Trouble in Paradise (Arianna and Nicholas) novel Chapter 479

I widened my eyes, my gaze bloodshot. I gripped his wrists tightly as I stared at his left arm.

"W-Why?"

I inhaled sharply, unable to imagine the searing pain of such an extensive tattoo being etched into his flesh. And why… Why was it my face? To me, it should be Claudia's face that would make all of this seem real to me.

The complex scars were connected by black lines. I could make out every delicate strand of hair, drawn with such precision it felt like an artist's masterpiece.

The only unmarred patch of skin on his arm was tattooed with my cheek. The slightly swollen area happened to be where the lips were. I thought it was the result of a burn from earlier, but Nicholas's next words shattered all my assumptions.

"The tattoo you see took me three years. It was only finished the night before you returned to the country. For three years, every time I thought of you, I had the tattoo artist add a stroke to my arm.

"It took a total of 1,012 days to tattoo your face. Every time I thought of you, you made me hurt! When I was sick, it felt so good as if I had found a way to replace self-harm.

"I missed you like crazy, but over time it stopped working. The pain couldn't alleviate the ache in my heart, and my body grew increasingly numb.

"I asked the tattoo artist to ink your eyes and brows as the very last step. I thought, after three years, I should be able to forget your face."

Nicholas tightened his grip around my neck. "But strangely, your image has only become clearer in my memory."

I gasped for air, desperately pounding on Nicholas's body. He probably didn't mean to strangle me to death. He just sneered before releasing me, full of disdain.