BEWARE OF THE ANGEL TATTOO

The smell of fresh paint lingered in the air and it brought a smile on the face of a girl, who stood amidst the vacant room. This girl was twenty-five and her name was Radhika. The smile didn't radiate smugness. Instead, it represented ruefulness and sorrow mixed with peace.

She walked over to a window from where the sun rays slanted in and poured on the linoleum floor. The view of the Mumbai city was exhilarating.

'How is it?' asked another girl, who was standing by the door with her arm crossed in front of her chest, smiling a proud smile. Her name was Sara, she was twenty-six.

'It is brilliant,' intoned Radhika, 'I just love it!' Her voice echoed across the hall.

'I knew you'll love it, ' said Sara, 'that's why I got it all repainted.' She began walking into the hall toward the window where Radhika stood.

'I don't know how to thank you and your dad.'

Sara snorted. 'Don't you worry about that. This room was anyway empty.'

'Thanks,' said Radhika dreamily.

By now Sara had reached the window. She put her hand on Radhika's shoulder and said, 'Anything for my best friend.'

Abruptly Radhika began crying.

'Whoa,' blurted Sara, a little shocked. 'No, not again,' groaned she.

'Living in relationship sucks!' sobbed Radhika. 'I can't believe he dumped me!' She gasped. 'Even my... parents refused to take me e-in. I don't know where I would ha-have gone if you were not there for me.'

Sara pulled her into a hug, patting her back. 'Stop it, you are embarrassing me,' she said in a soothing voice.

Radhika continued sobbing.

'Seriously stop it,' said Sara, breaking the hug and frowning a bit. 'I'll kick you out right now if you don't stop.'

Radhika gave her a scornful look and then laughed. Sara joined in and they both giggled for more few minutes.

A beeper went off and Sara pulled out her cellphone and took the call. She kept nodding off as she talked. A few second later she hung up and said, 'It was the call from that truck guy. Your stuff is awaiting us.

So, down they went and helped the lifters by carrying small boxes that contained Radhika's favorite paperbacks.

An hour later, the vacant room was no longer vacant. An old couch stood in the center with a battered coffee table before it. A shelf full of books and a desk sat in the corner. The kitchen was now laden with crockery and cutlery set. A brand new stove rested on the kitchen top.

'You'll need to buy a bed and also a fridge,' said Sara. They were now sitting on the couch, drinking coffee.

Radhika nodded. 'I've saved some money for a small fridge. I guess bed will have to wait.'

'Okay, and don't you go meandering around. This area of the city is new for you. I know you won't, but still use a cab, don't try to save money although you need money right now--and our office is not that far from here--but just wait until you get familiar with the roads. I hope you are getting me?'

'I am,' said Radhika, taking a sip from her cup.

A few minutes later Sara left bidding her goodbyes. Radhika asked her whether she would come and see her on Sunday. Sara said she will.

The sundown came and specks of stars appeared over the skyline. By nine, she fixed a dinner for herself; nothing special, just egg, bread, and vegetable salad.

She made her bed on the cold floor, read a book and then fell asleep.

Her first night went peacefully. She awoke when the alarm went off. The sky outside was still dark. She did her 5 a.m. yoga and some pushups and pull-ups; she was a fitness freak.

By seven Radhika was ready to set off. She hired a cab and told him her office's address. As the car rolled down the street Radhika stared out the window, trying to remember the turns the vehicle took. She found that the route to her office was pretty easy. It only took five minutes for the cab to reach the office. So, that means it will only take her fifteen minutes to reach her office by walk, considering her walking speed which was excellent.

Her working hours didn't go that good. After every minute or two, she kept hearing people laughing behind her back. The news of her being dumped had spread like a wildfire.

By eleven she started homeward. The streets were pretty dark now. Although that didn't bother her.

Radhika rounded a corner and came across an empty sidewalk. As far as she remembered she was now just two blocks away from her apartment. Then she realized that the sidewalk was not empty. A silhouetted figure holding a board stood few yards away from her in the harsh streetlight.

As he neared, she realized that he was a foreign man with long blond hair tied in a ponytail. Although it was the night he was wearing black goggles which were a kind of weird. "Free tattoo today" the board read.

Radhika thought about it. This was a new beginning for her and getting a tattoo sounded a great idea. It would remind her of the tough days; it would remind her of how bravely she fought.

'Excuse me,' she asked the man.

'Hello,' said he. 'Free tattoo today.' He showed her the board.

'I would like to get one,' said Radhika.

'Sure, sure,' said he. His accent was hard to place. 'Come in please.' He beckoned her into the shop. Radhika stared at the tattoo parlor. She didn't remember seeing one on her way to the office. Bells jingled overhead as he opened the glass door. He led her into a sitting room. She looked at the walls. They were covered with various tattoo designs.

The man returned with a sketchbook dropped it on her lap. She noticed that he still didn't remove his goggles.

'Select one design,' said he grinning.

She opened the sketchbook and saw it was filled with only one type sketch. An angel with black, blurred eyes and a knife in her left hand. She looked wicked yet damn beautiful.

'There is only one type of design here,' said Radhika.

'I know,' grinned he. 'If you want other designs you'll have to pay me. This is the only design that is free.'

'Hey,' grumbled Radhika. 'Your board didn't tell only one type of design is free. This is cheating!'

'This is marketing,' said he, smiling.

Radhika thought about getting up and bolting out of the shop. But then she saw the angel and a usual longing desire hit her. 'Fine,' said she, 'I want this tattoo.'

'Where do you want it?'

'My workplace doesn't allow visible tattoos. So, I want it on my upper right arm... As you can see I only wear full sleeve blouses for work.'

'Yes, I can see that,' said he. Radhika caught a twinge of sarcasm in his voice and wondered what was it for.

She changed into a T-shirt and he traced the design on her upper arm, just a few inches below her shoulder. After that, he started making it permanent by using needle machine and black ink.

'Now I'll use white color for shading her wings,' said he, and began groping the rugs beside him for the glass bottle. And at that moment a frightening thought hit her: the man was blind!

No, that can't be true. She looked at the angel tattoo on her. A blind cannot draw such a good drawing.

An hour later, the tattoo was finished. The man patched it with a white bandage. He told her to remove it after twenty-four hours. She thanked him and left. By the time she reached her home it was already twelve thirty. She quickly made her bed and went to sleep.

The next day gave her the biggest shock of her life. The tattoo shop was gone. The only thing that was left was an empty clearing between the two buildings. Had she hallucinated on the previous night? She touched her right upper arm and felt the squishy bandage under her blue flannel shirt. No, the tattoo was real. But then how did the shop disappeared in just one night?

She spent her next three hours thinking about it. And the more she thought the worst her headache became. Maybe the shop was somewhere else, she thought. Yes, that was the only reasonable explanation she came up with.

By the end of the day, the thought about the tattoo shop had disappeared from her mind, thanks to the increased workload in the accounting section. She returned to her apartment around eleven O'clock. She was so tired that she quickly changed her clothes and without checking her new tattoo she went to bed.

She was woken up by some kind of noise. She sat upright and consulted her alarm clock. It showed 12:30 a.m.

'Heheheh...' Radhika's eyes widened. Someone was giggling. Someone else in her apartment was giggling!

She jumped to her feet. 'Who is it?' shouted she.

'Heheheh...' More giggles.

She ran into her kitchen and got a knife and bolted back into the hall. The giggling seemed to be following her everywhere she went.

'Hehehe...'

It came from below her. Warily, she looked down, hoping to see a girl lying on the floor. A ghost girl. But what she saw was worst than a ghost. The angel tattoo was on her right calf. And she was waving her hand!

Radhika's breath caught in her throat. The tattoo was alive! Radhika shrieked in terror.

The angel giggled shyly. Radhika abruptly peeled off the bandage and saw that the angel was not there. She looked back at her calf. The angel was not there either. She had climbed up to Radhika's thigh. It was really unusual to see a creature made of ink moving over her skin. It felt like seeing a 2D cartoon animation.

The angel waved the knife and then closed her wings and slid down Radhika's leg, leaving the red line behind her. Radhika cried as warm, coppery blood seeped out her leg. The painted knife had wounded her leg. It had actually wounded her leg!

'Stop it!' cried Radhika and clamped her hand over the angel. At first, she thought the angel was caught. But then the angel slid out and climbed on her hand. And Radhika realized she couldn't touch it.

She giggled as she climbed up Radhika's hand, giving her fresh new cuts. More blood oozed out of her skin.

The angel disappeared inside her loose shirt through the sleeve. Radhika quickly tore off her shirt and saw that the angel was drawing a star around her navel with the knife.

'Stop it!' Her next five minutes went in swatting the angel. Although she only kept hurting herself.

Now her whole body was covered in blood and cuts. Her face was covered in tears.

'Please... Leave me... Please,' she was pleading when the angel tattoo disappeared.

Radhika bolted to the washroom and stared in the mirror. She didn't recognize the girl in the mirror.

She looked at the reflection of her bare back in the mirror. There was no angel there. She checked every other part of her body. The angel was gone.

A sense of relief settled over her and she began laughing. And then she saw her. The angel hiding underneath her chin.

She giggled and slid down on her neck.

'No, not the throat,' said Radhika, pleading and sobbing. 'Don't kill me!'

But the angel only giggled and began walking around her neck, raising her knife. Thick, red blood gushed out of her throat. The world became a blur and Radhika fell on the floor.

Three days later, the police found her bare body completely covered in blood. No angel tattoo was found on her body. Her parents told the police that her ex-boyfriend killed Radhika. The police apprehend the boy and filed a third-degree murder case against him.

One month later.

'I lost my friend,' said Sara, 'I want to dedicate this angel tattoo to her.'

The man standing before her was a blond guy with pretty long hair. He wore them in a ponytail. His eyes were hidden behind the thick goggles. Sara was having a strange feeling that this man was blind, for he was not looking at her but beyond her.

'That's very nice of you,' said he.

'I bet because it is free, I can't get a bigger tattoo.'

The man shook his head, his ponytail wagged behind him. 'No. You can get any size you want.'

'I want you to cover my whole upper back,' said Sara.

'Whoa, that will be a pretty big angel.'

'Will that pose a problem?'

He grinned. And for a moment Sara felt sure that he was blind. He said, 'bigger the better.'

Author's  Note. Hope you guys enjoyed this short story. I'll be posting more such stories, book breakdowns, show breakdowns and parody reviews. And we also we discussing the weird happenings from around the world so please subscribe.   

Aditya Mewati

18 November 2017