"Alright girls, interesting fact of the week!" Anna chided, coming inside Mia's small living room with a bottle of red and three glasses. "Who wants to go first? Mia?"

Mia chuckled and rolled over onto her stomach on the floor where her and Zoe had set up camp. "Alright, I have one. Did you know that the painting of Mona Lisa used to have eyebrows and eyelashes?"

"No shit!" Anna exclaimed, uncorking the wine bottle.

"Cool," Zoe agreed.

"Yeah, but due to poor handling over time and over-cleaning, they disappeared," She told, receiving a glass from Anna who generously poured.

"Oh please, the bitch probably just jumped on the whole 'shave-your-eyebrows-off' trend," Anna snorted, pouring her own glass. "Too bad da Vinci died before he could draw them back on her."

Mia doubled over with laughter, nearly spitting the wine out of her mouth. "What the fuck, Anna?!"

"You can quote me on that," She said, taking a nip. "Alright Zoe, you're next."

"Alright!" She grinned, thoughtfully humming. "Hmm... you know how Pi is infinite, right? That it goes on and on forever?"

"Uhm... yeah?" Mia said, exchanging a look with Anna that showed she didn't really know either. There was a reason neither of them chose math as their major.

"Well, that means that every possible solution to everything and every possible number, code, data – anything – is hidden inside Pi!" Zoe excitedly said. "The cure to cancer could be in there, the vaccines to Ebola, even the date when Earth is going to explode into a giant ball of—"

"Okay, we get it!" Anna quickly interfered. "No need to go Armageddon on us. So Pi is the answer to life?"

Zoe snapped her fingers and winked. "Bingo."

"Alright, that means you're up," Mia said, grinning at Anna. "What interesting thing did you learn this week?"

"I got the best one," She smirked, taking a long sip of her wine to prolong the suspense. "I learned that girls are more likely to fall for the bad boys rather than the good ones."

"Really?" Mia scoffed. "I have a hard time believing that. Who'd want to choose bad over good?"

"But see, that's the thing!" Anna said, pointing her finger triumphantly into the air. "We subconsciously do it all the time! As we all know, every time we see something we want, we get that thrill – also known as adrenaline," She smirked. "And adrenaline goes hand in hand with dopamine which as we also know is more commonly known as the pleasure hormone," She winked. "It's basically what triggers the mighty O."

"Okay, so what you're saying is..." Mia said, furrowing her brows in concentration.

"That we fall for bad boys because the thrill of the danger of being with them releases adrenaline which eventually triggers the dopamine," Anna replied. "And voila, there you have it; the reason why Eli is so goddamn sexy and why we all want to fuck him."

Mia nearly choked on a sip again, causing her to cough and hack. "Jesus, Anna! Could you be more blunt? And wrong, by the way?"

"Uh yeah, I get he's hot and all, but he's not my type," Zoe said, wrinkling her nose. "He's more of a bro-kinda-guy. You know, the friend-type."

"And you know I can't stand the guy," Mia agreed, sipping her wine. "First chance I get, I'll break his pierced nose. Just like he broke my hallway."

"Okay seriously, it's just a hallway," Anna drawled. "How long are you going to obsess about it?"

"Until it is returned to its original state," Mia firmly snapped. "I don't want to talk about him anymore, please change the subject."

"Whatever," Anna said, pulling herself up into a seated position. "I still think he's sexy as fuck with all his ink and that brooding stare, like he could just eat you."

"And that's exactly the thing; I would never sleep with someone purely based on their looks," Mia told, sitting up as well. "It's all about personality, and Eli has proved he's nothing but a great, big dick."

"Well I wouldn't mind getting a little of that great, big dick, then," Anna slyly commented and waggled her eyebrows.

"Gross!" Mia exclaimed, shuddering. "Changing the subject now!"

"Oh, don't be such a prude," Anna scoffed and rolled her eyes. "But fine. If your white little ears can't handle a little dirty talk, let's talk about something else."

"My white ears has put up with your mouth for years, honey," Mia countered. "I just don't like the fact that you're into criminals."

"Ah, but that's just my dopamine and adrenaline, remember?" She winked, chuckling when Mia rolled her eyes.

"Subject change; Go."

"Alright, I got one!" Zoe broke in, having been quiet while they sorted their dispute. "Let's talk about that mac and cheese you promised to make us, Mia."

~~~

It was a late afternoon and Mia found herself staring at a blank canvas in an empty art studio at the Alexandrettia. Since Valenches had banned her from the classes, she had resorted to staying late to do some painting so she wouldn't fall behind. It was now hours after she had stepped in and sat down on her stool, and she was still glaring hopelessly at her white canvas. Nothing came to her.

Maybe Valenches was right. Maybe she had lost her inspiration, her muse. She used to take everyday situations and transform them into something beautiful and abstract, but for some reason, she couldn't do that anymore. Something had changed about her and she didn't know what it was.

"Are you fucking done yet?"

Mia let out a startled scream and nearly fell off her stool. She got caught by a pair of inked hands that curled around her arms and kept her from kissing the floor. When she twisted around, she shouldn't have been surprised to see him there, but their closeness changed the game. His face was right there and his eyes looked more deadly and intense than ever.

"What are you doing in here?!" She screeched, etching away from him. He let go of her arms and allowed her to rise from the stool.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" He glared at her and picked up a mop he had leaned up against a table.

"Oh." That was the only thing Mia could think to reply. After another moment, she simply looked back at her blank canvas, evaluating if she should just give up and come back tomorrow, or stay a little longer and see if inspiration popped by.

"Are you just going to keep staring at that blank canvas or should I come back later when the princess is done?" Eli flatly commented behind her.

Clenching her jaw, Mia decided not to meet his gaze. "I'm not staring, I'm thinking. I don't know what to paint."

"Oh, and here I thought you were trying to find the rabbit in the snowstorm."

She resisted the urge to roll her eyes and instead turned to look at him. "You know they say that sarcasm is the lowest form of wit."

"Is that what they say?" He replied, his face stone cold. "Who are they exactly?"

"People," She just snapped.

"People?" Eli repeated. He slowly took a step closer, instantly towering above her. "Because I thought it was Oscar Wilde who said 'sarcasm is the lowest form of wit, but the highest form of intelligence.' Next time you want to spew pretentious knowledge, make sure you educate yourself first, princess."

Mia's jaw dropped. Did Eli the vandalist seriously just quote Oscar Wilde to her?

She sternly collected herself. "Whatever. Just go away, I need to find my inspiration and I can't do that with you breathing down my neck."

"Where would you like me breathing then, princess?"

He leaned down and made Mia's pulse rise. Being so close to him, she could count every spec of black in his payne's gray eyes. They were so dark, so raw, it had her breath coming out in small shaky puffs.

And then of course, her eyes fell to the tattoos that crawled up his neck and decorated his skin. They went all the way up into his hairline, around his ears to his temples, all the way to the back of his head. It looked like the most hauntingly, beautiful virus was taking over his body, spreading all across his skin. It was strangely... hypnotic to look at. Just because she didn't like his extensive ink work, it didn't mean she couldn't appreciate the finer art. It made Mia think about what Anna had said; How far down did the ink go?

"Like what you see?" He whispered, cocking his brow.

Swallowing a hard lump, she fiercely met his eyes. "I was looking at your tattoos, not you."

"My tats are a part of me, ergo you were checking me out." He drew back and rolled the mop between his hands. "Go ahead princess, take a good look."

And Mia did just that, simply because she couldn't help it. The uniform hid most of his body, but it still revealed the faint outlines of the giant frame beneath. She had never really taken the time to look at the motives on his hands, but now that she did, she recognized a familiar face.

"Is that Salvador Dali?" She gasped, taking a step closer without thinking. She reached for his hand, and surprisingly enough, he allowed her to take it in her own and study the beautiful ink job. The detailing of Dali's face was amazing. Even without his weird, pointy mustache, she would've been able to recognize him. He was one of her favorite artists of all time.

His work was so incredible and had been so abstract for his time. As a person he had been a bit crazy, but he never let anyone discourage him from doing what he wanted. She now realized that perhaps that was the reason Eli had tattooed him on his hand – the hand that didn't stop at nothing to do crazy things either.

"How many tattoos do you have?" Mia wondered out loud when she could tell the tattoos continued up his wrists. She looked up to meet his eyes and found him already staring entertained down at her.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" He said, pulling his calloused hand out of hers.

"I would," She soberly replied. "I actually really would. May I?" She gestured to the zipper on his uniform.

"And why the fuck would I let you do that?" He said, cocking his head to the side. "If you want me to strip, I expect something in return."

Mia pursed her lips, but then flattened them into a thin line. "Like what?"

A small smirk – the first real one she had seen on his lips – tugged on the corners his lips. He took the mop in his hands and then leaned it up against a nearby easel, before he crossed his arms over his chest. "If you wanna to see me, I wanna to see you."

"What?!" Mia exclaimed. She knew she shouldn't have humored him. "You want me to—" She glared down at her top when his eyes fell to her breasts. "No way, you sick fucking perv! I'm not letting you see my breasts!"

"Too bad," He said, picking up his mop again. "I guess that canvas is going to stay blank."

"Excuse me?"

"I've got a whole body full of inspiration, princess," He said, suddenly stepping so close to her, their faces were but inches apart. "You say you want some? I'll give you some. But I expect something in return, baby."

With her breath caught in her throat, Mia's eyes fell to his lips that were slightly parted. His cupid's bow was sharp and defined while his bottom lip was soft and round. Inviting.

Where the fuck did that come from? Mia thought, quickly blinking up to meet his eyes. They were deep and piercing, waiting for her reply.

Was she seriously considering this?

She swallowed heavily again. "How much would I have to show?"

"How much do you want to see of me?" He replied, cocking a brow. He was enjoying this. Mia fucking hated it.

She wanted to see it all, but she didn't want him seeing all of her. Was that unjust of her? There was a difference after all, between male breasts and female breasts... or so society said.

"Just the top," Mia heard herself reply, not actually believing she was doing this. She had to be seriously desperate if she was going to such measures as stripping to get inspiration. This was crazy. She hated this guy. Hated him. But these tattoos... there was something about them...

"Unzip me then," Eli commanded. He tilted his head to the side and watched her doe eyes nervously dance across his body, so unsure of the situation she had put herself in.

This really was crazy.

Slowly, after taking a deep breath, Mia brought her hands to the zipper by Eli's throat and started dragging it down. Down it went, each little metal peg making shivers run down her spine as the suit open. He didn't wear a shirt underneath. Once the zipper was just above his crotch, Mia determinedly stopped it. It didn't need to go lower than that. Jesus, no.

She then lifted her hands back up to the collar of his suit to begin dragging it off his broad shoulders. Mia gritted her teeth when she noticed he had a little cocky smirk plastered on his lips. From the looks of it, he was taking pleasure in seeing her hands shake anxiously. Asshole.

"You'd think you'd never undressed a man before," He said, wasting no time beating around the bush. "Are you a virgin?"

"What?!" Mia screeched and froze her task of pulling the material past his shoulders. "What kind of question is that?! It's non of your goddamn business!"

"Keep believing that. Now finish taking off my clothes," He ordered, sarcasm dripping off his tongue.

Mia swallowed the curses she wanted to voice and instead focused on what was so close within her grasp now. Working the janitorial suit down and off his shoulders and arms, she had to step back when she came face to face with what the suit had been hiding.

– She had to grab onto her stool not to collapse from the astonishment that met her.

As Eli tied the arms of the suit around his waist, making the many motives on his arms and chest move and catch the light, Mia dropped her jaw and gaped mutely at the art that met her.

All the way up his left arm, beautiful art pieces of Salvador Dali celebrated his surrealistic work and his eccentric character. On his right arm, however, Mia recognized several British tributes; The Queen of England, Union Jack, Big Ben. It had her briefly wondering if he had English roots or relatives or if he simply adored Britain.

However, the thing that had her eyes pinned to his upper body was the giant portrait of the Hindu goddess Kali that filled his entire stomach and the first part of his chest. Whimsical feathers and black paisley patterns decorated his décolletage and shoulders, as well as the lower part of his hips. They contoured his masculine body beautifully and made a crisp contrast to his faintly sunkissed skin. His neck had the beautiful, reddish lotus flower which symbolized strength in tough conditions, and of course she couldn't overlook the fact that his nipples were pierced too, each with a shining silver stud going straight through them.

– And this was just his front. She hadn't even seen his back yet and she was already completely speechless.

Overwhelmed, Mia placed a hand over her mouth when she couldn't stop gaping. The amount of extensive ink he had on his body was incredible. So beautiful in a way she never thought she'd think about tattoos, and so meaningful that funnily enough, it would take Salvador Dali to capture it best.

"Look who finally shut up," Eli suddenly said, drawing her attention back to his eyes. He wasn't smirking anymore. He looked serious and guarded like he always did.

"It's just so..." Mia whispered, stepping closer.

"It's your turn, princess. I hope you haven't forgotten our deal."

For a complete moment, Mia actually had. She had been so caught up in his many, many motives and patterns, she had forgotten she had struck a deal with the devil.

Meeting his eyes, she hesitated a little, but then slowly brought her hands to the hem of her top. She then hesitated again, insecurity creeping into her. She had never been the insecure type, but standing in front of Eli's decorated body, her own suddenly felt inadequate. "Do you mind if I take my shirt off with my back facing you? It's just... it's a little boundary breaking for me." She only half-lied.

"I'm sure it is. You rich chicks aren't used to breaking the boundaries, are you?" He drawled with not a care in his voice. "Go ahead princess, turn around – if you think you can keep your hungry eyes off me."

Anger spiking in her stomach, Mia pressed her lips together and then fiercely turned around. She just had to get this over with quickly and then maybe she could return to her normal life again – the one where she didn't agree to strip for something that suddenly seemed so difficult to remember. If she had to explain this to anyone who might walk in on them she wouldn't know how to begin.

Slowly, while trying to keep in mind that bras were just like bikinis, Mia pulled her top up and off her body, discarding it on her stool before turning back around – only she never got that far.

Warm arms came around her waist and a scent so raw and enticing engulfed her body in the most delicious way possible. Eli's tattooed hands with the words ROAD and ZION written across his fingers trailed across the bare skin of her stomach, tickling its way up to her sternum.

Heat exploded inside Mia and she involuntarily gasped when he pulled her backwards into his hard body, her spine and shoulder blades connecting with the rock-hard surface of his pecs and piercings. "Wh-what are you d-doing?!"

"Giving you what you really want," He whispered against her neck. His chest rumbled against her body as his spoke with that deep voice. "You know, eyes are like windows to the soul, and your soul, princess, is screaming fuck me."

Writhing in his hold, Mia suddenly struggled to get out. Her body was betraying her when his words crawled under her skin and into her system, infecting her brain with wrong sensations. She wasn't supposed to like the feel of his strong body pressed against her own, or the feel of his criminal fingers playing across her skin, itching towards her bra cup. She couldn't think straight, but she knew this was bad. Very bad.

"Get off me," She finally said with a shaky voice. It was barely even a whisper. "This was a bad idea."

"You knew that when you started it," He growled, the outline of his lips grazing the shell of her ear. A shiver went up her body. "And yet you continued with it. Ask yourself why."

Mia now remembered Anna's words about how girls got attracted to the bad boys rather than the good ones. Adrenaline and dopamine was what got her into this quagmire; The final step to the process – the seal of the horrible deal – would be the mighty O. And she was never going there with him – not even if her body was traitorously disagreeing with her.

"Let go," She said again, her voice a little stronger. It was incredible just how hard it was to withstand her own impulses. She wanted to reach back and touch him too, feel the contour of his jawline, the itch of his faint stubbles against her skin, and most of all, she wanted to feel those badly-mouthed lips on her own, feel them invade and savage her until she was left breathless and panting for more.

Dopamine and adrenaline. It's just what it is.

"Fine. I'll let go," Eli then surprised her by replying, though not living up to his words straight away. He cupped her chin and turned her head sideways, then leaned down and pressed his lips against the shell of her ear. "But know that when you come running back to me – and trust me you will," He whispered, biting into her ear – just one small bite that made her quiver. "I won't be waiting for you, princess. That's not my style."

Mia had a good idea about what his style involved and it definitely wasn't monogamy. With a controlled breath, she therefore forced herself to step out of his hold, his arms now releasing her and allowing her to escape. "I don't come crawling back to criminals. That's not my style." She strongly responded, though her knees were shaking.

She heard Eli let out a light scoff while she quickly pulled on her shirt again. "You don't know what your style is yet and that's why you can't paint a fucking shit. The sooner you realize that, the sooner you'll come to me and the sooner you'll have something to put on that little blank canvas if yours."

Stunned, Mia spun around, only to find Eli walking up to the door. The full image of his back now sprung to her eyes and she found herself gaping again.

A giant decorative skull – something that reminded her of the devil – took up the entire space of his back, save for the upper-middle part of his neck and spine where a geometric, triangular motive posed an almost illuminati-like enigma. Like Kali on his stomach, the skull had intense shadows and intricate lines, all of which only seemed to emphasize the muscular contours of his back.

He slowly glanced over his shoulder and met her with his piercing dark eyes, instantly making her breath freeze in her throat. After a long, hard moment of staring, he finally walked out into the deserted hall, leaving Mia completely shaken to her core.

• • •

Payne's gray is my favorite color. Google it.