#the couples tattoo that Carol and Tommy get is the heart with names on the forearm from the Buffy episode ‘Anne’

[slashify]

Warnings: needles, tattoos being given in the story, passing out, piercings (not being giving in the story), memories of bullying, memories of swirlies.

Tommy and Carol come into Eddie’s shop one day. He can tell they’ve barely done their research, but he and Steve are the only ones close to 5 star artists within at least ten miles, so he figures they just went with whoever Yelp or Google or whatever said was best.

They clearly don’t recognize him. It’s not the first time someone he knew in high school doesn’t. Hell, Steve hadn’t recognized him at the expo where they’d met again. He gets it. He could pass for any number of metalheads or goths or punks if you don’t know what you’re looking for. And they’d barely given him a second glance in high school, except to giggle in his general direction about him being trailer trash or a super senior, or whatever they felt made him beneath them that week.

Eddie is a fucking professional, okay?

He plays up being Mr. Helpful. Flashes his pierced tongue and pretends not to notice both of them noticing it.

And Steve’s name is right there on the flash they’re checking out.

They pick a couples tattoo Eddie hates so much he’s lobbied Steve at least a dozen times to take it out of their portfolio. The side of Steve that his father put through several ill-fated business courses always comes out to reason with Eddie. It’s popular, it’s easy, it makes them easy money… And after a few rounds of that plus a shoulder massage that has him wondering if Steve should change careers, Eddie always relents.

Carol volunteers to go first, which makes sense considering what Eddie remembers of her from school. It takes a good while, even though it’s basic, and Tommy keeps asking her if she needs water, but Carol is handling it like a champ. Eddie knows Tommy is trying to work out his own nerves. He makes sure Tommy knows where the water cooler is.

Tommy scuttles over to get himself a cup and Eddie decides to engage with Carol.

“So how long have you two been together?”

Carol takes a deep breath and sighs it out. “About eight years. High school sweethearts, ya know?”

Eddie let’s out a noncommittal mmhm. “That’s sweet.”

Carol breathes deliberately deeply as he colors over the big vein in her forearm. “Mm. What about you? You got a girl?”

Eddie pauses with the tattoo gun in case she reacts badly, pulls away and says, “Not. Not a girl, no. I’ve been with my partner a few years now. He’s one of the other artists here. You need a break?���

Carol takes a break. Takes water from a shaky Tommy. Takes slow breaths. Eddie thinks they’re going to get back to it, but she pauses. Gets up and pulls the back of her yoga pants down a little to display a really shitty lower back tattoo. A dolphin with tribal details stretched from one ass dimple to the other, the whole thing badly scarred, ink skipping whole lines. Tommy looks like she just stripped off to her birthday suit in the middle of downtown.

“You guys do coverups?” She asks. Eddie nods. They get back to work. Eddie asks her what she’d like to cover up the lower back tattoo and is surprised when she has a few ideas. She asks if black roses could cover up the shitty tribal, if he could do a heart to cover the dolphin. They toss ideas back and forth, and by the time she’s done she has a second appointment with Eddie for a coverup. When she’s done, Eddie takes a minute. Tells them he needs to stretch out his fingers, needs a smoke break.

And he’s a professional, okay? He’s a fucking professional. And he knows this isn’t high school anymore, but he also knows how Tommy’s fingers feel in his hair when he shoves Eddie’s face into a toilet. He takes a page out of Carol’s book. Deep, slow breaths.

Tommy is not as much of a trooper as Carol is. He holds his breath, and when he lets it out it’s panicky. Eddie makes him take a few breaks, gets him a can of pineapple juice. He’s about done with the coloring when Steve comes in with his and Eddie’s lunch. The second Eddie hears Steve’s voice he pulls the gun up and out of range of Tommy.

‘I got you that broccoli stir fry thing, Ed-“ is all Steve gets out before Tommy passes out.