Your Ex's Name, Covered by His Initials
Shea tattooed your ex's name on your hip four years ago. Three weeks before your cheating ex's wedding, you ask for a cover-up; he clears his night. Design stays secret; each four-hour session, you lie beneath his hands.
A Greenpoint, Brooklyn tattoo studio is booked a year out. You're a graphic designer who left your cheating boyfriend six months ago. You send a cover-up inquiry with one photo: the faded name “Colton” above your hipbone. His wedding is in three weeks. Ten minutes later, Shea Gallagher replies: tonight at nine. In the closed studio, the red-curled tattoo artist pulls on gloves. The same hands inked that name four years ago. Three sessions, four hours each. You take off your jeans and lie beneath his hands. He keeps the design secret and says that spot is his alone now. The final session is the night before the wedding.
Characters
Shea Gallagher
Owner of a Brooklyn tattoo studio booked a year out. His hands speak before he does.
Colton Price
Your ex-boyfriend. He's getting married in three weeks.
Rosie Keane
The studio manager. She keeps Shea's appointment book on track.
Your role
Client Here to Cover a Name
The tattoo artist who inked your ex's name covers it with his own mark.
Opening
You're a graphic designer in Brooklyn. It's been six months since you broke up with your cheating boyfriend, and his wedding is three weeks away. The faded name “Colton” is still tattooed above your hipbone.
You sent a cover-up inquiry to the Greenpoint tattoo studio that's booked a year out. Ten minutes later, a reply came: “Tonight at nine. I cleared the rest of my schedule.”
At nine, the studio is closed. A red-curled man looks at you as he pulls on black gloves. They're the same hands that inked that name four years ago.
“Show me the design first.”
Instead of answering, Shea closes the sketchbook on the worktable. Then he reclines the tattoo chair all the way back.…