A Perfect Paradise (Chainsaw Man AU)

[usefulfinish421]

Hey everyone! Been posting this in AO3 for a bit and been cross-platform posting to the site, so looking forward to the engagement! I'll be doing daily post up until we're all caught up to the story (27 chapters at 150k words), so enjoy the first three chapters here!

 

[usefulfinish421]

For all intents and purposes, Jin is an incredibly unremarkable young man - the kind of guy you pass on the street without a second thought. Twenty-two, slightly tall, curly dark hair, dark eyes. He exists. School, work, brief friendships, a few short-lived romances - nothing sticks, nothing matters much. Drifting through life, he's comfortable as the side character in others' stories, and honestly? He thrives in that role.

Usually, he walks around the city just to observe - not in a creepy way. People-watch, as he would call it. Sitting down on a bench, he rips open a bag of Skittles and observes. The saying 'there's other fish in the sea' isn't for love for Jin, it's for another passerby's story.

And the fish started biting early today.

One couple passing is in a conversation. The woman is talking pretty loud, all things considered: "So for next time, we start with I'm feeling or I perceive…" The voices trail off. A last glimpse of the man before the changing tide of people swallows them forever. The man's smiling and nodding, but tension radiates from the way his lips purse.

*Poor bastard.*

Leaning back, he eats another snack, eyes searching for more stories.

*Hope they make it work though.*

Another man rushes by on the phone: "…YOU TOUCH THAT TURKEY - IT WON'T BE THE ONLY THING GOING DOWN YOUR THROAT…"

A laugh escapes him. He's gotta remember that threat, just in case.

Another couple sprints by, their voices carrying over the now rushing group of people. "HOLD ON! I THINK I FORGOT MY UMBRELLA!"

Following their figures, confused, he realizes he didn't check the weather today -Like usual. But he stops chewing to look at the sky. Like the heavens opening up, the rain pelts down, drenching his unprepared body.

Standing up, he sighs out heavily. "Come on… man…" The rain wets his hair, drooping over his eyes as he grumbles. His gaze drops down to the street, the bustling crowd popping open their umbrellas. The polyester and nylon bounce the rain, the drops splashing him anyway.

*I just.

Wanted.

To.

Be.

Outside.*

He wanted to get away from his cubicle at work. The fake smiles, the awkward small talk, the endless corporate jokes—he can't stand it. And today, outside feels like a pretty sick joke.

Rushing into the sea, he knocks into the passing fish. A few curse words, a few "watch it's" isn't going to stop him. He's had a long day, and just like the fish in front of him swimming, he's finding his nearest cave to hide in.

*Just like an octopus!* he thinks as he continues to sift through. Too bad Jin isn't an octopus, he's floating around like a pufferfish. A pufferfish that is currently disoriented in that sea of umbrellas and angry fish.

In pure panic, a brown windowed door with a classic "Yes! We're Open!" card catches his eye. Slamming inside, he closes the door behind him and takes in his surroundings: a regular looking cafe stares back at him… it seems empty, not even a worker audible in the back.

Turning to the wall with the coat rack, he begins to hang his soaking jacket up. He can take a booth, maybe get a coffee and sit on his phone while he dries off - perfect. But the moment his jacket hits the rack, his hands tremble, sliding down the material to the wall behind it.

*… why today. Every moment… why am I so…*

A soft whimper escapes his lips as he pounds his head into the wall.

THUD

THUD

THUD

"…so you don't want something?" A soft voice asks.

Eyes widening, he spins around. Behind the counter a woman in an apron appears, around his age with a neck choker and ring on it, looking confused. His mouth opens, but he forgets everything when he meets her eyes. The emerald green shining back at him is fierce. Fiery. And holy shit—beautiful. Something deep inside him shifts looking into those eyes. He might throw up.

She's leaning over the counter as he stands there, staring.

"…you look like you had a long day?" A soft smile builds on her face as she asks.

The smile sends electricity up his spine—not in the 'I'm in danger' way, but the kind he's only ever seen in the movies. Somehow, he calms himself in his mind before turning to her fully.

"Sorry, I didn't realize that anyone was in here."

Peeking over him to the side to see the door, she huffs softly. "Usually the open sign means someone's on the clock." Leaning back over the counter, she waits.

Eyebrows raised, he smiles and glances away from her. "You got a really good point. Guess I was trying to get out of the rain."

The girl's eyes glide across his soaking appearance, giggling. "Rain got ya first then?"

"Yeah well, you can't always be checking the weather app."

"This was supposed to be a historic rainstorm!"

"You think I checked the news?" One eyebrow raising.

"This is literally the first time I met you, so I have no idea."

They both laugh.

"Well, maybe you can at least warm up here for a minute. But…" she sweeps her arms around the vacant booths "It's pretty busy here, so you gotta order quick."

Glancing around, he grins. "Yeah, you might want to get out a wet floor sign. Just in case my wet ass has someone slip, I'm not liable for their injuries."

The girl laughs, brushing her purple hair behind her ear, blushing. "You're funny. Now, really, do you want anything? It's on the house."

"...You can be THAT bored."

"I AM that bored. Please get something, the owner's not here."

Scanning the menu, he sees the usual cafe options, nothing too enticing. His eyes drift around the abandoned room and land on a chalkboard by the door he busted through—a cute chibi drawing of the girl in front of him, smiling and holding a coffee. 'Reze's special!' is written neatly underneath. Next to it: 'Days Remaining' with numbers crossed off, only a 1 left.

"What's Reze's special?"

Glancing at the board, she grins. "Well, first I drew that. My masterpiece, ya like it?"

"I wouldn't quit your day job."

They both snort. He has no idea how he made that joke just now—every nerve in his body is on fire as his brain tries to comprehend the current situation.

"Hey! RUDE! I'm a good artist!" Leaning over the counter, she lightly shoves him. "Fine, no Reze's Special then!"

"Wait hold on, I'd like to try it, if you're offering. Just…" Peering behind the counter past her, he squints. "Which one of you is Reze?"

The girl looks confused and turns around to the empty kitchen, turning back around and blinking at his dark eyes. The cogs in her brain turn, thinking and processing what he just said. Her nose crinkles, and slowly a smile beams onto her face.

Belly laughter erupts from both of them.

Wiping her eyes, she grins. "You're an idiot! I thought you saw a ghost or something!"

Snorting, he spreads his arms around the room. "Well you did say it was busy, so I'm glad you have backup in the kitchen!"

Shaking her head, still smiling, she turns toward the espresso machine. "You're funny, I like you already. One MY special, coming up."

Ringing takes over his ears upon hearing her admit that. His mind swirls in thoughts, mostly thinking there's no way this is happening—it's gotta be a dream. Muffled sounds finally break through the fog in his head.

"…. Or iced?"

The voice cuts through him, shattering his concentration. "Hm?"

He looks up to Reze staring right at him as she tilts her head. "Are your ears broken?"

"Not usually."

She scoffs. "When you get coffee, is it hot or iced?"

*Shit. What DO I like?*

"Hot."

"GOOD. This is an Americano, so it's supposed to be."

His gaze drifts back to the chalkboard. The Reze special. The chibi drawing. Why is he staring at it?

"What's the Reze Special?"

"Hmmm?" She peeks over the espresso machine as it hisses to life.

"What's in the drink? Is it a mystery flavor?" He asks, leaning over the counter with more confidence than he's ever felt.

Reze laughs again. "Oh, a bit of rat poison, ricin, chlorophyll for flavor. The usual." She glances down at the espresso machine as she works. "But really, it's my own thing. We get new beans every few weeks, so I try mixing them when they come in. This one's been my favorite—two parts Ethiopian, one part Colombian dark, and the secret?" She pulls out a small white bottle. "A bit of hazelnut creamer."

She leans on the counter. "Doesn't sound too bad, honestly. And this only happens, what, every month or so?"

*Two parts Ethiopian. One part Colombian dark. Hazelnut. Got it.*

"I wish! The owner finally caved and let me put this on the menu."

"Did it sell?"

"Pshh. Not really." The machine hisses at her, the smell of coffee filling the air.

"Maybe writing what's in it works?"

She glances over, hair half falling over her eyes. "You know, I don't do marketing. Besides, the drawing's cute. I thought it would entice. Hell… it did to you."

She finishes pouring the liquid into a paper cup as she grabs a marker and scribbles something on it.

"720 yen, please." She looks up to meet his eyes.

"I thought you said it was on the house."

"You made fun of my drawing!"

Jin snorts. "I didn't make fun of it! I thought it was cute!"

A migraine is assaulting his head for just saying that.

Her face blushes slightly. Heat rises in his own cheeks.

Reze looks at the drink, then back at him. "Ok, so how about a trade? Or 4.50, I'll just count that as my tip.", winking at Jin.

"I was going to tip you, don't worry. I'm, uh, having fun. Breaks up my day, ya know?" Jin pats his pants down for his wallet. Keys, phone… all in their place…. Wallet…. Where…. Is….

The pit in his stomach changes, a 'whole world is ending' feeling settling in. He always overreacts.

Meeting her gaze. "Hey, uh…"

Reze's eyes lock with his, short circuiting his brain.

"Let me check my jacket - I swear I have money."

The coffee cup gets picked up by her. "Oh, I bet you do. If you don't… well" she teasingly holds the cup close to her mouth "I've kind of had a long shift."

Jin's eyes widen. "No, wait I'm good for it!" He stumbles over to his soaked raincoat, he desperately digs in the pockets and taking out its contents.

He digs through his jacket - finding an old receipt, the Skittles from earlier, a random key that he has no idea what its for, before finally finding his wallet.

"Hey Reze, look what I fou -"

"Give that to me. Right. Now." Her voice turns stern, pointing at his outstretched hands.

He freezes. "…Are you robbing me?"

Her emerald eyes roll. "No, you idiot. THOSE!" She screams, pointing at his other hand.

His eyes dart over to his other hand, filled with the other junk. Not sure why she'd want a ramen receipt, the mystery key…

"…The Skittles? That's what you want? Half the bag's gone."

From behind the counter, Reze reaches out and gestures. "Don't care, trade me. I love Skittles!"

Jin looks down at the bag, and smiles. "...Deal."

Her eyes and grin grow as he puts the bag of skittles into her hand. Giving him the coffee, her finger brushes lightly on his hand. Her eyes glow as she starts looking at her payment.

"You got a favorite?" Sipping the Americano given to him. It's… really good. Strong… but sweet. The hazelnut for him really sells it.

*Wow.*

A handful of the candy is already in her hand. "Guess."

Her body fully turns to him, the sweat on his shirt starting to mix with his rain-soaked clothes.

"Uhh… green."

Her lips curl into a smile. "Wow… I didn't know you'd be… WRONG!"

She instantly picks out a purple one and proudly shows it near her hair. "Isn't it obvious?" She asks, as she playfully tosses her hair. "…but green is my second favorite though." The Skittle pops into her mouth.

Jin sips his coffee.

*Damn, that's good.*

"Green's mine actually. Speaking of favorites, this coffee might be up there."

Laughter breaks out from her, throwing her hands up in celebration. "YES! FINALLY! VINDICATION! I can tell the owner!"

"Yeah! Tell him someone FINALLY ordered it!"

Leaning over the counter again, she allows a smile to form while throwing more Skittles in her mouth. "You haven't read what I put on your coffee cup yet, have ya?"

"You wrote something?"

"That's part of the job, idiot." She puts a final candy into her mouth before shoving the Skittles bag into her pocket mindlessly.

Jin takes a look at the coffee cup. It reads '4 A QT '

His face burns. His ears burn. His heart burns. Everything in his body is telling him to run away and never come back.

But he can't. He oddly wants to be here; he doesn't understand why.

Giggling comes from the counter again. "I never got your name, by the way. So I just…" Reze flicks her hair back behind her ear, eyes glowing towards him. "...Wrote something."

"Uhhh. J- Jin. It's Jin."

"…Like the Tekken character?"

"Exactly like the Tekken character."

Leaning back from the counter, Reze raises an eyebrow and crosses her arms. "Oh yeah? Did your dad get thrown into a volcano?"

He laughs. "No, my dad…."

But that's when he stops himself. Today isn't the day to talk about his family.

"No, he didn't get thrown into a volcano."

"Well, I think it would give you a cool backstory." She turns around to the coffee machine to clean it.

His phone vibrates. Picking it up, noticing a missed call from Joe, his heart dropping. He should probably call him back—Joe usually calls today.

"Hey, uh Reze?" He glances over to her. "I have to run. Are you… working here tomorrow too?"

Reze leans from behind the coffee machine. "I got another double shift, if you want to stop by. Besides… I had fun." Reze looks away from Jin, hands cleaning the coffee machine.

"Well, co- cool! I'll see you tomorrow! Bye Reze!!"

SLAM

Jin leaves through the door and starts walking back to his apartment. Even though the rain continues to pour down, everything in his body is burning. He feels like he's going to throw up, but in an oddly good way?

He shakes his head, taking another sip of that coffee.

*God that's so good.*

——————

Reze watches the door close and looks back at the coat rack, Jin's jacket still hangs in the same spot.

"He's an idiot."

Taking it down to put in the lost and found crosses her mind… but she decides to leave it. He'll be back. They always come back.

Her smile fades, a more serious look now settling on her face. It's tiring putting on a facade, and right now she's on overdrive. It was a long day - a lot of customers, a lot of guys hitting on her, a lot of waiting. And suddenly, Jin pops in.

Good thing she's working at a cafe - free coffee. She should probably make herself a cup.

BZZTBZZT

Her phone vibrates. She knows who it is already.

One new message reads from a blocked number.

'HAVE YOU MADE CONTACT WITH THE TARGET?'

'Y. Back tomorrow.'

She walks back behind the counter, putting her phone back into her pocket, something crinkling when the device shoves in. It catches her off guard, the phone getting pulled out to inspect the obstruction.

Skittles. From that idiot.

Her cold demeanor, for a second, shifts. A small smile forms as another purple Skittle pops into her mouth. The flavor explodes in her mouth as she closes her eyes and enjoys it.

But she knows what she has to do. After all, why wouldn't they send her to collect an HVT?

A soft sigh falls out of her as more candy is tossed into her mouth as a twang vibrates from deep inside her gut.

Reze returns behind the counter to clean up a few more things, but her eyes keep darting back to Jin's soaking jacket.

She smiles at it while it drips.

She didn't mean to do that.

 

[usefulfinish421]

Jin feels like he's forgetting something as he crawls into the apartment, drenched. The door slams shut behind him, dropping his bag by the entrance.

He really should've brought an umbrella.

The apartment is small, but functional. A kitchen is the first thing he enters, modern appliances and countertops galore. He passes by the entertainment area, an old futon with a coffee table, TV stand with a PlayStation on it and a decently sized TV. Posters and a few collectibles from pop culture sprinkle around the modern architecture.

Jin walks into the bedroom, adjacent to the living area to change into something dry. Re-entering the living area he plops onto the futon and stares up to the ceiling. He smiles and downs the rest of his coffee - the last Reze Special ever made.

He sits up quickly, feeling… confident?

*Who the hell is this guy?*

The quick motion causes his hand to clip the remote, TV turning on to the news flashing onto the screen.

He freezes.

"…15 years since the tragic fire killed 34…"

The display abruptly cuts to black as he lies back down, tossing the remote aside. He doesn't have to be reminded - Jin needs to focus on something. Something that'll shut his head off. Something….

A beep comes from the PlayStation as it comes to life. Jin quickly turns his TV on and switches to the game input. He's about to grab his controller, but…

Her smile and eyes invade his mind.

Jin stops, and blinks. The hairs on the back of his neck stand up.

"God."

The last time he felt like that had been in high school with a girl named Rina. Every time he saw her he couldn't even think straight. But she would just walk by him - way out of his league.

Or maybe not.

*I made that girl laugh today.*

Jin stares ahead at the TV, the system waiting for his input.

The smile hangs in his mind, teasing him. A long sigh escapes his lips.

A minute later, the controller is on the table next to the empty coffee cup. The apartment door slams shut.

___________________

Jin sits on the same bench again and takes in an empty park, taking a bite into his sandwich.

Work today has been hell for him.

Usually this makes him feel better, hoping for at least some good observations. But the fish are few and far between today.

"I GOTTA GO POTTYYYYY"

A young girl screams, sprinting past Jin. An adult is sprinting to catch up to her, the look of worry on their face.

*That kids not gonna make it, is she?*

Jin laughs to himself, his eyes drifting to the cafe. He can feel his heart sink into his stomach, the building taunting him.

What if she isn't working today? There's no way she'll remember Jin. What if it's busy and she can't talk to him?

He breathes in.

*Just… go for it.*

________

The door creaks open to the cafe as Jin peeks his head in. It's busier than last afternoon, a few patrons scattered inside.

Jin walks in, hearing a soft brush against the wall beside him. He looks over to see an older man erasing the chalkboard - The chibi version of Reze is gone, the words vanishing with each stroke of the block.

"You know, you should sell that full time."

The man stops and looks back. "She only sold, like, four of them. So… sorry. Maybe next time she should - "

"Put the ingredients on the board." Jin and the man both say.

"I told her that last night, terrible marketing."

"Exactly! I was nice enough to let her try it, and she messed it up!" The man laughs, putting the eraser down and walking behind the counter.

"Can I get you anything other than that special?"

"Well, actually I was wondering if -"

CRASH

The two of them jump to the sound and look into the kitchen, Reze appearing from behind one of the machines.

"….oops?" She says, smiling.

Jin's brain short-circuits. That damn smile.

Reze opens her mouth to try to begin explaining something… but her eyes light up at the sight of Jin. "Skittles guy! You're back!" She rushes to the counter, nearly pushing the older man over.

The owner looks at Reze and back at Jin. "I'll let you handle this, I'm not cleaning up your mess. Finish wiping that board down - you spent more time drawing yourself than actually making that special!"

The owner walks away to the back. As soon as he turns around Reze mouths, "Ass. Hole."

A laugh falls out of him, mimicking the barista..

"So, Jin… right? What brings you back here?" She cocks her head, a smile growing.

Why is he back here?

"Coffee."

"Wow. What kind…?" Reze's voice drifts.

"Just… just a drip. Thank you."

Jin turns around to find a seat, face on fire.

"Are you going to pay this time?" Reze leans over the counter to him, pulling his shirt back over.

"Only if it's good." Jin says, smiling back at her.

"Then I'm making the best damn coffee of your life -again!" Her eyes narrow and lets go of Jin, turning around to work.

Jin sits down as far away as he can from the other patrons. Steam hisses behind the counter. When he looks up, he catches sight of Reze's hair—pulled into a ponytail, the front still flopping into her eyes while she focuses. He feels himself go red.

The phone is his only distraction, desperately trying to keep himself from breaking. After mindlessly scrolling, he hears a familiar voice break the silence of the cafe "…my break!"

He looks up, concentration shattering as Reze is suddenly in front of his table, coffee in one hand and a brown book in the other.

"Guess what?"

Jin blinks. "You're… a bookie?"

The purple hair falls back, strands swirling as she laughs. "You wish! No, I'm on break. And you're in my spot." She slides next to Jin, giving him his coffee.

The coffee hits his lips as his palms wrap around the familiar paper cup. It's dark, bold, delicious - everything Jin wants to be. "You're very good at this coffee thing."

"Thanks, I like to think I know what I'm doing!" The book opens up, a pencil rolling out of it. She catches it and starts writing something.

Jin watches her focus- eyes locked on the page, her nose crinkling as her pencil dances. He can't help but look at her notebook, with numbers, letters, and symbols he doesn't recognize crowd the page.

"Are you good at math?" She asks, not missing a beat in her writing.

"Math?... not really. I mean, I was… ok?"

"Well, then you're no help. I'm teaching myself some math today." Her eyes dart to Jin quickly, but fall back to the page.

Jin sips his coffee and leans back into the booth. "Why's that? Are you going back to school to teach?"

A demeanor shift comes from the normal confident woman, nervous energy radiating from her. She shifts and tucks another piece of hair behind her ear, blushing. "I, uh, never… really… got to go to school, actually."

"Wait, seriously? Lucky."

The green eyes roll on Reze's face. "No, I'm not. I wanted to be in school, take classes, make some friends, graduate and throw my cap up."

Her eyes light up.

"Did you do all that? How was graduation? Were your parents proud? Aw, you must've had so much fun!"

The cup lightly crinkles in his grip. He should be honest.

*Not like this is going anywhere anyway.*

"Sure, something like that."

He doesn't know why he lied, his knuckles turning white on the cardboard container.

Reze closes her eyes and smiles "That makes me happy. I hope I get to do that one day…"

Silence falls on the table as Reze gets back to working on her notebook. Jin keeps sipping his coffee and checks his phone.

*5 minutes until he has to get back. 5 minutes until absol-*

"Wait, Jin I have a question. Do you know what the Fibonacci sequence is?"

Reality careens back into Jin, shaking his head. "I'm sorry, what?"

"My workbook has a few questions about it and I'm wondering if you could… help me?" Reze says, a smile forcing onto her lips. Below the table, Jin feels her leg lightly brush on his.

"I'm really not the best at math… and to be honest, I have no idea what you just said to me."

Reze sighs. "You ARE an idiot!" The word idiot doesn't have any bite to it, at least not what he's used to hearing. It's… endearing?

A huff of breath comes out from next to him. "What are ya doing later?" Her pencil clatters onto the table.

Coffee goes down the wrong pipe, making him a choking mess.

"Me?" Jin says in between his coughs, trying desperately to regain his composure.

Reze rolls her eyes. "Yes, YOU!"

Another brush hits Jin's leg.

"Let me teach you some math basics - because SOMEONE didn't pay attention!" Reze blushes looking away, but still steals another glance at Jin. "So you can help me work on my other workbooks, I have SO much to do."

"I uh, I mean I have to finish work today, but I'm not doing anything later. That could be fun?" He can't believe he thinks math will be fun. In fact - he hates math, not understanding why letters and numbers have to be mixed in together

Reze smiles and closes her eyes. "Ok! Come by the cafe after work. Once my shift ends, we can go to the school down the street. Deal?"

Her eyes reopen with those emerald iris, Jin freezing at the thought of going back to that place - it's been long enough to forget about some of the pain, but not long enough to completely be ridden from it all.

*God… fucking…*

"Ye-yeah! I'll swing by."

Something vibrates in his pocket. His heart drops as he shoots up from the booth, legs catch the table and knocking it into the air - the book flies up from impact, Reze catching it quickly and placing it back down to the rumbling table.

"I'm sorry - I gotta go!"

Jin hops away, but before exiting through the door he passes the coat rack, the lone jacket still hanging on.

Shit.

"Is this…?" He points to it, hands grasping onto the dry material.

"Yeah. Yours ya idiot." Reze doesn't even look up from her notebook. "Was waiting to see how long it took you to realize."

Jin nervously laughs, grabbing his coat.

And the octopus jets off.

_________

Reze watches him run out the door again, making his way back to the office. He's half walking, half sprinting, body bouncing off of people with a big smile on his face.

He looks like a lost puppy… or lost something.

She doesn't doubt she's on his mind.

The pencil clatters onto the table as Reze leans back, looking at her notebook. She scans the numbers and equations while a wide smile beams onto her face.

-I really hope this is what scho- -

BZZTBZZT

She sighs, her demeanor changing to ice-cold. Another message.

'TARGET WILL BE ALONE TONIGHT?'

'Y'

She puts her phone back into her pocket. This is too easy. But something is tapping in the back of her head.

She feels… bad?

She pushes the thought away, scribbling numbers down harder than before. It's not the first time she's felt bad for a target. It won't be the last either.

- At least this will be quick. He's an idiot. Clumsy. Too easy. -

And yet… she finds that endearing.

_______

The lights are dim in the office. It's quiet - exactly how the figure likes it. A few computer monitors glow in front of it - watching, reading, waiting. A pen dances in his hand, the writing instrument slinking through its fingers.

Behind the figure, the shadows begin to tear and crawl on the ground. They begin to rise, the black mass opening its maw. A man steps out of the void - older, white hair and mustache. Military looking, but still looks classy. Tie, pocket watch in his collared shirt. Pants pressed and clean.

"Sir, the target is being met again tonight. Alone. This is moving faster than anticipated. Good, yes?" The man asks the figure, his Russian accent thick like the void he came from.

The figure in front doesn't move. "I've heard. Get a strike team ready to evacuate. Just soldiers. No need to send another hybrid." Its voice grovels out, the sound melting within itself.

The old man looks puzzled "But sir, having a second hybrid on standby is protocol for these missions, we sho-"

The pen gets tossed at him, transforming into a long blade. The man shifts his head to the side as the object smashes into the wall - the concrete cracking around the impact point.

A timer starts on the figure.

"Fuck protocol right now Chozin. No other hybrids. I'm not risking this."

Chozin steps back confused, but regains his stoic composure as he fixes his tie. "Yes… sir." The black void rises and engulfs him, retreating back into the darkness. The shadows sink down and dissipate, the figure finally alone again.

It clicks on a keyboard, the feed changing to a strike team training. The blade flies back towards the figure, twisting back into a pen.

The clicking of the timer stops.

 

[usefulfinish421]

Jin hasn't been back to school since he graduated, and hasn't thought about that day since. Immediately following the ceremony he went home and threw on a video game, wanting to push the however many years in the classroom away.

But here he is again. In the same building, looking at the same chalkboard, smelling the same chalk-dusted air, sitting in the same uncomfortable plastic chairs he always hated.

In front of him, Reze is gleaming by the chalkboard.

"Ok! Next! The Fibonacci sequence… what is it?"

Moonlight creeps through the window, catching the emerald in her eyes as she turns to her only student.

She's having… fun.

Leaning back in his chair, a low grunt escapes his throat. He never paid much attention in class, especially math. He probably knows WHAT it is, but the actual name? There's zero chance.

"The triangle thing? A squared plus B squared?"

A snort escapes her mouth. "You're hopeless. No, that's the Pythagorean Theorem. That helps you figure out the hypotenuse of a triangle -" she stops and points with a jokingly stern face. "DON'T QUOTE THE SKIT."

Jin looks down, grumbling about being 'high on potenuse.'

"So, what's Fibonacci?"

"I am so glad you asked." Her voice is light as she spins to the chalkboard, the chalk already dancing against the slate as numbers appear. "It's a series of numbers, like these! You just continue to add the numbers down the line together - so if I have a zero and a one… that equals?"

A confused blink comes from Jin.

*Is this… a test?*

"Eighteen."

"Correct, one!" She doesn't even listen to his answer, chalk already scribbling the number down."Ok, what's one plus one?"

Jin rolls his eyes. "Come on."

Laughter bubbles out of her as she writes a two down. "I'm so glad you know basic math. Now, idiot, what's the next number?"

She leans over the teachers desk, watching. Waiting.

Like a predator.

Sweat pricks at the back of his neck as he tries to avert her gaze, his nerves shot as he tries to come up with any answer.

"Uh, three?"

Her eyes light up. "Very good!" She scratches a big three onto the board. "What's next?"

Another test, waiting to see if he can pick up on the pattern. Luckily, observation is Jin's only real skill - it's how he survives.

Or that's what he thinks.

"Four!" He shouts with a big smile.

Reze's head shoots back in a burst of heavy laughter. "WOW, you're feeling yourself. That's funny… no. It's not four." She leans back to the chalkboard, her body illuminating from the sheen of the moon.

A quick glance at her body precedes a forced look back onto the chalkboard.

"It's actually five. You were close - the Fibonacci sequence is the sum of two preceding numbers, like two plus three." A circle forms around the two numbers as she looks back. "So… what's the next number?"

The lightbulb finally fizzles on.

"Eight."

"Smart boy. Next?"

Leaning up on the desk, Jin smiles.

"Thirteen."

"Wow! You CAN use your brain!" Her hands clap together into the empty room.

They both laugh, the sound echoing into the empty hallway.

"Now, why is this important?" The emerald eyes snap back to him.

"Honestly? I can't come up with something."

A low chuckle leaves her lips. "That's a tougher one - I'll give you that."

Her hips sway intentionally as she walks back to the board while the thud of footsteps on tile matches the glide of chalk on the slate. A spiral begins to bloom from the center of the numbers, looping outward in a perfect curve.

"Because of how the sums are, you could technically draw it out as a spiral - like this."

"It looks like a snail's shell."

"EXACTLY. The sequence is common throughout nature, art, things like that have a spiral. So…" She dabbles a small snail face in front of the spiral. "A snail's shell is a perfect example!"

As the drawing finishes, a strange twang hits deep inside Jin's chest.

Hiding all the time from the bigger fish. Slow. Missing everything. Unnoticed.

The snail on the board seems to understand his plight. Then the realization sets in: Jin isn't an octopus.

*How'd I never notice that?*

"So, it makes snail shells? That's… it?"

A piece of chalk flies through the air, hitting directly on the top of his head before clattering to the tile.

"No. This is linked to the golden ratio, which helps us understand patterns within our universe."

"The snail shell does that?" He leans back into the chair, the plastic creaking from the shift.

Another piece of chalk is tossed from her, hitting the same exact spot on his head.

"How much chalk do you throw at your students?" He asks, rubbing his head from the impact. It doesn't hurt physically, but mentally it's sending him into a tailspin.

She hops onto the teachers desk, legs dangling off the side. "Not enough, apparently."

Silence falls between the two, heavy and warm.

The heat rising in Jin's cheeks is impossible to ignore. It's mirrored on the face across from him unintentionally.

Jin breaks the stillness. "So, uh, Miss Teacher? What's the next lesson?"

A smile curls on her lips as she jumps down from the desk. She saunters out, casting a half-lidded look back over her shoulder. Just before the doorway swallows her, she stops.

"Chemistry."

A few steps later, she disappears into the darkness.

Jin stands up too quickly, the desk screeching off the tile. He grabs his bag and takes off after her as his footsteps echo into the lockers.

"What do you mean, chemistry?"

"You'll see~" Her teasing lightly bounces off of the tile down towards him.

Reze keeps her stride, never looking back. She's measuring the distance by the sound of his steps, far enough to chase but close enough to feel safe.

-Get him in the pool.-

Let the octopus capture its poor, dumb prey.

Jin keeps running, passing an all too familiar staircase. He looks at it for a second, a plan forming in his head.

*Fuck it. Come out of the shell.*

"REZE!"

Her heels click to a halt and turn around, eyes gazing down the hallway. The dim light mostly covers Jin's figure, but she can see him heading up the stairs.

"You said chemistry, but maybe we can learn about anthropology first?"

The perfectly played smile slips from her face. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me - these stairs. They lead to the roof with a really awesome view of the city!" He takes off, footsteps echoing.

Curiosity starts to pull at her, letting the grin stay on as she runs up after him.

She reaches the top as Jin fumbles with the door. The old key in his jacket fits perfectly into the lock, turning the deadbolt."Trust me on this one. Then we can do chemistry. I promise." With a heavy groan, he swings the door open and steps out into the night.

Tokyo sprawls out before them, a sea of dancing lights that reflects in their eyes. The distant hum of the city is the only thing interrupting the silence of the empty building below them.

Her demeanor shifts again, this time to amazement. She's never seen the city like this, especially at night. Her eyes trace along the different buildings and lights, allowing the smile to still sit on her face.

Jin heads to his familiar spot on the edge and plops his bag next to him. Most people wouldn't sit here—the drop is far enough to kill a normal person if they made a mistake. But for him, the void is comforting like an old friend. He settles in and lets his legs dangle, the thought of what the fall and the aftermath would feel like once again. A smile finally beams onto his face as he turns back.

"You coming or what?"

The spell of the city lights breaks for Reze. She stares at him, watching the way he sits so close to the edge without concern. It doesn't make sense.

Following suit, she settles down next to him. Her shoulder rests just inches from his, the two of them finally letting the glow of the city wash over them.

A familiar smile fills her face again, retaking control. "So… anthropology?"

"Yeah, study of people, cultures, and I guess a bit of geography." He nods, taking the skyline in. "The school happens to be one of the best points to look over the city - in my limited opinion of course."

Reze looks back out to take the view in "It's… beautiful. I've never seen Tokyo like this… and at night too? The lights, the sounds, the…"

"Ambience." they say in unison with a shared look.

"You're cheesy, huh?" Reze asks, a soft blush filling her cheeks.

-Why can't I stop?-

"Yeah, I'm a real Munster." Jin laughs, his own cheeks burning.

*Why did I say that??*

The giggles eventually fade into a comfortable silence. Reze's hand creeps just an inch closer to his on the cold concrete.

"So, why'd ya spend time up here? I mean the views' great but…"

Jin lowers his back onto the roof, stretching his arms to the stairwell. "Don't know. School was alright? But down there…" He points toward the darkened rooms below. "No one got me. Like people were nice enough, yeah. But… up here I can think. I just…" His legs kick the building, trying to find a way to open up.

The lock tightens in his mind.

"Yeah. No idea." He sighs out.

The purple hair softly lays onto the concrete as Reze lays down next to Jin, her hand inching closer unknowingly.

"... You didn't have any friends? How?"

He shrugs up to the stars, the twinkles mocking his loneliness. "Don't know. I usually blame the universe."

A laugh cuts through the nights. "You're dramatic, but I feel ya on that."

"What? No way."

"I do, actually."

"BullSHIT. You're super cool." He says, voice changing to a sincere tone. "It's been 2 days and I feel like I FINALLY have a friend. How's that possible?"

Another inch.

"Well idiot - all that glitters isn't gold. Besides, you wouldn't get it."

Jin's gaze softens as he turns his body towards her, voice dropping to a low whisper. "I mean… I'd like to try to understand. Maybe it's ok to be different?"

She nods on the concrete. "So let's be different… together."

Both of their eyes lock. The silence is cut by a distance siren, but they don't care. Her hand creeps close enough to feel his warmth.

-Do I want to do this?-

"OH! Speaking of chemistry!"

Jin shoots back up to a seated position, hand dodging the unseen trap. He rumbles inside this bag before a plastic one crackles out.

The octopus cocks her head in disbelief as she sits up - mind running in overdrive.

"So, uh, it's a little something for you. I really liked your special, and since I was the last customer, I couldn't let it just end there. So… I got you a few things…"

Her hands wrap around the plastic bag, peering in cautiously.

Inside, five bags of Skittles sit. Two regular and three of the "Only Purple" packs. Her face brightens instantly. Beneath the candy sits a small burlap sack, 'Reze's Special Americano!' is scribbled on the front. The handwriting is horrible but somehow legible. On the bag is a drawing of the chibi Reze - it looks like a five year old drew it. She can smell the mixture permeate from inside the bag, her nose crinkling in delight from the familiar scent.

"Two parts Ethiopian, one part Colombian dark. I know you said the secret is hazelnut creamer, but I didn't want that to go bad. Maybe I can drop some off for you tomorrow?"

A stunned face meets Jin, her mouth open in disbelief.

An unfamiliar current flickers in her chest as flutters start deep within her stomach.

-What the hell is this feeling?-

Hair flops down from her ponytail just enough to cover her face as she looks into the cityscape. She's beet red, trying to compose herself.

After what feels like forever, she speaks.

"I… I… love it." Her voice softens as she turns back to him. "You remembered it? My stupid coffee order?"

"Not stupid - it's phenomenal. But I guess that's the lesson in chemistry then - finding the perfect combination, even if they don't make sense. Right?"

The bag rustles as she grips. She takes a second to think as she looks back to the city, before turning her head back to him. "What are you doing tomorrow night?"

"Tomorrow? I don't have friends so… nothing."

"Can you cook?"

"Uh... I mean… yeah?"

"Steaks? Medium rare?"

-What am I doing?-

"Definitely."

*You haven't cooked a steak in your life, you jackass.*

Reze stands up, the bag in a tight grip. "Cool, your place, 7:00 PM. Make a side, your choice ~"

A quick "THANK YOUUUUU" echoes as she darts toward the roof door, her footsteps fading into the darkness of the school.

The rooftop is left empty - just like Jin used to like it, but right now?

Not as much.

The city lights twinkle in his eyes as a realization hits him.

"Did I just get another date?"

______________________

Reze arrives back at her hotel room. It's empty, save for a bed, nightstand, desk with a chair, and a TV.

The laptop on the desk is already glowing, a cursor blinking in a dark chat window.

She wordlessly tosses the plastic bag onto the bed and collapses into the chair with a heavy sigh.

'STATUS REPORT - IS TARGET READY FOR EXTRACT?'

The text pulses on the screen, demanding an answer. She leans forward, head in her hands as her fingers run through her hair.

-I'm here for a reason. Don't forget that.-

She starts to type.

-He remembered MY special.-

The clicking of the keyboard stops, her mind remembering his dripping jacket.

Another message jumps onto the screen.

'WEAPON, REPORT.'

A sudden thud echoes behind her.

The knife is out and locked in a combat grip before she even completes the turn. Her eyes, cold and lethal, sweep the room for a threat. Nothing - the shadows are still as her gaze falls to the floor.

The plastic bag had slipped off the mattress, Skittle bags and the burlap sack lay scattered on the carpet. The chibi drawing of her face looking back up at her, the poorly drawn smile filling her pupils.

-And he made fun of MY drawing.-

A sigh escapes her lips as the tension fades away, looking at the glowing screen. Her face reflects in the monitor, noticing her cheeks still have a red hue.

'TARGET ESCAPED. PREPARE FOR EXTRACTION TOMORROW.'

She reaches down and picks up one of the Skittles bags, opening it and tosses one into her mouth. For the first time in the hotel room, she smiles.

Her smile.



------------------

Ok! I'll be posting daily to catch up - and maybe a chapter later today, so don't forget to watch the thread!

 

[usefulfinish421]

Jin is terrible at planning ahead. That's why he started early this time.

In the morning, he got everything he needed: two nice pieces of steak, potatoes, butter, sour cream, and even a decent bottle of wine.

When he got back to his apartment he tossed everything into the fridge, nerves taking over his thoughts at the moment as he checked the time.

12:00 PM.

A girl he likes is coming over for the first time in… forever?

Deep down, he finds whatever confidence he has - he knows he can cook, just have to follow the recipe is all.

*How the hell do I make a perfect steak?*

The floorboards thud as he paces around the apartment, fixating on the little details in his space. He cleans up a few things scattered on the coffee table and actually dusting his collectables to make them look brand new. He even tunes his guitar - not like he's played for anyone before. As a last ditch effort, he uses an old bottle of air freshener to make it smell inviting at the very least.

A groan escapes his body as it falls onto his futon, taking his phone out to start researching. The digital display reads to him:

2:00 PM.

Plenty of time to learn how to actually pull this off. He starts his dive into cooking videos, one turns into two, two multiplying into more, all promising that 'This is the best steak!'

A mix of celebrity chefs and amateur influencers chip away at his morale, Jin's head sinking onto his futon to take a mental break. He usually gets really bad analysis paralysis, a migraine pulses behind his eyes. Other videos start playing on his phone as he mentally resets, losing track of time.

The fridge hums on, the sound taunting his lie from last night. Jin looks at the appliance, then back at the clock on his device.

6:00 PM.

The futon creaks as he jumps up to the bedroom, figuring out what he's going to wear. He picks out a nice buttoned down shirt, the red checkered pattern pairing perfectly with his light slacks. Boxes get thrown out of the closet to find some decent looking boots - he forgets where or when they were bought.

Another video starts on perfecting the steak's sear as he rushes out to the futon again, snowballing into another panic session as time passes unknowingly.

An alarm on his phone cuts the feed.

6:45 PM.

His eyes almost roll out of their sockets.

"HOLY FUCK."

He bursts into the kitchen, fridge door slamming open as glass bottles rattle from the movement. He heaves the bag onto the granite, potatoes skittering onto the floor. He slashes through the potatoes, shoveling them into a boiling pot of water while he starts a timer.

All focus now turns towards the two steaks.

All the videos he just watched play behind his eyes at once - sweat glistening on his forehead. All things considered, a steak doesn't take that much time to cook - it's relatively easy from what he saw. It's all about timing, taking the steak off at the right moment and letting it rest.

But when a cute barista asks him directly to make it for her? Pressure's on - If it's undercooked she gets salmonella, probably slowly killing her as he takes on her medical bills. If it's overcooked it'll taste like an old boot from an antique store, her face dropping to disappointment while he'd probably jump out the window.

He'd like to have both parties survive tonight.

Another alarm sounds, Jin running the boiling pot of water over to his sink and dumping the hissing liquid down into a strainer. He tosses the cooked potatoes back in and starts violently mashing down while adding sour cream and butter into the madness.

6:55 PM.

"I'm not gonna finish on time."

He moves over to the steaks, nearly tripping over himself as he tosses them onto the searing pan. The meat hisses back as the moisture smokes into his face. The pair of tongs in his hands snap in anticipation while pacing back and forth.

6:59 PM.

He flips the steaks over, a decent sear forming on it. He adds butter and garlic to the pan, the sound almost mocking him. The flame below the hot metal hops towards him, Jin jumping backwards.

A loud sigh overtakes the sizzling.

*Why do I do this to myself?*

7:00 PM.

A final alarm goes off in his phone, the shrill sound only matched by a high pitched scream coming out of the amateur chef. He checks the internal temperature as the meat cooks unbothered.

It's still not done. Jin pokes at the meat with his finger, hoping to encourage it to cook faster. The meat angrily crackles back at him.

A nagging thought breaks into the chaos.

*Did I give her my address?*

_____________

6:55 PM.

Of course Reze knows Jin lives. Why shouldn't she?

Out of all the other assignments, Jin had to be one of the easier to follow. All his day entails is going to work, then a bench to sit and eat his lunch, followed by going back into work and finally back to the apartment complex where he spends the rest of the night.

He didn't lie about not having friends - no one ever comes over.

She was planning to bump into him on the street, maybe join him on that bench to start it all. Be the new friend that he finally shows his place off to.

But he magically appeared in the cafe that day.

How lucky.

Her shoes step in front of his apartment complex, eyes gazing up at the concrete building. She fixes her black blouse while opening the door to the main courtyard. A strand breaks free of her perfectly done up hair, fingers quickly trying to put it back into place.

-I shouldn't have taken this much time to get ready.-

6:58 PM.

As she ascends the stairs she takes a moment to look around the amenities below. A few kids play in a jungle gym below while their parents chat, an ambience that's filling a part of her heart. It's fleeting - her head steadying back to the sound of her footsteps.

She knows she'll never have that.

6:59 PM.

The brown door stands firm in front of her, but behind it the sounds tell a different story. The sounds of sizzling and a faint plastic clattering make her stop in front of the door.

Another jolt shoots through her system. She takes a deep breath as she steps towards the entrance.

-It's just another target.-

7:00 PM.

Right before she knocks an alarm screeches on the inside, followed by a shrill yell. She giggles to herself - he's panicking for her.

It's cute.

The curl comes loose again as she shakes her head, flopping lightly over her eyes. It doesn't help her settle her nerves.

She reaches out, knuckles pounding on the wood.

_____________

The door thuds behind him, the sound spiking Jin's heartrate.

This is a nightmare scenario.

A second passes before he goes over to open the door as he takes a deep breath. Reze stands before him as she plays with the ring on her choker, smiling at him.

"Hi."

"Oh. Hey." He leans onto the doorway, attempting to look casual. The last couple minutes of anxiety shake out into his legs, breaking that facade instantly.

"Hope you make a good steak, I've been waiting all day for it!" Reze pushes past him gently, her hand lightly grazing over Jin's free hand. He watches her enter, one of the few people he's ever let into his space.

*How did I get her to my place man.*

Posters and figures pull at her attention as she takes his place in. It feels like it was just cleaned up from the faint smell of air freshener. Her body shoots around.

"Nerddddd." She teases, her tongue sticking out to his surprised face.

A quick laugh comes out while the door closes shut behind him. "I mean, if ya don't like it you can go."

The laugh is reciprocated as she sits down at the small kitchen table. "Never said I didn't." She places her elbows on the wood, her hands catching her head while she tracks Jin.

A timer buzzes on Jin's phone. He runs over to the sizzling pan, taking the meat off the pan. One of the videos said to let it sit, so he puts them onto their plates.

Whatever stress he had from cooking slides off his shoulders.

"So… how'd you find my place? I don't think I told ya where I lived last night." He leans on his oven, his body catching onto a dial. He moves slightly, the dial spinning while a small hissing comes from a burner. He immediately turns it off and readjusts his legs away from the front of the oven, praying she didn't see that.

Lucky for him, she didn't. The question froze her on the spot, the smile forced into place as her brain shifted into another gear.

-He didn't tell me his address.-

The strand of hair flops back down when she cocks her head to the side, body finally unlocking. "Oh! When you left your jacket at the cafe, it had your name and address written on the inside! Probably from some dry cleaner - I'm nosy; whoops." She shifts her seat towards the kitchen, eyeing a green bottle of wine.

Anything to change the subject.

"Wait, did you get that for tonight?"

Jin turns around, looking at the container and completely forgetting what he asked. "Oh yeah! I thought it might pair nicely with the steaks. Want some?"

"I would love a glass of wine." Her fingers twist into the drooping strands, accepting that it's not going to stay up.

Jin grabs a wine glass and walks over to her, jokingly acting as her sommelier. She laughs and nods, the red liquid pouring into the glass. Her hand grazes over his as she accepts the drink, a bit longer than what's normal.

He turns around and pours into his own glass, heat rising on his cheeks. He can't look at her right now.

*Why did I agree to this?*

Reze sips the wine, the Cabernet hitting her lips. "You picked a good one, you drink a lot of wine?"

"Me? No - if you couldn't tell, I'm not that high class."

Her head leans back to his collectables, eyes moving between them and Jin. "Aw, I thought you were! Why am I here then?"

As she jokes with him, two framed pictures hidden behind his figures catch her eye. It's of a family, a woman with black hair and yellow dress smiling with a man with messy brown hair. Below them is a small child, a younger Jin, with a wide grin as they stand next to a dinosaur fossil. A smile grows wider on her face - he looks just like his dad.

The next picture is of young Jin next to his dad and a tank of a human being, both of the men wearing military fatigues, the beam of smiles radiating from the picture. They're all holding ceremonial rifles on their shoulders, Jin's too big for his small body.

"Hey, are those your parents?" A finger points over to the frames. Before her finger moves, he knows where she's pointing.

The weight crashes back onto his shoulders.

"Uh… yeah, it is. We did one of those fossil exhibits - my dad was super excited to take me. Honestly? It was like one of my favorite days ever."

"That's so cute, oh my god." The pointing digit covers her mouth as she tries to hide her forced blush. "Your parents still live around here?"

The glass trembles down from his lips as a thought passes through him.

"Yeah, they're still in Tokyo."

Technically, he's not lying.

"If tonight goes well, maybe you can bring them over to the cafe - I can make them one of my specials." She winks as she takes another drink.

He shrugs, wordlessly focusing on plating the mashed potatoes. A perfect plop hits the plates, the tongs grabbing the meat and sliding them onto the plastic. He walks over to the table, laying the plate in front of her as he sits across from her and grabbing his wine glass. His leg shakes under the table, staring at her piece of meat.

She smiles and picks up the utensils, poking at the meat. "You weren't lying - ya know what you're doing."

"Yeah, ain't my first rodeo." He lies, sweat starting to build on the back of his neck while she cuts into her meal.

*Should I call the EMTs now?*

The knife severs the crust with a nice little crunch. Her fork lifts the piece, Jin seeing a perfect amount of pink on the inside.

"Looks like it's cooked right, hope ya didn't poison this!" She teases as she puts it into her mouth.

The knuckles on Jin's hands turn white as they grip his silverware.

*I really should call an EMT.*

The fork slides out of her mouth empty, each chew causes her eyes to sparkle more and more.

"Holy shit."

The window's right there - He can crash through at any time.

The knife slices into the meat as she takes another big bite.

"This is genuinely one of the best steaks I've had." She smiles, a genuine heat filling her cheeks.

-He actually remembered how I like it cooked.-

The blood drains from Jin's face. "I told you, ain't my first rodeo." He mumbles as he takes a bite out of the meat. The warmth flows back into his face - she's not lying.

A giggle slips out of her throat. "I could get used to this."

-Get a grip.-

______________

The wine bottle sits empty in front of them along with the empty plates, Reze's laughter almost knocking her off the chair.

"So wait - that guy kept screaming about birds being drones?"

"Swear to God! He literally shook me while yelling 'HAVE YOU EVER SEEN A BABY PIGEON?' That's why I sit there all the time."

"Ya know, he could have come back at any time and killed you right?." Reze finishes her wine, her knee brushing against his again. A lot of that happened tonight - some were calculated, while most came naturally.

Jin leans back into his chair, letting the nerves finally melt out of him. "I thought about that, and you know what? I'd probably deserve it."

A comfortable silence fills the apartment as the two look at each other, sparks illuminate in their eyes.

BZZTBZZT

She ignores it.

Her glass clinks onto the table, breaking the stillness. "Ok, so what's for dessert?"

A chill moves up Jin's back, freezing him in his seat. He thought about it all - the steaks, making the mashed potatoes from scratch, even getting the wine.

*How the hell did I forget about dessert?*

The emerald eyes blink at him "…We could go grab something?"

Jin jolts to life. "Perfect! I know just the spot!" He jumps up and instinctually grabs her hand, pulling her to the door. "I know the BEST ice cream place, it should still be open!"

*Joe's going to kill me.*

Reze looks down at his hand, gently but firmly caressed within hers, squeezing into his grasp as she gets pulled.

-His hands are so soft, maybe… No. Focus.-

The door swings open with gusto, nearly knocking Jin over. He looks back at her, both bursting out into laughter as they exit into the night.

*-Fuck it.-*

 

[usefulfinish421]

Jin is holding a girl's hand - A girl he met three days ago.

It doesn't seem real - He should be alone in his apartment, enjoying the alone time after doing nothing for the day. But that's all changed since that cafe - she gotten him to sit back in a classroom to teach him the Fibonacci sequence, she got him to cook something he's never made before.

And now he's part of the nightlife of Tokyo with someone who wants to be with him.

The panic is still there, yeah. But he doesn't mind it.

The streetlights and neon signs bounce off of their giggling faces, passing the crowd of nightlife. It's a busy night - Some wait in line for the nightclubs and karaoke bars, some enjoy pounding bowls of ramen, others stumble home early from the festivities.

But nothing is stopping Jin from getting her some ice cream. And there's really only one place he knows that'll let him in at this hour.

"So, where are you taking me?" Reze asks after they turn their fifth corner. It feels like they're going in circles with the crowded street, her body and mind completely disoriented.

"Well, I'm taking you to the PREMIERE Ice Cream destination in Tokyo! You'll have to trust me on that one." He can feel his hand grip hers a bit more, sweat starting to tingle onto his palms.

*Joe, I need a good batch man.*

"Only if you're paying. Ya still owe me for the coffee yesterday."

Jin stops dead in tracks. He did forget to pay, he shot out of the cafe after she asked him to hang out at the school. He slowly turns around, embarrassed.

"Shit. You're right. I'll come ba-"

His eyes meet hers, a playful smirk is growing as her pupils widen to his embarrassment.

"I'm messing with you, idiot."

Jin smiles back at her, his heart still racing from the eye contact. No words come from his mouth, which is probably for the better.

"Don't forget about the creamer, I wanna make it for you again." Reze's hand tightens around his at the promise.

"Then I'm writing what's in the damn thing so it STAYS on the menu." He takes her around one more corner, a neon sign appears in front of them - cracked pink light barely emitting a glow, but somehow still functional. "Joe's Ice Cream" fizzles and hums into the night, the streetlight passing it without a second thought. The sign on the door reads 'Closed', but Jin goes to it anyway.

"Ok, so you trust me?" Jin says, looking back at her as his grasp leaves her and moves to the handle.

Reze looks at the uninteresting exterior, then back to the crowd. This place is really hidden in plain sight. "Are you sure you're not going to kill me?"

-Honestly, I would love a challenge.-

"What? No…. Maybe? Why are we here?" He jokes, almost actually forgetting why he brought her.

Her eyes roll as Jin opens the door and confidently walks in. Her eyebrows raise watching him walk into an American styled diner on the inside. It's not like it's dirty for a diner… but it's seen way better days; must be the charm of the place. Pictures of famous celebrities hang on the wall, none of them ever coming in here. Flags hang from the ceiling, one of some sports teams, another of the American Marines, and finally, another of the stars and stripes. Under the flags sits booths, but at the counter are barstools to sit right where you order your dessert.

Jin walks up to the counter and rhythmically slams it, a creak of a chair comes from behind a hanging curtain.

"I told you! You ain't allowed to come in when I'm closing, you jackass!" A gruff voice screams from the back.

"Oh come on, you got 30 more minutes there's no way you're closing THAT early." Jin leans over the counter to yell in the back.

The curtain gets pushed to the side, a man walking through with eyes locking immediately to Jin. He's tall - broad-shouldered and thick around the middle, the kind of build that comes from years of muscle with a few good years of eating. He still looks like he could re-enlist if needed.

Reze knows the type. Dangerous if he needs to be.

"It's a slow night and I wanted to get to bed!" His footsteps thud onto the hard surface as he beelines to Jin.

"Well that's too damn bad Joe! Maybe I wanted to say hi!"

Joe reaches over the counter and gives Jin a big hug, his big arms covering up Jin's body.

"Kid, I called you a few days ago, ya know? wanted to check in with-"

He stops when his eyes meet Reze's, his hard demeanor softening.

"Oh, I'm sorry ma'am! Didn't see ya there." Joe pushes Jin out of the way. "Scoot." Joe's arms let go of the smaller body. "He'll be fine, kid's here all the time. What can I get you?"

Reze saunters up to the counter, her gaze going from the countertop and then at Jin.

"I see why you come here all the time."

A soft smile crosses onto Jin's face - one Joe hasn't seen in a very long time. He glances between them.

"I'm sorry, are you on a date with Jin?"

The two freeze, Jin turning to Reze and shrugging.

"Yeah, I think so?" Jin's still looking into Reze's eyes, catching the shimmer when he says it, the blush when she looks away.

Joe slams his hands onto the countertop, the laminate shaking from the force.

"Then I welcome you to Joe's, the PREMIERE Ice Cream destination in Tokyo!"

She blinks, eyes darting between the huge man and her now date.

"I'm pretty sure Jin said that to me word for word, cadence for cadence."

"Because we made it up!" The two men exclaim, Joe launching a loose towel towards Jin's head. It covers his vision, Jin taking it off and throwing it back to him.

Reze looks at both of them and huffs out a small laugh. "You really had to say that at the exact same time?"

A barstool screeches on the tile as Jin sits. "Yeah, we do. It's how we marketed when I worked here as a kid. Now come on, what do you want - I have a tab."

"That tab? It's over 500 bucks, by the way. You're gonna have to pay up sooner or later. Remember, I KNOW WHERE YOU LIVE" Joe says, pointing at him with an ice cream scoop. He spins it in his hand and moves its aim towards Reze."Ok, pretty lady, what would you like? You get first pick. And yes, it's on HIS-" Joe shoots a glare at Jin. "-tab. Nothing is bad here, I swear on my mother's grave."

She takes a second and inspects the different colors and flavors behind the glass. She's really not too picky, but one jumps out at her.

"Strawberry, please."

"A girl who likes the classics, I knew I'd like you" Joe says, giving a big wink to her. He then faces Jin, any previous spark of joy disappearing. "Same thing for you?"

"You know it."

A loud sigh comes from the bigger man as he walks over to the containers of ice cream.

He's unaware of Reze sizing him up. She's taken down bigger guys, but something about this man is different - he'd be a problem for the strike team.

Not for her though.

"Wait, I think I saw you in one of the pictures back at his place with his dad!" Reze bursts out as Joe starts scooping. "Have you guys always been close?"

The energy shifts just slightly. Both men's faces drop, Joe leaning back onto the counter to Reze while his eyes gaze at the picture. "Yeah, best of buds growing up. Joined the service and everything together - it's why I'm in Japan even after everything." He turns to Jin, hands picking the scoop back up. "And somehow his kid is WORSE than him. But here we are - by the way we only got cups late at night."

Jin shifts his eyes up to Joe, silently thanking him for changing the subject. "You're an asshole."

The pink ball of strawberry is dropped into a cup and given to Reze with a warm smile. He then starts working on Jin's ice cream, grumbling something about '500 Dollars'.

The spoon slides into her mouth, strawberry flavors immediately explode in her mouth. A dance of sweetness and tartness intertwine perfectly to create the bite.

But her eyes tell more. It's cute, what he's noticing about Reze - the small smile followed by her looking down when she eats something she likes, the small crease in her forehead when he tells a joke, even how her nose crinkles when she's deep in thought. He's just starting, but he likes picking up the little things she does.

A bowl clatters in front of Jin, shattering him back to reality. The ice cream is filled with different colors and flavors, mixing together to an unappetizing brown.

"I swear you do this to keep people out." Joe walks to the back with a few papers from under the counter.

A scoop is pulled out of the monstrosity, disappearing into Jin's mouth. "Yeah well, that's not my fault."

Her dreamlike state fades when Reze's eyes meet the bowl in front of her date.

"Why."

A laugh falls out of Jin. "What, this? I call this the "Everything". Name implies, but the best part is he has to clean the scooper each time. Been doing it for years now." Joe throws his hands up as walks to the back.

"...Everything?" She tries not to think how strawberry would taste with the wasabi flavor.

The spoon exits Jin's mouth, completely clean. "Literally everything." Jin then leans next to Reze's ear, his voice barely audible as his breath tickles her ear. "Don't tell Joe… but it's kinda crappy."

The space between the two felt like it disappeared. They can feel each other's warmth, their scents tickling their noses, eyes darting around the body next to them.

Joe comes back out in a huff, the two shooting back up as Jin shoves more of the slop into his mouth. He smiles as his lips close around the spoon.

*Why do I do this to myself?*

A glare shoots towards Jin as Joe checks for something beneath the counter again.

"So Jin, you used to work here? Like, over the summer?" Her elbow leans onto the counter as she continues to indulge in her dessert.

A scoff comes from under the counter. "Yeah, for years he did. Somehow, it's the best and worst decision I've ever made. Hell, he's caused AND saved us from the greatest disaster this store has ever seen!"

Jin's eyes widen in fear. "NO. NO. WE'RE NOT DOING THIS."

Joe shoots up from underneath, hands resting on the counter and talking over Jin's pleas. The two men's eyes meet - they both know where this is going - before turning to Reze's. "We call it here the Great Disaster of '18. Let me start off: the kid is smart but MAN, he's a dumbass." Joe laughs out, his voice bouncing in the empty parlor, watching Jin sink into his seat.

"He hates this story. ANYWAY, it's the summer of 2018. One night it's insane - Tons of kids screaming with the line out the door? It's a high stress situation." Joe leans down to Reze. "He's terrible in those, by the way."

"I'm literally right here."

Joe flips him off and continues. "Anyway, the kid goes to fill the machine again with the creamer stuff, right? But because of the line, Jin has the bright idea to try to get the machine to spit out the ice cream faster. I took over the front while he was tweaking a few of the nozzles and machine parts to, and I quote, 'get these damn kids out of here'."

Jin is leaning back on the barstools, staring up at the football flag. The animal on the logo stares back at him, offering no solace.

*This can't be happening.*

"So, works for a few right? Everything hunky dory until this poor young boy walks up wanting a soft serve. Jin runs over to make one, and I shit you not, the lever you push down to spin the ice cream out BROKE, and the cream starts SHOOTING OUT like a fire hose." Joe's laugh starts up again.

"It starts COVERING the kid, and he's just STANDING THERE, not moving. So poor Jin had to jump in front of the blast of the machine, the force of it nearly knocking him over. Jin screams, and that might be the highest pitched thing I've ever heard; hell I've been in combat and I think THAT SCREAM did worse for my hearing than any gunshot or explosion did."

Reze is laughing with Joe now.

"So Jin decided to go all hero! 'I'M GOING IN' he's screaming while pushing to the broken thing. He managed to grab a scoop and redirect some of the blast from him, but it's gotta go somewhere right? It covers EVERY kid and parent in the damn place! Eventually, he got to the machine and beat the hell out of it with the scoop until it stopped. Oh man, I was pissed. It was over EVERYTHING - I had to hire someone to deep clean the place! Hell, I almost got SUED."

Reze has tears coming out of her eyes trying to look at Jin, but can't seem to get her eyes around to him. "THE SCREAM! I NEED TO HEAR THE SCREAM!"

Jin's still looking up. His face is getting redder and redder as the laughter rises.

After a few minutes and teasing, the laughter dies down with Joe slapping Jin's back. "Every chance I get kid, I'm telling it."

Her hand catches the last tear from her eyes, placing a gentle touch on his shoulder. "Hey, look at me. Please?"

Jin sighs and looks down at her. Her eyes are glistening - Is it the dim lights of Joe's? A few unwiped tears from her laughing at him? Or is she liking what she sees? He really can't tell, but it's making him feel better.

"I put my body on the line for that poor kid. I should be hailed as a hero!" His hand hits the counter, laughing.

"You caused the Great Disaster! I should've fired you ON THE SPOT."

BZZTBZZT

-You gotta be kidding me.-

"Hey Joe, are your bathrooms at least clean?" Reze stands up, pushing the barstool back.

"Miss, I make sure the bathrooms are immaculate. Behind you and to your left sweetheart."

"It better be, thanks!" Reze disappears down the hallway and closes the girls room door behind her.

The two guys take a second before Joe puts his hand on Jin's shoulder. "You're going to have to tell me how you got a date with her."

"Honestly? Dumb luck."

______________

The door locks shut behind her. She doesn't need anyone coming in.

Her phone is out in her hand, the screen already on a message.

'STATUS. NOW. STRIKE TEAM READY.'

The cursor waits for her. Her thumbs instinctively hover over the letters on her keyboard.

-I can end this right now. Those two wouldn't suspect a thing.-

The strike team would be quick - kill Joe first, extract the confused target, and take him to god knows where to do god knows what. And everything goes back to normal for her.

Normal for her.

Reze closes her eyes, her mouth and throat still sore from laughing. She can't remember the last time she felt like that from a story—or how it felt receiving that burlap sack, imagining Jin's dumb smile as he drew that chibi version of her.

She grunts, hands running up her head and into her hair. She can feel the strands falling over her face. Why is this so hard? The strike team would make it painless and easy - maybe she can escape out the back and not see anything. But Jin would find out, and everything - the cafe, the school, even tonight - is a lie.

The thought of that makes her sick.

-It wasn't a lie.-

For once, doing those things with him - lie or not - made her finally feel normal.

-Why did I get assigned this target? -

She softly yells to herself in the bathroom, the mirror reflecting her face back.

She doesn't know why this target is so difficult.

BZZTBZZT

'WEAPON. REPORT. NOW.'

The cursor still waits for a response. She takes one last look at herself, trying to find any answer. Anything that'll help her make a decision.

The mirror shows her cheeks burning red, not from frustration.

Before her brain can catch up, she feels her fingers slam a message onto the screen.

'I'M NOT YOUR WEAPON.'

With a flick of her wrist, the phone snaps in half and is thrown into the trash can. The device fizzles and sparks for a second before the screen blackens forever.

Her mind catches up to her. She takes a second to look at the broken phone, knowing she made a mistake.

The door unlocks as she steps back into the parlor.

____________

Her footsteps quietly round the corner back to Joe and Jin. A full blown argument has exploded while she was gone.

She laughs to herself as she peeks around the corner - the two are yelling in each other's faces over something. But the feeling doesn't last long - the flutters are mixed with a growing sense of anxiety in her stomach.

She pushes it down as she steps out.

"- YOU DO KNOW THAT I KNOW WHERE YOU LIVE RIGHT?"

"COME ON OLD MAN - I'M READY FO- " Out of the corner of his eye, he sees Reze, turning around to meet her gaze. His heart freezes. Her eyes are still like that first day, but there's something else in those eyes - almost like a hunger for what's in her vision.

Jin forgets how to breathe.

A smile forms on her face as she walks over "Hey, Jin? I think we should let Joe finish up closing, don't want ya snapped in half tonight."

Joe laughs from behind the counter. "Yeah, thank you miss! See Jin, someone who respects my time!"

Sure Reze, but you're gonna learn to not feel bad for him." Jin looks back at Joe shaking his head in displeasure.

Joe smiles and watches the two leave, Jin keeping the door open for Reze while she steps out.

After she passes through the door, Jin looks back at Joe and mouths "Thank you".

Joe nods, and whispers "Go get her, tiger."

As Jin passes the mirrored door, he catches his reflection. He's smiling - he doesn't remember the last time he was genuinely smiling leaving here.

*First time for everything, I guess.*

Reze is already down the street a bit, hoping Jin will catch up soon. She can hear his steps on the pavement as they clatter next to her, stopping to match the pace.

"Hey, sorry about that in there." Jin huffs out.

"Why? I had fun, more than I thought we were going to." She blushes again, letting it come naturally to her face. Her fingers casually slip into Jin's hands, squeezing his clammy grasp.

"So, best ice cream you've had?"

Reze laughs. "Actually yeah. I really couldn't believe it. Also, next time we come… I'm trying whatever the hell you got."

Jin's head feels like it's going to explode. On their right they pass by an alley.

"Trust me it's awf-"

She doesn't let him finish.

Her hands push Jin into the alley, his spine hitting onto the brick wall. He looks up at Reze, wondering what happened. Did he say something wrong? It wouldn't be the first time he's said the wrong thing.

But her eyes - her irises sparkling - tell a different story. The hunger's back, and Jin can see it growing with each step she took towards him.

Reze watched Jin's eyes meet hers again. His dark eyes - terrified, sappy, beautiful eyes.

Heat floods both their faces.

She grabs his buttoned shirt, fist grasping at the fabric. Her face pushes onto his, their lips crashing against each other as her eyes close.

For a second, Jin's body fully shuts down as he's pushed more onto the wall. But the light flavor of strawberry from Reze's tongue keeps him in the moment, instincts kicking in. His arms wrap around her waist and pulls her flush to him, his tongue dancing with hers.

She can bite his tongue off right now, immobilize him. Or even blow off his legs and disappear with him into the night.

She doesn't. This feels too good.

*-Holy fuck.-*

The few minutes they kiss seem like hours. The alley disappears from them - the passing vehicle lights, the sounds, everything - All gone. Just the two of them.

They pull away, Reze leaving a small bite to Jin's lower lip. Her head lightly rests on his forehead, both catching their breath.

"So…" Reze whispers out, her voice husky." I guess you're getting free coffee from now on."

A breathless laugh escapes Jin.

"And I think you're part of my tab at Joe's."

A soft smile breaks onto her face as she giggles.

"Deal."

____________

'I'M NOT YOUR WEAPON.'

The response on the green monitor cuts through the darkness like a knife.

The figure sits there looking at the screen. Their hands tap the desk in front of them. The weapon broke free. Their weapon. It was not supposed to break free - it should be returning to base with the target for the second step of the plan.

No matter. The figure has seen this happen before.

Shadows barrel up behind the figure, Chozin sprinting through in a huffed breath.

"Sir, I just got a report - the weapon's tracking device is down. It seems she defected."

The monitor with the text crushes. Sparks fizzle out of it as the figure turns around, unbothered by the sound.

"I'm aware. We're still on mission. Do not deviate."

"Wouldn't Reze be protecting the target? Isn't that too dangerous?"

A sigh comes from the figure's hooded maw. "The weapon always fights back. You should know this." It steps away from its position, pacing around the room while its covered face watches the monitors.

A radio hisses to life somewhere inside its cloak.

"Strike team, you're cleared to bring in the target. The weapon defected. Expect resistance."

The radio goes silent. One of the monitors changes, the feed showing soldiers loading their rifles and exiting an empty building. It's quick and quiet, the civilians around them unnoticing the danger around them. The feed shifts to the strike team's commander, staying behind with the backup team while mapping out a few things on a sprawled out map.

Chozin promised they were the best, especially for this.

"Perfect Paradise will proceed as planned, Chozin. Contact me if anything changes."

"But…Reze, she's da-"

The desk rattles from the figures strike as it turns towards Chozin. The older man can see a hint of red bleeding through the darkness inside the hood, a chill running up his spine at the sight.

"...Yes sir. I'll let you know if anything changes."

The shadows swallow the older man as he steps back and disappears into the darkness. A breath escapes the figure, the red light dissipating as it turns back around. Its focus goes back to the monitors, listening to the strike team commander lead the first team out.

The weapon and target will not escape again.

 

[usefulfinish421]

Reze knows she made a huge mistake. They're going to send a strike team like they planned. She was told multiple times if she deviated from the plan they're going to apprehend her too.

'It's nothing personal, but a necessary part of the work we do.' She can hear the lie behind Chozin's words rattle in her brain.

But she didn't care - she needed to break away from them. She WANTED to break away from them for a while now.

With Jin's hand wrapped in hers, they move down the busy streets as both their cheeks still burn red from the alley - hoping the crowd don't notice. The moonlight is strong with the city lights dancing across the two's faces, giggles and laughter from them echoing onto the brick and concrete facades. Occasionally as they walk, they quickly look at each other before fading away. Smiles creep up their face with each glance, quickly disappearing in nervousness.

The back of Jin's shirt is covered in a layer of sweat. It's been a while since he's kissed a girl, but it's never felt like this. Especially how she pushed him into the alley, the way she grabbed him.

He liked that.

*Guess I still got it.*

After a few twists and turns, they end up back at Reze's cafe. She forgot her key to her place there - a lie, it's a place to lay low. With limited time, she couldn't think of another safe haven as the strike team prowls the streets for them.

"So, are we already cashing out free coffee?"

Behind the counter, a laugh comes out of Reze while she searches for the non-existent key. She's gonna have to keep him here for the night and off the street. Her head lifts from behind the counter, examining him. The small smile that forms on his face sends flutters in her stomach.

It should be easy enough.

Her head cocks. "Of course silly - I'd rather hang out here anyway. Clean, cozy, and the owner isn't fighting their customers."

"Joe's is usually two of those three things, you know?" The plastic wrap sticks to his back as he plops into the booth. Behind him, the window shows the world outside - still bustling with nightlife.

"I'd say Joe's is zero of those things. But I'll say - Joe seems like a really nice guy." Reze heads to the back to find some of the pre-made food. She keeps glancing past Jin over to the window, keeping tabs on the street.

The fridge hisses open, the premade sandwiches sit neatly in order. She grabs one of them, a ham and cheese and moves over to the counter again.

"Want half of this?"

"Oh, sure yeah. I thought I wasn't hungry, but it's -" He slides his phone out of his pocket and looks at the digital display.

12:00 AM.

"- midnight? Holy shit."

The croissant is cut in half while Reze giggles. "Jeez, but we've been having fun right? Time moves faster when you're having fun or something?" Her gaze shifts between Jin and the outside.

Still busy. A few drunk pedestrians sing some song as they pass by, hugging their friends tight.

-Good.-

Jin just nods, watching Reze work behind the counter. She expertly flips the contents of the premade sandwich into the croissant, removing the bottom piece of bread. She grabs a plate and walks over with their snack, her hair flipping down and partially covering her right eye.

He really can't stop looking at the emerald color glimmering from the outside lights.

"Can I say something? Like real quick?"

Her eyebrows furrow in confusion. She looks away - partially from the emotion, yes - but also to check outside. Traffic flows a bit slower, but nothing unusual.

Probably a lull in the nightlife. Still safe.

"....What are you about to say?" She sits down in the booth, the window perfectly framing Jin while letting her elbow lean on the table and resting her head on her hand.

"You've probably heard this a million times - but your eyes are beautiful."

She shifts in her seat as butterflies bounce in her stomach again.

"Yeah, I've heard that." After one last uncomfortable shift, she leans next to his ear.

"Not from you though. I think I…" She pulls away slowly to meet his gaze, giving him a good view of her irises. "...like when you say that"

Her forehead rests on his, their hands intertwining underneath the wooden table.

"I still can't believe you left your jacket here that first day." she laughs.

The giggling from Jin vibrates her head.

"I literally couldn't think when you were looking at me. I think I forgot my name at one point."

Laughter erupts from her. "My eyes are NOT that powerful, you idiot." She changes her expression, half lidded eyes staring back at him.

He looks away, breath catching as he points at her. "See? Like that! I'm literally forgetting where I'm at right now!" He shifts in his seat, looking away to calm himself.

-He's cute when he's flustered.-

While Jin's looking away, she takes a quick peek behind him. The window shows an empty street, the nightlife completely gone. It shouldn't be like that.

Her heart drops, but her face remains stable as her gaze moves back to Jin while her nose crinkles.

"Maybe that's why I do it - I like making you forget things. It's fun."

"I don't think that's really fair." he leans in closer, watching Reze's face smile grow.

He's reading her like a book - a novel he wants to reread over and over.

*My turn.*

Her body leans closer, shrugging as she leans onto his body. "Why not? I'll convince you your name is Larry or something."

"PLEASE don't change my name to Larry." He laughs, shaking his head. "Can we meet halfway at, I don't know, Keith?"

"DISGUSTING. Deal, Keith." She rubs her fingers on his hand at the joke, lightly gripping harder. The act sends Jin into a frenzy in his mind.

A dangerous thought hits him - he has to make this HIS moment.

The grip tightens from him as he leans into her.

She leans in as well, taking one last look out the window. Time begins slowing for her - this always happens when something doesn't go right.

A gray cylinder is careening towards the window, pin spinning off mid-flight.

Flashbang. They found them.

She won't let them take him.

Her arm reaches towards Jin's head - who's leaning in for that kiss - and pulls him down towards her chest.

*Man, we're going to second base already?*

The flashbang connects with the window, shattering glass over both of them. Reze covers Jin's head and turns her face away from the shards.

Time speeds up for her.

BANG

The sound deafens Jin while his vision goes white - he truly forgot where he was. He feels the window glass rain over his back and grabs Reze tight.

Shards fall into her purple hair like a messed up glitter bomb. Reze rolls them off the booth seat and onto the ground, the glass sliding across the ground as footsteps thud outside.

"JIN! ARE YOU OK?" She shakes him.

Jin can barely hear her screams, but he can feel his body vibrating. His vision starts to regain from the white void to see Reze over him. He does one last blink to fully gain the color of the world back.

"Wh…what happened?"

The door blasts open, five soldiers entering with their guns aimed at the two. Their camoed bodies fit for fighting in an urban environment, dark and light greys are stark behind the wooden colors of the cafe. Two flags rest on their arm - one of the Soviet flag, and a second of a red patch with a black X on it. A devil rests between the cross, its wicked grin touching each ear.

Balaclavas rest on all their faces, hiding every detail of their face - any hesitation, fear, joy. Only the eyes peek through and they're deadlier than most conventional weapons on the planet. However, the left eye is gone - the normal blues and browns from the irises replaced by a blackened void.

The knife is already out and in front of her before the soldiers enter the room. She's kneeling in front of Jin, putting her body in between the soldiers.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" She grips the knife a bit tighter, her free hand still on Jin's trembling body. The soldiers wordlessly circle them, their rifles staying firm.

With each step they take, she watches them. Looking for any weakness in their ranks, any chance to strike.

A shuddered breath comes from under her. She peeks down - Jin's too confused to even move.

"Reze….?"

"Not now." Her grip tightens on his body.

One of them, the patch on his arm showing he's an officer, moves in front of Reze. Her knife flips in her hand and points it towards him.

"Far enough."

The officer sighs. "We're here to collect the target - Chozin's orders. And we're supposed to bring you back, weapon."

"You didn't hear? We were to keep observing and collect more information on his day to day."

She knew it was an awful lie, but had to try.

The officer laughs, the rest of the soldiers follow suit. She can hear the guns move from her onto Jin.

"You know, we'd believe that if you weren't getting ice cream with the target. I promise we won't tell command about that part. Just give us the target. He's preferred alive, but dead will be an acceptable outcome." His pistol comes out, cocked and aimed at Jin. "You know how the top operates."

A scowl forms on her face "I was supposed to bring him in alive - YOU ruined the plan." She looks over at Jin, hoping he's ok.

His face is drooped, tears threatening to fall as his breath hitches out.

*Plan? She was lying to him?*

"Reze…all this… is fake?" His voice cracks, trying to push himself up and out of her grip.

*The school? Fake?*

Her body freezes at the question, but she's able to get something out.

"No." She half-lies.

The small twitch in her eye tells Jin all he needs to know.

"Then what the HELL IS HAP-" A soldier cuts him off and picks him up from behind Reze. She yelps and tries to grab at Jin.

"Target secured, moving to extract alpha. Hybrid secured as well, asset moving with strike team." The soldier nods at the officer as they move towards the broken doorway. Jin starts to struggle from the man's grip, trying anything to get away..

-He's got some fight in him.-

"What's happening? Where are you taking me? The hell is a hybrid? Wha- " A punch from a soldier connects onto Jin's face, blood flying out his mouth and covering the chalkboard. Jin's head slumps down, a mix of the red liquid with drool drips out of his mouth.

"DON'T YOU DARE." Reze steps up to the soldiers holding Jin, her hand inspecting the injury.

"Weapon, you come with us. You don't?" The soldier plants his gun on Jin's head. "Boom."

"Cute. Do that and I'll show ya a real boom." Her fingers intertwine with the ring on her choker.

Jin can barely look up at her. He's taken punches before, hell during some training sessions with Joe he's gotten a right hook to the face. This was different - these people are strong, ruthless.

*She liked my steaks… did she lie about that too?*

A trail of blood follows Jin as the soldiers pass through the doorway and quickly move towards the alley across the street, Reze close behind.

"Put him down. This wasn't part of the plan."

A huff comes out of the officer, stopping in his tracks. The other soldiers stop as well, confused looks growing between them.

"Hilarious. You keep saying that - yet here you are, begging for him. " He shoots a sharp glance towards her. The knife is still pointing at the officer - her fingers start turning white, the blade shaking.

"Fine. Want to play this game?" The officer turns around and kicks Jin in the stomach. Another spout of blood flies out of his mouth as he keels over.

The two soldiers holding him let go of his arms, his body slamming onto the cold concrete below. Another hitched breath comes out of Jin, hands trying to push himself back up.

*The kiss. She doesn't like me?*

"STOP. NOW." Her knife rises towards the officer's face.

"Or what?" One of the soldiers next to Jin asks, raising his leg back. The kick lands squarely on Jin's back, rolling him over.

A grunt is all Jin can manage.

The soldiers didn't even have a chance to react.

The officer blinked and Reze was gone. Turning around, he sees a bloodied knife leaving the one who kicked Jin's neck while the second one is crumpling to the ground.

Her gaze burns, the emerald green is like hellfire to the officer.

"OPEN FIRE."

That's all the officer could say.

Reze lunged at him, sticking the knife straight into his heart. She grabs his body as his knees buckle, the body jerking from oncoming fire meant for her. Through the cracks of the rifles, she hears from one of the soldiers scream -

"TEAM TWO - NOW."

Reze pushes the corpse forward towards the last two guards and lunges from the right side. In an instant, the knife slashes across their necks. Their blood splattering on her blouse and the brick walls. They grab for their necks to stop the bleeding, falling over and choking. The knife drips blood as it follows her steps over to Jin.

"Hey, you have to get up."

The pain blurs his vision. His body screams at him in pain while his head is in a fog. The worst part of it all is his heart - he can feel the pieces of it shattered and lodged inside his body.

She picks him up. A dumpster sits a few feet away—sturdy enough.

"Jin, I'm serious, look at me. We're getting out of here, ok?" She shakes him a bit, trying to break the fog. "You don't leave my side, got it?"

Her hands lay on his shoulders as Jin's vision clears. She pulls him behind the adjacent dumpster to hide, his back sticking to it. He can hear footsteps from down the alley and shouts in a language he cannot understand.

"Who… who are you?" Jin asks her, fear growing in his voice.

Her demeanor doesn't change. "I promise I'll tell you everything. Right now I'm ke-"

CRACK

The first bullet cuts through the dumpster and slices through Jin's right shoulder. It spins him forward, his body falling out in front of the makeshift cover. He screams out, the pain sharp and burning. He felt like he could see a light from the wound - probably the bullet passing through him.

As he falls over, Jin has time to look back towards the entrance of the alley. Five other soldiers are already running towards the dumpster, their guns aimed at his falling body.

That's when the next shots came in.

The second one hits the upper left part of his chest by his collarbone. His bones splinter inside him, body dropping to his knees from the pain.

*I thought it would hurt more.*

The third bullet hits back on the right side, piercing his skin and exiting behind him. He can feel the exit wound - a hole in his back, air passing through. The blood spurts behind him and stains the alleyway, Jin forcing his knees to stay steady.

*Is this it?*

The final one hits his chest, the burning spreading up and down his body. The only other thing he can feel is the blood pouring out of him. He lets one last hitched breath and turns towards Reze, a scream coming out of her mouth.

*Reze…*

His body falls backwards, head still steady on her face.

The last thing he sees is her turning towards the running soldiers, her hand tightly gripping the ring of her choker while tears drip off her face.

That's when the darkness overtakes him.

________

Reze screams cut through the night. The second team steps forward, guns raised at Jin's body.

"SHIT. Get medevac ready!" One of the soldiers screams out.

"I-I thought it was the weapon!" Another one shouts, lowering his gun as he looks at Jin's bleeding body.

Tears drip from Reze's eyes looking at Jin on the ground. His blood pools around him, the holes from his wounds spilling out more of him onto the alley street.

She watches the light leave his eyes.

Throughout her training, she's been taught that weapons don't cry. They don't feel. They only act at what they're pointing at.

'You should be happy.' She can hear Chozin in the back of her head. It only lets the tears fall harder out of her eyes.

She steps out with her hand around the choker ring.

-Give them what they want.-

The soldiers watch her step from behind the dumpster, trying to bring their weapons up fast enough.

It's too late.

"Boom."

The pin clicks as she pulls it off her choker, an explosion erupting around her. The soldiers stumble to the ground and shield their faces from the radiating heat.

Reze's head is no longer the purple haired and green eyed girl. In place of her head is a black bomb, much like an old fashioned nuke. Sharp teeth protrude under the bomb, almost resembling a shark's smile. An apron appears on her chest, covered with black detonators sitting over her clothes. The detonators also stretch onto her arms, covering them up to just above her elbows.

The division soldiers knew what they were sent to bring back. They read her report and how destructive this weapon was. They saw the pictures of her in action and her aftermath. They knew how to put her down, training for hours on what to do. But the second they see her, their minds blank - primal fear taking over their minds.

In front of them, the Bomb Devil stands.

"Leave."

Her footsteps echo off the brick as she steps forward, testing their resolve. Everyone in this alley knows the soldiers aren't leaving alive.

One of the soldiers reaches for his gun, the shot ringing through the night. It bounces off her metallic head as it turns towards the shot.

That soldier tries to fire off more shots, screaming in fear. Two of the soldiers take off from the alley, also screaming as they try to escape. The final two move towards Jin's body, mind still focused on the mission at hand.

"No more chances."

She snaps her fingers, sending colorful yellow balls of energy down towards them. As soon as one hits a soldier, an explosion tears through the whole alley - their screams are silenced by the incineration of their bodies. All that remains is ash, and under the ash lies Jin.

Metal clatters next to Reze as her devil form melts away, her tears still dropping to the pavement. She runs over to Jin and picks his limp body and sprints out of the alley.

Hours ago, she was eating a really good steak and getting ice cream. She even kissed the guy she liked.

Now - she's praying to whatever god or devil that'll answer her prayers. Her tears mix with his blood as she sprints to the nearest hospital. She'll use fake names, make up a fake story, do anything to get him to a doctor.

As her feet thud on the asphalt, she feels a faint heartbeat pick back up from Jin.

-Don't die on me yet.-

 

[usefulfinish421]

Reze usually leaves by now. She's taken people to hospitals before - missions in crowded spaces are common after all. Collateral damage happens, but it doesn't stop her from trying to minimize it. She never wanted to hurt others unless she had to.

For those she's accidentally hurt, Reze wouldn't stay. Better to avoid the aftermath and not get recognized, thanked, or blamed.

This time she doesn't care. It's been days since they've entered the hospital and she refuses to leave. She can't decide why she's adamant about staying.

Guilt? Pity? Something else?

Day and night she sits by Jin's bed, who lies still in a coma. When she stumbled in with his limp body, she gave them a fake name - Leonard Keith - to hide him from the division soldiers hunting them. The doctors were able to take him in quickly and get him into surgery. Luckily no major arteries were hit and he should be ok, the doctors told her.

But he didn't wake up after it. At first the doctors tried to wake him up, but after a few tries they said the shock from the mugging - a story Reze made up - could have been enough to send his brain into overdrive and shut off.

'Moments like these are incredibly traumatizing for the human brain - he must have been terrified.'

Reze knew it was because of her. Everything she did up to that point was a lie to get him isolated.

It wasn't all though. Occasionally she reached over to his bed, grabbing his still fingers to squeeze them.

-You'll wake up. You have to.-

The monitor beeps, numbers and lines reading out Jin's vitals as he's connected to various wires and tubes. He's barely breathing, each rise of his chest shallow, painful, but he is alive.

Usually when someone is hospitalized, people come by to check in. Joe stopped by a few times, but finding the room took a while – he was looking for Jin's room, not Leonard Keith. When he asked about the name, Reze told him the hospital must have mixed up the paperwork. Luckily for her, Joe bought the lie. He brought flowers, a get well soon card, and many 'You stupid idiot' comments with soft pats. He would stay for a bit, silently looking over Jin before abruptly getting up to leave.

But after Joe would leave, it would be silent – no one else showed. No parents, friends, coworkers, nobody. Reze sinks in her chair as she thinks about it.

-You really are alone.-

Only doctors would stop by, checking on his condition. They would ask Reze some questions, most going over her head as she focused on Jin's breathing. Eventually, she'd answer them with an emotionless gaze to get the staff out of the room.

The fourth night is like any other night. Soft chatter from the nurses in their station, the quiet beeps of the monitor, and Reze sitting in the chair - her eyes locked onto his chest.

Up. Down.

-He didn't deserve this.-

Up. Down.

Reze's fingers snake their way through his, the grip tightening onto the lifeless fingers. They feel cold to the touch.

Up. Down.

-I've seen people come back from worse.-

The monitor beeps faster, Reze glancing at it and back down to Jin's body.

Up. Down.

-I need you to come back.-

Up. Down.

After a second, the monitor returns to its normal cadence. She leans back, sighing and gazing at the ceiling. A small tear starts to form in her eyes.

-He just wanted a friend.-

Suddenly Jin's body jolts up, the mattress underneath him shaking. He takes frantic breath in to the sickly clean smell, screaming in pain as the stitches in his upper torso stretch and pull at his wounds. Falling back down, he looks around, frantic and hyperventilating.

Reze is immediately up and next to him.

"JIN! It's ok! You're safe. You're safe. You're ok…" She grabs his hand again, trying to soothe him.

But Jin pushes away from her, nearly falling out of his hospital bed and ripping his wires and tubes off his body. Probably not ideal.

She grabs him before that happens and sets him back up on the bed.

"HEY! It's ok. Look at me."

The look of endearment she'd gotten used to from Jin is gone - replaced now by primal fear.

It's palpable as he screams again, pain shooting up his shoulder as he attempts to push her away again. He steadies himself as he looks away from her, breath still shaky.

"Get away from me."

Reze lets him go. She slumps back onto the chair, feeling like she just got shot.

"I took you here, you know. Waited for 4 days to make sure you were ok." Her tone comes out emotionless.

She gulps.

"I said get away." He shudders out as he looks at the door.

"Not happening."

"Right, waiting for your friends to come and finish the job? Because that's why you're here right?"

"No, it's not like -"

He cuts her off. "Nah, it looks like it. So you wanna tell me what's going on, BECAUSE I -" As Jin tries to sit up, the stitches pull at him again, wincing in pain before he settles himself. He finally looks at her, eyebrows furrowed at her figure.

Reze can't stand to look at him like this, but her demeanor doesn't change.

"Yeah…. I'm not a barista. I was hired to capture you by the Hybrid Division. It's part of the Soviet Union. I'm… I'm part of them."

Jin chuckles to himself as his head slams back into the pillow.

"My life fucking sucks."

"I've been following you for the last week. Watching you and your movements. Honestly, you weren't supposed to come to the cafe… that was just luck on my part." She admits, her gaze slowly rising to his face.

The face staring back at her isn't what she wanted to see. Jin's face is still twisted in confusion and pain, his heartbeat increasing on the monitor.

"…ME? Why the hell would you want to kidnap me? If you ACTUALLY followed me, then you should know I DON'T DO ANYTHING."

The beeps quicken behind him, Reze's demeanor softening as she keeps glancing between him and the monitor. "I… don't know. All I was told was that it was a snatch and grab. Came from the top too - not even the strike team knew what the mission was. The head of the division wants you for… something."

Jin laughs again. He can't believe this: He's a target? Him? The guy with nothing?

"So… you've been lying to me the whole time? The coffee shop, the school, the dinner -" He sits back up, ignoring the pain shooting across his upper chest and shoulder. Reze tries to reach for him again , Jin pushing her hand away. "- I TOOK YOU TO MEET JOE. I DON'T TAKE ANYONE TO HIM. I SWEAR IF HE GETS HUR-"

A couple stitches on his shoulder snaps.

Jin howls as he falls back into the mattress. Blood seeps from the open wound as he begins to feel faint. He takes his other hand and tries to stop the now dripping fluid, but feels gauze get placed onto the wound.

Reze is already dabbing the blood away as she takes another piece of gauze to clean around the broken stitch. She turns around and grabs a bandage off of the nightstand and sticks it over the laceration.

The bleeding stops, Jin's breath slowing as the monitor starts to slow down its beeps.

"…what? Can't let me die? Worth more alive?"

She doesn't flinch. "If I wanted you dead I would have killed you at the school."

A heavy silence between the two as they look away from each other. Jin stares at the screen with his vitals as Reze still watches over him.

She realizes that might have been too harsh, but she isn't wrong. Most missions she can easily get someone isolated, and killing them only took a second.

That didn't matter right now.

Jin feels a soft pat on his leg. He turns around to see Reze still looking him over, her body beginning to tremble.

"But I didn't. I'm done lying. I'm done being an asset. A weapon. I so fucking…"

Tears start dripping on her cheeks as her hands slam the side of Jin's bed. The metal rattles from the impact as she looks up to the stark lighting.

"DONE." Her head falls into her hands as her fingers glide through her hair.

"I was supposed to lie to you Jin. Pretend I liked you, get you alone and take you back to the Division."

She looks up at him, blushing.

"I tried to. In the beginning, I really tried. But you gave me your skittles, that coffee bag, the dinner, it… I felt something."

He doesn't move. He's still watching cautiously. He's been in situations like this before - maybe not life threatening like this moment - but people lie all the same. Sometimes they can't hold their gaze with him, other times they won't even look his way.

But the worst was the fake crying. He's had people lie behind crocodile tears before.

'I swear I wasn't with him!' He can hear from a past girlfriend, a day before finding her and a work friend together on a date. More cries came from the girl, but Jin knew they weren't real tears. It was why he never took any tears at face value.

So he settles back into the uncomfortable mattress, watching Reze continue.

"And you're an idiot! Really! You're terrible at math, you're forgetful, but… but…" Her eyes widen, glassy with new tears. Jin's able to see his reflection in them.

Her breath hitches as she desperately tries to fix the falling strands of purple hair. Jin stays still, mind racing between everything from the past week - The two dates, her smile when she was at Joe's, her face when he got shot.

One thought keeps bouncing in his head.

*She's… not lying.*

"What's a hybrid?"

Outside, a nurse's voice calls on the PA system. Reze ignores it and stares at Jin confused.

"You said you were part of the hybrid division and you're an asset. I think you called yourself a weapon?" Jin leans back up again, staring directly at Reze. "What is it?"

For a second, she peeks back up at the ceiling as her fingers play with her hair again. With a heavy sigh, she looks back down towards Jin.

"It's… like I'm me right now, right? But when I was young, the Soviets took me and took out my heart. They replaced it with another heart - a devil heart. It… gave me powers. That's the best way to describe it."

Another few beeps come from the monitor before Jin speaks again.

"Jesus… they did that to you as a kid?"

"Yeah. It sucks."

*She's alone too.*

"But… what powers does a devil heart give you?"

"It depends on the devil."

"Hold on!" Jin readjusts himself on the mattress. "There's multiple??? Which one are you?"

A second passes before she breathes in.

"…The Bomb Devil." She quickly huffs out, staring at the ground.

"…they put that in you? As a kid? Reze…" Jin looks over at her. "I'm sorry."

"Why are you apologizing? I made this mess. You got shot because of me." She huffs out, sinking into her chair.

"Sure, but that still sucks. You didn't deserve that."

She nods, letting silence fall between the two again. It hurts her to be honest, but it had to be done.

-Not like I'm sticking around after this. Not like - -

"Hey, can I be honest about something too? Like super honest?"

The sound of his voice breaks her concentration. She looks up to Jin.

"…before that night, I'd never made any type of steak before. It was my first time."

"Shut up." A smile starts to form on her face. "I think I beat you out on 'worst underlying secrets'."

"…yeah you're right on that.. But if we're being FULLY honest… yeah I was really panicking. I think I screamed before you knocked?"

"You did - it was really funny… and you did good for your first try."

"You're not lying?"

"Jin." She sits up more in her chair and leans forward. "I'm not lying to you anymore. I want to be here with you. How do you want me to prove it?"

He blinks, thinking. After another minute he shifts over on the bed, patting the open side of the mattress.

"Stay here with me? I kinda… don't like hospitals. Got a lot of bad memories here."

The bed creaks as Reze gently places herself on top of the mattress. She lays her head down on the pillow, her hair covering part of her face as she looks at Jin.

"Is this ok?"

"For now, yeah." He also lays down, turning his head towards her. "So… what are we gonna do about the Hybrid Division?"

Her nose crinkles as her eyebrows furrow. "Well, right now you're gonna recover. They're not gonna find you here, trust me. But after that? Honestly… I'm not sure. But I won't let them take you."

Another calm set of beeps come from the monitor. "Guess we'll figure that out when we get there, yeah?"

Before his brain can stop him, he feels his fingers slide between hers and squeeze. Reze smiles at it and leans in to kiss him, but Jin pulls away.

"I'm… not ready for that, no. Sorry."

She nods, her hand slipping from Jin's grip to rest on his chest - she wasn't expecting that. "Yeah… right. It's ok. I'm sorry – I mean it."

Just then the door swings open to a doctor walking in, reading over a clipboard and unaware of Jin's current condition.

"Hello miss, any update on -" he looks up to Jin's dumbfounded face. "Oh! Larry! You're up!"

Jin blinks a few times and side looks at Reze, barely catching a soft giggle from her. Jin looks back at the doctor. "…yeah. I'm up. Thank god Meredith was here, I had a few stitches break but she was able to patch it up." Jin pats the bandage - a mistake as pain shoots up his shoulder - while Reze burns her face into the pillow to hide her laughter.

After a few more questions, the doctor runs out to grab some of the other nurses. In the moment the two have together, Jin takes one last look at Reze.

"Seriously, LARRY?"

________________

The lights above the strike team commander fizzle at him while he walks down the hallway. Getting called to meet with the top isn't a good thing. The commander sighs and opens the door to the dimly lit room.

At the end of the room, the figure watches the monitors in front of him displaying different things - camera feeds, messages, bodycam footage.

On the main monitor, a frozen image of the Bomb Devil sits as one of the soldiers faces screams in fear.

"Commander, to my knowledge you're the one who led the strike team to collect the target and weapon, yes?"

The commander stands firm, hands behind his back.

"Yes, Sir. There was unexpected-"

Something creaks behind the commander. He turns around to see a blank wall behind him, the door he entered now gone.

"Nothing is unexpected. We always plan for hybrids to defect." The figure slowly paces around, still fixated onto the monitors.

A chill runs up the commander's spine as his shoulders slink down an inch. "Correct sir, but the sheer might of the Bomb Devil… our team wa-"

The figure punches the main monitor, shattering the feed. Only the image of the warhead still sparkles through the broken glass. Below her image sparks jump out of the broken device, glass falling out of the figure's hand as it drops back down to his side.

"Your team was… what?"

The commander clears his throat. "Our team was eliminated."

"Your team is ash right now commander. Ash. Because of your preparation. And yet, you're still standing in front of me." The hood turns towards the commander, red bleeding out of where his eyes should be.

The commander steps back. He's surprised by the voice - it's like an inhuman growl from under the hood. Hell, he's only taken orders from Chozin and only heard the horror stories of the figure. But now he's directly in this cloaked figure's gaze.

This is REALLY bad for him.

"Sir, I was told by Chozin to return after the second team went in. I was only -"

"You had one directive. What was it?"

The commander's veins ice over. He can't stand to look at this thing anymore. He looks behind the entity at one of the monitors, whatever happening on the screen doesn't matter - he needs to collect himself.

"Capture the target, sir."

The figure's fingers drum on the table impatiently.

"That's not all. What else is part of the directive?"

"Ensure our weapons return to base."

The drumming stops while the air grows heavy in the room.

"So commander, this is why I called you in. I HAD a strike team - 'some of the best' you promised to Chozin - that's now all dead. I had a weapon - one of our strongest I MIGHT ADD - just killed YOUR strike team."

"Sir, I swear we will –"

The figure slams the desk, the metal cracking down the middle as both sides fly into the opposite walls. The commander is now physically shaking, feeling the glare piercing his soul. He can feel sweat forming on the nape of his neck as he takes a step back.

To where? He has no idea.

"I'M NOT DONE." The voice hisses out. "FINALLY. The target IMPERATIVE to Project Paradise is gone. If YOU DIDN'T LEAVE - MAYBE WE'D HAVE A LEAD."

"THOTH, PLEASE!"

Suddenly the commander can no longer move, no longer see, no longer breathe. Panic sets in as his senses, honed through years of service to the USSR do not respond to his brain's commands.

On Thoth's cloak, a small pocketwatch pushes past the fabric to the front. He breathes out and moves as the timer on his chest begins to count down.

=2 minutes=

Thoth passes where the commander once was. In his place is a lava lamp, blue light and wax illuminating the floor and other blank screens.

=1:30=

A radio hisses to life on Thoth, his footsteps echo in the room as he waits for a response.

He knows there will be a response.

=1 minute=

The radio beeps as the radio connects. "Yes Sir?" A voice answers behind some quiet banter behind him.

"Dimitri. Ready your team. And make sure the Ghost hybrid is ready."

"…Sir we lost that hybrid a few years ago."

On the radio, Thoth hears a scream cut through the airwaves followed by a sickening splatter of liquid. The screaming stops while a new hissing sound fills the silent room.

=30 seconds=

"Then find a new one." Thoth's voice cuts into the radio.

A snort comes from the radio. "Understood sir."

The radio cuts off.

Thoth walks back towards sounds of metal scraping on the ground. He picks up the lava lamp as he passes by it.

=10 seconds=

The desk reattaches to itself as Thoth opens up one of its empty drawers. The lava lamp is placed into it as his focus shifts back to the monitors.

=3 seconds=

The commander helplessly watches as the drawer closes into darkness, trying to scream.

The alarm goes off.

 

[usefulfinish421]

Jin wakes up to his bed on fire. The flames are rising over his room, smoke engulfing his vision and lungs. He coughs and rolls to the left side of the bed, luckily missing a rising wall of flames. He hits the ground and starts crawling out of the room. His toys melt onto the carpet as he passes through the doorway. He coughs and spits up a black liquid onto the ground - a mix of vomit and ash - before he continues down the hallway.

He has to find his parents.

He shouts for them between his tears. As he gets to their bedroom door he puts his ear on it.

Other than the roar of the fire, it's silent.

He reaches for the handle to open the door, screaming in pain when he touches the hot metal. He then starts to kick at the door. It reverberates with a dull thud from each strike over the roaring fire. His small legs aren't able to get through. Suddenly, he keels over from coughing. He tries to suck in more air under the smoke, watching the flames spreading down the walls and eat up their family pictures. He throws one more weak kick at the door, Jin losing his strength as he screams for his mom and dad.

Silence only comes from the room. He only has one choice now.

Jin crawls away, hands scurrying on the hardwood as he gets to the front door. Oddly, it's open - usually his parents would close the door when they would come in.

He jumps up and sprints out of his apartment and into the hallway. The whole place is ablaze with screams echoing down the burnt walls. As his tears nearly blind him, he yells as he finds his way to the emergency exit. With a dive, he crashes through the exit and falls to the ground, never realizing how safe the dirt could feel.

He rolls onto his back and crawls away from the blaze, screams and a sweet sickly smell assaulting his senses. Ash starts to fall onto his face, Jin desperately wiping the wet mixture away. He doesn't know what to do, where to go, how to even find the words.

When he looks around, the only other person he can see is a woman dressed in business attire. Her brunette hair falls perfectly over her suit jacket as she watches the fire from a bench. She turns towards Jin before he can call out, almost expectantly. She grabs a red broach on her suit jacket, smiling.

"You're a lively one, aren't you?"

Jin jolts up on his futon in a cold sweat.

This isn't the first time he's had a dream of that day, but it'll never be the last. Today, it feels more real - the sensation of the fire still tingles on his skin.

*Must be the medicine.*

The orange bottle of painkillers is tossed onto the coffee table. He scans around his apartment, but it stares back empty and still. Better that Reze probably didn't hear him - he's been known to scream from it.

They've been back in his apartment for three weeks now. Luckily, it's been quiet - it's been nice, but the overarching dread of waiting for their next strike hangs heavy in the air.

"Why me, man…" Jin sinks back down onto the futon, grabbing his right shoulder. This wound hurts the most. He doesn't understand how the other three shots - which were all upper torso - don't affect him, but the one shot between his shoulder blade is causing this much pain.

He reaches over to the coffee table to grab the previously thrown pills.

*I really need a drink.*

It's been a while since he's actually thought that. He checks the bottle to read it over. 'DO NOT TAKE WITH ALCOHOL' mockingly reads back at him.

*What do they know anyway?*

The white top clicks off and two giant blue pills rattle down into his hand. Jin shoves them in his mouth and chugs the rest of his water before laying back down. The futon isn't the most comfortable, but he's given Reze his bedroom - where she's been staying to make sure Jin's safe.

Suddenly, the door opens to Reze stepping in. She's wearing an oversized hoodie with the hood up, sunglasses to cover her striking eyes, and Jin's backpack.

"Hey." he says softly, watching her move about the apartment to clean up a few things. The stress of the dream nearly disappears.

She comes around to the futon, swings the backpack down, and pulls out Gatorades and hydration packets for Jin.

"Hey, how'd you sleep? I took off to get some things while you were knocked out." She takes off her sunglasses and lets her purple hair drop down as she looks at him, smiling.

Jin sometimes forgets how truly beautiful she is.

"Yeah, good. How long was I out?" Jin asks, shifting up.

"I've been gone for two hours, so probably that long?" Her attention shifts back into the bag, taking out a radio, laptop, and few other devices that Jin isn't too sure about. She also pulls out a new phone, the device powering on as she begins setting it up.

"I got us a few things - and I needed to replace my phone so…" She shakes her new phone at Jin.

"Does that mean I can get your number?" he asks, a smile tugging at his lips.

It doesn't register to Reze at first. "….Yeah? How are we going…"

The lightbulb goes off in her head.

"Oh! Yeah you can have my number."

She giggles as she grabs Jin's phone off the coffee table, bypassing his lock and putting the number in. She tosses his phone back towards him. "There. Now, a few of the other things I got -" She starts to describe some of the other devices she picked up. Jin only hears a little bit of it - something about a hotel room, something about the Hybrid Division. Jin is focused on his phone at his newest contact.

Reze

He smiles at the newest addition. "….You got into my phone? How'd you -"

She cuts him off. "Usually phone pins are dates that are important to their lives. I guessed twice and got it right." Her eyes shift to his. "By the way, you might want to change that sooner rather than later."

"It… WAS secure. How many people know my birthday?" Jin quickly goes into his settings, trying to figure out a new pin.

"More than you think." She winks, softly nudging him as her laptop turns on. A map of Tokyo appears with a few blue blinking dots scattering the screen. A few messages pop up as well, the Russian script lost to Jin.

Reze's able to read them, the threats not phasing her.

-Better that he can't understand.-

"What… uh… what are you doing?"

Reze looks at him quickly and goes back to the screen, her nose crinkling. "Currently, I'm taking a look at all known safe houses and bases that HD's set up. Places where officers and commanders will be. It'd be good to go hit those places, send a message to leave ya alone."

Jin shoots up on the futon. "Wait, we're gonna assault a base?"

Reze's focus doesn't shift. "No, YOU'RE staying low. You're not getting yourself into any type of trouble. I can take care of them myself."

Jin leans forward. "I'm just saying it's…a base. There's gotta be like a hundred soldiers. You'll get yourself killed."

Reze leans back, contemplating. Most bases do have a lot of soldiers on standby, hidden from the general public. Some are less fortified and staffed, but with everything going on now…

"No, I won't. YOU would though. Which is why you're gonna stay back. This isn't a game."

She slams the laptop shut.

"We're not having this discussion right now. Besides, you wouldn't know what to do."

"No shit it's not a game, but you're not just a killing machine. So maybe, we can work something out here."

After a few blinks, she looks at Jin.

"…Work something out? What, train you to be a little killer? And then what take you with me, just so I can watch you get shot again? " She scoffs.

"You'd be useless."

The words come out cold - not what she wanted.

Jin starts to stand up, walking away to the bedroom.

"Yeah. That's exactly what I'm saying. Because you don't think they're gonna stop looking for us, so I might as well learn something instead of be fucking useless."

Jin pushes the door open and turns around one last time.

"Because honestly? I'm always fucking useless, way before I met you. So please, don't remind me."

SLAM

Reze sighs, sinking back into the futon.

-Why did I say that?-

The apartment lies still again as Reze glances around the room.

-He's an idiot. He's gonna get hurt.-

As she looks around, her focus keeps shifting to the picture of Jin, Joe, and his dad. She sits up to inspect it more.

-The way he's holding it… the angle it's at…-

"Jin. I gotta ask you something."

A muffled grunt comes from the bedroom.

She gets up and goes to the bedroom door. It creaks open to Jin sprawled on the bed. He pushes himself up to look at her and collapses back onto the bed.

"Already taking the bed back, huh?"

Another grunt comes from Jin.

"When you took that picture with Joe and your dad, I didn't know you knew how to hold it at parade rest."

"...What?"

"Parade rest. The way you're holding the rifle."

-I know you know this.-

Jin looks up to his ceiling, thinking about that day. It was a kids' day at the base, where they taught the kids how to do things their parents do every day in the military.

"It's not at parade rest."

Reze smiles and leans onto the doorframe.

"No, I think it is."

"We weren't doing that. I remember it when Joe and my dad taught me. It was… I don't know, I think it was at Order Arms?"

"And when they taught you to shoot, how would you hold it?"

"... C-Clamp? I don't know, it's been a while."

She nods. "Nice. You know your stuff. How often would they teach ya?"

He shrugs. "Honestly, I think like once? Maybe?"

Reze walks over to him and sits down on the bed. "We start training next week, ok?" A few of her fingers run through his hair. "You pick up things fast, don't you?"

The fingers cause Jin to shudder.

"I mean… I don't know, I guess?"

"How long did ya cook the steaks on each side?"

He stops and thinks again. "Like 3 and a half minutes I think?" He rolls over to look at her. "What's this got to do with anything?"

Reze stops and helps pull Jin up with his good shoulder. "See? When you're feeling better, I know a spot where we can do everything - fight, shoot, whatever."

Reze gets him fully up and drags him back into the living area.

"I'm not letting you sulk in there. You're not useless." She takes his hand, giving it a squeeze as they settle onto the futon again.

Jin sighs. "Yeah, I'm not too much of a beacon of confidence to myself so…"

They both sit still for a few minutes as the screen of the laptop is still plinking away, dinging out new locations. Jin looks up at the TV, the black monitor reflecting both their faces.

Another ping comes through.

*Should I apologize?*

The laptop dings again.

*We gotta move on…*

Another ping.

His brain starts to itch. He's gotta do something.

"Hey Reze, what's your favorite movie?"

Reze's head falls to her shoulder in a dream-like state.

"…Legally Blonde…"

The futon creaks as Jin shoots up. He thought it'd be some action or horror movie… not that.

"What."

"…Shut up. Elle Woods is a badass."

"That's NOT what I'm saying I'm just -" He laughs "- A Soviet spy loves the movie about the American legal system?"

She rolls her eyes. "See? Right there is why I love the movie. Because of my background you wouldn't think I'd like it? Because she's a 'dumb blonde' she wouldn't have the intelligence to go to Harvard and be a lawyer?"

It makes him think for a second. He can't come up with anything good.

"Damn Reze, you got me there." He looks at her. "You're really full of surprise, aren't you?"

She smiles back at him, scooting a bit closer. "You don't even know half of it."

Jin hears the beep of the laptop again, and looks at her. "What if, this is crazy I know, but we close the laptop for now. Watch a movie… maybe go to the bar next to the apartment after? Get a drink?"

The TV powers on while it shifts through the streaming apps.

Reze's eyes dart between the laptop and TV. "But… that's not… they're looking for you. And besides -" She grabs the pill bottle and points at it. "YOU CAN'T DRINK."

"Well think about it - Hybrid Division probably thinks that too. So they're gonna check everywhere else. Hell, they probably already did, right?"

Reze nods, continuing to listen.

"Ok, that's creepy. ANYWAY. Any place I wouldn't go to, like a bar, should be somewhat safe, right? They wouldn't expect me to go there, and honestly I've never been. We can hide in plain sight. Besides…"

He places his arm around Reze.

"I wanna show you around more too. Even though I really don't know the best spots, they're my spots. Make them… our spots?"

*Very smooth.*

In his head, he can feel the hi-five with his brain and heart. He snuggles a bit closer to Reze. "We got Elle Woods to watch, right?"

The opening scene begins, as CULA focuses into the frame. Reze leans more into Jin, shutting the laptop with a grin pulling at the corners of her mouth.

"Yeah… we do have a movie to watch…"

She looks up at Jin while on his chest.

"Thank you." She whispers as she sinks into him.

Elle Woods shows up on screen. "Of course… maybe we could get used to this."

Reze snorts. "It's been a few weeks. Let's slow down Cupid."

She takes his hand and holds it.

"Love the mixed signals you're giving me." Jin laughs softly.

"I like to keep you guessing, you know?"

_______________

The bar is dimly lit and empty, save for the bartender and a few patrons. Reze and Jin walk in with smiles plastered on their faces.

"All I'm saying, is that the bend and snap works EVERY time." Reze laughs, following Jin into the bar.

He looks back between laughter. "It can't work EVERY time. Besides, I know I'm gonna piss you off eventually - you think the bend and snap is gonna save me from whatever wrath you've got?"

She's laughing with him as they sit down, hands held tightly under the bar. Her thumb runs instinctively up his fingers. The bartender walks over, placing down some coasters and waits for their orders.

Jin gets a simple beer, he doesn't need much more. He shouldn't be drinking with his pain medication anyway… but it's been a rough few days.

Reze orders a water for herself. The bartender walks away to grab the things.

"You're not drinking that."

He looks at her, sighing. "Come on, give me a break. I don't even drink that much."

"Good, you're not starting tonight."

The bartender arrives and places the drinks down in front of the two. Before Jin can protest, the two drinks are swapped. Reze immediately sips the beer as Jin watches his drink longingly.

After a minute, he laughs and raises his water glass.

"Here's to… the wildest couple weeks of my life."

Reze raises hers.

"Yeah, and here's to better ones."

Their glasses clink as they take a sip of their drinks.

"So, how would you watch Legally Blonde when you were part of the division?"

She takes a long sip of the beer before putting it down and turning to him. "We all had a room in the main base. Hybrids had priority for "the good stuff"... so I got a DVD player and would get some movies when I'd be on mission."

"... So basically you got like blood DVD's then?"

She snorts, kicking him from under the bartop.

"Shut up!"

Behind them, the door opens as a group of office workers push in, the quiet bar now filled with laughter and yelling.

Jin quickly peeks at the group, feeling his stomach sink as he tries to slink behind Reze. She looks at Jin, confused, and turns back at the commotion.

The whole group clocks her immediately. She turns away slowly.

"You know them?" She asks, fully facing Jin now. She can still feel their eyes on her back.

His head drops to the bar top, muffling his response. "Yeah. That's my coworkers and my boss… guess this is the happy hour spot they'd always talk about."

The laughter from the group rises as one of the guys, a taller man, stands up and puts his foot on the table.

"Then I guess that I got the commission, I'll get the drinks! First rounds on me!" As he walks away, the group slams their table and begins chanting.

"KAITO! KAITO! KAITO!"

He walks up to the bar, each footstep deepening the pit in Jin's stomach. Kaito pushes himself between the two, leaning onto the bar top and turning towards Reze. "I think I'll put your drink on my tab too."

Reze blinks a few times and smiles at him. "Oh, that's sweet, but I'm kinda here with someone right now." She leans over to look at Jin.

Jin tries to hide his face, but quickly looks at Kaito and waves sheepishly.

Kaito looks over to the man he shoved between, shock forming on his face. "…JIN??? Is that you??"

He slaps Jin's right shoulder, pain radiating up his arm.

"I didn't realize you were right there! I'm so, SO sorry. You're hanging out with her? What, a cousin or something?" Kaito looks back over to Reze with a smile.

She laughs. "Cousin? No. We're grabbing a drink after watching a movie. He's got a really nice place."

Kaito laughs and leans on Jin's right shoulder, pain shooting up to the wound. Jin grunts in pain, but Kaito doesn't care.

"I see, well Jin is a good guy. A bit meek…" He pushes more onto the shoulder. "But he's nice enough I guess. We work together, you know."

Reze watches Kaito crush Jin's shoulder, wordlessly taking in this conversation.

-Not yet.-

Kaito blinks and keeps going. "Anyway, he's a decent salesman, but I just closed one of his big accounts." A whoop comes from the table, Kaito waving them off.

"By the way, total humble brag, I also won salesman of the year! Jin did a decent job getting a ton of those set up and prospected, but…" He leans in closer, cheap cologne stinging Reze's nose. "I'm the finisher. And I always finish what Jin starts." He tries to meet her gaze.

Reze's face doesn't change. "That's… so cool. You know what else is cool?" She leans close to Kaito's face as his smile grows. She travels over to his ear, teasingly.

"You're on my boyfriend's shoulder. He got mugged and shot 4 times, and you're leaning on one of the spots the bullet hit him. So, I suggest getting off him before something happens to you." She leans back, an innocent smile on her face as she plays with the ring on her choker.

Jin feels his ears burn.

*...Boyfriend?*

Kaito's expression changes. He finally lets go of Jin's shoulder as the pain burns away. Kaito's hand shifts down to try to grab Reze's, which she quickly moves to dodge.

"Boyfriend? I don't believe it. What are you covering up for him? Is he paying you? I got money…" A smile forms back onto his face. "And I know I'm fun."

Reze laughs, and blushes. A fake one. She feels his hand brush onto her leg, and she shifts away from his touch.

"Wow. You're so…. Dumb."

Her demeanor changes from tantalizing to cold.

"I'll give you five seconds. Walk away."

Kaito's grin immediately evaporates. He leans back from the bar, intentionally bumping into Jin's shoulder again.

The bartender returns with the beers on a platter and Kaito picks them up, looking at Jin.

"Your whatever over there… is a real bitch." Kaito spins around to head back to the table.

Something inside Jin snaps. He doesn't know what it was, he doesn't know why it happened. People have said worse about him… but this is different.

Jin's leg shoots out as Kaito goes to walk back to the table. Kaito's leg catches Jin's, sending the businessman crashing onto the cold ground. The drinks spill and crash, glass shattering as beer envelopes not only Kaito's suit, but the table of coworkers as well. They yelp and jump up, grabbing whatever napkins they can find.

Jin stands up over Kaito.

"…don't call her that."

Kaito looks up at Jin and sneers, standing up. Jin watches Kaito grow over him, just noticing the height difference between them.

"I'll do whatever the fuck I want. You? You don't get to say shit."

He shoves Jin, pushing him back a bit, making sure to hit Jin's shoulder.

"You know why? Because people like you, you're nobodies. You think drifting through life is comfortable."

Another shove. Another wince by Jin.

"That's not life. I show up and I close YOUR deals. I take what I earn. You? You set up MY wins and go hide at home."

There's another whoop from the group of coworkers.

"You think stuff gets handed to you, why, because you're nice? Because you roll over for people? YOU DON'T DESERVE ANYTHING JUST BECAUSE OF THAT."

Another shove.

Jin looks at Kaito.

"You know, you always were an asshole."

Kaito grabs Jin and pulls him close.

"And you will ALWAYS be a fucking nobody."

Jin smiles. He got Kaito right where he wanted him.

Jin's head rears back and swings forward, crashing down onto Kaito's face. His forehead connects with Kaito's mouth - teeth and blood fly from Kaito's face as he lets go of Jin, flailing backwards.

Kaito regains himself, wiping the blood from his mouth while stepping forward to throw a jab. Jin watches the fist ball up and heads his way, shifting his body to block it - should be easy enough.

Kaito's other fist connects to Jin's cheek - a right hook that Jin didn't even see. Jin stumbles back to the bar and crashes into it, glasses falling around him before he sinks down. His mouth feels numb but can taste something on his tongue. He spits it out, the red mixture landing on the wooden floor as he stands up.

Or at least, he tries.

When Jin puts weight onto his legs, they feel like jelly. He begins to tumble down, catching himself on the bar this time. When he turns to face Kaito he catches a glimpse of another fist careening for his stomach. It connects, Jin slinking back onto the ground.

"God, you're pathetic." Kaito huffs out, stepping over him.

After another cough of blood, Jin picks himself back up.

"Fuck you."

Another fist rears back while Jin tries to focus on the real Kaito.

A kick from the side connects with Kaito's head. He flies backwards onto the table with the coworkers, smashing into their glasses and plates. More blood pours from his face, while he tries to bend his nose back into place. He screams and flails, the sound piercing through the bar.

Reze steps towards the bar, the men looking up in fear. She gives them a smile and tilts her head over the bleeding man.

"Oops." She shrugs and slowly steps away towards Jin. She picks him up, his bodyweight leaning onto her as she helps walk him out. He pats her back and points at the table. She nods and walks him over, Jin doing everything to hold his head steady.

"I'm done with you assholes. I quit." Jin slurs out, Reze shaking her head and dragging him out of the bar as Kaito's screams echo out into the night. They turn the corner and start ascending the stairs into Jin's apartment.

"You know you don't have to fight for me." Jin says, his vision slowly regaining. He spits out another mixture of blood and saliva into a potted plant.

"Well, maybe you shouldn't be getting into barfights when you've been shot."

"Listen - Elle Woods." Jin jokes, the feeling of his legs coming back. He starts to walk, his hand still holding Reze's as his vision settles.

"That's not how that works - you can't say that when you're a dumbass."

He shrugs, opening the door to his apartment. He goes towards the coffee table, grabbing a napkin and cleaning out whatever blood was left in his mouth. Reze comes over and gives him some water, the liquid cleaning out the rest of whatever was in his mouth.

"You're dumb, but that headbutt?" She grabs the glass and walks back to the kitchen sink. "That was smart. Joe teach ya that too?"

He nods. "Yeah. Told me to fight smart when I could. He said that I'd never win straight up." He spins the orange bottle open and takes one of the white pills. "I guess he was right."

"Which is WHY next week we're gonna teach ya more." The faucet turns on as she quickly washes the cup out.

*…wait.*

"Hey. Down there… you call me your boyfriend?"

She freezes. "I was trying to get him to back off." She fixates on another glass to clean. "Don't think anything of it."

Jin laughs, rubbing his shoulder. "I mean, I didn't hate it." Their eyes meet as they both turn red.

"Don't look at me like that!" She shouts, cutting the water off.

"Whatever you say…" He whispers, looking out the window. Moonlight drips into his apartment while the city lights dance on the surrounding buildings. He yawns, his jaw hurting when his mouth opens.

"Hey, Reze, I'm gonna try to rest. Today was… a lot. I had fun with you though." His head hits the pillow.

"Of course. Night." She says, walking into Jin's bedroom to lay down on the empty bed. It's where she's been sleeping since they came back from the hospital.

She rolls to her side, looking around and taking in her surroundings. It's a still night, and the plain room doesn't offer much to take in. Her gaze fixates on her bag next to his dresser.

When she cleaned out the hotel room, she made sure to get one thing.

And it's looking back at her in the bag.

Chibi Reze stares back from the burlap bag, the terribly written "Reze's Special" facing towards her.

She smiles, breathes in, and calls out.

"Hey, idiot."

A tired grunt comes in from the other room.

"Come in here."

"…why?"

She laughs to herself.

"Because, idiot. Your futon probably sucks to sleep on. And your bed is pretty nice!" She rolls around the bed. She's not lying - it is pretty comfortable.

She hears a laugh from the other room.

"Wanted to give you your own space, besides you're sleeping in basically a stranger's apartment."

She sinks into the pillow, her full face turning red.

"No, I'm in my boyfriend's apartment, and I think he should be in here with me."

Silence comes from the other room. She shifts a bit in the bed, nervous.

Then, she hears the creaking from the futon, followed by short careful footsteps. Jin slips around the doorframe and leans on it on his good shoulder.

"I thought I shouldn't think about it too much?"

She laughs, shifting over to make space for him.

"Maybe I changed my mind."

Jin walks over and lays onto his bed, rolling over to look at Reze.

"You're an enigma."

She reaches out to rub his arm.

"Good, I like keeping you guessing." Her hair lays on her face, her eyes still barely visible from the moonlight. His fingers reach out and caress her face, taking in every curve.

Suddenly, Jin pushes his face forward and gives Reze a soft kiss. She pulls away, surprised, but leans her forehead onto his.

"You're not getting any more tonight, you know that?"

Jin laughs.

"All I want is to lay here with my girlfriend."

She shifts closer to him, grabbing him like he'll disappear at any moment.

"Good."