Wang Li was sitting with his life long friend, Xu Chen, in a small cafe off a main road. A large cup of hot chocolate in front of the two ordinary university students. Today, Wang Li would be getting his first tattoo, the tattoo would be in the traditional western style of a young Chinese women's face, Wang Li was yet to see the actual design in person and had only been in contact with the artist over WeChat since he had been swamped with school work. While in deep thought, Xu Chen spoke in a worried voice.

"Xiao Li, eat some food before we go. It's best if you eat before a tattoo."

Xu Chen was sitting across from Wang Li and could see how nervous he was, there was even a small hint of sweat over Wang Li's top lip.

"I'll eat after, I can't stomach anything yet."

Intermittently Wang Li was checking his phone for the time, though it seemed as if the minutes were moving in slow motion since the numbers looked the same from the last time he had checked. Xu Chen had quickly noticed this and couldn't stand the sight.

"Calm down, what are you nervous for?"

Wang Li was about to speak when he looked up and watched as someone entered the small cafe over Xu Chen's shoulder. His mind went completely blank as he stared at the man across the room. The man that had walked in was extremely tall and had to bend his head down in order to not hit his head on his way in. He was wearing a black trench coat with a speckled grey wool sweater underneath, paired with black jeans. The stranger's face was mostly covered from a black mask but when he stood at the counter he pulled it down to his chin, revealing more of his side profile to Wang Li.

"Xiao Li."

Wang Li was still staring at the man across the room and couldn't hear his best friend trying to get his attention, causing Xu Chen to turn around.

"Wa~, what a handsome man and so tall. He must be a model."

Un. Wang Li still couldn't even process what Xu Chen was saying as he was still mesmerized by the man, his eyes never left his tall figure until the stranger had left the cafe, though his mind was in the clouds long after this. Suddenly the alarm he had put on his phone to ensure he wasn't late buzzed lightly, finally disrupting his dreamlike experience.

The tattoo shop wasn't too far from the small cafe they exited and the pair slowly made their way down the road. The two of them walked in silence until they could see the sign of the tattoo studio, only then did Xu Chen tug on Wang Li's shirt.

"Are you sure you want a tattoo? It's not too late to back out."

Wang Li couldn't lie and say he wasn't nervous, since it was pretty obvious, but he patted his friends hand and continued to the studio, opening the door. Xu Chen could only follow behind nervously. Once inside, a woman in her late thirties with a pixie cut sat behind a wooden reception desk, welcoming them warmly.

"Hello, appointment?"

"Yes, the artist is Kong Da."

The woman could hear a little shakiness in Wang Li's voice and smiled warmly before leading them behind the desk to the waiting area.

"He's getting everything set up but the wait shouldn't be long. Would you like a warm drink?"

Both young men declined, then sat beside each other on a plush leather sofa. The waiting section was  only a few sofas and armchairs set up in a large square; the rest of the large open room was dedicated to a couple massage tables, two desks and large shelves filled with tattoo equipment. Wang Li leaned close to Xu Chen and whispered.

"I thought it would look like a dungeon but it's quite homey."

Xu Chen looked at his friend beside him, confused.

"You've never been here?"

Wang Li Shook his head then continued to look at the large painting on the wall, he had heard that studios usually had flashes of their work on the walls but this studio only had a few large paintings as decoration. Xu Chen grabbed a hold of Wang Li's shoulder shaking it angrily.

"You mean you've never been here and you're getting a tattoo? How do you know what you're getting? Or if the artist is even good at his job?"

Wang Li was about to answer when someone else spoke in a low voice.

"You don't think I'm capable?"

The two youngsters on the sofa snapped their heads in the direction of the voice, Xu Chen was scared he was going to be murdered while Wang Li was sent to heaven again after seeing the owner of the voice. The man he had been mesmerized from before was standing on the other side of the room. He was no longer wearing his coat or sweater but a simple black long sleeve. Wang Li could see that he must workout since there was slight muscle definition under the material. Both Wang Li and Xu Chen were trembling but for different reasons, they couldn't speak until a woman walked out from a private room off to the side. Seeing the situation she spoke up.

"Ey, can't you smile a bit. How do you plan on keeping customers when you scare them off."

Kong Da didn't say anything and walked to a table at the back of the room, talking in a plain voice.

"Who's getting tattooed?"

Wang Li stood up and raised his hand like a school kid before he quickly put his hand down and spoke up, though his voice was shaky.

"I am."

Kong Da hummed before he turned around, holding the final drawing of Wang Li's tattoo.

"Private room or here?"

Wang Li quickly walked forward to close the distance between them since it was awkward to speak with people at a distance.

"I don't mind doing it here."

Kong Da hummed again before holding the picture against Wang Li's clothed chest.

"The picture is too big for your frame so I'll make it smaller, also I don't think the placement is right. You don't have any other tattoos so taking up one half of your chest will look out of place. In my opinion here would look better on you."

Kong Da moved the picture down to the middle of Wang Li's sternum. Wang Li was trying hard to not stare at Kong Da's face so kept his gaze down at the man's black leather shoes. It took him a little while to register what was being said to him and he slowly nodded after a minute. After receiving an answer, Kong Da told Wang Li to sit on the massage table and remove his shirt. As soon as Kong Da had left to a private room to bring out his machine, Xu Chen ran across the room, whispering in his friend's ear.

"I thought that handsome man would definitely murder us. Are you sure you want this Xiao Li?"

Wang Li patted his friend's head before removing his shirt, there was heating in the room so he didn't feel too cold.

"You're too paranoid ChenChen. If you're too uncomfortable, you can leave for the dorms and I'll meet you back there."

"Leave? What sort of friend would I be?"

Kong Da had returned into the room and was holding a small table with his machine on top. Xu Chen awkwardly stood beside Wang Li. Kong Da didn't bother with stenciling since traditional tattoos were what he did best, all he did was use a semi permanent ink pen to draw a rough size scale suitable for Wang Li's skinny frame. Once everything was set up, Wang Li laid back on the table, sweat covering his top lip again. Seeing the scared look on Wang Li's face, Kong Da said one thing.

"Last chance to back out."

Kong Da's low voice was somewhat comforting and Wang Li simply closed his eyes as he gave a small nod. Xu Chen was nibbling on his finger as he watched Kong Da move his mask up with gloved hands and turn the machine on. He took one look at the small portrait beside him and began outlining. Wang Li had never been tattooed so he didn't know what to expect, but as soon as the needle touched his skin he questioned whether he could make it through the palm sized tattoo.

Beside Wang Li, Xu Chen felt as if he was the person being tattooed and lost all the colour in his face. Ten minutes passed and an older man walked down the concrete stairs by the far wall.

"Ah, so many kids are wanting tattoos these days."

Xu Chen was struggling to stand as he watched Wang Li go through the pain, once the older man had made his way over to stand beside him, a hand was gently placed on his shoulder.

"Maybe it's best if you sit down kid."

Wang Li opened his eyes and saw Xu Chen's pale face. He gave a small smile and a little nod, making sure he didn't move too much. Xu Chen tried to hold on for a little longer but once he saw Kong Da use a paper towel to wipe away excess ink and the blood that came with it, he shakily made his way back to the sofa. The older man chuckled and stepped closer to Wang Li.

"Pretty ballsy of you to get such a big piece for a first timer."

Wang Li obviously couldn't speak since he would disturb Kong Da's movements. Though, at the moment he was feeling more stupid than ballsy since it was really hurting. The man didn't move from beside him and watched over the tattoo calmly. 30 minutes passed and the outlining was done. Kong Da pushed his chair back a bit as he started changing needles and setting up his inks for the shading and colouring. Wang Li was feeling a little weak and he slowly sat up.

"Can we take a break Mr tattoo man."

The older man on his side laughed loudly as he walked off to bring Wang Li a cup of water. When he returned, he spoke to Wang Li.

"You can call him master Kong or Da Ge kid."

Wang Li sipped his water and looked over to see Xu Chen asleep on the sofa. Some Friend! Wang Li then turned to look at the older man.

"What should I call you? Ge too."

The older man laughed loudly again and the woman from reception spoke for him.

"That old man looks like a brother to you? Just call him Suo Su."

Kong Da had finished changing the needles and mixing the inks, he turned the machine on to test the needle placement before looking over to Wang Li.

"Ready?"

The look on Wang Li was enough of an answer and he placed the machine down then removed his gloves as he stood up, because of his height Wang Li had to crane his neck to look the handsome man in the face.

"I'll have a cigarette. That should be enough of a break, the pain will be less though with shading."

Kong Da left to the front of the store while Wang Li continued to sit on the table. Suo Su walked to a nearby desk and brought back a chair for him to sit on too, keeping Wang Li company. The two of them sat in silence for a couple minutes before Wang Li picked up the courage and leaned closer to Suo Su, shyly asking him a question.

"Is Da Ge single?"

Suo Su didn't even leave any face for Wang Li and burst out into a loud roar of laughter, he even slapped his thigh repeatedly. Suo Su laughed so hard he began to cough and choke, the pixie cut women came over with a drink of water and slapped his back.

"What are you doing? I could hear your squawking in the front room."

Suo Su took a sip of water before he spoke through his giggles.

"This kid just asked if the King himself was single."

Wang Li's whole body had gone red now from embarrassment and he wanted to disappear. The lady punched Suo Su's arm.

"You have no respect. Laughing at a kid like him."

The lady sat on the side of the bed and rubbed his hand.

"I know he's handsome but really, it's a dead end with that guy, okay?"

Wang Li couldn't bring himself to look up right now but it didn't matter if he answered or not since Kong Da was walking towards the small group.

"I'll wash my hands then we'll start."

Xu Chen woke up with a start and made his way over to rub Wang Li's head in hopes of comforting him, since he thought his friend was feeling down because of the torture he had to endure. After a minute, Xu Chen whispered to Wang Li.

"Don't worry Xiao Li, after tonight, you won't need to step another foot in a tattoo studio again."

"You're only saying that cause you're scared of needles and blood."

Wang Li shook his head to shake off Xu Chen's hand, then pushed his friend back to the sofa because he still looked like he would pass out any second. 

Once the session started up again, Wang Li found Kong Da was right when he said the shading wasn't as painful, but that didn't mean it was painless. The shading process had been going on for almost 2 hours and Wang Li would be lying if he said he wasn't struggling. His hands had been closed tightly for an unknown amount of time and his body was rigid. The two people beside him hadn't left and every few moments the lady, who he learned everyone called he JieJie, would rub his head in hopes to soothe his pain a little. Kong Da sat up to clean his needle in water and dipped it into a new colour before hunching back over.

"I'm almost done, 15 minutes at the most."

Suo Su used a napkin to wipe the sweat from Wang Li's face as he poked a little fun.

"If it's not over in 15 minutes, buy the kid dinner King."

Wang Li's pale face blushed at the small comment and JieJie glared at Suo Su since her saying anything would reveal his crush. Kong Da however, feigned deafness and continued with tattooing. Like clockwork, after 15 minutes the tattoo was finished. Kong Da sprayed the area with a little water and soap before he wiped it with a paper towel. Wang Li then sat up slowly. JieJie held his hand while spoke softly.

"Come to the mirror and see if you like it."

Wang Li swung his legs over the side and stepped down, however, he couldn't even walk two steps before his vision went black and he woke up on the table. His tattoo had already been covered with plastic wrap and a soft blanket was placed over his body. Xu Chen looked as if he was about to cry when Wang Li woke up.

"I told you to eat before we came. You didn't even have breakfast, did you?"

Wang Li was about to sit up when Kong Da placed a large hand on his bare shoulder. The touch was enough to cause an electric current to run through Wang Li's body. Kong Da's low voice almost lulled him back to sleep.

"Lie down for a bit, Suo Su and JieJie have gone to get dinner for everyone."

Wang Li complied and stayed on the massage table, he was so tired and worn out that he actually fell back asleep. Xu Chen woke him up when the food had been brought back. After his sleep, he felt better but still light headed so he was forced to say put and eat. Everyone brought over chairs to where he was and ate their food around him. He felt a little silly sitting without a shirt on but couldn't do anything about it because no one was letting him leave the table.

After the meal, JieJie ushered him and Xu Chen into her car since she knew all too well how strict dorm curfews were and didn't want them to be locked out. After arriving at the dorm entrance, Xu Chen rushed out of the car and ran to the other side to help Wang Li out, like he was some frail old man. Before Wang Li closed the door, he turned back to ask JieJie something but she spoke before he could get any sound out.

"He's a hard fish to catch, kid. Too many people have tried, only for nothing to come from it. You're young so don't get caught up on someone old like Kong Da, okay?"

Wang Li was in no position to refute, he gave a quick thank you again before gently closing the door and walked towards the dorm entrance with Xu Chen beside him. In their room, Xu Chen had finished showering and Wang Li was already in bed, unfortunately he couldn't shower until the next day. Their roommates weren't coming back tonight since it was Friday and they wanted to drink and party, leaving the room to just the two of them. Once Xu Chen was back in the room, Wang Li asked.

"What did you think of Da Ge?"

"Who?"

"The handsome tattoo artist."

Xu Chen groaned and kneeled beside Wang Li's bottom bunk, his hands were clasped together as he begged.

"Please don't tell me you like that handsome scary man. My frail heart can't take it".

"I like him."

Xu Chen dramatically fell to the ground and fake sobbed. He didn't have anytime to recover because he heard Wang Li talk with a sense of determination.

"Believe in me ChenChen, I'm going to woo him."

Xu Chen felt like his soul left his body as he laid on the ground in shock.