the first time vessel caught a glimpse of the tattoo across your hip, the two of you were in LA — it was hot and you wore low waisted shorts.

the band was still on tour and it was summer, so why not vacation where they’re touring?

the two of you sat on the balcony of the airbnb you rented, it was early morning — II and IV were still asleep.

III was lazily lounging on the couch with a book, tucked between couch cushions as he flipped through the pages.

you and vessel sat with a plate between yourselves, some cut up watermelon, apples and a few grapes. simple breakfast for a lazy morning.

two glasses of juice with ice stood melting in the sun that beamed down on them.

“you’ve got a tattoo there too?” vessel lifted his hand, his pointer finger, pointing towards the words that peaked through the waistband of your shorts.

you glanced down where the tattoo was, cheeks already red warm from the sun but they felt even warmer now that vessel had pointed out the one tattoo you hadn’t explained or even showed to him.

you rose from the bench and moved over to stand in front of vessel — his eyes following your every movement.

your knees knocked into his as you moved closer — intrigue and curiosity behind vessel’s eyes as he watched you.

you tugged the waistband of you shorts down just a bit to reveal the ink — vessel’s eyes scanned across the text tattooed into your skin — his heart jumped.

his eyes flicked up to yours, softer now and the corners of his lips pulled upward ever so slightly.

the tattoo was a lyric from one of sleep token’s songs. another one.

vessel had seen your first sleep token tattoo, but here another one was.

perfectly misaligned.

vessel’s fingers itched with the urge to reach out and run his fingers across the ink tattooed into your skin — but the location of the tattoo was quite intimate.

you noticed the hesitating twitch and then how vessel’s fingers curled into a fist — you realized why he was hesitating.

“go on,” you said, your lips tugging into an assuring smile.

vessel glanced up at you — pausing, his eyes locked on yours a moment and then he reached out.

fingers traced across the text across your skin, perfectly misaligned.

“another one of our lyrics,” vessel observed, his fingers leaving your skin, returning to his lap as he turned his gaze to yours again.