Show Us Your Tats
31 October 1999
Chapter 1
“I’m dying, God help me,” Carrie declared as Tess helped her get back into bed.
“You’re not dying, Sweetie, you just have to learn to curb your enthusiasm when you go out and party.” Tess tucked her back into bed and placed a washer over her eyes.
Tess had slept for nearly four hours before she was wrenched from her extremely pleasant dreams by Carrie flying out of the room heading for the bathroom. Tess went after her and when Carrie had finished throwing up she helped her back to bed before going out to the kitchen to get her some more painkillers and water and quickly made herself a coffee. As she returned to their room Tess noticed that Kim and Lisa had arrived home sometime after she had fallen asleep but had not heard them come in. She quietly closed the door to the bedroom so their voices would not wake the others before sitting on the floor next to Carrie’s bed.
“What happened with you and Orlando last night, the last thing I remember seeing is you and him dancing downstairs and then you both disappeared. Wait a minute, where did you two go?” Carrie lifted the face washer off one eye and looked at Tess inquisitively.
“Just outside to the bar area so we could talk. You’re as bad as Mel, you tart.” She reached over and smacked her hand away from the washer so it fell back over her eye.
“So what happened, was he good or did you have to beat him off with a stick when he got you alone?” she asked quietly as she started to settle back down into bed properly.
“No, he was good, very good. We talked for ages in the bar and then we came back in and hung out with some of the others. Then after we poured you into a taxi with Mel we went to the waterfront and talked some more.”
“Mel brought me home? I don’t remember any of that. Then what happened?”
“He brought me home here before he went home himself.”
“What? Wow, he is well behaved. Please tell me you at least kissed him.”
“Yes, I did, a lot. Actually I don’t think he’s ever kissed anyone with a stud. I think he was quite taken with it.” Tess remembered how his body tensed whenever her tongue stud flicked across his tongue.
“He was probably thinking about where else you could use it.” Carrie laughed, “Ouch, my head really hurts, Tessy.”
“I know it does, just give it some time for the tablets to work. Why don’t I leave you to get some more sleep?”
“No don’t, talk to me until I doze off. Come on, more info please. So, is he a good kisser?”
“Yes, he’s a good kisser,” Tess answered her mockingly before she sipped her coffee.
“Oh, goody. See, we told you, didn’t we?” Carrie lifted the cloth again to look at Tess.
“Would you leave that bloody washer on your face and lie still.” Tess chastised her again.
“So what happens now, between you two, I mean?” Carrie dutifully put the cloth back over her eyes.
“He said he was going to call today to see about us going later, lunch or dinner maybe. Depends on if he rings or not I guess”
“He’ll ring, he’s hooked.”
“He’s not the only one.” Tess mumbled without thinking.
Suddenly the washer came up again as Carrie stared at her with her mouth open in disbelief.
“I knew it. I just knew it. You have liked him all along but you’ve been stopping yourself and coming up with excuses as to why it won’t happen but you have, haven’t you? Ouch, too many words.” Carrie dropped the cloth again as she threw herself back against pillow.
“Well bloody shut up then,” Tess laughed at her excitement.
“Just answer me, it’s true isn’t it?”
“Yes. God, are you happy now. You were right from the beginning; I like him and have from the start. I think he’s gorgeous and sweet and wonderful. I just don’t think it would work, I’m still not sure but I have to find out. There, I said it.” Tess stopped and took a breath before looking up at Carrie who is looking back at her with a smile.
“Do you feel better now you got that off your chest?”
“Yes, thank you.” Tess told her proudly before she poked her tongue out at her.
“Good.” Carrie took the washer and thrust it at Tess. “It’s not wet anymore.”
Tess got up off the floor and took it back into the bathroom to rewet the washer before returning to the bedroom where Carrie was nearly asleep again. She put the cloth over her eyes and went out to the kitchen to get some breakfast and another coffee.
She checked the time and as it was only just after nine in the morning she thought she would have plenty of time to check her emails before there was any chance of Orlando ringing. She happily munched away on her toast as she answered her emails from her friends and family back home trying to at least keep in touch in some small way while she worked.
As soon as she was finished she disconnected so she was not tying up the line then turned off the computer before making yet another coffee and sitting down on the couch to write in her journal as she tried to do every day, not that it always happened with the work schedule.
This was the place where she did not hide anything, she was completely open with her life and it had saved her sanity on many of occasions. Her mother had instilled in her at a young age the joy of writing in a journal to work through and voice problems in her life. As she grew she began to understand what her mother had meant about having a place to talk out her problems and her heartache and was grateful to her for showing herself, her sister, Bree and her brother, Conor. All three of them, like their mother, had done it from the time they were old enough and they continued to do so long after they left home when their father’s hurtful influence was not quite as strong. No matter what life threw at them they all knew that they had somewhere safe to voice the hurt or the happiness.
Today was a happy day to write as she recorded her memories of last night. Her journal already knew her feelings about Orlando along with her disbelief that anything would come of it. She was still unsure as to what he could possible find of interest but she had decided a few years ago that she was not going to pretend she was something other than who she was. If a guy did not like the person she was he could go and take a flying leap. She was going to take a chance on him and she hoped that her intuition was right this time.
With everyone still asleep the time slipped away quietly and Tess enjoyed the peace of these moments. Her hand flew across the pages writing her thoughts, dreams and wishes as the morning slowly disappeared. After she finished and she flicked the kettle again for another coffee she went back to her room and put her book away in her hiding place. Checking on Carrie who was still out cold she carefully tucked the blanket back around her. As she closed the door to the bedroom the phone began to ring and she reached for the handset as she walked passed on her way to the kitchen.
“Hello, Tess speaking,” she tried to answer without her voice sounding too hopeful.
“Hello, Love, how are we this morning?” a soft British accent said from the other end of the line.
“Hey, me is fine. The Carrie side of we is feeling rather gross.” Tess filled her cup with hot water and took it into the lounge room to sit down.
“Oh dear, not well?”
“No, she’s not, but she’s asleep now, she’ll be fine. So how are you this morning?”
“Not that good. You’re not here with me.” Orlando was not afraid to tell her how he felt. He wanted her to know that she captivated him. Tess’ heart skipped a beat as she began to smile. He was certainly not backward in coming forward about his feelings.
“Oh really. Not big on patience are we?”
“Definitely not. So what are you going to do about my problem?” he asked with a laugh in his voice.
“Me. How come it’s up to me to fix?”
“Well, you caused it by kissing me last night.”
“You started it. I was just being polite,” Tess felt like having some fun.
“Polite? I didn’t know that’s what they call slipping your tongue in my mouth.”
“I didn’t hear you complaining.” Tess protested quickly.
“Hey, no, I was definitely not complaining last night. Am now, ‘cause you’re not here to keep kissing.” His voice dropped down lower which made the butterflies in Tess’ stomach take off again.
“Well, what are we going to do about that?”
“Do you think you put up with me hanging around you for the rest of the day?”
“Oh, I don’t know, are you one of those guys that want to hold hands and kiss all the time?” she asked knowing perfectly well the answer.
“Totally, all that and more, Love. So what do you say?”
“OK, I think I could put up with that. So what are we going to do anyway?”
“Well, Lij just rang before and they’re having lunch down at the Chocolate Fish at twelve, if you want we could go down there first and then work out what to do after.”
“That’d be great,” Tess quickly agreed. Meeting up with the others would be good as it took some of the pressure of the two of them to keep up the conversation the whole time.
“What time do you want me to pick you up?”
Tess looked at the clock on the VCR to see it was nearly 11.30. “When you’re ready just come by, it’ll only take me fifteen to get ready.”
“What, fifteen minutes, it takes me longer,” Orlando laughed. “I’ll get ready then drive over, I’ll probably be there just before twelve, would that be alright?”
“That’s fine. I’ll get ready and go downstairs; everyone else is still asleep here.”
After they said their quick goodbyes Tess went into the bedroom and grabbed her clothes before going to the bathroom to change and brush out her slightly straightened hair and quickly fixed her makeup. After she dumped her stuff back into her room she grabbed a jacket, money, keys and a couple of other things to stuff into the pockets and wrote a quick note to Carrie before locking the apartment door behind her. She went down to the front of the units and lay down on the wall next to the front door with her jacket as a pillow taking in the sun as she waited for Orlando to turn up.