Author's Note: I can't thank everyone enough for their wonderful reviews, please keep it up. Um…thanks for everyone's support, and please read and review this chappie!Well...it was bound to happen...the obligatory mushy chappie!And before I forget this chapter has some…some…SOME nudity…but its funny nudity not gratuitous and stuff…I thought that this story could use a little humor and I felt like this chappie would be the one to showcase it (the humor not the nudity…wait…I mean both…I mean wait, crap…I'm not making much sense…oh hell just read and review please!)
It was late by the time Hwoarang, Jin, Xiao, and Jamie got back to the hotel. The members of the Blood Talon had eventually tapered off from the four, and gone back to their respective homes.
"I…I can't thank you guys enough for saving me…" Xiao murmured, breaking the respective silence.
She leaned against Jin's firm chest, and he wrapped his arm protectively around her.
"Don't mention it, it's what I do." Jamie said tiredly.
The Nephilim was dog tired…more so then he had probably ever been in a long time. He also smelled terrible, and had garbage in his hair. The icy cold ruffled the ruined gi and stung his back…which had just begun to heal from Rahir's lacerations.
"That was so weird. I mean, one minute, I'm watching Meet the Focker's with Jules in the theater, and all of a sudden, this Combot busts through the screen." Hwoarang said.
"You mean you actually watched the movie?" Jamie asked.
"Well…not really, but we were almost there y'know? And then wham! This Combot appears outta nowhere!" Hwoarang exclaimed…further illustrating his point by smacking his fist against his open palm.
"Talk about a mood killer." Jin said.
Xiao opened her mouth in shock and glanced quickly over to Jamie. What an amazing breakthrough! Jin and Hwoarang barely spoke with one another, and even when they did it was almost always to snip and pick at each other. Could this be the catalyst that would finally end their feud?
"Don't get your hopes up." Jamie murmured with a smile to Xiao…she smirked and discreetly nodded her head.
The four walked up to their rooms…as it turned out, most of the competitors lived on the same floor, while the other guests stayed in the floors below (the fighters were given the top two floors). They stood in front of Jin's room…Ling didn't seem like she was going to hers. Jamie wasn't one to judge, he didn't care what the hell Xiao did with her boyfriend…I mean, they were in love, and lovers did things like this. Jin and Xiaoyu were his friends, and if they were happy, then that's all that mattered.
Jamie moved to walk off, while Xiao began hugging Hwoarang, until the Chinese beauty called to him.
"Jamie? C'mere!" Xiao beckoned.
Jamie turned, just in time to see Ling walk over to him.
"I…I didn't thank you enough for saving my life…you've done it so many times that I've lost count." She moved to hug him.
"Don't," Jamie began and moved back. "I'm all gross and disgusting."
"I don't care," Xiao argued and gave him a deep embrace, followed by a light kiss on the cheek. The small act of kindness meant the world to Jamie. When she looked into the Nephilim's eyes, there were tears sliding down her cheeks. "I will never forget what you've done for me…and what you're doing for the world…I'm so happy to call you my friend."
"Ling…" Jamie began, speechless.
Someday...I'll repay you for everything you've done for me... Xiao thought.
Goodnights and thank-you's went on for another several minutes, before everyone decided to retire to their rooms.
As soon as Jamie walked in his room one thing kept running through his mind:
Must remove filthy disgusting gi and undergarments…must take long, hot cleansing shower, must obtain at least nineteen hours of precious, precious sleep…mmm…sleep…
No one was in his room when he opened it…not that it mattered, had Steve, or the whole damn population of Tokyo been in the room he still would have stripped naked rather then wear the stinking, filthy karate uniform any longer. As soon as the door to his room shut, Jamie pulled the tattered gi clothes off with the speed of a cheetah.
The brownish, malodorous, rumpled mass of garments lay in a ball in the corner of the room. However, before Jamie jumped into the shower, he made sure to place his black belt in a plastic grocery bag…he would wash it in the morning. The SpongeBob SquarePants boxer shorts unfortunately, could not be saved.
Finally, he walked into the bathroom and turned the water on…it was cold still, he'd have to wait a bit for it to warm up. The towels on the rack were damp…Steve must not have replaced them…oh well; Jamie had some extras in his bag. The Nephilim walked out of the bathroom and towards his bed when he heard a knocking on the door.
"Not…happening…" Jamie groaned.
Jamie opened the door a crack, and peeped outside. It was Forrest.
What the Hell is he doing here at this hour?!
"Forrest…hey…" Jamie said with a smile…still keeping the door at a crack.
"Hey, Jamie," Forrest said tiredly.
The young Chinese man held a full plastic bag in his hands. His hair was wet, and the faint scent of shower gel lingered around him. "Um, I just wanted to say thanks. Y'know, for what you did for me today…and for…Miyako. I don't think I thanked you properly."
"Don't mention it Forrest. Are you guys okay? How's your dad's noggin?" Jamie asked.
"Dad says it hurts like a bitch, like a real bad hangover, but other then that he'll be fine. He's in the hospital right now, the doctors keeping him for the night to run some tests, but he'll be coming home in the morning."
"That's awesome."
"I didn't mean to bother you, but there was another reason that I came here…um," Forrest, who for the first time in his life seemed at a loss for words, picked up the bag and handed it to Jamie. "Dad said you'd probably want this stuff back…I mean, it is yours." Forrest held out the bag and Jamie's arm snaked out of the door to grab it.
"Thanks; I'm sure you want you're gi back too. It's kinda stanky, gross, and ripped to shreds…but I'll pay you back. And, I'd invite you in but I was about to take a shower when you knocked. So I'm experiencing a slight case of nudity right now." Jamie explained apologetically.
"Oh, it's alright…and, oh, dad says that you can stop by whenever you want to. But it's really weird, when I told him how he had saved me and Miyako…he and Paul looked at eachother and got real quiet…then Paul murmured something about this kid named Patrick, and dad mentioned Baek. Anyway, I gotta go." Forrest said before he left.
Baek? What about him? Jamie knew nothing about him, only that he was the founding member of the Blood Talon, had died fighting Toshin, and had been Hwoarang's mentor and father figure. Jamie would have liked to investigate the issue further, but found that he was too exhausted to investigate the matter further.
He investigated the contents of the bag, and pulled out his baggy jeans, longsleeve shirt, beat up Etnie brand sneakers, and yellow, comfy, warm snowboarding jacket.
"I sooo could've used this stuff earlier, but of course, I never have anything when I need it…story of my life." Jamie murmured.
He placed his things on his bed, and rummaged through his bag for an extra towel. He found one, but before Jamie could take it, and himself to the privacy of the bathroom, the door to his room opened wide, and instinctively, Jamie whirled around…in front of Steve…and…Christie…
"So, anyway I…WHOA MAN COVER THAT UP!!!" Steve shouted as he shielded his eyes.
The few seconds passed in pandemonium…Jamie quickly wrapped the towel around his waist, but he wasn't fast enough to stop his roommate and his roommate's girlfriend from getting the "full Jamie experience" he was aware of Christie smiling as happily as a kid on Christmas, and hearing her exclaim; "Oooohhh".
"I'm….sorry…" Jamie said exasperatingly as he dashed into the bathroom and into the shower…face beat red with embarrassment.
The next day was Sunday, the competitors were allowed the day off. Hwoarang, Julia, Jin, Xiao, Christie, and Steve sat in the dining hall with their breakfast.
"…And just like that, we opened the door and…there was Jamie…like totally naked standing right in front of us!" Christie exclaimed using her hands to illustrate her story.
"Knowing Jamie I'm sure he completely flipped a bitch and ran into the bathroom." Hwoarang stated.
"Yeah," Steve sniffed. "He apologized and ran into the bathroom…I mean it was a total accident…guess I should've knocked."
"Don't know why he was so upset," Christie began with a mischievous raised eyebrow. "I mean, he had nothing to apologize for. Damn, that boy looked good…all toned and fit and…" Christie blushed then let out an airy laugh. "I think I need to be alone for a minute…excuse me." She said as she began to walk off.
"Whoa, slow down Miss Kitty." Julia said as she grabbed Christie's wrist and pulled her back down in her seat.
"Can we please stop talking about what happened last night? I mean, it's like you're talking about my brother!" Xiao complained.
"I second that," Jin said, calmly sipping his coffee. "But while we're talking about Jamie, has anyone seen him this morning?"
"Well, I dunno. Lemme see 'ere," Steve glanced at his watch. "Its 10:30 in the morning, he doesn't normally get up until at least 6 at night…man, he always comes home so late, and he always looks like he gets in these 'orrible rough-n-tumbles…I mean last night he smelled bloody awful…li'erally like the Thames river!" Steve said.
"Be nice!" Christie exclaimed.
"I mean, what's up with our li'l Jamie? He's like a super hero or sumthin'?" Steve asked chuckling.
No one returned Steve's laughter…in fact; everyone looked around uncomfortably at eachother.
"Oh you can't be serious…" Steve murmured.
"Well, let's just say there's a lot you guys don't know about him." Hwoarang said.
The next fifteen minutes were devoted to filling Steve and Christie in on what Jamie was, and how he had been out every night patrolling the city and preventing nasties from preying on the civilians of Tokyo, and the competitors of the King of Iron Fist Tournament. They also explained the key demons in this tournament: the vampire Lee Chaolon, and Kazuya/Devil and his demon hordes.
"Well, that explains everything then." Steve marveled.
"It usually does." Julia stated sarcastically, her eyes never glancing up from her laptop.
"Whatcha lookin' at Jules?" Xiaoyu asked curiously.
"It's a disk that Lee left behind when Jamie dusted him. He asked me to look into it yesterday, and it's pretty…well, interesting…" Julia explained.
"What's on it?" Hwoarang asked.
"Well, for one, it's incredibly detailed. I've only managed to hack through about two of the thirty files contained on it. So far, I've unlocked part of Lee's log, and his formula for Combots…apparently, Lee turned himself into a vampire by capturing one of them, and drinking its blood,"
"Eeeewwww." Christie winced in disgust.
"Anyway, he wanted to try and breed a super soldier for his brother, but as we all know now, vamps have a really bad allergic reaction to the sun…so, he looked into finding a way for vampires to move into the sunlight…he found out that by completely draining a Nephilim's blood who's 'hair is the color of the sun' would allow him to move around in the sun."
"So that would explain why my uncle would've drugged Jamie." Jin mused.
"Another thing that is starting to bother me is this reference to something called; 'Project: Ascending Angel…I…I haven't been able to break through the firewalls yet, but given enough time…and lots of coffee, I should be able to break it relatively soon." Julia explained.
"We need to keep at it, but maybe we should find Jamie and let him know what's going on." Xiaoyu suggested.
"Isn't that him over there?" Steve asked.
He pointed to where the lobby was located. Jamie Parker sat in one of the comfortable wing chairs. He wore a huge, baggy, green and black hoodie with thumbholes cut in the fabric. His hair was tied back in a tight bun, and he had his reading glasses on. He also wore a pair of comfortable, black, knee length basketball shorts. A cheap, paperback novel lay in his lap. Jamie was curled up next to a roaring fire sound asleep. He looked so peaceful and so serene that no one had the heart to wake him.
"Let's just leave 'im alone for a bit." Steve suggested.
"Yeah, he's beat." Hwoarang agreed.
"He looks so peaceful." Xiao marveled.
Quietly, the four walked upstairs, leaving Jamie to enjoy his well deserved rest.
"I still can't believe you got me going to the mall!" Hwoarang grumbled.
"Well, what else is there to do on a Sunday?" Christie argued.
"I dunno, it's TOKYO!!!! I mean there's plenty to do!" Hwoarang explained.
"Like what?" Jin asked simply.
"Well…we could…um…shut the fuck up Kazama!" Hwoarang snapped.
"Julia? Are you ready yet?" Xiao sighed.
"Almost!" Julia cried.
She emerged from her room wearing a pair jeans and a fitted hooded sweatshirt.
"Does this make me look fat?" She asked.
"For the last time no! Now let's go!" Christie exclaimed.
The group walked down the hall before Steve groaned.
"Forgot me wallet mates! Wait 'ere!"
Everyone groaned, but decided to follow him into his room. The competitors in the tournament all added personal touches to their rooms…but none looked as strange nor clashed quite like Steve and Jamie's. On Steve's side, he had hung up a huge British flag, liquor bottles, and clothes lay strewn about. On the dresser Steve had an Mp3 player, several necklaces, and empty Jameson bottles. Jamie's side was equally messy. CDs were spilling out of their case, and a beat up old CD player lay on the desk. Clothes spilled out of his suitcases, and several pieces of jewelry lay in disarray on the windowsill; a leather bracelet, several sweatbands, black and red hair ties, etc. On his desk were his laptop, several books, and a gameboy advance. Beneath his desk was a battered and well used skateboard. Above his wall was a bulletin board filled with pictures, a collage, and a poster of Angelina Jolie in her Tomb Raider clothes.
Xiaoyu wasn't a nosy person, but she casually walked over to Jamie's side of his room, sat on his bed, and looked at the pictures. They indeed seemed to chronicle his life. The first row showed him as a toddler in cute corduroy overalls. Jamie was an adorable, chubby baby with big blue eyes, and almost white blond hair. In several pictures, he was being held by a young boy with the same color blond hair in a bowl cut.
This must be his older brother...Justin, I think his name was…
One picture showed a teenage Justin standing with a young Jamie, and two adults in a living room. The woman, looked like a typical, Southern California beach bunny, and the man looked as strong as an ox with closely cropped hair and huge glasses. He wore a Navy suit. Xiao remembered that Jamie had told her that his father was in the Navy.
The next several pictures showed a thirteen year old Jamie, with shaggy blonde hair that just covered his ears. He had braces, and slight acne. He was standing with a group of other kids his age at what looked like a parking lot by a mall. Jamie was skinny as a rail, and wore incredibly baggy skater clothes. Another boy stood with him, wearing all black, and kept his hair in the bowl cut fashion…all the kids in the pic had their skateboards at the ready.
Yet another picture showed the two boys Monopoly in someone's kitchen late at night without their shirts on. Another photo showed Jamie, the boy, and a brown haired, tom boyish, yet pretty looking girl standing in front of a high school. The sign read: Beach Cove High Welcomes the Class of 2004!!! The three new freshmen held new books in their hands. Xiao glanced with amusement at the photos. Another showed Jamie with Tony Hawk, Rob Drydek, his brother, Justin, and Bam Margera…it looked like it was taken at some skating competition…they all had their pads, helments, and boards. One picture made her laugh, it showed Jamie just rolling out of bed, squinty eyes, and grimacing at the camera. He promptly gave the finger to whoever the photographer was.
Xiao stared at Jamie's life through pictures…and sadly, she could tell when Jamie had become the latest Nephilim. She could tell by his facial expressions. True, he smiled, but there was a slight hardness in his eyes, some sort of knowledge, and wisdom behind those icy orbs. It looked as though he had to grow up way too fast.
More pictures showed Jamie teaching Karate classes with an attractive Korean girl with red streaks in her hair. The two seemed friendly…helping out with some of the children…she was in several more of the pictures.
Fortunately, she could also see when he had come to terms with what he was, and although it was difficult, manage to juggle a social life with his Nephilim responsibilities. He would smile like he used to, but he looked more adult, and mature. The boy and the girl in the pictures must have been the friends who helped him face the forces of darkness. Xiao wanted to meet them one day…one day she wanted to see the gorgeous beaches and swaying palm trees of Jamie's hometown. Her eyes settled on two photographs…one was of Jamie sitting in a pair of board shorts on the beach, leaning against a well used surfboard. It looked like it was taken recently. His brother Justin sat with him. He wore a baggy, black t-shirt, a pair of raggedy, knee length board shorts, and a backwards trucker hat. Both brothers were smiling, and had their arms around eachother.
Justin looked like an older version of Jamie; he had a waif looking frame (typical build of any pro skater) narrow green eyes to contrast Jamie's big blue ones, a blonde patch of facial hair on his chin, and shaggy hair of the same color.
The second picture showed the two brothers in front of what appeared to be their house. It showed Jamie trying to do a trick on his board, and Justin glancing up to watch with a proud look on his face. Justin only meant to look up discreetly, and then go back to fixing his board which lay on his lap…but the camera caught the moment. Jamie's friends sat on the lawn in the middle of tossing a football around. The Korean girl was chatting with the tom boy girl.
"Earth to Ling!" Hwoarang called.
Christie snapped her fingers in front of her face.
"What?!" She asked breathlessly.
"You were out of it for awhile Ling. You were staring at Jamie's pictures." Jin stated.
"Yeah, you were out for a good five minutes. What's so interestin' 'bout 'em?" Steve asked.
"Nothing…I was just looking at them…and I had an idea…" Xiao began.
"Really? What?" Julia asked.
"Well, y'know how he's saved our lives and stuff? Well, I thought it might be nice to repay him. I mean…I can tell he's kinda homesick he won't admit it but he is… and I thought that maybe we could bring someone from his hometown here….y'know, so he won't get too lonely."
"That's a really good idea Xiao. I mean, in our contracts it says that we can fly anyone we want out here!" Hwoarang exclaimed.
Everyone looked at him like he had two heads.
"What? Oh c'mon…on occasion there's more to me then being the tough, lovable, charmingly bad ass hottie! Don't tell me you people never read the fine print?"
"It can be a surprise for Jamie! How fun!" Christie exclaimed, clapping her hands.
"But who would we invite?" Jin asked.
"Yeah, I mean, Jamie's got a lot of friends." Julia continued.
At that moment, as if in answer to her question, Jamie's cellphone began to ring. Everyone looked at Xiao, afterall, she thought of the idea, she should pick up the phone. The caller I.D. on the front of the phone read: Justin calling.
It was as if it was a sign from God who to invite…quickly, Xiao answered the phone on the third ring.
"Hello?" She asked into the receiver.
Author's Note: So, whattya think? A little well placed humor never hurt anyone…okay, but don't worry, I'll be back with the decapitation and demon slaughter next chappie! This isn't gonna be some mushy sensitive story!!! Anyway, Jamie won't hear about his special surprise until a couple chappies down the road!! Shhh don't spoil it for him!!!...I've been in the coffee again, I'm sorry…Oh, and in case you're curious, Jamie, Justin, and the friends in the pics are all my OC's (Original Characters…I know you probably knew what that meant, but I'm an idiot, and didn't get it until like, two days ago) if you're interested, I'll email an original Jamie fic to you…but anyway, hope you liked the chappie…read and review por favor!!! I'm starved for attention!!! I NEED REVIEWS TO LIVE!!!!!!!!! Anyway, it was so nice to have this little visit with y'all…please click the little purple box to the lower left of the page and write me a lil' sumin sumin…