Roommates

chapter 9

I chose to tattoo Ryan.  The work will look good in my portfolio and I was raised to never decline good money.

Ever since Vyn called him to set up the appointment, which is today, he hasn't been to class.  This only added to the anxiety I feel.

Maybe, I'm overreacting and letting my thoughts get the best of me, but nothing about Ryan feels right.

Lee's making an effort to ease me, he promised to be in the shop the whole time in case Ryan doesn't "come correct."

I just want to get it over with.

I sat on the plush chair in Vyn's dark booth, preparing all of the necessary needles and ink.

"Hey, stranger."

My body stiffened and I let out a huff of breath.

Here we go.

"Hi, Ryan." I gave him a fake smile and pointed towards the black chair.

No matter the occasion or place, Ryan's presence is unsettling to me.  At first, I wrote it off as him being a male, but all of Lee's close friends are males, and none of them make me feel the way Ryan does.

I don't like that.

"You chose #9, where am I tattooing it?"

Ryan took his shirt off with a small smile, looking me straight in my eyes.  I have to stop myself from scrunching my face up.

"Right pec and you don't have to be so formal, we're friends, Zoe."

No, we're not.

Last night, Lee and I sat in the living room and practiced how I'd stand my ground while dealing with Ryan.  I thought hard on our practice and formed a sentence to my best ability.

"I'm trying to keep things professional, Ryan, I'd appreciate it if you'd do the same." I nodded and snapped my black gloves on.

I did it!

After six hours, the tattoo is done.  It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.  Yes, Ryan was excessively chatty and a little too touchy for my liking, but I was able to tune it all out with my art.

I stood and went to call Amber to help him, Ryan grabbed my wrist to stop me.

Anxiety spread through my body like a wildfire, I snatched my arm back and took a quick step away.

"Hey, I was wondering if you could tattoo 'by Zola' at the bottom?"

I narrowed my eyes at the request and shook my head.

I'm not overreacting, this has to be a little inappropriate, right?

"Ryan, I wouldn't be too comfortable with my name-"

"I insist and I'm a paying customer."

"Ryan, I'm not gonna do that, Amber will be back here to take pictures and wrap you, pay at the front desk, please." I left before he could protest and waved Amber back there.

Lee's sitting in the backroom, chatting with one of my coworkers as they watched some boxing match.

His ability to randomly spark conversation with anyone baffles me.

"Hey, mama, how'd it go?" Lee stood once he saw me and gave me a quick kiss.

"Good, I love the finished product... but he was being a little weird?" Lee nodded at me, gently motioning for me to continue.

"He was really touchy and at the end, he asked me to tattoo 'by Zola.'  Am I overreacting or is that weird?"

"That's weird as hell, you didn't get pressured into doing it, right?"