The dragonflies tattoist - Freenbecky

Chapter 9

It had been eleven days since Becky confessed she was in love with her, and still, no response to any of Freen's messages.

"You're acting like an idiot, Becky." Every day, the frustration made her texts a little harsher. "And a coward too."

It was Sunday.

The good thing about Sundays for Freen Sarocha was that she didn't have to work, which meant a break from wearing heavy sweaters and giving her hand some rest. The downside? More free time meant more hours to think about Becky.

"You should stop acting like a desperate weirdo and just go to her apartment already, Freen," Eve called down from the top bunk. Judging by the sounds coming from her side, Freen could tell her adoptive sister was probably watching a live Beyoncé concert.

The mention of Becky's apartment reminded Freen that it had been a month since that phone call. If her calculations were right, today was the day Becky had agreed to start painting her.

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She didn't expect Becky to actually open the door.

Becky would probably just see her through the peephole and ignore her, like she always did. But still, Freen felt she had to be there. They had made a deal, and she wasn't the kind of person to break her word.

After riding the elevator up to the thirteenth floor, where Becky lived, Freen found apartment D. She stopped in front of it, facing the door.

It was plain white, just like all the others, with the same carved details. Freen chuckled to herself. The building's designers probably wanted to create the illusion that all the apartments were the same, but she was sure that none were quite like Becky's, or 12-B, or 4-F, or 15-C.

She was just about to knock on that identical-looking door when she heard shouting from inside, and her hand froze mid-air.

"PAY ME NOW!" A man's voice, angry and unfamiliar.

"I ALREADY DID!" Becky, sounding furious.

"THAT'S NOT WHAT I MEANT!"

"I'M NOT SLEEPING WITH YOU, NOE!"

Great. Now the stranger had a name, but he was still a stranger.

"BUT YOU DO IT WITH EVERYONE!"

Freen flinched at the sound of shattering glass, followed by hurried footsteps that grew louder, and then the screech of the door swinging open.

The first thing she saw was the man who had to be Noe. His wavy hair was messy, and a thin trail of blood trickled down his forehead. He looked disoriented.

Next, she noticed Rebecca Armstrong gripping him by the collar, shoving him out into the hallway.

Freen Sarocha had never seen Rebecca Armstrong angry... until that day.

Watching her now, in this state, Freen was certain that if Becky ever directed that look of pure hatred at her, she probably wouldn't live to tell the tale.

Becky tightened her grip on Noe's shirt, forcing him to meet her eyes. The man visibly shook with fear.

In that moment, Freen knew that no novelist could ever create a villain more terrifying than the one Becky had just become.

"I don't mess with you," Becky spat, pushing Noe harder down the hallway.

The man stumbled, then hurriedly dashed toward the elevator, jamming random buttons as if he didn't care where it took him. He just needed to get away from Rebecca Armstrong.