I sighed, more than a little annoyed that this Liu girl had tried to call me 'chan'.
No.
Just, no.
I couldn't shake the feeling she was trying to get something out of me: information, money, or even my stuff, I didn't know, but a guard flew up instinctively at the ambush of questions. Do not get distracted, or she'll go for the wallet, I reminded myself. Not like I had much money, but what I did, I was saving for the bills.
If I had learned anything from my...mother, it was that I couldn't trust people who acted like that. They were liars.
I grunted. Do I say something? "I..." I began slowly, "Don't go to High School anymore." I made sure she was at least one foot ahead of me. Watch her hands, Jack. Don't let her get any closer or you'll get pick-pocketed.
Liu tilted her head, curiosity written in her eyes, "Ooooh, why not? Do you still have your ID from it? Can I see it?" she spoke quickly and eagerly, and didn't pause once. Suspicious. Very suspicious.
I stepped back, "I threw that thing out a while ago." I answered sharply, keeping my voice guarded. Okay. Did she want information...?
A cold chill ran up my spin as I remembered that I nearly killed that rich twat and his pal last weekend. His friend had been pretty violent, and was drunken, so I had to fight for my life; at the time I hadn't cared if he died or not...so he did, to save my own life. Had the other one really called the police after our scuffle? Maybe this girl was a cop trying to confirm who I was...My eyes narrowed, and I got a little stiffer. I couldn't risk that crap. Liu had never specified her job, just that she was in college. Maybe she wasn't Liu at all, but--
Luckily for me, before Liu could respond, we both heard a loud, "Hello!" a girl ran up, stopping in front of the suspicious girl and catching her breath, "You must be Lulu!" she smiled, then looked at Destiny, "And you're Destiny, right?"
Suddenly her phone began to ring, and we all got quiet as we heard yelling on the other end of it, and the girl flipping it closed quickly after replying. This girl was probably..
.
She looked back over at us, "Um...Sorry about that. I'm Torri." she smiled a little.
Knew it.
I stepped a little farther away from Liu, never letting my eyes stray from her. On guard, Jack. Real men are on guard always...
Liu was smiling at our...I looked the girl over...charming new arrival. She was so brightly colored, I wondered how I didn't go blind. Seemed nice enough, of course, but...she looked like the girlfriend of a pompous jerk-off. I didn't like pompous jerk-offs.
We met eyes for a moment, and she gave me an awkward smile and wave. We'd been playing Rabbit Doubt for a while...was I really this awkward? That I couldn't even talk to people I'd "known" for such a while?
My mother would--
...Die if she saw me now. Ha-ha. It's funny because I hate this so bad right now. What kind of 'gentleman' was she raising me to be again?
"Now, sweetie, if you don't want to be a little lady, at least be a good little gentleman for Mommy, okay? You're still my sunshine, just be a good one. Don't be like your father, I want a good little son." her voice slithered like a snake through my mind, the smell of cheap beer and cigarettes overbearing in my nose, sending a familiar sickness into my stomach at her memory.
A good little son...God, I hated that woman.
I found my self standing a little straighter regardless, and nodding politely in her direction. Chivalry toward ladies, no matter how tedious.
Liu looked back over at me, seeming to return to her previous investigation, and I tightened. Chivalry, Jack.
Liu grinned, that slippery, serpent-like grin that sent a chill down my spine, "Soo, where are you from? You're pretty young, so do you still live with your parents? Are you more like your mother, or father?"
I stiffened. I answered without thinking, "Just because I'm young does not need I need some idiot monitoring me like I can't take care of myself. I live alone. I never knew my father, and my mother is dead. I'd sooner die myself before I tell anyone I'm like her." I looked at the headphones strung around my neck, and wished for a moment that I had a CD player or MP3 to go with them. I hated answering questions.
As if on cue, yet another girl appeared, toting a young boy at her side. Ah. Musta been the last of them, then? Finally, we could get going.
I patiently waited while she introduced herself and her kid-pet. I smirked at his crack at everyone's hair. I was wondering about the freakish colors too, kiddo.
I was suddenly aware of Liu up in my personal bubble, and I calmly stepped back, very cautiously reaching for my pocket knife out on instinct, but I retracted my hand when she said we needed to get going.
"Uh...yeah. Okay." I guessed I'd have to keep my guard up. There was no way I'd let her know what she wanted, because it couldn't be good.
--
Poochy, what you didn't know was that Jack is chronically paranoid. In his mind, Liu is a cop in disguise now XD He doesn't want to be arrested, so Liu's game just got a bit harder.
