"Hey Ismael." Matthew called out to the kitchen from where he was sitting on his couch. "Do you think I should get my ear pierced? I've been thinking about it for a bit but I'm not really sure." Taking a sip of his beer, Matthew looked over his shoulder at his friend. "Some guys look cool with them but I'll probably look like an idiot."

Shrugging, the tall Cuban grabbed a marker. "Let's see. Where would you get it?" He puffed out some of the smoke from his cigar, making sure it was away from Matthew's face. His friend pointed, and Ismael made a dot with a felt. "Yeah, looks fine. But are you sure you want it on your right ear? That's pretty much telling everyone."

Pulling at his ear, he took another sip. "It's not like too many people look at me anyways." But maybe the ones that did would be the ones that might actually like him. "Why do you still smoke inside? It makes everything smell gross."

"It's my house. I can do whatever I want." If he couldn't, then what would have been the point of moving out? "Anyway, my buddy just got his nose pierced and told me about the place. We could check it out if you're serious about it." Ismael was more if a tattoo person. He had one on his back that he loved.

"That sounds good." Matthew said quietly, turning his attention back to the TV. He hadn't done anything daring with his life, so he wanted this small step of rebellion against his parents. Even if he had already moved out and was now living on his own. All he had was one friend and a fairly flexible job with piercings and the like. "Do you have to make an appointment or what?"

Putting out his cigar, Ismael looked at the time. "Not sure. Why not just head down there now? I don't think it's that far." They usually spent their weekends together, because they lived on the same block. Actually, they spent most of their time together. They had known each other since high school, so it was normal for them.

Matthew shrugged and pulled at his ear again. "I'm kinda scared for how much it's going to hurt... you'll stay with me right? I'm not doing this alone." Finishing his drink, Matthew stood up. "Let's do this before I get myself psyched out."

Laughing, the Cuban got an elastic and tied up his dread locks. "Don't worry, I'll hold your hand for you." Although, practically every girl had their ears pierced, so it couldn't hurt too much. "I think you'll look great with a piercing."

Blushing, the Canadian just smiled. "Thanks Ismael. I hope I will after actually going through with this. Just make sure if it isn't too bad I don't persuade you to let me get a tattoo. I know they aren't for me. It would just show how skinny and lame I am." And geeky, but that was implied.

"Who knows, you might look good with a tattoo." He would probably get a maple leaf, knowing Matthew. Strangely, it would suit him. But it was alright if he didn't want to.

Shrugging, they left the Cuban's house. "I doubt it. You can pull it off way better than I'd ever hope to. An ear piercing is almost pushing it as it is. That is, unless I like it a lot. Then it was a good decision." It usually took Matt months of thinking to get something so 'permanent' that it even surprised him he was suddenly so up to the suggestion.

They walked down the street as Ismael looked for the shop. His friend had said that it was kind of small but stood out a lot. "There it is. Come on." Going towards it, the tall Cuban definitely thought it stood out. It was surrounded by small, normal shops, and this one had a dragon practically leaping out of the concrete. "They must do all kinds of things."

Looking around the place with wide eyes, he couldn't believe he was doing this. There was buzzing floating through the air where a man in the corner was getting a tattoo done on his shoulder and a girl getting her nose done. "Are you sure everything is sanitary?" Matthew whispered, grabbing onto his friends arm.

"Probably." It didn't matter so much since it was only his ear, but Ismael still didn't want his friend getting an infection. Well, his friend hadn't complained. "Look, there's a guy we can talk to." Behind the counter was a guy about their age who was changing the things in the display case. When he saw them he looked up and smiled.

"Hey. What can I do for you guys?"

Matthews eyes widened for a second before blushing and looking to the counter. He expected some old, hairy man, not a young guy around their age! "Hi... So, do I have to make an appointment for piercings or no? I've never gotten one and I don't really know what the protocol is, so I came here to ask and see what to do." He knew he was rambling but the blond couldn't help it.

Putting the things he had been holding down, the tall man went around the counter. "Well that depends on what's getting pierced. Most things don't take long, and I have some time right now." Piercings were usually pretty easy, unless it was a little kid. "What do you want done?"

"M-My ear." Matthew stuttered, mentally hitting himself. He was making it so obvious! The worker was obviously much more comfortable around people than he was, and it was just making his nervousness worse. "Can you do it now?"

Laughing, the American took them into a room. "Don't worry, ears don't hurt much." After all, he had done enough to know. "Which ear?" Even though it was fairly obvious those two were together, he still wanted to make sure.

Ismael got a chair and put it beside the one meant for the person getting work done. After all, he had to be here to hold Matthew's hand.

Sitting down, Matthew forced himself not to look away from the other's bright blue eyes. "My right one." He mumbled, suddenly feeling really hot. And embarrassed.

Keeping that in mind, the blond got the gun ready. "Over there, you can pick what you want. Personally, I think a red one would work well for you." It didn't really matter to him if one of his customers was gay or not. After all, he himself wasn't completely straight.

Being dragged over to the stand, Ismael looked at all the studs. "You pick, how am I supposed to know what looks good?"

"How am I supposed to know either? You're the one that's going to be looking at me, not myself." Though, the red one did look nice. Not to mention the fact that his birthstone was ruby; even if that was a gay thing to think about.

Rolling his eyes, Ismael shrugged. "Just go for the red one like the guy said."

If Ismael said it too, maybe it wouldn't be so obvious... "Ok, sounds good." It did look nice and bright, and it was more original than just getting a diamond. Matthew brought it back over to the man. "I'll get the red one."

Smiling, the American took the stud. "Great choice. Alright, sit down and we can get started." He got some cleaning solution and waited for the wavy haired blond to sit down, watching as the guy with dread locks grabbed his hand again. "So you guys from around here?"

"Yeah," He answered simply before squeezing Ismael's hand as he felt a sharp pain. Matthew's ear started to hurt as he winced. "Was that it?" He asked.

Laughing, the man put the stud in and started to clean it. "Yup, that's all. Remember to clean it twice every day. I'll give you a small bottle of this to use." He grabbed one and handed it to his customer. "I suggest not taking it out for at least three months."

Taking it, the smaller blond nodded as he blushed. "That wasn't too bad..." Whether he was talking about the pain or being able to look at the charismatic blond, that was up for Ismael to decide. "How much do I owe you?"

They went to the front counter to decide on prices. Ismael was looking at some of the jewelry in a cabinet, checking out some rings. Soon they were out of there, Matthew glancing back. "He was hot."

"Eh?" Matthew jolted, shaking his head. "I don't know what you're talking about. Nothing's really special about him..." But the sad thing was, there was something about the American. And Mathew didn't even get to know his name! Though it was probably for the best so he didn't seem like a freaky gay stalker.

Laughing, the Cuban looked at him. "Oh come on, you should have seen your face! You looked like you were starving and staring at a piece of meat." It was always fun bugging Matthew about his crushes. He used to be one himself, before they became such good friends.

"I don't know anything about him though, not even his name! I can't like someone especially if I don't even know if he's gay or not." Matthew blushed, wanting to touch his sore pierced ear.

"His name is Alfred. It was on his name tag." It was a simple thing to find out, he was surprised Matthew hadn't noticed. "Too enamoured to see it?"

"I am not enamoured with him..." Matthew blushed, looking the ground as they walked to Ismael's house. "He's not gay anyways. It would be pointless to like someone I just saw."

Laughing, the Cuban opened his door. "It wouldn't be the first time you fell for a straight guy. But he did know that red would look good on you."