Here it is, chapter 13 of A Beautiful Thing. My classes have started so expect chapter 14 in a week or so from now, hopefully my programming courses ease off the projects and I will have some more time (I highly doubt it lol). That being said, the continued support has been wonderful, I wish you all the very best! Until next time, stay safe out there chooms!
END AUTHORS NOTE
ARIZONA, WESTFIELD, MORNING
Mitch stood on top of the truck looking out at the desert as the sun climbed its way over the horizon and into the sky. He held a cup of coffee and a cigarette in one hand as the other brought a scope to his eye. He enjoyed the stillness of the mornings out here, a peaceful comfort after his time in the last war. He scanned the desert taking in the sights before he spotted a dust trail being kicked up along the road leading into Westfield.
The truck was tan in color, no clan marking or indication it had ever gone under a nomad mechanics hands. From what Mitch could tell it was a simple Thorton truck, it has the weathered look of a vehicle that had been in the desert for a time. He tried looking through the windshield but the tint there made it hard to make out who was in the cab. He set the scope down and whistled to the guards who came over quickly.
"We got a truck coming, doesn't look like Bakkers but be on guard" Mitch drawled as he climbed down from the truck. He walked over to where Cassidy was sitting on the hood of his car cleaning his revolver.
"Morning Mitch, anything movin out there in the sand?" Cassidy chuckled as he snapped the cylinder of his pistol back into place.
"Sure as shit it, a truck headed our way. Doesn't look like a Bakker ride but can't be too careful" Mitch grumbled as he leaned on the hood "boys will see what they want, takin a break?"
"Yep, got 3 of our wheels set up with HMG's. Turret on the top, going to be a real head banger if they pop off but at least we will have some pow if things get rough" Cassidy yawned as he looked around the town "Shame this fell in our laps, this here town could have been a proper place to hold up for a spell"
"Saul said the same for NC" Mitch chuckled "did not do us much favors"
"We got Judy and V, plus the scratch from pawning off all that Saka tech" Cassidy shrugged as he tilted his head as the rumble of an engine grew closer.
"Yeah, but we are knee deep in shit" Mitch sighed as he took a drink of his coffee.
"So?" Cassify laughed "We always have been knee deep in shit, why fret about it? If it wasn't Saka it would be Biotechnica, if it wasn't Bakkers it would be Raffen or some other group of fuckheads"
"Always a way with words Cass" Mitch smiled as the engine got louder "Well, lets see what they want"
The sound of the truck stopping outside the gate made Cassidy and Mitch get on their feet in case something went wrong. The guards on the makeshift gate had their weapons pointed at the vehicle. The sound of a door opening broke the silence, Mitch held his breath hoping that it was good or at least neutral news.
"Vinny!" Panam's barking voice echoed in the still morning air "open the gate you gonk!"
"Well I'll be damned" Cassidy grinned as the guards waved for the gate to be opened. Mitch stood stunned as the semi-truck they had fashioned into a gate rumbled out of the way. The morning sun was a backdrop to Panam standing next to the tan truck, her hands on her hips and a smile on her face as she saw the nomads slowly walking into the street to see if they had heard right.
"Pan!" Mitch beamed as she walked up to him.
"You miss me?" she jested with a grin before Mitch wrapped her in a hug. Panam was taken back before she hugged him back laughing. They let the embrace go and Mitch got a good look at her, she looked battered and beaten but otherwise okay.
"We thought you were gone girl" Cassidy chuckled "thank fuck ya alright"
"A few bruises and scrapes but nothing serious" Panam shrugged before she had the wind knocked out of her as V enveloped her in a bear hug.
"Panam!" V cheered hugging her best friend as tight as she could. Panam patted her back and pushed her off coughing.
"Fucking hell V" she said between breathes. V laughed as she looked at her friend with a huge grin.
"You get in the ring with an animal?" Judy jested as she walked over next to V with a big smile. Panam shook her head before pulling Judy into an embrace. The affection shocked Judy for a moment but the techie relaxed squeezing Panam back.
"How did you get out? Let me guess, they tried telling you to stay put and we both know that never works" V joked as Judy and Panam let go of each other as the truck Panam had arrived in rolled into the town so the gate could shut.
"Only worked like that with Saul" Panam chuckled as she looked to the truck "I actually got rescued"
A girl climbed out of the drive seat of the car. Her curly hair bounced as she walked to the passenger door of the truck and helped someone else out. A man stepped out of the car slowly with the girl's help. He gave her a small nod as he stood up in clear pain with a groan.
"This is Sarah and Jason" Panam introduced as Sarah helped Jason walk over "they pulled me out of the Bakker camp, Jason gave them one hell of a sucker punch on our way out to"
Jason nodded as his eyes settled on Judy. She looked a little different from the pictures he had seen of her before but there was no mistaking it was her. She held onto V's hand as she looked back at him, a big smile on her face as Panam introduced them. You are okay he thought to himself as a warm feeling built in his chest and a smile graced his face. Sarah nugged him and nodded to Judy who looked over at them.
"We owe you a big thanks" Mitch beamed looking to the two "you guys may have just saved our clan. Anything we can do name it"
"I already told them we would help Mitch, we aren't out of the woods yet though. Jason has some serious information for us but first" Panam said as she looked at the house she had her room in "we are very hungry and thirsty"
"Naturally, V think you can manage to make them some breakfast?" Mitch chuckled making V shake her head.
"V burns everything, I'll throw some grub together" Judy smiled as she nudged V.
"Excellent, I am fucking famished" Sarah replied as her stomach rumbled.
V led the way into the house holding the door open for them with her good arm. Jason hobbled in with Sarah's help and Judy got to work making a simple breakfast. V went to walk in but Panam grabbed her by the shoulder and nodded for her to wait a second.
"V" Panam began seriously "I uh, well, we need to talk about something"
"Can it wait until after we eat?" V asked as her stomach growled.
"Not really, I think while things are calm" Panam took a deep breath "it would be best to air it out. Jason and Sarah came to find Judy and you, specifically"
"Excuse me?" V growled as she snapped her head to the door "are they here for that bounty?" she hissed as her one good arm let the mantis blade spring out.
"No" Panam's firm tone confused V "Sarah needs Judy's help with some BD's that could hold a lot, and I mean a lot of dirt on Arasaka"
"Okay…" V prodded as she closed the mantis blade looking confused "and the big guy?"
"He's Judy's brother," Panam said quietly as she bit her thumb. V blinked a few times studying Panam. It was surely a joke she thought as her eyes locked with Panam's. There was no playful twinkle in Panam's eye or a hint of a laugh on her face.
"You are not fucking with me" V gasped as her shoulders dropped in shock "how...how did you know?"
"He told me and Sarah showed me a message from Viktor" Panam held out her holo for V who read the message quickly.
"Fuck…" V sighed as she leant against the wall of the house.
"How should we uh, handle this? You know her a lot better than I do" Panam asked as V held her head in her good hand.
"I will...I'll handle it" V mumbled as she took a deep breath "come on, they will ask questions if we take much longer"
V and Panam walked into the kitchen as Judy got the food warmed up and set on the table. A glance passed between V and Panam as they sat. V gave Judy's cheek as a kiss as she sat down next to her and Panam at the head of the table. Sarah grinned at the plate of food before diving into it like a starving animal.
"So, what is it that you guys came to tell us?" Judy asked as she started eating "or you just do gonk stuff like V?"
"Jason certainly does" Sarah replied her mouth full of food "grade A gonk"
"I know your pain" Judy joked as she ruffled V's bright red hair "V is a complete gonk"
"Yeah but you love me anyways" V smiled pushing Judy's hand off her smiled as she started digging into the quick breakfast that she had scrounged up for them. It was quiet for a few minutes as everyone ate and sipped on the coffee. Jason broached the silence first after he was done eating.
"Arasaka is backing the Bakkers now that they have found you" Jason said softly looking to V "they want you dead, all the Aldecaldos too. The bounty they put on you is a king's ransom"
"Shit, we knew that there was a bounty but if Arasaka is backing the Bakkers" V gulped as the implications started popping into the front of her mind "fuck"
"You came all this way to tell us that?" Judy questioned raising an eyebrow. Panam glanced between the two sides of the table shifting in her seat as she felt the tension grow. V took a slow breath but Sarah seemed incapable of reading a room.
"No," Sarah slowly said, "I have some BD's that, um, I need a true expert's help with and Jason…"
"He's your brother," V said softly, trying her best to get ahead of Sarah. Judy blinked before sitting up straight in her chair. Before she laughed, shaking her head and punching V lightly on the shoulder.
"Good one V" Judy smiled as she looked back to the table but no one else was laughing. Her eyes darted to everyone the playful light slowly fading from them.
"It's true" V continued as she pulled out her holo as Panam flicked her the message to show Judy.
"I'm sorry, what?" She exclaimed looking to V. She nodded slowly with a soft smile making Judy laugh before looking at Panam. Expecting a joking smile she instead saw a serious look on her face. Judy's bewildered look grew as she looked to the man she was just told is her sibling.
"No, how?" She begged looking around the table "I was an only child, my grandparents would have told me"
"They didn't know" Jason mumbled his eyes down "Same father, Migeul Alvarez, different mother"
"Bullshit!" Judy roared as she stood up slamming her palms on the table "this has got to be some Arasaka trap! Throw us off our game or..."
"Judy" V sighed, touching her arm, making Judy look at her eyes wide in shock as V set her holo on the table with Viktor's message on it. Judy read it:
Hey Judy, V.
So stranger things have happened, especially with our little group in the past year. There isn't exactly an easy way to do this so here it is plain and simple. Jason, who is carrying this message, is Judy's half brother. Same dad, different mom. I ran all the checks I could from that DNA sample I had from tuning up that BD editing implant you got Judy. It's shocking but gene's don't lie. I hope you guys are doing okay, we miss you all something terrible so give us a call sometime. Stay safe out there and be sure to not worry us too much if you can help it.
"This has to be some elaborate gonk-ass, fucking joke!" Judy wailed as she flopped in her chair "where were you?! Why now?! I don't understand?!"
"Judy, I...I never had a chance until now" Jason gulped looking at her "I was gone"
Tears ran down Judy's face as she glared back at him. Jason looked back at her, his eyes pleading that she hear him out. Judy took a deep breath before her gaze softened as she felt V give her hand a squeeze.
"I am sorry" Jason whispered as he looked down. Sarah looked between the two of them feeling the tension before she stood up and took her plate heading to another room. Panam soon followed suit leaving the three of them around the table. V gave Judy's hand a squeeze letting her know that she was there for her.
"So" Judy gulped "where were you then?" she asked, her tone still angry and confused but more accepting of what she had just been told.
"I was with Militech" Jason began softly "I, uh, joined when I was 12"
"When you were 12?" Judy cut him off looking for clarification as the tone of disbelief manifested itself in her voice again.
"Yeah, I was a homeless kid on the streets of Watson" He sat up in his chair his voice weavering "I lived under a stairway in northside, Militech was looking for boys, like me"
"Homeless ones?" V growled as Goro's story about child soldiers came to mind.
"Ones who were no one" Jason clarified "I had no mother, no father and no one that cared for me. They offered me three warm meals, a roof and a clean bed. I jumped at the opportunity and one thing lead to another, I ended up in their army"
"So how did you know about me?" Judy pressed cautiously. Her tone angry and skeptical but V could here the slight tremble in it that she got when her nerves got to her. Judy was afraid, she could tell from the way she closed herself off bringing her legs closer and pushed herself back from the table.
"They ran a full background on me, you are my only living relative" Jason mumbled as he looked at his plate "I found that out when I was fifteen but I was already stuck. I spent twenty years fighting, doing Militech's dirty work. I survived my term and did not sign a new contract so I could find you" He took a deep shaky breath before looking back to Judy "I needed to find you"
Judy did not say anything as she looked back at him. V could feel her elevated heartbeat through her palm. Judy's breathing was heavy and her brow furrowed as she studied Jason before she pushed herself back from the table.
"I need a cigarette" she managed before she shuffled out the back door of the house leaving V alone with Jason. V did not say anything as they sat there, drumming her fingers on the table as her mind tried to make sense of what happened now. Family things like this, V grew up around it, nomad's valued it but Judy's only blood family until today was her grandparents in Oregon. V took a deep breath as she looked over to Jason.
The man sat in the chair, his eyes downcast and his shoulder slumped in defeat. Even watching him hobble from the truck, his wounds paining he had held himself tall as he could. Now he sat in his seat hunched over and looked ready to break.
"Gave her some time, some space" V offered as she sat back in her chair running a hand through her hair "Judy has been through a lot, the past year being particularly hard" V sighed as she looked to Jason who looked up at her listening "She has lost a lot of people, seen her life crash around her and had to pick it up from the ruins again. Add in the recent stress…"
"Thank you" Jason said looking to V cutting her "for being there for her"
"It's hard to tell who was there for who honestly" V smiled as she poured them a cup of coffee.
"Mama Welles told me some of what happened with you both" Jason sighed as he took the cup.
"She most likely left a lot of the details out" V chuckled as she sipped her own coffee.
"Fill them in for me" Jason suggested "the details may help me make sense of exactly why Arasaka is hunting you so adamantly"
V gave him a stern look studying him before she set her cup down. She sighed with a grimace as she tapped the fingers of her right hand on the table before starting her story. Jason sipped on the coffee as he listened intently as the details that Mama did not know were filled in. By the end of it he had a cold cup of coffee and the complete story.
ARIZONA, WESTFIELD, EARLY AFTERNOON
Jason followed behind Mitch with Sarah by his side. Both of them had their bags from the truck over their shoulder. Jason was moving better as the burning ache of coming down from the juice faded from his muscles. Mitch led them to a small shack for them to stay in while they were in Westfield.
"It's not much but it's what we can spare" Mitch drawled as he opened the door to the domicile. Jason walked inside first looking at both corners as he stepped inside before setting his bag down on the coffee table. Sarah followed after looking at the dilapidated building.
"Five stars" Sarah joked as she shifted away from the door as Mitch came in. She shifted her bag up onto her shoulder uncomfortably as she went over to the small kitchen area and started searching through cupboards.
"No room service unfortunately" Mitch jested back as he gestured to down one of the halls "we got the bathroom fixed, if ya want hot water wait till day so the sun heats the tank up" he leaned on the wall as he crossed his arms "Only one bedroom though but I figure that won't be a problem"
"What, no" Sarah shook her hands "We are not together, together"
"Oh, well we may be able to…" Mitch began looking embarrassed but Jason waved it off.
"It's fine, I can take the couch" He said, flopping down onto the aforementioned furniture. It creaked under his weight but did not break.
"Makes that easy then" Mitch chuckled as he looked over at Jason and noticed the dog tags on his neck "Were you in a corpo army Jason?"
"Militech, twenty years" Jason sighed as he looked over at Mitch "same for you judging from those implants"
"Yep, though just one tour" Mitch smiled as he sat down in one of the chairs. Sarah finished her rummaging finding nothing in the cabinets; she grumbled her displeasure. She shouldered her bag and made her way to the bedroom to see what her sleeping arrangements would be for the time being.
"So, who were you with?" Mitch inquired friendly.
"Logistics" Jason answered with a soft smile that made Mitch pause when he understood "I am guessing you were a panzer boy?"
"Yeah, yeah I was" Mitch replied as he pulled out a pack of cigarettes offering one to Jason.
"That Basilisk, she run?" Jason nodded out the window to the tank that sat in the middle of town.
"Sure does" Mitch beamed as he put a cigarette in his mouth "got her purring, been tough though since...we lost a few good people who knew how to maintain the thing. I have been teaching V more and more, she's a good pilot but needs to learn the other chunk of the gig"
"Impressive platform for a nomad clan" Jason smiled slightly as he took the offered cigarette "heard about what you were able to do with it back in NC"
"Yeah, my heart still pounds in my chest from that raid" Mitch laughed "I'm just glad we got it done and got free of that city. It's like a tarpit, sucking everything in and holding on to it something fierce"
"Stains everything it touches to" Jason added taking a drag from his cigarette leaning back on the couch.
"Yep, that it does" Mitch agreed with a shrug "so when you say logistics do you mean supply or we talking logistics"
"The latter" Jason confirmed softly.
"Explains how you managed to get Panam out all by your lonesome" Mitch nodded tapping some ash from his cigarette away.
"Not alone, Sarah was netrunning and operated our truck's drone" Jason replied looking back to where Sarah was busy "she is one of the best runners I have worked with, glad she had my back"
"So what now then?" Mitch asked curiously "Panam told me the deal, who you are and why y'all are here"
"I set out to make sure my sister was safe" Jason said firmly "until that is true, I am not going anywhere"
"What if we make you?" Mitch pressed judging Jason's reaction. Jason looked back at him taking a drag from the cigarette and thought about the question.
"If Judy wants me to leave, I will," Jason said softly.
"Just like that?"
"Yeah, just like that" Jason nodded "she has V, and the stories I heard about her. Judy is in good hands"
"That she is but Jude isn't some helpless damsel" Mitch chuckled "she may not know how to shoot the best or kick someones ass like you and V do but she's tough nails"
Jason simply nodded before finishing the cigarette Mitch had given him. Sarah came walking back from the room she had staked her claim in, headphones glued to her head and blaring.
"Settling in okay?" Mitch asked her as he stood up accidentally brushing her. Sarah jumped back and away from Mitch, her breathing rapid. She squeezed the headphones tighter over her ears. Her eyes were wide open as she back peddled from Mitch. Jason stood up quickly and walked over putting himself between Mitch and Sarah.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle ya" Mitch tried but Jason nodded out the door. Mitch sighed as he stepped out and Jason followed.
"What did I do?" Mitch asked, confused.
"Sarah had...an experience not too long ago" Jason said quietly giving Mitch a knowing look. Mitch gave him a questioning glance before he got the message.
"I, I didn't know. Is she okay?" Mitch sighed running his hand over his head "christ, poor girl"
"She will be" Jason confirmed giving Mitch's shoulder a squeeze "thank you for the place to stay"
"Don't mention it, you brought Panam back to us. Least we can do" Mitch smiled giving Jason a nod "Get settled in, sure we will be talking later"
Jason nodded back before going back into the shack. Sarah was curled up on the couch, her eyes on the door with the headphones jammed over her ears. Seeing Jason she let out a breath she had been holding and pulled the headphones off.
"I'm sorry, I feel bad" Sarah began her erratic breathing making the words choppy "he didn't do anything, he was nice and now I made him feel bad" her breathing increased as panic set in. Jason calmly sat down next to her and took one of her hands in his own giving it a comforting squeeze. Sarah shut her eyes taking a few deep breaths getting herself back under control before she scooted closer to Jason. The proximity gave her comfort as she got her racing heart back under control.
She looked over to Jason who sat more foreword now watching the room. His brown eyes were glancing around checking for dangers, she could feel the tension in his muscles. The panic attack waned as she looked at the man. The feeling she would be safe with him despite the danger he could pose made the panic fall away. He sat poised, a slight lean in her direction ready to spring in front of her, to shield her if need be. Jason was a soldier, he didn't know how to deal with panic attacks or talk to her and calm her down. So he did what he knew, he stood ready to protect her until the danger was gone.
ARIZONA, WESTFIELD, EVENING
V sat next to Judy in the network building that Carol had gotten set up for the camp. The veteran was nowhere to be seen, giving V a wide berth since their quarrel the night previous. Judy sat next to her, knee bouncing as she looked at Jason who was busy talking with Sarah. The netrunner sat at the main terminal going over the network with a growing scowl of disdain.
"What gonk set up this network? So many holes in it" Sarah groaned as she pushed herself back from the terminal.
"Carol, I think" Judy answered "she said it was secure, ran networks in some corpo army"
"Yeah from years ago, the crypto she setup gets broken by runner clubs for practice" Sarah laughed as she looked around at the equipment "at least the hardware is good"
"Considering its all new, I would hope so" Judy smiled as she gestured to the main server "the aldecaldo's klepped that from the tower, runs everything"
"As much as I hate'em Saka does make the best hardware on the market" Sarah grumbled as she went back to the terminal "gave me a bit of satisfaction though, tearing through their nets with their own toys"
"I used Tectronic, better at processing RAW BDs" Judy replied as she relaxed, the tech talk taking her mind off of things. The two girls got into discussing the merits of various processors, drives and other technical jargon that made V's head hurt. Jason likewise sat in his chair unable to follow much of the conversation.
"Yeah but Synthwave's should handle the emote flow better, I would think. They purpose built them for it" Sarah said making Judy shake her head.
"They do but BDs data load is massive. Tectronic builds extra caches in their processors, extra buses to. I can handle the emote flow, enough experience with it. Being able to grab what I need, when I need it, just makes it better" Judy said, leaning forward and her face light up from a conversation about one of her favorite topics.
V smiled as she watched her girlfriend in her element. After the recent few days seeing a genuine smile reach her eyes gave V a warm feeling. The technical babble continued going to more theoretical realms than practical ones that threatened to put V to sleep. She was saved from an early night when Panam walked into the room.
"Sarah, is our network secure?" Panam asked, looking over to the chestnut skinned netrunner.
"About as secure as it is going to be until I real tear into it" Sarah shrugged "I will need a few days to go through it all"
"Thank you" Panam sighed as she grabbed a chair and spun it around "now Jason, what can you tell us about our situation"
"Arasaka is desperate to take you all out, the bounty and backing a nomad clan is not their go to tactic" Jason began gesturing to V "V still has their prototype relic chip in her head, and from what you told me Helmen said, an in house only version of the chip. If another corp found out what sat in your slots, they will want it"
"Makes sense, secure their property but keep corp secrets from reaching their competitors" Panam shrugged "and they can't operate outside of North Cal, explains the bounty"
"To a point, they can if it is to recover stolen property. Even Militech can in Japan for the same few reasons listed under the clauses in the treaty that end the 4th corporate war" Jason pointed out "thing is, the minute they publicly declare what it is and where it is as required, other corps can sweep it up. The clause was intended for recovering large shipments, general goods, things another corp would not care to take"
"But a prototype bio-chip, preem pickings" Judy growled as she leaned against V resting on her shoulder "and my girl here has one of maybe a handful"
"Precisely, so they have to be hidden about getting it back. More worryingly is the bounty isn't for the return of it but your death and all the Aldecaldos" Jason sighed "meaning you either know something or are evidence of something that could land them in serious heat"
"They are Arasaka, what kind of heat could they possibly be worried about?" Panam laughed "the could buy the planet if it was for sale"
"Being on top leaves you little friends and even a smaller space to move" Jason said.
"Saka is like the big bully gang on the street, runs their turf and gets everyone reliant on them" Judy shook her head "but everyone wants to tear them off the top, just need a reason to bust out the pitchfork"
"Arasaka's bleeding, scrambling from Saburo's death and a divided family" V mused "toss in that we rolled their tower and they are on the ropes"
"Completely, haven't been hit like that since Johnny Silverhand kicked them in the pants like a fucking hero" Sarah grinned. V and Judy stiffened at the praise of Johnny, neither of them his biggest fan.
"They are cutting lose ends, stopping the bleed" Jason concluded "what end we stand on, I don't know. More answers will hopefully be in the BD's jammed in Sarah's head" he nodded to Judy "it's why she came, she was in Arasaka's net when the tower nearly got flatlined"
"Hold up, you got BD's of being inside their net when these gonks rolled them like a Joytoy?" Judy sputered shock written on her face "and you haven't looked at them?"
"Nope, not one for diving into raw BD. I actually went looking for you, best editor in NC" Sarah smiled as she grabbed pulled a bag of snack food out from her backpack "except you had skipped town, nearly gave up on it until your brother knocked on my door"
Judy stiffened at the mention that Jason was her brother. It had taken her a while to calm down from that and then she dived into working on the raid BD to finish evening her out.
"So we need to get a look at those BD's, get the complete picture" Panam mumbled as her mind formulated a plan "Judy, switch gears. We need the full spec of what we are up to our neck in, V help Mitch in getting the Basilisk into fucking top tier. I have a feeling we are going to need it" Panam huffed as she stood up pacing "We got no idea where the Bakkers are now, I doubt they are still in Redtrails after you handed them their ass"
"We did" Jason interjected, gesturing between himself and Sarah. The young girl blushed at the praise as she shoved handfuls of chips in her mouth.
"Yeah, sure whatever" Panam moved on "Sarah, get my net locked down tighter than a nun's legs" she locked at Jason wondering what to do with him "besides pull triggers and kill people, what else can you do?"
"You just about covered my job description" Jason shrugged "not exactly a lot of people out here to get intel from either, which would be the rest of my skill set"
"He could teach the rest of what he knows" V suggested slowly "I mean, you told me yourself what he did"
"A good point" Panam agreed looking back at Jason "can you do that?"
"I will see what I can do, will they listen to me?" Jason asked sitting back in his chair.
"They will, I'll make sure of it" Panam replied with a grin "we start tomorrow"
V and Judy left first, heading back to their house hand in hand. V could tell the day had worn heavy on Judy, the phrase emotional shit storm sprang to mind. Her girlfriends jaw was clenched and V could see her nostril flare. The cooling night air made them shiver and V wrapped her right arm around Judy. V's left was still sore but thankfully she could move it now, the shoulder healing properly. They did not talk on the short walk home, Judy lost in an ocean of thoughts and V trying to figure out the best way to toss her a life line. Before long they had made it back to their room, the broken sleep and compounding stress of the last forty-eight hours dragged them on to the soft mattress.
V tossed her shirt aside and slid down under the covers next to Judy. They lay facing each other, Judy's soft eyes lost deep in though as V pushed the rainbow curtain back from her face. Judy's eyes flicked up meeting V's.
"Lost in thought?" V asked softly as she rested her hand on Judy's cheek. Judy took a deep breath as she relaxed at caress and nestled herself deeper into the warm bed. Judy did not say much for a moment, her eyes darting as she tried to piece everything together.
"Doesn't even do it justice" Judy mumbled shutting her eyes as she leaned into V's touch "thought we were done with the fucking emotinal joyrides"
"I wish" V comforted softly "I don't think we ever got off the first one"
"Needs to run out of choo" Judy sighed opening her eyes looking into V's. V smiled at the small joke feeling Judy's hand on her waist shifting her closer. V pulled Judy to her chest wrapping her good arm around her and tangling them in a tight embrace. V could feel her girlfriend's tension ease away as she rubbed her back and let her process the thoughts that bounced around her head.
"It's fucking insane, he just shows up now" Judy shook her head "what am I supposed to do with that?" she bit her lip in thought before glancing to V "if it was your brother, what would you do?"
"Honestly? Punch him for disappearing like that" V sighed thinking back to the brother she had lost in Colorado "then hug him, never let go. Except I knew him, Jason is a complete stranger to you"
"If Vik had not confirmed it I would never believed it" Judy mumbled "I really suck at this family stuff, I did not...fuck that, we did not need this right now"
"We don't always get to choose what we get in life, only what we can do with it" V smiled "I think we both learned that"
"So what should I do?" Judy asked again, searching for an answer. V was quiet as she thought about it. Judy had lost Evelyn, Maiko, and Tom. Her hometown was in the dark depths of a reservoir and up until a few weeks back, she was losing V. V smiled as she ran a hand over Judy's cheek and caressed her neck making Judy hum softly at the touch.
"I think you should give it a chance. Get to know him, talk to him" V leaned in giving Judy's forehead a soft kiss "this world has taken so much from you, perhaps it was time you got something from it instead"