Chapter 24: Transition (1/2)

It was a bright new day in New Rome.

The sun was rising. Bullets were flying. Rats were singing.

Standing at the balcony of Jamie’s apartment in casual clothes, a coffee mug in his right hand, Ryan glanced at the rodents occupying the area. Ki-jung's rats seemed to be doing some stretching exercises while dawn rose beyond the horizon, showing incredible levels of flexibility. They were cute, for enormous mutant rodents.

But Ryan was a cat person at heart, and he was in a foul mood.

He grabbed his cellphone with his left hand and played pre-recorded music he had prepared just for the occasion. The terrible noise of felines meowing echoed across the apartment, startling the rats and sending them into a frenzied panic. They immediately dispersed, hiding beneath the sofa.

“Ryan!” Ki-jung shouted from the kitchen, busy making breakfast. “Stop it!”

“What?” he asked innocently, the rats glancing at Ryan upon realizing his trick. “It’s not forbidden to listen to cat music!”

“I’m not forbidden to throw you off the balcony either!”

“What is all the racket?” Jamie emerged from his bedroom, wearing only a shirt and boxers. Without his armor, he reminded Ryan of a grizzly bear emerging from his cave. The first thing the mob enforcer did was to kiss his girlfriend, then join the courier at the balcony with a coffee cup of his own.

“Nothing,” Ryan replied, hiding his cell phone. Ki-jung's rats emerged from their hiding spots to gather behind his back, glaring at him. Seeing a dozen rats in that position may have frightened a normal person, but the courier just meowed at them.

“You’re impossible,” Jamie replied, his eyes blinked as he slowly woke up. A rat jumped on the balcony’s ramp, the Genome scratching it between the ears. “How are you feeling?”

“Whimsically peachy.”

“Ryan,” Jamie looked at him in the eye, “how do you really feel?”

Was he that bad at hiding it? Ryan looked at the distant, warming sun. “I don’t feel anything.”

“Anything as in…”

“Nothing,” Ryan replied with a sigh. “I feel empty.”

Well, to be precise, he felt like someone whose years-long quest had ended disastrously. Ryan had expected a happy reunion that would make everything better, and he had only found more tears and sadness. Emptiness had been his natural state for years, until learning of Len’s survival had given him a newfound direction. His endless existence finally had a purpose.

Except Len didn’t want Ryan in her life. Hell, she was an even bigger wreck than he was.

“But I’m used to it,” the courier replied with optimism. “That just means I’ve just got to find something to fill the void!”

Even that stunt with the rats was an attempt to get his mind off Len. He had found chaos and whimsical jokes a welcome distraction when in a bad mood. Confusion energized him, while introspection made him feel stale and restless.

Jamie shook his head, before looking at the sunlight too. “I’m sorry.”

“About what?”

“About your girl. I’m sorry she broke your heart.”

“I haven’t been dumped,” Ryan protested since he clearly had misunderstood the situation.

“I know rejection is painful,” Zanbato consoled him, digging himself deeper. “And that’s okay. It happens to everyone. She wasn’t the right person for you, or perhaps now was not the right moment. You’re still young, you will find someone.”

For empty platitudes, Jamie managed to make them sound inspired. Maybe because he earnestly tried to cheer him up.

“The worst part is,” Ryan said, letting out some frustration instead of bottling it up, “she’s in pain, and I don’t know how to help yet.”

His words seemed to resonate with Jamie, who opened his mouth without saying anything, seemingly rehearsing his words in his head. He glanced at the rats and told them to shoo away. The rodents let out a vengeful screech at Ryan and then moved to the kitchen.

“You know one day, a former friend and I found someone having an overdose. A homeless woman.” Jamie spoke once the rats out of earshot, his voice breaking. “She would have died if we hadn’t been there.”

Ryan could sense the sheer emotion brimming in Jamie’s voice, and said nothing. It clearly came from the heart.

“Even when she was out of the hospital, I considered her my responsibility. I tried to help her clean herself up. It was hard. It was really hard. It took months to deal with the relapses, the bad habits, and help her find a job… a lot of my friends, they didn’t understand. They thought I was just wasting my time. That she was hopeless. But… but she wasn’t. It worked out. It was hard, but she recovered.”

Ryan glanced at the kitchen and Ki-jung’s shadow.

“People take time to heal,” Jamie said. “And from what I heard, that girl seems to have pretty deep scars. Don’t give up and do your best, but don’t beat yourself over it either.”

Ryan nodded but didn’t respond.

“I talked with the others,” Jamie said, swallowing his coffee without savoring it the way Ryan did, “and we will organize a party next Thursday at the house. To welcome you in New Rome.”

“A Hugh Hefner party, or a friendly house-warming party?”

“Genome-only, most of whom are single.”

“Hugh Hefner then. Wait, are you going to whore me out? Am I to pay the rent in my flesh and blood?”

“Don’t worry about rent. However, everything that will happen during the party will stay at the party. You may see... weird stuff.” The more Jamie spoke, the more embarrassed he sounded. “Stuff that would shock most people. I think you’re pretty open-minded, but… I’m not sure how much.”

Since Genomes were naturally immune to most diseases, including STDs, and had a high drug threshold, Ryan had a pretty good idea of how the party would degenerate. “Oh you know, without arrogance,” the courier smiled, “I’ve seen everything.”

“Okay, good. No Bliss or cats allowed, and you help clean up tomorrow morning,” Jamie added firmly. “Also, no matter what happens, don’t fuck Vamp. You can hook up with anyone, anyone, but her.”

“A forbidden romance route? How can I resist?”

“By reminding yourself that she’s a goddamn succubus who will drain you to death if you fall into her arms,” Jamie said, with a hint of dislike. “She’s a nasty shade of Green.”

“Why invite her at all if you don’t like her?”

“She’s part of the hit squad, and she takes it personally when she isn’t invited to group events. Trust me, it’s less drama that way.”

“And Livia!” Ki-jung shouted from inside the apartment. “Don’t forget to tell him about Livia!”

“And Livia too, thank you, honey!” Jamie shouted back, before focusing on Ryan. “She’s off-limits for a reason I cannot divulge yet, but trust me. If you make a move on her, you will die.”

Jamie didn’t know anything about reverse-psychology, did he?

…

Nah, the courier wasn’t in the mood.

“I think I will pass on the matchmaking attempt,” Ryan said, bored with romance. “I’ve had my fair share of hook-ups.”

“Really?” Jamie didn’t hide his surprise. “I didn’t take you for a party animal. Or at least, not that kind.”

“At one point in my life, my motto was ‘try them all until you find the perfect one,’” Ryan explained. “But afterward, it became stale and superficial. It was just doing the same thing over, and over again.”

“I… I think I see what you mean.”

“Also, why are you advocating for me to fight for true love, and then try to hook me up with someone else?”

“No, I said, you don’t give up on helping your friend with her issues, but if she isn’t interested, take the hint and look for companionship elsewhere.” Jamie put a hand on Ryan’s shoulder, overflowing with warm dad radiations. “I know it’s a leap of faith, but I’m sure you will find someone that can make you happy at that party. That’s all I wish for you.”

Ryan turned towards the apartment. “Ki-jung!”

“Yes?!” she replied, busy making lunch.

“If you don’t marry this man, I will do it myself!”