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Chapter 1: Keiko
Itakeonelastlook around the tattoo parlour before locking it up. The warm evening air whips through my hair. I pull a hair tie off my wrist and pull my hair back into a messy ponytail before starting to walk home. The summer sun touches the horizon and lights the sky on fire. Orange clouds scatter the sky like cotton candy. It’s a perfect evening.
I’ve been working at Atomic Tattoo Parlour for about five years. After college, I became an apprentice and got hired after a few years. Becoming a tattoo artist was my dream job. I love art and drawing and tattoos in particular. Something about permanently putting a piece of art on the body is ballsy and beautiful. I have a bunch of tattoos myself. Some I did myself, and some I got from co-workers.
Each of us at the parlour has a different kind of aesthetic. Mika mostly does anime kind of tattoos. Axle does tattoos so realistic they almost look like a photograph instead of hand-inked art.
My thing is more like Axle with realism, but I don’t do as much colour compared to him. I like black and dark tattoos. Dark purples, reds, and blues but primarily black. The tattoos I do match my personal look. Dark clothes, fishnet stockings, and combat boots. A regular punk ho but with fewer piercings.
Another gust of wind hits me, and my Sex Pistols T-shirt shakes. Nothing like a burst of air up the shirt to make you wish you put on a bra. With peaked nipples, I walk the remaining ten blocks to my apartment and head inside.
Taking two steps at a time, I charge up the stairs until I get to my floor. I notice a woman in the corner of my eye but pay no mind until I hear her curse and drop her keys.
“Fuck,” she mutters to herself.
I put my key in the lock, intending to leave her alone, but something compels me to ask. Probably because she looks new. No one’s been in that apartment for a year and a half.
“Hey, are you okay?” I ask.
As soon as she turns around, I gasp softly. My breath is taken away by the gorgeous blonde with a smile on her face.
Fuck me.
She’s tall, with long blonde hair and pouty lips I’d love to kiss with the bluest eyes I’ve ever seen. She’s objectively hot as fuck, wearing a white dress that goes to her knees and cinches at the waist, showing off her incredible figure.
She smiles at me, a big smile full of light and joy. She waves her hand.
“Hey. Yeah, I’m fine. My key isn’t working, though. And to top it off, my phone is out of battery. I was hoping to call the landlord. I tried to find his apartment, but I was so worried about bothering anyone if I got the wrong door I chickened out.” She sounds like a Southern angel. Her voice has a gentle twang in the way she speaks.
“Oh, um, I’ll call him for you.” I turn the lock and let myself into my place.
“Oh, my God. That would be amazing! Thank you,” she says, adjusting her bag slung over her shoulder.
The mystery woman follows me in and shuts the door behind her. I pick up the phone and look at her as she stands there.
She really is gorgeous. Having her in my apartment is making me feel some sort of way. Something I had never felt before.
I dial Danny’s number, and he picks up on the fourth ring.
“Hey Danny,” I say, and he grumbles a hello. “I’m calling because there’s a woman who can’t get into her apartment. She’s new.” I hold my hand over the speaker and mouth out, “What’s your name?”
“Erin,” she whispers, “Erin Johansson.”
I nod and tell Danny her name.
“What number is she?” he asks, and I hear rustling on the other end.
“She’s in 803,” I reply.
She smiles. I badly want to drop this phone and pull her in so I can kiss those luscious lips. But I hold myself back and get back to the matter at hand.
“Fine. I’ll be there to check it out. Give me a minute.” he says and hangs up. I put the phone down and smile at Erin.
“He’ll be at your place in a few minutes.”
“That’s awesome,” she says, and I love how she saysawesome.She must be from the south somewhere, or maybe Alberta.
She continues to smile at me, and I start wondering if I should say something else.
