| Fan Fiction |
by DTLCT
“I can’t believe it,” Ray muttered bitterly. “We’re having a party but the girls are in charge. I thought I was in charge of the event since I suggested it.”
“Get over it, man,” Kevin said, knowing too well of Ray’s talent to dramatize every single matter – little or big.
“How can I when….”
“When you’re on Cloud 9 but suddenly got kick back down?” Jacky finished since he had heard Ray since he’s always so loud.
Kevin laughs at Jacky’s comment while Ray looks annoyed.
Ray jabs Kevin on the shoulder. “Didn’t I tell you I might not let Mandy see you anymore if you keep back-stabbing me like this?”
“I told you before, man,” Wallace said, not turning back to address Ray directly. “Don’t bring yourself into it. The ‘I’m her brother thing’ is so old. It doesn’t work anymore.”
“Yea,” Jacky agreed. “Mandy’s a smart girl.”
“Not to mention independent too.”
“She wouldn’t listen to her brother and pass by a nice guy like Kevin just because ‘her brother’ said so.”
Ray looks from Jacky to Wallace’s backs. “Hey, are you two lost twins? You’re starting to freak me out with your ‘getting along’ soooo well.”
Jacky smiles while Wallace shakes his head.
“It’s a guy thing,” Jacky and Wallace blurted out at the same time.
“I’m a guy too,” Ray snapped.
“Obviously….” Kevin stops himself since Ray’s looking over to him. He clears his throat quickly before speaking up again. “Obviously, they have some sort of inside joke going on.”
“Obviously,” Ray snapped, his tone still dripping of sarcasm.
Jacky smiles to himself while they continue to walk towards the store.
Wallace turns around to Kevin and Ray suddenly. “You guys want to separate? We’ll get the food, you guys get the drinks. Tim can go buy other stuffs.”
Ray shrugs. “Might as well since we’ll get it done faster.”
They separate when they get to the local store areas.
*****
About an hour later, the guys are back in Gallen’s apartment. The girls are already with baskets, coolers, and other items that they need. As soon as Ray steps into the doorway, he sees Mandy standing there and giving him a sharp look.
“Whatever it is, it wasn’t me,” Ray blurted out quickly, alarmed.
“What do you mean?” Mandy asked, confused.
“Look at you. Something must have happened. You found out something?”
“Are you hiding something then?” Mandy asked teasingly.
Ray scratches his head. “Not really.”
“Stop fooling around, man,” Jacky said.
“You guys can come in and rest for a bit,” Mandy said. “We’ll pack the stuffs in the car and then call you guys down to go.”
“Don’t tell me you’re not done with your girl-talk yet,” Ray jumped in.
Mandy smiles. “What girl talk?”
Ray rolls his eyes. “Cute, but you couldn’t hide it from me. The reason why you would shoo us out so fast before is that you want to have one of those girl-talks. I’m guessing it’s about us guys, right?”
“You wish, ge.”
At that time, Mandy takes the grocery bags Ray had been holding from him. The other guys place their grocery bags on the coffee table also. Then Charmaine comes out from the kitchen.
“All set?” Charmaine asked.
Ray nods at her.
“We’ll just sort these out and then bring them to the car.”
“Sounds good.” As he says that, Ray settles down on the sofa and starts to stretch his arms.
Jacky scans the apartment while everyone has been talking. He couldn’t help it. “Where’s Jan?”
“She’s not here yet,” Charmaine said.
“Oh.” His disappointment could be seen on his face.
At that time, Jessica walks into the room from the kitchen, clapping her hands. “All right. Let’s get going.”
“Honey!” Ray called out, jumping up from the sofa. “You’re scaring everyone with your aggressive attitude.”
Jessica gives him a look.
“I didn’t say anything off,” Ray said innocently.
Mandy turns to Jessica. “Let’s give the guys a break. We can sort and carry the bags out.”
Jessica nods.
The girls get right to work while the guys settle down on the sofa or seats near there to rest. None of the guys speak up until the three girls take all the grocery bags to the kitchen table to sort them out with Cyndi, Annie, and Alice helping. Wallace looks towards the kitchen to make sure the girls are completely focused on their tasks before turning back to the guys and signals to Gallen. Gallen nods also and signals the guys to go out into the hallway. The others, confused, follow anyway. Ray’s the only one still sitting, not paying attention. All the guys step outside while Ray’s kicking back and relaxing.
“We’ll be back in a bit,” Wallace informed the girls as he steps out the door.
“All right,” Alice responded from the kitchen.
Wallace has to poke his head back in again after a moment. “Ray!”
Ray, alarmed, snaps up from the sofa. “What?”
“Guy talk,” Wallace whispered, pointing towards the girls.
“Oh…uh...all right.”
Ray reluctantly gets off the sofa and follows Wallace outside. He realizes that Kevin has unlocked the door to their apartment and is letting the other guys in. He goes in after Wallace and closes the door. He turns to the others who are sitting on the sofa or other chairs. “Do I need to lock the door too?”
“Yea,” Wallace replied, sitting down at a chair. “Sure, why not?”
Ray locks the door and then sits down at a chair next to Wallace. He eyes everyone once before speaking up. “What’s the big secret anyway?”
“Guy talk,” Gallen repeated Wallace’s words from earlier.
“I know, but why all the secret?”
“Because we can’t afford any interruptions at this time, okay?”
Ray, seeing that Gallen looks a bit stern, nods.
“All right, let’s start so we can finish fast too,” Wallace said.
Jacky looks from Gallen to Wallace. “What are you guys up to?”
“I’ll start then,” Wallace volunteered before Jacky could asked any further.
Jacky waits patiently.
“I’ve been quite disturbed by your actions, Detective Chu. Actually, Gal…Tim and I both are.”
Ray snaps his right index finger up. “Wait!”
Wallace turns to him. “What?”
“Who’s Galton?”
Wallace’s confused so he wrinkles his face. “Who’s Galton?”
“That’s what I just asked you.”
“How should I know?”
“You just said it.”
“I said ‘gr…’ because I hesitated a bit, but then I want to get it out with so I said ‘Tim.’”
Ray scratches his head. “Okay.”
“All right,” Gallen jumped in before they’re too astray from the main point. “Let’s get this done.”
He turns to Jacky again. Wallace does the same.
“Wallace and I have been talking a bit between the time we’ve been following the cases and you…” Gallen stops and points towards Jacky. “…my friend, needs some pointers.”
“What pointers?” Jacky asked, wrinkling his face.
“Could you please stop playing games?”
“That’s right,” Wallace agreed. “You obviously like Jan, so stop lying to yourself. You got to make a move soon before it’s too late.”
“What are you guys talking about?” Jacky asked. “Jan and I are partners. We worked together for a while now. Of course I’m concerned for her safety. Besides, we’re not only partners, we’re friends.”
“Is it only because of that?”
“What are you suggesting then?”
“Remember all the times you rushed to her?” Gallen asked. “Like let’s see…who almost fainted that time when Jan was in the ER? When you heard she was out of the critical condition, you’ve almost cried.” He pauses briefly. “No wait…you did cry.”
“Did not.” His tone a tad too defensive.
“Did too,” Wallace said.
“And you guys said that I’m childish,” Ray jumped in, folding his hand together. “How old are we now? Two?”
Wallace gives Ray a sharp look. “Don’t interfere if you’re not helping.”
Ray shrugs his shoulders. “All right then.”
“Back to the point,” Gallen said once again. “It’s not only that. Have you realized how much you cared for Jan?”
“That reminds me, who was the one who hugged Jan so passionately in front of half of the hospital staff like last week and zoomed the world out for about five minutes?” Wallace asked.
“That nosy Ricky,” Jacky mumbled under his breath.
Ray hears him anyway. His face lightens up. “So what Ricky said is true? I thought since he’s a reporter, he exaggerated about that incident.”
Gallen ignores Ray and continues. “The way you behave, it’s more than just partnership or friendship combined.”
“That’s right,” Wallace chimed in.
Jacky licks his lips before answering. “I think it was because she was assigned to be my partner soon after Benny’s death. Every time something dangerous happen to her, it reminds me of Benny.”
“Is that so?” Gallen asked.
“I’m sure of that.”
Wallace shakes his head. “It’s not just that. It’s only partly that. You’re not only fearing the lost of another partner, but you’re afraid of losing Jan too.”
“I’m sure Jan feels the same about you,” Gallen said. “If you don’t make a move now….”
“: …someone might come along and snatch her up,” Wallace finished.
Jacky looks from Gallen to Wallace. “Are you guys twins now? You’re freaking me out.”
“Knock the ‘cool act’ off, man,” Kevin said. “The girls are going to be looking for us soon. Can you just admit it?”
Jacky looks at Kevin also. “Triplets now?”
“How about quadruplets too?” Ray asked.
Wallace, Gallen, and Kevin turn to look at Ray. Finally, they give him an approving look.
“All right,” Jacky said finally.
The guys wait quietly for Jacky to continue.
“What if I like her? What can I do for her? I mean she quit the force already. She’s going home soon. She’s going to be living a normal life again with her family. Would I want to put her life in danger again by letting her be with me?”
“How could you say that?” Wallace asked, wrinkling his face.
“Yea,” Gallen agreed. “I just said that she has feelings for you too, didn’t I? You won’t fail if you confess to her. Most guys would kill to know that information and you’re just dropping that piece of information like that?”
“Yea, I know. Not to mention the way you two get along so well and all. Take a hint. If I was a girl, I wouldn’t be living with some guy for so long. I mean after you guys were exposed.”
Jacky hesitates. “I…”
Ray laughs. “I can’t believe you, man.”
The others give Ray an annoyed look again.
Ray puts his hand up in surrender. “Don’t attack me. Let me finish for once.”
The others wait for him to continue, but their look tells a different story.
“You’re so brave in facing those cases and I can’t believe I’m praising you like one of your fans, but you’re very good for a cop. Why are you such a scaredy-cat when in love? Who cares if she will be danger in the future? What I mean is nothing like that matters since she’s with you. You’ll be able to protect her no matter what. And it’s not like she’s a weakling. She can take care of herself if you’re not around. It’s not like you’ll run into these crazy cases everyday. You’re out of the ‘undercover jobs’, aren’t you? It’ll be less dangerous anyway. If you don’t try, how would you know you’re going to fail? If Wallace didn’t try… “ He points at Wallace at that time. “…would he succeed in pursuing Cyndi? You…” He points towards Jacky. “…need to think it over real good.” He stops to check his watch real quick. “And you only have about…five minutes before it’s too late.” He looks to the others finally. “I’m done. You guys can go ahead.”
The others, still silent, look at Ray with an amazed expression.
Ray looks back at them all, unmoved. “Don’t tell me you’re going to put my name into a frame and worship me now. You guys told me to help, didn’t you?”
Wallace clears his throat. “Ummm…” He looks at Jacky again. “Ray said it all. It’s up to you now, Jacky.” He gets up at that time. “We’re going outside to help the girls and stall for some more time. You better think it over fast and go after Jan before she leaves for the train station tomorrow.”
The rest of the guys get up also, except for Jacky who’s still sitting there, a bit taken aback – thinking to himself. He finally nods. The guys leave one by one to help the girls.
After the other guys leave, Jacky lets out a deep breath. Should he take the risk? Are the other guys right? It’s one of those few rare times that he sees Ray serious…and is making a lot of sense also. Jacky lets out another deep breath and stands up.
Jacky locks the door from the inside and leaves Kevin and Ray’s apartment. He takes out his cell phone while he’s walking down the hallway past Gallen’s apartment and towards the elevators.
Wallace picks up on immediately. “Well?”
“Thanks,” Jacky said.
Wallace smiles. “You thought it through?”
“Yes.” He pauses to lick his lips. “I’ll be a little late. Tell the others to go ahead.”
“All right. Good luck.”
“Yea.”
They hang up at the same time.
Jacky presses the 1st level as he gets into the elevator on the right. As soon as he gets out of the elevator about a minute or two later, he walks briskly towards the entrance and out of the building. He locates his car from all those parked on the street. He gets in quickly and pulls out after checking to make sure it’s safe.
The sun’s moving to almost above his head now. As he’s driving, he only has one thought in his mind: find Jan. About ten minutes later, he reaches the countryside and is getting a bit fidgety since after going through this place, the upcoming city area is where Jan stays at. He scowls at himself for not being brave enough. Maybe it’s not about being brave, he argued with himself, it’s my future after all. He slows his speed again when he hits the city area. It’s either him or because this place is unusually deserted. He risks a little more speed to close the distance between him and Jan. He parks in front of the building and gets out real quick before he chickens out. Suddenly he feels foolish for acting in such way. Maybe Wallace and Gallen are right and even Ray too. He’s going to regret it later if he doesn’t do it now. He takes a deep breath before climbing up the stairs. Why doesn’t this place have elevators? When he’s finally at the 5th level, he stops to take in a deep breath again before approaching Jan’s apartment. This is it, he thought. Before he could knock on the door, the door opens. He withdraws his hand away from the door, both shocked and confused.
“Fan Gang!” Jan called out to him. “What are you doing here? I thought you were celebrating with Mandy and the others.”
Jacky regains himself quickly. “I was. But I thought I come and get you in case you get lost.”
Jan smiles at him.
“Uh…if you don’t mind me asking, who’s he?” He gestures towards the guy that Jan passed before to run to him. “Your…uh…”
“Oh.”
Yes, the source for Jacky’s reaction earlier is the guy who was opening the door before when Jacky was about to knock.
Jan turns to the guy. “This is Huxley. He works for my mom’s flower shop.”
“Oh.”
Huxley puts the box he has in his hand down and steps forward. He had stepped back before to make room for Jan earlier, but now he steps forward again to greet Jacky.
Huxley extends his hand to Jacky. “Nice to meet you.”
Jacky shakes hand. “Yea.”
The note of disappointment wasn’t even passive.
Jan knows something’s wrong so she turns to Huxley. “Hux, why don’t you bring those boxes down first? I’ll be down in a bit.”
“All right,” Huxley said.
After Huxley excuses himself, Jan pulls Jacky’s hand and leads him into the apartment. Jacky follows her silently, trying to collect his thoughts again. He’s so absent-minded that Jan has to sit him down on the sofa also. Then Jan disappears into the kitchen for a bit and returns with a glass of water for him. He takes it absent-mindedly again. Jan settles down next to him after that.
Jan still has on the smile she used to greet him earlier. “So…what do you want to tell me?”
Jacky puts the glass of water down. “Uh…um…”
“Don’t tell me you drove all the way here just for a glass of water?”
Jacky have to smile at that.
“Well? Are you going to tell me or not?”
“I was going to say that…”
“Jan!” Huxley called out from the hallway. “Where do you want the small luggage?”
“Just put it in front under the passenger seat,” Jan yelled out to him.
After that, Huxley disappears again. Jacky have to hold it real hard not to yell at Huxley for ruining it for him.
Jan turns back to Jacky. “Sorry about that. He’s a little…” She gestures her hand. “…out of it sometimes. No common sense, you know.”
She doesn’t think of him much, Jacky thought. Maybe I still have a chance. He smiles upon thinking of the reassuring fact. “No problem.”
“Continue.”
Jacky realizes something. “Why is he moving stuffs around in the middle of the day like this?”
“Oh. I was going to call you later before I go. But since you’re here now, I might as well explain.”
Jacky raises an eyebrow. “Explain?”
“I have to go today since my mom got sick and Huxley came to pick me up so I don’t have to catch the train tomorrow.” She pauses. “So that means I won’t be able to make it to the party you guys have today either. I’m sure my mom is fine and it’s nothing serious, but I just want to go back and see.”
“Oh.” His disappointment obvious.
“So…your turn.”
“Uh…”
“What’s wrong? I know we’re partners and we got along pretty well these past years, but I can’t read your mind as in ‘word-per-word’ what you’re thinking. So you need to tell me.”
Jacky looks at Jan for a second. “Nothing really. I just want to hang around here a bit more if you’re going to go soon.”
“You don’t look like that earlier. Something’s bothering you, right? Did I spoil your mood? I should have shut the door earlier so Huxley couldn’t get in to bug us.”
Jacky couldn’t believe that Jan caught the expression that he gave Huxley earlier. He couldn’t believe it either that he still can’t read Jan half of the time, but she can see right through him. Well, almost. “Nothing really. I guess it just feels strange that we’re no longer partners, you know.”
Jan nods. “Suddenly lost for words, huh?”
Jacky’s turn to nod.
“So….I guess this is it, huh?”
Jacky waits for her to continue.
“I…”
Jacky suddenly feel like he understands Jan more than he thought he did. He moves closer to her and gives her a hug.
“I’ll miss you…old partner,” He said softly.
Jan hugs him back and puts her head on his shoulder, feeling safer than ever. She doesn’t know from what, but she always feels an unexplainable safeness when she’s with him. “You’ll come to visit me, right?”
Jacky nods, not saying anything. He doesn’t feel the need to. Jan couldn’t see him nod, but she could feel it.
This warm feeling lingers with Jacky all the way back. He barely remembers something about saying goodbye to Huxley at the door when he stepped out of Jan’s apartment. He remembers something about mumbling “Have a safe trip” also. But he doesn’t remember exactly was it after he released Jan from his hold or was it to Huxley? He rolls down his window to let in some fresh air before the loneliness suffocates him.
© Saturday, September 15th, 2007
Re-posted: Tuesday, October 13th, 2009