The dragonflies tattoist - Freenbecky

Chapter 1

Freen Sarocha was never late for work.

You could always find her arriving on time at the tattoo parlor, most days wearing turtleneck sweaters, tight jeans, dirty Converse, and backward caps of various colors. That day was no different.

"Good morning, Freen!" greeted a tall, blonde man as soon as he saw her come in. He was the receptionist and had a beautiful sun tattooed at the base of his neck, as well as an angel with a woman's face covering his entire arm—a piece Freen had done. He also had a lip piercing and a couple of eyebrow piercings.

"Morning, Chanon," Freen replied with a smile, holding his blue-eyed gaze for a few seconds. "Jan wants to know if you'll join her at the children's hospital to read to the kids after lunch."

Jan was one of Freen's many adoptive sisters, Chanon's girlfriend, and the face of the angel tattoo.

"Of course," Chanon nodded with a smile. "I wouldn't miss it for the world."

After this brief exchange, Freen headed to her workstation, stopping along the way to greet Danai, the shop owner and boss, as well as her other colleagues.

If you approached Freen Sarocha's area, you wouldn't find anything out of the ordinary. The wall was covered in metallic-colored graffiti and flames that quoted various books that had captured her heart. Small, flame-like angels jumped and played among the letters. She also had several drawings made by her younger siblings on another part of the wall, which was so full that she'd soon need more space to display them.

As I said, nothing out of the ordinary.

For the first three hours, the shop was quiet, and Freen only did a couple of small tattoos, of which she was very proud.

Then she arrived, ready to change Freen's life, though neither of them realized it at the time...

The chime of the front door alerted everyone that someone had entered, but only Freen turned to look.

She wore tight pants, high boots, a leather jacket zipped up to her neck, and a beanie, all in black. Her eyes were hidden behind sunglasses, and her flawless, pale skin showed nothing but seriousness.

Freen smiled. She was probably one of those edgy clients who asked for massive skulls on their backs or fierce, wicked snakes coiling up their leg and ascending to devour one of their breasts.

Completely captivated, Freen watched her approach Chanon.

She walked with elegance and confidence, her head held high as if she lived alone in the world, with no chance of stumbling. She was beautiful. Truly. Freen could tell that even from a distance.

Her sculpted features, dark lipstick, and the way she swept her hair to the side as she walked... Was it possible she was real? Was Freen hallucinating?

Her hands delicately flipped through the pages of the portfolios, pausing for a few seconds on each design, slowly dismissing each tattoo artist in the shop... until there was only one portfolio left.

Freen quickly approached the woman. Unlike her, Freen's walk was clumsy, and she often tripped over things around her. Fortunately, that day, nothing interrupted her hurried steps.

"Good morning," Freen greeted shyly as she neared the woman. Judging by her features, she couldn't be more than twenty-two years old.

"Good morning," the mysterious woman replied in a raspy voice, laced with what seemed to be annoyance, without even looking at her. It was as if she was silently telling Freen that she didn't want her there.

But Freen was stubborn and wasn't going to leave.

"If I may help," Freen said kindly, with a warm smile on her face, "maybe Prae, the owner of that portfolio, could be a good choice," she suggested. "Isn't that right, Chanon?"