Summary: Hwoarang and Jin sit down and do some talking for once. Rivalry and family. Petty arguments and fighting techniques. Relationships and... hair?
Disclaimer: Own nothing, of course.
He lay there, head resting on his folded arms, awake on the grass. He liked it: by himself, looking up at the stars, not having to worry about anything, at least for a while.
Today, however, was different.
Jin had barely been lying down for five minutes when he heard the revving of a nearing vehicle. What..? he thought, propping up his head on his hand. Looking around, he recognised a motorbike. Jin groaned. Talk about timing.
The rider voiced a small chuckle as he dismounted the bike a few metres away from Jin. "Don't worry your little head, Kazama," he said, his voice getting louder as he approached the individual on the floor. "We'll be finished so quick you'll have all the time in the world to lie down and... rest."
Jin sat up straight. "How foreboding," he muttered, refusing to meet Hwoarang's eye. He crossed his legs and rested his hands on his knees. "Don't you ever have anything better to do with your time than chase me around? One might call it rather unhealthy."
Hwoarang scowled, but otherwise dodged his remark. "Come on then," he said, rolling his shoulders. "I've found you. Give it your best shot." Hwoarang tensed, ready for any unexpected punch or grab Jin might make. He waited in vain though; Jin was as still and indifferent to his presence as ever. At least look at me!
He was about to open his mouth in a snarl, wanting to provoke his rival into a fighting spirit before he spoke. Jin, however, got there first.
"Have you ever stopped to appreciate nature, Hwoarang?"
Hwoarang let his mouth drop. Eh?
"It's good for you, you know," Jin continued, knowing of Hwoarang's befuddlement and unphased by it. "It helps you keep your head. Makes you more... aware of things."
Hwoarang slanted an eyebrow. What was this guy on? "Dear God, there's two of you," he muttered, regarding Jin distastefully.
"Hm?" Jin asked politely, still refusing to look at him.
"Julia Changs," Hwoarang supplied with a flick of his hair. "Tree-huggers."
Jin chuckled. "I wouldn't go so far as to compare myself with that particular being," he said softly, with a smile. Hwoarang became still. Did he just laugh at a dumb joke I made?
"You know," Jin started again a few moments later, gazing at the faraway city lights. "Our vendetta was never really... personal. Not like some others I know of."
"It's personal to me!" Hwoarang interjected. "You made me look like a fool that day back home!"
"You were in a fool's line of work," Jin quipped, speaking in a more sharp tone than he had used so far.
Hwoarang humphed. "You sounded like Baek, there," he said under his breath, hesitantly walking a few more steps closer to Jin.
Jin ran a hand through his hair. "Baek. He's a good man." He repositioned himself so that his feet were flat on the ground and his knees were level with his shoulders. Hwoarang, hardly believing what he was doing, reluctantly plopped down beside him.
"Yeah, he is," Hwoarang said, also gazing out into the distance. Jin looked at him for the first time that evening.
"Tell me," he began. Hwoarang grunted to indicate he was listening. "Not to intrude, but what is your relationship with him? I have never known, pardon my ignorance, if he was your father, or your uncle or -"
"I don't have any family," Hwoarang interrupted a little too sharply. Jin took it as a cue to discontinue his inquiry.
A moment passed between them in silence. "Me neither," said Jin conversationally. "Not really," he added as Hwoarang looked incredulously at him. Jin sighed. "Come on, Hwoarang. Would you really consider men like Kazuya or Heihachi Mishima as the caring, paternal type?"
Hwoarang turned stonily back to the distant buildings. "I suppose not." A pause. "But at least you had family, right? I mean, not being rude and all that," he put in quickly, "but you grew up with your mum, didn't you? At least you had something..." he trailed off, aware that he might have said too much.
Jin paused thoughtfully. He was speaking truth. "You're right," he said, lying back down again. "I had something."
"Who cares, anyhow." Hwoarang said with a careless shrug. "I get on alright. And Baek is a good guy. He helps out from time to time. Which is more than you might first think, mind."
Jin nodded, then, aware that Hwoarang couldn't see him, said "Cool." He watched Hwoarang's bright red hair fly gently in the wind.
"You have girl's hair," he said suddenly. Hwoarang spun around as quick and as dignified as he could on the grassy ground.
"What?" He asked, confounded, his arm jumping to his precious hair instantly.
Jin shrugged nonchalantly, getting up on to his elbows. "I meant nothing by it, just that it looks really soft, like girl's hair." He eyed the carmine wisps for a moment longer, then plonked his head back down to the floor, looking back up at the stars. Ah, that constellation looks a bit like Paul Phoenix.
Hwoarang, still non-plussed, regarded Jin uncertainly. "Then I guess I'll have to take that as a compliment," he said.
Jin ignored him. "Hwoarang," he said, a light smile on his lips. "Doesn't that group of stars remind you of that American, Paul Phoenix?" He was pointing upwards. Hwoarang soon regained his withering demeanour.
"You're a freak, Kazama," he mumbled, making to turn away. Jin tutted impatiently.
"Such a... hey, that looks like Nina Williams!"
Hwoarang dropped down into a lying down position almost as soon as the words came out of Jin's mouth. A moment later, however, after scouring the heavens for a sight of the heavenly outline, it was Hwoarang's turn to tut loudly.
"Idiot," he grumbled, as the figure laying beside him erupted with laughter. "Alright, alright, you had your fun, you can shut up now," he said, annoyed, but a reluctant smile tugging at his lips in spite of himself.
"God..." Jin managed to say, "you, are desperate, you know." He chuckled lightly once more before becoming silent.
Hwoarang followed suit for a while. "You gotta admit though," he said, looking round at Jin for a reaction, "she's pretty fine, isn't she?"
Jin kept his face impassive as he shrugged again. Hwoarang raised both eyebrows.
"Aw, come on! If she wasn't a trained assassin I would have asked her out years ago!"
Jin frowned slightly. "It's not all about looks, Hwoarang," he said quietly. Hwoarang rolled his eyes.
"Yep, just like Baek," he mumbled. "Why don't you people just lighten up a bit, eh?" When Jin didn't reply, he probed him further. "So," he begun with a cattish grin, "what's your type, Kazama? You obviously don't go for the strikingly beautiful -"
"Er, excuse me?" Jin stammered. He didn't much favour the turn of conversation.
Hwoarang sighed. "Well, I just mean you don't like -"
"Obvious beauty, no," Jin finished, looking at Hwoarang thoughtfully, his head propped once more on his hand.
"Sooo," Hwoarang repeated, somewhat excited and determined for a bit of embarrassment on Jin's half, "what do you go for?" When Jin didn't answer, Hwoarang faced him too. "Ah! Don't tell me – men!" He burst out into peals of laughter. Jin waited calmly until his childish giggles subsided before replying.
"I have no... preference," he said slowly, chewing his words over. "Like I said, it's not one's physical body that attracts me -"
"Yeesh, Kazama, do you have to be so formal all the time?" Hwoarang leaned his head to the side the better to scratch his neck.
Jin sighed. Attention span of a three year old. It was rather... endear- Wait! Jin berated himself. Don't think of it! -endearing. Too late. He thought of Hwoarang's antics as endearing. What next?
A loud yawn emanating from Hwoarang's mouth snapped Jin out of his reverie. "No sleep last night?" Jin asked vaguely.
"Nah, not really," Hwoarang said, staring up at the stars. It was getting darker and darker by the minute. "Movie night."
Hwoarang almost heard Jin roll his eyes in the silence that ensue.
The loud chorus of KoRn's 'Twisted Transistor' resounded, causing Jin and Hwoarang to jump, the latter to his feet.
"Fu-u-u-uck," he screeched, realising the sound came from his back pocket. "Fucking phone." He quickly took it out and pressed something; the music stopped as suddenly as it had started. Still scowling heavily, he sat back down again, turning an icy glare in the chuckling Jin's direction. "What?" he snarled. "It was closer to me, and therefore louder. Shut up," he grouched. Jin ceased.
"Too preoccupied with the wonder of star-gazing?"
Hwoarang let his head drop into his hands. "Yeah," he said, slightly muffled. "That's right. I love it."
Jin smiled. Grabbing Hwoarang's collar he yanked him back to a lying down position. "Knew you would," he said softly.
A/N: Review... it's good for you.