say it like a prayer

​his parents always said that tattoos were for people that didn’t want jobs in the future. and at the time he had believed them. then again, jason believed a lot of wrong things from his parents and it’s sad that it’s taken a year after their death to work through them. he had set up an appointment, unsure if he was really going to go through with it, but he knew that he wanted to do something. he stands outside the shop before sighing, opening the door and smiling very briefly at the person that he had spoken to over the phone. he shoves his hands in his pockets walking over towards their work station. “dani, right?” they had probably known them once before, when they were younger, if you lived in hawkins once in your life it’s hard to forget. small town. he wanted to get a memorial tattoo for calvin and patrick. had his parents been people that were worthy of the love that jason had to offer he would have added them to the mix but he was still working through that. “i think my issue is i have so many ideas but i don’t think any of them are good for a tattoo.”

it was a surprise - a pleasant one, one that made her heart lurch - but a surprise nonetheless, and robin’s brain was playing out multiple scenarios in preparation. however, it was all moot as her feet hit the quarry’s ground, seeing the all too familiar silhouette in front of her. a proper reunion, just them, not small talk at work or passing glances and waves. oh, nothing could’ve prepared her. “well, i do have a tendency to get lost.” she laughed with a soft expression, suddenly feeling as if she were ten years old again. dani frequented her mind, but something was always in the way - whether it be hawkin’s underground war or her own inability to be the initiator. there was so much unsaid, yet robin found her arms wrapping around the other’s neck and holding them impossibly close. “i’m so glad you’re back - for a while, at least. hawkin’s has missed you.” i’ve missed you.

Liliana had put off going grocery shopping for too long. She was basically living on take out these days and honestly, the only reason she was going to the store was because she had ran out of beer at her place. She figured maybe she should get other things too while she was there so she grabbed a cart and started putting some food in there; mostly things she could microwave. As she turned the corner of one of the aisles, she hit another cart and she snapped up to look at the person. “Oh, Dani, I’m so sorry.”

jonathan had been lucky to get in to work early the day that it dropped about the pumpkins, they had been one of the first people to volunteer that morning to head over with their camera and take pictures of the scene for the paper, you would have thought that jonathan had been late to something the way that they were like a bat out of hell to get to the scene. they had tried to take as many pictures as they could even tried to find hopper in hopes that maybe they could get under the police line and get a closer look, but they weren’t letting much of the press or public near due to its “possible intoxication” but jonathan had an idea of what it was. by the time that they headed back to home base they had passed by the tattoo shop and noticed a familiar face. they looked down at their watch and thought about just passing by the window but then decided against it, he sighs to himself, shaking his head, opening the door and waving to dani. they hadn’t been back for very long but considering how the year was going they haven’t had time to entirely catch up on their lives now. and jonathan felt the guilt of that, but it was safer for her. “hey. i uh, wa going to go to three squares… can you take an early lunch?”

   sophia was nodding her head to the song currently playing in the store, her picking up a shirt that she thought would look nice on her. seeing another shirt, she grabbed that shirt and held it up next to the other shirt that she had picked out. she would need another opinion. turning on her heels, she looked around for the nearest person. in this case, that happened to be daniela.    “ hey, dani, can i ask for your opinion on something really quickly? ” she asked, moving a strand of hair behind her ear. the pair of shades that she was wearing today was resting comfortably on her forehead as she looked over at the other with a small smile on her face. “ which shirt do you think i should get? this one or this one? ” she asked, holding them up so that daniela could see. 

          daniela even finds themselves challenged by the selection . she has a brown long jacket held up to their chest , shoulders shrugging into the reflection in the mirror . the frown etched into the crease in daniela’s forehead just grows at the internal battle . feeling defeated , the jacket joins the rest of the items that they had found in their hour-long venture through jcpenny . at least sophia was better luck -  ❝  let me see . ❞  dani says with one last sigh , turning to the girl who had called for their attention . she does take a moment to scrutinize both shirts , brows furrowing as they tried to imagine how each color would compliment sophia’s complexion . ❝ definitely the red one , ❞  dani concludes after only several seconds , actually confident in the selection . ❝ you’d be able to match it with almost any bottom really .  ❞ 

     monnie had been working in the back, finishing out some inventory and admiring all the new pieces that would soon be on the floor. with the seasons quickly approaching, of course capitalism would have its grasps on festive attire. nothing better than being the present unwrapped during the winter holidays, right ? she was quickly taken from her thoughts when she heard a ding indicating someone entering lovelace. sure, there was close to fifteen minutes left until the mall closed, but that still didn’t make monnie less annoyed. 

     ❝ let me guess, looking for something for that special someone last minute ? we close in fifteen minutes, that’s why i ask. ❞

      if it wasn’t the ding that announced their entrance , it was definitely the blaring drums  that sounded through the headphones that now wrapped dani’s neck . one click with her thumb and the michael jackson tape was mute and replaced with the rather dull store ambiance. eyes quickly averted to the voice that greeted them , lips tugging into an absorbed grin - ❝  does everything have to be for the service of someone else ? ❞ 

“oh my gosh, i’ve never been so happy to see another person before.” the words come tumbling from holly’s lips the second she was sure they were a real person and not some kind of scarecrow put in the middle of the maze to scare people. “i have gotten totally lost. i thought i was gonna have to start setting up a shelter, giving up to the wild lifestyle of living in a corn maze.” holly wouldn’t last a week! “please tell me you remember which way you came in. or have super cool hunting and gathering skills.”

[ lizeth selene | gender fluid / nonbinary | she/they | twenty-five ] —— it’s just another typical week in hawkins i guess — isn’t that right, DANIELA VARGAS ? huh, guess they can’t hear me over LET'S GO CRAZY by PRINCE playing on their walkman, but it looks like they’re headed to WORK as as a TATTOO ARTIST at HAWKINS MYSTICAL DESIGNS. did you know DANI has been in hawkins for ALL THEIR LIFE ? yeah, they’ve been described as a bit SATURINE, but i suppose them also being MAVERICK outweighs the negative. i’ve also heard people say they remind them of smudged lipstick after a spontaneous kiss , the crash after the rush of adrenaline , and being the architect of your own destruction … however, that could just be this weeks newest rumor. —— [ kate , 25, they/them, EST ]