Oolong

"If the mind is calm, your spontaneity and honest thoughts appear. You become more spontaneous." - Chade-Meng Tan

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Dylan asked me as we ate breakfast.

Yes. I think so.

"Getting a tattoo hurts. It's not a decision to be taken lightly." He warned.

I know it's going to hurt. It's a needle piercing my skin. I wrote, rolling my eyes.

"Alright smartass." He chuckled.

I want to know about your tattoos. I accidentally saw them yesterday when you were putting your shirt on.

"I got my tattoos a few years ago. Each symbol kind of represents a part of my life that has changed the way I see the world. I used to be an artist, so I designed them myself." He grinned proudly.

I have to admit, you don't seem like the kind of person to get a tattoo.

"What does a person who has a tattoo look like?" He raised a questioning eyebrow.

I guess I shouldn't judge. I mean here I am wanting one too.

"No you're right. When I was younger, I hated tattoos. I disliked the way they coloured your skin so permanently. Some were so tacky, I'd cringe if I saw them. When I was 18 I went travelling through Europe before I went off to college. It was an eye opening experience to see the least. One of the guys I was renting a flat with wanted to get a tattoo and took me with him.

I saw how beautiful it could be, how delicate each stroke was as it marked the skin forever. I spent the rest of the trip travelling and drawing ideas for a tattoo. The day before I left my last country, I just walked into a tattoo shop and showed them my drawings. A few painful hours later I had left a mark on my body forever and I have never regretted it since. It was a sign of all that I had been through, and all that I can get through."

I've never felt this sense of urgency before. I've never felt the NEED to be spontaneous. Now I feel like I've reached this point where I can trust what I'm doing is heading in the right direction and I want to be able to hold something that marks that milestone. It's a crazy idea but I feel like I'm ready.

"You're absolutely sure?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. I took a deep breath and nodded.

"Alright then, let's do it. Who knows we both might end up getting inked." He winked. We were standing outside a tattoo parlour, composing ourselves for the event. I took a deep breath and opened the door, him giving my hand a reassuring squeeze, a gentle reminder that he was still here with me.

"Hey there guys, how can we help you?"

"We'd like to get tattoos." Dylan replied. I just snorted and rolled my eyes. He grinned at me, embarrassed.

"Well you've come to the right place." The tattoo artist laughed, his round belly moving up and down with the rumbles of his laughter. "Do you know what you want to get?"

I nodded. "Do you want to go one by one or separately?" Dylan's glanced at me.

I want it to be a surprise. I typed quickly into my phone.

"Separately," Dylan replied.

"Alrighty then. Miss, you can come with me and sir, my colleague here will take you." We parted ways as I followed the man to his work area.

"So what design would you like and where?" He asked. I scribbled down that I wanted a daisy along the side of forearm. He smiled kindly at me.

"Let's get to it then. Just a few things I have to say before we start. The tattoo will take about 20 mins and it will hurt. I'm using a fresh needle so there won't be any concern for infection. The tattoo will take up to a week to heal, keep it covered in that plastic for about 2-4 hours before you can remove the bandage. I'll let you know how to look after it once I've done the tattoo but for now why don't you take a seat here and I'll get all the equipment needed. Is this your first tattoo?"

I nodded.

"Don't worry, I'll take good care of you." He smiled kindly. I sat down on the stool beside his, laying my arm on the plastic covered armrest.

"There have been lots of tattoo virgins liking through my door and all of them have left here feeling pretty great. So I'm sure you'll be another happy too."

I just nodded, taking a deep breath to take control of my mind. When I heard the buzzing of the needle I had a momentary feeling of regret and fear before I had to take another breath to calm down.

"We can take it as slow as you want. If it hurts too much then tell me and I can stop. Okay?" I nodded.

"You're not much of a talker are you?" He asked. I shook my head, the helplessness of not being able to communicate with him really hit me. I felt the lack of Dylan's presence, since he was able to translate my words to the rest of the world.

"That's okay. My girlfriend says I could win talking competitions if there was one." He laughed. "You know I got my first tattoo when I was only 12 years old. My father's brother was a tattoo artist and I always admired the inking on his body. So I saved up for a year and rode my bike to his parlour and asked for a tattoo. I didn't know what I wanted I just knew that I did. My uncle took me into the back and sat me down in the chair, looking me straight in the eye. I remember the exact words he said.

'Son, once you do this you can never go back. It's gonna hurt like hell and it's gonna be permanent. I'm not taking any shit from your dad, so you're going to have to deal with him yourself. Okay?' And with those words he took his tattoo gun and began inking my bicep. This was before I started working out so you can imagine what a scrawny ass kid with skinny arms would have looked like with a tat. That tattoo made me so confident of myself, and I did everything I could that would make me feel proud if I ever looked back into the past. Most of what I've accomplished was all due to nite decisions and spontaneous trips. I don't know what kind of person I would be if I hadn't done the stupid, fun or adventurous things in my younger days. Kid you have a long life, don't let anyone else tell you otherwise. Live your days as if it were your last and when you're old and frail, you will find yourself satisfied because you never had to regret a thing."

My arm was swollen and red where the needle had inked my skin permanently and yet I was happy. It was a pain that I could finally bear, something that I could understand. I thanked him when I payed the full amount before waiting outside for Dylan.

We didn't say a word till we reached our room when he finally spoke up. "Shall we show each other now?" He grinned. I nodded eagerly, pulling the sleeve of my jumper up to my elbow.

He took his t shirt off with one fluid movement to reveal a reddened pitch of skin on his bicep. After unwrapping the plastic and washing away any excess ink, his newest inking was visible. It was a small tea cup with floating lavender leaves in it. "This is just to remind me how spontaneous our meeting was and how you have changed my world." I could feel my face heating up with his words.

Instead of replying I quickly unwrapped my own tattoo and cleaned the area before revealing a simple daisy with a leaf. "Beautiful." He whispered.

I opened my diary to a new page and scribbled one word.

Daisy.

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I'm a terrible person. I should have uploaded this chapter a long time ago but stuff happens and yeah. I thought I'd be having a free summer, turns out I had to work and yeah that in turn hasn't really helped with the creativity. I hope the next chapter will be written faster, no promises though.

Again, I'm super sorry for the late upload. I'm terrible I know.

Comment below what's the most spontaneous thing you have ever done :)