Chapter Four

The sound of her bedroom door opening ended Xiaoyu's forgettable dream, but it was the mouth-watering aroma of java that really woke her. The mattress sunk beside her and she felt a hand on her bare shoulder.

"Xiao…" Miharu smiled, placing the teal mug on the bedside. "Time to wake up."

After returning home, Xiao and Miharu had thrown themselves into clubbing like it was going out of style. They'd bounced all over the downtown clubs, wasting stupid money on cover charges and having a fantastic time. They'd danced until their feet felt like they were going to fall off and flirted outrageously with fans, taking shot after shot until they knew it was time to leave—or until Xiaoyu's complaints about Jin grew louder and louder. Then it was time to leave.

"'time is it?" She groaned, lifting her head to meet her friends gaze.

Miharu grinned, checking her watch. "A little after ten."

Xiaoyu pulled the duvet over her head with a moan. She didn't respond when Miharu shoved at her. It was only when her friend's footsteps faded from the room and along the wooden floor of the corridor that she resigned herself to get up with a dramatic flick of the cover off her body.

Damn Miharu.

Her head pounded with the sudden movement and she held her temples pathetically, squeezing her eyes as tightly shut as she could tolerate whilst the sudden headache subsided. She had drunk far too much. After guzzling down the coffee thirstily she took a long, hot shower and threw on a pair of black leggings and a cropped white top. She wasn't in the mood for a wired bra, so one of the comfortable, old sports ones would have to do. Scraping her wet hair back in a ponytail she made her way into the open room of the apartment she shared with Miharu. Annoyingly, she found her on the sofa with her netbook, looking fresh and alert. Smelling more freshly brewed coffee, she dragged her feet across to the kitchenette portion of the apartment and grabbed another mug.

"How are you feeling?" Miharu called out.

With her second dose of much-need caffeine wrapped between her palms, Xiaoyu joined her on the sofa.

"I feel like death."

"You look like it, too." Miharu said, closing the lid of her netbook to regard her friend with a wry smile. "You were pretty wasted last night."

"I wasn't that bad, was I?" Xiaoyu winced, searching her memory for the events of last night. She came up blank. No doubt they'd slowly come back to her as the day progressed.

"You were okay when your mind wasn't on him..." Miharu set her mug down on the coffee table. "It was just…when your mind was on him. It was hard to pull you out of that rut. A few guys offered to keep you entertained for the evening, but you turned them down—not that I'd have let you go with them when you were that drunk anyway. That would have just been irresponsible of me."

Xiaoyu took slow, tentative sips this time. She needed a salty, greasy meal and litres of water before going back to bed for the remainder of the day. Or waste it on the sofa with a blanket streaming re-runs of old TV classics. Miharu had always been the perky friend scarcely affected by the viciousness of a hangover. It was an enviable quality. One Xiaoyu wished she had, especially today.

"You relax and go to sleep." She took her mug off the coffee table and urged Xiaoyu to sprawl across the charcoal fabric. "I'm going to go to the gym for a bit, and I'll bring back some burgers and fries and shit on my way back."

"You're a good friend." Xiaoyu groaned, drawing her knees up to her stomach as she felt one of their fur throws blanket her body. "…and a bitch."

Miharu laughed as she scooped her bag up off the kitchen table. "It'll catch up to me one day. You'll see." Spotting the television remote out of reach on the coffee table she took it and pointed it at the screen, glancing as the screen came to life and dropped it on the cushion next to Xiaoyu. "I won't be long, babe."

'…of the Mishima Zaibatsu was seen boarding a flight to Los Angeles in the sunny southern state of California only hours after the second ever iron fist tag tournament came to a conclusion…'

Xiaoyu blinked once, twice. Her eyes sharpened, her awareness heightened by the image of Jin on the celebrity gossip channel. He was a handsome son-of-a-bitch in a tailored three piece suit, cutting a thick and imposing silhouette as his muscles strained against the silky bespoke pin-stripe material. His eyes were shielded by a pair of aviator sunglasses though the thin line of his lips told of his usual grim expression.

"You 'kay, Xiao?" Miharu asked, rubbing her leg over the throw gently.

"Yeah…" Her friend uttered quietly, pausing the TV so she could stare at the image of Jin Kazama.

Miharu said something else before she left but she didn't catch it. A sliver of uneasiness chilled her blood, a horrible comprehension on the verge of cognizance as she stared at the screen. Then, it broke through.

"Oh shit." She ripped the thin throw off her body and stood up, looking at the cluttered table surface for her clutch. Pulling out a takeaway receipt, a handful of scrunched up toilet paper and her lip gloss she finally found the slim handset of her mobile. It was with almost disappointment that she finally took a breath as she turned on the screen and stared down at the screen saver of Panda. No messages. No missed calls. Just social network notifications that more people had started to follow her. Her hands trembled, and she knew it was more the over-indulgence of alcohol than it was holding the phone. She took a fortifying sip of coffee to steel her nerves as she unlocked her phone with a pattern. Wincing inwardly she saw she'd called Jin four times and left him several messages across a multitude of platforms, all of which had been delivered but not 'seen'. Fortunately most were barely legible, however the most cringe-worthy ones were desperate and pleading. Damn alcohol and its effect of lowering inhibitions.

Determined not to think about him anymore, she flicked the channel over to some home improvement program and closed her eyes.


"You ready?" Nina Williams asked as she entered the hotel room looking amazing. The dress she wore was fire engine red and styled for a Grecian goddess. It hung on one shoulder, cut diagonally across her ample breast to reveal plentiful cleavage, and had ruching to the hip. A split at her right upper thigh revealed her toned, creamy-coloured leg and rhinestone stiletto.

"Mm." Jin muttered, as he stood in front of the windows and looked out at the well-lit metropolis of LA. His reflection revealed a contemplative mood, his gaze unfocused and his mouth grim.

"You seem more miserable than usual." Nina said as she approached, brushing the silken shoulders of his tux. "I thought sleeping on the jet might've helped that."

"I couldn't." He answered, turning back into the room.

Nina set off with him, nodding perfunctorily as he let her pass through the doors first. "Try not to be sour all evening. This charity function will be good for your image."

Jin laughed mirthlessly as they stopped by the bank of elevators. "Like I give a shit about image."

"All right…" She replied evenly, glancing at the numbers until the car reached their floor with a ping. "Well how about you do it for your friend? He was the reason you agreed to come out in the first place. Don't let him down."

"He'll be delighted to meet you." Jin shot back with a small smirk.

Nina returned his smirk as they stepped into the elevator. "Let's hope it's an entertaining evening for both of us, then."

Camera flashes burst around them like fireworks as they walked the length of the press gauntlet, but they scarcely paid them any attention, offering small smiles by rote until they traversed the carpet and crossed over into the building. When they reached the reception, they took two glasses of champagne from a passing server and watched as their security detail slipped surreptitiously amongst the other guests. It was doubtful Kazuya or Heihatchi would come for him here, but it wasn't a risk he was willing to take. He searched the room for his friend, Daniel, and spotted him on the far side of the room with a stacked blonde.

"Jin." Daniel's face lit up when he spotted him. His gaze quickly shifted to Nina and his smile widened to show his perfect white teeth. "I thought you weren't coming."

Nina smiled perfunctorily as she listened to Jin slip into English, the Japanese inflection almost imperceptible. She knew this was one of the few true friends Jin had. They'd met whilst he was in Australia, and though they didn't keep in regular contact, it was always like picking up where they'd left off every time. She straightened when she heard Jin introduce her.

"Pleasure." She muttered, glancing at the trophy woman on the chair.

"And this is Michelle." Daniel gestured as the blonde rose.

Monica came in close, air-kissing each of Jin's cheeks, holding his forearms with her manicured talons for support. She was dressed in a shimmering, fitted column of icy blue. Sapphires dripped rom her ears, throat and wrist. Her long blonde hair had been hair-sprayed to death to maintain its wavy look over her shoulders. He couldn't help but let his eyes sweep over her the impressive swell of her breasts and wonder if they were her own, or surgically augmented like most were in LA.

"Dan showed me some Youtube vids of you fighting." She beamed happily. "You have such a ripped body."

Jin glanced at Dan and could tell immediately that he'd brought the airhead along for him. In exchange for Nina, perhaps. He found that more amusing that he should have. Nina would eat the good Australian alive. As soon as he got chance, he'd have to tell Daniel he wasn't interested in Monica. The exchange with Xiaoyu was still raw. After everything they'd been through, he couldn't believe she thought he would use her for sex. He liked his sex casual with no exaggerated expectations, and sex with Xiaoyu would be anything but. Since yesterday, he hadn't been able to get her out of his head. It was driving him crazy.

Sipping champagne, he slid into an auto-pilot mode of self-preservation as they mingled with the crowd. Daniel introduced them to people and he spoke at the appropriate moments, but he wasn't really paying attention. He was too occupied with the inner turmoil over contacting Xiaoyu. Thankfully he'd had the foresight to leave his phone back at the hotel. The only one he carried now was a burner phone in case of an emergency.

When dinner was announced, he went to the dining room and poked at his food. He wasn't really a fan of the calorie-laden American cuisine. Roast and mashed potatoes seemed excessive. He drank a few glasses of the Shiraz wine they served with the meal and listened to Nina talking to their tablemates. She made no attempt to drag him into the conversation, and he was glad. She knew him well.

"You know, for it to be good for your image you do have to talk to people." Nina whispered discreetly as she brought her wine glass to her lips.

"You seem to be doing a good job." He quipped in Japanese.

After the meal and ornate speakers they headed to the ballroom and stepped onto the dance floor. The band began the first strains of a waltz and they moved easily, naturally to the music. He was a skilled dancer—contrary to what most might think—agile and confident in his lead as they swept across the floor.

"Alright, what's going on?" Nina asked, studying his sullen expression as he took her across the room. "You wanted to come all the way out here, and now you're being disinterested and rude. This isn't like you, Jin—not with friends."

He took a deep breath, feeling uncomfortable despite how fluidly they moved together. "It's nothing."

"Bullshit." Her eyes narrowed. "Something happened back at the tournament, and I want to know what it is. It's affected you. I'm not the only one who has noticed."

Jin let his gaze wander to the other dancers for a moment. "It's Xiaoyu."

"Ling Xiaoyu?" Nina blinked. The pieces fell into place before her. He was lovesick. The damn man was acting like an angst teenage girl. "She…was in the hotel room with you, wasn't she?"

"Yes—but not like that."

"But nearly like that." She remembered how he came to the floor, his face flushed and ducktail hair dishevelled. "I ruined the moment, didn't I?"

Beneath her fingers, she could feel the tension in his muscles. "Yes, but I'm glad you did. It needed to be ruined."

Nina blew out a forced sigh, her gaze stern on his face. "You need to get your shit together. G Corporation won't hesitate to attack because you're holding a torch for the little Chinese girl. You should have screwed her out of your system and moved on. Ling Xiaoyu is trouble for you. I know you don't need me to tell you that."

He made a frustrated noise. "I know."

The song ended and the dancers gently wound down. Jin released Nina and led her from the dancefloor with a hand at the small of her back until they made it to their table.

"Shall we go?" Nina asked, retrieving her clutch from the table as he gave her a muted nod.

Then, she made an abrupt tsk sound and glanced around the ballroom, reaching up to the earpiece pleased discreetly in her ear. "They've found us." She said evenly, glancing at him under long lashes. "The media blabbed. We need to leave. G Corp jets are on their way."

"Great." He bit out, searching the room for Dan.

When Jin couldn't find him, he followed Nina and the bodies of men in black suits gathering by the archway leading towards the vestibule. He recognised his mobile phone as one of the men thrust it into his hand. They must have cleared his room in case this happened. They wasted no time hurrying him through the reception walkway, silencing anyone who came close to talk as they spotted him for the first time all evening. When they finally made it down to street level, Nina informed him that the car was outside.

"Just keep walking." She advised as they passed through the lobby. Not that he was going to do anything different.

The paparazzi still waited outside. Not as many as before, but more than a dozen. As they stepped outside, cameras flashed around them. The security guards framed him as he walked, rising above him like sky scrapers, although ironically he was probably stronger than all of them. It was always a peculiar feeling that men were willing to risk their life for him despite his devil genes. He couldn't imagine any sum of money would be enough to make him risk his life for another—

"Get down!"

The shout barely registered before someone urged him forward with a rough, desperate push. He was directed to one of the gleaming black SUVs0 and he obediently slid into it as the door was thrust wide open for him. A loud crack of a sound jolted through him, reverberating off the side panel and ringing in his ears. The door slammed quickly behind him as he was thrown onto the leather seats and set off just as quickly, the sound of tyres screeching in their wake.


"Leave him, damn it." Miharu scowled as she reached over and threatened to pluck the mobile phone out of Xiaoyu's hand. "You've done so well so far. Don't contact him now."

Xiaoyu let out a small sigh as she clicked her phone into sleep mode and dropped it beside her. After a stuffing a bunch of fries in her mouth, she chewed reflexively and took a small sip of her strawberry milkshake to swallow it down. She was so pissed that Jin hadn't looked at her messages. Out of the country or not, that man had to have his phone on him. He would still be able to get signal in California. He was just being an ignorant sod, as usual. Yet his silence made her desperate and needy.

"I should have heard him out on the corridor." She'd told Miharu everything, wanting her friend to critique the scenario and give her feedback and all important friendly advice on what to do next time. She was more experienced with the opposite sex and valued her input. "I shouldn't have bolted to the elevator."

"You can't change that." Miharu rhymed off for the fourth time. "You've made first contact with him. Now you need to wait and let him come to you."

"But he won't though." She checked her phone in case she'd missed a message within the last minute. "He's a stubborn guy."

"He hasn't even looked at them, Xiao. Give him chance." Miharu said as she brought a small cheeseburger to her mouth. "You don't know what's going on with him right now."


"Fuck. They got here quick." Jin ran frantic hands through his hair, glancing back through the rear-window to see if they were being followed.

Nina was sat with the driver at the front, barking orders into the mic placed in her wristwatch. The moment she stopped talking into it, she arched her head to talk to him, "They didn't. A subcontracted assassin did."

He let out a mirthless laugh, slamming back into the door as the SUV took a corner sharp. The city whizzed past in a blur, horns blared indignantly and pedestrians threw out violent expletives.

Nina turned back to the road, her eyes astute and alert as she pointed out hazards to the driver. After a while, she glanced back at Jin who had fallen silent, "We're preparing the jet. We're going back to Japan. Now."

"No complaints from me." He muttered, reaching into his pocket for his personal phone.

The tinted windows softened the penetrating street lights as they sped through the city. He blew out a harsh exhale and sat back against the buttery leather, powering on his phone with trembling fingers. The screen lit up as it came to life, bathing his face in a bright as he unlocked the screen with his retina and numerical PIN combination. Shortly afterwards came the onslaught of phone provider messages about roaming followed by an incessant ping of text messages.

"Can you put that thing on silent?" Nina groused.

He ignored her, using the pad of his thumb to scroll through the messages until a few gained his interest. His heartrate elevated as he read Ling Xiaoyu's name over and over, checking and double checking the date and time that she'd sent them. With bated breath, he opened the messages in anticipation to read several passages of abuse and felt bemused to find they were of a different tone. She'd tried calling him. She missed him. She was clearly drunk from the horrendous spelling mistakes. It was…cute.

"Don't get comfortable just yet."

"I know." Jin answered without looking. His fingers were poised over the letters as a barrage of potential replies flooded his mind. He could tell her he was also thinking about her… Or that he hoped she hadn't been too rough the morning after… Or would she consider meeting up so he could apologise… But he didn't. He held his phone with a steadying fist and watched the road as they headed back to the airport.