It was late. Or, rather, the person Jasper was waiting on was late. Jasper checked his phone and scrunched his phone at the sight. Seventeen minutes late. Geez. Did the kid think he was made of time or something? Granted, it wasn’t as if Jasper necessarily had a packed schedule he had to fit in these side dealings into. But that wasn’t something he was going to let the scrawny kid who always dropped several hundred bucks every other week know. In all honesty, Jasper was impressed by the pocket size of the kid. He looked fresh out of college- if even that. He wondered where a kid that young got money like that. Oh, well. Judging where his payment came from wasn’t really of interest to him, as long as the money was real, Jasper was happy. With a smack of his lips, Jasper shrugged the bag off his shoulder and placed it down on the floor by his feet. For that much money, he would wait. At least for a short while longer. Up until that point, the kid had yet to ever be tardy to their meetings. He scoffed a laugh and smiled to himself, wondering if his choice of scenery that time had scared the kid off before any threat of arrest could.

Crowds were a necessary means to an end for Lenny. They were an excellent buffer when she needed to make a quick getaway. They perfect for blending into when she didn’t want to be noticed. Though, one could hardly call five people a crowd, but they were all chattering so loudly in an attempt to rise above the others that it sounded like twelve people at least. Throwing questions around that could have easily been answered if they’d only taken a moment to look at the questions and answer’s page on the website. Idiots.

Her draw worked, and she danced them through the small maze until they found a quiet alcove at the end of the next hall. A place where residents could read by the window if they wished- or so she assumed, and she settled onto the maroon cushion with all the grace of a person who’d been raised on etiquette classes and charm.

At his initial question, she raised a brow once more and studied him. “Zhang,” she murmured, unclasping her purse to lift a mirror out of it- to see behind in case he was too busy paying mind to her than his surroundings. “I’m just jumping to a conclusion here, pretty boy. My name is Lennox,” she extended a manicured hand, “and it seems that we have some more things in common than our…extracurricular activities. Who was that boy you were with? In the game room?”

Well. She definitely wasted no time getting to the point. Jasper could appreciate that, he supposed. Sometimes people that spoke in riddles grated on his last nerve. He watched her gracefully place herself on the window seat and resume a position of formality, but he couldn’t bring himself to shake her hand. “Zhang,” he simply echoed quietly, fearing something would happen if he said the name too loudly. Jasper sat down in the seat opposite of the woman’s- Lennox, she had said, and crossed his legs. He scoffed and murmured, “that isn’t the first term I’d use for it.”

At the mere mention of his brother, he bristled, shoulders drawing back together until he sat ramrod straight with tense muscles. The urge to tell her to shut up came over him, but he stamped it out. He sat still for a moment as he contemplated his answer. There weren’t many people at the home under the age of 50. Under 70, even. Jasper would bet he was the youngest one there. Not many people had such a specialized wheelchair, either. And, was there even another Korean at that facility? He was an easy person to find if Lennox chose to look. Jasper sighed and narrowed his eyes. “Family.” He settled for saying, folding his hands over his knee. “I’m assuming you’re here for the same reason. You don’t look like someone considering moving in any time soon.”

          Fuck this yacht. Vinny’s internal monologue was much angrier than usual. Fuck this crowd. The fear of being recognized as a murderer crippled him into a frozen state. He could hope the trauma of seeing a bullet travel through someone’s head would erase his face from those who witnessed it. His mind hardly processed the idea that his set of features were hidden from the world for one night. Maybe he’d have to start carrying a mask around in case of overwhelming bouts of paranoia. The drink in his hand calmed him down; that’s what alcohol did for him, lest he be in the company of a rowdy bunch. There was really only one thing that lifted his spirits, and he hadn’t seen much of that something lately.

          Fucking hell. So his mask wasn’t doing him many favors aside protecting his identity from strangers. The silhouette beside him surfaced old memories… memories that were most certainly doctored by a particular substance to seem that way. “Found me on a bad day, man.” Eyes shot toward Jasper, then immediately toward the pocket on the run of the mill blazer. “Guess it’s a good day for you.” As it probably always was when he found someone who’d buy from him. Vinny was convinced he had a black book of regulars. “Read my mind— I don’t know, gotta get up there soon,” though his eyes told a different story, the other could probably pick up on what he was thinking. Addicts didn’t have a hard time reading each other.

A smile spread over his face at Vinny’s remarks, inclining his head just so as if to say: ‘is that so?’. Putting voices to names were one of the few things Jasper did well. Masks aside, he knew people who bought from him on the side like the back of his hand. There was no fooling him on that matter. “It’ll be a good day for me if you say yes,” he told him, more for clarity than anything else. Jasper knew good as any other addict that it was hard to turn down an offering, especially when it was your preferred poison. “It won’t take long after that. You know how it is.” Jasper lifted the flute of champagne he held and gently tilted in back and forth, a substitute for tapping his foot as he awaited Vinny’s response.

“You know I can make a bad day good very quickly,” he offered. If it hadn’t been for the fact that Jasper had yet to take any himself, he wouldn’t have been so eager to pull Vinny away from the crowd. It meant a bit for himself as well as the money that came with someone else. “It seems like everyone here is…” Jasper glanced around the room, giving a flippant shrug. “Preoccupied, if you will. I don’t think they’d be upset if you get freshened up first.”

Moments like this were necessary to keep her grounded when it came to her assignment. No matter how attached she reluctantly became to her fellow Kovali, in the end she had to help diminish the crime in this city so desperate young kids didn’t have something like the Kovali to turn to when they felt like they had no other option. This guy was right, the two Kovali she chastised could have very well ended up dead one day if they kept this up. “Probably. But I’m not their Mom so I doubt they’d listen to me if I told them they’re grounded,” she commented, tone dripping with sarcasm. “Hopefully they’re heading home to measure dicks with each other instead so they won’t be bother anyone else for the evening.” It was naïve to think they weren’t going to pull a stunt like this again. Kids were stupid that way. 

She studied the man in front of her. By what she saw first glance, he looked like an easy enough target, which was probably why he ended up as one. But looks were always deceiving, and that lack of awareness was exactly what would get those kids killed. She knew nothing about this man, and that was exactly why she wouldn’t have done something so reckless. “I probably wouldn’t walk this way for a while. Just in case they want to finish when they started. Men can be prideful that way. No offense.”

Despite being that age once, Jasper couldn’t believe the recklessness of young inductees. His instincts for self-preservation ran too high- or perhaps that was just his paranoia. “… they’re lucky if they just go home and do that.” He coughed once, then lifted his hand to rub his neck gently. It seemed like he was suddenly everyone’s favorite thing to choke. Jasper’s eyes trailed over to look down the street the boys went once more, almost testing her words then and there to see if they’d return. “Doubtful, though.”

He looked over to the woman in front of him. If she knew them, there was no doubt in his mind that she was apart of the Kovali. Instantly, he felt a rush of ice in his veins as the need to escape overcame him. He inhaled deeply, holding the breath to try and stop himself from doing anything stupid. Or, at least, stupider. If she’d yet realize who Jasper was, then she didn’t know at all. He repeated that in his brain until he didn’t feel so anxious to flee. “Usually, I’m good at blending in,” he settled for saying. “I just happened to get off work late.”

Contact Name: boss ladyProfile Pic:

(don’t ask me how he got her to not look like she’s going to murder someone)