Etched Into My Skin.
Sun.
It’s no mystery that I got a sun on my forearm to represent the Arizona sun. It was beyond magnificent. There was nothing more breathtaking than the view from my garage roof. It was the most beautiful when I was home. Anywhere and everywhere else I went, the sun just wasn’t as extravagant.
I loved watching it rise, and watching it fall. To most people, it signified beauty. But to me, it meant so much more.
~
After dropping out of college and joining the band, a lot of old connections were lost, but I made sure not to let that happen with those that mattered. Those few consisted of the people that would show up at 8123, Livia being one. We kept in touch; we talked on the phone or texted almost every day. Jared obviously joined the band, so that wasn’t a problem.
And what a band it was. We’d just finished our first tour and were back home in Arizona. After spending the first few days with the family, I decided to see how she was doing. My mom had told me she’d just graduated with a two year degree from an art school. Now she owned her own studio.
I figured I’d stop by and surprise her.
I’ll never forget the look on her face when I first saw her again. Eyes wide, her thick lashes making her blue eyes look even brighter. There was some paint splattered across her cheek when she opened the door, and a strand of her brown hair was sticking out, even though she had it in a braid. Her lips had parted slightly, shocked to have me in front of her.
I even remember the long sleeved denim shirt she’d been wearing, even more paint covering it. She had shorts on, revealing her long legs. I hadn’t expected to find her looking so herself. Everything about her was the same, yet so different.
Our encounter hadn’t gone how I’d thought it would have, but I’m so glad it happened the way it did.
~
Once I find out the name of her studio, I drive my truck there and park, suddenly anxious to see her again. What if she’d changed? Maybe she wouldn’t even remember me. I mean, I didn’t talk to her that much in high school after Jared and the rest of my friends came along. I can’t help but wonder if she’ll hate me for it. Hell, maybe she did.
I wipe my palms on my jeans and knock.
“God dammit Jeremy,” I hear someone shout from inside the building, “I told you not to bother me while I’m working!”
The voice is muffled from behind the door. It’s when she opens it that she freezes and her blue green eyes widen. I notice the smudge of paint on her cheek and the rest of her outfit, a clear sign that she’d been in the middle of something.
I clear my throat. “Hey, Livy.”
She gasps. “John! Oh my God!”
I laugh nervously. “Hi.”
She smiles and laughs. “Well, I’ll be damned, O’ Callaghan. And quit calling me Livy!”
I chuckle. She was definitely still the same girl I remembered.
But she looked much different from before. Yet she was still the same Livia; the warm eyes and loving smile were all still there.
“You haven’t changed a bit,” I mumble to her, even though she had.
She giggles and it sound exactly the same as it did years ago. She moves aside. “Come in!”
I step forward and take a look around. The place was relatively big, but empty from what I could tell. Where’s the mess?
She starts walking further and I follow.
“I was just working on a piece of mine,” she tells me. “They want to showcase my work at an art show.”
“Wow,” I breathe. “That’s great! Congrats.”
She frowns. “The problem is I don’t know what I’m doing yet. I’m supposed to submit it next week.”
We reach her working space and I let out a low whistle. This room definitely wasn’t empty. And clearly the source of the mess.
There was a long wooden table in the center cluttered with supplies, and large boxes were stacked on top of each other against the wall on the floor. Some were right in the way. She must have moved in recently.
“Do you need help unpacking?” I ask, peeking into one of the boxes.
She sighs. “Thanks, but I haven’t had time. I’ve been too busy trying to figure out this piece.”
I walk over to her and pull her hands away from the brushes she starts shuffling through. Her forehead creases but I shake my head.
“Don’t stress out about it. Maybe if you take some time away from it, it’ll come to you. Plus, you’ll be going through all your stuff. You’re bound to find some inspiration.”
Her lips show the tiniest hint of a smile. “That sounds like an idea.”
I smile. “Let’s get started then.”
~
I end up spending the night there; we both knocked out on the floor from working way past midnight unpacking everything and moving things around. I even helped her hang a few things up on her wall after we were all done. I played the role of her interior decorator, making sure the shades matched the furniture.
The sun shining through the blinds wake me up. My eyes open slowly and I drink in the sight of her next to me, the soft light pouring over her skin. She seemed to glow in it. Basked in the light pigments bouncing off her arm, Livy seemed to radiate with the sun itself within her.
It takes me a moment to realize that she’s curled into my side and I’m holding her. I press my nose to her hair, breathing in her scented shampoo.
Her usual brown locks shone a golden color in the light. She looked so lovely.
She stirs from her sleep and I move away. I smile softly, my arm still draped over her waist. “Good morning, Livy.”
“Stop calling me Livy,” she murmurs, rubbing her eyes as she sits up and stretches. She looks down at me. “How’d you sl-“
I raise an eyebrow when she stops mid sentence. Why was she looking at me like that?
“That’s it,” she whispers, rising quickly but clumsily to her feet. “Stay where you are. Don’t move!”
Confused, I look down at myself.
The sun looked like it was shining from within me, too.
There was a rainbow on my chest, and my hands were shining white.
I chuckle as she reappears with an armful of her things. “But I’m hungry,” I joke.
“Shh,” she orders, brushes gathered in her hand as she sets up, determined to capture the scene before it was too late.
I lay there for hours, not daring to speak and break her concentration. So it was quiet between us. I let her paint me as I stare absentmindedly at the ceiling.
I jump when she finally announces she’s done. “Perfect.”
I chuckle and shake my head, rising stiffly to admire her work.
My eyes widen at the detail and how realistic it looks. There’s still a box in the back corner, I realize, when I see the one she’s painted.
Livy smiles. “I think I’ll call it ‘Unpacked.’”
I look down at her. The rainbow has moved to her cheek.
“We need to meet up again more often,” she says, gleaming at her painting. “I missed you.”
I don’t say a word. She finally looks up at me and smiles softly. “Thank you.”
I nod. “Anytime, Livy.”
I’d missed her, too.
I loved watching it rise, and watching it fall. To most people, it signified beauty. But to me, it meant so much more.
~
After dropping out of college and joining the band, a lot of old connections were lost, but I made sure not to let that happen with those that mattered. Those few consisted of the people that would show up at 8123, Livia being one. We kept in touch; we talked on the phone or texted almost every day. Jared obviously joined the band, so that wasn’t a problem.
And what a band it was. We’d just finished our first tour and were back home in Arizona. After spending the first few days with the family, I decided to see how she was doing. My mom had told me she’d just graduated with a two year degree from an art school. Now she owned her own studio.
I figured I’d stop by and surprise her.
I’ll never forget the look on her face when I first saw her again. Eyes wide, her thick lashes making her blue eyes look even brighter. There was some paint splattered across her cheek when she opened the door, and a strand of her brown hair was sticking out, even though she had it in a braid. Her lips had parted slightly, shocked to have me in front of her.
I even remember the long sleeved denim shirt she’d been wearing, even more paint covering it. She had shorts on, revealing her long legs. I hadn’t expected to find her looking so herself. Everything about her was the same, yet so different.
Our encounter hadn’t gone how I’d thought it would have, but I’m so glad it happened the way it did.
~
Once I find out the name of her studio, I drive my truck there and park, suddenly anxious to see her again. What if she’d changed? Maybe she wouldn’t even remember me. I mean, I didn’t talk to her that much in high school after Jared and the rest of my friends came along. I can’t help but wonder if she’ll hate me for it. Hell, maybe she did.
I wipe my palms on my jeans and knock.
“God dammit Jeremy,” I hear someone shout from inside the building, “I told you not to bother me while I’m working!”
The voice is muffled from behind the door. It’s when she opens it that she freezes and her blue green eyes widen. I notice the smudge of paint on her cheek and the rest of her outfit, a clear sign that she’d been in the middle of something.
I clear my throat. “Hey, Livy.”
She gasps. “John! Oh my God!”
I laugh nervously. “Hi.”
She smiles and laughs. “Well, I’ll be damned, O’ Callaghan. And quit calling me Livy!”
I chuckle. She was definitely still the same girl I remembered.
But she looked much different from before. Yet she was still the same Livia; the warm eyes and loving smile were all still there.
“You haven’t changed a bit,” I mumble to her, even though she had.
She giggles and it sound exactly the same as it did years ago. She moves aside. “Come in!”
I step forward and take a look around. The place was relatively big, but empty from what I could tell. Where’s the mess?
She starts walking further and I follow.
“I was just working on a piece of mine,” she tells me. “They want to showcase my work at an art show.”
“Wow,” I breathe. “That’s great! Congrats.”
She frowns. “The problem is I don’t know what I’m doing yet. I’m supposed to submit it next week.”
We reach her working space and I let out a low whistle. This room definitely wasn’t empty. And clearly the source of the mess.
There was a long wooden table in the center cluttered with supplies, and large boxes were stacked on top of each other against the wall on the floor. Some were right in the way. She must have moved in recently.
“Do you need help unpacking?” I ask, peeking into one of the boxes.
She sighs. “Thanks, but I haven’t had time. I’ve been too busy trying to figure out this piece.”
I walk over to her and pull her hands away from the brushes she starts shuffling through. Her forehead creases but I shake my head.
“Don’t stress out about it. Maybe if you take some time away from it, it’ll come to you. Plus, you’ll be going through all your stuff. You’re bound to find some inspiration.”
Her lips show the tiniest hint of a smile. “That sounds like an idea.”
I smile. “Let’s get started then.”
~
I end up spending the night there; we both knocked out on the floor from working way past midnight unpacking everything and moving things around. I even helped her hang a few things up on her wall after we were all done. I played the role of her interior decorator, making sure the shades matched the furniture.
The sun shining through the blinds wake me up. My eyes open slowly and I drink in the sight of her next to me, the soft light pouring over her skin. She seemed to glow in it. Basked in the light pigments bouncing off her arm, Livy seemed to radiate with the sun itself within her.
It takes me a moment to realize that she’s curled into my side and I’m holding her. I press my nose to her hair, breathing in her scented shampoo.
Her usual brown locks shone a golden color in the light. She looked so lovely.
She stirs from her sleep and I move away. I smile softly, my arm still draped over her waist. “Good morning, Livy.”
“Stop calling me Livy,” she murmurs, rubbing her eyes as she sits up and stretches. She looks down at me. “How’d you sl-“
I raise an eyebrow when she stops mid sentence. Why was she looking at me like that?
“That’s it,” she whispers, rising quickly but clumsily to her feet. “Stay where you are. Don’t move!”
Confused, I look down at myself.
The sun looked like it was shining from within me, too.
There was a rainbow on my chest, and my hands were shining white.
I chuckle as she reappears with an armful of her things. “But I’m hungry,” I joke.
“Shh,” she orders, brushes gathered in her hand as she sets up, determined to capture the scene before it was too late.
I lay there for hours, not daring to speak and break her concentration. So it was quiet between us. I let her paint me as I stare absentmindedly at the ceiling.
I jump when she finally announces she’s done. “Perfect.”
I chuckle and shake my head, rising stiffly to admire her work.
My eyes widen at the detail and how realistic it looks. There’s still a box in the back corner, I realize, when I see the one she’s painted.
Livy smiles. “I think I’ll call it ‘Unpacked.’”
I look down at her. The rainbow has moved to her cheek.
“We need to meet up again more often,” she says, gleaming at her painting. “I missed you.”
I don’t say a word. She finally looks up at me and smiles softly. “Thank you.”
I nod. “Anytime, Livy.”
I’d missed her, too.