#aftercare tattoo

[afewproblems]

I just got a tattoo done and was thinking about all of the before and after care instructions they gave me and how older Eddie would have possibly reacted to the list of things he would need to do or items to purchase for a new addition to his sleeve.

The artist reaches out to Eddie years after corroded coffin makes it big. She's fairly well known as a minor celebrity herself in the tattoo and body modification space in LA, so when she contacts Eddie's agent about offering a new piece for his eclectic sleeve he checks out her portfolio and is immediately sold.

She sends him the idea and he signs off on it right away and before they know it, he and Steve are on a plane from Chicago to Los Angeles.

It isn't until it's done, and the second skin is placed over the piece, smoothed out to ensure no bubbling, that Eddie balks at the secondary list of steps he needs to take.

The artist taps out the instruction email on her phone, hitting send with a dimpled grin before reaching out to shake his hand and Steve's, thanking them for being such great new clients. She asks Steve if he would be interested in a piece at some point, to which he smiles politely and shakes his head.

Steve has never been into tattoos for himself, though he's always gone to great lengths to admire and kiss each piece on Eddie's body.

Eddie half listens as they continue to chat, pulling out his phone to review the email she sent him.

"Ensure that you leave the second skin on for three to five days and upon its removal (see removal instructions on page two)..."

Eddie has to stop himself from rolling his eyes right then and there. It's not as though this is his first ever tattoo, he's been getting ink since before this girl was even born.

He winces at the thought, reminding himself that just because she's young doesn't mean she doesn't know her shit, and she clearly does. He shakes his head and nods when Steve says goodbye for them and they make their way to the elevator.

"Okay, what's with the face?" Steve asks quietly as soon as the door closes.

Eddie sighs and folds his arms over his chest, careful not to bump the now tender area on his forearm.

"You look like you swallowed a lemon, spill," he reaches out for Eddie's shoulder, his warm hazel eyes, now lined with gentle wrinkles at the edges search his face, "do you not like it?"

Eddie barks out a laugh, "it's probably one of the nicest ones in the whole collection, no Stevie, it's not that".

Steve raises his eyebrow now and just looks at Eddie until the elevator dings and the doors open before them.

God Dammit.

He loves and hates this ability, that Steve knows Eddie will crack eventually if he just waits long enough.

"Fine!" Eddie sighs as they make their way back to the hotel.

It's gorgeous out, nothing like the weather back home right now, the palm trees lining the streets and the twinkling fairy lights on every corner gives the area an almost magical feel, despite the bustling pedestrians packing the sidewalks.

"It's a little weird all the instructions," Eddie says eventually. He speaks slowly, doing his best to articulate exactly what he feels.

Steve nods, though the confused pinch between his brow doesn't quite fade.

"And I've been getting these done since it eighties, Steve, it's just a little--"

Eddie growls and tugs on his hair in frustration, "I don't want to be shitty".

Steve shrugs and loops his arm around Eddie's small waist, tugging him closer.

"Be shitty, you know I love it," he grins and lifts his free hand to remove Eddie's from his hair, "what about the instructions made you upset?"

"It's like I'm being talked down to," Eddie says with a frown, "I got a stick and poke from Jeff in '84 that was totally fine with out any of this," he lifts his arm now to show off the shiny second skin to Steve who nods.

"And which one was that again?" Steve asks, there's a leading lilt to his voice that makes Eddie want to sit on the sidewalk.

He huffs out a low whine, "Steve--"

"Eddie," Steve answers with a soft smile.

And Eddie knows he's lost this argument, if you could even call it that, because the bats that Jeff did for him all the way back in '84, have since been covered up.

Over the years they had morphed into six blobs of bluish grey on the back of his forearm that could no longer be distinguishable as bats, and after being asked about his 'abstract' tattoos by an interviewer a few years back, he had made the decision to get them covered.

And it could have been any number of things that lead to the eventual fading and blobification of his bats, but Eddie figured it was probably because they had almost immediately gotten infected a few days after Jeff had finished them in his parents garage.

Eddie clears his throat and opens the email on his phone again, taking another look at the list the artist had sent him.

"Fine, you gonna help me take care of this thing Stevie?" Eddie grumbles as they enter the revolving door of the hotel, stepping carefully into the pie shaped section to avoid colliding with the moving entryway.

Steve snorts and lets his hand curl through one of the belt loops on Eddie's jeans, "I think I remember agreeing to something like that, in sickness and health?"

He leans forward and nuzzels his nose into Eddie's ear, "till the end of our days".

[frnkiebby]

look at this fuckin dork~🎃

[diffenbachiae]

GOT MY ROCKY HORROR TATTOO

[play-my-game]

[pathologising]

I'm too scared to get a tattoo plus I don't live near any good artists so I'm having him pay for my hair and nails instead LOL

[wolfeyedwitch]

Me: *is sad that body is being Uncooperative(TM)*

My brain: don't be sad, go get a tattoo! 🎵

Me: brain. Did you FORGET. That we are STILL DOING THE TATTOO REMOVAL THING. *points emphatically at blistered leg from laser treatment 2 days prior*

My brain: *shocked pikachu face*

Aka:

I want to deal with chronic illness shit by doing body mods, but the body mods must be done in ORDER and I'm NOT DONE WITH THE REMOVAL YET

[needygirlsblog]

I need to be fucked and cuddled rn…

[secretagentsagainstwhatever]

Every tattoo i’ve ever had: peeling & itching, and healing totally fine

Me every time i get a new tattoo and it peels and itches:

[dromaeo-sauridae]

90 fking dollars for lobe piercings 💀💀 remind me not to go back to this place

[thefactsofthematter]

ppl with tattoos…. how long do you wait before going to the gym after getting a new one

[batz]

realizing its almost been 6 months since top surgery:)

[leo-lem]

tattoo care?

hey, so, j got a new backpiece and its almost time to take the saniderm off which yay!!! but also, shes damn itchy and ik im gonna be trying so hard not to itch it. also, heard that aquaphor is not the best thing to use in tattoo care, any alternatives? planning on buying lubiderm but if anyone has any other recs lmk! used aquaphor on my last tattoo but really wanna make sure this heals right.

[be-the-glenn-to-my-maggie]

This is a really stupid post, but some of ya’ll writing about Spider or Ao’nung getting a Metkayina tattoo have never gotten a tattoo before and it fucking shows.

[ayseagrace2r87]

Me just trying to keep my tattoo uninfected: A band-aid! Perfect! I did this every other time, it'll work great!

My body: Okay, okay, I see what you're trying to do, and I respect it, I really do, but what if we just have an allergic reaction to the thing with which you are trying to protect us with? How's that sound cowboy?

Me: :(

Edit: GUYS, I JUST OPENED THE LAST BAND-AID IN MY STASH AND IT'S HOLOGRAPHIC. Today is a good day.

[aphrodites-garden]

My shitty stick and poke progress:

(Yes I am using tattoo needles and ink, and cleaning my workspace and all surfaces with isopropyl alcohol)

Gonna finish the flower and pedestal tomorrow. I had a shit day but this was really fun and it made it slightly better. I don’t care that it’s slightly shitty I didn’t expect it to be perfect as it is my first one, but it’s better than most of the stick and pokes I’ve seen so that’s all that matters to me lol

(I will also be using proper aftercare. I have several normal tattoos and have experience in this)

In case you couldn’t tell it represents a past suicide attempt