Tavish rubbed the sleep from his eye as he went to grab his buzzing phone.
"Hello?" he asked, holding is phone with one hand and spinning the 'Open' sign with the other.
"Hello Tavish! It's Jane."
"Jane? How did-" Before he could ask how Jane got his number, he remembered the incident with the telemarketer. "Right. Did you want somethin' Jane?"
"Yes! I want another tattoo."
"And you had tae call me for that?"
"This is the only break I get today. I wanted to call in ahead of time, to let you know I'm coming."
Tavish pulled out the broom from the back. One of his workers was out sick, and he'd have to clean before his first appointment of the day showed up.
"That's great 'n all," he said, leaning on the broom, "but this is my personal cell. I was expecting you tae use it for-" he cut himself off. "Ach, nevermind. When do you want tae come in?"
"Is six okay?"
"Sure, sure. See you at six."
"Great." There was a pause when Tavish was sure Jane would hang up, but instead he heard him say, "So…how is your morning going?"
Tavish rubbed the bridge of his nose. He didn't have time to chat, not when he was down a man, but he wasn't sure he had the heart to tell Jane. He was just about make an attempt at saying goodbye when he had an idea. Setting the phone on the counter, he switched it to speaker, and grabbed the broom with both hands.
"Nae well. Got a rough start with one of me apprentices nae showin' up for the day. How 'bout you?"
Jane began to talk about the inspection they had to sit through that morning; it had been so incredibly dull he wanted to chew off his own arm, but had settled on taking his break early. He hadn't said it directly, but Tavish knew he was actually grateful he had someone to talk to.
And, to be honest, Tavish quite enjoyed it too.
"Can I have off this weekend?"
"No."
"What, that's it? Just 'no'? Not even a 'maybe if ye dunnae cause trooble fer me t'day I'll consider it'?"
"I dunnae sound like that."
"Sure ya do."
"I dunnae, and you can't have off because I have three appointments this weekend and I need someone tae man reception."
"Yeah, but I don't have any appointments."
"What if we get a walk-in? You really want tae miss prime earnin' hours just so you can go chase skirts?"
"Hey, sometimes I catch skirts, which is more than I can say for you."
"The answer's still 'no', Scout."
"You suck."
"Nah. You love me."
"Pssh. Whatever."
The arrival of Jane had become a routine now, and Tavish had the forethought to chase Scout away ahead of time. The two Americans couldn't start a fight if they were nowhere near each other, after all. The peace between them was delicate, and better untested.
"Alright laddie, what's the new idea you've got for me?"
This time when Jane passed him a piece of paper, it wasn't a drawing. It was the words "Kill 'Em All" in Jane's familiar shaky script.
"It's a thing we'd say before a big fight. Nothing better than crushing your enemies in a rain of blood!"
"Kill 'em all," Tavish chuckled. "I like that."
Jane flushed and rubbed the back of his neck. "Sounds better when you say it." Tavish raised an eyebrow at him, and he flushed even harder.
"Well, this should take less than an hour," Tavish concluded. "Sure you dunnae want Scout tae do it? It's nae that complicated."
"No, no I'd rather- uh, it's fine. You can do it."
Tavish shrugged. "Alright, over here then. Where's it goin'?"
"Lower back?"
The question "so you want a tramp stamp?" almost escaped Tavish's throat. He quickly thought better of it.
He began to etch the battle cry into Jane's skin, writing it out in a fancy gothic script Jane had picked. The time passed quickly, simple work leaving Tavish's mind free to talk about Scout and his latest annoyances. Jane, in turn, filled him in on the rest of his day.
"Thanks for doing this last minute, by the way," Jane mentioned offhand.
"Ah, dunnae mention it. Besides, it's a bit o' a treat: I dunnae usually get guys tae take their shirts off for me more than once."
Jane spluttered something.
"Sorry lad, dinnae catch that."
"Uh, nothing," Jane managed to stammer after a few minutes. His back had turned a shade of pink, and it wasn't from the needle.
"And…done!" Tavish concluded, leaning back to admire the small half-circle of letters at the base of Jane's spine.
Jane stood in front of the mirror so he could see it.
"It's great," he said, barely holding back his untamed glee. "Just like the other ones."
"Well, it's nae all my doin', you ken," Tavish replied. "I happen tae have a very good model."
This time when Jane blushed, it ran from his back all the way to the tips his ears. He hurriedly put his shirt back on as Tavish cleaned up.
As Jane fumbled with his wallet, Tavish considered what he wanted to say to the other man. There wasn't an easy way to put it, and he was afraid if he handled this wrong Jane would explode and he'd never see him again. Despite his concerns, that wasn't an outcome he wanted at all.
They almost made it to the drawing room when Jane said, "So, for the next one, I'm thinking rockets, but with wings on them."
Tavish was barely able to suppress his sigh. "Actually, Jane, that's something I wanted tae talk tae you about."
Jane froze, sensing the seriousness in Tavish's tone. "What do you mean?" He asked innocently.
"It's no secret you've come by more in the past few months than any of my other regulars, and it's nae because you have some sort of addiction. It cannae be 'cause we're the cheapest, nor 'cause we're the most convenient, but you keep comin' back here, with shorter and shorter time in between appointments. The thing is: I cannae keep doin' this. I cannae keep lettin' you do this tae yourself when there's somethin' self-destructive goin' on."
A wave of fear passed over Jane's face. The internal struggle was obvious, and it manifested the may most fear does: evolving into anger. "Just because I happen to get a couple tattoos in a row means I'm some sort of miscreant?!"
"That's nae what I meant Jane-"
"A few months in and all the sudden my money isn't good enough for you?!"
"It's nae your money that's the problem!" Tavish yelled back. "It's you! I know you dunnae have a lot of money lyin' around, dunnae try tae deny it. I ken you're strugglin' tae get by and I cannae keep mindin' me own business anymore. At first it was easy, pocketin' a stranger's cash, but it's nae like that anymore. I care about you Jane. And I cannae let you keep hurtin' yourself for god knows what reason."
Jane was stunned. He stared at Tavish, opening and closing his mouth, apparently having been out yelled.
Eventually, he found his voice. "Please don't make me leave Tavish," he pleaded.
"I dunnae want tae. I just…why are doin' this tae yourself?"
"I…" Jane's shoulder's slouched. "I like it here."
Whatever explanation Tavish had been expecting, it wasn't that.
"I like having something to look forward to," Jane continued. "I like this place, I like how everyone is close, like a community. This has been the only bright spot in my life for…I do not know how long. And I like you. I haven't had a friend in so long I just wanted to keep seeing you and sometimes you'll say things that make me think…you want to be more than just friends."
Tavish relaxed, understanding finally coming to him. "You wanted tae keep seein' me."
Jane nodded, furiously rubbing the back of his neck.
"And you couldnae just ask me out like a normal person?"
Jane blinked for a few seconds, the fact he was no longer being expelled from the Eye of the Beholder dawning on him. He grinned, a weak chuckle escaping him.
"There are lots o' places we can go that dunnae involve blowin' a hundred bucks just tae see each other," Tavish finished.
"In that case," Jane said sheepishly, "would you uh…like to go for lunch? There's a really great ribs place that opened up on 112th street."
" 'S already seven."
"Oh," Jane hesitated. "…Would you like to go for dinner?"
Tavish grinned back. "Hard nae to admire persistence." He leaned back and shouted through the parlor, "Scout!"
"What?!"
"I'm takin' the night off! Remember to close up!"
"What? No! You've got Helen comin' in tonight and I am not tellin' her you cancelled again."
"If you close, I'll give you the next three weekends off."
There were several seconds of silence.
"Alright lovebirds! You two have fun! Stay out as late as you want!"
Tavish rolled his eye.
He made his way to the door, where Jane sprung to action and held it open for him. Jane's anxiety seemed to melt away as they walked, the sound of the bell already a distant memory.
"Oh," Jane remembered suddenly. "I still didn't pay you for today."
Tavish smiled, placing his hand in the small of Jane's back, just above where he knew the fresh tattoo was.
"I'll make you a deal: you pay for dinner, and we'll call it even."
There was twinkle in Jane's eye as he looked at him. "Alright. Should we shake on it?"
"Smartass," Tavish laughed.
