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Devi pulls on Ben’s arm as they walk down the path.
She laughs into the sleeve of her jumper, choking out her words.
“You are not doing that!”
Ben laughs with her, because it’s so easy to get caught up in her infectious laughter.
He shrugs gently, stopping midwalk pulling her back with him.
“It’s our one year anniversary. I owe it to you. I didn’t live up to the rules of our bet.”
Devi rolls her eyes which makes Ben want to push her against the building wall beside them and kiss her hard.
“Gross, one year, not married, only married people make those sorts of comintments.”
Ben started to walk slowly again, reaching out for her hand. She takes it and it feels warm and soft on its own, almost like when she isn’t holding his hand, his hand has no purpose.
(he dated shira, who never held his hand, anessa who held it and it brought him warmth, sure but more in the way of a dying fire, it gave up all it’s heat too soon. but with devi, she always finds a way to keep the fire going.)
“We get told we argue like a married couple all the time, so why not make it official,” he tries to not laugh at Devi’s blush, “but right now, I think the tattoo is the best choice.”
Devi tightened her hand in his.
“I’m not talking you out of this one am I?”
Ben smiles. “You gave up quick didn’t you? You normally fight me more.”
Devi looks at him with a look he knows is only his.
(he hopes she never showed paxton this look, because she looks at him like she is looking at all the stars in the sky and further than that. he feels blessed to be able to be looked at like that)
She smiles wider. “It’s our anniversary, I’m not going to fight you at all.” She pauses. “Unless my tattoo is ugly.”
(the design he had been planning is the furthest thing from ugly. ‘cause the tattoo is just so devi)
“So I was thinking, a full face portrait of you face on my back with your last name spelt wrong -”
“Oh please you would love my face on your skin, that way you won’t have to go without seeing my perfect face for a whole day.”
Ben laughs at her challenging tone. “Devi, you are my lock screen, I see your face at least twenty times a day.”
As if to prove his point he pulls out his phone to show her the photo he took of her at maubli, when they went late in the evening. She had sat in the front seat of his car, looking out to the sea and with the sun on her face and her laughing at some music that Ben put on, she looked stellar. He would be damned if he didn’t take a photo of her.
Devi looks at the phone while walking down the path still smiling slightly at the memory at calling him soft for doing that but still kissing him deeply so much that she couldn’t breathe right for a whole two minutes.
Ben pulls Devi down a main street and into a tattoo parlor and she is grateful it’s not the same one they had visited that night.
(the same night that devi has nightmares about sometimes, when she screams in her bed about ben crying and her not being able to reach him. she wakes up ringing at 3am, begging him just to talk to her, which normally leads to him climbing in her window holding her until she falls asleep again and being gone in the morning to make sure that her mother wouldn’t catch them.)
The place was painted black with multiple high end paintings and framed photos. It looked posh, but with personality. Some walls had exposed brick and Ben smiled at Devi’s reaction to the place as he had the same one when he found this place online.
Ben smiles at the woman on the desk, saying his name and handing his ID to the woman. He turned eighteen about three months ago and luckily the lady doesn’t seem to be interested in it, pointing them to a room opposite the desk.
They walked into the room which was the same as the first room, staying the same vibe but a large chair was in the middle of the floor and a torelly next to it. A man with little tattoos smiled at them widely. He looked kind, but holding a needle does play it down a bit. Devi gives him a small smile back, looking up at Ben who was letting go of Devi’s hand to shake the man who introduced himself as Shane.
“And you must be Devi!” Shane shakes Devi’s hand. “The girl who Ben doesn’t shut up about. The tattoo is for you, correct?”
“I hope,” she laughs and Shane smiles back.
Shane encourages Ben to sit in the chair while he wipes his arm where two years ago Ben had a temporary tattoo of basketball on his arm. She leans against the wall not knowing what to do in this situation. Ben, knowing her better than himself, called her over.
“Devi, you don’t have to stand over there, you know that right?” Ben smiles, as Shane sorts his ink out. “He’s doing it on my arm, just sit on my lap.”
Devi’s heart skipped a little bit before she walked over to Ben, sitting on the leg opposite to the arm of the tatoo. Ben wrapped his free arm around her waist and they both watched as Shane started to place the needle down onto Ben’s skin.
“Ow.”
Shane laughs over the buzzing of the gun as he starts to draw something on Ben’s arm out of view from Devi.
Devi leaned closer to Ben kissing his cheek.
“Don’t be pussy, Gross”
Ben wincing visabily, turned his head towards her.
“You wanna try this David -fuck .”
Devi and Shane laugh together, as Devi tucks herself into Ben’s side. She feels his hand gripping her jumper tightly and as she looks up Ben has his eyes closed in pain. Devi wanted nothing more than to grab the ink gun and throw it in Shane’s face.
(when it comes to her anger, anyone who hurts ben is top of her list. she likes shane, he seems nice, and he is just doing his job which ben is paying him for, but it doesn't help his case.)
“Devi, please talk to me, please?” His head was turned to her.
Devi sits up on his lap, carefully, grabbing his face before kissing him quickly.
“I can’t believe you are doing this for me.” She barely whispers the words, but Ben smiles.
He winces slightly. “David, I would - fucking hell - do anything for you.”
“I love you.”
“Oh, Devi, I love you so much.”
____
“I want to see it!” Devi grabs his arm when Shane annonces it’s done.
Ben smiles and sighed in relief. “Thank god.”
Devi reaches for his arm again but Ben pulls it out of her reach. “Wait till we are back at the house, Devi.”
“Nah, I wanna see my tattoo. It’s mine.”
Ben rolls his eyes as Shane puts a large layer of clingfilm over the small gold tattoo that Devi only got to see a little bit. It looked like a small ‘D’ on his arm. Basic, but she knows she will love it either way.
“Devi, get off my lap, please, you are killing my leg, more than this tattoo is hurting my arm.”
(she knew he was joking, but she felt this as a challenge.)
“What happened to being jacked, Gross?”
Ben grabs Devi by the legs and with his newly tattooed arm pulls her into a bridal carry.
“Does that hurt?” Devi askes, worried that she is actually hurting him.
Ben smiled at her.
“Nah, don’t worry about me.” He pays Shane and tips him largely.
____
Ben drives back to his place where his parents were away for the weekend again. They mostly were home one day a week but Ben takes it, grateful to have at least one day with them before they are off again.
As he parks up, Devi gets impatient. When Ben takes the keys out of the car, about to open his door, Devi climbs on his lap and places her lips against his, and he grabs her waist pulling her closer to his chest. She deepens the kisses tracing her hand up his arm to grab the cling film covering. Ben doesn’t seem to notice holding her closer, allowing his tongue to trace her lips before he bits down gentling on her bottom lip. Devi hooks her fingers between the clingfilm, sighing in the kiss.
As Devi gets close, Ben grabs both of her wrists, pulling away from the kiss.
“I’m not an idiot, David.”
Devi looks at the arm and smiles slightly. “But you are.”
On his arm, she can make out a golden harp. It was small, but screamed elegant and devi wanted more than anything to trace over the art with her fingertips.
“Devi…”
Devi leaned forward, with her hand still gripped in his hands, kissing his with as much passion and love she could muster in one kiss.
As she pulled back she couldn’t help but blink back tears.
“You got a harp?” Devi choked, eyes glued onto the slightly exposed tattoo.
Ben lets go of her wrists and pulls down the cling film showing the rest of ink. The harp was beautiful even more when he showed it all to her but something else caught her eye. Her signature is underneath the harp in black and Devi realises that it’s from her doodles in her notebook. She has a habit for signing the doodles underneath them and Ben must have kept it there.
Ben looked up at Devi who couldn’t keep her eyes off the tattoo.
“David, I’m sorry for stealing your artbook, but when you showed me this I knew that I wanted it on my skin. I am really sorry I stole your design, but I really-”
Devi hugs Ben as the lights in the car go off. Ben wraps her arms around her whispering how much he loved her into her skin.
“I love it.” Devi smiles. Ben pulls away, tucking a loose hair behind her ear.
He smiles back, kissing her forehead.
“I love you.”
“I love you and remember this is permanent, so you are not getting out anytime soon.”
Their laughter fills the car and Devi couldn’t help but think toward next year where she might just get a basketball tattoo in the same place of his harp.