Philly Ink

(Abigail’s POV)

Jimmy had a day off and I was filling in for him at the counter. Since I was the only other person who had experience as a receptionist, I got stuck with the job. I had the most recent guitar magazine laid out on the counter and I flipped through it without really paying attention to what it said. Magazines hadn’t been good as of late and I was mostly doing it to keep myself occupied.

It had been a slow afternoon and we had only one appointment lined up for twenty minutes ago.

As soon as the door opened, I said, “You’re late.”

Vern pulled his coat off and hung it up on the hooks by the door. “I’m not that late.”

I glanced at the clock on the wall without lifting my head. “Twenty one minutes.”

Vern gave me a look as if asking if I were serious. I shrugged and closed the magazine. “LC will be out in a few minutes. She had to take a call from Janne.”

“That’s ok. I wanted to talk to you quickly.” Leaning against the counter, he seemed to think about his next sentence. “How can I say this without sounding like I’m interfering?”

“Say what?” I asked, finally intrigued. Vern never was one for serious talks so it made me wonder what was on his mind.

“Ok, well, I don’t know if you noticed, but Chad has feelings for you Abby.” Vern said with a crooked smile on his face. “It might seem weird, but-”

“I know he does.” I said, unable to stop myself.

Vern looked slightly surprised. “Oh? And you haven’t done anything about it?”

“What do you expect me to do? He has feelings for me, but he thinks we are seeing each other again.”

“But we aren’t.”

“I know! He is just so pigheaded and thick that he won’t see what’s right in front of him.” I said in a rush. It was a shock that I felt so strongly on the situation. I had never seen this side of Chad or myself before.

“Have you told him we aren’t together?” Vern asked and I felt stupid for the first time in a long time.

“No.”

“Why not?” Vern gave me an odd look. “Don’t you want to be with him?”

No one had ever asked that of me before… especially when it came to Chad I Ginsburg. It had always been about Vern and now… it wasn’t.

“I don’t know.”

Vern shook his head and taking one of my hands between his, he gave me a speculative expression. “Chad’s always had feelings for you, Babs. Ever since we were younger and though it was wrong of me, I purposely asked you out to get in his way.”

Flabbergasted, I pulled my hand from him. “What? So you’re telling me our entire relationship was a sham? Was any of it real?”

“I had feelings for you down the road, but nothing like Chad has. I’ve never loved you. Chad always has.”

The pain I felt over this revelation was more than I could imagine. I had always believed Vern held some kind of feelings for me but to know he was only with me to spite Chad and his feelings hurt. “Why are you telling me this now?”

“I don’t want to hurt you, but help you.” Vern said desperately. “You and Chad should have been together from the beginning. I shouldn’t have done this to the both of you. It was wrong and I’m trying to make up for it. I want to be the friend I should have been.”

LC walked out of the break room and saw us standing there with pain on my face and a look of pleading on Vern’s. “Is everything ok?”

I glanced over my shoulder at my friend and smiled a little. “It will be. Do you mind holding up the shop for me? I have some things to take care of.”

LC smirked at my new determination. “As long as you bring me back a double shot espresso, take all the time you need.”

***

Chad’s house was dark from what I could see from standing outside, but his SUV was in the driveway. It wasn’t like he could hide the damn truck. Taking out my spare key, I opened the front door and glanced around the empty house. He wasn’t passed out on the couch and the kitchen had been untouched. The bedroom was empty as well. Knowing where the man would be on any normal day, I made my way quietly to the basement door.

Once safely down the narrow staircase, I made my way to where a propped open door stood. I peeked around the door and smiled as I saw Chad sitting in his rolling chair staring at the soundboard in front of him. He wasn’t doing any work and his head was in his hands. I watched him for a few moments in the silence. Something was clearly bothering him and I could guess what it was.

Pushing the door open fully, I stepped into the studio and watched in amusement as he jumped at the sight of me. “Paranoid much?”

“Jesus Christ Abigail! What the fuck do you think you’re doing here?” Chad freaked out on me.

I laughed. “Scaring you apparently.”

Chad’s expression turned mean and his eyes slanted in suspicion. “What do you want from me Abigail? Haven’t you done enough to ruin our friendship?”

The question sparked a brilliant idea in my head and I smirked at him. “Nope.”

The answer threw him for a minute. “What? Stop fucking around!”

I stopped directly in front of him and stared at him with a smile on my face while he cursed up a storm. The moment he took a breath, I leaned in and kissed him fully on the mouth. He paused in surprise, but quickly recovered. Sliding his hands around my waist, he pulled me down onto his lap. When he pulled away, his eyes looked glassy and his expression was dazed.

“What was that about?” He asked in complete confusion.

“I love you idiot.” I snapped at him playfully. “Now shut up and kiss me.”

Smiling like the fox he was, he didn’t need to be told twice. Grabbing me tightly, he laid another kiss on my lips without hesitation.