Evelyn: Ohh thanks for the input, I now know what Nina would give Jin for his birthday. About Wendy lol, Nina just wanted to have a name that sounded a little Aussie and began with the letter 'W'. About the Korean women, she will resurface in future chapters to shake things up. You'll find out how she knows Nina and what she knows.
Thanks for the reviews everyone!
Chapter Eleven
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"There, what do you think?!" Julia says enthusiastically holding up a mirror.
Nina uses her mirror to reflect the one the brunette was holding to see the back of own head. Julia braided her hair for the first time. The blonde smiles, admiring how neat her friend's work was.
"It's perfect. Thanks Julia."
Her hair was down but Julia managed to do a small braid on each side and had showed Nina the process. The blonde's hair grew since after the third tournament and was almost shoulder length now.
"In case you get married one day, that's a style you can do." Julia explains cheerily. "With a bun or a low ponytail." She adds quietly.
The particular hairstyle makes Nina look so different. She usually liked to keep her hair parted in the middle and have her side bangs frame her face. But since coming to this country, Nina usually swept her bangs back with some bobby pins and opted for low twin ponytails. That kept herself cool from the hot weather.
It was good to try new looks. She needed more of those to get around discreetly. After giving herself one more look, she places the mirror down and gets up from the floor. As Nina collects the mirrors to put away she observes Julia who nervously looks out of the window.
"Hey.." Nina says softly. "Relax, I'm here. Marduk's goons are no match for me."
Julia swallows and purses her lips. When she came back from testifying a couple of hours ago, she was a nervous wreck and Nina had no idea how to calm her frantic friend down until she noticed Julia's immaculate braids and decided to distract her. Nina quickly puts both mirrors in the drawer across the room before strolling back over to Julia.
That same feeling of feeling hunted, threatened and uncertain of anything was one she was familiar with. She puts a hand on Julia's shoulder.
"Don't let your muscles get tense." She says, "You don't remember telling me this too?"
Julia sighs. "I know…," She takes a deep breath to relax her muscles.
Nina lets go, smiling. It was unsettling even a strong smart woman would feel something like fear. Julia grabs one of her hands.
"You're like a good sister to me Nina."
How far apart in age they actually were? Twenty two. It was a good thing Nina heard some of her uni classmates had younger siblings two decades apart. It shouldn't be a strange thing. Truth be told, Nina had sometimes lamented that Anna was her sister instead of someone like Julia. Nina never had any issues trusting the brunette whom never gotten under her skin nor played nasty mind games.
"Likewise."
Nina checks the time. It was time to get a move on for her lecture that would start in an hour and a half. She wasn't feeling very much into making the trip to her university and sitting silently in a room full of people because it would mean leaving Julia alone in this state.
"If you have to go to your class, you should go." Julia sighs. "I don't want to encourage bad habits."
Nina nods curtly before moving towards the closet to pick out an outfit suitable for the warm weather.
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After the lecture, Nina decided to phone up Julia to see how she was doing. Having confirmed she was fine, Nina called up Jin but there was no answer. She'd check in with him later then. Next the blonde remembered about Dr Bosconovitch. Usually after this particular lecture, she'd pay the doctor a visit. It was a routine she got used to. When her routines were broken she felt anxious. The man was still in hospital. His lab was probably still cordoned off. It wouldn't hurt to walk past it. She still had access to the lab as a card was entrusted to her under the name of Alisa Bosconovitch. The lab wasn't far from her university campus.
She wanted to see that robot again. Once she had reached it, much to her joy it was no longer cordoned off. Staff were going in and out. Nina decides to go inside at the back entrance to avoid being seen by many. The lab is quiet. Feeling an adrenaline rush of being here alone and covertly, she tiptoes into the chamber room where Alisa was held. She went to see inside the pod but it was empty.
Nina frowns. She came all this way for nothing?
"Are you Nina Williams?!" A timid but chirpy voice from beside her chimes.
Nina gasps and turns to her side. The pink hair robot was dressed in something different this time. A frilly tank top and miniskirt with heels. A fight and flight response registered in Nina. Who knows when those chainsaws would come out again?
Keeping herself calm, Nina looks at the android dead in the eyes.
"Alisa?"
"Nina Williams confirmed." Alisa says lowly and then with bright eyes, pulls Nina into a hug.
Nina grimaces at the sound of her real name being uttered. She pulls herself away from Alisa's arms.
"I waited all day for you to show up!" She announces happily.
"What happened to the doctor?"
"Something beastly attacked my father." Alisa replies. "Pitch black wings and laser."
"It was probably you." Nina scoffs. "After all you are dangerous."
"No I didn't attack my father but I was ordered not to interfere." She says sadly. "I was so scared!"
"Did you record what happened?"
"No."
Nina sighs. "You're AI and you can't even record something eventful."
"Why are you so unkind?"
For some reason being called that annoys Nina. She wasn't unkind? She was nice to Julia and Jin. Anna called her unkind plenty of times. Especially when they argued over who was cooking.
She huffs. "I'm just pointing out a fact. No need to get so upset."
"Can we meet my father?" Alisa asks. "He's in the hospital but I don't want to go there alone."
"Do you know which hospital?"
"No. I was put on standby. I was reactivated by auto in the morning but by that time, my father was gone. My instructions were to wait around for Nina Williams."
"I see…,"
Nina wonders about her next course of action. Did she want to go to the hospital or explore what else could Alisa do? Was it safe to bring the erratic bot to the hospital?
"Oh I found my father!" Alisa says excitedly. "Please come with me to the hospital!"
The pink haired android grabs Nina's hand before the blonde could answer.
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The blonde and the android step outside of the taxi. They start making their way to the huge hospital. Nina gives Alisa a sidewards glance. Part of her was excited like a little girl on Christmas. It was like getting a new gift or a pet. Something to train. Nina frowns at the thought. When was she a pet person? A pet with chainsaws. A weapon. That's what she probably was created for. Alisa was a weapon.
"It is twenty degrees today." Alisa reveals. Staring out into the distance. "Tonight's forecast. Expect slight showers."
"I didn't ask for the weather."
"I know. I thought of making small talk while you were walking."
Hmm. What else did the robot know? Nina stopped walking and so did the robot.
"Alisa. Locate Anna Williams."
Alisa is silent for a moment as her eyes change color and Nina imagines her running through data.
"There is too many Anna Williams in the world. Please narrow it down."
"Anna Williams who took part in the third Tekken tournament."
Alisa repeats Nina's words. The blonde waited until Alisa ran her scan and finally red eyes turned back to green.
"Anna Williams, current location, Roppongi, Minato, Tokyo, Japan."
So the minx was still in Japan. Probably waiting for her, Nina thinks. Alisa then quickly goes onto explain what sort of area Roppongi is and Nina quickly shuts her up, not interested in the history of districts or cities.
The last time she was with Anna was in an apartment in Shinjuku. Anna had moved elsewhere in Tokyo but stuck around. They had a cramped apartment but the rooftop was spacious enough for Nina to relearn their family's martial arts.
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The smell of bleach tickles Nina's nose. Another familiarity with rising anxiety. They found the doctor and got to his room as it was visiting hours. It was a waste of time indeed as Nina was so curious to know if the one who attacked the man was the one who slipped Jin a note. Or if it was just Marduk's goons messing things up for her.
He was not responding to Alisa's one sided conversation. Nina just sat in her chair observing the odd scene, drinking a small cup of tea which she purchased from the vending machine. It wasn't as good as home-made milk tea.
Alisa finally gives up and goes near Nina.
"Nina Williams, five foot six, fifty k…"
"Must you air out my personal details out loud?" Nina cuts her off in mild annoyance.
"Apologies. I was being informative. Just in case you forgot your height."
Nina places the empty cup down on the table and got up from her chair. She straightens out her culottes before taking a step closer to Alisa. Then the blonde measures the differences in their heights. Nina was wearing flats. Alisa was probably about an inch shorter than herself. Without those heels of course, she was another two inches shorter. Being cheeky, Nina stands up on her tiptoes, attempting to be much taller than Alisa in the moment.
"My predecessor was five foot three." Alisa reveals.
"You mean the real Alisa." Nina counters, settling back on her feet again.
"I am the real Alisa."
"Tch."
"Did you know you were listed as five foot three in the first two Tekken tournaments?"
"That's odd. Why would I lie about my height?"
"You only know the reason to that. It must be buried deep into your subconscious."
"Thanks Alisa, I am sure you have dealt with many amnesiacs before." Nina says sarcastically.
"And I will deal with many more in the future!" Alisa says just as sarcastic as Nina.
Nina lifts an eyebrow. Oi you cheeky mare.
A nurse suddenly walks in the waiting room and let them know that the visiting hours are now over. So much for trying to get info from doctor B. The strict nurse stays put, making sure they would leave.
"Father, we will come visit another time okay! Rest in peace."
Chuckling at Alisa's words, Nina shakes her head.
"Sweetheart, if he rests in peace, he will never wake up again."
"Oh." Alisa responds, a little dumbfounded, walking away from his bed.
Nina smirks at the naïve android before she gives the comatose doctor one last look. She was about to walk out the door until the doctor yelps taking both of them by surprise.
"Devil! Devil!" He rasps in his sleep, his arm shooting up, finger pointing at the ceiling. Stunned, Nina just stands there rooted to the spot for a moment.
"Father!" Alisa cries, running back to his side once more.
The nurse who was at the door also brushes past Nina and hurries over. The comatose man drawls out like a horror movie, eyes refusing to open and his croaky voice drowning out everyone else's'.
"Deviiiiiil!"
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Jin is proud of himself when he finally mastered the kata. The daughter of his sensei, Izumi performed it with him. He trained hard all morning and afternoon, thoughts of his revenge fuelling him as always.
"Bravo!" Isshin claps. "Splendid! What a work of art Takato!"
"Thank you." Jin replies, feeling humble. There was a sense of power surging within him. Doing the kata was no easy feat, it was stiff and precise, always left him with aches but discipline in his karate was important. His previous fighting style was always about flashy moves and spinning.
This one felt more suited to him. Jin clenches his fists, no longer feeling the aches.
"I have to agree father, Takato has greatly improved in eight months."
Eight months.
The third tournament ended in September 2015. It was now May.
His twentieth birthday was around the corner. He had no idea what he was going to do for it. Jin decided to check his phone which was in the locker.
His phone was dead and Jin didn't even have a charger with him.
Izumi was kind enough to let him use her charger so his phone could charge back at the dojo. As a thank you, he agreed to dine with her in the nearby café. It was a tough decision because he usually avoided doing that kind of stuff with anyone he wasn't close with. There he ordered his favorite mini pie, tango slush and a strudel.
She wasn't bad company he soon realized when she began engaging in intellectual talk- something he had always enjoyed doing. They talked about personality types, zodiac, astronomy, anything theoretical that stimulated the mind. Jin was reminded of his school days with his friends Nagasawa and co. He again once felt like a nerd rather than someone in hiding.
In the middle of the interesting conversations, he thought he caught a whiff of a lovely French perfume Nina used.
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Jin hadn't answered his phone at all and Nina was starting to worry about him. She remembered he would be at his dojo around this time and decided to wait for him. She had to talk about the Bosconovitch situation. It was 6pm now, her tea time but was hoping share it with Jin. It was quite warm out here, her skin was lathered in lotion but she wasn't sure if it still be completely effective for so long. Even though Alisa was right about the slight showers, the weather was still humid. After a couple of minutes idly walking on the street where his dojo was, she passes a café and glimpsed in the window. Her stomach is rumbling and the smell of fresh pastries and food beckons her to grab something. Her throat is also dry again. There she'll text Jin to join her as she looked up at the café name before entering.
Once she is inside, she got to the counter and orders a lemon slush and a panini. As the blonde waits for her order, she looks around the spacious room and finds a well-built man sitting with his back turned to her. He was in a blue tracksuit, hoodie up. Nina knew it was Jin.
What shocks her however is that a young woman was sitting in front of him, she was Japanese and had a smile while engaging in an intimate conversation with Jin.
Who the hell was his new friend?
Nina eyes them suspiciously. The man at the counter hands her the items she ordered and Nina grabs them. Should she come over and say hello? Would she be interrupting a date?
Date.
Jin never went on dates with some woman. It was always her…Nina takes a deep breath as she makes her way to the other side of the room instead.
She finds a table far from where Jin and his new lady friend was. As the sudden pang of jealously subsides a little, the blonde takes a bite of her panini and chews as if her teeth were merciless knives cutting into something soft.
I'm no stalker bitch, Nina reminds herself. Jin is a good friend. We're not a couple so stop it woman!
Her throat feels a little scratchy, having chewed bread before drinking. As Nina goes to take a sip, her eyes look over to Jin. He was quiet as ever but Nina could tell from his body language that he was really enjoying speaking to this woman. His body leaning over slightly, both arms on the table and head crouched slightly down. That lady couldn't stop smiling and fawning over him. There was the occasional hair flick move which told Nina that the woman was definitely interested in Jin. The Japanese woman even glances down at his lips a couple of times. Nina had sometimes looked at his lips too.
Jin isn't answering her calls. So this was his way of laying low. By finding someone else to fill in the spot Nina had occupied so far. She gasps and massages her temple to rid of the brainfreeze from drinking the slush too quick.
Settling for just finishing her food and drinking alone, Nina just watches them stand up and leave the café together. Jin was good at hiding most of his face with that hoodie but Nina knew that nose. He pauses for a moment at the doorway.
Nina's heart accelerates in that moment. Did Jin detect her presence? She sits up slowly in her chair, waiting anxiously. The Japanese woman hooks her arm with his and drags him out of the café before Jin could turn around.
I'm not calling him anymore, Nina decides icily. He'd have to call her.
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A/N: I headcanon that Jin's birthday lies in May and that the third tournament happened in September 2015. Also in this story, Jin and Nina have known each other for five months now. Look at that slow burn love. X'D