Update, 12/18/08: Name changes for minor OCs. See Chapter 2's Author Note.

Update, 6/19/08: More grammar tweaking and typo hunting.

Warning: Adult situations. Kinda like in the movies. Ha.

Disclaimer: The Tekken characters are not mine! Which means Hwoarang does not belong to me.

A Doctor's Visit and Take-Out

"You're kidding, right?"

Faith looked up at the so called 'hospital' with incredulity. "It's just an apartment complex. This isn't a hospital. Is this your guys idea of a joke? Because if it is, you both completely fail at humor."

Hwoarang laughed softly and walked into the building with his cargo, leaving Scar and the others to wait outside. "Looks can be deceiving. Who would have thought a woman sitting so forlornly in an alley reading a book could actually put up a fight?"

"You think I fight well?"

"Don't let it go to your head. I can still kick your ass, woman."

"It's not right to hit a lady. And why do you keep calling me 'woman'?! I told you my name so why don't you use it?"

Hwoarang rolled his eyes as he started to climb the stairs, taking them two by two with a slight spring. Faith bounced with each jog-like step upward, her teeth grinding in an effort to refrain from retaliating against her semi-captor.

Agitated, she bit out, "Why aren't we taking the elevator? And why did you roll your eyes when I mentioned not hitting ladies? What? You think I'm not a lady?"

"Full of questions aren't you? If you really want to know why we're not going on the elevator, take it yourself. You should get stuck somewhere between the 3rd and 4th floors. And no lady can curse so nastily for so long. So no, I don't think you are, although I'm sure some bums might find you to be quite refined."

"That's real funny, flame head. Real funny. How would I get out? You'd probably ditch me and go have a good laugh with your friends. But I guess you are right about me not being a lady..."

This admission made the thug halt mid-step up the stairs.

"I'm right? Did you just say I was right?"

"Don't let it go to your head."

Faith shook her head and refused to say anything else. They continued up to the third floor in silence, neither of them knowing what else to say to a complete stranger. Hwoarang stopped in front of a grimy looking door, the numbers having fallen off long ago, any traces of their existence covered in dirt or peeling paint, and rapped on it with his knuckles.

"There's no way in hell I'm going to go in there for medical help," Faith said, squirming to be let down.

Complying silently, Hwoarang lowered her legs to the floor, allowing the injured woman time to catch her balance before letting go entirely. At the same moment she reached out to lean on the wall for support, Faith saw a large gray rat race across the floor past their feet.

"Nevermind. Pick me up! Pick me up!"

"You wanted down."

"I know that! But you didn't tell me there were going to be Godzilla rats!"

Before the budding argument could progress any further, the door rattled and opened a crack. An elder man's voice issued from the crack, matching the twinkling eye that stared out at them, "Who is it?".

"It's Hwoarang, Gramps. I've got someone here who needs some medical attention. And I think you'll like her," Hwoarang added with a wink.

"Hwoarang! Come in, boy! Come in! Why didn't you say it was you at the door? I would have let you in immediately!"

The crack in the door closed and metal clinking could be heard. This time the door opened wide, revealing an ancient man, dressed in a clean white shirt and looking like a human raisin.

"Oh.... Hwoarang.... Who is your lovely lady friend?" the old man asked, a gleam in his eye.

"Her? She's just someone I picked up off the street...."

Faith hit him with a half-balled fist, glaring daggers.

"What? You are."

"That doesn't mean you have to make me sound like a hooker!"

The aged man chuckled at the two younger people in his doorway, still eyeing Faith with interest.

"Come in, you two. Now, what seems to be the..... problem." He trailed off, watching the woman in front of him limp painfully into his home, too stubborn to ask Hwoarang for help after the thug's previous comment.

"I think there's something wrong with her right leg, Gramps," Hwoarang whispered on his way past the old man.

Faith stood in amazement at the room she was in. It was nothing like what the deteriorating outside indicated it would look like. Instead, it was impeccably clean and well organized, just like a real doctor's office.

"This is where we come when we need a doctor. Gramps gets paid well and we don't have to mess with the hospital and all their useless charges," Hwoarang explained, seeing the look on Faith's face.

"Exactly right. And boy is business good," Gramps interrupted, "More often than not its broken bones or knife wounds. But that's beside the point. I have a side room I can examine you in, missy. So if you'll follow me..."

Faith looked uncertainly at Hwoarang, who just smiled mischievously at her. She didn't trust that look the old man had gotten when he said 'examine you', and she certainly didn't trust the expression of the younger man. Looking at Hwoarang suspiciously she followed the old doctor, using the wall for support.

Hwoarang went to sit down in one of the chairs, relaxing while he waited for the inevitable. Sure enough, within 5 minutes he could hear shouting from the small side room he had been to many times. He stood when he heard a door open and tried not to laugh as Faith came storming out, looking comical as she hobbled angrily towards the door.

"You lecherous old man! Pervert! How dare you! I am not going to undress and put that hospital... thing!... on, just for a examination of my leg! You shouldn't be in the medical profession! You crazy old coot!..." Yet again she trailed into using English curses, each one worse than the last.

"Quite a mouth for such a young lady...." the old man whispered to Hwoarang, sounding mildly impressed.

"Yeah. But she's no delicate flower," Hwoarang replied, walking quickly to stop the agitated woman from leaving. "You don't have to undress completely, woman. Gramps is an old man and needs every chance to see a female body before he dies. He's a horny old bastard, but can you blame him? Probably can't get it up much anymore, so you gotta give him a break."

It was all Faith could do not to burst out laughing. The contradiction between his matter of fact tone and laughing eyes gave Hwoarang away. Shaking her head at him, Faith turned away from the door and limped back toward the side room, glaring at the elderly doctor on her way.

"You try anything funny and I'll...."

"I am a professional young lady. Despite the location of my practice, I am a qualified medical practitioner. My previous comment was merely a joke. One you took a bit too personal, I might add. Now, since you almost destroyed my side room, you'll just have to be examined here. Take off your pants and go sit in one of the chairs."

"Excuse me?" Faith scoffed, looking at the doctor as if he had grown another head. "I'm not going to strip in your...." she gestured helplessly, "....living room! Especially not with him in here!" This time she jabbed an outraged finger in Hwoarang's direction. He simply stood leaning against the threshold, a small smirk on his face.

"Either strip or get out! I have no time for games, young lady!" The doctor said, puffing up more than he already was from preaching about her rudeness.

Biting her lip in frustration, Faith changed the direction of her steps towards a nearby chair. Her leg really was throbbing like a bitch and she couldn't afford an actual hospital.

"You two get some kind of sick pleasure from this don't you?" she asked, sitting down on the soft seat. "At least it's cushioned..." With a sigh she undid the button to her jeans and paused. "You don't have to watch! This is embarrassing enough to do without an audience!"

Both men turned around, exchanging knowing glances. Women could be so sensitive about undressing. They waited, listening to the soft rustle of denim behind them. Hearing a resigned sigh, they turned around in time to see Faith lowering herself to the chair.

"Oh my, child....." Gramps gasped, seeing the angry bruise that covered the outside of her right thigh and hip.

Hwoarang winced inwardly, feeling a twinge of guilt at knowing he was the cause of her injury. At the same time though, he felt a weird sort of pride in seeing evidence of his own strength.

'Looks like it wasn't just her back she landed on....' he thought, the guilt twinge blossoming and muffling the pride.

"Well, I hope it just looks worse than it really is," the doctor commented, shuffling over to Faith and bending down slowly to prod at the purplish-blue mark. "This really does look awful.... Stand up child, lets see how you walk."

"As long as you quit poking me, geezer. Bruise prodding is not the most pleasant feeling..."

Gramps chuckled, helping her along and noting what seemed to pain her the most, commenting, "No. The most pleasant feeling is with a lover and..."

"Whoa there, Gramps! No need to go into detail!" Hwoarang said, wincing at the thought of the old man ever getting it on. "Please, do not go into detail. And besides, I'm sure Faith has her own feelings on that subject without your help. I know I do, so don't ruin them with your stories."

Instead of the insult he expected, Faith just laughed softly as the doctor led her back to the chair and said, "I've never had much time in my life for sex, much less love."

Sensing his sharp-tongued young friend would make a biting remark about the validity of his current patients statement, Gramps quickly said, "There's a lot of bruising and I believe you sprained something when you tried to walk by yourself. From the looks of it your femur is also bruised, and bruises on the bone can be extremely painful. I'd recommend resting for a couple of months and giving it time to heal."

"Months?! I can't rest for a couple of months."

"What do you mean?"

This time it was Hwoarang who spoke up, hearing the slight bitterness hidden under Faith's distant tone as she pulled her jeans back on carefully.

"Why do you think I was sitting in a dirty alley reading by myself? I don't have a home to heal in here in Korea, and the belongings I did have were stolen yesterday. But I'm sure you don't want to hear my sob story, so I'll thank you and be on my way."

She stood, preparing to leave, when a hand on her shoulder pushed her back down to the chair. Looking up, she came face to face with Hwoarang, who had leaned in close. She noticed he had the tiniest of yellow flecks in his almond eyes.

"The doctor said you need to rest. So you're gonna rest. What Gramps says, goes."

Faith was startled by his suddenly aggressive manner, although she hid it well. He had been completely at ease until she had said that.

Deciding to take the defensive, she snapped back, "What do you care? I'm just someone you picked up off the street."

"Don't make this difficult, woman. Gramps says you need to rest and you're gonna rest. Even if I have to tie you up in my apartment to keep you from leaving. So are you going to come willingly or am I gonna have to bring out the rope?"

"I'd like to see you try! You couldn't keep me down by simply tying me up in your apartment! Now I'm going to leave and you can't stop me!... Let me go, damnit! Put me down! This isn't funny!"

Gramps watched in amusement as Hwoarang slung the irate woman over his right shoulder and headed for the door. He laughed as he watched the captive woman reach her hands down her tormentors back and grab the elastic band to his boxers, yanking up hard.

"Damnit, woman! That fucking hurt! Knock it off!"

"Not until you let me go!" Faith said, still pulling up on his underwear.

Reaching up with his free hand, Hwoarang slapped her butt and laughed. "If you want to play that game, I'll play too."

He continued to spank her until she released his boxers.

"Fine.... But LET ME GO!" Faith yelled, starting to pound on his back with her fists instead. "I hate you, you know that?! Let me go you cocky bastard!"

Stepping in, Gramps said, "Careful now. Don't aggravate that leg too much, or it'll only get worse. Here, Hwoarang, let me help you...." With one quick motion the doctor grabbed the seat of Hwoarang's jeans and pulled down with enough force to fix the wedgie problem.

"There you are! Now you two are good to go, so get out of my home!" the old man told them good-naturedly.

"See ya, Gramps," Hwoarang bid the man farewell as the door closed behind them. "Now are you going to cooperate, woman?"

"Hell no! Let me down!" she said, starting to struggle again. "Ugh. I think all the blood's rushing to my head..." she added, pushing against his back to lever herself up.

"This should help..." Hwoarang smirked, starting to jump down the stairs.

Faith flopped back down, jarred from her slightly upright position. She closed her eyes, pressing her face against his back and waiting to plummet down the stairs when he tripped. It was then that she noticed they were no longer bouncing down the stairs, and that Hwoarang was opening the door leading outside to his gang.

"Now will you let me go?" she asked starting to fight against the strong arm that pinned her to him.

"No. You're my new trophy," he said, receiving the expected reaction.

"I AM NOT YOUR TROPHY! LET ME GO, YOU FILTHY BASTARD!"

She started to pound on his back again, the gang watching in not-so-silent amusement as their leader walked past them in the direction of his apartment. His set course meant passing the rest of the gang with the woman screaming English curses. People on the street were already giving them weird looks; men carrying screaming foreign women weren't seen everyday.

"Would you shut up? Everyone's staring at us."

"Let them stare! I'll quit screaming when you put me down, you dirty bastard!"

Hwoarang sighed, trying to close out the screeching and walking faster. By the time he reached the alley where the bikes were kept, the rest of the gang had come out to see what was going on. He nodded at them, continuing on towards his apartment. When he made eye contact with Hyun-Ok, he smiled at her, and tried not to laugh at the look of sheer loathing she was giving his reluctant passenger. Her fury increased when he mouthed the words 'keep the money' and kept walking.

Once again, Scar stood to the side, observing everything.

'He's not improving her mood,' he thought, looking at a practically steaming Hyun-Ok. 'And he's not making it any easier on Faith. But that woman can hold her own in a fight. Hyun shouldn't be too much of a problem.'

Cautious thoughts were pushed aside as the second-in-command couldn't resist a smile as he watched an indignant Faith sigh, tired of screaming, and hold her chin in her hands, elbows resting against Hwoarang's back and bouncing with every step he took. The smirk Hwoarang had on his face from the relief of no screaming in his ear was equally amusing.

'Those two are something else...' He watched as they got farther away from the gang, leaving many of them confused as to why he had a strange woman slung over his shoulder.

Hwoarang was relieved to finally reach his apartment, reaching into his pocket for the key.

"This is where you live?"

He raised an eyebrow at the tone of her voice. It was neither appraising nor condescending. It was simply a mild question, a drastic change from the accusing interrogations she'd already pointed his way. And her speaking voice was pleasant when devoid of screeching or cynicism.

Shrugging, he opened the door and stepped into his small living room. It was a relief to be out of the public for awhile. He went to his slightly tattered couch and gently set his cargo down on one end, surprising both her and himself. He sat on the other end and they sat there in silence, neither of them knowing what to say. She definitely wasn't the first woman he'd brought back to his place, but he'd never been in a situation where the interaction was required to be more conversational than physical.

The red head decided to observe her instead of speaking, and watched as she looked around the room. It surprised him that she didn't demand to leave in disgust after seeing his bachelor pad. Instead, her assessment of her surroundings seemed more curious than judgmental. Her sudden switch to mildness was an almost scary change from the spitfire of only moments before.

Sensing watching eyes, Faith used her peripheral vision and saw Hwoarang watching her with what seemed to be both amusement and curiosity. She turned to face him fully, carefully shifting her leg.

"What? Why are you looking at me like that?"

Hwoarang just smirked again, looking at the full length of her stretched out from his couch, weight carefully settled on her left hip.

'I wonder if what she said is the truth. That she had never had enough time in her life for....' He shook his head. 'It's impossible that a woman like her is a virgin. There's no way in hell.'

But he reconsidered when he saw her shift uncomfortably under his roving gaze, which had wandered lower than her face.

'Maybe...'

It was odd for him to see any woman not feel appreciated by his attention. He was used to being chased after and flirted with, especially when it was Hyun-Ok doing the chasing. The woman craved attention, which he wasn't always willing to give.

This woman was different, though. Instead of feeling proud he was watching her, she was uncomfortable and embarrassed by his probing look. Her innocent reaction to him clashed with the sharp tongue and confidence he knew was there.

Turning to stare at the television against the wall opposite of them, he clicked it on and tried to focus on the slightly fuzzy picture. Sinking down deeper into the couch in a lazy sprawl, he could feel her eyes on his skin as she still watched him, waiting for a reply. The intensity of her gazed raised goosebumps along his neck.

"Would you please stop," he growled, still staring at the television.

"Oh... Sorry..." Faith turned away, slightly embarrassed to be caught staring.

She was about to apologize, unsure of what else to say, when Hwoarang spoke up first.

"Are you hungry? Don't look at me like that. It was just a question."

Faith had turned back quickly, a surprised look on her face.

"You're going to feed me? It would be easier on you if you just let me leave. I don't want to impose and you have no obligation to me."

"I just asked if you were hungry, I never said I'd get you something to eat." He watched her confusion with amusement for a moment before continuing. "I'll take that as a 'yes' anyway. And I am obligated, since I injured you and you have no place to go. Can't be leaving you on my streets to make trouble now, can I?"

She opened her mouth to retort, but he stood up and walked to the phone, turning his back on her. Shaking her head, she stretched out on the couch and rested her head on the arm. Feeling very tired from the stress of the day, she closed her eyes, planning on resting for a short while. The last thing she registered before drifting to sleep was the thought that she was going to sleep in a complete strangers house, on a complete strangers couch, with no one back home to worry about her except a fragile little girl.

"Yeah, that's all. Thanks."

Hwoarang pressed the off button on the phone and set it on the stand, turning to tell the foulmouth that she was going to get to eat. He closed his mouth, the words dying before they formed as he saw her already dead to the world. Lips parted and breathing slow, she twitched occasionally in her sleep, reminding him of a sleeping cat. Shaking his head, he went to the bedroom and took the blanket from his bed, returning to where she slept and covering her with it.

'She sure can fall asleep quickly,' he thought. 'I was only on the phone for two minutes. I'll let her sleep until the food gets here, and then I'm waking her ass up... She doesn't look so strong when she sleeps...'

His thoughts trailed off as he sat in a chair facing the couch, with nothing better to do than watch his resting 'guest'. He'd seen many women sleep, and it had never really interested him. Sleeping was sleeping. There was nothing else to it. Added to the fact that he never really cared to look at the women he spent the night with after he'd had his fun, Hwoarang hadn't really cared enough to observe that particular state of rest. With nothing else to do but wait for food and watch crappy cable though, he didn't have quality alternatives.

'She's too trusting. I could be doing anything to her right now, and all because she relaxed her defenses. Stupid woman.'

He shook his head, running his fingers through the short red strands of hair that were just beginning to fall across his forehead, thinking.

'The food won't be here for awhile. I should find something to do. It's still pretty early...' Turning to look up at the clock above the television he saw that it was 3:32 pm. 'How did it get so late? Guess I should figure out what I'm going to do with her. She won't sleep in the bed with me, no question about that, so she can just sleep on the couch. She also said she didn't have any belongings, so that's not a problem. That was simple enough. Now it's just a matter of making sure she doesn't creep off into the streets...'

The thought of the feisty woman defenseless on the streets bothered him. It had been how he had seen her before the fight, quietly reading and obviously a foreigner, that made her seem defenseless, when she really wasn't. Now that she was injured it wouldn't be a facade, and she would be an easy target for the less than friendly street-dwellers.

With that thought he got up and started to give the house a minimal cleaning, piling up the dishes in the sink, shoving everything to one side, and piling the clothes into one big heap. By the time he was done, there was a knock on the door.

'About fucking time,' he thought, looking at the clock again. 'Four twelve? This meal should be free...'

Opening the door, Hwoarang saw a nervous looking teenage boy standing there and fidgeting. The boy jumped a bit when he opened the door and stuttered out an apology.

"S-Sorry for the d-delay. W-We've b-been really b-busy lately..."

"It's alright right kid. You don't have to get all nervous. Here's your money."

The boy looked relieved as he took the money and handed Hwoarang the food.

"Thank you, sir. Have a nice day," he said, all traces of nervousness gone as he rushed off to get to his next delivery.

Shaking his head and closing the door, Hwoarang set the take-out boxes on the kitchen table, smirking as he thought of ways to wake the sleeping woman on his couch. Thinking back on the ideas, he decided against all of them. A hit to the groin wasn't worth the pleasure of seeing her jump.

"Wake up, woman. The food's here."

Shaking her by the shoulder, the only response he got for his efforts was a mumbled go away and she rolled over, turning her back to him.

"You asked for it, woman....."

Ripping the blanket away, he began to tickle her ribs mercilessly. With a sleepy cry of surprise she tried to twist away, aimlessly trying to slap him away.

"Rise and shine, Sleeping Beauty! Your Prince has come to wake you!"

"You better not kiss me you sick fucker! Aaah! Quit tickling me! I'm up, I'm up!"

Instead of stopping as she requested, Hwoarang pressed even harder between her ribs, eliciting squeals of either laughter or rage, he couldn't tell which at the pitch it was in, from his half-awake guest.

His hand was suddenly knocked out from under him with an on-target sweep of her arm, sending him sprawling across her chest. The movement placed his nose almost touching hers.

Both froze immediately. Hwoarang could see a near panic in her eyes.

He thought again about what she had said in the doctor's home, and realized she was telling the truth. One look in her widened eyes told him all he needed to know.

"Awake now?" he asked, pushing himself up and reinstating their personal bubble space.

"Yeah...." She rubbed at her thigh. The frenzy of his sudden attack had made her leg start hurting again, and their close encounter left her feeling off balance. Standing up, she limped her way the short distance from the couch to the kitchen and was surprised to see Hwoarang had pulled out a chair for her, so she wouldn't have to.

Through a mouthful of burger the redhead said, "I got American food. Didn't know if you liked Korean food or not, so I got some food from your 'homeland'. The old standby, burger and fries. Although the one's in the U.S. are a lot greasier..."

"You've been to the U.S.?.... And how the hell did you know I was American?" Faith asked, adjusting herself in the seat and nibbling at a fry.

"Your accent, and yeah, a few times. The Tekken tournament goes everywhere you know. You get to travel around the world if you participate. Those Mishima bastards can afford it though..... What's the matter? You gonna eat or what?"

He looked at her untouched burger and barely touched fries before looking at her. She was shaking her head.

"I'm sorry. I was too preoccupied watching the half chewed cow rolling around your mouth. You have terrible table manners."

So saying, she bit into her burger, and looked at him, chewing with her mouth closed and still shaking her head.

"Well excuse me, Miss High and Mighty. Not everyone has had a prissy upbringing."

"I know. I wonder what that's like anyway. Having a proper family... Be kinda strange...."

They both went quiet, Faith wondering why she would be so honest within a few hours of knowing him, and Hwoarang thinking about his own childhood. They ate in silence until both were done. Hwoarang wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, wiping that on the leg of his jeans, while Faith watched with a slightly disgusted face and used her napkin.

"I wouldn't have minded Korean food."

Hwoarang shrugged. "I didn't know so I thought it would be okay to just order burgers. No one hates burgers..... I'm going back to the living room. These chairs hurt my ass."

He offered a hand to help her up, wiping them on his pants when he saw the look she gave him. Faith took it, trying to suppress a smile at his sudden 'gentlemanly' behavior. He helped her to the couch before settling himself across from her, turning the chair so they were facing one another.

They talked for a few hours about nothing important, most of it awkward silence and half attempted topic starters. Hwoarang did most of the talking, as Faith seemed more content to just listen and he hated those weird silences. He told her about his gang and it's members, about his bike, and about what it was like living on the streets of Seoul. She listened carefully, soaking in all the information and watching him as he talked. He seemed so alive when he talked about his life. He obviously enjoyed it.

"So... What's your story?" He regretted asking the question, because the moment the words left his mouth, she seemed to close up.

"Nothing special. It's not an interesting story so I won't tell it." She shrugged and stared off into space, ending the subject.

"Alright. I'm not forcing you to tell me. Relax." He looked at the clock. "Shit. It's already 8:00 and I'm late for the clubs. Make yourself at home, if you haven't already," he added with more than a hint of sarcasm, seeing as how she had already claimed the couch as hers. "I'll be back around 2:00, okay?

"Alright. Whatever."

He grabbed his jacket and headed for the door, taking one last look behind him at the back of the couch before he left. "You'd better be here when I get back."

"I will, don't worry about it. I've been fed here, so I'll keep coming back whether you like it or not."

He smirked as he closed the door behind him.

I know, lame ending for the chapter. So sue me..... -_-; At least it flows better now.

Anyways, please Read& Review! ^^; And thank you so much to those who have reviewed! =D