Daydreaming about Me

Chapter 1

In late August, the scorching sun and the intense heat made the air feelsticky and oppressive. A few days before the start of the school term, several downpours slightly lowered the temperature.

At 2:30 in the afternoon, Lin Yujing stood at the entrance of the mall, watching the rain splashing on the smooth stone pavement, soaking the shoes of those standing outside. After waiting for ten minutes, the rain showed no sign of stopping. Holding a shopping bag in one hand, she checked her phone for any calls or messages and then walked to the large glass doors in the corner. She hung the bag on her arm and formed a camera frame with her fingers, closing one eye.

Tall buildings surrounded her, with various stylish shops on both sides of the mall. Across the street, the giant Starbucks logo was drenched in rain, making the green mermaid look like she had sunk to the bottom of the sea, giving the whole scene a wet and hazy opulence.

The environment felt both familiar and strange. Lin Yujing had only arrived in City A two days ago. Three months earlier, she had witnessed the end of her parents’ tumultuous marriage. They had fought even over her custody. At the time, during their last dinner as a family, her mother, Lin Zhi, said with a cold indifference that Lin Yujing would stay with her father.

The fight over her custody was intense, with accusations flying and emotions running high. But Lin Yujing felt numb, as if she were watching a movie, disconnected from the chaos around her. Her father, Meng Weiguo, eventually took her in, quickly moving on with his life and marrying another wealthy woman, Guo Xiangmei, who treated Lin Yujing with superficial kindness.

Lin Yujing’s new home was in a high-end villa district in the city center. Not wanting to face her new family immediately, she decided to wander around the city, exploring the narrow alleys and old residential areas, trying to get lost in the unfamiliar surroundings.

As she roamed, she came across an old, single iron door painted black, with white letters spelling “TATTOO.” The door was ajar, inviting her into what seemed like a mysterious place.

A Tattoo Shop?

The iron door wasn’t very high. Lin Yujing stood on tiptoe and saw a small courtyard of about three or four square meters inside, directly facing a wooden door with a complex totem carved on a wooden sign above it.

Lin Yujing was deeply attracted by this tattoo shop, which screamed “I’m awesome but low-key” from the inside out. She hesitated for a few seconds before raising her hand, extending a finger, and gently pushing the black iron door. It made a creaking sound, long and drawn out.

The small courtyard was indeed tiny, with wild-growing plants. Lin Yujing walked to the door and pushed it open. The interior was dimly lit, with a reddish hue. The dark gray walls were adorned with red tapestries and densely packed tattoo designs, all beautifully intricate.

She looked around with her head tilted up, then turned around and froze. She just noticed that there were people in the room. They were hidden in a blind spot behind the door.

In the corner, partially blocked by the door, sat three men on a deep gray sofa covered with a mess of cushions and pillows. They were all very handsome, in a rugged sort of way, with dreadlocks that looked like triplets’ mops and complex sleeve tattoos like triplets.

The three men looked up at her simultaneously, their expressions varied. The one in the middle, with a small mole under his eye, seemed a bit hostile. On the left, the guy with a slightly longer hair length had a cigarette in his mouth, raising his eyebrows in curiosity. The one on the right, with tattoos climbing up his neck, appeared amused.

The mop stared straight at her, motionless, creating an eerie atmosphere. One of them was even frozen in the act of holding a cigarette to his lips, with the cigarette suspended three centimeters from his mouth, as if someone had pressed the pause button.

Then, the eyes of Mop No. 1 moved from her face down to her clothes.

Lin Yujing didn’t understand why these three mops were looking at her as if she were a gorilla in a zoo. Their curious and eerie gazes almost made her think she had just streaked in singing “Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.”

She stood there, being scrutinized by these three gangsters for five or six seconds. Feeling a bit awkward, she raised her hand slightly and said, “…Hi?”

With a snap, the air began to move again. Mop No. 1, who was sitting on the carpet leaning against the sofa, bit his cigarette and jabbed his elbow, which was covered in tattoos, backward. “Jun.”

It was only then that Lin Yujing noticed there was a fourth person on the sofa.

It wasn’t her eyesight that was poor; the elusive fourth person had his head covered with a dark gray blanket that extended to his waist. He wore dark gray pants, blending completely into the sofa of the same color. There were two pillows on his stomach, and he was lying still, half obscured by his mop friends, making him hard to see at a glance.

Despite being poked for quite a while, he didn’t react, lying on the sofa like a noble Sleeping Beauty.

Mop No. 1 called him again, “Shen Jun.”

Sleeping Beauty stirred, humming from his nose, and stretched out his long leg that was curled up against the sofa, turned over, and continued to sleep with his face turned inward.

The blanket was still covering his head and looked quite thick. Lin Yujing was worried he might suffocate himself.

Mop No. 1 clicked his tongue, twisted his body, and slapped his butt twice, “Stop sleeping, get up and entertain the guest.”

Sleeping Beauty was disturbed several times, had his butt attacked by a tattooed tough guy, cursed, grabbed a pillow, and threw it at the person next to him. His voice, like his name, was filled with weariness, hoarse and impatient, “Entertain your mother, get lost.”

“…”

A very irritable gangster.

The author has something to say:

Today, we have the debut of our irritable Sleeping Beauty, Mr. Jun.

Lin Yujing: I am a very genuine person, I am not an actor (?)