Getting By
By Sachi Gosetsuke
Summary: with school and work being so demanding in Julia's life, how exactly does she get by? OneShot
Sachi: May even turn into a twoshot. I'm on a OneShot regime here. I've been trying to gain a bit of inspiration back and lately I've been having all these ideas just popping into my head. This story kind of relates to what I'm going through (hence the reason for my lack of updates), but most importantly I'm becoming much more open-minded now. And I think it's time to turn to new pairings (but still stick to my favorites of course!), and I decided to start with the one pairing I thought I could never understand, but thanks to a friend of mine…well…I dedicate this to Sage Pagan. And yes, that's a clue to the mystery pairing here :)
Disclaimer: don't own Tekken.
I see…trees of green. Red roses too.1
Not too mention skies of blue…and clouds of white…
"Ms. Chang, would you like to add to that statement?"
And I think to myself: what a wonderful world.
Not the first time I've daydreamed about my homeland and didn't pay attention to today's lecture in class. In fact, this is the third time this week.
Honestly, how do I put up with myself?
"Um, no Professor Delaine, I don't."
In fact, how on Earth do I get through the day?
Of course my teacher had expected better from me. After all, I'm the brain-e-ack, every teacher's dream, the straight A student, the always perfect Julia. Julia this, Julia that; Julia should know the answer, she has no life.
Before, all this would've been true. And before, it wouldn't have been so hard living up to these expectations, because, well, they were true.
But of course I don't much like that part where I have no life. C'mon, who said all bookworms and tree huggers have nothing else to do?
Finally, after a few embarrassing seconds, he turned to the rest of the class, "All right, Mr. Hester, would you like to add that statement instead?"
Apparently I wasn't prepared to come back to college after all.
Well, what did I expect? I've taken 3 months off just to work on some personal problems involving the cruelty of all mankind with its vast ignorance for the end of Mother Earth and all it's green and wonders, and for once, Perfect Julia couldn't get it right. So even after swearing an oath to myself that I wouldn't get myself involved with the Mishimas like my Mother did, I entered not just the fourth, but the fifth Iron Fists, high hopes that I could win enough money to save my homeland.
But apparently Perfect Julia got her calculations wrong for once.
It was a failure. I've never been so down, so wrong in my life.
Again, such a wonderful world.
And that's why I dream. Because it's all I can do. Dream. Apparently my dream of reforestation was nothing but a dream.
Dreaming is what gets me through the day.
But daydreaming calls for daytime, and doing such in the daytime can lead to problems. Such as school.
Did I mention school was not only a bitch?
"Ms. Chang, please help out those customers."
"Ms. Change, I need two cokes for table 4."
"Waitress! There's a black speck in my soup!"
In a wonderful world, not only are there trees of green and red roses as well, but also everyone is kind and sweet and money grows on trees in our very own backyard.
The black speck is called pepper, loser.
It feels like work and school are one in the same: both demanding attention, both important, both tiresome and in both I can easily get into some kind of small blunder. It happens.
And there are people in both that want this, that, and more and won't stop nagging you till you get it right. Like a school report due in two days. Or like an empty shift that no one can fill in, so I always have to stay later than usual.
It's hard to say no.
Sometimes caffeine isn't enough for a hard working college girl. You also need sugar. That's where energy drinks come in, but those overly sweet poison people put into their bodies only cut back each second of their life and I'd prefer a cup of dirt (I mean, Joe) to that.
That's where the sweet invention of chocolate comes in. No pun intended.
I could stock up on Fannie Mays and mocha lattes for a year's worth if only they weren't so pricey and not to mention filled with carbs.
Pff. Like I'm watching my figure. What's there to watch if you've got a beat-up punching bag in front of you? Still, it doesn't hurt to watch my slightly bulging tummy (again, no longer Perfect Julia here).
But I still need energy to get me through the day.
And then it's time to escape to the library. My perfect little sanctuary. Cozy, quiet, I'm free to do whatever, freed from the constant complaints from the customers at the café and the nagging questions of my professors.
If only I had better things to do there than catch up on schoolwork.
But I like going here to the library – call it a "bookworm" thing, but I just feel at peace here, where I can just get through the day. But it's just like daydreaming - if you know what I mean. It all has to end sometime.
And soon the daydream is over, by 7:00 PM and I'm getting up and gathering my books and heading back home, hoping for a nice, long hot bath, mediation, and a full, sit-down meal (the only sit-down full meal I get in the day).
Because everything that's happened during the day just ends up all screwed up, because I'm no longer Perfect Julia: it's just another thing to get by through the day.
But all this isn't my highlight of the day at all…
With a sigh of leisure, I take out the keys to my apartment. Not the best apartment. Older than most buildings, yet remodeled a bit in order to have actual people living in it, it's home and it's good enough. Not perfect, but what is?
I open the door with a million of Things To Do running through my mind, thinking about the stupid things I've said and done throughout the day, and not to mention thinking about the near future of tomorrow.
But just one look inside and all those thoughts fly out the window.
Just that lop-sided yet drop-dead gorgeous grin, and that little wink he gives me, and not to mention how he sheepishly runs his hand through his red-orange hair – it just makes me grin back.
And I forget all about the hectic-crammed, stress-filled day.
"Hey Jules, I rented a really sweet DVD. Maybe we can watch it together after you tell me how your day was."
It's hard to say no.
Because of Hwoarang, the world's greatest boyfriend, I just know, that no matter what, no matter how many mistakes I make in one day without realizing, I never have to be Perfect Julia around him.
Like I can tell him that flat-out though. Always have to watch out for that male ego of his.
And as I lean my head on his shoulder, finally, finally ready to relax and enjoy – erm – Texas Chainsaw Massacre with Hwoarang – I think: what a wonderful world after all…
No matter how busy or hectic my day gets, he's always there to get me through the day.
Sachi: Yes…I wrote about Julia x Hwoarang. Don't give me that gasp. It's about time we get over ourselves and learn that no matter how cute or likely a pairing is, in the end of the day, they're all just made-up pixel video game characters. And there's gonna be PLENTY more of the not-my-usual-pairing-one-shots here. So stay tuned!
Now review please :)
1 – I stole Luis Armstrong's song "Wonderful World." Haha.