A Marigold by any other name

Lying shirtless on a leather cushion padded ink bed with her eyes tightly shut, Melody anxiously waits to feel the piercing of the needle, tattoo artist Jonah would use to permanently tarnish her body. Melody who is terrified of needles made a conscious decision of getting a tattoo about a week ago, though now that she hears the loud buzzing noise of the coil tattoo machine her worries are getting even more intense, with second thoughts of backing out her mind travels through time with recollection of several events that brought her to this very moment.

“Here you go Mel put this helmet on, gotta make sure my girl is safe” This is what Jerimiah said to Melody. Her memories have taken her all the way back to college as she recalls time spent with the first man, she ever loved Jerimiah Davenport. Jerimiah was the assistant for Melody’s academic advisor. It was her first week of semester one at Lafayette University (LU), a very lost Mel did not yet have a complete course schedule and was an undecided major. Melody spent a lot of time in her academic advisor’s office. Jerimah well into his groove at LU with it being his third year, could not help but notice Melody. She was of caramel complexion with hazelnut brown eyes, lusciously glossed full set of lips and a pair of hips and tits curved to perfection. Of course, Melody took notice of his flawless dark brown skin, perfectly chiseled physique and dazzling white smile with dimples that made her want to snuggle every day of the week with him. Not wasting any time Jerimiah took his shot, courageously asking Mel to be his girlfriend, without hesitation Melody accepted. As lost as she seemed to be in life, she was in no position to turn down a friendship or companion of any kind. Jerimiah yelled “Now wrap your arms around me and hold on to me like you love me!” He and Melody sped off into the night. Unfortunately, their relationship lasted, as long as, their extremely fast motorcycle ride. While Jerimiah enjoyed the idea of Melody he was not committed to her exclusively as she expected him to be.

Men longing and chasing after Melody was nothing new for her. Matter of fact, it seemed to be her never ending cycle. After a year of ups and downs spent loving Jerimiah, Melody found herself falling for his type repeatedly. Flawless brown skin, undeniably perfect features, and an irresistible physique. Also matching in character these men would fake the desire to be in an exclusive relationship with Melody. Once the level of intimacy had been reached the exclusive factor went right out the window, shortly after the relationship followed.

About a week ago, frustration of low self-esteem formed as depression in Melody’s life. Her best friend Sanae who knows Mel better than she even know herself sometimes, called her out on it. Melody and Sanae have been best friends since kindergarten blood could not make them any closer. They had grown and shared everything together clothes, schools, secrets and families. Naturally when Sanae had hurt feelings so did Meldoy and vice versa. Now recalling her latest failed situation ship, Melody’s memory of how toxic the past six months of her life have been, are painful and exhausting enough she hadn’t realized her tattoo was now finished.

“Mel, Mel!! Damn Jonah, you tattooed her into a coma!” Sanae exclaimed. Coming to at the sound of coma Melody cannot help but laugh at her always extra best friend. “Sanae I was not in a coma.” Melody states with a smile on her face. Sanae responds while rolling her eyes “you were freaking out at the sound of the machine and I know your fear of needles, you had me worried for a minute.” Melody laughs as Jonah hands her the mirror to view his artistry skills. Taking the handheld mirror and holding it parallel to the side of her right rib cage Mel’s face instantly begins to glow as she is in awe of how beautiful the image of the perfectly budding marigold flower has been designed on her body. Her mind rushes a quick flashback of those memories of failed relationships and tears roll down her rosy caramel cheeks. An emotion struck Sanae asks “what’s wrong Melody, you don’t like it?” Barely speaking English as she tries to talk while crying, “I love it! The marigold flower captures the essence of who I am truly!” Sanae begins to cry, “exactly, just like we discussed last week”.

Both Melody and Sanae flashback to last week as they blow their noses with the Kleenex tissue Jonah has provided. “You need to do something that will remind you of who you truly are” Sanae said to hype up her depressed friend. Sanae continues, “Get a tattoo!” Mel rolled her eyes and yelled. “NO! That will hurt, and I’m scared of needles!” Sanae insists, “Can’t hurt worse than what you have been through already, how about a marigold flower? I think of you as my budding marigold flower, look it up…you will see that I am right, if you agree, you get the tattoo, deal?” An irritated Melody sits at the desk opens her laptop and pulls up the internet browser, to google the significance of a marigold flower, she reads “In modern western culture, marigolds symbolize positive emotions and energy. We associate the flowers' fiery yellow, orange, and red hues with the warmth of the Sun, happiness, joy, optimism, and good luck. Yet, marigolds sometimes symbolize darker emotions such as jealousy, grief, despair, and mourning.” After reading about the marigold flower Mel cannot deny how it represents her reality, a reflection of good and bad. Reluctantly Melody agrees “deal.”

Now standing in front a full-length mirror attached to the wall of the tattoo shop, the girls are suddenly brought back into the moment by the sound of Jonah’s voice, “So which one of you will be paying me and is that going to be cash or card?”