Well here we are again. I am about half way done with chapter four, and things are going well. Huge thanks to AWayWithWords, Barb rocks my socks, and I love her bunches. She does her best to reign me in, but I dabble and so all mistakes are mine. As always all things Twilight belong to SM, no copyright infringement is intended. There are some Tattoo terms used below and I will do my best to make sure they are defined for those who don't know.
Chapter 3
It never matters how late I get to bed, I always seem to be up at the crack of dawn. Grabbing my sketch pad, I get up and go out to the balcony. The chair I have out here is so comfortable and huge; I'm able to really relax. I don't have anything certain to work on right now, so I just start tracing out the first thing that comes to mind. I work quietly for a while, and when I feel like the sketch is solid, I hold it out and really look at it. I'm not too surprised to see I have drawn Edward's back, and the tattoo I did last night for him. I tend to retain things, and the meaning behind this tattoo really touched my soul. I like the angle of this sketch, it highlights the way the tattoo sits on his skin. I smile as I trace the shape of his shoulder in the sketch. I hope that everyone else likes Edward; I can see him easily becoming a part of our group.
After showering, and getting dressed for the casual day I make my way to the kitchen. I need to start the food soon due to the size of the roast alone. I pull out the six pound roast, and start to prep it with seasonings. Six pounds of beef sirloin roast may sound like a lot, but not when I'm feeding the massive stomachs of my crew. Alice is the one who surprises everyone, she weighs less than all of us, and I know for a fact she can out eat Emmett without even trying. I sear the roast on all sides in my huge cast iron, before setting the roast on the rack inside my electric roaster pan. I then make quick work of peeling the two three pound bags of carrots, and cutting them all in half. I peel two big onions, and quarter them. Once I have everything else ready, I put the carrots and onions in the roaster, and add two boxes of beef broth to the roaster. Putting the lid on, turn the dial to two-seventy-five and leave it to cook. I make quick work on cleaning my mess, and re-season my cast iron. When the kitchen is clean, I make my way to my room, and grab the laundry hamper from the bathroom. I sort the towels from my clothes and start a load of laundry. My cell phone rings around nine, and I answer it without looking to see who is calling.
"Hello," I say.
"Hey, Bella, this is Edward, am I calling too early?"
"Certainly not," I chuckle.
"Good, I was just wondering if your offer to help me with cleaning and covering my back is still a possibility."
"Of course it is, or I wouldn't have offered. You have my address, you can come over anytime. Don't be surprised if you get roped into helping me peel the ten pounds of potatoes for supper though."
"Ten pounds of potatoes, how many people are you planning to feed?" he laughs.
"Not that many honestly, but you might be surprised at how much food a few of the people I feed can eat."
"Okay, I am going to put some cling wrap against my back the best I can, and throw on a t-shirt and I'll be over."
"Sounds good to me, be sure to grab your portfolio, I am really interested in seeing more of your work."
"I can do that. I'll see you in about twenty minutes. Thanks again, Bella."
"See you soon, and no problem," I say before hitting the end button.
I walk through the house and double check to make sure things are all picked up. I'm not a messy person by nature, but there's days when I am at the shop all day and night, and things get neglected. I hear the washer stop, so I throw the clothes into the dryer, and start my last load.
Twenty minutes later while I'm pulling some weeds out of my small flower beds, I see the vehicle Edward was driving last night coming around the corner. I wave him to pull into the driveway and remove my gardening gloves before walking over to meet him.
"Hey, this is a nice neighborhood," he says as he gets out of his car.
"Yeah, I got a great deal on my house, and Rose and Emmett are my neighbors there," I say pointing at their home. "And Jasper and Alice live there," I say pointing to the other side of my home.
"What do you do when you need a break from all of them?" He asks with a smirk.
"That doesn't happen much, but if I have my shades drawn they leave me alone. So, did you bring your portfolio?"
"Yeah, I did," he states but sounds not as confident as he should after already seeing some of his work.
"Well, I am sure it is great. Let's go in and get your back cleaned and dressed so you are more comfortable, and then you can show me what you got."
He smiles, before grabbing a heavy looking box under one arm, and his carrying case he had last night in the other.
We enter the house through the door in the kitchen, and I go to the sink to wash my hands. "You can put your stuff on the counter here, or on the table in the dining room on the other side of the breakfast nook," I motion with my head.
"I'll set them in there, and run out and grab the supplies for my back," he says.
"Oh, I have plenty of stuff right here," I tell him as I turn off the water and grab the towel.
Edward smiles. "Maybe so, but shouldn't I be buying my own aftercare stuff?"
"Stop complaining and remove the shirt. Let's take a look and see how it is coming along."
Edward turns and pulls his shirt over his head. The cling comes with his shirt, so his back is completely uncovered.
"It looks a bit dry, and I can tell you didn't let the water spray it, so good job there. I think it would be best if I just cleaned the whole thing, and check the skin trauma and see how it looks, before we cover it," I say.
I pull the tote of tattoo aftercare supplies out of the cupboard and set it on the counter.
"Do you think you have enough stuff in there? I don't even see any ink on you." Edward states.
Using the cleaner spray, I smile and start by spraying his back. "I have tattoos, but not nearly as many as most tattoo artists do. I was never one to want a lot of ink, but I have several now. I am very selective of who can touch me with a needle, and I make sure that aside from wearing a swimsuit, I am able to easily cover all my ink. However, some of my ink is easy to show off if I choose to."
After I have him fully wiped down, I inspect his back better. "The ink looks good, and it is not aggravated looking at all," I tell him, as I take a closer look. Grabbing my cell phone, I take a couple of photos, to show him how it looks today.
"It looks really good, Edward. Here, look," I sat reaching my arm over his to show the photos to him. "Do you always take ink and trauma to your skin this well?"
"I healed pretty fast when I had my sleeve done, but the tattoo on my thigh, back of my knee, and calf, seemed to take a while to heal. The artist was a tad heavy handed, and it was one of the first tattoos I got. The tattoo is no longer whole as a part of it was lost when I lost part of my leg."
"I'm sorry that really sucks. Is there anything that can be done, to make it look complete again? I mean, I have done some other repair work, maybe I could take a —"
"No," Edward interrupts. "I am honestly considering having what is there removed, but if I do, I will not be able to wear my prosthetic while the skin is going through the trauma of the removal. It's the only reason what is there, is still there and trust me, I wish it weren't."
"Okay, that sounds like a long story. If you ever want to vent, I'm here."
"You are way too kind to someone you just met," he tells me with a smile.
"Here, look at the rest of these pictures I just took of your back, while I put a light covering of salve on you. You know it wouldn't hurt to leave it to get some air, since we're not going to be outside in the sun. We can cover it with cling wrap for you to put your shirt back on later. Let's go sit on the stools at the breakfast nook, and we can look over some of the work you've done. If you don't mind showing me before the others get here?"
"No, I don't mind," he says, as I finish covering the ink with the salve.
While I wash my hands, Edward picks up the box first and brings it over to one of the stools at the breakfast nook. He sits beside the box, and lifts out a thick binder. I dry my hands and move to the seat next to him.
He sets the binder on the counter in front of me, and I open it to find photographs of his work after it is completed. To say I'm in awe of his work is an understatement. The bold color of new school tattooing jumps off the page. I flip through several pages and am so impressed. I flip into another section of the book and the portraits are stunning, both color and black and gray realism. Edward is very talented. The next section in the book shows traditional work, and it is very good, but there are only a couple pages of it.
"Why only three pages of traditional work?"
"Not many people who came into the shop in Chicago were after traditional, mainly Japanese, new school, and portraits. There are a few more sections to go in this binder, but I'm most proud of my Japanese."
"There are a lot of rules in that, I have done a couple of pieces, but it is not my favorite. I tend to turn those pieces down. Japanese was Jerry's specialty and since he has been gone, we are not a shop known for a lot of Japanese work."
"Well, maybe if the others like me and my work, and I take a chair at Etched Swan, we can become known for it again."
I nod as I flip open the new section which is water color work. The way he has done a few of these pieces make me want to take the dive to get a water color done, I am impressed. The next section I open is pin-ups. He has done a lot of pin-up work, and I look at him with a smile with my brow raised.
"I hate doing pin-ups, but it was all I did for like two years. I did one for a friend, and it bounced me into the limelight in Chicago. I would prefer to never do another pin-up if I could," he states.
"Well, that is a possibility because Jasper and Emmett both love doing pin-ups; I think they would do only pin-ups if they could. Rose says Emmett likes them so much because he likes titties. Okay, so did you bring any Japanese for me to see?"
"Yeah, that is what this binder is full of," he says as he puts another big binder in front of me.
I open it and am instantly amazed by the details and artistry. It is like he was born to do the dragons, koi fish, samurai, foo dogs, temples, tigers, floral, and geisha girls. There are so many back pieces, and entire legs, sleeves, and chest pieces, it is crazy. One picture is a full back including backs of the legs and arms; it is an all black and gray Japanese body suit. The intricacy of the work is beyond words.
"How long did this take?" I ask pointing to the picture.
"A total of twenty-four hours. Ten on his back, two on each arm, and five on each leg. It was a lot, but it honestly went by pretty fast. The client was probably the best I've ever had sit for me. He slept most of the time, even along the spine, the sides where it wraps to his ribs slightly, and evens the ditch on both legs. I feel like I've always tolerated pain pretty well when it comes to tattooing, but having the ditch of my leg tattooed was such a horrid experience I doubt I would ever let anyone tattoo the back of my other knee."
"Yeah, it is a hard pass for me, I don't even like to tattoo the back of knee, inner bend of elbow, or armpit. I think the most painful tattoo I have done for someone was a head tattoo. I had a female come in who wanted cornrows tattooed on her head. I wasn't going to do it, but she begged me, and won me over with her story. Her mother and her aunt both had breast cancer and lost all of their hair. They both were of Jamaican descent, and had always worn their hair in cornrows. The woman had shaved her head in honor of them. After her aunt died, and her mom was put into hospice, she decided she wanted to honor them both with a permanent hairstyle of cornrows."
"That is very touching, and for sure a painful placement. I don't really like doing head tattoos," Edward states.
"Me either, but Didyme really pulled at my heart strings with her story and photos. She was a complete trooper, she never complained a bit, and I honestly feel like the tattoo is one of the best I have done. The braids look real, and she still has her head shaved."
"She still comes into the shop, is she a frequent flyer?"
"Yeah, she constantly brings business our way, and she will continue to come in for a long time to come. She comes in once a week to pay me, even though I have told her she owes me nothing."
"Why is she trying to pay you?" He asks.
"Well, that is because I refused to take her money for the tattoo." I tell him simply.
"You are by far one very amazing woman, Bella Swan."
"And you are an amazing man, Edward Cullen," I respond as my kitchen door opens.
A/N: So who do you think is there? Would really love to hear your thoughts on things so far. What and or who do you think did the leg tattoo Edward has, and what it was of? Thanks for reading, please review.
Tattoo definitions:
Tattoo Definitions:
New School - The style is often characterized by the use of heavy outlines, vivid colors, and exaggerated depictions of the subject. New school also represents a transition towards openness in the sharing of techniques in tattooing.
Portraits – kind of explained by the name, they are headshots, usually focused on faces of people.
Realism - Realism tattoos are designed to look as realistic as possible, often incorporating fine details and lifelike shading.
Traditional - A tattoo style featuring bold black outlines and a limited color palette, with common motifs influenced by sailor tattoos. The style is sometimes called old school and contrasted with "new school" tattoos.
Japanese - Traditional Japanese tattoos are called Irezumi. It is an ancient art form and an incredibly expressive one. These days, the style has become popular around the globe. It often features vibrant colors and specific themes, including supernatural images, mythical beings, nature, and animals. Each design is rich in symbolism. There are a lot of "rules" in Japanese tattooing.
Water Color - Watercolor tattoos have become appealing to many tattoo enthusiasts because of their undeniable aesthetic appeal. With beautiful colors, your skin becomes a work of art. Tattoo artists have explored a wider variety of styles and techniques to express themselves and make their ideas come to life.
Pin Ups - A pin-up tattoo is an image of a voluptuous woman that may be clothed or partially nude. This tattoo must be tastefully designed to provoke a sexual connotation without looking like a spread in Playboy. The woman typically has a large chest which is prominent in the tattoo design and the woman is posed in an erotic gesture that reveals parts of her cleavage, legs, stomach, or shoulders (depending on how much skin the artist decides to reveal). Pin-up girls often have a theme and represent someone such as a racecar girl, a singer, Amelia Earhart, a nurse, an actress, the statue of liberty, a firewoman, or a sailor. This theme is overtly sexual in nature and is reminiscent of costumes we see today in pornographic videos, to which many of these pin-up magazines were the precursor. The clothing the pin-up girl wears is typically a low-cut shirt or dress, or simply a bra or some sort of lingerie. On the bottom half she usually wears knee-highs, lingerie tights with thin straps, or fishnets (if anything at all). And she always wears a pair of stilettos. Her heels typically are not the main focus of her outfit, but they add sex appeal and flair of style to the ensemble. As for hair and makeup, most likely from the tattoo's origins, she wears a 1950's style.
Ditch – A ditch tattoo is a design inked on the inner part of the elbow or back of the knee. Because of the nature of the body, those locations tend to dip a bit—much like a ditch would—which gives the placement its name.