Buzz, Cyrus, and Scooter are all keenly observing us. Buzz opens his mouth to say something to alleviate the awkwardness, but I beat him to it.
"Listen, Zane. I've got a friend. He's a tattoo artist, and he's got a booth here. Thought you might like to meet him." I grin. "He specializes in basic white dude tattoos."
"Courtland," Buzz growls, stepping in, preparing to intervene should Zane take a swing at me.
"I'm kidding," I assure him, then I turn back to Zane. "I am kidding. He's actually incredibly talented."
"Who is it?" Scooter asks.
"Reef Emhoff," I reply.
"Ooh. He really is good," Buzz says. "If I were to ever get a tattoo, he'd be the guy I'd go to."
"Have you got any?" Zane asks him.
"No, he doesn't," I answer on his behalf, not wanting to get sidetracked. I'm trying to do a nice thing here. I need to stay focused so I can get it over and done with as quickly as possible. "Like I said, the guy is super talented. He was two classes below us, and he's gone on to do some big things in his career."
"He won Best of Show at the World Tattoo Expo in New York last year," Cyrus chips in.
I smile at Zane. "That's right. Not to mention he's inked some of the most famous people in the world, like Rihanna, Bad Bunny, and Angelina Jolie."
"Holy shit," Zane mutters.
"I spoke with him a few days ago and mentioned you were thinking of getting something on your arm. He's been totally booked at the festival since about two minutes after the tickets were made available online, but I asked if he might be able to fit you in."
His eyebrows shoot up. "No way."
"Yes way. He'll see you right after the festival finishes. He might not have time to do the whole arm dragon concept you had in mind, but he could do something smaller for you."
"Oh my god! That's incredible. Thank you, Courtland. I mean Court."
He moves like he's about to hug me, so I take a step back. One, because I'm not ready for that again, but mainly because two, I have more news.
"He is expensive," I warn him. “But he said he’ll hook you up with a friend rate."
"Holy fucking shit."
Zane barrels into me, my arms rigid by my side.
The hug I could do without, but I glance over and see the massive smile on Buzz's face, and it makes enduring it one thousand percent worthwhile.
That was a real nice thing you did," Scooter says, dunking his pretzel into the cheesy dip we're sharing.
The others have gone ahead to look at something Zane wanted to show them. Scooter and I decided to grab a snack instead.
"It's not a big deal. Buzz wants us to get along. It's the only reason I'm doing it."
Scooter grins wryly. "No fucking duh. You'd do anything for him."
"Of course I would," I reply seriously even though I can hear the teasing in his voice.
"But do I need to start calling you Meatloaf?"
I turn to him mid-bite, confused. "Excuse me?"
"He had that song, remember? ‘I Would Do Anything for Love, But I Won't Do That.’ My father would play it all the time. Used to drive me nuts."
"Why are you bringing that up?"
