Tavish had expected Doe to be back.

Just not quite so soon.

Tavish was once again working in the back of the store when he heard the ringing of the bell. It was immediately followed by Scout's cry of , "yo! Tav! Your boyfriend 's here."

Getting to the front, Tavish discovered a very flustered looking Doe and a very smug looking Scout.

"You ken, one of these days I' goin' tae permanently assign you tae backroom duty."

Scout shrugged and left reception.

"Sorry 'bout him," Tavish apologized for what felt like the hundredth time. " 'S good tae see you Mr. Doe. What are you doin' here?"

"Well, uh," Doe said, regaining his composure. "You said I could come back any time, so I…"

"Four days is a pretty short turnaround."

Doe lost the poise he had just achieved. "I had another idea for a tattoo. And I thought 'why wait?' you know? So, um, here it is." Doe handed Tavish a hand-drawn design on a sheet of writing paper. "I know it's not as good as the eagle, but since it is simple I thought you would just use a stencil anyways."

The drawing was a heart, simple as Doe said. The name 'Lt. Bites' spanned across it.

"And where would you like it?"

Doe tapped his forearm, below the pinup girl.

"Alright," Tavish agreed. "I can get it done in two. You free now, or are you comin' back later?"

"In two?" Doe asked dejectedly. "As in two sessions?"

"Is that alright? I can put 'em back tae back if you want it over with."

"No, I was just hoping-" Doe caught himself. "Uh, nevermind. Two is fine."

Doe began walking towards the studio, answering Tavish's original question. Prepping the arm, Tavish took a quick glance at the drawing.

"Lieutenant, eh? He one of the men from your unit?"

"No," Doe said as Tavish brought out the stencil. "Lieutenant Bites is the name of my cat."

Tavish burst out laughing. "Your cat? You're tellin' me you have a cat?"

"I have many cats. The Lieutenant is merely to most ferocious and loyal and loyal of my feline brethren."

Tavish's laugh shook his entire body, igniting something strong and warm in his stomach. "Ah Mr. Doe, you sure ken how tae brighten a man's day."

Doe flushed and changed the subject. "You do not have to keep calling me 'Mr. Doe'. Jane is fine."

"Alright laddie. I just wasnae sure if I was goin' tae offend you or somethin'."

"Why would that offend me?" Jane asked, puzzled. "It is my name."

Any response Tavish had was interrupted by a loud buzzing as Jane's pocket vibrated. Jane stared at in confusion, as though he'd never heard his phone go off in his life. With his free hand, he reached into his pocket and pressed the green button on the phone's face.

"Hello?"

Tavish heard a faint muttering on the other line.

"Free? Really?"

Jane was beaming. The person on the other line continued to talk.

"Oh, okay. Let me get out my card." Jane shuffled in his seat, trying to reach for it.

Tavish grabbed Jane's wrist. "Jane, what's going on?"

"They said I've won a free cruise," Jane said in a rather loud whisper. He was practically giddy with excitement. "All I have to do is give them my card information."

"If it's free, then why do they need your information?"

Jane opened his mouth, but paused as when he couldn't come up with a good answer.

"Here, let me help," Tavish said, indicating the phone.

Jane hesitantly handed it over, and Tavish spoke into the receiver. "Hello, how can I help you?"

There a pause on the other end. Slowly, a cool female voice answered, "Mr…Doe?"

"No, Mr. Doe is busy at the moment. I can be o' service tae whatever he was helpin' you with."

The voice balked again. "I…was just saying that Mr. Doe had won a free cruise to Tahiti for being a prime customer. We require-"

"A prime customer? A prime customer for who?"

"For- we are- I am calling on behalf of Firestone Automotive-"

"You got a car Jane?" Tavish asked, loud enough for the woman on the other end to hear.

Jane shook his head.

"Says he doesnae have a car," Tavish told the woman.

"Please sir, this is a time-sensitive interaction. I could just get some information I would love to sort this out-"

"What's the hurry lassie? Plannin' on givin' that cruise tae someone besides your prime customer?"

Jane's expression had turned from delight to disgust, a sneer as he gazed at his phone.

"I just need-"

"I dunnae think you need anythin' from him, luv. Dunnae call here again." With that, Tavish tapped the phone off.

"Thanks," Jane said as Tavish handed his phone back to him. "But why didn't you just hang up on her if you knew she was a fake?"

"I prefer tae show rather than tell. Those people like tae target us older folks, think we're gullible. Now you won't be caught with your britches down next time, aye?"

Jane glared at his phone. "I cannot believe people just go around saying anything they want. If I had meet one of those snake oil peddlers face-to-face I would have-"

"Nothin' tae get riled up over Jane," Tavish said, patting his arm. " 'S over, aye? I just can't believe you've never got a scam call before."

Jane shrugged. "I only got the phone a few years ago. Never needed one before. My landlord made me get one so she could bother me about rent."

Tavish scribbled something on a piece of paper. "Well here's some friendly advice: if they talk fast, they're nae someone worth talkin' tae. Most legitimate business will let you call them back at a better time, or write down their name 'n number so you can check 'em out first. Here," Tavish said, handing over what he had written. "This is my number. If you're ever nae sure about somethin' just give me a call. I'll help when I can."

Jane stared at the paper increducloulsy. "You really don't have to do that."

"Hey, I look out for me patrons. Besides, cannae buy any more of me services if you get swindled out o' all your cash, can you?" Tavish grinned as he began the outline of the heart.

There was nothing Jane could say to that. He tucked the number into his pocket.


"This is incredible."

"Nae now Scout."

"This is actually freakin' incredible. You gave him your number. You literally gave him your number."

"It's nae like that and you ken it."

"I'm just sayin' man, ya can't keep beatin' around the bush."

"You've been 'just sayin'' a lot o' things as of late."

"Have to. You ain't sayin' nothin', so someone's gotta."

"I cannae tell if you want me tae ask him out nae."

"I don't, obviously. He's got those too-close-together eyes and looks like he's never seen a dentist in his life."

"Lord in heaven, why do I keep you around?"

" 'Cause ya love me."

"Hmm. Well. Sometimes you make me doubt it."


"Why do both of you wear red everyday?"

Tavish looked up from where he was putting the finishing touches on the "N".

"Is it your favorite color too?" Jane continued.

"Er, no. The logo o' the store's a red rose, so I have us all wear red tae match."

"Oh," Jane said thoughtfully. "Why is it a red rose? Shouldn't it be an eye?"

Tavish shrugged. "When I designed it, I was thinkin' 'beauty's in the eye of the beholder' and 'even beautiful roses have thorns'. Just combined the two ideas. Besides, I thought the eye reference was obvious enough."

Jane stared at him.

"…Because I only have the one?"

"Oh." Jane looked away, embarrassed.

"Did you nae realize that? I mean, it's okay if you dinnae-"

"Of course I realized it! I'm not an idiot!"

"I dinnae say you were-"

"You were thinking it," Jane growled. He avoided Tavish's gaze and glared at the opposite wall, steaming like a bowl of stew.

Tavish grew quiet, waiting for his friend to cool off.

"Jane," he coaxed.

Jane let out a slow breath. "Sorry. I just don't like when people think…"

"I ken lad, I ken. It's alright."

Pride is choleric, and Jane had a lot of pride. Tavish was used to his small outbursts, and they were easy to manage if you knew it what to say.

"I do have a tattoo o' the logo, if you'd like tae see it," Tavish said once he was sure Jane had calmed.

"Oh. Uh, sure, why not?"

Carefully, Tavish set down his tools. He lifted the edge of his shirt, just enough to reveal the red flower blooming along his hipbone. Jane examinee it, then noticed the other tattoo along his left side. It was green and black, it's over long neck curling back and over itself while it's sharp teeth grinned out of its maw. Its lower body and tail stretched downward, disappearing into the edge of Tavish's pants.

"Why do you have a lizard?"

"It's the bloody Loc Ness Monster you-" Tavish was about to say 'moron', but considering Jane's recent temper that seemed insensitive. He settled for, "areshole."

Jane reached out to trace a thumb along the monster's neck. It was beautiful, the scales and claws beyond detailed, and the neck so well shaded it seemed to come off the skin. Despite the rows and rows of teeth, it had an air of solemnity about it, making it terrifying rather than comical.

"Scout do this?" Jane asked in a voice that was uncharacteristically quiet.

"Ah…no. The guy who did this was a tad more…intimate than Scout."

On the word "intimate," Jane froze. He quickly retracted his hand, flushing, and looking anywhere but at Tavish. "…Sorry," he muttered."

"Ah, dunnae mind it," Tavish replied, letting his shirt drop back into place. "Besides, I've been pokin' n' prodin' you since day one. Fair's fair." Maybe Jane couldn't tell, but Tavish began to reminisce as he picked up his tools again. "You ken, I think people regret their tattoos because they think they get them in bad faith. But…I dunnae. I dunnae think there's much worth in havin' regrets. You make your decisions, you live with them. Regrets dunnae change the past.

"Now, I'm nae sayin' you should get each other's name on the first date, that's nae what I'm sayin' at all. It's just that…people come intae your life, and sometimes people go out of it." Tavish indicated his left hip. "And just because someone leaves you doesnae mean they dinnae matter. Take me apprentices for example: some stay for two years, some only a couple o' months. Either way they made an impact on me and me shop, and I keep their stuff around tae remember them."

Mournfully, Jane looked at his neglected friend. "At least you still have Scout," he supplied.

Tavish chuckled, much softer than his usual laugh. "Aye, that's true. He's a good one, he is; he's been with me longer than the rest of apprentices combined. In fact, at this point, he's an apprentice in name only with all the crap he does for me. And he's bloody talented, too. I've been practicing for years, and yet this kid half me age is puttin' out stuff nearly as good as mine."

"What the hell are you talking about? You're a great artist," Jane interrupted.

"I'm good from a reference or a stencil, but Scout's got inspiration. You should see his free-hands, or, hell, even most of his sketches. It's hard nae tae be jealous." Tavish laughed. "But look at me goin' on. I ken I wouldn't be anywhere without him. Do you remember when you said your unit was your family?"

Jane nodded.

"Well Scout's mine. If you judge family as the people who stick with you, then Scout's the greatest family I've ever had. But," Tavish said looking Jane straight in the eye, "if you ever tell him I said any o' that I'm goin' tae call every phishing scam in the greater Seattle area upon you and your big ole' head. Aye?"

Though his words were serious, there were no bite to his tone. Jane grinned.

"Understood."