|
|
Post by Kon on Jan 3, 2021 0:21:16 GMT -6
It was probably a bad idea, one that would most definitely come back to bite her. The past couple of years of hard work would likely be undone by her decision, but Kon currently couldn't care enough. Although her life was comfortable, she wasn't happy. How could she be now that her warrior's spirit was once again revitalized? A mundane life was not one fit for someone like her, and now that she had finally realized this, she was most definitely going to take advantage of it as much as she possibly could. The first step was to quit her day job, the one that was hindering her freedom and chaining her to one spot. Besides, it was most likely a dead-end job anyway so she was just speeding up the process. She had already handed in her two-week notice, but certainly, extra revenue to help cushion the inevitable decline was always helpful. Now the only thing she had to do was finish out the last few shifts before she would finally be liberated from this stressful obligation.
In all honesty, she didn't even hate her job that much. Working at a restaurant definitely had its perks, including the occasional free meal. However, Kon was over the fact that she had to be polite all the time, even with rude customers. The only reason she was even civil within these last few shifts of hers was that she wanted to reap the full benefits of her job. If it weren't for this small roadblock, she had no problem teaching those annoying patrons some manners with her words or maybe her fists. As entertaining as the latter thought was, Kon, didn't want to go to jail quite yet or lose her reputation in the small chance she wanted to come back if everything failed once more.
As if! There was currently no way in hell she was coming back here!
Her life right now sucked, and honestly, she couldn't wait till she could drop everything and just enjoy herself. After what felt like days, her eight-hour shift was finally nearing its end as the restaurant came to a close. Once again, she would probably be the one doing closing protocols, although she was used to it at this point. Besides, she had the entire place to herself. By now most of her co-workers and customers had left, leaving her to clean up everything once again. Even if they were technically still open for another ten minutes, she doubted that anyone would come in, to begin with. People had enough decency for that at the very least, right?
|
|
|
|
Post by Saizomaru on Jan 4, 2021 14:47:22 GMT -6
Saizomaru PL: 190,000 (BASE)
Night time. Blackened clouds and violet skies loomed over the still-bustling West City. Aside from Central, it was one of those cities that never slept. Near enough every commercial building still had their lights off, giving the streets the warm white-yellow glow that stopped the evening’s shadows in their tracks. The adult populace still roamed the streets in groups of three or more, no doubt looking for their next destination on their pub crawls. Some ventured off on their own for one reason or another.
Saizomaru was one of them. He had spent so much time walking the streets during the day, watching the world move and time flow around him, that he thought he’d offer the same to the world’s night life. It was more likely that the unsavoury and the scrupulous types would venture out in the dark than in the light. A part of him hoped that he would spot some sort of mugging or street fight. He had an itch for a fight.
He turned the corner into East Street, a commercial area where most of the evening businesses remained opens. Pubs, night clubs, restaurants, convenience stores—most didn’t even shut until the early morning hours. His eyes shifted as he trekked down the sidewalk, quick glances at every light street corner and darkened alley in a bid to catch something. Anything.
His glance caught something unexpected, however; or rather, someone. Across the street he spotted someone through the large square window of a restaurant. He stopped for a moment, pausing as he stared at the figure working the counter. A small smile spread across his pale lips, then his legs carried him across the road.
The android reached the door, hand pushing the door open slowly, quietly. The place was almost dead—no one around besides the one person, and no noise to be heard besides the clattering of hidden equipment. Silent steps strode him into the dining floor while the only worker here had their back to him. As he reached the bar counter, he slid himself onto one of the stools.
”Pretty quiet tonight, isn’t it?” he spoke, clear and louder than normal. His elbows rested onto the counter top, fingers laced together with his chin rested on the backs of his hands. ”S’been a while, Kon.”
KP: 3/3
|
|
|
|
Post by Kon on Jan 4, 2021 16:00:59 GMT -6
There was nothing to distract her aside from her own thoughts as she slowly began to move the dishes from one room to the next. Sometimes she couldn't help but wonder why it was the restaurant she worked at out of every single one in the city that had some of the messiest customers. Well, at least soon she wouldn't have to deal with this any longer. As she finished placing a few more plates and other various cooking equipment away, Kon was finally ready to call it quits. After finishing up with the final tasks back in the kitchen and gathering her stuff, she would begin to fumble with the keyrings just as she had done every night, thinking that nothing would be different.
But it wasn't.
The ring slipped out of her fingers, hitting the ground with an audible think sound. Did she hear that voice correctly? Was this all just some sort of hallucination as her past was coming back to greet her once again? She hadn't expected to have anyone find her so soon, especially with all her efforts to keep herself hidden. Turning her head would answer her question. It would be improbable for two of her senses to be lying to her, right?
"Saizomaru?" She asked, her voice barely audible.
It wasn't that she didn't know how to react to this information, more so that she simply couldn't. Her body was frozen and the attempts to force it to move were in vain as she stood face to face with her stepfather. From all the people she had left within her old life, it was him who she felt the most regret towards doing it. Now that he was finally in front of her again, in the flesh. This was no part of her imagination anymore, but rather her reality.
Part of her wanted to cry, while another wanted to run and hug him, although her body refused to let her react. After another brief moment of silence, she would finally manage to force out something. "It's nice to see you again. It had been a while," she said. Her words were trembling and her mouth felt completely dry at this reunion. Hell, even she wasn't happy with her own words, but they were at least something to begin with. It wasn't as if she was unhappy to see him, more that it was a shock to see someone like him come back so suddenly and without warning into her life. It was most certainly a joyous feeling that she hard trouble acting on right now.
|
|
|
|
Post by Saizomaru on Jan 4, 2021 17:33:47 GMT -6
Saizomaru PL: 190,000 (BASE)
The android smirked, and a snicker rumbled through his nose as he gazed at his daughter. If it weren’t for the hot-orange hair and big circular specs, he wouldn’t have been able to recognize her. Comparing her between now and back then, she was like a completely different person.
That was a good thing.
”Eh? You sound like you’ve seen a ghost or something,” he blurted in a half-teasing manner. He lowered his hands until his forearms were laid flat on the counter, then leaned forward a little. ”Look at you. Grown your hair out. Grown a few inches or so since back then. Now, you’ve even went and gotten yourself a nice job in a restaurant—a nice paycheck for yourself. Earning yourself a living now. Maybe you’ve even gone and gotten yourself an apartment, even though we still got a room for ya back home.”
He hummed a little. A hand raised to brush one of the bangs from his face. Then, he reached his hand over and planted his palm on top of Kon’s head, ruffling your hair. ”You’ve come a long way since then. As your dad, I’m proud of ya.”
He took his hand away and reached into the inside pocket of his robe, pulling out his electric cigarette a second later. He fidgeted with it between both hands as he gave slight turned of his head, eyes trailing about the place. ”S’a nice li’l place here. First time I’ve walked in here, to be honest,” he admitted, giving slight, idle nods. ”So… what kinda stuff do you sell here?”
Reaching the nozzle of the vape to his lip, a click was followed up with a loud fizz from the tank of liquid. He took a deep drag, then exhaled a large cloud of vapour to the side of him. It always felt nice to have the taste of mango on his tongue with every hit.
KP: 3/3
|
|
|
|
Post by Kon on Jan 4, 2021 19:01:19 GMT -6
Oh, how was she even supposed to respond to this situation. It wasn't as if she wanted to act like this upon seeing someone in her past, it was just how her body reacted! Fortunately, she was able to give a weak chuckle in response to his tease and soon everything appeared to fall naturally. Slowly, but surely her body began to move, turning fully to face her stepfather. It was like the last time, despite all the changes that she went through he didn't change a single bit. Of course, back then months and now was over a year...
Thankfully, Saizo kept the conversation light, speaking about the obvious. She couldn't help but avert her eyes and let out a bit of a nervous chuckle in response to his words. "Yeah, I figured that I may as well if I wanted to live a normal life." Well, that was the impression she gave right now, but little did he know Kon had already turned in her two-week notice. It felt foreign having such a mundane conversation, almost if they were in a regular familial relationship, although only she knew that it was far from the case. Regardless, she wanted to keep this knowledge from him for as long as she possibly could. Hopefully, when he would inevitably find out the truth, she would have a convincing lie in store.
Hearing all the praise though... It's been a while since she received such treatment. She was used to being scolded by her bosses, the fake compliments from her coworkers, and everything else. Just the general monotony of her life was wearing down on her, although hearing such words come from someone she genuinely cared for was a breath of fresh air in her life. Now she was convinced more than ever. She had to keep up this facade for as long as possible.
"Thanks," Kon said with a small blush on her face, a genuine smile spreading across her face. "It wasn't easy that's for sure, but I managed." Even as great of an accomplishment this was, it felt hallow. She knew that she should have had at least a bit of pride, but how could she be happy in a life that she hardly even wanted? His mannerisms were just as the same as they used to be as well. Even as time changed her, he remained untouched. "Nothing really special, just noodle and rice dishes. As much as I want to serve you, it's almost closing time so you're gonna have to come back tomorrow to get something." She said with a chuckle. "So, how have you been yourself? Anything happen?" Kon asked, hoping to avoid the elephant in the room for as long as she could. It was a topic that would surely come up, but for now she preferred to put it off for as long as she possibly could.
|
|
|
|
Post by Saizomaru on Jan 5, 2021 19:30:11 GMT -6
Saizomaru PL: 190,000 (BASE)
The android took the nozzle from his lips and laid the vape upon the counter as his arm came forward to rest on it. He couldn’t help but find some hidden, unintentional humour in his daughter’s words. ”Well, as normal as Earth gets, anyways,” he remarked with a shrug of his shoulders. ”Y’know, what with everyone and their grandmother wanting to attack it all the time, or at least try and take over a city for… reasons. I guess. Still, it’s been pretty quiet lately.”
The man hummed. It had been a long while since he had seen Kon with a smile on her face—it had been a while since he saw her at all. Seeing her smile was contagious, with him pulling the same face in reflex. He hadn’t been able to spend much time with his children, both Kon and Tarch, but at least he was able to start making up for that lost time little by little.
”I guess finding jobs isn’t too easy nowadays,” he replied before taking another mango drag on the electric cigarette. Small streams and puffs of vapour trailed as he continued, ”What with places being attacked all the time, quite a few people end up having to close up shop while police conduct investigations, or they have to rebuild. The unlucky end up being out of business permanently. S’a good thing West City doesn’t see much trouble. Feel kinda bad for Central though.”
God, how many times did Central City get the short end of the stick, Saizomaru wondered to himself. To his recollection, it had been invaded at least three times, with one of them him being a participant. Half of the city ended up getting wrecked in the battle royale. It was only fair that he helped with the restoration efforts.
After all, it was his duty as a protector; as a soldier; as a man.
”Noodles and rice, huh? Pretty swag.” He smirked a little as he glanced his eyes over at the menus that had been packed away at the side of the counter. With cybernetic implants, he could read it from where he was as though it were right in front of him. ”Eh, I’m not looking to order anyways. Don’t need to—android body and all that jazz.”
He paused for a moment as he began to ponder on what exactly he was doing. So much time had passed since he saw anyone that he recognized that it became boring, immemorable. He was living day by day, most being the same as yesterday and the day before.
Finally, he spoke. ”Well, life’s been pretty boring. I kinda decided that I wanted to fight crime and stuff—give back to the people and what have ya. But, honestly, I think I’m just looking for criminals to fight. Probably cuz of that little bit of saiyan ancestry in me.”
He breathed with exasperation through his nose. The tips of his fingers tapped on the counter, almost in agitation, yet almost in anxiety too. ”I’ve not seen much of your mom or brother in the last year or so. Been trying to make up for lost time but after someone stole the dragon balls we collected and your mom went off to try and find them, I ain’t seen her. I don’t even know if Tarch managed to get revived or not. Guess I’m just… searching for answers.”
KP: 3/3
|
|
|
|
Post by Kon on Jan 6, 2021 1:28:01 GMT -6
Right...
Kon was not very familiar with the emotion of guilt, although the strange sensation in her chest right now felt quite similar to the description of it. Maybe he was hoping that she would join him in protecting the Earth or something like that, yet here she was running away to a random place in the West where she would work as a waitress. As much as she didn't want to talk about it, Kon also felt the desire to apologize for the sudden disappearance. Although, she wasn't even sure how to begin it in the first place. Instead, she would simply go along with the flow of the conversation. "At least things are peaceful for once," she would mutter. Granted with the direction her plans were going she would most likely change this pretty quickly.
The conversation soon shifted towards jobs, something that Kon was all too familiar with. It was almost nostalgic in a sense, reminding her of days of taking odd jobs when she was still a minor. Thankfully she had outgrown such a bad time and was capable of holding her own now that she was an adult. "Yeah, it was pretty hard at first although with enough persistence I managed to land this gig." She said, tapping on the counter for emphasis. "It'd be a shame if anything were to attack West City. I know this joint wouldn't survive it if an attack were to happen." Secretly she had hoped something would attack West City, that way she wouldn't feel as strange quitting her job here at this restaurant. However, she knew better. Chances of such an event happening were slim to none, and thus not even worth considering in the first place. "Maybe I'll go get someone to attack this place so that way you can come and defend it," Kon chuckled. She could relate to her step-father's frustrations. Despite how much she would struggle, getting away from her Saiyan blood was impossible. She had already accepted such a fact and there was no point in escaping it.
As they continued their conversation, Kon was quite surprised to hear that Saizo wasn't in any contact with her mother and brother. After all this time she had assumed that the family was all joined at the hip, yet it appeared to be far from the case to her astonishment. "You haven't seen them in a while either." She spoke, her voice softening. Even if she hated her family, Kon simply couldn't help but feel a bit of pity towards Saizomaru. She didn't mind if she was all alone, knowing that she deserved it all in the first place, but to see her stepfather far away from his family... It was genuinely heartbreaking for her. "Well if I find them, I'll let you know." She offered, hoping to at least lift his spirits somewhat. Of course, she would neglect to state the fact that she still fully intended on killing both Tarch and Kohlra if she were to encounter the two of them the next time, but currently, she did at least want to comfort him a bit. She didn't want to break his hopes that they could all be one big happy family quite yet.
|
|
|
|
Post by Saizomaru on Jan 10, 2021 16:43:16 GMT -6
Saizomaru PL: 190,000 (BASE)
”Yeah, we’ll see how long for,” shirked the android as he flicked his brow up in doubt. Peace would come sporadically only for a few months at a time before some sort of invasion of global catastrophe arrived in equal measure. The man had steered clear of recent events, focusing more on trying to get his family back together. The time that he could finish that task would be the time he could move on to what he really enjoyed doing: breaking legs and caving in faces.
But that was a while to go. Right now, he felt as though he was getting a few more baby steps closer to bringing the family together. What with Kon landing herself a job and becoming independent, he knew she would be okay. If she did decide to move in with him, she could even help Saizomaru with the upkeep.
”Well, as I used to say to the other soldiers: be grateful with what you’ve got, cuz you’ll miss it when it’s gone,” he said before taking a small puff from the vape. ”You’re best keeping this job for as long as you can—at least until you find a better one, anyways. Otherwise, you’re gonna be at the bottom again.”
The android grinned for a moment. He couldn’t tell if his daughter’s jest was in good humour or if there was a half-truth of vailed contempt for this place. He didn’t care either way. If she didn’t like the job, she was free to leave on her own terms—he wouldn’t judge her for it considering he practically did the same when he left the military. If she could shrug off whatever problems she had and stuck it out, then all the more power to her for it.
”Well I’m fairly sure the manager’ll get a big fat cheque from the insurance office, though I doubt it would be able to cover your redundancy package—if you’d even get one, that is.”
The talk of money felt like a raincloud over the android’s head. He had so much money himself and had spent so much of it on a new family house, and yet he was the only one living in it right now. It made him long for his family to come home. ”I guess you ain’t seen them either, then.” His fingers idly tapped on the counter, but at least Kon could provide a little bit of sunshine once she had assured him. ”Thanks. Much appreciated.”
He hummed for a moment. Only small hiccup in the thought was how she would find him. ”Don’t suppose you’ve got, like, a phone or anything?”
KP: 3/3
|
|
|
|
Post by Kon on Jan 17, 2021 13:07:38 GMT -6
Saizo's intentions and concerns were most likely genuine, although it was difficult to accept it as such. He was still the person that she currently trusted the most though, so even if his advice felt like a slap in the face in light of the events currently going on in her life, she would at least keep in might. Right, Kon would simply numbly nod her head as if she would actually take the advice into consideration. Well, granted, one could argue that her future plans were of that better job that she would find herself involved in. Still, nonetheless, she had never been so sure of her decision until now. "I'll keep that in mind," she said quietly as she let out a sigh, leaning onto the counter, resting her chin upon her hands.
It was times like these when she would, for a brief moment, enjoy quiet moments like these. Even if she had the urge to get back into a life of fighting, it didn't mean that she entirely wanted action to fill her life 24/7. It was true that a fight was where she felt the most at home, but it also spent the time with the ones she cared (daresay the ones she loved) was a moment she had sorely missed being isolated from the ones that she cared about for this long. Kon could just close her eyes, and relax, letting her worries drift away naturally rather than forcing them away through training.
Even as her life began to change, some things would never change, whether it was for the better or for the worse. Either way, she found herself content with the way life was going down. Sure, she had been in constant need of money since the moment she ran away from home, but arguably it was minor in the face of the independence that she gained although maybe cutting out her entire past wasn't the best idea. Having fragments of them coming back into her new life was refreshing, reminding her of the best aspects of her past.
Granted, she didn't care for everything from back then. Honestly, she was glad that some things would remain back there, knowing that having them both back would ruin the idyllic life she had to build even if she was the one pulling them back in the first place. Regardless, she would hope that at the very least Saizo would find a way to move on, live his life without their presence in them. It was genuinely a shame Kon couldn't do anything back for him, even if it was just one single request. Slowly she shook her head, "I don't have a cellphone but we have the company phone for taking orders." She said, eyeing the ancient telephone behind her. Hopefully that would be sufficent enough for his needs.
|
|
