I lie back in the chair at Cody's trailer as he slowly moves into the room. "Are you sure you're ready?"

"Yes." I wiggled myself to comfort with determination.

"Be prepared for it to hurt," he mumbled, pushing my hair behind my ear. I gulped. He must've sensed my tension because he followed this statement with: "Don't worry, it's only a pinch. I'm a professional at this, don't worry." The corners of his lips turned up slightly. "The pain will go away after a few days, I promise." He ran his fingers through his blond Mohawk, and tugged at the neck of his tunic. "And… You can come back any time and I will help you out with it, if you want."

I took a deep breath, and squeezed my eyes shut, pressing my head against the seat and clutching the sides of the chair. "I'm ready." And I was. I had been waiting for this moment since I turned eighteen. I was a legal adult now; therefore I could make my own decisions and do whatever I wanted within the course of the law. This wasn't anything crazy, just a simple thing I technically could have done when I was sixteen, but I wanted to wait until I could make my own decision to do it.

A cold, smelly liquid was pressed against my ear; it was quickly followed by a clamp of metal, piercing my cartilage. A rush of nausea flowed over my body like a waterfall, but I wasn't about to allow myself to spew. All I could think about doing was tugging on my ponytail, tightening it. Distractions helped me push the pain out of my head. My fingertips brushed against my newly pierced ear, and I felt a gob of something gooey. I shrieked as I saw the wine red stains on my nails.

"Yeah, it'll stop bleeding in a bit. Let me clean that up for you." He put that same, stinky medicine on my ear once more, tapping it lightly to rid it of the copper-scented redness. Cody searched through one of his drawers, mumbling something to himself. He came back with a round piece of glass, held it up by the side of my head, and asked if I liked it.

"It's…cool," I managed to get out. "Thanks so much." My lips reached an upturn, showing my gratitude for my new piercing.

"You know, I was going to charge you…" He began, stretching his arm out. "But I'd rather just have something home cooked for once. Would you be so kind as to…" He trailed off, searching for the right words.

"Of course. I have plenty of extra vegetables on the farm. Just stop by tonight and I'll have something fixed up for you." I knew what I'd make, too. Cody was a starving artist, literally and figuratively. Everyone knew that he rarely ate much of anything. I decided to make him a large meal of potatoes and stew. "It'll be a surprise."

Cody smiled; this was the first time I've ever seen him reveal any sort of true happiness, but it wasn't the last. We began to eat dinner together every Thursday. My body had become his easel; each piercing or tattoo results in one meal. Sometimes, however, I just like his company.