Huh. That was actually kind of nice. Almost sweet, in a weird way, even if the intention was anything but. He held a hand to his chest, over his heart. âIâm flattered,â he said, his voice light, using the teasing tone to hide that, yeah, he really kind of meant that. He could blame it on being starved enough for positive interaction that he would just make shit up if he had to. Twisting what was meant into something heâd wanted to hear.
âThe night is still young, yeah? Who knows what will happen if you play your cards right.â Jay shrugged his shoulders, as if he had no idea what two attractive people might get up to if left by themselves. And if he happened to have a late shift and an empty apartment, wellâŚthat was just a coincidence. He didnât normally invite people back to his house, not least of all because he slept in the living room, but he had his exceptions.Â
Right, of course. Silly of him to assume that Theo would ever suggest putting clothes on. âGotcha.â There was a part of Jay that rather liked the thought of having Theoâs art on him. Maybe it was too personal or permanent, but heâd had stronger connections - like two entire children - with people heâd liked a whole lot less. He hadnât been so crazy about the needles the first time around, but this might be something else he was willing to make an exception for.
âAre you, now?â That was an interesting thought. The leather jacket thing had never been his style - he couldnât sell it as well as Theo, with the dark hair and all his tattoos. Jay didnât have the boy your mom warned you about vibe going for him. âWe might be able to arrange that.â He reached out to follow the line of metal studs down Theoâs arm, like he was inspecting them. âThough I donât think I could quite pull off the leather and studs thing.â Annie had always called him simple and clean cut, which heâd taken on as kind of compliment at the time. Now he wasnât sure what was insulting about it, but there had to be some underlying meaning to it.Â
âTempting. Iâm curious, though: if I came into the shop and asked you for a tattoo, what would be your first idea for me? Purely on,â he waved a hand at himself, âyou know, appearances.â He was setting himself up for failure, absolutely, but what could he say? Curiosity got the best of him.
Seeing Jay had put the idea into his head already, as it usually did, but he'd told himself to be content with stealing the man's attention for a bit in the middle of the festival. The idea that there was the promise of more in the nearby future... Well Theo wasn't much of a card player (terrible poker face, in fact) but he could certainly try.
It wasn't always meaningful. Theo had tattooed so many people at this point, and they weren't always memorable. It was the ones who came back that he could recall, the friends who'd asked for something from him specifically, the people who'd seen his style, the sort of art he did because he wanted to, and said 'that's it, that's for me'. Theo didn't think Jay would be one of those people, but there was still something that added weight to the idea of Jay under his hands and a buzzing needle at the shop. It was stupid and foolish and too romantic for a person like Theo, but he wondered, if it ever really came to that, if Jay would see the mark and always think of him.
That delighted look was back, the brush down the studded arm of his jacket and the encouraging words eliciting a wide grin. "Never know until you try." And maybe when he'd been picturing it in his mind Jay had been wearing the jacket with nothing beneath it, and maybe Theo had been thinking about kissing his way down that stripe of exposed chest, but he could share those details later.
The booth was approaching, but Theo's focus was solely on Jay, expression gone thoughtful at the question, careful. He looked at Jay and tried to set aside what he knew about the man, what he'd been told and what he'd learned without words. "Do you want me to tell you?" He asked, and tipped his head in the direction of the booth ahead of them, waving a hand as though inviting Jay inside. "Or should I show you? Do you trust me?" Jay wasn't the only one suddenly worried about the possibility of incoming failure.