At A Glance
Author	SheanaMarie
Contact	SheanaMarie@bme.anon
When	Three months ago
Artist	Shea
Studio	Cat Tattoo
Location	Addison Texas

I had been thinking about getting my labret pierced for as long as I can remember, but there was always something such as school, or work, or my parents that kept me from doing it. Anytime I mentioned the idea to my fiancé, he would try is best to talk me out of it. He would tell me that my lips were perfect and I didn't need to mess them up by sticking a hole so close to them. He would also mention that we didn't have the money to waste on such things, so I suggested that I do it myself. Needless to say, it was a lot cause.

In April '05, my fiancé suddenly and tragically passed away. With nowhere else to go, I had to move back in with my parents. I fell into a terrible depression, and just couldn't seem to shake it. I didn't spend a single day alone, nor did I want to since the day he passed. Almost a month later, on May 9th my parents had to go out of town on a business trip. I was alone for the first time, left with my depression just eating away at me. Later that day I got a call from Jerome, who had been the closest to me during this tragedy, telling me he had a surprise and I needed to hurry over to his place. I unwillingly dragged myself out of bed, got dressed and headed over there. When I pulled up, he was waiting for me with a big smile on his face. We got in his car, stopped by to pick up Tori, another close friend, and we were on our way. I asked where we were going and they just told me to close my eyes till we got there. When they told me to open my eyes, we were parked in front of the tattoo shop where my fiancé had gotten all his work done. I started to smile, although I was confused as to what exactly they had planned. I figured we were going to get Jerome another tattoo because he told me I could come with him when he got another one done.

The only person I had told about my desire to get my labret done was my fiancé, so I was pleasantly surprised when Shea (the piercer) took me into the piercing room and pulled out a labret stud along with the needle, clamps and so forth. I was uber excited now, knowing that I was finally going to get the piercing I had dreamed about for so long. Even though I have had some 13 piercings over the past 7 years or so, they had all been self done. This was a totally new experience to me. I had done plenty of research so I knew the process and I knew exactly what to expect, yet I was still extremely nervous. As Shea started to mark the piercing, my friend Tori popped her head around the corner and asked quietly "Can I watch?" Shea and I both replied in unison, "Sure, come in, have a seat!" Tori doesn't have any piercings or tattoos, nor has she ever seen either being done. Tori sat down near the table and Shea went back to marking the spot. I checked it in a mirror to be sure I like the placement and then I lay down. My heart started to race as soon as Shea picked up the needle. I also heard a small gasp and a little "eek" come from my friend Tori. Shea put on the clamps, told me to take a deep breath and let it out when she said "go". I took a deep breath; she counted to three and said "go". I let out a sigh as she pushed the needle through. She paused momentarily for some reason at the half way
point, I close my eyes tightly, then it was done. The jewelry was put in, the ball was tightened, and Shea told me I could sit up and breathe for a few min before I stood up. As soon as I sat up, Tori looked at it and said, "Wow that looks really cute on you! Did it hurt?" She looked like she was about to pass out and her face was white as a ghost. I replied "Yeah, it hurt a little, but not too bad." I got up, the piercing was paid for, and we went out for ice-cream.

When I got home later that night, I went to my bathroom and just stared at my new piercing. I was in love! It didn't look stupid at all, and I just couldn't wait until I could change the stud for a ring. A few days after I got it done, I asked my friends how they knew that I wanted my labret pierced. It turns out, my fiancé had told them that he was planning to take me to get it done right before he died, even though he really didn't like the idea. I thought that was really awesome of my friends to carry out what my fiancé was unable to do. Now that I'm mostly out of my depression, I wear my labret piercing proudly, and I can't imagine myself without it. Every time I look at it I think of my fiancé, and my amazing friends. It's really nice to have good people around you to help you through rough times, even if getting through those times requires you to get pierced.