On Solid Ground: Sequel to in Too Deep

by Michelle Kemper Brownlow

  It was odd to be the one going to bed alone. I walked Gracie downstairs. We said our platonic goodnights, and when I returned to the apartment, there was music coming from behind Sam’s closed door. I shook my head and decided I’d put my ear buds in for a while so I could go without Sam’s squirmy worm soundtrack. Squirmy worm? What a dork.

  Late Saturday morning, Sam, Ashley, and I left the apartment and headed to T & A Tats on the edge of town. I prided myself in my non-marred physique and had never considered using my body as a doodle pad.

  On our walk, I learned Ashley was a Hotel and Restaurant Management major. She had the perfect personality for that kind of career, confident but soft-spoken and very sweet. She was definitely cut out for customer service. She also mentioned leaving school before the end of the semester last year, but I didn’t catch why. And, apparently, Ashley loved tattoos and wanted another one. I couldn’t see that she had any, so I assumed she’d introduced the hidden ones to Sam the night before.

  I’d never been inside a tattoo place and have to admit, I pictured it being seedy and grimy. I guess I never really thought about it long enough to realize the regulations that would have to be adhered to in order to open and operate a tattoo and piercing studio. It was spotless. The walls were a deep red, the floors dark hardwood, and there were huge gilded frames that drew attention to massive charcoal sketches on gray paper of Day-of-the-Dead-style portraits.

  Music thumped, but not loud enough to mask the buzzing coming from the back rooms. I immediately thought of the dentist; it was the same kind of high-pitched whirring.

  “What brings you three in today?” A bald guy with gauges big enough to put an empty toilet paper roll through rounded the corner. He wore a black, short-sleeved, button-up work shirt with a name tag patch above the pocket that announced he wanted us to call him “Tits.”

  His red Kat Von D t-shirt layered under the black caught my attention. I wasn’t one for tatted up girls, but Kat Von D was hot. There was something so sensual about her and the way she bared her soul by putting her life story on the outside of her body. I puffed up my shoulders and convinced myself I wasn’t as far outside my comfort zone as I assumed I’d be. Maybe I did have some creativity floating around in me somewhere. I wondered if Gracie would ever get a tattoo. She was the only person I could imagine who could talk me into getting one.

  “Hi, Tits!” Ashley chuckled as she pointed to the patch on his shirt. She smiled and winked at him. “Do you have any open appointments today?” She batted her eyes a little.

  “I do.” He waved his finger in front of her shirt as though he was looking for her name patch.

  “I’m Ashley, nice to meet you. I’d like a small tattoo across the top of my foot.” Her voice was so adorable, I think it melted a fraction of Tits’ tough façade.

  Ashley handed him a picture, and he disappeared behind a curtain of beads.

  “You’ve done this before.” I smiled at Ashley as she snuggled into Sam on the big overstuffed leather couch in the corner. I sat across from them on a chair and paged through an album of tattoos done at T & A’s.

  “I have. My sister, Abby, and I got matching infinity symbols on our ankles before we left for college. She went to Penn State and I stayed here in Tennessee. We’re twins, and it’s our first time apart from each other...ever.” She twisted her hands a little in her lap, and I could tell she was getting a little emotional.

  “Dude, you gettin’ one?” I looked up at Sam.

  “Yeah, I think I’m getting...” He reached for the coffee table between us and grabbed another photo album. He closed his eyes and blindly chose a page and pointed. “This one!”

  “A shirtless sailor?” I shook my head.

  “Look what it says under it.” Ashley laughed so hard, she could barely speak.

  Sam lifted the album closer to his face so he could read it. He slammed it shut and shook his head. “Nope.”

  “Jake, it said ‘Wanna see my battleship?’ in a fancy script font.”

  “It’s perfect Sam, but you’d have to change it to squirmy worm.”

  “What!” Ashley looked at Sam with a grimace that told me she had never referred to his junk that way.

  “Will you accompany me to my lair, Miss Ashley?” Tits stood with his arm out for her to take. She smiled and kissed Sam then headed back, arm in arm with Tits.

  “She’s pretty cool, Sam.” I nodded with my approval. Not that he needed it.

  “I know, man. She’s amazing. Everything about her is amazing. The way she smells, the sound of her voice. She’s funny, but she’s not ditzy. She’s got balls, too. You see the way she wasn’t afraid to call that dude by his nickname? I don’t even have the balls to call him Tits. He could rip my face off with his bare hands. You ever think about getting one? A tattoo?”

  I’d never even entertained the thought, but I couldn’t say I was adamant about not getting one. “Yeah. Was thinking of getting your name on my ass.”

  “Nice.” Sam winked.

  “Gracie could probably talk me into it; just don’t know yet what it would be.”

  I sat back with another album in my lap and admired the amazing artwork adorning the many different people in the photos. I’m sure most of them had a story behind them. Reminded me of Gracie and her fascination with Josephine and the stories she could tell from the music written by the owners that had come before her.

  “Gracie will get one.” Sam smiled, and we both nodded. Yeah. It was just a matter of time.

  Before we knew it, an hour and a half had passed, and Ashley emerged from the back. Gauze and tape covered the top of her foot. She grinned from ear to ear and motioned to us that she was going to pay.

  “What? I still can’t see it?” Sam whined when she walked over to us ready to leave.

  “In a couple hours, you can, when I take this off.” She smiled up at him and kissed him after stuffing the receipt in her pocket. “You’re not very patient.”

  “That’s the understatement of the year.” I patted Sam on the back as we left the building. A beautiful, leggy blonde was walking up the steps, so I waited and held the door for her. She, too, had the standard issue work shirt with a patch. But it wasn’t covering her t-shirt. Because she had none on. Just a simple beaded bra under her open shirt. She winked and walked through the door. She turned and smiled a sexy smile, “Thanks, gorgeous.”

  “You’re welcome...” I looked at her name patch. “Um. You’re welcome.”

  I was not calling her Ass.

  Creative though, T & A Tats really did stand for Tits and Ass.

  Forty-one

  Gracie

  “Hurry, hurry, hurry! You guys are worse than girls! Geez!” I looked at Ashley, who rolled her eyes with me.

  “Good Lord, you two. What the hell were you doing in there?” Ashley grabbed Sam’s arm as we finally left the apartment.

  I was so excited to go dancing. I loved to dance. The music had to be loud, though. Really loud. My ears needed to ring, and my voice should be hoarse for it to qualify as an awesome night. I needed to feel the thump of the bass in my chest; it was the license to let go. And there was something so sensual and sexual about dancing for yourself. Not the kind of grinding people do that looks like they’re having sex. I mean, truly letting the music inside you long enough to experience every nuance of the melody, the harmony, and the lyrics. I was turning into a music nerd.

  Jake laced his fingers through mine, looked down at me, and smiled. It was like a date. A triple date. Calon and Becki were meeting us at Sid’s.

  “So, you girls know that we’re on to you, right?” Sam’s face was twisted in an ornery grin? We walked in a wide line of four, girls in the middle.

  “On to us?” Ashley and I spoke in unison.

  “Yeah, you’re going to dance and look all hot. Then poor Jake and I gotta go home and take cold showers.”

  “We will do no such thing!” I laced my arm through Ashley’s and we skipped ahead of the boys. I wonde
red about Sam’s comment. I’d just assumed he and Ashley were having sex. But it was cool to know that Jake and I weren’t the only ones holding out.

  While we were carded at the door, Jake’s phone chimed. I looked over at his phone as his thumb hovered over the Accept Call button. Chelsea? Who was Chelsea? He hit Decline.

  A small part of my brain ran rampant upon seeing another girl’s name on his phone. But I took a deep breath. It could just as easily be a girl from his bartending class. I chose to let it go and didn’t feel the need to say anything to him about it. He didn’t even know I saw it.

  I peeked in and could see Calon and Becki at the bar. They were standing close, each leaning on an elbow. Their faces were within centimeters of each other. Becki was nibbling on the end of a straw, and Calon was talking with his hands. She was love struck.

  “Gracieeeeeeeeeeeeeee!” She was also seriously buzzed. She wrapped her arms around my neck and almost pulled me to the floor when her feet slipped in a puddle from the last drunkard who’d walked our way. Calon caught her by the waist and pulled her to her feet. We both thanked him at the same time.

  “Okay. Let me do the introductions.” My hands were shaking, and my stomach filled with butterflies from the simple fact that I was with the people I loved the most, and I was happy. Truly, truly happy.

  “Jake. Gracie...you all know that. Okay.” I couldn’t stop giggling; it had been a very long time since I’d walked into a place without dragging my self-criticism and pain along with me. It was a heavy load to bear. But at Sid’s that night, I was light. Super happy and super light. Calon walked away and I yelled, “Calon, get your ass over here! I’m not done!”

  “Wow. She’s bossy tonight.” Calon walked over and handed everyone a beer. I felt bad for calling him out once I realized he’d bought us a round. He was being a sweetheart. He leaned in and whispered for just me to hear, “And Gracie, where I put my ass is really none of your concern.” My stomach flipped. He winked and walked back over to Becki. Damn him.

  “Let’s try this again. Jake. Gracie...”

  “We got it already. Just finish so we can get crunked and do some dirty dancing!” Becki leaned back into Calon and winked at me to let me know she wasn’t really as annoyed as she sounded.

  “Sam, senior Business major and our BFF.”

  Sam bowed like a dingbat.

  “Ashley, senior Hotel and Restaurant Management major and Sam’s new girlfriend.”

  Ashley smiled sweetly and waved a tiny wave.

  “Becki, brand new Communications major who will be a senior for like seven more years because she waited so long to change her major. And she’s my best girlfriend on the planet.”

  Becki raised her hand like she needed to single herself out.

  “And the infamous Calon Ridge, lead singer of Alternate Tragedy and my creative advisor.”

  Calon held up his beer and tipped it toward everyone.

  I spun around and wrapped my arms around Jake’s neck. He’d been standing with his hands on my hips during my very lengthy introductions. “I don’t think I told you how handsome you looked tonight.”

  “Well, thank you, beautiful. You are absolutely stunning tonight. This shirt makes me nuts, you know. And these shorts...God, Gracie, you’re gonna kill me.” He nuzzled into my neck and pushed his hands down into the back pockets of my short shorts. I wore the shirt on purpose. It was a plain, black, oversized, wide-neck tee that was just short enough that my belly peeked out a tiny bit.

  “Want another beer?” I nodded and blew him a kiss. He winked, turned, and walked away. I stood still and watched his subtle strut, and an erotic tingle traveled to the various parts of my body. His one shoulder hung just a little lower than the other when he walked. Something about that made me crazy. He turned and saw me staring and winked. I melted. When he reached into the back pocket of his olive drab cargo shorts for his wallet, he looked back. I winked and he shook his hips a little then chuckled.

  His short-sleeved, blue and white checked, collared shirt matched his eyes perfectly, and there was something about the crisp white shirt he had underneath that would have every girl’s attention soon. Hot damn, I was a lucky girl.

  Just then, three girls sauntered past Jake and their conversation stopped. Their heads turned and they glanced at each other. One fanned herself, one looked back for the rear view, and one held her phone over her shoulder and took a picture of him. Yep. That was my Jake.

  “There it is.” Jake handed me my beer and waved as the other four headed to the dance floor. We were pushed toward the wall when a group of girls on a bar tour made their entrance.

  “What? There what is?”

  “There is something that comes from your soul, Gracie. It’s what draws people to you. You glow. I haven’t seen that part of you for so long. I see it right now. And I love it. I love you more than I’ve ever loved anyone.”

  “I’m almost there, Jake. I promise.”

  “Good. I’m in this for life, baby girl, you and me against the world. Whenever you’re ready.”

  “Sounds like a fairy tale. But...do I have to wear a dress?”

  “Huh?”

  “In fairy tales, the girls always wear dresses. Not one single princess has a pair of Docs or a flannel, and that’s just wrong.”

  “I actually prefer my princesses naked.” He pressed me against the wall and dove for my lips. In seconds, his hands were in my hair, and we devoured each other for what seemed like forever. We were breathless, and our chests were heaving when he pulled away. “God, Gracie, I’m sorry. I know you need time and space, but seeing you like this with no walls up, it’s incredibly sexy.”

  “Let’s dance, horn dog.” I grabbed his hand and winked.

  “Oh, yeah, that’ll help.” I rolled my eyes at him. We were both perfectly aware of what I could do to him when I danced.

  The DJ was amazing. He played a little bit of everything, and he was fun. He could transition seamlessly from one song into another from a completely different genre. Anyone who could bleed the end of a Nikki Minaj song into the beginning of something by Nine Inch Nails had my lifelong respect.

  It was way too loud on the dance floor to talk to anyone, so we just danced. Ashley and Sam were doing the fast slow-dance thing. Becki and Calon were...making me blush. I had never seen Calon dance before. Wow. Just...wow. Becki looked up at me and mouthed, Holy fuckshit, are you seeing this? I nodded and laughed so hard I had to grab hold of Jake to stay upright. All of a sudden, the music died down, which surprised me, because the DJ had been blending the songs so well, there hadn’t been a quiet moment since we walked in. We all turned toward his booth. He was pointing down at us.

  “Ladies and gentlemen, we have Calon Ridge in the house.”

  Calon looked down toward his feet and shook his head. He looked back up and smiled then waved at the shrieking women as he ran his fingers through the curls that had fallen in front of his face. That only made the women shriek louder. Becki looked like the Secret Service with her back to him and her eyes peeled for anyone encroaching on his personal space. But she was really the only one doing that.

  “Calon, man, you wanna give us a solo performance?” The DJ held his hands up.

  “Maybe later. Maybe later.”

  I was sure the DJ had to resort to reading his lips, because there was no way he’d heard him. And with that, he cranked the bass, and a song I’d never heard before poured into me. I felt nothing but the music. I shook my head and let go. I turned to face Jake, who had been standing behind me, and I looped my fingers through his empty belt loops. I pulled myself into him and started swaying my hips. His hands laced around the back of my neck, and he moved with me, but our eyes were locked. Slowly, he slid his hands down to my lower back and pressed me farther into him. My heart was racing. It was so hot, my clothes were sticking to me, my hair was stuck to my neck, and I saw a single bead of sweat drip from behind Jake’s ear and slide down under the neckline of his shirt.


  The tempo of the music coursed through us and sped up. Jake bent his knees and tilted his hips, so when he stood, I could feel him pressing into me from under his shorts. He was so hard. That was my undoing. I put my hands on his chest and pushed him away, but just a little. I wanted to watch him while he watched me. I slowly moved my ass in tiny circles, over-exaggerating the sway when the beat hit hard. I turned in front of him and just let my body feel. The music. The beat.

  When I looked up at him through the hair that had fallen over my eyes, I recognized his expression. I wasn’t deliberately trying to turn him on. I just wanted to let go and feel. It wasn’t like I didn’t know it would turn him on, but that’s not why I was doing it.

  I backed up into Jake, and his hands quickly slapped to my hips. He held me in place; his body took on the beat as he leaned down so our cheeks were touching. I tipped my head back onto his shoulder, just enough for him to lick my bottom lip. His hot breath on my mouth threatened to shatter me into a million little horny pieces. My body instinctively turned to face him. Our chests heaved. I happened to glance to the stage and saw Calon with a mic in his hand.

  Like it was choreographed, the room went quiet. My ears rang. I tipped my head forward onto Jake’s shoulder, I heard the acoustic strum of a guitar, and I knew what was coming. Calon was about to fill the room with the first acoustic song from Alternate Tragedy’s “Fallen,” albeit with a back-up track, but I melted into Jake and his arms tightened around me. He pulled me deeper into him and the room fell away. Jake and I were suspended amid the truth of the words sang.

  “She spins into the darkness, she slides down the wall.

  She didn’t see it coming, she wasn’t prepared to fall.

  There was film on her mirror, fog on the glass

  Her body torn wide open, by secrets of her past.

  Down, down, down

  Where there is no bottom

  Down, down, down

  Where the suffering begins

  Down, down, down

  She didn’t know she’d fallen