Birdgirl (camren) PREVIEW

Prologue

"Why do you like eagles so much?" Karla Camila Cabello complained to her best friend of 17 years, Duke Matthew Hunt.

Camila preferred to be called by her middle name. She is of Cuban and Mexican descent with bright brown doe eyes and straight dark brown hair. She is an incoming junior with a passion for any kind of sports. Camila loves watching the games despite her unwillingness to play. She, however, is on the track team and would often compete every now and again.

Despite the flagrant preference, her best friend and their three other friends liked calling her "KC" which is essentially the acronym of her first two names.

The pair were in a tattoo parlor the first day of summer vacation, looking at designs for their first tattoos. Duke had finally convinced Camila not just to go with him but to get inked with him. He was very pleased by his persuasive skills while his best friend had been sulking the entire time they had been there.

"They symbolize a lot of things, KC." Duke started, adjusting his stance to face the brunette who was at least a foot shorter than he is. "They're the 'kings of the skies' and they represent shrewdness, strength and bravery; even immortality. I think I'd like to live on even after I'm dead."

Duke is an 18-year-old soon to be senior. He plays for the soccer team as a centre-forward, scoring most goals than anybody else in his team. He stands over six feet tall with shaggy light brown hair and pale blue eyes. He is easily one of the school heartthrobs but he was taken, with Camila's help of course.

The blue-eyed boy is an only child, and he and Camila have lived next to each other for their entire lives which made him see the younger girl as his own sister.

Camila shrugged his philosophical answer off while her eyes were still fixated on the thick booklet that had pictures and patterns of tattoos. She had finally found a design she liked and took the specific outline with her. She went to sit in one of the intimidating black leather chairs that resembled something that's made for torture.

The brunette girl was definitely nervous. She wasn't too keen about needles repeatedly poking her arm but she wasn't necessarily afraid of them.

"Ready?" A woman who looked to be in her early thirties came up to Camila and took the pattern from her hands. She had shaved head and a significant amount of piercings grazing her earlobes. She even had nose and lip rings. The woman had a sleeve of tattoo on her left arm of Koi fishes with water lilies. She had feminine features with a striking pair of gray eyes. "Where do you want it?"

Camila pointed to the middle of her right forearm. The tattoo artist positioned her arm over the leather chair's wide one. The sight of the instruments she was about to use made Camila feel lightheaded as her pulse raced as fast as the Roadrunner.

She was done in less than an hour and waited for Duke who was still having ink engraved permanently. She admired her enflamed skin, lightly tracing the outline of her new tattoo. It was of an eagle's feather strategically bent to make half of an infinity sign with the words love and life on either sides of the unending loop.

Another half hour later, the brunette boy was done and they were in his silver sedan. The pair compared their inked skins, marveling at the dark print that laid underneath their skin like kids comparing their toys. They were in awe of the intricate shapes and lines that made up the art that they wore.

"I understand your affinity for the eagle." Camila began as she continually inspected the tattoo under her best friend's left antecubital fossa which is the area on the other side of the elbow. "Why that?"

Duke's tattoo was an eagle soaring above a compass. If his arm only freely hung upright from his shoulder, the bird's direction would be facing upward to the skies.