Long is Crushed
Singh Long exited Van's office as gracefully as he was able, trying to go over the plans for the next night's killing in his head. He was distracted. Van wants something with Alica, he has plans for her, that much is obvious now. But what could he posibly be planning? He stared off into space as he walked down the hall, trying to think of a reason. He is certainly over-protective, which I expected, but his excessive concern for her exceeds my expectations by far. All of a sudden he remembered something Fox had said before, "What if Van wanted Alica? He does always seem to be keeping an eye on her...". The words came back to haunt him and he cringed as the thought entered his mind.
That is ridiculous! Van wouldn't go after his own blood... would he? He hated to admit to himself that for some strange reason Fox's insane suggestion could be right, afterall he had been right about him and Alica. But that's insane! What about his insistant remarks about me and Van? That is certainly off... right? He can be wrong... of course he is wrong! What am I thinking? He walked into the assassin room just in time to get beaned in the head with a brush aimed for Bakuryu. He grabbed it as it glanced off his shoulder and then threw it back at Hans and pegged him straight in the nose.
"Ah!" Fox cried, protectively covering his dainty litte nose and letting the brush fall to the floor. "I wasn't even aiming for you!"
"You hit me, didn't you?" #318 growled, "And you expect me not to retaliate?"
"You all show such disrespect!" Bakuryu complained. Long shook his head in annoyance and sat down in his recliner. Vark entered the room behind him and beckoned Alica wordlessly. She got up from the couch and left the room. "I had a better reputation than any of you will ever have!" the old man continued. "I was the top assassin, the most skilled Master of Ninjitsu in all the world, Master Bakuryu!" Fox picked the brush up from the floor and this time hit his mark. "OW!"
"Now shut up!" Hans whined, retrieving his brush while the old ninja rubbed his sore head.
"We all know what you were old man." Greg admitted. "But that's all over, you're living in the past. Right now you're no better than a mediocre assassin."
"T-that's not true!" he denied.
"It is so." Fox argued. "You're yesterday's news old man. You're all washed up. You're a has-been, a wannabe even, a..."
"And you are nothing more than a pathetic excuse of an assassin! Unable to control yourself at even the slightest sight of blood. It's no wonder Busuzima dumped you!"
"I dumped him!" Fox corrected, sniffling. "H-he kept hitting on other people, good looking men and women. He acted so perverse around them... and then he treated me like I didn't even exist! And then you know what happened? I found him with a woman last night! Can you imagine? He cheated on me with a woman! Wahahaha!" Hans collapsed over his vanity, burying his head in his hands and sobbing and wailing pathetically. The rest of the room watched in silent shock.
"Weakling." Bakuryu tormented.
"Consorting with someone of your own intelligence level I see... Bakaryu." Long teased.
"What!?! What did you just call me!?!"
"Would you like me to repeat myself, Bakaryu?"
"How dare you! Y-you dare to insult the anchient name of the Master Ninja!"
"Anchient is right..."
"GRRR..." the old man got so mad that his wrinkled face went red, all the way up over his bald head. Meanwhile Alica re-entered the room and Fox stopped crying, his sobbs dying down to a sniffle as he looked over at assassin #318.
"318... I do believe you were... sticking up for me?" Hans asked.
"I was simply having a litle fun at 'Master Nincompoop's expense." Long explained. Bakuryu growled at the refrence and Fox burst into laughter along with Greg and Alica.
"But -ha, ha- you had fun at his expense -he, he- instead of mine?"
"Well..." he growled in annoyance. "I was a bit harsh on you the other night."
"Oh, how sweet!" Fox cried, jumping from his seat and falling onto Long, wrapping his arms around him in a hug.
"GET OFF ME!!!" #318 screamed, frantically trying to pry the mans arms off from where they were wrapped around his chest. Finally he suceeded, and then kicked Fox so hard he flew to the other side of the room and landed on the couch next to Bakuryu. Hans smiled up at Long dreamilly.
"Oo... I like them rough."
"AHHHH!!!" Long screamed, jumping up from his couch and running out the door.
"Hey, Long! Wait!" Alica called, running after him. They ran down the hallway and up to the elevator. #318 pressed the button frantically, but then realized that the elevator was several floors away and decided to take the stairs. Alica grabbed his arm and got dragged along, all the way up untill he reached the door to his room. He fished the keys out of one pocket and fumbled around with them nervously.
"Are you alright?"
"He... touched me!" Long whined, finally finding the right key and unlocking the door.
"The way you say it sounds worse than it really was, it was just a hug." He ran through the front room, through his bedroom, and straight into his bathroom, leaving the doors hanging open behind him.
"But then he... he was hitting on me again! Didn't you hear what he said!?!" She walked into the front room and sat down on the couch, unable to see him although she could hear his voice well enough.
"I don't know what you're so afraid of, it's not like he's going to rape you or anything."
"Ahhh! Don't even mention that word, please! I hate him! I should've killed him when I had the chance!"
"But if you did Van would've killed your family."
"I don't care! Well... maybe I do... but, he touched me!"
"Stop being so immature... what are you doing in there anyway?"
"I'm going to take a shower! A nice cold one!"
"Shouldn't you close the door then?"
"Oh..." She hears the hinge of the bathroom door creak a little. "Alica, are you going to stay there?"
"Maybe, I've got nothing better to do than torment you. Sure, why not?"
"I would feel uncomfortable showering with you in my dorm."
"All the more reason for me to stay."
"Alica, please..."
"Oh, so now you're going to try and be courteous towards me, hm? If you want me gone so badly why don't you come kick me out?"
"I'm already undressed... please leave."
"I think I'll just hang out here on the couch for a moment, why don't you go take your shower?"
"Alica!"
"What!?! What are you so afraid of? I'm not going to sneak in and peek at you... although I admit it's a tempting thought." He screamed and the door slammed shut, she couldn't help but laugh as she walked into his bedroom and over to the door. "Are you alright? Did you trip on something in there?"
"Your words are the only thing I'm tripping on right now."
"I didn't mean it."
"Are you sure?"
"Look, all I want is to know what's going on between you and Van, and why you were acting so strangely towards me this morning."
"I promise I'll tell you when I'm done, just please leave!"
"What do you care if I just sit on the couch? I'll turn the TV on or something, I won't peek on you, I promise!"
"But what if Van comes by!?!"
"What if he does? Is there a problem?"
"I'll tell you about it later, just please, go away!"
"Alright." Alica reluctantly agreed, realizing that if was the only way she'd get anything out of him. She walked back out of his bedroom and the front room into the hallway and slammed the last door before walking back towards hers. Strangely, the door of the dorm right next to it was open. This was unusual because no one used that dorm, it was usually empty. She glanced through the doorway as she passed, and saw a man in a lab coat bending over an open suitcase. "You new here?" she asked. He got up, turned and walked towards her, and then offered his hand.
"Yes, I'm Dr. Goldberg." he said, noticing her uniform. "And you're a Tylon, are you the boss around here?"
"Hardly." she answered, taking his hand and giving it a firm shake. "That would be my brother Van. If you didn't even know that then you must be new."
"To this building anyway." he admitted. "I was moved here to do some reasearch work for an old colleague... Hajime Busuzima, maybe you know him?"
"Ugh... well, I know of him anyway. I haven't really worked with him."
"And what sort of work do you do? Are you some kind of assisstant manager, a supervisor perhaps?"
"No, I'm a scientist." she thought about mentioning her other job as well, but decided againt it.
"Oh, really? Perhaps we'll have some work together then."
"It's a possibility."
Long stepped into the shower and turned on the water, shivering as the cool droplets sprayed on to his bare skin. He grabbed the knob and turned it, waiting patiently for the water to heat up. Why did this have to happen to me? he wondered. First Hans and then... I can't believe Alica said that. He shook his head, trying to forget the incident. Even if Van wasn't threatening to kill me if I don't keep away from her that would've scared me away. The water finally heated up a bit, and he closed his eyes and leaned into the stream a little too far, hitting on the tiled wall with his forehead.
"Ouch!" he stood back up and rubed his head, realizing that it hat been aching dully all morning. He had simply ignored it earlier, but it was a little more painfull now. Oh great! This is just what I need! Now I know it's just going to get worse... He turned the heat up a little more than usual, hoping that the burning sensation of the hot water on his skin would distract him from the growing pain in his head. He grabbed the shampoo and worked it gently through his hair, massaging his scalp as he went, but it didn't help. Finally he rinsed it out under the hot water. He started to feel a bit light headed, but ignored the feeling while washing the rest of his body. Finally he worked the conditioner through his hair, his head started pounding with pain. This isn't helping, he realized grimly.
He grabbed his hair and pulled it over his shoulder, and then turned his back to the spray for a moment, letting the hot water pour over his back and soothe his tense muscles. After a moment or two he let his hair back down and washed the conditioner out of it. As he leaned his head back to wash, he started feeling even more light headed and a little dizzy. The water's too hot, I'm going to faint if I keep going like this, he warned himself. Black spots started appearing in the corners of his eyes. Oh shit! He turned the water off and climbed out of the shower, grabbing a nearby towel and wrapping it around his waist. The spots got bigger. He ran out of the bathroom and into his bedroom, the cooler air helped a little. He took the towel off and spread it over the bed and then laid down, knowing that the blood would return to his head quicker this way.
"I never should've turned it up so hot." he mumbled to himself. He closed his eyes and massages his temples, but it did nothing for his headache. Then he pressed his palms against the side of his head, putting a slight pressure on it. It seemed to help a little bit, but only for a moment. Ugh... this is just great. I don't think I brought any pain relievers here, and I'd hate to go out anywhere feeling like this. He let his arms drop to his sides and took a few deep breaths, and the light-headedness seemed to get better. He sighed, wishing that the pain in his head would also go away. Then he heard a distant knocking sound, probably coming from his front door.
"Go away." he mumbled, too tired to raise his voice. Of all the time to have company come by... The knocking started again.
"Long? Are you in there?" a faint female voice asked.
"Oh, no. It's Alica, it just had to be Alica, didn't it? Of course... better her than Fox." He shrudered at the thought. Then he heard the door open a crack, which scared him since he remembered that he hadn't locked any of his doors.
"Long? You in here?" Her voice was a little louder, she was in his front room. He heard her footsteps getting closer, he tried to get up but as soon as he sat up in his bed he started getting light-headed again.
"Damnit, Alica! Don't come in!" he fell back down on the bed and pulled the blankets over him. He figured that if he couldn't prevent her from walking in on him naked then he'd rather be lying on his bed conscious then lying unconscious on the floor.
"Hey, don't curse at me!" Her voice got closer, and then she walked into his room. "I was just coming in here too... Long!?! What are you doing?"
"Please, don't talk to me." he groaned, slapping his forehead and then massaging his temples again. "I just got out of the shower."
"So why are you laying on your bed?" she asked, lifting an eyebrow suspiciously. "You weren't..."
"Ugh... this day just gets worse and wose."
"Well if you weren't jacking off then what were you doing?"
"You thought I was..." he lifted his head up to stare at her in surprise and then fell back down to the pillow, his face turning red. "Uuuugh."
"What are you doing?" she insisted.
"I turned the water up too hot! I started feeling faint! I wouldn't blacked out if I didn't lay down somewhere! Get the picture now?"
"Oh..." she glanced over at the open bathroom door, noting the fogged-up mirror beyond and the steam rising out of the room. "You know Long, as much of an intellect as you are, that wasn't a very bright idea."
"I only did it because I have this awful headache!" he moaned. "Please, leave me alone! This day has been terrible. I wish I could just fade out of existance. I need a nap!"
"I don't know... I don't think I ought to leave untill you tell me what's been going on between you and Van."
"Fine, but if I tell you will you go away?"
"If you want me to."
"What kind of reply is that?"
"Just tell me what's going on!"
"FINE!" They glared at each other for a moment. "Uh, I'm sorry Alica. It's not your fault I'm having a bad day. I shouldn't take it out on you. But, please be patient with me, okay? I know I was a real jerk earlier..."
"Yes, you were. But, I'll give you a break if you just tell me what's going on."
"It's really very simple, Van doesn't want me with you. He made his point abundantly clear by threatening to kill me and my entire family if I get too close to you."
"What!?! Grrrr... that evil bastard! Ooo, I hate him!!! What does he care if I like somebody anyway!?! Is he doing this just to torture me!?! Wait a minute... so this is all his fault? He put you up to this? Why didn't you just tell me that in the first place? You didn't have to pretend to be so cold and make up all that $#!@ about it being bad for business!"
"I have zero people skills." Long mumbled, raising one hand up with his fingers curled touching his thumb and curled into an 'O' shape. "Can you forgive an anti-social moron for acting like a complete idiot?"
"I guess I could... but don't keep any secrets like that from me again, okay? We are friends at least, aren't we?"
"I suppose I have no choice in the matter."
"You have a choice." she argued. "you could act like an @$$ hole some more, piss me off, and make me hate you... Or you could just realize that the two of us work very well together and we ought to have some kind of relationship."
"It would have to be a platonic one." he replied. "As much as I like you Alica I will not risk my family's lives... and I certainly have no desire to provoke Van's anger. He's scary enough when he's not angry." She sighed and nodded in agreement, angry that Van had the power to force other people's decisions like that. "Now, if you don't mind, would you please at least leave my room long enough so that I can get dressed?"
"Oh, uh... of course." she repied sheepishly, stepping out into his main room and closing the door behind her. She could hear a dull thumping noise as he climbed out of his bed, and the sound of his drawers as he slid them out and reached for his clothes. She imagined him standing there naked and a wicked thought entered her head. She staired at the door handle, fighting back the impulse to open the door and peek at him. She heard the sound of cloth rubbing against skin as he started pulling on his clothes. "So... I met a new doctor today."
"Oh, really." his voice mumbled through the door.
"Yeah, he's staying in the room right next to mine. I invited him to lunch in the cafeteria, you wanna join in?"
"I don't know..."
"Come on, it's on me! It won't kill you to get out and meet a few people!"
"I still have this horrible headache." he whined.
"So what? I've got some pain relievers in my dorm. I'll pick them up on the way down to the cafeteria and you can take them with your drink."
"You're not going to leave me alone untill I give in, are you?"
"Nope."
"Alright."
As soon as they sat down at the table he popped the little white pills in his mouth, opened a bottle of water and washed them down his throat. Can this get any worse? he wondered. Threatened by Van, hugged by Fox, terrible headache, almost passed out while in the shower, walked in on while I'm at my worst, and then scolded by Alica. And now I'm sitting out here at a lunch and trying to befriend to a new person? This is more than I can take! He set his elbow on the talbe and held his forehead in his hands, silently praying that the pills would work quickly and the pain would go away. He glared down at the sloppy-looking sandwitch in front of him and realized that he wasn't hungry at all, even though he hadn't eaten a thing that day.
"Don't look so sour!" Alica answered. "He's just a doctor, not an assassin, you'll scare him away!"
"I hate you." #318 mumbled under his breath. What is worse? Listening to her scold me for another ocuple of hours or sitting here at the table? I guess I made the right choice.
"Did you say something?"
"I feel like $#!@."
"The pills should work soon."
"The headache is not the only thing bothering me."
"Oh, quit your moaning and groaning. You sound like somebody just killed your mother."
"Not yet, but they might..."
"Long!"
"I am not in a cheerful mood today. Why are you so interested in this guy anyway?"
"Interested?" she asked, wondering what he meant. "Well, I might end up working with him, among other things."
"Ugh... never mind."
"What? Did I say something?"
"Yes, you did. And with every single rising decibel of your voice my head splits father in twain."
"Oh... sorry." They were both silent after that, Long poking idly at his sandwitch. Alica considered starting on her meal, but thought it would be rude if she didn't wait for her guest. Well, we are a bit early afterall. I think that if I'd waitied any longer to get Long down here he wouldn't have come. But now that we're just sitting here, will he leave? She looked over at him poking at his food, and looking miserable as ever. I guess it wouldn't hurt me to be nice to him, afterall I'm sure it's been a hard day with all the threats being put on him. "Aw, cheer up Long." she said, throwing a comforting arm around his shoulder. "I'm sure things can only get better."
"What I wouldn't do for your optimism." he replied sarcastically. "Oh wait, never mind. I don't want it."
"Don't you even start with that attitude." she warned. "Oh, look... He's coming."
"I'm overcome with joy and happiness. Can't you just tell by the lighthearted smile on my face?"
"Long..." she grumbled under her breath. "Cut it out." He sighed wearilly and then gazed ahead at the man approaching. There was nothing terribly notable about him, he wore a white lab coat, like most of the doctors did. He had hair that was somewhere between blond and light brown, and his facial features were pleasant enough to look at.
"So, he moved in next door to you?"
"Yes." she replied, waving at him to sit down. "I'm glad you could make it Dr. Goldberg. I want to introduce you to my friend Long here..." The doctor stuck out a hand in greeting and Long started up at him in shock.
"Dr. Goldberg? Dr. Stephen Goldberg?" Now it was the new man's turn to look confused.
"How did you know-"
"You know a man by the name of Lin-Lei." #318 interrupted.
"Lin-Lei?" he thought for a moment. "Oh, you mean Mr. Shin? He's been working under me for years. Is he a friend of yours?" Singh Long burst into laughter, the whole cafeteria echoing with the eerie deep-throated sound.
"Long, what's going on?" Alica demanded.
"I'm sorry, my apologies to both of you." he replied, shaking his head. "I seem to have a perverse sense of humor this morning... Lin-Lei is my father."
"Oh..." she muttered, a bit shocked. "Well, that explains it then."
"I still don't understand how this is humerous." Dr. Goldberg complaied, rather taken aback by the other man's strange behavior.
"I'll explain everything." Alica volunteered. "You see, Long here is Tylon's top assassin." A shocked look crept over the doctor's face.
"Tylon keeps assassins? I had heard rumors before, but..."
"Don't worry he's pretty harmless as long as you're not on his hit list and you don't piss him off." she explained. "Anyway, he's had a really awfull day today, and he hates his father."
"Oh..." the doctor replied, still stunned. "I'm sorry to hear that. All of it. Really, it's terrible."
"Pah, that isn't the half of it." Long mumbled, rising from the table. "Well, I've had just about enough of this, and your pills aren't doing $#!@ for me Alica. I'm going to go and get some rest."
"Aw, come on Long, we just got here!"
"Oh, #318!" A feminine voice called from across the room.
"Oh no, Hans!" Long cried, ducking under the table. "Damn, too late, he saw me!"
"Come'mere my little bishie man!" Fox called, walking towards them.
"Ugh... Alica, HELP!"
"I don't know what to do." she complained, shrugging uselessly.
"What the...!?!" Dr. Goldberg trailed off upon seeing the scantilly clad transvestite walking towards them.
"Now he's got a crush on me..." #318 whined. Then he jumped from behind the table and made a run for the door.
"You can run, but you can't hide from love!" Fox cried, and turned to pursue. Alica and Dr. Goldberg stared after them as they ran from the room, hearing the pounding of their footfalls up the stairs.
"Poor Long." Alica sighed. "I guess I should go rescue him. I wonder why he's running anyway, it seems so unlike him. I'd usually expect him to try and kill Fox... but then again if he did Van would kill one of his family members. Maybe he's running to avoid that."
"If I were him, I'd run too." Dr. Goldberg agreed.
That is ridiculous! Van wouldn't go after his own blood... would he? He hated to admit to himself that for some strange reason Fox's insane suggestion could be right, afterall he had been right about him and Alica. But that's insane! What about his insistant remarks about me and Van? That is certainly off... right? He can be wrong... of course he is wrong! What am I thinking? He walked into the assassin room just in time to get beaned in the head with a brush aimed for Bakuryu. He grabbed it as it glanced off his shoulder and then threw it back at Hans and pegged him straight in the nose.
"Ah!" Fox cried, protectively covering his dainty litte nose and letting the brush fall to the floor. "I wasn't even aiming for you!"
"You hit me, didn't you?" #318 growled, "And you expect me not to retaliate?"
"You all show such disrespect!" Bakuryu complained. Long shook his head in annoyance and sat down in his recliner. Vark entered the room behind him and beckoned Alica wordlessly. She got up from the couch and left the room. "I had a better reputation than any of you will ever have!" the old man continued. "I was the top assassin, the most skilled Master of Ninjitsu in all the world, Master Bakuryu!" Fox picked the brush up from the floor and this time hit his mark. "OW!"
"Now shut up!" Hans whined, retrieving his brush while the old ninja rubbed his sore head.
"We all know what you were old man." Greg admitted. "But that's all over, you're living in the past. Right now you're no better than a mediocre assassin."
"T-that's not true!" he denied.
"It is so." Fox argued. "You're yesterday's news old man. You're all washed up. You're a has-been, a wannabe even, a..."
"And you are nothing more than a pathetic excuse of an assassin! Unable to control yourself at even the slightest sight of blood. It's no wonder Busuzima dumped you!"
"I dumped him!" Fox corrected, sniffling. "H-he kept hitting on other people, good looking men and women. He acted so perverse around them... and then he treated me like I didn't even exist! And then you know what happened? I found him with a woman last night! Can you imagine? He cheated on me with a woman! Wahahaha!" Hans collapsed over his vanity, burying his head in his hands and sobbing and wailing pathetically. The rest of the room watched in silent shock.
"Weakling." Bakuryu tormented.
"Consorting with someone of your own intelligence level I see... Bakaryu." Long teased.
"What!?! What did you just call me!?!"
"Would you like me to repeat myself, Bakaryu?"
"How dare you! Y-you dare to insult the anchient name of the Master Ninja!"
"Anchient is right..."
"GRRR..." the old man got so mad that his wrinkled face went red, all the way up over his bald head. Meanwhile Alica re-entered the room and Fox stopped crying, his sobbs dying down to a sniffle as he looked over at assassin #318.
"318... I do believe you were... sticking up for me?" Hans asked.
"I was simply having a litle fun at 'Master Nincompoop's expense." Long explained. Bakuryu growled at the refrence and Fox burst into laughter along with Greg and Alica.
"But -ha, ha- you had fun at his expense -he, he- instead of mine?"
"Well..." he growled in annoyance. "I was a bit harsh on you the other night."
"Oh, how sweet!" Fox cried, jumping from his seat and falling onto Long, wrapping his arms around him in a hug.
"GET OFF ME!!!" #318 screamed, frantically trying to pry the mans arms off from where they were wrapped around his chest. Finally he suceeded, and then kicked Fox so hard he flew to the other side of the room and landed on the couch next to Bakuryu. Hans smiled up at Long dreamilly.
"Oo... I like them rough."
"AHHHH!!!" Long screamed, jumping up from his couch and running out the door.
"Hey, Long! Wait!" Alica called, running after him. They ran down the hallway and up to the elevator. #318 pressed the button frantically, but then realized that the elevator was several floors away and decided to take the stairs. Alica grabbed his arm and got dragged along, all the way up untill he reached the door to his room. He fished the keys out of one pocket and fumbled around with them nervously.
"Are you alright?"
"He... touched me!" Long whined, finally finding the right key and unlocking the door.
"The way you say it sounds worse than it really was, it was just a hug." He ran through the front room, through his bedroom, and straight into his bathroom, leaving the doors hanging open behind him.
"But then he... he was hitting on me again! Didn't you hear what he said!?!" She walked into the front room and sat down on the couch, unable to see him although she could hear his voice well enough.
"I don't know what you're so afraid of, it's not like he's going to rape you or anything."
"Ahhh! Don't even mention that word, please! I hate him! I should've killed him when I had the chance!"
"But if you did Van would've killed your family."
"I don't care! Well... maybe I do... but, he touched me!"
"Stop being so immature... what are you doing in there anyway?"
"I'm going to take a shower! A nice cold one!"
"Shouldn't you close the door then?"
"Oh..." She hears the hinge of the bathroom door creak a little. "Alica, are you going to stay there?"
"Maybe, I've got nothing better to do than torment you. Sure, why not?"
"I would feel uncomfortable showering with you in my dorm."
"All the more reason for me to stay."
"Alica, please..."
"Oh, so now you're going to try and be courteous towards me, hm? If you want me gone so badly why don't you come kick me out?"
"I'm already undressed... please leave."
"I think I'll just hang out here on the couch for a moment, why don't you go take your shower?"
"Alica!"
"What!?! What are you so afraid of? I'm not going to sneak in and peek at you... although I admit it's a tempting thought." He screamed and the door slammed shut, she couldn't help but laugh as she walked into his bedroom and over to the door. "Are you alright? Did you trip on something in there?"
"Your words are the only thing I'm tripping on right now."
"I didn't mean it."
"Are you sure?"
"Look, all I want is to know what's going on between you and Van, and why you were acting so strangely towards me this morning."
"I promise I'll tell you when I'm done, just please leave!"
"What do you care if I just sit on the couch? I'll turn the TV on or something, I won't peek on you, I promise!"
"But what if Van comes by!?!"
"What if he does? Is there a problem?"
"I'll tell you about it later, just please, go away!"
"Alright." Alica reluctantly agreed, realizing that if was the only way she'd get anything out of him. She walked back out of his bedroom and the front room into the hallway and slammed the last door before walking back towards hers. Strangely, the door of the dorm right next to it was open. This was unusual because no one used that dorm, it was usually empty. She glanced through the doorway as she passed, and saw a man in a lab coat bending over an open suitcase. "You new here?" she asked. He got up, turned and walked towards her, and then offered his hand.
"Yes, I'm Dr. Goldberg." he said, noticing her uniform. "And you're a Tylon, are you the boss around here?"
"Hardly." she answered, taking his hand and giving it a firm shake. "That would be my brother Van. If you didn't even know that then you must be new."
"To this building anyway." he admitted. "I was moved here to do some reasearch work for an old colleague... Hajime Busuzima, maybe you know him?"
"Ugh... well, I know of him anyway. I haven't really worked with him."
"And what sort of work do you do? Are you some kind of assisstant manager, a supervisor perhaps?"
"No, I'm a scientist." she thought about mentioning her other job as well, but decided againt it.
"Oh, really? Perhaps we'll have some work together then."
"It's a possibility."
Long stepped into the shower and turned on the water, shivering as the cool droplets sprayed on to his bare skin. He grabbed the knob and turned it, waiting patiently for the water to heat up. Why did this have to happen to me? he wondered. First Hans and then... I can't believe Alica said that. He shook his head, trying to forget the incident. Even if Van wasn't threatening to kill me if I don't keep away from her that would've scared me away. The water finally heated up a bit, and he closed his eyes and leaned into the stream a little too far, hitting on the tiled wall with his forehead.
"Ouch!" he stood back up and rubed his head, realizing that it hat been aching dully all morning. He had simply ignored it earlier, but it was a little more painfull now. Oh great! This is just what I need! Now I know it's just going to get worse... He turned the heat up a little more than usual, hoping that the burning sensation of the hot water on his skin would distract him from the growing pain in his head. He grabbed the shampoo and worked it gently through his hair, massaging his scalp as he went, but it didn't help. Finally he rinsed it out under the hot water. He started to feel a bit light headed, but ignored the feeling while washing the rest of his body. Finally he worked the conditioner through his hair, his head started pounding with pain. This isn't helping, he realized grimly.
He grabbed his hair and pulled it over his shoulder, and then turned his back to the spray for a moment, letting the hot water pour over his back and soothe his tense muscles. After a moment or two he let his hair back down and washed the conditioner out of it. As he leaned his head back to wash, he started feeling even more light headed and a little dizzy. The water's too hot, I'm going to faint if I keep going like this, he warned himself. Black spots started appearing in the corners of his eyes. Oh shit! He turned the water off and climbed out of the shower, grabbing a nearby towel and wrapping it around his waist. The spots got bigger. He ran out of the bathroom and into his bedroom, the cooler air helped a little. He took the towel off and spread it over the bed and then laid down, knowing that the blood would return to his head quicker this way.
"I never should've turned it up so hot." he mumbled to himself. He closed his eyes and massages his temples, but it did nothing for his headache. Then he pressed his palms against the side of his head, putting a slight pressure on it. It seemed to help a little bit, but only for a moment. Ugh... this is just great. I don't think I brought any pain relievers here, and I'd hate to go out anywhere feeling like this. He let his arms drop to his sides and took a few deep breaths, and the light-headedness seemed to get better. He sighed, wishing that the pain in his head would also go away. Then he heard a distant knocking sound, probably coming from his front door.
"Go away." he mumbled, too tired to raise his voice. Of all the time to have company come by... The knocking started again.
"Long? Are you in there?" a faint female voice asked.
"Oh, no. It's Alica, it just had to be Alica, didn't it? Of course... better her than Fox." He shrudered at the thought. Then he heard the door open a crack, which scared him since he remembered that he hadn't locked any of his doors.
"Long? You in here?" Her voice was a little louder, she was in his front room. He heard her footsteps getting closer, he tried to get up but as soon as he sat up in his bed he started getting light-headed again.
"Damnit, Alica! Don't come in!" he fell back down on the bed and pulled the blankets over him. He figured that if he couldn't prevent her from walking in on him naked then he'd rather be lying on his bed conscious then lying unconscious on the floor.
"Hey, don't curse at me!" Her voice got closer, and then she walked into his room. "I was just coming in here too... Long!?! What are you doing?"
"Please, don't talk to me." he groaned, slapping his forehead and then massaging his temples again. "I just got out of the shower."
"So why are you laying on your bed?" she asked, lifting an eyebrow suspiciously. "You weren't..."
"Ugh... this day just gets worse and wose."
"Well if you weren't jacking off then what were you doing?"
"You thought I was..." he lifted his head up to stare at her in surprise and then fell back down to the pillow, his face turning red. "Uuuugh."
"What are you doing?" she insisted.
"I turned the water up too hot! I started feeling faint! I wouldn't blacked out if I didn't lay down somewhere! Get the picture now?"
"Oh..." she glanced over at the open bathroom door, noting the fogged-up mirror beyond and the steam rising out of the room. "You know Long, as much of an intellect as you are, that wasn't a very bright idea."
"I only did it because I have this awful headache!" he moaned. "Please, leave me alone! This day has been terrible. I wish I could just fade out of existance. I need a nap!"
"I don't know... I don't think I ought to leave untill you tell me what's been going on between you and Van."
"Fine, but if I tell you will you go away?"
"If you want me to."
"What kind of reply is that?"
"Just tell me what's going on!"
"FINE!" They glared at each other for a moment. "Uh, I'm sorry Alica. It's not your fault I'm having a bad day. I shouldn't take it out on you. But, please be patient with me, okay? I know I was a real jerk earlier..."
"Yes, you were. But, I'll give you a break if you just tell me what's going on."
"It's really very simple, Van doesn't want me with you. He made his point abundantly clear by threatening to kill me and my entire family if I get too close to you."
"What!?! Grrrr... that evil bastard! Ooo, I hate him!!! What does he care if I like somebody anyway!?! Is he doing this just to torture me!?! Wait a minute... so this is all his fault? He put you up to this? Why didn't you just tell me that in the first place? You didn't have to pretend to be so cold and make up all that $#!@ about it being bad for business!"
"I have zero people skills." Long mumbled, raising one hand up with his fingers curled touching his thumb and curled into an 'O' shape. "Can you forgive an anti-social moron for acting like a complete idiot?"
"I guess I could... but don't keep any secrets like that from me again, okay? We are friends at least, aren't we?"
"I suppose I have no choice in the matter."
"You have a choice." she argued. "you could act like an @$$ hole some more, piss me off, and make me hate you... Or you could just realize that the two of us work very well together and we ought to have some kind of relationship."
"It would have to be a platonic one." he replied. "As much as I like you Alica I will not risk my family's lives... and I certainly have no desire to provoke Van's anger. He's scary enough when he's not angry." She sighed and nodded in agreement, angry that Van had the power to force other people's decisions like that. "Now, if you don't mind, would you please at least leave my room long enough so that I can get dressed?"
"Oh, uh... of course." she repied sheepishly, stepping out into his main room and closing the door behind her. She could hear a dull thumping noise as he climbed out of his bed, and the sound of his drawers as he slid them out and reached for his clothes. She imagined him standing there naked and a wicked thought entered her head. She staired at the door handle, fighting back the impulse to open the door and peek at him. She heard the sound of cloth rubbing against skin as he started pulling on his clothes. "So... I met a new doctor today."
"Oh, really." his voice mumbled through the door.
"Yeah, he's staying in the room right next to mine. I invited him to lunch in the cafeteria, you wanna join in?"
"I don't know..."
"Come on, it's on me! It won't kill you to get out and meet a few people!"
"I still have this horrible headache." he whined.
"So what? I've got some pain relievers in my dorm. I'll pick them up on the way down to the cafeteria and you can take them with your drink."
"You're not going to leave me alone untill I give in, are you?"
"Nope."
"Alright."
As soon as they sat down at the table he popped the little white pills in his mouth, opened a bottle of water and washed them down his throat. Can this get any worse? he wondered. Threatened by Van, hugged by Fox, terrible headache, almost passed out while in the shower, walked in on while I'm at my worst, and then scolded by Alica. And now I'm sitting out here at a lunch and trying to befriend to a new person? This is more than I can take! He set his elbow on the talbe and held his forehead in his hands, silently praying that the pills would work quickly and the pain would go away. He glared down at the sloppy-looking sandwitch in front of him and realized that he wasn't hungry at all, even though he hadn't eaten a thing that day.
"Don't look so sour!" Alica answered. "He's just a doctor, not an assassin, you'll scare him away!"
"I hate you." #318 mumbled under his breath. What is worse? Listening to her scold me for another ocuple of hours or sitting here at the table? I guess I made the right choice.
"Did you say something?"
"I feel like $#!@."
"The pills should work soon."
"The headache is not the only thing bothering me."
"Oh, quit your moaning and groaning. You sound like somebody just killed your mother."
"Not yet, but they might..."
"Long!"
"I am not in a cheerful mood today. Why are you so interested in this guy anyway?"
"Interested?" she asked, wondering what he meant. "Well, I might end up working with him, among other things."
"Ugh... never mind."
"What? Did I say something?"
"Yes, you did. And with every single rising decibel of your voice my head splits father in twain."
"Oh... sorry." They were both silent after that, Long poking idly at his sandwitch. Alica considered starting on her meal, but thought it would be rude if she didn't wait for her guest. Well, we are a bit early afterall. I think that if I'd waitied any longer to get Long down here he wouldn't have come. But now that we're just sitting here, will he leave? She looked over at him poking at his food, and looking miserable as ever. I guess it wouldn't hurt me to be nice to him, afterall I'm sure it's been a hard day with all the threats being put on him. "Aw, cheer up Long." she said, throwing a comforting arm around his shoulder. "I'm sure things can only get better."
"What I wouldn't do for your optimism." he replied sarcastically. "Oh wait, never mind. I don't want it."
"Don't you even start with that attitude." she warned. "Oh, look... He's coming."
"I'm overcome with joy and happiness. Can't you just tell by the lighthearted smile on my face?"
"Long..." she grumbled under her breath. "Cut it out." He sighed wearilly and then gazed ahead at the man approaching. There was nothing terribly notable about him, he wore a white lab coat, like most of the doctors did. He had hair that was somewhere between blond and light brown, and his facial features were pleasant enough to look at.
"So, he moved in next door to you?"
"Yes." she replied, waving at him to sit down. "I'm glad you could make it Dr. Goldberg. I want to introduce you to my friend Long here..." The doctor stuck out a hand in greeting and Long started up at him in shock.
"Dr. Goldberg? Dr. Stephen Goldberg?" Now it was the new man's turn to look confused.
"How did you know-"
"You know a man by the name of Lin-Lei." #318 interrupted.
"Lin-Lei?" he thought for a moment. "Oh, you mean Mr. Shin? He's been working under me for years. Is he a friend of yours?" Singh Long burst into laughter, the whole cafeteria echoing with the eerie deep-throated sound.
"Long, what's going on?" Alica demanded.
"I'm sorry, my apologies to both of you." he replied, shaking his head. "I seem to have a perverse sense of humor this morning... Lin-Lei is my father."
"Oh..." she muttered, a bit shocked. "Well, that explains it then."
"I still don't understand how this is humerous." Dr. Goldberg complaied, rather taken aback by the other man's strange behavior.
"I'll explain everything." Alica volunteered. "You see, Long here is Tylon's top assassin." A shocked look crept over the doctor's face.
"Tylon keeps assassins? I had heard rumors before, but..."
"Don't worry he's pretty harmless as long as you're not on his hit list and you don't piss him off." she explained. "Anyway, he's had a really awfull day today, and he hates his father."
"Oh..." the doctor replied, still stunned. "I'm sorry to hear that. All of it. Really, it's terrible."
"Pah, that isn't the half of it." Long mumbled, rising from the table. "Well, I've had just about enough of this, and your pills aren't doing $#!@ for me Alica. I'm going to go and get some rest."
"Aw, come on Long, we just got here!"
"Oh, #318!" A feminine voice called from across the room.
"Oh no, Hans!" Long cried, ducking under the table. "Damn, too late, he saw me!"
"Come'mere my little bishie man!" Fox called, walking towards them.
"Ugh... Alica, HELP!"
"I don't know what to do." she complained, shrugging uselessly.
"What the...!?!" Dr. Goldberg trailed off upon seeing the scantilly clad transvestite walking towards them.
"Now he's got a crush on me..." #318 whined. Then he jumped from behind the table and made a run for the door.
"You can run, but you can't hide from love!" Fox cried, and turned to pursue. Alica and Dr. Goldberg stared after them as they ran from the room, hearing the pounding of their footfalls up the stairs.
"Poor Long." Alica sighed. "I guess I should go rescue him. I wonder why he's running anyway, it seems so unlike him. I'd usually expect him to try and kill Fox... but then again if he did Van would kill one of his family members. Maybe he's running to avoid that."
"If I were him, I'd run too." Dr. Goldberg agreed.