Kano protectively stood in front of Nary when a light skinned man with short black hair approached them. He had a medium build and was almost as tall as Kano. Although he didn't recognize the man, he could see that he was drunk based on his unsteady walk.
"Who is he?" Nary asked as she looked at their assailant and stood next to Kano.
"I have no fucking idea! But it looks like we're about to find out." The Aussie told her.
The drunk stranger stepped up to Kano, "You asshole, I-I've been wai-waiting over a year to beat the shit out of you!"
Scowling, Kano closed the gap between them, "I don't know who the fuck you are but I already know that you're the dumbest cunt I've ever met!"
He jabbed his finger at the champion's chest, "You deserve it you dickhead, you fucked my wife!"
As he furrowed his brows, he pulled his head back processing his words then felt Nary grip his hand and arm. He saw the shock and embarrassment on her face. As much as he wanted to give this prick his comeuppance, he also didn't want to make things worse for her. His attention returned to the stranger, "Mate, you better walk away or else I-…"
"You fuckin' knew she wa-was married and you fucked her anyway!" His voice cracked while he shouted. Once again, he poked at Kano's chest but kept his finger there.
Feeling his blood boil, he narrowed his eyes and took a breath, "Take your finger off me and get the fuck outta here, now!"
Before the inebriated man could respond, a redheaded woman with long curly locks came running over, "Oh bloody hell, Paul! What the fuck are you-holy shit, Kano?!"
His mouth dropped open, "Fuck, Melissa?"
Sighing, she grabbed Paul's elbow with one hand turning him towards her, "Kano and um, Ms., I'm so sorry he's clearly had too much to drink tonight so we'll just be goin-…"
Paul yanked his arm away from her nearly losing his balance, "Le-let go of me! This fucker almost tore us…us apart! He owes me at least one ass kicking or a turn with his woman here, she-she's not bad looking! Fuuuck, she's actually pretty hot!" He snickered then belched.
Melissa saw Kano glare at Paul as he stepped forward; she quickly grabbed her husband's arm again with both hands this time, "Paul, we're leaving! Again, I'm so sorry to both of you it's the liquor talking, I swear! So sorry!" She successfully pulled him away and continued doing so despite his protests.
Kano still felt Nary's hand in his but when he looked down, he saw how uncomfortable she was and gently cupped her face, "Sunshine, are you OK?"
Nodding, she replied, "I uh, I just wanna go home."
He simply tipped his head and kept holding her hand as they walked away.
The drive home was dead silent. A heavy feeling came over him as he drove, it took him a moment to realize what it was, guilt. Up until his confrontation with Paul, he thought their second night would be better than the first. Instead, his past came back and blew up their wonderful evening. It pained him to see her humiliation during Paul's public drunken tirade and it was because of him. The fact that Nary avoided making eye contact with him and kept her hands to herself during the car ride deeply concerned the Aussie.
When they entered the beach house's kitchen, he broke the ice after dropping the keys on the breakfast bar. He held out his arms, "All right, let me have it!"
As she placed her coat on the stool, she creased her black brows, "Do you want me to yell at you?"
"Honestly, yeah! Because it's better than you not saying what's really on your mind right now!" He stepped closer to her and removed his coat throwing it on the nearby sofa.
Crossing her arms, she said, "And what do you think that-…"
Pointing to himself with his right hand, he blurted out, "That I was the one who fucked up our perfect night! And you're too nice to say it even though it's true! I saw how embarrassed you were of me and you have every right to be because it's all my fault!"
Seeing the shame and anger in his eyes caught her off guard; she uncrossed her arms and exhaled. "Kano," she gripped his forearm, "I was embarrassed but it wasn't because of you. Paul was the one who made a scene."
His eyes went to her hand on his forearm then met her gaze, "Yeah, because I fucked his wife! That fuckwit was right, Melissa told me that she was married and…and I didn't give a shit! I brought this on us, Nary, OK? I fucked up our perfect day! So, go ahead and tell me how I ruined everything! And that I'm a piece of shit!"
Seeing how guilty, upset and furious he was with himself was jarring for her. One of the first things Sonya said to her about Kano was how selfish he was and his utter disregard for anyone else's well-being.
"Come on," she kept her hand on his forearm and walked him over to the living where they sat down. "Kano, I'm not going to yell or chastise you for a past mistake. Because…because I've already done that with some of my friends and family who made the same mistake…"
Surprised, he looked at her with furrowed brows, "You have?"
After a long breath, she told him, "I'm close to people who have been on all sides of cheating. It's not always so black and white and it's not the worst thing a person can do. And it's definitely not a crime. Good people can do bad things, but you know what still makes them good people?" She gripped his shoulder with her other hand.
"What?" He moved closer to her.
"They felt remorse for what they did just like how you are right now and they learned from their mistakes." Her hand slid from his shoulder to his face.
Leaning into her touch, he gazed into her eyes and was comforted by the understanding he saw in them. "How did they handle it?"
"They tried to atone for what they did by forgiving themselves and trying to apologize to the people they hurt. Some were forgiven and some weren't. But this is a bit different, Kano." Her thumb stroked his cheek.
Shrugging, he asked, "How? Nary, I knew what I was doing."
"Yes, but Melissa was the one who took a vow and made a promise to him, you didn't. And you weren't Paul's friend, you didn't betray him, Kano." She shook her head.
"Yeah…but I didn't exactly help him." His eyes went to his lap.
Lifting his chin with her fingers, she questioned him, "No, you didn't. But she's more at fault. How did this even happen?"
Following a long exhale, he explained, "It eh, it was on the anniversary of me mum's death. That's always a hard day for me and it's the only reason why I remember Melissa's name. I was in my usual pub when she walked in. I-I knew that she was from the rich part of town, that she didn't belong there. She sat down next to me and talked about her awful marriage with the bartender. It wasn't long before we went to a shitty motel together." Sighing, he rubbed the back of his neck.
Her hand moved from his forearm to his hand, "You were having a hard day and needed to cope. It's not like you sought her out."
"No but, um, she's not the first married woman I've fucked. Shit, I only know that because they left their rings on or I saw the tan line on their fingers." He glanced at the floor then met her eyes again.
"You were a single man, Kano. And again, those women made their choices." She sensed that there was more he needed to say and gently squeezed his hand, "Is there another reason why you're being so hard on yourself?"
He nodded, "When I recognized her …I understood why Paul was pissed at me. Because-because I reminded him of how close he came to losing her. The one person that he loves so damn much…just like how I love you!" His voiced quivered before he wiped his mouth, "At that moment, if I were him and I saw me, drunk or sober, I would've done the same fucking thing! I haven't placed myself in someone's else shoes in a very long time."
Tilting her head, she searched his face seeing the mix of emotions in his blue gaze, "How does that make you feel?"
Looking into her eyes, he told her the truth, "Fucking terrified and shitty! Until I got me marking, I only cared about myself, I had to…to survive and make sure no one fucked me over." He interlaced his fingers into hers, "Ever since we got together, I've been thinking about all the shit I've done and how it's gonna affect you. But I didn't see tonight coming and I'm sorry you were pulled into it."
Nary's face leaned closer to his, "Kano…it wasn't an ideal situation. It was an uncomfortable moment but it's passed and now, I'm fine. But I do appreciate your apology and your empathy. It shows how far you've come."
His other hand cupped her face, "Thanks, Love. But, eh, this is new for me and tonight was hard. When he first came up to us, I wanted to rip his head off! Then I saw you and-and what I'd lose if I acted like the fuckin' idiot that I used to be. Although if Melissa hadn't pulled him away, I don't know what I would've done…."
"Thank you, for being honest. And I saw you using restraint, I'm proud of you. But he was really playing with fire after asking if he could have sex with me to make things even! Sure, he was drunk but that's still really vile!" She said with a disgusted look on her face.
"It really fucking was!" He emphatically nodded, "Still, as pissed off as I was at him, I don't wanna be that prick tomorrow morning! His hangover is gonna brutal and he has to deal with his pissed off wife!"
"Oh definitely! Rude awakening is an understatement." She then brushed his cheek with her thumb again, "Is there anything else you wanna talk about?"
"Yeah, I know you're not upset with me, but I still feel bad for what happened…So, is there a way I can make it up to you?" He playfully arched his brow.
With a small giggle, she told him, "I've had my fill of excitement for tonight. Right now, I wanna share a pint of ice cream while cuddling with you on this couch as we watch Frequency."
A small grunt came from him, "Or, I could track down Paul and beat his drunk ass for killing your mood then we can do your thing?"
They both laughed before she suggested, "How about you just get the ice cream and spoons while I put in the movie?"
He sweetly pecked her lips "I'm on it, Angel! But my offer still stands!"
"Tempting but I'll pass!" She slapped his backside after he stood up, "Now get that ass to the frige and take out Ben and Jerry's!"
His body jerk as he chuckled, "Don't worry Cupcake, I won't take too long," he warned her, "but don't you dare start the movie without me!"
"I wouldn't dream of it, Baby!" She called out while placing the Blu-Ray disc in the player.
A snort came from him when he saw the ice cream's name, "Really? Netflix and Chill'd?"
"I happen to like the name and it's one of their best new flavors!" Swiping the remote control off the coffee table, she then landed heavily on the sofa.
A few seconds later he dropped down next to her and pressed his body against hers. He thanked her for sharing the nearby throw blanket with him by planting a small kiss on her cheek.
"Don't mention it and never forget, I have great taste!" She scooped a bit of ice cream onto her spoon and fed it to him.
The scrumptious combination of peanut butter ice cream, fudge brownies and salty pretzel swirls melted on his tongue causing him to moan, "Mmm, this is fuckin great! You weren't wrong, Buttercup!"
With a smug voice and smirk, she remarked, "You can save yourself a lot of time by always assuming that I'm right!"
He scoffed, "And you call me cocky?"
"It's cocky when you do it but with me? It's cute!" She did a little shimmy with shoulders making him chuckle.
He pecked her forehead, "You are real fuckin' cute! Anyway, I've never seen this movie before, have you?"
Nary shook her head, "But I've only heard good things. Two years ago, my dad and my brothers saw it while my mom and I went dress shopping for my cousin's wedding. When we came back home the movie had just ended and everyone was crying!" She reached for the box of tissues on the coffee table and placed it on the couch next to her.
"Shit, it must be one hell of a movie! Let's get to it, Peaches!" He told her before spooning some ice cream into his mouth.
By the time the ending credits began rolling, they had emptied the pint of ice cream and used up the box of tissues. Their eyes were both red as they held each other and talked about the movie.
Kano stroked her hair as he spoke, "It's fucking crazy how one decision had such an impact on their lives and the lives of others! But it made everything more intense and exciting!"
"I absolutely agree! There was still genuine heart, humor and drama, it balanced the sci-fi elements pretty well." She brought her hand to his chest and nodded.
He smiled at Nary as his hand moved from her head to her face, "It had everything…Babe, despite the shit that happened after dinner, this was the perfect way to end the night! Hell, any night that ends with us being together is always fucking fantastic!"
Stroking his firm pec, she looked into his blue eyes, "Well, it's pretty hard to have a bad time with your best friend!"
The smitten Aussie showed his agreement by pulling her into a nice and slow kiss.
In the middle of night, the young doctor woke up visibly panicked. Turning around, she saw Kano sleeping and gently touched his face and chest for reassurance. She then grabbed her phone off the nightstand to check her text messages. A sigh of relief left her lips after seeing a recent reply from the friend who was in her nightmare. Once she returned her phone to the nightstand, she draped her arm across his bare chest and pressed her body against him. She kept her stare on her sleeping lover before slowly surrendering to her weariness.
Note: Yay we're officially getting Mortal Kombat 2 and they better bring Josh Lawson back as Kano! How could they not? He is one of best parts of the movie that fans also loved! Anyway, if you guys want to read an special version of this story and of The Black Dragon's Courtship, it's on archiveofourown where some chapters feature photos and gifs. Thanks again for the reviews nadilla and lawlyss and to everyone who continues to read this story! Please leave a review, it can be a short comment, one word or even just a typed out emoji like this :) or 3