The dragonflies tattoist - Freenbecky

Chapter 17

In the second month, Freen met Becky's parents.

It seemed like it was going to be just a regular day, of course, because big moments rarely come with a rainbow announcing their arrival.

Freen woke up before her phone alarm went off, which wasn't unusual since she always did that. The first thing she did was send a good morning text to Becky, who she had been chatting with late into the night.

She showered, got dressed, put on some makeup, and headed to the small dining room for breakfast.

It wasn't surprising to find Milika already there, serving breakfast to her restless kids, while Chanon helped her carry plates back and forth. Milika would be lying if she said she didn't enjoy Chanon's presence in the house, even just a little. Jan was sitting at the table too, for the first time in years. Maybe being pregnant wasn't all that bad.

"Good morning!" Freen greeted as she arrived.

Her big family replied in unison with a simple, "Good morning, Freen."

"Where are your sisters?" Milika asked.

As if summoned by their mother's call, Eve and Malee burst into the room, singing a Beyoncé song, hugging everyone in sight, and yelling the lyrics into their ears. Freen always wondered how their night shifts and university classes didn't completely drain them.

"Becky called me," Eve announced when it was Freen's turn to get her own message. "She wants you to reply to her texts."

Freen just smiled, grabbing her phone to read Becky's usual messages: "Good morning, tattoo artist" and "How did you sleep?"

It's funny how two simple texts can brighten your whole day.

"Talking to that girl you like again?" Milika asked with a teasing smile as she handed Freen a plate stacked with toast. Freen could only nod, cheeks flushing red.

Other than Eve, no one knew how serious her relationship with Becky really was. Not even Chanon. He just thought Becky was a crazy girl obsessed with drawing Freen all the time. 

"If you like her so much, you should just ask her to be your girlfriend, don't you think?" Milika said, raising an eyebrow.

Eve nearly choked on her food, erupting into a coughing fit at the exact moment Milika made the suggestion.

"Milika... I...," Freen stammered, but before she could say more, her phone buzzed with another message.

"Grab her phone, May!" Jan urged.

Despite Freen's best efforts to hold onto it, May was quicker and snatched the phone, passing it over to her older sister.

"Freen wished her good morning as soon as she woke up," Jan announced to everyone at the table. Her siblings chuckled, and Somchai rolled his eyes.

Freen made a grab for her phone, but with May, Tida, and the cramped space at the table in the way, she had no luck.

"Becky asked how her night was, then started telling her about some cheesy dream she had. Oh, and she says she misses kissing her," Jan continued, reading off the messages.

"Jan! Give that back!" Freen yelled, horrified. "That's private!"

When her sister finally handed the phone back, everyone at the table started singing in unison: "Freen has a girlfriend, Freen has a girlfriend."

Great. Now she was the family joke.

"So, you've already kissed her..." Milika teased, clearly enjoying this.

"Milika, I..." Freen tried to respond.

"I want the truth," Somchai cut in, clearly not as amused. Freen swallowed nervously.