The silence gave me time to sort through all my thoughts. She was right; I would’ve been concerned about Antonio being here, but she deserved more credit than I’d given her lately. It actually helped ease my mind knowing that Terrell was already on the lookout for Antonio trying to come around, though. I shook my head at the idea of the guy whose presence in my girl’s life incited a thousand mile journey a couple days ago, and now knowing that he was here was actually a comfort. My thoughts toward Terrell were definitely changing…..just like Sam said they would. Seeing how much he loved his girl did honestly end up playing a part in how I gauged his intentions with Sam. Anyone who genuinely had her best interest at heart was a friend in my book. Well…..maybe friend is the wrong word, but we were at least on the right path.
Next, I thought back to the point Sam made in the car, the one about how much she’d sacrificed to be with me. Those weren’t her words, but they were the truth anyhow. She’d lost friends, her relationship with her father was on the rocks for a while, and let’s not even talk about how having to deal with Leila impacted her life. In all, the scales were dramatically tipped in her direction in terms of the cost of this relationship. How stupid was it for me to call her selfish during our argument? I’d only spoken the words in anger, but they hurt nonetheless. I wanted to show her that I knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that she had my back – do something that would in no way match her sacrifices, but would let her know that I’m not oblivious to what she’s gone through. I had an idea and didn’t even need to sleep on it before making the final decision. She’d think I was crazy, but….in a way, I guess I kinda was.
*****
When Sam awoke, I was already dressed and sitting in her desk chair. She rubbed her eyes and squinted at me curiously after her eyes drifted toward the clock. I should’ve been on the road hours ago. “What’re you doing?” She asked groggily.
I smiled at her. “Just get dressed. I want you to go somewhere with me.”
She continued to stare, but pushed the covers away and eased out of bed. “Fine, just let me take my shower first.”
“You can do that when we get back,” I insisted, standing to my feet. When I gripped her wrists and made her get out of bed she cocked her head to the side.
“Well, am I allowed to brush my teeth at least?” she said with a playful scowl.
“Whatever you can get done in the next ten minutes is fine by me.” A few seconds passed before she finally turned and paced to the bathroom. I’d already found the directions that I needed, so once she was ready, we’d be on our way. Twenty minutes had passed and I grew impatient waiting. Just as I was about to ask what was taking so long, Sam emerged from the bathroom. She grabbed a pair of jeans and a tank top from her drawer and dressed slowly.
“Ready,” she yawned.
The whole time we were in the car, she questioned me about where we were going. After I refused a few times, she resorted to begging.
“Just be patient. We’ll be there in a few minutes,” I smiled, knowing that the suspense was killing her.
She sighed and folded her arms over her chest like I’d expected. When we pulled into the parking lot she read the sign and realized what I was doing. “A tattoo? Are you crazy, AJ?” The shrill tone of her voice made me laugh.
“A little.” I climbed out of the car and walked around to her side to let her out. She took my hand reluctantly, but followed anyway. The smell of stale cigarettes filled the air and there was a distant buzzing sound in the background when we entered. The guy behind the counter didn’t have an inch of skin that wasn’t inked from the chin down.
“Can I help you?” He asked.
“Yeah, I just want something simple,” I replied, “on the side of my neck.”
Sam cringed beside me, but said nothing.
“Alright,” the man answered. “Words? A picture? Symbols? What’d you have in mind?”
“Just her name, Samantha, in script.”
“But –“ Sam started in protest.
“You’re not gonna talk me out of it,” I shot back with a grin. Knowing that my mind was far past being made up, Sam shook her head.
The guy was writing something down and all of a sudden she blurted out, “If you’re getting one, so am I.”
I turned in her direction to find that she was completely serious. Her nostrils flared briefly when she blew out a nervous breath, probably hoping that I’d jump in and stop her.
“You sure about that?” I asked, thinking about how her parents would react.
The man’s gaze shifted back and forth between the two of us.