Chapter One

"True Tide Tattoo" Lee Malia reads off the sign above the entrance to a tattoo parlour. "This is the place, shall we go in?" Lee asks Oliver Sykes.

"Yeah lets go." Oli replies, walking through the entrance. Inside Oli hears the buzzing of needles against flesh and the smell of 'Eternal' in the air. Oli inhales the intoxicating ambiance of the shop, causing a shiver to run down his spine. Tattoo shops are one of Oli's most favourite places to be.

Oli looks around the dark shop, painted black with neon blue accents. He appreciates that the parlour is not dirty and dingy, but still looks like what a tattoo parlour should. Instead of tattoo examples hanging on the walls, they were all collected in three huge binders placed on a dark coffee table next to the shop window with black leather couches surrounding it. On the walls instead, are beautifully done pencil sketches in black frames all of the same size. In the centre of the room is the till and reception counter with the tattoo booths surrounding it.

Oli walks to the reception to see if he can get his tattoo inked today, only for him to find a strikingly beautiful girl working behind the counter. She is wearing a grey muscle tank with a black bandeau underneath. The black print on the tank reads 'Would rather be someone's shot of whiskey rather than everyone's cup of tea.' On the bottom she is wearing black skinny jeans and black Vans. Her silky soft and slightly curly dark hair is pulled up into a messy bun, revealing that she has two piercings in each of her lower ears and three in her top left ear. Her artic blue eyes hide behind her long dark mascara coated eyelashes and her moist pink bottom lip caught between her white teeth in concentration. Oli can see three or four visible tattoos, but her skin is mostly untouched.

"Hey there, can I get a tattoo appointment?" Oli inquires. The girl with her head still down nods her head acknowledging Oli's presence.

"I have the rest of the afternoon free, if it would suit you to do it now." She looks up to find Oli and Lee staring down at her. Her eyes widen and mouth falls slack.

"Oh my God, your Oliver Sykes, the frontman of Bring Me The Horizon, and your Lee Malia, oh geez I'm such a huge fan!" She mumbles out excitedly.

"Yeah, I kinda am, and your name is?" Oli asks rather shyly smiling at her.

"My name? My name is Lacey Ladd."

"Hi Lacey, you said your free to do me now?" Oli asks. Next to him, Lee is snickering. Oli turns to him and raises an eyebrow.

"What?" Oli asks Lee.

"She's going to 'do' you!" Lee snickers again, acting like a hormonal virgin teen. Oli rolls his eyes and turns back to Lacey.

"Oh sorry, for my immature friend here, you said you could do my tattoo now?" Oli corrects himself.

"Yeah, of course! Do you have anything in mind?" Lacey chuckles.

"Actually, I do!" Oli pulls out a folded piece of paper out of his pocket, unfolds it and then hands it to Lacey. On it is an amazingly detailed print out of the owl that is often found on Bring Me The Horizon t-shirts and other merchandise.

"Do you think you can do it?" Oli asks.

"Absolutely, why don't you go take a seat over there and I will be right with you." Lacey says, pointing her pencil in the direction of the leather couches, which they do.

"FUCK! That Lacey girl is so fuckin hot!" Lee says, half drooling on himself at dirty thoughts he is thinking.

"Yeah, she is rather beautiful." Oli agrees, nodding his head.

"Give me half the chance and I'd fuckin bang her right on this couch in front of everyone." Lee smirks, leaning back and resting his arms on the back of the couch. Oli looks up and a smirk appears on his face, leaving Lee confused. "What are you smirking at Oli?" Lee raises an eyebrow.

Then suddenly there's a cough right behind him. Almost paralyzed with shock and embarrassment, he slowly turns around to see that it was Lacey who coughed and is now staring at him with an eyebrow raised and a smirk on her stunning face.

"Oh really?" Lacey asks.

"Uh, well... you're defiantly my shot of whiskey." Lee answers lamely, trying to hide his embarrassment.

"Don't mind this dumb fuck! You ready?" Oli laughs.

"I am!" Lacey chuckles and takes a seat next to Oli.

"So where and what size do you want it?" Lacey asks while she uses a pencil to break the printout into sections.

"My ribs on the right and about the size of my hand." Oli replies, raising his hand to show her the size.

"Colour? No colour?"

"No colour, just like the printout."

Lacey takes her broken down printout to the back where she prepares the stencil, while Oli and Lee make their way over to the tattoo booth Lacey pointed out to be hers. Oli grabs the back of his shirt, pulls it over his head and throws it at Lee. Then he takes a seat in the tattoo chair, as Lee sits on the chair in the corner of the space.

Shortly after, Lacey returns with the stencil. Snapping on rubber gloves, she wipes down the skin where Oli wants his tattoo with saline wipes. Lacey then places the stencil to Oli's skin and applies pressure to leave behind a temporary tattoo what will act as guild lines. She holds up a mirror for Oli to see.

"Is that where you'd like it? Is everything alright?" Lacey asks, gently running her fingers over the skin.

"Yeah, that's perfect!" Oli says, smiling at the reflection he sees. Lacey smiles to herself and gets up to prepare her needles and ink.

While Lacey stretches over to get her inks, Oli spots something interesting on the left side of her ribs poking out the side of the muscle tank. He sits up and to Lacey's surprise, he moves the fabric aside, and traces his fingers over the words. 'I won't give up on you, so don't give up on me- BMTH' is tattooed there.

"Wow, that's us!" Oli breaths out, ghosting his fingers over the tattoo several times.

"Yeah, like I said I'm a huge fan." Lacey smiles shyly in embarrassment.

"I love it!" Oli smiles, lifting Lacey's chin to make her look at him. She bits her lower lip as she does.

"Uh, Guys?" Lee breaks them out of their spell.

"Oh, um don't you think so too Lee?" Oli asks to relieve the overpowering tension, to which Lee give Oli two thumbs up and smiles genuinely at Lacey.

"Thanks Lee thanks Oli." Lacey grins. "Oli, can you please take a seat; lie back and get comfortable." Oli does as Lacey asks as she takes her seat on the stool next to him and turns her needle on.

"I haven't even started yet!" Lacey chuckles at Oli's scrunched up face and clenched jaw.

"I know it's just that tattooing my ribs is so painful." Oli reveals his eyes still glued shut.

"It's ok babe, I'll be as gentle as possible." Lacey coos. Oli stays rather tense, as Lacey starts piercing his skin. Oli opens his eyes and looked down to where the needle is penetrating his flesh.

Surprisingly, unlike in the past where it felt as if a blow torch burnt the flesh over his rib and then a rake going over the sensitive damaged skin, it instead feels like a cat kneading against the spot. It's uncomfortable, but totally bearable. Lace really is gentle.

"Oh wow! You're good!" Oli praises.

"Thank you." Lacey smiles, but still focused on his ribs.

For the next three hours, Oli sits back and chats with Lacey and Lee, about inspiration, passion and love. Oli wraps himself in the pure bliss of his addiction, but now there is a new level of enjoyment. Lacey! Oli enjoys Lacey; her beauty, brains, skill, but most of all, her psyche.

As he feels every prick of the tattoo, he also feels the gentle wipe of the cloth on his burning skin, as Lacey removes the excess ink. With Lace, Oli now knows that there is a fine line between pain and pleasure, and she defiantly brings him pleasure.

"Well, I'm not finished yet and I have a previous engagement this evening, but if I give you my number and address, I can finish it off for you at my place after my working hours tomorrow.  Unless, you would like me to arrange with one of our other artists to finish it for you?" Lacey asks, placing her equipment down and looking over at Oli.

"I much rather you just do it!" Oli rushes out.

"Awesome, so my place at around 6:30? Lacey wrights down her address and number and hands it to Oli.

"Sounds perfect!"

"Ok cool! Let me just wrap this up for you and then you can be on your way." Lacey smiles and Oli nods his head as she does as she said she would.

"There you go, and I will see you tomorrow."

Oli pulls his shirt back on, they say their salutations and Oli and Lee leave True Tide Tattoo.