#mk1 angst

Bi-Han knew he had his faults. He was ill tempered, dishonest, untrusting, held grudges, the list could go on and on. All those flaws disappeared when he was around a special someone, tossed in the wind and floating about, waiting until he was away from them.

He wouldn't blame anyone for assuming he'd be a strict father who took issue with everything his child did. He knew Kuai Liang and Tomas assumed he'd be just like that, only to be surprised when he proved himself to be the gentlest of souls when it came to his baby.

"Aw man!" The seven year old pouted as they kicked at a rock, "okay, you hide next and I'll try to find you!". Hide and Seek had been their favorite game for years now, for reasons he didn't know. He just chalked it up to one of the many things they found intriguing that he personally didn't care for. They covered their eyes with their hands, "one! Two! Three-!

Bi-Han's rough hands pulled theirs from their eyes, "playtime is over". He had already let them skip out on the last hour of their lessons. He had to be somewhat sensible and at least get them to bed on time. "We'll play again tomorrow"

"But I wanna play now"

"Yeah? Well-"

A gasp followed by a squeal left them, which honestly could've meant a number a things. Children were excitable by nature but he swore they had more energy than any normal child did.

"Daddy look!" his eyes followed where they pointed, eventually seeing…

A butterfly.

A butterfly?

That's what got them excited? "Isn't it pretty?

Not necessarily. It was just a butterfly. A little insect with wings. Whatever caused them to squeal, he didn't see it. But he also wasn't a child anymore. His mind had been reigned in by the reality of being an adult long ago, his childish wonder dripping out of him until there was nothing left. "It's a butterfly"

"But isn't it pretty?". He shrugged. "You don't like butterflies?

"I don't care for them"

"Why not?

"I just don't. Come on, let's go home"

His extended hand went ignored, his child instead choosing to slowly approach the flower the butterfly sat on. "I think you should start liking butterflies. They're small, but small things keep us happy". Ugh, what cereal box did they read that from?

"I'll considerate it" he said, trying not to sound as uninterested as he actually was. "Let's go home"

"Hey dad" you looked over at him, "I'm gonna make history when I'm Grandmaster. Wanna know how?

Hmm... Your intellect maybe? You'll be known as the wisest Grandmaster the Lin Kuei have had so far. Or maybe your strength. You'll crush the bones in someone's body without even thinking. Or maybe you'll be fast enough to kill 1000 men within the blink of an eye. Or maybe-

"I'm gonna be happy"

Happy? How would being happy make history?

"Grandpa was pretty grumpy sometimes. You are too. Maybe Grandmasters are always grumpy. I won't be though. I'm gonna be the very first happy Grandmaster. You wanna know how?". You fully turned to face him, arms outstretched "like this. I'll have open arms"

As smart as Bi-Han was, you had fully lost him by now. "Open arms?

You nodded, "yeah. That means I won't be all angry and violent all the time. I'll be kind. That's what I wanna be when I grow up; kind. I think everyone would be a lot more happier if everyone was kind. Everyone doesn't have to be sad and angry". The butterfly began to flutter away, catching your attention. "Maybe I'll inspire others to greet the world with open arms. You think I can do that?”

No. As harsh as it sounded, Bi-Han knew what you wanted was impossible. People would always yell, fight and kill. The world would continue to be ugly because that's just how the world was. There was no "greeting the world with open arms". That wasn't realistic. No Grandmaster was happy because being a Grandmaster meant carrying a heavy burden. You'd see.

But he couldn't tell you that. You looked too sweet and innocent, eyes full of light when thinking about a future that couldn't be.

"I think... " he began, setting his hand down on your shoulder. "I think you can do whatever you set your mind to"

That smile was worth the lie.

"Can we play one more round of hide and seek before we go home? Please please please? I won't even choose a super good hiding spot, and we can use the clap rules! Please please please please pleeeeeasssee?”

No! You need to get to bed!

"Alright, fine"

Dammit Bi-Han. Just one more round, then you'd be off to bed. Then he swore he'd be more strict with you.

"Close your eyes!”

Yeah yeah, he knew how the game went. He closed his eyes before covering them with his hands (because you always sword he was peeking if he didn't cover his eyes), then counted loudly. 1, 2, 3, he shouted each number until he got to 10. "First clap!”

Clap clap!

East.

His feet carried him while his eyes scanned the area. The faster he found you, the faster you could both be inside. He wouldn't admit it, but damn, he was tired. A mix of both physical and mental exhaustion, but he tried his best to hide all that from you.

"Second clap!”

He waited a bit.

Silence.

"Second clap!" he shouted louder. Still, all he got was silence in return. There was no way you didn't hear him. You always heard him when he called for you. "Clap or we're going home!".

More silence.

Then a ear piercing scream.

"DAD, HELP!”

You were a jokester, yeah, but this was no prank. You'd never play like this with him, and that scream, it was of genuine horror. It was a tone he had never heard you use before. A tone that scared the hell out of him, and caused him to run in the direction where he last heard you clap.

He kept running, calling out for you, heart thumping faster than it ever had before. A snake. Let it be a snake that frightened you. Or a spider. Anything but you actually being harmed. “WHERE ARE YOU?!”.

“DAD!”.

He was getting closer.

He could hear you crying.

All these stupid fucking trees were in his way. He kept having to finagle his way through them, which only added to his panic. Seconds wasted on trying not to run straight into one. “I’M COMING!”.

“DAD!”

“I’M-“ he stopped dead in his tracks when he saw you. A nightmare. That’s what he wanted this to be. This couldn’t be real. You couldn’t actually be laying on the ground, blood seeping from the several stab wounds you had. How? He had just saw you!

Someone had been watching you. How hadn’t he noticed?!

“I have you” he ran to your side, heart tearing into two when he heard you cry in reaction to him sitting you up. “Daddy’s here. I have you”. Who would do this to you?! Who would attack a child just trying to play with their father?!

“I’m scared” you managed to get out in between your heavy breathing. So was he.

“Don’t be. I have you”.

“I don’t wanna die”.

“You won’t! I’ll get you home!”. You blinked, but it lasted too long. He had to get you home now! “Stay awake. I have you”. That’s all he wanted you to do. Just stay awake and let him get you help.

Your breathing changed almost at an instant. Your hyperventilating slowed, which was the exact opposite of what he wanted. “Dad…”.

Bi-Han watched as you let out your last breath.

Your eyes were still open, but they lacked the warmth from earlier. They were lifeless now, no light in sight. A smile no longer graced your face. There was no talk of open arms. There was no big speech like there was in the books he read as a child. You were just gone.

“Baby” he whispered, “wake up. Don’t- this is an order from your Grandmaster! Get up! GET UP!”. He shook you with all his might, but the dead didn’t follow orders. He rocked back and forth, your blood staining his clothes, his forehead on yours, letting out the most gut wrenching sobs he had ever let out in his entire life. When his mother died, he was sad, but he was comforted by the fact that she had lived a beautiful and long life. You were so young. You still had so much of the world to see. Shit, maybe you actually could’ve led some unnatural era of peace. He didn’t fucking know. All he knew was that it would never happen now.

His baby was gone. His beautiful sweetheart with a laugh as beautiful as the clouds in the sky, was gone.

You were just a corpse now.

~~

When Bi-Han found out that Liu Kang was the creator of this timeline, he wasn’t shocked like the others. He hadn’t seen it coming, but he felt something stronger than shock.

He felt rage.

As creator of this timeline, not only had he chosen to have the Lin Kuei remain mediocre, but he must’ve known that you would be killed.

“That’s not true” he tried to tell Bi-Han, “I am no puppet master. I had no idea that your child would die, and I didn’t plan for it to happen”.

“Then bring them back”.

“I can’t”.

Bullshit. He could do anything! He just refused to!

Liu Kang… he was the true traitor yet everyone was angry with Bi-Han?! He hadn’t meant for Sindel to die, but why was everyone upset by her death? What about his child? No one demanded justice for them! Even when their death was fresh, all these people who cried for Sindel, their “allies”, did nothing. Liu Kang could’ve burnt their rival clan down to the ground, but no! Bi-Han had to carry the weight of his grief, and somehow think straight enough to make a plan of attack. When he looked up from your corpse and spotted the pendant of his rival clan nearby, gods, he wanted everyone to die. And Liu Kang had the nerve to advise him to think on it first?! No!

“The innocent men, women and children-”

What about his child?!

That grudge was the wind beneath his wings, carrying him away from everyone he once called an ally. But it also carried him to what appeared to be his own destruction.

He was in an unfamiliar timeline now, woozy from the fight he was just in. Fine, maybe he should’ve made a better decision, but at least he was doing something! Liu Kang would probably have him be inactive as always!

But now he was in an even worse spot. In unfamiliar lands with a madman ranting about his need for anarchy. Black tendrils with sharp points came closer and closer to Bi-Han, and he’d be lying if he said he wasn’t afraid.

Then, there was a noise. A clattering on the ground.

Before Titan Havik could react, a sudden wave of ice filled the nearby area, freezing anyone with their feet touching the ground. Ice crawled up the nearby machines, but thankfully it didn’t stick the way it did to flesh.

“Move move move!”. Ugh, of all variants, it had to be Jonny Cage?

Johnny Cage in a military uniform? He needed a nap.

“How long do those bombs last?” Johnny asked, rushing over to Geras and freeing him from his confines.

“Long enough for us to get out of here!”.

That voice…

He was upside down, but he could still recognize the child approaching him. He heard that voice in his dreams and nightmares. Of course he’d recognize it.

“Hi dad”.

His baby.

JOHNNY CAGE was strong. Although he acted cheerful and sauvy on-screen, he was a fighter through-and-through, reveling in the feeling of a good fight. Yet he's also the person who would go to any lengths to protect his loved ones. But he ended up failing, his eyes widening as he spotted your bloodied body on the battlefield. "No.. no, no, no" he whispers, and immediately runs to your body, sitting down and pulling you close. " Shit-shit, baby, please no" he felt his heart drop as he looked at your blank gaze, realizing you were already long gone. It was at that he lets his tears spill and he hugs you close, shakily sobbing into your shoulder.

SYZOTH always feared losing his loved ones after it happened once, that anxiety never leaving him when he was with you. You were the light of his life, and he thought the both of you could build a future together, a family that he craved. Now he wished that the two of you never met. Feeling his breathing quicken rapidly as he looked at your body on the cold ground, among other lifeless bodies. He couldn't think, he felt dizzy, heart thudding unnaturally loud in his chest. This wasn't supposed to be like this. What should he do now? You were supposed to stay with him till the end. So why...why were you so silent as he begged you to wake up?

TOMAS has always been sweet to you. You were the person he cherished most of all, of course. He had the same gentle expression, albeit mixed with panic and desperation, as he scanned over your face and wounds, trying to deny how hopeless the situation was. "Open your eyes, love, please", he whispered, trying his best to sound as gentle as possible. You were alive, and he wasn't gonna get mad at you. You'll be up again, he knows it. "I know you can hear me" he clutches your hand in his, ignoring the dull pang of pain in his chest as his tears run down his face. It's fine, it's fine, you're waking up soon. "Love please, wake up for me, I know you can do this.. "

“ Nostalgic Ocean Eyes. ”

— The starry, breezy, and lighted night welcomed your solemn presence. There was a part of you that had long been frozen since 3 months ago. You sat on the ground of the courtyard silently, watching Kuai Liang, Harumi, and Tomas go to bed after a long day of work. It’s been long since the day that Kuai Liang and Tomas escorted you out of the Lin Kuei when they delivered the news of Bi-Han’s betrayal to your chambers. Despite there being hope burning, and engraving, inside of your heart; there lacked hope in your mind. You knew yourself better than that, you could never look at Bi-Han in the eyes the same way again. You are only human, and you can only take so much, and become delusional enough to a point where you finally reach the end of delusion, and can no longer go deeper in. When you realize that reality has settled in, and the man that you once loved was no longer there [and would never be back]. You removed your face mask, and you let your hair go. No matter how deep your breathing was, and how relieving it felt against the cold air— nothing could soothe the pain of half of your heart being ripped out from your chest.

— “ . . . Why am I kidding myself. . . He doesn’t even care, and it’s all honor and glory. . .” You said to yourself, fighting the gloss in your eyes, and breathing deeply through your nose. You were basically talking to yourself, recovering from the moment of delusion.

“ . . . If he comes back— I will only give him one chance to leave, and never come back.”

“ How could he even ?? Why would he even apologize ? ”

“ To me it is unbelievable. . . Madam Bo and Liu Kang have taught me better than that. . .”

— Eventually, you loomed your glossy eyes towards the moon. Lips slowly pouting, and a sad blush emerging from your tinted cheeks. A defeated sigh came from your soft-and-velvet lips. “ . . . So much for wanting honor . . . Let’s see if he finds another person to love. . . If he can even love. . .” You muttered, before turning your head to the side and lying on the grassy field. It felt like the grass became a new warm hug, its arms wrapping around you with care and love that you had never felt before. Maybe you have felt it before, and you tried to forget about how nice it felt to be hugged by someone whom you love so dearly, and deeply. Someone whom you’ve trusted in life-endangering situations, and life-changing situations. The warm grass had held a musky-like smell. The smell of oil, incense, and metal seethed from the grass. As weird as it was, it brought nostalgia to your aching heart. it felt like you were slowly drifting into a slumber in the arms of your significant other—your past significant other. As soon as you started to loose conscious, and began falling asleep, a new warmth came into the picture. The warmth felt so welcoming, that you did not even think about the fact that everyone in the courtyard has gone to bed, and the night watch people were on the other side.

— Bi-Han had been attempting to sneak into the Shirai Ryu Courtyard in order to write accurate coordinates of the location, and by which mountains and places it passes. His presence did not disturb the peace, or the silence, and he almost acted invisible. Keyword, almost. Bi-Han’s course finally lead him to your direction, and he eventually began to stare at you, holding the torch over you to keep you warm in the cold of the night. Despite such heartlessness he displayed all those months ago, he acknowledged the hatred you had for the environmental cold. He grumbled lightly, and tried to look away— but he couldn’t. The only cold you longed for was his cold hands, which always made you feel warm in some way. He planned to go inside the courtyard and get coordinates for the new clan that was being built. To anticipate the upcoming of a new worthy foe, a clan full of traitors that not even blood had bonded them. However, something they had. . . Was really the real reason he was there. He wanted to bring you back, He wanted to be with you until the end of the timeline. Bi-Han wanted you to be there, to see his hard work grow, and to become what his father never was. Glorious, and Honoring— with a lot of power, and protection. He wanted to be feared to keep the clan, and his family, safe. It was in his nature to be that way. He did not let anyone get in the way of his goals. In the end, though, he realized that he had lost a piece of comfort that brought him the feeling of home. He lost you. Once seeing you lay on the grass, drifting away into a slumber, he could not help but sit down on the grass alongside you. He did not think of touching you for a moment, since you were so peaceful laying there, like a sleepy vixen.

— “ . . . I thought i would never lay my eyes on you again . . .” He said gently, and in a whisper. Almost like he was relieved to see you somewhere that was somewhat safe. He rolled his eyes to himself, and grumbled seeing the moon looking over at such heartbreaking sight. He never thought you’d be able to hear his voice— even though that was what awakened you in the first place. His presence alone. You pretended to be asleep, hoping he’d go away. You did not want to be the one to tell him to leave, as it would break your heart all over again. After a while passed, you felt him lay down next to you, putting out the torch. Eventually, you felt one of his hands gently caress your hair, and you jolted up with a sense of danger. Bi-Han’s hand flinched back, and the both of you were on the floor staring at each other. Your eyes had finally met those ocean deep eyes, bringing you back to a time where everyone lived in something close to harmony. But now, he looked at what was a former shell of yourself— and deep inside, his heart screamed the blame towards himself. You kept staring like an idiot, before shuffling your way back up, and started to run away to get help. However, almost like you knew what would happen, you stopped moving. It is not that you wanted to stop moving, but your body couldn’t let you move faster, and you were rather frozen from the waist down… he froze your legs.

— “No matter how many times you try to escape me, and run away… you still forget that freezing the floor is a possibility. You are really stupid.” He scoffed, crossing his arms, before making his way over to you. Honestly, he did not expect for you to even look mad. But you were burning daggers into him from your eyes. You were still hurt, and his abrupt arrival did not change that. “ When you thaw me out of here, you will regret having EVER come back—“ “ How dare you raise your voice at the grandmaster of the Lin Kuei ?!” Both of you began to argue in whisper tones, almost like you were saving each other the pain of having an unfair fight. For the last 3 months, you’ve been having enough pent up aggression for this moment, to smack him— to kick the shit out of him and make him regret the betrayal. You could not even do that at the moment,because your heart’s aches began to intensify even more. There was a moment of both of you whisper yelling at each other, where you finally took a moment to catch your breath. You realized that fighting would not change anything— and it would wake up everyone else. Wait a moment, you should wake up everyone— Bi-han is literally standing right in front of you, he should not even be here. Yet, your mind’s pleading to do the right thing was clouded by the judgement of your foolish heart. Your heart desired for the man that gave you, and supported you with, shelter and protection, to ask— no, BEG— for your forgiveness, to acknowledge the irreversible damage that has been done.

— His veined, strong, and roughed hands grabbed the sides of your face. In fear, and distrust, you grabbed his hands, hoping he would not kill you in this moment in the most terrifying way… freezing to death, by the hands of your lover. You could not bear the last amount of trust you’d ever have be broken within your last breathes. But he didn’t do that, and he opted for bringing your face closer, and closer, before slowly meeting his lips to yours in an electrifying kiss. You grabbed his hands tighter, trying to pull away, but your body would melt right into his touch, and your mind would daze into deeper nostalgic delusion. His warm lips felt so welcoming to your body, like it was an ecstasy that you were not addicted to, rather it was essential to your survival. His hands kept holding gently onto your face, before bringing a hand down to your hips, while you wrapped your plushy arms around the back of his neck. Slowly, the hurt and betrayed emotions that were long buried had started to be uncovered when the kiss intensified in passion. It felt like a battle of lips, before turning into a passionate make-out that was so scandalous to think the grandmaster of the Lin Kuei would ever participate in such things with a traitor. The kisses began to dwindle like stars, and was slowly put out by Bi-Han gently tugging at your bottom lip with his teeth. Eventually he let go of your face, and kept his hands around your waist, holding you like he once did.

— “Say it.” You demanded of him, your hands slowly riding down from the back of his neck to his chest, where the Lin Kuei symbol resided. The question made him grumble lightly, looking towards the ground. You knew how much he melted at your demands, even if he could not understand them. There was something about you being so demanding that always reflected on him pretty well. God forbid it taking effect in this moment, especially when you repeated it again. “ Bi-Han, Say it and mean it . . .” You said softly, holding his face, hoping for the glimmer of hope. “ . . . The only forgiveness i will beg you for, is for hurting you— and for not protecting you better. Everything else, i will not ask for forgiveness. . .” He stated, remaining a little grumpy, and a little cocky. However, what he did want to ask forgiveness for did spark that glimmer of hope. You remained silent, and felt your hands shake, and you were so close to smacking the crap out of him. In the end, you clenched your fist, and sighed a relieving breath, crossing your arms. “ Why are you here ?” You asked with a low growl, feeling the ice melt from under you. “ . . . I came looking for you.” He sighed out, looking to the floor. You paused for a moment, considering the state you now saw him in. He still had the promise ring in his finger, and three Lin Kuei symbols were on him. You saw him take one symbol off, your symbol. He pinned it on your shirt, and gentle nudged it. Despite such anger you previously held, you still wondered if it was true that he was looking for you as the principal reason. It felt right, It felt like the right reason, and the only reason. “ . . . You do not understand the pain i’ve been through since your stunt— Bi-han, I cant even look at you in the eyes anymore, You’re a traitor to everyone else.” You began to speak, your frustration turning into desperation. You began to finally walk back and forth before continuing to ramble on about how he’s changed, how you’ve been affected, and everything under the moon. “ All you’ve been is selfish !” You whisper yelled, trying to hold in all the gloss in your eyes, but you felt like he wasn’t listening, he looked so stupid standing there like he did nothing. “ It’s not like you even listen anyways, that’s why we’re in this disposition.” You sighed, before sitting on the floor again, watching the moon.

— The necromancer remained quiet, before sitting next to you. Each action felt more, and more, and more like home— more like him. “ You know that no matter how much I Iove you now, I will never pick you over my people anymore-“ you began to say, before taking a moment to breathe, and continuing to talk eventually, “-the same way you picked all of your clan over me and your brothers…” You said firmly, anger clearly displayed on your brow. His silent nod said everything you needed to know, it was really all fucked up now. “ . . . But my enemy, you are not that.” He managed to say, staring at the moon, holding your hand gently. “... I hate that you have become my weakness. Had you not, it would not be hard to take you out right now— but my brain and my heart are conflicted… so I will keep you alive.” You let him talk for longer, and longer, and longer. The moments in which your heart trumped your brain were too many, and this one was a clear winner of the heart. “ Don’t think that I did it to hurt you, because I did it to—“ you placed your hand on top of his mouth, shushing him while hearing the environment of the empty courtyard in the middle of the night. “ . . . I know that all you wanted was the best for the future of the Lin Kuei, at any cost necessary. This is just the price for that, and I am not going to reduce it for you, Grandmaster Bi-Han.” You said to him, eventually grabbing a hold of his hands. His eyes softened at your words, and he was still somewhat stone-cold. In his heart, and on the inside, his heart was slowly breaking. But not because of you, but from your words. He was starting to feel the degree of the mistake he had made. Yet, You already acknowledged the severity. You saw the flaws, and you knew he needed to see them before he could think about fixing them— that’s if he even wanted to.

“I know you

I walked with you once upon a dream

I know you

That look in your eyes is so familiar a gleam”

Dreams were a powerful and interesting concept. You always thought so, but perhaps that made sense for someone like you - someone who could manipulate dreams and bend them to your will.

You had seen first hand how dreams could affect someone’s day. A bad one could cause someone to be cranky in the morning, a good one made them awake with a smile, a dream about a lost loved one caused tears to pool in one's eyes. The list went on and on.

Dreams were where people could escape their day to day lives. You were no different. Life had been less than ideal as of late, causing you to look forward to sleeping more than you used to. You wished everyday that you weren’t like this, that you could be happy when you were awake. You tried. You tried so hard, but life was too quiet. There was someone missing. Someone you couldn’t have.

Your longing for him only got worse after your recent encounter with Titan Havik and his ridiculous dreams of chaos.

Him. 

Seeing him after his betrayal… seeing him in such a hateful manner at his own brother’s wedding… then what Havik did to him…

Him.

Why was thinking his name so painful? 

And why were you trying to connect with him like you used to? 

Around you was a dull void. No walls, no solid ground, nothing physical. Just a blackness with an unknown light source coming from above, highlighting your frame. Your body hung in this void. Was this the right choice? Maybe you should just abandon this idea and actually dream.

“Bi-Han, can you hear me?”

Under normal circumstances, Bi–Han would respond to your telepathic message. 

“Yes” he’d say back to you.

Such a simple word, yet you were missing it desperately. There was no response. You’d have to check if he was asleep your own way then.

You closed your eyes and pictured the outline of his body. He had no facial features or any details to him. The inside of his silhouette was a white light, the outline a bright blue. The light dimmed and brightened to the rhythm of his heart.

Thump - Dims

Bump - Brightens

Slow and steady.

Thump-bump… thump-bump… thump-bump…

He was sleeping.

“Bi-Han, can you hear me?”

Of course he could. He was choosing to ignore you. Choosing not to imagine himself putting a letter in a mailbox like you taught him to. This should’ve made you abandon this quest, but instead you imagined his silhouette becoming bigger and bigger, consuming your entire vision until-

Birds singing.

He was dreaming of birds singing?

You opened your eyes once you felt your feet touch solid ground. Of course he’d be with his clan in his dreams. This no longer felt like home to you, but it still was to him. 

Dreams were strange. Brains just threw context at dreamers without actually showing them anything at times. You could feel parts of his dream being absorbed into you like a sponge. Somehow you knew that he was dreaming of his perfect future. You could tell Liu Kang was gone. Maybe he was dead, maybe not, but you just felt it in your bones that he wasn’t a part of this reality.

You willed yourself to find him, creating a blue string to show you the way to him. You tried to ignore your own thumping heart. Tried to ignore the stone warriors Shang Tsung promised Bi-Han staring daggers into you. Tried to force yourself to take slow and deep breaths as you continued on the path.

Then there he was. 

Standing atop a cliff, hands behind his back, watching the beautiful sunset. What Havik made him was gone. He looked like his normal self; same suit, shoes, hair, even the details in his skin were the same. His name left your lips hardly above a whisper, “Bi-Han… it’s me”. 

“I know” his voice came out gruff - so the usual. 

“Did you hear me when I tried to-”

“Yes”.

You had known it, but it hurt like hell having him confirm that he ignored you. You should’ve left, but instead your feet carried you to be at his side. You could see now that he wasn’t watching the sunset. He was watching his clan train, their moves perfect. Abnormally perfect.

You didn’t know what to say. All of this was a last minute decision. You hadn’t practiced some big speech about how much of an asshole he was and how your ring felt heavier on your finger. You had nothing planned. 

“I’ve missed you Bi-Han”.

It was the only thing you could think of. You missed him. Morning, noon, evening, night, you missed him. 

“I’ve missed you dearly. The sun doesn’t feel as warm when you’re not around”.

“So?” he said indifferently. You hadn’t looked up at him, afraid of what you’d see in his eyes.

“Have you-” you swallowed. Did you really wanna know the answer? “Have you missed me?”.

He took a few moments to answer. Once he did though, your heart fell to your stomach. “Why would I?”. Why would he? Because you were his closest friend. Had been ever since you were kids! Or maybe because he had proposed to you. Maybe he should miss you because whenever he talked about his future, you were always in it. He spoke again before you could force out a response, “what do you want from me?”.

You stammered your answer out. His shell was always hard, but never this.”I-I, well- I mean, I wanted to see you”. Your eyes finally looked up but his eyes were still on the people below. He was perfect to look at. Always would be to you. Even his new appearance after Havik was perfect to you. It was perfect because it was him. “I love you-”.

He scoffed, which made you furrow your brows. “Love” he shook his head. “You don’t love me. You are a traitor, and it’s a good thing you’re no longer Lin Kuei. You only dragged us down. Dragged me down”. His words sounded like a mantra. Like he had repeated these words over and over again in his head until it became second nature to say it. It still didn’t stop your mouth from opening slightly in shock. People could call Bi-Han mean all they wanted. He had never ever said such cruel words to you. Even when you made mistakes. His lectures always had care and concern under them. This? This wasn’t right. 

“Why would you say that to me?”.

Only now did he look at you. You expected to see disdain in his eyes. Malice, disgust, fury, something that showed he had no love for you. You saw nothing in his eyes. Just blackness. Coal. Darkness. A void. 

“Why are you still here?”.

“Why did you say that to me?”. He tried to walk away from you but stopped in his tracks when he heard you speak again. “How could you say something like that to me?”.

You heard him take in a deep breath before muttering “don’t do this to yourself”. You hardly even heard him. 

“I love you” you hadn’t realized how softly your words came out. Nor did you see Bi-Han close his eyes due to his back being to you. “I’ve loved you practically all my life. You’re all I’ve been thinking about recently, that’s why I’m here. And- and that’s what you have to say to me?”.

“What do you want me to say?”

“That you love me. Or miss me. Or both”

“Why would I?”

“Because that’s what people who love each other say!” you exclaimed a lot louder than you meant to.

He turned to face you. Damn him! You wanted him to look at you lovingly, then wrap his arms around you and say he loved you too. His stare was hard, mouth in a deep frown, hands at his sides. “Sometimes people say things they don’t mean”.

“Are you serious?” you both could and couldn’t believe him. He was always stubborn but to question your love for him? Despair, anger, betrayal, it all began to bubble inside you. “You don’t think I love you? After all we’ve been through? Has it meant nothing?”. Then another thought crossed your mind. One that made you have to take a deep breath before asking. “Have you found another?”.

“I don’t want another” he responded quietly, which was somewhat odd for him. Not necessarily because it was quiet, but because it was soft. Delicate almost. Then he cleared his throat, “love is a weakness. You’ve shown me that”.

“Bi-”

“Leave”

“No”. You kept your feet firmly against the ground. You wouldn’t be going anywhere. Especially not on this note. You didn’t expect that all your problems would be fixed in one conversion but this couldn't be how tonight ended. “We need to talk-”.

“I don’t want you here!” The sudden rise in his voice made you jump. Was that regret in his eyes? No. It couldn’t be. If he actually felt any remorse, his next words didn’t show it. “I don’t want to speak to you. I don’t want to see you. You are a traitor, meaning that you are dead to me! You were only slowing me down and now? Now I don’t have to worry about you! Enough of this! Leave!”. Your breathing began to speed up, eyes becoming watery, vision blurring. Bi-Han spoke again, his voice quieter this time. “Don’t cr-” he took another deep breath. “I don’t care”. He tried to walk away again.

He got mere feet away before the ground around him rose, trapping the both of you in a wide box. You didn’t know what you felt more. Anger because he had the audacity to yell at you, or sadness because he purposely chose to hurt you. They both bubbled inside you. Your mouth worked a lot faster than your brain. “I have always been by your side” you began, “even as children. Whenever you fell, I was there to help you up. When you needed a laugh, I found any way to make you laugh. When the responsibility of becoming the next Grandmaster felt like a hard burden to carry, I was there to support you”.

“The Bi-Han then was a weak child! I’m older now! I have more challenges!”

“And have I not faced your challenges with you by your side?!” you fully yelled now. Your words were laced with grief and you hoped he could hear it. “When others called you heartless, strict, mean, selfish and whatever else they could think of, I defended you! I always did Bi-Han! I would tell them that you had a huge heart under that hard shell of yours! I would tell them you were strict but loving! That I loved you for a reason! That you genuinely cared for your family!”. All the emotions made you bolder. With each remark, you pointed an accusatory finger at him, stepping closer and closer until you jabbed him in the chest. “I would tell people that I never cared about having children, but if it was with you, I’d consider it! And as more days passed, I wanted it! A family with you was all I wanted! All I want even now!”. It was hard to see his expression. Your vision was too blurry. You thought about wiping your tears away, not wanting to appear weak, but they came too frequently. Your cheeks were already wet. “You can be angry with me. I would be okay with your anger, but do not ever make it seem like I do not love you! I was one of the few people concerned about your safety when you were taken! I carried your body to Liu Kang! I-!”.

A sob passed before you could stop it. You couldn’t stand to look at him. You turned away from him, walking a few inches away, suddenly feeling suffocated. Your chest ached badly. You felt that at any point, your heart would explode, or your throat would get tired of your sobs and decide to close instead, leaving you to die. You covered your mouth with the back of your hand in an attempt to quiet yourself. It worked, but only somewhat. 

With your back to Bi-Han though, you couldn’t see his reaction. You didn’t see his look of confliction, or him clenching and unclenching his fist. You didn’t know how angry he was at himself, because he should’ve hated you for being a traitor, but he just couldn’t. You didn’t know how badly he wanted to comfort you but forced himself not to. He just needed you to leave but you wouldn’t. 

“You betrayed me, do not forget this” he forced himself to say. “I needed you. You, my father, Kuai Liang, Tomas, Liu Kang, you all lack vision! You want me to shackle the Lin Kuei to mediocrity when we could be achieving greatness! No!”. You hadn’t faced him yet. Your bottom lip still trembled. It was humiliating. All this crying on your end and it didn’t even seem like he cared. 

No words were exchanged for a moment. You had to focus on slowing your breathing. What you needed was for him to apologize as he held you. Nothing came. Not even when you walked up to him, putting a hand on his arm in hopes to trigger some hidden affection. 

He took a step back.

You scoffed, then wiped at your eyes again. Your eyes stayed on the floor as you spoke again. “I have spent days and nights thinking about you. Hoping that-” you sniffed, “that you still loved me. I kept hoping that somehow this would all work out and…”.

You couldn’t say it. Everyday you hoped that everything would get better. You’d have each other again. Life would go back to normal, then one day you two would start expanding your family, and when you finally took your last breath, you’d be holding his hand. 

You couldn’t say it out loud. It hurt too much.

“Spare me. Spare me this agony and just say-”

You motioned back and forth between you two hoping he’d get it.

“Say what?”.

You forced it out finally.

“Say you do not love me. Just spare me of this agony and hoping. Just say you do not love me”. Silence passed. You expected that he would just say it right then and there. He didn’t. “Bi-Han please just do this for me”.

More silence.

Then,

“You are a traitor”.

“Fucking shit” you mumbled while wiping your eyes for the millionth time. “Just say it”.

He didn’t. “You were holding me back”.

You looked up at him, though you immediately regretted it. Since when had you gotten so bad at reading him? You tried to guess what he was thinking, but kept drawing a blank. “Please”.

“You left”.

“Bi-Han please”.

Over and over he’d shoot an insult at you, and in response you’d plead with him to say what you needed to hear to hopefully start fully mourning. 

You couldn’t take the back and forth anymore. Why couldn’t he do this one thing for you? Just this one parting gift. “You are so fucking selfish! Why can’t you just be honest with me and say it?!”.

“Why don’t you say it to me?!” he challenged, which was ridiculous to you.

“Not only would I be lying, but I would never wanna hurt you like that! You want me to hurt you the way you hurt me?! Fine!”. You pointed a finger at him, “you are everything that is wrong with you!”. The hardness in his eyes softened. Good. You wanted to see him have some sort of reaction. To hurt as much as you did. “You love to blame me, your father, Kuai Liang, Tomas, anyone for how shitty you can be! You betrayed Earthrealm and your brothers! It isn’t wrong to want a new future, but how you went about it? No, Bi–Han! I wasn’t gonna stand by you as you did something so selfish! You love blaming everyone else and refuse to see that you are in a war by yourself! You scarred your brother! You attacked a wedding and killed innocent people! I am by no means an innocent person. I have made mistakes, and if you have ever genuinely felt like I did not love you, then I’m sorry… but the blood you have on your hands, the blood of innocents and your own” your hand found its way to your chest, your palm feeling your heartbeat under it. “That is not on me”. 

There was no relief after you finished your rant. 

You didn’t feel relief, or satisfaction at the possibility of hurting him. No. You felt terrible. Like you had broken an oath - another one according to Bi-Han -. Once again your gaze tore from his. You shouldn’t have come. This was a mistake. Or perhaps it wasn’t. He hadn’t said the sacred words, but everything else he said was confirmation enough. 

He no longer loved you.

The walls surrounding the both of you collapsed. “You don’t want me here, fine” you forced yourself to say. “I won’t come back”.

“And I know it’s true, that visions are seldom what they seem

But if I know you

I know what you’ll do

You’ll love me at once

The way you did once upon a dream”

The heartache was wet tar, sticking to your skin and refusing to budge. You hoped it would cease sometime soon- dammit. Why did you keep hoping for things? Where had hope gotten you? Hope was foolish to cling onto.

A week passed, and still the pain refused to move. You felt it in everything you did. It made your bones stiff, your movements slow, your focus low, your insides hurt. It was the most diabolical of poisons. 

When a knock against your door filled your ears, you didn’t bother getting up. You simply told them to come in, and although your voice could rival a church mouse, they heard you anyway and came in. “Kuai Liang” you greeted once he came into view.

“Have you been well?”.

At least he didn’t beat around the bush.

“I’ve noticed your recent behavior and-”

“I apologize if I have been lacking, Grandmaster”

Out of respect you got out of bed and bowed. You must’ve been messing up during training, or-

“You have nothing to apologize for” he took a step closer to you, “you seem unhappy. You know you can come to me, right? I’m your friend, family even. Not just your Grandmaster”. Keeping eye contact had become something hard for you. You looked everywhere else when speaking to someone, which was something you hated because it made you feel weaker than you already typically felt.

His hand found your arm. His touch was light, like he worried you would crack if he pressed against you too hard. “Are you okay?”.

There it was. Those three words opened the floodgates, causing you to wrap your arms around his torso and bury your face against his chest as sobs wracked your body. Had he always felt so similar to Bi-Han or was your mind playing tricks on you?

Kuai Liang was the one who held you close, comforting you with his presence alone.

And like a selfish and desperate bastard, you pretended he was Bi-Han.

“But if I know you

I know what you do

You love me at once the way you did once upon a dream”