Jin swam the next day after school and the day after that too. He liked the swim club. He liked the people there, who didn't ask him too much, but weren't exclusive either. No one asked about the bandage on his arm, and everyone complimented his swimming. He liked the silence of swimming underwater alone, and didn't even mind that it was sterile and empty compared to home. He liked the feel of the fresh autumn breeze on his face as he came out the changing rooms, and the way it ruffled his damp hair.
He liked his walk to the SUV too. It meandered around the east wing of the school and took him over the edge of the playing fields until it wound back towards the school entrance. Between the playing fields and the main gates there was a grove of cherry trees raised on a bank. The trees were starting to crispen and shed their leaves now, but they still provided a distinct screen from the entrance, and obscured most of Heihachi's statue. Jin liked the seclusion of this walk, especially after school when not many people were about, or at least came this way.
As he walked, Jin was in a world of his own – thinking about how seasons here felt so different to Yakushima; thinking about how it hardly rained here in comparison; thinking about how it never got damp enough for moss to clamber over everything and carpet the world with its vibrant, luscious green. He rounded the corner of the school that would take him to the playing fields, still lost in his own thoughts. Abruptly someone jumped out in front of him.
Jin stepped back. The boy before him looked vaguely familiar. His hair was unruly and a large white bandage was over the bridge of his nose and stuck to his cheeks with surgical tape. Four more boys were coming out of the shadows, stalking forward, arraying themselves before Jin.
"It's Kazama, right?" the bandaged boy said. The back of Jin's neck prickled. "Been learning all sorts about you, the darling of the Mishima."
The boys were around Jin's age, maybe one or two were older – taller at least. One was sidling round, trying to get behind him. Jin's eyes darted between them. He held himself calmly. He had an inkling of who this boy might be, but a kind of pride stirred in him just then. He drew himself taller and looked at the boy with a mild indifference, the way Heihachi sometimes looked at staff that displeased him.
"Who are you supposed to be?"
The boy riled, and his friends rolled their shoulders and stretched their necks.
"You think you're so high 'n' mighty? You're messing with Ikeda. And today is payback for what you did to my nose!"
"You need five people for that?" Jin asked with a quiet cool that he didn't recognise in himself.
There was a thrill in his chest, like some part of him wanted to be tested, wanted to show off what he'd been learning. Five people was nothing to snub though. Make the wrong move and his training wouldn't matter in the slightest.
"I had you pegged for one of those arrogant rich boys the moment you stepped out your limousine, Kazama. Going to punch you down so low you won't be able to look down on nobody from there."
"Is that why you've been scouting out my route from the pool to the entrance for the last two days? Wanted a fight with no trouble?"
A flash of surprise flickered on Ikeda's face, but it was gone a moment later.
"Yeah, that's right. No grandpa out here to save you, no teachers to pull us off you."
"Mm, and a good distance from Tekken Force armed security, although they do seem to patrol the area. You've probably thought that through though, right?"
That rattled a few of them. Jin saw them passing glances to one another.
"Nice try," Ikeda sneered. "No one's pulling you out of this!"
Ikeda threw a punch right off the bat. Jin dodged to the side, hands still low. He put his back to the school building so no one could creep round behind him. Ikeda swore and grabbed for Jin's school shirt. Jin chopped at his elbow with a knife hand before Ikeda could reach him, rolled a hand over the top and back fisted Ikeda to the side of his face. Ikeda reeled and screeched.
Another boy came in and grabbed at Jin's arm. Jin dodged him, but his movement took him towards another guy who succeeded in catching his wrist. Jin stamped down hard on the guy's foot. He was released but his shirt was grabbed by two more boys who dragged him forward, away from the wall. A third guy got behind him and Jin knew he was in trouble now. He back-kicked into the guy's knee, but the execution was weak as he was off-balanced by the tugging on his shirt. The guy behind him tried to come in and loop his arms over Jin's biceps. Jin rammed an elbow back into the guy's floating rib. The guy folded over, groaning in pain, but his other arm reached in and trapped Jin's right shoulder. Jin couldn't strike back with that elbow because his right arm was now in the keep of the guys hanging on his shirt. Jin stamped down on the foot behind him, and threw his head back into the guy's face. He heard a crunch and a cry, and the pressure lifted from his shoulder.
A fourth guy was coming in from Jin's left, trying to snatch at his wrist. He snagged Jin's shirt cuff and the button burst off the wrist as Jin tried to tear away. Ikeda was straightening. There was a cut bleeding near his eye where Jin's knuckle had caught him. He wiped his lip.
"Stretch his arms out," Ikeda snapped at his gang.
Jin thrashed in the respective holds on him. The guy behind him gave up seeking that dangerous position, and jumped to hang on Jin's left arm. Between the four of them, they drew Jin's arms out. Jin stopped struggling and just looked at Ikeda, now with a cold aloofness.
"You're going to wish you hadn't done that, Kazama," Ikeda murmured as he wiped blood from where it was trickling into his eye.
"Can't hear you," Jin said.
Ikeda stepped closer. He had a mean, hard smile now that he had Jin strung out.
"I said-" But what he said, Jin never heard, because he'd drawn back and smashed his forehead down into Ikeda's broken nose, with all the force and impact that Heihachi had beaten him to the floor with countless times.
Ikeda stumbled back, and fell to the floor. His bandage was brilliant red, and blood poured down his face.
"Shit, Ikeda, you're bleeding like hell-"
"Keep a hold of him!" Ikeda yelled, but it sounded kind of nasally and bubbly. He grabbed at his nose and got trembling to his feet. He drew back a bloodied hand and punched Jin in the gut. Jin had already clenched his stomach hard. Ikeda couldn't hit with a fraction of the power Heihachi could. Jin didn't flinch or make a sound. He just kept looking at Ikeda. Ikeda swung at his face then. Jin saw it coming a mile off, so clenched his teeth and kept his tongue well away. He turned with the blow, so that it was more glancing than full impact. It still stung, and opened up a cut on his lip he'd gained from training on Sunday. Jin hunted Ikeda's movements, biding his time for a perfect opportunity.
Suddenly, someone walked around the blind corner of the building. All the boys froze. It was Ishida, the swim team captain. More importantly, it was a senior who was over six foot of broad-shouldered muscle.
"Kazama?" Ishida stalled in surprise as he spotted Jin in the fray. There was something in his tone – a disappointment almost that made Jin's inside curl with shame.
It was the distraction Jin needed though. He jumped, using the tension in his caught arms to power a double legged kick into Ikeda's chest and send him sprawling. The weight on his captor's grips combined with their surprise at seeing Ishida freed him from their grasps. Jin dropped to the ground. It was calculated and he caught himself on his palms and struck out with a spinning low sweep, hacking at the ankles of the boys. Within moments the tides had turned. Boys were scattering and running from the scene – some went for the entrance, others for the playfields. Ikeda was last to pick himself up, dazed, and bleeding heavily. Jin watched him impassively as he stumbled off.
When they were alone, Jin looked sheepishly at Ishida. He wondered if he'd think less of him for scrapping on school grounds. He bowed to him. As he did, he had a view of the blood smeared stone around him.
"Thank you for the help, senpai."
Ishida was still blinking when Jin straightened.
"I… I didn't do anything. Are you alright? There's blood on your shirt."
Jin looked down at it. "It's not mine."
"Were all those boys picking on you? All of them?"
Jin huffed. The way Ishida said 'picking on you' made the affair sound so childish. Jin shrugged and toed the ground.
"Just some trouble from a couple of weeks back," he gave.
"Do you need me to get the first aid kit from the pool? Your lip is split."
Jin waved away his concern and hid the cut with his tongue.
"It's okay. It'll stop bleeding soon."
Ishida hovered for a moment, like he was unsure about something.
"… Kazama-kun, I noticed you have a lot of bruises. Before this fight even, I mean."
"I do martial arts," Jin said quickly. This was all sort of mortifying to have to explain. "I train a lot at home."
"Okay…" Ishida didn't sound very convinced. Hadn't he seen that cool kick Jin had done? "Do you get into a lot of fights at school?"
Jin looked at him, a little cagey. "… Some."
"Are you doing okay in classes?"
Jin didn't like how sympathetic Ishida's tone was. He liked it when Ishida was complimenting him, not digging into the places Jin felt more uncertain in.
"I'm the grandson of Mishima Heihachi, the school founder," Jin suddenly blurted.
Ishida blinked. Then his expression hardened.
"It doesn't matter if you're the son of the emperor, you can still be having a rough time at school."
Jin froze. He stared at Ishida. He felt trapped. He didn't know what to do. He felt like all the lights had suddenly turned on and he had nowhere to hide. He'd rather face a hundred Ikedas and their swarms of cronies, than one Ishida and his piercing insight.
Ishida seemed to notice Jin was uncomfortable and backed off.
"Well, if you want to talk about it, you know where to find me. Try to stay out of trouble, Kazama-kun, you're a good kid."
Jin scowled. Ishida wasn't that much older than him… a couple of years maybe. Jin huffed and stuck his hands in his pockets.
"Mind if I walk you to the school gate?" Ishida asked.
Jin shrugged.
They walked in silence. The black SUV was parked in front of the gate as normal. The driver got out, bowed to Jin, and opened the car door. He said nothing about the blood, or the state of Jin's clothes. Jin unslung his school satchel and tossed it in the car.
"See you," he said a little awkwardly to Ishida, and got in the car.
The driver closed the door, and the blackout windows dimmed Ishida and his anxious expression. The car pulled away and drove off down the road. Jin hunched over his knees and pushed his hands into his hair. How embarrassing… He should have changed up the path he walked to the gate when he first thought something was wrong the other day… To be jumped like that and for Ishida of all people to see. He threw himself back in his seat and groaned.
Jin traipsed in the front door of the mansion feeling worn out and exhausted. The adrenaline from the fight had finally slumped and he wanted to just crash somewhere comfortable now. Fujita, the head butler, was in the doorway as Jin pulled off his shoes.
"Blood does not come off a white shirt easily, Young Master Jin. Perhaps you would be so good as to put on your school sweater for your next altercation."
Fujita held out a hand. Jin reached for it to pull himself up. Fujita withdrew his hand though and looked at him with raised eyebrows. He extended a hand again. Jin looked down at his bloodied shirt. He unbuttoned it and handed it over.
"And a button lost…" Fujita tutted holding it up.
Jin felt bad then. He angled passed the butler and made his way towards his room. He rounded a corner and saw Kuma's backside sticking out of a room. The bear was often bumbling around the house when Jin got home from school. Jin paused, then sighed, huffing at his fringe as he did. He took the long way round, through the library, the vase room, the room with tiny plates, and another room he didn't enough know the function of, until he finally made it back to his own room. He lay back on his bed and thought of cooler kicks he could have done in front of Ishida.
He was summoned to account for himself later that evening, as he suspected he might be. Heihachi was working at his home office. Nothing much happened at the estate that didn't get back to him within minutes. Jin stood alert and waiting before his grandfather's desk.
"I hear you were fighting today at school."
"Yes, Ojiisama," Jin said. He shouldn't give details unless he was asked. His grandfather liked certainty, not excuses.
"Did you win?"
Jin considered for a second. He'd certainly been in a rather compromised position, but he definitely ended the fight and came off better.
"Yes, Ojiisama."
"You hesitated."
Jin drew in a breath. There was no point trying to conceal the truth. He knew he'd gotten himself into a difficult situation. He nodded.
"There were five of them. I got into a bad position. They didn't know how to punch well so didn't hurt me, but I messed up to have ended up like that. I got away, but I should have done better. I'm sorry for failing your teachings, Ojiisama."
Jin bowed.
"Do you know what mistakes you made?"
Jin still hadn't looked up. He'd been analysing the fight in his head since he first got into the car and had a pretty good idea of how he should have acted. He should have been more aggressive to make use of space, and used his multiple opponents' bodies against one another, tripping them up and forcing them to get in each other's way. He should have used his Kazama Ryu and Mishima Ryu together much better. In the heat of the moment though, he'd just fallen back on simpler, more direct responses to each attack he faced.
"Yes, Ojiisama."
"Good."
Jin straightened. Heihachi was writing with an ink pen. A pair of reading glasses were perched on the end of his nose.
Heihachi didn't look up. His voice was perfectly neutral, betraying no emotion at all: "Go to the dojo and practice to correct your mistakes."
Jin's heart sunk. He hadn't eaten, and he had homework due tomorrow, and his limbs ached from swimming and the brawl.
"Yes, Ojiisama," he said. He bowed and then left.
The next day at school, something was different. There was something different in the way people glanced at him. Some were whispering and would turn away when he looked at them. Jin shook his head and continued on. Miharu caught up with him as he made his way to their homeroom.
"Jin-kun!"
Jin was glad to see her. Maybe she could explain why people were looking at him oddly.
"What happened yesterday? Someone said you attacked Ikeda again? He's off school today."
"Huh?" Jin turned to her. "I attacked him?"
"Mmhm. There are like four guys who said you laid into him."
"Yeah?" Jin could feel his temper grating. "Well, I've got a guy who'll swear it took four of them to hold me down and I still cracked that idiot's nose a second time. So next time he better bring ten more if he wants to jump me."
Jin strode off, seething. Miharu ran to keep up with him.
"Hey, don't take this out on me! I'm just saying what all the others said!"
"And who do you believe?" Jin turned to her, eyes flashing.
She retracted from him. "Uh… you… of course."
Jin looked away, angry. When he sat down at his desk, Miharu didn't babble at him like usual.
At lunch break, Jin took his food outside. It felt stifling indoors. Maybe it had been a mistake though, because he could feel heads turning his way as he walked. His hackles went up when he felt, more than saw, someone following him. He whirled round. Four people in fact. The rest of Ikeda's gang, looking a little worse for wear.
"Want me to finish the fight?" Jin snarled. His temper was already frayed.
The boys backed up. One tried to placate him with hands raised a little before him.
"No, no we're good. Just came to uh…" They all shifted sheepishly from foot to foot.
"That kick you pulled at the end yesterday was pretty cool," one boy put in.
Jin rounded on him. "You went around telling people I started that fight."
"Yeah… Ikeda's done for – will be out for the rest of the week, and it's not a good look, losing five to one. So you might as well take credit for starting the fight."
"Credit?!" Jin snapped. "I don't want credit. I was not the aggressor. So stop running your mouths!"
There was a hesitation then one said, "Sure thing, boss, no problem."
"I'm not your boss," Jin said coldly.
"It's the way it goes. Ikeda can't be in charge after a beating like that, you've got the right-"
"Got the right." Jin couldn't believe this was happening. He stepped towards the boy who'd spoken. He was a head taller than Jin, but still backed up. "I want nothing to do with you."
Another boy spoke up tentatively from beside him,
"Things are way easier if you have a couple of guys though – and with someone like you on our side, we'd be unstoppable! We could do whatever we liked!"
"And what is it you like?" Jin asked, mocking. He wasn't sure where all this condescension and anger was coming from, but he was furious, truly furious.
"W-well…"
"Picking fights five-on-one after you've stalked someone's route home? I'll pass."
"We could do things differently under you!"
"I don't need anyone, least of all four goons who jump ship as soon as one of their own is injured." He glared at them all, temper wild and hot. "Stay out of my way or I'll make you!"
The boys backed off. They were still hesitant to leave. Jin glared at them and they finally hurried away.
Jin was left alone in the middle of the yard, still holding his bento. He felt so distant from everyone just then, and so very lonely. None of them understood. None of them understood violence. Not the ones like Saito and Miharu who liked drawing and photography, not the ones like Ikeda or his fair-weather friends who thought a tussle in the school grounds made them big and meant anything at all. None of it meant anything.
Violence was a creature towering over you, claws long and dark, skin an unearthly green, eyes blazing like brilliant red coals. It was a creature picking you up easily, fist closing round your neck, squeezing gently, and that being all that was needed to close off all the oxygen to your fragile body. It was looking into those eyes and knowing this was death, this was the end, that demons were real, the happiness was fleeting, that life was just a couple of processes that could be stopped as easily as a clock. It was feet dangling so far from the ground, and an arm so long you couldn't even kick at its body. It was real, animal terror. It was being flung as easy prey, breaking ragdoll-like on the floor at its feet. It was looking up, and seeing all you loved taken from you as those claws stretched out, out towards another in your place.
What was school? What was etiquette? What was mathematics? What were friends? Superficial. It was all superficial. How did anyone care about it when at any moment, the thin thread of life could snap, and a body would fall silent to the ground? That was all of them. That was everyone here. How could anyone not be thinking of that all the time? They could just stop. All of this could just stop, and then all the things they worked for would mean nothing. No one here knew what violence was. No one here knew what death was. Why weren't they all terrified that they might cease existing at any moment?
Jin didn't feel like swimming after school. He didn't feel like doing anything. There was still an hour before the car arrived though. He found himself wandering, and wound up at that off-limits corridor that he'd found Tekken Force in. He looked dully at the door. As he did, he saw it start to open. Jin turned round quickly and shoved his hands in his pockets, setting his pace all casual as he walked away. There was nowhere else he could have come from, but still, maybe he'd be ignored if he-
"Kazama?"
Jin froze. Heavy boots sounded on the wood behind him. He turned to see a Tekken Force Officer.
"Good, I wanted a word with you."
Jin looked up into that helmet. He recognised the voice.
"Kaicho…" he said.
The officer drew back a fraction. "You can't call me that."
Jin's heart was so heavy, but just then it was nice to talk to an adult. "Why not? Everyone else does."
"Because your Grandfather is my kaicho, so his grandson can't call me that. Just – my name is Alexandersson, call me that."
"Alexander-san…"
"No- Alexandersson-san."
"Huh?" Jin squinted up at the captain.
"Nevermind, listen, I heard about what happened yesterday and I want to sincerely apologise. That should not have happened and I'm recommending new security cameras to cover blind spots."
"Huh?" Jin said again, pulling a face. "What are you talking about?"
"I told you Tekken Force watch over this school. It should be a safe space for all students, but for Mishima-kaicho's grandson of all people to have been attacked is inexcusable. I apologise for not being there for you."
Jin blinked. It felt very special for an adult to apologise to him. Still, he didn't like the idea that Tekken Force were looking to babysit him at school. The last thing he wanted yesterday were for a bunch of his grandfather's armed security to actually break up the fight. He had wondered though if they might show up, a small part of him even might have hoped that they would, but it was better that they hadn't. Jin tossed his head and shrugged his shoulders.
"I can fight my own fights just fine. There are some things it's better for Tekken Force to stay out of. You can't go following me around all day. I have to sort things out on my own."
"I'm not going to stand idly by and let five boys attack you."
"Maybe you should." Jin scowled at him, gaze heavy and dark.
"Are you alright? Were you injured?"
The change in topic caught Jin by surprise. Why was it the swim team captain and a Tekken Force officer thought to ask him that but his grandfather didn't. Jin pushed his hands deeper into his pockets. He tossed his head with some arrogance.
"I'm fine. Should have seen the other guy."
"I did, he was rushed to hospital."
Jin looked up. He bit his lip and guilt prickled through him. He felt himself coming down from that distant, disconnected place his head had been in all day. He'd hurt somebody. He'd really hurt someone. They were in hospital because of him. He swallowed.
"He got off lightly," the captain grated, "I would have broken a limb in the hope he remembers where cowardice gets him in future."
Jin felt strangely warmed by that. More of the darkness in his chest lightened. He felt a little less alone. It was kind of nice having someone get angry on his behalf. It felt different to Ishida's pity. He gave a small smile. He looked up at the captain after though.
"Will Ikeda be okay?"
"Of course. Probably lost enough blood to be lightheaded after the idiot kept fighting with that broken nose though."
Jin nodded, "I'm glad." He went rigid a moment after though. He looked at the floor, heart beating fast. "Is it your job to tell my grandfather everything?"
The captain was silent for a moment. "I pass on anything he needs to know."
"…Does he need to know that I asked after that boy?"
"… I shouldn't think so."
Jin breathed a sigh of relief. He smiled at the captain. The captain just stayed still, looking at him.
"You going to tell me what's behind your secret corridor back there?" Jin pointed to the 'Staff Only' door.
"No," the captain said, refinding his voice. "I have to be getting back to my duties now. Try to keep out of trouble."
The captain bowed to Jin, then turned away.
"See you round, Alexander-san."
Jin saw the captain tense, then heave a sigh and shake his head as he walked away.
Jin wasn't sure what to do with himself after that. He crossed the school yard with his satchel drooping near the ground and his feet trailing. The school grounds were deserted and the air heavy with drizzle and greying mist.
Jin heard the creak of door open somewhere and quickly straightened his posture, holding himself prouder. He whirled round, eyes darting in all directions, ready for an attack. Three figures were making their way across the yard. Jin's shoulders squared and his brow angled to a thundercloud.
"Hey! Kazama!" A hand was raised to him. Jin's fight instincts started cooling off. It was a few members from the swim club. "Class ended late for us, we've got a teacher going crazy giving us extra work to prep for exams."
Jin nodded vaguely in acknowledgement. One guy, around his own height – Kaneko, Jin remembered – fell into step with him. He was a tenth grader and a good swimmer. He never boasted of it though. Most of the swim team weren't really boasters. That was probably something to do with being around Ishida. He only had time for commending his peers' athletics, not dragging them down or pushing the competitive side.
"Ishida told us what happened. You okay?"
Jin shrugged. He was walking with them out of habit more than anything else. He didn't want to talk about yesterday. If he'd had his way, the whole thing would have been forgotten the moment the fight was over.
"I heard people are spreading other stories around," Kaneko said. "Don't worry, within a week this'll have all died down. Everyone here at least knows you were only defending yourself."
The other swimmers all nodded. Jin's mood eased then. He glanced around at the others. They weren't looking at him with apprehension or awe. They just had quiet, genial expressions and an honesty to them. They didn't know about violence either, but they still wanted to make a place for him.
Jin wondered if they'd still want him if they saw how he got when he was angry – mocking and cold towards those other boys; or limbs lashing out on instinct when a fight came his way; or worse, that thrill he got in his stomach when he knew enough had aligned that he could get away with resorting to unrestrained violence.
"You're coming to the pool, right, Kazama?"
Jin blinked out of his own thoughts. Kaneko gave him an easy smile. He was in school. He was walking with some people who had only ever been kind to him, and who wanted to keep his company. They didn't know what happened in his head. They just wanted Kazama Jin to go swimming with them.
Jin could do that. He could try and be that person for them, at least for a while. A cold, autumn breeze was blowing. It would feel especially good when his hair was damp and his skin was hot from the shower and exertion.
Jin took a breath and found his smile.
"…Yeah, sure."
