#happy b'day yokan

[misssophiachase]

Under Your Skin

Happy B’Day, @galvanizedfriend I am LATE, soooo LATE but this means the birthday celebrations just continue, right? I have a friend who celebrates her birthday for the whole month so....  

I made you a little thing in honour of this auspicious occasion (also, please tell me you got cake on the day, otherwise I will send you some lamingtons). This is part 1 with part 2 on its way. 

Thank you also to the lovely and talented @diaz-eddie for making sense of my pics and putting them together when I couldn’t. 

(Nik)

Monday

“Get your ass out here pronto, Nik!”

Who needs the snooze button when his employee is threatening to knock down the door with nothing but her fist. He’s seen Anna in action on her roller derby team and is fairly certain she can kick his ass today and probably into next week as well.

He begrudgingly leaves the warmth and comfort of his bed dressed in nothing but fitted, grey boxers but instead of answering the door he decides to make a detour. Eyes still firmly closed, he makes his way blindly to the bathroom and splashes some much-needed water on his face at the basin.

“You realise we can hear you, right? There’s no amount of pampering that’s going to make that face pretty enough, Niklaus,” he winces, knowing she’s using the full version of his name to invoke his absent sister on purpose.

Apparently Anna has recruited Lexi to torment him as well. Given her mixed martial arts training he doesn’t want to mess with her either. All he needs now is…

“Afraid of some girls, Mikaelson?”

Like clockwork, Bonnie makes up the trio. Given her psychic abilities of course she knows he’s afraid of them. She practices magic, probably has a list of his future mistakes documented for blackmail purposes and may or may not have a voodoo doll with his name on it.

Growing up he thought having Rebekah as a sibling was tough but now he has three more and all are ready to converge on him as soon as he opens the door. It’s lucky he decided against giving them keys. Granted he’s their boss and lives upstairs from his establishment but Nik isn’t a fan of the sleeping with one eye open concept.

“We have an incredibly opinionated, talkative and highly-strung person who would like to make a formal complaint to the owner about a certain tattoo from the weekend. Also, Enzo called her gorgeous and let’s just say it didn’t go down too well.”

“Oi! I can hear you, Bennett, given I’m standing right here. In my defence, Niklaus, she is gorgeous and what woman doesn’t love a compliment?”

His friend from college in Rhode Island, while being extremely talented, has little-to-no customer service skills. Nik also, rather unfortunately, noticed a spark between him and his younger sister during her last visit and has been trying to block it from his memory ever since.

“Uh, when they’re making a complaint and are seriously pissed. I say we muzzle him for good,” Anna offers.

“I second that,” Lexi agrees.

Nik wonders if any of his employees actually work given their current and incessant bickering at his front door. He decides then and there a move might be a good option.

Like most, Monday is his least favourite day of the week but he’s fairly certain it isn’t for the same reason. Nik likens it to the moment a weekend hangover finally passes and clarity makes an unwelcome return, complete with a litany of regrets.

Being owner of one of the top tattoo studios at Venice Beach, Nik doesn’t see tattoos as regrets. Far from it. He has a plethora, all telling a story.

His story.

The good, the bad and the downright ugly.

Unfortunately, others don’t see it the same way, much like the person downstairs ready to ruin his day and all before he’s ingested some much-needed caffeine.

“Happy Monday to me,” he mutters, not bothering to look in the mirror before scrambling to find some clothes.

Ten minutes later he appears in his usual uniform of fitted jeans and a suitably hued henley, probably more disheveled than he’d like but given his unorthodox wake up call, it’s hardly surprising.

As he makes his way down each step toward the studio floor, his eyes immediately dart towards an impatient looking blonde at the front desk. Blonde waves caressing her shoulders, pink lips and blue eyes that perfectly match her shirt. She’s standing there impatiently while tapping her perfectly manicured nails on the front desk.

He isn’t blind, she’s beautiful, but at the same time there is something in her eyes and overall body language that spells the bad news he’s expecting. He’s disappointed but when their eyes lock, he does his best not to betray his real feelings.

This is business, after all.

“Well, finally,” she snaps. Even with that frown, he’s trying to reconcile the fact she’s complaining but he’s extremely attracted to her at the same time. “I’ve only been waiting for fifteen minutes. I hope you enjoyed your sleep-in while I’ve been languishing out here.”

“Thank you, I did,” he murmurs lazily, noting the way she purses those lips while her eyebrows rise curiously. “So, what can I help you with Ms…”

“Forbes,” she utters and he doesn’t miss the way she fumbles something so easy as her surname. It’s cute, but he isn’t supposed to think that. He’s also not supposed to be perusing just how well she wears fitted denim either.

Read the rest on AO3 HERE