Chapter 3: Streets
Juri raised her voice as she turned to face Rashid, regardless of who may have heard her. "You just don't get it, do ya? Why don't you let it go, huh loser?" She had bitter ice in her tone that bit Rashid's heart. "I don't want anything to do with ya. Never have, never will. So beat it!"
"Juri-!" Rashid tried to speak up, but he was interrupted by a furious growl from Juri.
The woman clenched her jaw and stepped closer to Rashid. She kicked him in the center of his chest with such force that he fell on his rear several feet away. "This is why your friend died. You're pathetic and can't let go when someone takes pity on you. You're just a little cryin' dog lookin' for shelter. Well guess what, puppy? I ain't got anymore pity for you. You're gonna live the rest of your life hooked on the past, because you're not man enough to move on."
As Juri spoke, Rashid's eyes left her. He looked at the concrete instead of her for the endurance of her rant. His face was concealed from her the entire time.
"Got it? Good. Now piss off. I was havin' a good night until I saw your face." Juri turned away. "If I ever see you again, I'll break your legs. Later, loser."
She left him there and didn't look back. She walked on and on into the city with her focus solely ahead and raw emotion radiating out of her heart. The burning sensation and quickened heartrate wasn't typical for someone like her. She hadn't felt this way in years—years before Bison.
By the time Juri got back to her hotel, she felt the sensation fading off. As it eased, a new fluttery sensation built in her stomach. Her breathing stabilized, but she felt drained. She collapsed on top of her hotel bed and stared up at the ceiling in the dark for several minutes. The situation with Rashid played in her head over, and over again. The words she said started to feel like pins and needles on her heart, but Rashid's sinking expression was more akin to a katana to her gut. Remorse was the last thing she expected to feel.
Her forearm draped across her forehead and her other arm draped over her stomach. She did what was right, didn't she? She wasn't emotionally available, especially for someone like Rashid. It was for his own good to keep him away from her. He had a lot of growing left to do, for a grown man. He hadn't been the type of person who needed someone like her in his life. He was a wife and kids type of guy, wasn't he? Juri asked herself these things as she eventually shut her eyes to try and drown the thoughts.
She knew she wasn't the type to be a wife or mother. She didn't deserve that. That just made easy targets for everyone against her. At least, that was what her gut was telling her as the emotional katana twisted inside of it.
She eventually resorted to her cellphone for comfort. She scrolled through videos to watch, but nothing kept her attention. As she rolled over onto her side, the dark theme of the video service was replaced with the brighter, less-used social media app. She winced when it lit up, but went about her search bar to look for something. By the time she typed a single letter, Rashid's profile was In her recent searches.
He'd never know that.
She tapped it and checked in on him. He hadn't updated tonight, but she scrolled through to see what he'd been up to since she last checked in.
"The guy's butler looks like an absolute dork." Juri grumbled as she passed up photos and various posts. She watched a few of Rashi'd videos – one in which showed him shaking hands with the weirdo 'President of the World', G. Though, that got her curious.
With the glow of the phone lighting her face, Juri went on a dive through Rashid's photographs. As time flew, she eventually found photos of him and his lost friend.
The fluttering and burning returned to her stomach. She let out a long, frustrated groan as she rolled over onto her back. Once again, she stared at her ceiling, looking into the endless void. Rashid risked his life for someone he loved, even if they never knew that was how he truly felt. He took a risk coming after her, taking a chance that didn't pay off. He was brave, she had to give him that.
She eventually rolled over and buried her face in her pillow while kicking her feet on the bed. It took about an hour, but Juri and sleep became good friends after her initial tantrum.
The next morning while she was packing her things up, she grabbed her phone as the last bit of her belongings. Rashid's photo with his friend was still on the screen. "Augh, go away already." Juris aid as she flicked her thumb across the screen a few times to get rid of the –
-Juri accidentally clicked 'Follow'.
Her eyes widened. She was on her private account!
Now Rashid was going to get an alert he was being followed by some random lurker! "Oh no, no, no, no!" She dropped her bags and quickly tried to deactivate her account – but 'LittleLune69' got an alert. She had been followed back by Rashid's account. She had no avatar, no banner, just random memes and posts for her own amusement.
It was too late to back out now. Maybe he thought she was a fan? If she unfollowed him, that'd make her suspicious. She'd have to block him, then it would be a dead giveaway.
Juri had a miniature panic attack as she sat on her bed deciding what to do next. So – she chose to do nothing. Just let it remain anonymous. She had a plane to catch.
It took several hours, but eventually Juri's plane landed back home in South Korea. Her ride was uneventful, even though she tormented the woman sitting beside her with her constant pestering for fun. When she left the plane she saw several families reunited. Mothers, daughters, fathers, and sons. People were happy to see one another. As she stood in place, people came and went in all directions around her. She saw a happy couple united with a kiss and excited words. She saw a child seeing her father return from a trip abroad. All of these people had someone.
No one was there to greet her. Her parents were long gone, killed by Shadaloo.
Just like Rashid's friend.
She lowered her head and pulled her travel bag onto her shoulder. She had her usual route when she was back home. She always visited the gravestones of her parents when she came back around. It was too bad there were no bodies left to bury, just a rock to remind her of their past life.
Juri stood at the entrance of the graveyard and waited for other families to depart visiting the lost. She kept her head down and didn't make eye contact with anyone for sake of her anonymity. When the coast was clear, she wandered through the graveyard until she found her parents headstones side-by-side.
She crouched near them and brushed her fingers along the cold stone. "No flowers, again. Yeah, I'll get around to that sometime. Eventually." She said, as she had never once laid flowers before their graves. Pain gripped her heart and soul as she recalled the torment her parents underwent to protect her when Shadaloo captured them. She had been all alone since they departed. All of that pain made her into the monster she was today.
It wasn't all bad, was it?
"What's new with me?" Juri asked, as if her parents were talking to her. "No kids. Don't think that's in the stars for little old me, unfortunately. Haven't met the right girl, guy, or whatever. Doubt that'll happen, right? I'm a lot to handle. Just like you two always said. I still remember that boy that called me ugly because I didn't wanna go to a dance. Wonder if his leg healed up correctly after I broke it?"
Juri laughed quietly at the memory. "Dad, you always said to aim for the leg right? Hit the target hard as I could. Mom, you always said hard work would get me what I deserved. I got revenge for you two. Kinda, at least. If you could see me now, I bet you'd be pretty damn proud of me. I'm the most feared woman in the world." She laughed again – but the laughter began to crack after a few seconds. "I'm untouchable. On top of the world. Bison is gone and Seth isn't an issue anymore. I can just…live. I can break anybody that gets in my way. So they'll never forget that I…"
Her voice cracked again.
She swallowed her saliva and shut her eyes tight. She fought a tingling sensation at the corner of her eyes and her lips pursed tight.
"That I'm all alone. I'm here, without you two. I'm here with no one to love me, cause I'm a damn loser." She broke entirely. She leaned forward on her hands and knees with her eyes clenched shut. I'm just like…a lost puppy, aren't I? Lookin' for shelter…" Juri's fingers curled in the dirt. She sniffled as the tears soaked her cheeks. Despite her best efforts, she could not stop the tears from falling. "I shouldn't have said that to him. I didn't even give him a chance to say what he had to say, after all this time. Why do I push everyone away? What am I afraid of…?"
She'd fought her own heart so long that she hadn't realized how much damage she could do. She thought she needed something else, someone else – but nothing made her feel anything. Nothing like the spark she felt that one stormy night. The man poured his heart out to a brick wall, and that wall did not need to be there.
Juri punched the dirt and pushed herself to stand up. She dried her eyes on her forearm and left the gravesite. "It's nothing, never mind. Sleep easy."
Two years passed…and time flew by Juri quick. Seasons came and went. Tournaments began and ended. She hadn't seen Rashid in person since their last meeting. Though she quietly kept up with him on social media every few months, she slowly stopped checking for longer spans of time.
Another tournament qualifier had ended. This time, Juri was going to participate in Metro City. After the qualifier, all of the winners headed back home or to their hotels, but Juri's Uber was unfortunately late. Perhaps they were overbooked because of so many fighters, but she waited out on a bench near the arena.
Rain fell from the heavens like silent angelic tears and created a scent that could only be described as tranquil. It soothed the Feng Shui Engine-powered beast in her to the point she simply sat in the sheltered area and watched the rain fall. Her earbuds were in to drown out the sound of various people as they passed her by.
The rain was like music to her, and the music in her ears took her back to better times.
"Porcelain, are you wasting away in your skin?" Juri sang quietly while watching the rain. She'd listened to this song at least once a week going on four years now. She was stagnant; nothing in her life had changed since the fall of Shadaloo. She hadn't moved an inch, even though she'd fought all over the world. "Are you missing the love of your kin? Drifting, and floating, and fading away." She continued to sing as the images of her parents floated through her mind. The better memories of them while they were still alive.
The words hit her like a right cross to the heart. The threads holding her soul in place ached with every haunting word that plucked away at them delicately.
She leaned back on the bench and crossed her ankles one over the other. Her mind drifted with the music, her soul floated to the soft lyrics, and all of reality slowly faded away.
"Ya damn bastard." Juri mumbled as she placed her hand on her forehead. "I'll never forgive you for this stupid song."
It was just then she saw someone approaching the bench, nose-deep in his phone. They seemed to be having a chat with someone, and it likely wasn't going his way. Then she realized just who it was.
Rashid sighed as he ended his call. "The Uber services in this area are terrible. Everyone has everyone booked." He said, mostly to himself. "Say, friend, do you happen to know if the bus is running-?" Once he looked at Juri, he was frozen in place. "Sorry, I'll be on my way."
"Hold it." Juri said with annoyance riding her tone. "You and I need to talk, Rashid."
"I don't think we do." He said politely. "I think we've had enough words for this lifetime, Miss Han."
Juri rocked forward on the bench and pushed herself to stand. "I won't beat around the bush, Rashid. I'm sorry." She said with her eyes shut. "Those things I said a few years ago have been botherin' me since the second I turned away from you, alright? It was cruel for no damn reason, especially since we both lost people to Bison and his crew. I guess, I don't know, I guess I don't expect you to forgive me, but it makes me feel a hell of a lot better to say it to your face before we part ways forever."
Rashid was stunned. He shielded himself from the rain with his forearm until he walked into the sheltered area where the bench was. "Are you sure you're Juri? I…honestly don't even recall what you said that night. Well, I remember how I felt. I suppose that is in a way more important."
"Yeah," Juri sighed, "I remember how I felt too. How I felt before all of that."
"That night in the tent." Rashid said with a small smile. "Look, Juri. I know I blew my chance. You and I are like oil and water, but maybe…just maybe we can try to be friends? Er—I mean, naturally I accept your apology!" He nervously laughed and rubbed the back of his head. "I don't know how many Juri Han apologies are allotted per lifetime, so I will take mine with grace."
"Dude, just shut up." Juri groaned. "Thanks, though. Yeah…I guess we can be friends." She pursed her lips together while watching him. "I'm waitin' on my ride. Wanna share?"
"I'd be honored." Rashid bowed before her. "I honestly…only recently forgave you, myself. What happened between us really hurt, I must admit. I had high hopes for what the two of us could have been, if not friends."
Juri scoffed as she sat on the bench again. "Probably wanted to bang in that tent, ya freakin' pervert."
"What?! Miss Han-!" Rashid protested as he sat next to her.
Juri burst out laughing as she crossed her legs. "You should see your face! You're so worried someone's gonna find out you're a closet freak!"
"I am not…!" Rashid looked around to make sure no one caught Juri spreading lies. "It was just a nice moment is all. Can we – can we not dwell on the past and simply look forward? Like, what are you listening to, right now?"
"Oh, this…?" She popped one of her earbuds out and offered it to Rashid. "My ears are clean, don't give me a weird look. I'm actually listenin' to uh…our favorite song."
Once Rashid heard the music, his smile brightened. He watched her face for a moment, and she did the same in kind. Soon, they faced forward and watched the Metro City streets as rain fell to the concrete. With the song on a loop, Juri eventually found herself leaning her head on Rashid's shoulder.
His arm very delicately draped around her in return. Juri looked up at him with a partial smile once she was under his arm.
Rashid spoke after enjoying the song in silence one go-round. "Even if we have nothing else in common, at least we'll always speak a similar music language."
"Still a death metal kinda girl." Juri said with a chuckle. She set her head on his shoulder. The two continued to wait for what the future held…all while lacing fingers and holding each other's hands.
