knew which apartment it was.

Da Wei rounded the corner and swore under his breath for who should be standing sentry by the door by the silver haired beauty from yesterday, the one currently in the employ of the He group. The fucking cocky little shit, was he stalking him?

"What are you doing here?" Usalev approached She Li with reluctance, his tone pure boredom.

"Listening." She Li's grin was mischievous. His silver hair was long hanging to his chin, it flopped over his face covering one of his pale eyes. He was dressed smartly in black trousers and a black buttoned up shirt. It showed off his body to perfection.

"Listening?" Usalev cocked his head at the strange kid, was he all right in the head?

"Yeah." She Li looked at him with those come hither eyes.

"Listening for what?" Usalev raised his hand to knock on Mo Guan Shan's door, that was when he heard the sharp cries of pleasure, which increased in volume. Didn't Mo Guan Shan know that his walls were paper thin?

"For them to finish, something important needs my boss's attention." She Li shoved his hands in his pockets, his arousal was apparent by the bulge in his trousers.

"You're just standing there listening to them, are you a fucking pervert? Just knock on the door." Usalev rolled his eyes, he didn't have time to wait for Mo Guan Shan to finish fucking his client. Yeah, they would talk about that later.

"Seems rude to interrupt them when it sounds like they're gonna come." She Li's cheeks were slightly flushed, he bit his lush lower lip with strong white teeth.