"Isaac...I don't know what to say."

Now, you would think that I said these words tearfully, perhaps even ran into my dear boy's arms crying that this was the best and sweetest date idea ever.

Nope. When I spoke, my tone was confused, dry, and a little bit disappointed.

I mean, by the way Isaac said the word "surprise" I was...well, I was thinking of something a little more impressive than a tattoo place.

Isaac poked my arm. "This isn't all I have planned, Cece!" He said cheerily. "I'm taking us out for dinner after this...but I wanted you to be here when I got it."

"Isaac you know tattoos are permanent, right?" I asked after a moment. Isaac lifted his eyebrows. "Duh."

"So...uh...I mean...if this relationship doesn't really work out." I stammered. "You're always...uh...going to have that tattoo."

Isaac stared at me for a moment, his head tilted slightly to the right. Then he laughed. He grabbed my shoulders tightly, grinning. "Cecilia Kee, you have left a tattoo on my heart. No matter what happens between the two of us, know that you are a permanent part of my life and my past. I will always care about you."

Much against my will, my eyes began to water. The confidence in his voice and the strength in his grip made me believe every word he was saying. I took a deep breath, squared my shoulders, and nodded once. "That means a lot Isaac." I choked.

Isaac let me go. "I was hoping it would...now...what's your favorite animal?"

<>

Two hours. That's how long it took Isaac to get that tattoo.

I think the first problem was processing the papers. Technically, Isaac still wasn't old enough to get a tattoo, so he had to give the tattoo artist the previous papers his dad had signed. Isaac was asked a lot of questions revolving around his father's death, which I could tell made him uncomfortable. Luckily, the tattoo artist had enough sense to avoid asking Isaac about about his scars.

Once all of that was sorted out, it was time to get the tattoo.

I'm not going to lie, the entire experience was bittersweet...and rather annoying. See, Isaac couldn't seem to decide on a number of things.

He had no idea where he wanted the tattoo, he had no idea what it was going to look like (except that it would have a cheetah silhouette on it) and he didn't know what kind of text-style he wanted.

So picking these things out in itself took a bit of time, and then it came to the point where Isaac was getting his tattoo.

First of all, it was literally hell for me.

When you're with someone, seeing them get hurt is the most sad and terrifying thing in existence. And the face Isaac made as he got the tattoo--near his collarbone, close to his heart--was completely heartbreaking.

But, once it was all said in done, we both walked out of the tattoo parlor with a spring in our step. Isaac had decided on a cheetah silhouette running across a grey cancer ribbon, with curly blue writing under it.

The quote read: If you'd say goodbye today I'd ask you to be true. It was a quote from a My Chemical Romance song.

Though I was iffy about it at first, the idea of Isaac having a tattoo for me meant a lot. It's the sweetest thing anyone has ever done for me (except for the time that Nala judo flipped that creepy guy at the mall that was following me around and poking me. That was pretty cool...)

Okay, obviously those things had two different meanings to me, but it was still something that made me love them a little more.

I'd always been the shy girl, too scared of anyone finding out about my secret to make many friends. Nala had been my only outlet. My only support.

Now I had Isaac and Nala. Two supports, two outlets.

Maybe with the two of them I would be able to fight this off. Maybe I could continue to stand.

I blinked back tears when I realized that this was the first bright spark of hope that had grown in my chest.

Isaac and Nala had given me hope.

Maybe that's all I needed.