Forever Ours Read Online Free Page A

a breath, as if he were waiting for that, then I cry. I cry on his shoulder for so long, I know he must think there’s something deeply wrong with me. But he doesn’t mention it. In fact, he just encourages me, telling me every so often to let it go and that it’s okay to feel this way.
    And I believe him.

Chapter Six
    Chris
    Forever Curious

    Normally, Tristan accompanies me to all my tattoo sessions. This time, I decide to take Claire. Tristan would have to ask his grandma to drop him off here first. My tattoo artist, Shayla, lives just half a mile away from our house. It’s 1:30 p.m. Today was an early day at school and they let us out at 12:45. Claire and I can walk the mile to her house and be back in time before my mom gets home from work tonight. I hope we’ll be back by then.
    “Your mom won’t be mad about you getting a tattoo?” Claire asks as we set off away from the house toward the main road.
    “She won’t be mad if she doesn’t find out.”
    The fourth Wednesday of May is warm and sunny with the occasional breeze that blows Claire’s blonde ponytail into her eyes every so often. I find myself stealing glances at the spot on her neck where her hairline melts into her nape. It looks so soft. And the way the sun radiates off of every inch of her makes me wish I could touch her glowing skin.
    “How many tattoos do you have?”
    “I only have four tattoos, so far, but each one is special to me.” I push up the sleeve on my left arm to show her the electric guitar that’s wrapped in a bar of music from one of my favorite songs, “Little Wing” by Jimi Hendrix. Then I hold out my left forearm for her to see the antique stopwatch tattoo with the hands stopped at 3:15 p.m., the time it was when my father left. “You’ve already seen this one. Then there’s this one on the back of my neck.” I show her the Chinese characters on the back of my neck that spell out, What we think, we become . “I have one more on my chest.”
    I don’t ask her if she wants to see it, but I watch her face for her reaction. She glances at the cars passing by on Avent Ferry Road, then she looks back at me. I can see she’s contemplating whether or not she wants to see it.
    “What kind of tattoo is it?”
    “It’s stupid.”
    She smiles. “What do you mean? All those other tattoos were really cool. I’m sure it’s not stupid.”
    “No, really. It’s probably the stupidest tattoo I’ve ever seen on anyone. This is the tattoo that got me in trouble. I got it while Tristan and I were super drunk a couple of months ago and my mom flipped when she saw it. Then she made fun of me for weeks.”
    “Okay, now I have to see it.”
    I smile and shake my head. “Nope. I’m getting it covered up soon and you’ll never know what it was.”
    “Aw, come on. That’s not fair.”
    “Why?”
    She shrugs and turns her gaze back to the sidewalk ahead of us. “I don’t know. Tristan got to see it.”
    My heart races at this reply, which implies she wants to be as worthy as my best friend. “All right. I’ll let you see it when we get to Shayla’s.”
    “ Shayla ? Your tattoo artist is a girl ?”
    “Is that a problem?”
    She shakes her head, keeping her eyes focused straight ahead. “Nope. Just assumed it was a guy.” She clears her throat and digs her hands into the pockets of her skinny jeans. “So why are you getting a tattoo today?”
    “It’s my birthday today.”
    She whips her head toward me. “It’s your birthday? Why didn’t you say anything at lunch?”
    “I didn’t expect anybody to remember. Tristan and Jake are the only ones who know my birthday, but it’s not like I made them set reminders on their calendars or anything. It’s just a birthday. It’s not a big deal.”
    She looks disappointed with this response. “So, you’re sixteen now?”
    “Yep. Sweet sixteen.” I wink at her and she blushes as she turns her attention back to the street. “Can I ask you a question?”
    She sighs as if