Howls of Cursed Fate

꧁ 𝓒𝓱𝓪𝓹𝓽𝓮𝓻 𝓮𝓵𝓮𝓿𝓮𝓷 ꧂

𝓙𝓪𝓬𝓴𝓹𝓸𝓽

The buzzing of the tattoo needle filled Asher's garage as I sat in the chair, staring at the ceiling. These Fridays' afternoons right after school were occasionally our tattoo time.

Asher was focused, his gloved hand steady as he refreshed one of the tattoos on my forearm. All of my ink had been his work—every design pulled from my own sketches. This one, a small dagger intertwined with vines, was my favorite. But my thoughts weren't on the tattoo right now.

"Yesterday I brought her coffee again, spent time with her, talked..." I began.

"Mhm," Asher hummed, concentrating on his work but I knew his working mind well enough to know he did listen to me.

"She didn't say anything about the boyfriend," I muttered, my frustration clear. "I even pulled out the whole 'I've got big news' thing, you know? Told her about having a job, fixing up the church, working with friends... and nothing. No turning it into her big news. She didn't mention her new boyfriend at all."

Asher glanced up briefly, the needle pausing. "Yeah? That's weird."

"Caden asked among all his friends and beyond, and nothing. I have a feeling he's a big secret."

"You'd think she'd mention it, especially if it's supposed to be a new thing. And why Vivian told you..."

I sighed, flexing my hand as the needle continued its steady hum. "Exactly. I mean, how am I supposed to know if this guy's even real? Caden found no one. There's nothing about him on her socials. No posts, no events. Not a single mention. It's like he shouldn't exist."

Asher's lips curved into a slight smirk. "Maybe he doesn't exist."

I looked at him, raising an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

He tilted his head, eyes flicking between me and the tattoo. "I'm just saying, it sounds like something someone would make up. You know, to get a rise out of you. Maybe she wanted to make you jealous, playing it with Vivian when their kissing didn't work."

I blinked, sitting up a little straighter in the chair. The idea caught me off guard, but it started to make sense the more I thought about it.

"You think she's lying about having a boyfriend?" I asked more for myself.

Asher shrugged, continuing his work on the tattoo. "Could be. I mean, nobody knows who this guy is, right? If he's real, wouldn't there be at least one more person talking about it? Sounds like she's just trying to push your buttons, see how you will react."

I let that sink in for a moment, the pieces starting to click into place. "Yeah... yeah, that makes sense. If she's really with someone, she'd have said something by now. Posted about him at least once." I grinned, feeling a rush of confidence.

"Imaginary boyfriend." Asher chuckled, wiping down my arm before switching to a new section. "That's the spirit. Just focus on the arcade plan. You've got this."

I nodded and my irritation lifted. The idea of her making up a boyfriend felt right. She was Crazy Sunny after all. It explained why she hadn't been open with me, watching my bubbling emotions, and why no one else had heard of him. Savannah was just testing the waters, trying to see how I'd react. And now that I knew? I wasn't going to let her win this little game.

As if on cue, my phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out and saw a stranger's number flash across the screen. It had to be hers, she'd got my phone number a few days ago.

I glanced at Asher, who raised an eyebrow, before answering the call.

"Hey, Sunny," I greeted, keeping my tone casual. I hoped it was really her.