• Chapter One

    "Look, if you're uncomfortable with this, than just leave. I'm a big girl, I can take it!" Tarja (pronounced Tar-hu) told her best friend Lexi as the tattoo artists needle pierced her skin over and over again. "It's not like it's my first tattoo or something."

    "I just don't know how your going to explain this to your family, th-…"

    "I'm 23 years old, I don't have the explain anything to anybody unless I want to."

    "besides, it is your body after all." Interjected Broady as he switched needles. This was the first time he'd spoken in 20 minutes, he was probably still reeling from the last lecture Lexi had given him.

    "I'm serious, if you don't like it, then you can leave. I'm not making you stay- chaining you to a chair or anything. I don't mind if you leave, really. It's up to you."

    "I don't mind tattoos, not that I'd ever get one, it's just why, of all things you could get, is it a dead angel?" Queried Lexi for the thousandth time.

    "You see any angels around lately?" Quipped Tarja.

    Broady laughed "No, can't say that I have." He laughed again.

    Lexi took the opportunity to leave, pretending to be highly affronted but happy to be out of there. She didn't mind tattoos, it was the needles that bothered her.

    Tarja and Broady both laughed seeing through Lexi's mock anger.

    "She's so uptight Broady, and I'm so not…sometimes I'm not sure why her parents let us play together as kids."

    "Maybe because you at least looked "Normal back then?" Broady postulated.

    "Jerk."

    Broady was about to switch to the color part of Tarja's tattoo when he noticed someone standing in the doorway behind her.

    "Hey, Tarja?"

    "Mhmmm?" She was snapped out of a daydream.

    "About me not seeing any angels around here, I was wrong."