The weeks continued to pass but the phone stayed silent. The call you should have been waiting for was late and to fight the tension, you decided to go to the gym after work, the same one where Ling Xiaoyu went to train; with the backpack on your shoulders and the headband pulling your hair back, you found that place as comfortable as if it were the old camp where your father used to train...and just like the old days, you went back to learning Aikido again.
Unlike Ling's Chinese martial arts of Hakke-Sho and Hika-Ken, your fighting style seemed to lean more towards defense than offense, so you were focused on training your reflexes.
«Woah, I didn't know you were so good at this!» She said when saw you simulating a series of combos on your own «You told me your father was an aikidoka, but not that you were too, why didn't you ever tell me?!»
«Because I'm not. I stopped doing it when I came to Tokyo seven years ago.» You answered by tightening the band, which had come loose on your forehead «But now I think it's time for a quick review, can you help me with that?»
Ling screamed enthusiastically, excited to be able to fight with you and immediately went into an attack position; she had no intention of holding back just because your were her best friend and with a calm expression, you knelt with your hands crossed in front of your chest...for a brief moment, Ling was confused by your vulnerable position, before unleashing a right arm attack.
A few seconds later, the reaction of the other people suggested that something had happened and unexpectedly, the girl with the black tails had been knocked down by the other one, using a simple move.
«H-how is that possible...how did you do!?!»
Ling was genuinely shocked, she couldn't believe she was beaten by someone who hadn't fought in a long time like you. Despite that, you didn't seem really happy with the result.
«Just a fluke, I still have a lot of practice to do.» You reached out a hand to help your friend up in the meantime «I think I'm not strong enough–»
«That's not true! You have an innate talent hidden somewhere, I can feel it.» Suddenly, the chinese protested grabbing both of your hands «And I'll be here to help you Y/n. Anytime.»
«Thank you Ling.» You smiled at that, relieved to be able to count on her during such a difficult period for you and although she had noticed it, she said nothing about your last meeting.
«I have to go now, finally Hwoarang finished fixing my bike.» You announced as you walked away from the gym to the locker room and the other snorted in amusement, in her opinion that red-head was a total idiot most of the time.
«Get ready, maybe he'll declare to you today hehe!» She gave you a mischievous wink, as you raised a questionable eyebrow «Come on, you know he's a crush on you!»
You didn't mind the idea that someone was interested in you, but Hwoarang was like a brother to you, besides not feeling the need to mess up in such affairs.
«I just know you use too much fantasy for my liking...»
You already had another one to take care of and sooner or later, it would come looking for you.
• ● •
You came straight home when you got your beloved motorbike. Sure, Hwoarang got high when he had seen you in his garage and your smile was enough to brighten his day, but you thanked him and made yourself available, if he needed of any help...just like Ling, he was another important person to you.
Later, you turned the key to open the door of your apartment. Nothing unusual, until you went into the kitchen and on the table, you saw a strange box.
«What's this? And how—?»
In that moment, your phone rang and Nina Williams' name appeared on the screen.
You took a deep breath before answering.
«...hello?»
«I hope you're doing well, Y/n...» Of course, you hadn't forgotten the woman's voice, but for some reason, you didn't like to hear that at all «I hope you can forgive me for the delay, but I've been busy lately.»
«It's fine, actually I was wondering how much longer I'd have to wait...» You asked in a narrow tone and without ceasing to stare at the box «If I'm not mistaken, you told me you were going to send me something...it's this thing, by chance?»
Wherever she was, Nina crossed her legs as usual but this time, she was holding a goblet of wine in her hands, sipping it without your knowledge.
«Of course. You'll find everything you need to become Reira Lilai, including some special tools made just for your mission.»
At this point, you were curious to see and started to unwrap the package carefully; soon, your eyes immediately caught sight of a wigs, clothes and any accessories which served for your disguise. But what struck you the most was a small package containing vials and a syringe.
«What's all this stuff?» There, you had picked up a pocket knife in its sheath «D-don't tell me that...»
«Not yet. Before that, you need to get close to the target.» In a way, Nina reassured that you didn't have to kill the man for now «Your first move will be tonight, at the Muse Club. That's where Kazuya often conducts his business and this makes him a regular customer...»
Then, the woman explained some things to keep in mind to move correctly in that place, under the eyes of the people and as you had already guessed, Nina warned you that Kazuya was never alone but always in the company of his bodyguards.
«...what if I can't?» You asked out of the blue, hoping escape might be a viable option, but you just heard a chuckle on the other side.
«I advise you, he's not a patient man. If he judges you as a disturbing element, he won't hesitate to kill you before you can realize it.» Nina explained to you, putting the glass down «And don't try any kind of romantic approach, his heart is to be pierced later. Have I been clear?»
Well, there wasn't much you could ask for and when the call ended, your heart started pounding all of sudden, as there was good chances to fail. And for nothing in the world you wanted to flirt to get close to him...
«I'd rather die than do that.» You thought while taking a look at the costumes and shortly after, you had chosen the look that Reira should have, preparing it for the night...
In a few hours, you would meet your parents' killer personally.
• ● •
You stuck a bare foot out of the car. Now that you had worn them, you realized high heels weren't made for you and the same was true for the short dress; once outside, you adjusted your skirt below your thighs and your hair which fell on your shoulders, long and black...it wasn't your real hair, of course, and just thinking about it, made your head itch because of the wig.
The party had already started at the Muse Club, since the colored lights could be seen right from the street. Although you hadn't seen anyone yet, you had taken deep breaths before starting to walk towards the entrance to not panic.
«Damn, I can't do this and what the hell is this dress anyway!?» You contested that skimpy look on you, definitely it didn't make you feel at ease and as you passed, the eyes of the present ones moved immediately to your attractive figure.
Well, you had to admit you were enjoying walking past handsome guys, leaving them breathless, even the girls who were with them looked at you as stopped dancing, wondering who the hell the newcomer was...better to stay away from some people, you thought, drawing too much attention was the last thing you needed right now.
You decided to go to the bartender's counter, looking for something to drink, as your gaze moved from face to face, searching for just one; still, you didn't have a clear idea of what you would have done and wondered where he was hiding, in the meantime...
But soon, the boredom of that evening was broken when, in the midst of the hustle and bustle, you heard someone screaming a few meters away. You turned your head to look for the source of the voice, until you found a girl surrounded by a group of men...something told you not to get involved, Nina specifically advised you to not make false moves, as well as the situation seemed to be under control.
But then, you saw one of them put his hand up the woman's skirt.
«Hey!» You spoke loudly with the intent to drown out the music «She doesn't seem interested in you, why don't you go play somewhere else?»
The girl looked at you in disbelief, as the group burst out laughing in amusement. In particular, a guy approached you intrusively and with a mischievous smirk, judging by his attire he was a typical street thug posing as a high-level criminal, but he wasn't really a yakuza.
«...come and have fun with us then, what'd you think sweetie?»
When you saw his fingers play with your long curls, you quickly grabbed his wrist, spinning it behind his back so that he could no longer move. His friends were shocked and their attention shifted from the unknown girl to you, who had fought back against one of them.
«Y-you don't know what shit you're getting yourself into, bitch!» He managed to say through whimpers, until you let go to look that bully in the eye. Maybe you had exaggerated, but you couldn't bear any form of injustice, including those against a defenseless woman.
«You started it. Now you take what you deserve...»
Your intimidating eyes glared at the bad boys in front of you, but in your head you thought it was better to not keep provoking them, or you would have been kicked out of the club without any hesitation...but before any other, your view moved from them to a random spot at the back of the club, where someone was sitting on a couch. You had the feeling of being watched and right there, you met a stern expression in the distance, with cheek resting against the hard knuckles.
You had already seen that face. But never before your heart was beating so eagerly in realizing that man was just who you were looking for...
Kazuya Mishima.
You had finally found him. And he didn't seem to stop looking at you for the world.