Chapter 10 Rebirth
The artist behind the counter looked up. Mid thirties, arms covered, the particular unbothered energy of someone who was a guru in his job.
"How can I help you?". He stared at him for a moment wondering if he was within age for a tattoo because of his small stature but the clean fit gave it a way. They all assume a teenager being rich is as well of age. Funny they didn’t know it was a grown ass man regressed in a teenage body.
"I need a chest piece," Xavier said. "With just one word,a clean font, nothing decorative. Just the word itself."
The artist set down what he was doing and came around the counter..
"Where on the chest?"
Xavier put a hand flat in the centre of his sternum. "Here. Big enough to mean something. Small enough to be personal."
"Such an elegant statement young lad, What’s the word?"
"Rebirth, and please keep things professional." We might prolly be age mates if not else.
The artist nodded slowly, already thinking about placement and sizing. "Rebirth, that’s something for a teenager, it’s good to start afresh as many times as you want." He didn’t want to indulge more to stay professional.
"Yeah thanks for the advice".
Xavier sat in the chair and the artist — who introduced himself as Cole, which Xavier found mildly amusing because they had the same name -- transferred the stencil and stepped back so Xavier could check the placement in the mirror.
It sat exactly where he’d pointed on his Centre chest with clean block letters. The kind of thing that would be hidden under a shirt and seen only when he chose to show it.
Perfect.
"Good?" Cole asked.
"Good," Xavier said, and laid back.
The needle started and Xavier stared at the ceiling and breathed steadily. It wasn’t unbearable but the pain was as if you were being stung by a swarm of bees in a coordinated order, a sharp consistent sting that demanded attention without being overwhelming. He didn’t ever imagine that he will be one to get ink one day but who knows everyone changes at some point.
Cole worked quietly for a few minutes.
Then — "Can I ask you something?" He said.
"You can ask," Xavier replied.
"What does it mean? Rebirth." Cole didn’t look up from the work. "If you don’t mind. I always ask. People get interesting words for interesting reasons."
Xavier was quiet for a moment.
What does it mean?
It means I died on a train platform at twenty four poor and with a broken heart and woke up with a second chance I did nothing to deserve. It means the version of me that lets people use him up and walk away is gone.
"None of your concern," Xavier said pleasantly.
Cole glanced up briefly with the expression of someone who had heard that answer before and respected it.
"Fair enough," he said, and went back to work.
Forty minutes later Xavier sat up and Cole handed him a mirror.
The word sat clean and dark across the centre of his chest. Bold. Unambiguous.
REBIRTH.
Xavier looked at it for a long moment.
In his previous life he’d never had thought of drawing a permanent tattoo. Never committed to anything physical. Kept everything reversible, everything cheap, everything easily undone in case he needed to retreat. Nevertheless spending such money could get him eating junk food for months.
This wasn’t because of past solitude, it was a sign of change.
He handed the mirror back.
"Good work," he said.
Cole wrapped the piece with the quiet efficiency of someone who took aftercare seriously and ran through the instructions once. He told him the do’s and don’ts, Xavier listened, paid, and pulled his shirt back on carefully. It was he’s first time and he had heard of horrible stuff that happens when you don’t take proper care of newly inked tattoo although his was small.
[ REBATE SYSTEM ]
Transaction Detected: $180 — Tattoo
Base Multiplier (Tier 1): 2x
Total Return: $360
Credited in: 00:10:00
Cap Used: $215 of $10,000
[ Net Balance: $20,357.00 → $20,717.00 ]
[ HIDDEN TASK COMPLETE ]
Personal Milestone — Rebirth
Reward: +500 EXP
[ EXP: 3,150/5,000 ]
"Nice job man love the ink". He waved at him as he walked away. The system even recognised this as a hidden milestone for me.
He stepped out of Black Ink onto the street, new haircut, new clothes, fresh ink underneath the shirt.
He pulled out his new phone and took a photo of himself in the reflection of the shop window. Not for anyone else. Just to mark the moment. The photo was clean. What do you expect from Apple’s latest brand to deliver?.
Day three, he thought, looking at the photo.
This is what three days of change does to a man.
He pocketed his phone and started walking.
Now, he thought, let’s go finish the cap. Imagine the flex of having a job to spend money. He opened his NGO list, found three organisations he hadn’t donated to yet, and started cycling. He found and selected a few and started his business of donation.
[DING]
[ REBATE SYSTEM ]
Charity Donations — Cap Cycle Complete
Total Spent: $5,784
Total Returned: $9,784
⚠ Daily Cap Reached
[ Net Balance: $17,825.00 → $27,609.00 ]
Done, he thought, sliding his phone back into his pocket. Who would’ve thought donating to charity would be so fun. He always donated using an anonymous name and tried to fluctuate between different charity organisations just to protect his identity just in case. Who would’ve guessed a teenage donating thousands of dollars was legit.
He flagged a cab without slowing down and boarded it home.He had already made $27,609 by day three. Not bad.
_ _ _ _ _ _
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