Chapter 3

A/n: After much slacking on my part…the new chapter of half pain! Tada!

(Gaaras POV)

"Ok, I'll get ya all set up in a sec." The large woman traversed the room with her small hurried steps, opening a small metal case, and pulled out a needle gun (a/n: Is that what you would call it? I don't know much about getting tattoos, so I will be guessing all though this.) and came back over and sat in a chair, loading it with a sterile needle. " There, sit." She motioned with her head to a metal chair leaning against the wall. I unfolded it and sat near her.

Chills crawled up my spine. Partly from the cold metal chair; and part from my nervousness. Why I am nervous alludes me; all the times I've sliced myself open and watched blood drip my arm, one little tattoo can't be much different. But it is someone else inflicting the pain on me, maybe that's the difference, the part that's scaring me. Of course my masochistic side with dancing with glee at the thought of it.

" So, what sort of a design we're you thinking of?" The Woman's voice snaps me out of my muse. Rummaging though my pocket I produce the design and hand it to her.

" I was thinking on the forehead" she looks over it critically, eyes shifting from me, to the paper, and back to me.

" Can do. Odd place though, you sure you want it there?" I nod. " Ok, be ready in a sec. Have to transfer this to a stencil, then I'll be all set."

Meanwhile naruto is talking to the pale guy with piercing covering his face, probably about getting his own piercing. Imagining Naruto getting a piercing is amusing, I bet he'll be kicking and screaming though it all.

" I have to go get the gun." The pierced guy says and starts to walk away.

"G-gun?" Naruto sputters out.

" Yeah! The piercing gun!" He replies with a sadistic gleam in his eye before vanishing.

" So, you're really getting a tattoo?" I lean my head back to look at Sasuke, this is the first thing he has said since we got here. His voice is so deep and sexy.

"Yeah."

"They're permanent."

"No shit." Sasuke looks slightly shocked, I just feel stupid at saying that.

Silence permeates the room. I lean back up to avoid eye contact. Eye contact equals nervousness, nervousness is not good. So I sit there waiting, fighting a blush I know is coming from no where; all is futile when Sasuke speaks.

"Naruto makes us do a lot of stupid stuff. Remember that time he made us watch that stupid online thing, Queer duck?"

I think a minute, recalling the day that happened, then laugh quietly. That only was that the most idiotic thing I had ever seen, but I think that's the day I realized I liked Sasuke. All of us sitting around Naruto's computer laughing, me stealing glances at him. Back then I used to think I had a chance to win his heart, but I know that will never happen. So I try not to want him, try so hard to forget him. But I cant. So many nights thinking of him wont go away, wondrous thoughts that got me though the worst of the worst. So I love in secret. A secret love that I know will never be returned, I know I'm holding onto a dream that wont come true. Because love doesn't love me, it is a game I lost horribly at.

"Oh! Queer duck!" Naruto scampers over to us, "yall still remember that? I love that thing! Especially the theme song!" naruto starts to sing the theme and Sasuke laughs, I don't. Slowly I am sinking into a void, somewhere in my soul. The void only Sasukes love could fill.

" Alright, back." The woman comes back with the design in hand, she transfers it to my forehead and loads the tattooing device with red ink. "Ready? It's going to hurt in the beginning. But after a few minutes your brain will release that happy chemical."

"Endorphins." I correct her, happy chemical just sounds so…I don't know…happy I guess. And I am not happy right now. My mind is ball of hurt and swarming angst right now.

" Right…so you're ready?"

I nod, and she starts. The needle pierces the flesh and leaves a small bit of ink below the skin then moves on to do the same to other virgin skin. It hurts, but I like this pain. Right now I don't have to focus on all my emotional pain, I can just focus on the physical pain. And drown in that world of pain, and drown out all of my thought, broken dreams and lost loves. And after a while I drift into bliss, these happy chemicals are great.

"AHHHHH!" A scream comes from the other side of the room, I turn to see naruto holding a piercing gun latched to his ear.

" Shit! The gun jammed!" the pieced guy screams, throwing his hands up in frustration. Naruto is standing there with a confused, anxious look on his face; almost like choji in a health food store. The pierced guy drags naruto to the back to try and get the piercing gun off.

" That makes me glad I didn't get a piercing." Sasuke states with an air of amusement. " I was thinking about one but decided against it."

"Why?" I ask, "You'd look cool with one." I refrain from using the words sexy, hot or mighty-god-of-sex-that-dominates-my-mind; even though those are the first words that come to mind when I think of him. With or without a piercing.

"My brother would rip it out and then kick my ass. So no point in it."

"Oh." More silence. Only broken by the hum of the needle, it feels like the tattoo is almost half done. Such a shame, this bliss is so…blissful. Pure ecstasy.

After a few more minutes naruto comes up and taps my shoulder, grinning and showing off the new metal stud in one of his ears. "Isn't this awesome!" He boasts in excitement. I give an approving look but say nothing.

More time passes and eventually the hum of the needle stops. "Done! And it looks nice!" the woman states and hands me a mirror. I look at the reflection, it looks perfect. I love it, and it seems to fit my face nicely.

"Looks great!" Naruto exclaims looking at it.

" Cool." Sasuke states observing it with a small grin. I blush slightly and turn to the woman and thank her as she wraps the tattoo up and then we leave. And we're back out onto the streets with the flicker of streetlights illuminating the sidewalk as we walk.

"Gaara, your tattoo looks so awesome! What do you think about my pricing?"

" its cool" I state plainly, thinking about the different reactions I'm bound to get with this new tattoo. Walking behind me I hear Sasuke's stomach growl, I turn to him. "Hungry?"

"Yeah, lets go to Burger King or something." Naruto and I agree and start off in that direction.

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A/n: Yay! I finally got it done! Sorry about the shortness once again. And I have a nice idea laid out for the next chapter. And I might start an Itachi/Gaara fic based on the Poppy Z. Brite book Exquisite Corpse. Review my loves!

And yes, Queer duck is a real online cartoon. Its funny as hell. Sadly I don't own it.