she'd made more than a dozen bribes and triple that in threats to track him down, chen ye vanishing before her very eyes months ago. no words, no goodbyes, not even a simple letter to satiate her. father hadn't made her privy to the inner workings of business. if anything, she'd been shielded from it all, held in complete darkness and for the longest time? meng yuqi had been content to live that way. as long as she had what she desired, the means could possibly justify the ends.

it is the darkness she's most comfortable wading through anyway, moving in secret and avoiding a watchful eye. she was sheltered, not useless. the need to be cunning and selfish, ruthless for her own desires, was simply in her blood. so she'd take and take until her comfort was restored, even if today, it's led her into the unknown. a street name she can't recognize, area she couldn't even remember having been driven through, glancing above at the name matching the description she'd been given.

nothing about her appearance would indicate she'd be stepping into a tattoo shop, far too bright and delicate as she steps inside. her eyes peel the surroundings, promptly stopping at the only one who'd brought her to this place in the first place. yuqi is too prideful to admit she'd missed him just yet, even if it's glaringly obvious without words. she's even to prideful to ask him one of the seven questions in her head. instead, manicured nails tap on the counter, waiting for him to look her way. "i'm here to get a tattoo, can you help me?"