Page 34 of The Blue Rose
She gets under the covers and motions for me to come lay next to her, I hesitantly get into the bed and hold her in my arms.
She looks up at me running her hand across my chest, “Do you remember the conversation we had about your tattoos? When we first met?” She looks up at me through her lashes.
Does she want me to tattoo her now?
“Are you asking me to tattoo you, little lamb?”
She springs up, “No! I’m not ready for that yet.” She bites her lip, “I wanted to know what each one meant, the ones I couldn’t see.”
My eyes lift, “Which ones would you like to know about?”
I watch as her eyes travel down my naked body, taking in all the ink. She touches the grim reaper tattoo, “Can I guess what this one means?”
Everyone who has seen this tattoo and makes remarks on what it means always gets it wrong. They usually guess the harbinger of death, anything among the lines of the dead. To normal people that is what it means, but I’m not normal.
She traces her fingers down my arms, stopping at the blue roses that morph into the reaper. Something like recognition in them for a moment until she shakes her head and brings her eyes back up to meet mine.
“I would say, harbinger of death.”
I knew it.
She chews on her lip, “That would be too obvious though.”That’s surprising. “Everything about you, is anything, but obvious.” I stay quiet letting her continue, curious as to what she thinks it means. “You have the roses morphing into the reaper.” Her fingers leave goosebumps behind as she traces up my arm. “I think it means that there is beauty, even in death.” My body stills, mouth parted slightly as she says exactly what this tattoo means to me. “If you look at it either way, the reaper turning into the roses, it means the same.”
Her eyes meet mine and I’m captivated by how she looks, and how her brain thinks the same way as mine. “Aster?” She asks quietly, head slightly tilted.
I tuck her hair behind her ear, “You’re right.”
Her whole face lights up, “Are you serious? I actually got it right? I never get tattoo meanings right with anyone. I always think out of the box, and most people's reasoning are simple and boring.” She sits up and throws the blanket off, “Let me see the one on your calf.”
Before I can turn over for her, she grabs my leg and lifts it in the air. “A fox?” She taps her bottom lip, thinking. “I called you that the first time we met, and you looked shocked for a moment.”
She noticed that?
She leans in closer, inspecting every inch of my tattoo. There’s no way she will guess the reason for this one. Her hand holds firm around my ankle, her grip tightening the longer she stares. She drops my leg and sits back. “I’m not sure about this one. You call me little lamb, I’m assuming as a cute nickname.”If only she knew why I really call her that.I smile, “I’m right aren’t I? If it’s a nickname, then either you love foxes, or it was a nickname for you.”
What the actual fuck?I stare gobsmacked at my little lamb, watching as she slightly bounces, waiting impatiently for my answer. “My parents used to call me, little fox.”
She slaps my chest, “Shut the fuck up, I was right again?” The shock I was feeling, is replaced with admiration, for how cute and excited she is. “Do you have any more? This is a fun game and I’m actually winning.”
I turn my head, letting her see the lighter with blue roses, wrapped behind a knife, behind my ear. “You really like blue roses, don’t you?” I nod my head, “I like them too, they’re my favorite flower, and the Morbid Monet uses them.”
My world is spinning, my heart is racing, I can’t breathe. Did she really just say my serial killer name? Does she know who I really am? I feel her breathing against my neck, her words bringing me back from my spiral. “I don’t like them because of him, but I think it’s cool I have a connection like that to him. Jessica thinks I’m crazy for how invested I am in him. He’s a serial killer after all, one that seems to kill women who are plus sized. I don’t know, I just feel drawn to him.” She sits back and looks into my eyes, searching for my reaction.
She’s right about my type for killing, that’s why I approached her. The connection she feels between us, maybe that’s why I haven’t killed her yet. Not because of how delectable she tastes and feels, but because there is some unknown connection. This link might be the reason why I’m waiting so long to kill her, and I will. It might take longer than my other lambs did, but I will lay her on my table.
“It’s weird, I know, maybe I should listen to Jess and stop this weird obsession with him.”
“No!” I say gripping her arms, surprising us both with my reaction.
“No?” She tilts her head.
“Don’t listen to your friend, you can like whatever you want, even if that is a serial killer who would kill you.”
“You’re right, normal is boring anyway. Back to the tattoo behind your ear.”
She places her hand on the side of my head, and I lean into it, closing my eyes. “It’s the first lighter I ever bought, I don’t use it anymore, but I still have it.”
Her hand leaves my head, taking away the comfort I was in. I open my eyes and see her bottom lips jutted out and her arms crossed. “That’s not fair, I wanted to guess.”
