The tattoo parlour

The moment they're done fixing their make-up, Val excitedly leads her friend out of the club and onto the street.

"See you ladies next time." The bouncer says to them as they depart, a grin on his face.

"Later big K." Val says with a smile.

The two of them have to take it slow, leaning on one another for support as they walk down the street. Each of them seems to have weak legs after the events at the club, not to mention the lack of coordination after all the drinks they've had together. Val leads the way to the tattoo parlour she knows which is just around the block. The two of them step inside to find an empty reception room. Val rings the bell for service whilst Emily looks around the walls at the framed tattoo designs, pondering what exactly she should get. As she does so, a man comes to the counter from out the back.

Emily looks at him as he speaks to Val. He looks to be a bit older, perhaps in his mid-50's based on his slightly greying beard. His dark skin is covered in tattoos, which makes sense given where he works. Emily can't help but feel a strange sense of attraction to him. He didn't exactly fit the description of what she thought her 'type' was, but after how attracted she found she was to that stranger at the club, perhaps her interests were changing.

"How can I help you ladies?" He asks.

"We're here to get some tattoos." Val says.

"You don't say?" The man says sarcastically, to which Val giggles playfully in response.

"We were hoping to get matching ones, but we're not quite sure what we want yet." She continues.

"Alright, well you can take a seat and fill out these consent forms in the meantime. Once you decide what you want, ring the bell and me and one of the other guys will come sort you out." He says, handing over a couple clipboards before returning out the back.

Emily and Val take a seat on the couch in the waiting area and start filling out their forms.

"So, any ideas?" Val asks.

"Well, it has to be somewhere that won't be visible at work. Probably something small, considering it's my first one. And I want it to have some sort of meaning, you know? It can't just be some random picture." Emily says.

"Maybe something to commemorate our friendship?" Val asks.

"Yeah, that'd be nice." Emily says, pleased with this suggestion.

Val makes a show of pretending to think for a moment before providing an idea.

"Oooh, I know. Why don't we get the club logo." She says, holding up the pendant dangling from her neck.

Emily looks at it somewhat hesitantly.

"Think about it, it's a cute little symbol. Hardly anyone will know what it means. And it's something to remember this night together by." Val says excitedly.

Emily thinks it over some more. On the one hand, if anyone saw it and connected the tattoo to the venue they just came from she would basically be outed as some sort of whore. Then again, if it was out of sight no one would really see it. And no one she knew would recognise the logo anyway.

"Ok, let's do it!" She says excitedly. "Where should we put it though?" She asks.

"Hmmm, well if we want to make sure no one will see it why not our hips." Val suggests.

"Works for me." Emily says with a smile.

With their matching tattoos decided and their forms complete, Val steps up to the counter once more and rings the bell. A moment later and the man returns with a friend.

"All decided then ladies?" The man asks.

"Yep, we'd like to get this symbol tattooed on our hips please." Val says with a smile.

"No problem. Come on through." The man says with a grin on his face.

He leads the two of them out the back to a hallway with a series of closed doors coming off of it. Emily can't help but feel a little bit of deja vu from a similar hallway earlier that evening. Val is once again first to enter her room, followed by the new man. The one who first greeted them then leads her to the next room.