Book 4; Guns, Love, Roses

Chapter 3 - The X-Boyfriend

I waited impatiently at the train station, nervously listening to tracks from Jay Sean and Jacki Boys to try and brighten my mood. I watched as dozens of happy Asian families headed their way to the festival while I sat at the train station benches. I got a random tap on my shoulder and I turned around to see the most gorgeous Asian girl I've ever laid my eyes on. She had long brown hair and wore a nice maroon varsity jacket with jeans and Nike runners to match. Her figure was amazing, I could tell she went to the gym, and makeup was on point that she almost looked half cast.

"Jordan, right?" Julie asked, examining me from head to toe.

"H-Hey. Yeah, that's me." I got up nervously from my seat and hugged her awkwardly. She laughed and gestured me to follow her.

"Let's go, Jordan."

-

"Thanks for stopping by. You look like you saw a ghost." She said, holding my hand as we walked along the busy festival road of Springvale. Food stands were everywhere, loud Chinese music was blaring across the street and it was packed shoulder to shoulder.

"Yeah, I didn't realise how nice you looked in person. I mean wow, you dress nice." I said, scratching my head nervously.

"What do you mean?" She said, holding my hand tighter and eating a satay skewer on the other.

"The girls in my area dress more revealing to look good. You don't have to do that."

"Thanks. I'm not sure what's up with you boys and long emo hair. It makes you all look the same. I mean, no offence."

"Nah, none taken." I laughed as we both found a bench to sit on. I ordered a few more satay skewers to eat and it seemed as though Julie enjoyed eating it.

"Mind if I ask you a few questions?" Julie asked.

"Yeah. Go for it."

"My friends told me to be careful about you." She said, her eyes looking at me a bit more seriously.

"What do you mean?"

"Is it true you're in a gang? I mean I know it's just rumours but I just don't want to go falling for someone who doesn't have good intentions." There was a brief pause until I started talking.

"I'm not going to lie." I started,

"I've been affiliated with a violent gang who love to start fights and wage war against others groups since I was thirteen. I never had any intentions of being a part of it or the drama that came along, but it doesn't necessarily make me a bad person."

"But you resort to violence to solve your issues. That makes you a bad person." She raised an eyebrow. I sighed, then continued,

"I know there's a bad rep you get for being in a violent gang, but to give us a negative stigma just because we fight for what we feel is right doesn't make us bad people, Julie." I folded my arms, pursing my lips as I thought of what to say next.

"Besides everything else, I'm with them because they're all I got. They've been my friends since I was young. If it means I need to roughen a few people up just to spend abit of time with them, I won't hesitate to do so." I took a deep breath, then exhaled moments later.

"I've been with Young Kings Park Boys for about four years now and being with them gives me a sense of fulfilment and purpose." She looked at me and smiled, hugging me.

"I dated this guy... he was and still is in some silly gang, like you. But between you and I, I can already tell that you're different than he is. See, they all act fake and try to be something they weren't. The way my ex spoke and perceived himself to his friends, was completely different from how he was when he was around me. You know, it was like he had two separate personalities and he would always over exaggerate his stories to make himself the bigger man." She positioned herself so that she was leaning on my shoulder, and she began talking while staring out into the crowd. So the rumours were true, I thought. If this was Wayne Chan she was talking about, then I really needed to pay attention.