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*** If you would like to read chapter two, it is now up. Just find it in the archieves ^__^
Author's Note: This is a Fanfiction, written and thought of by chibimama Don't steal it, plzthx n___n~
All characters are that of Gaiaonline, yadda yadda yadda. You get it.
This story begins after the August storyline update. It uses NPC's who don't come into the official storyline, and some who do.
Okay, I'll shut up now and let you read the story.
~
The moonshine, reflected from the open waters that surrounded the island, cast it in an eerie, magical light. Faces looked like pale, frightened things in its glow, and shadows were larger than usual. It looked like an eve where anything could happen or start to happen, whether earthly or not.
By the port, a large building shone brightly, cutting off the beautiful moonlight. The building and its light could be considered beautiful as well, I suppose, but only those who entered there with little and left with lots thought that way.
It was a slow night for the casino. Jinx, a card dealer, cast a bored glance around the casino, watching the few deadbeats who were playing slots. She sighed. What was the point of working if there was no work to be done?
Glancing at Lex, who was the official casino “greeter”, she decided that she needed to get away from her empty table for a few minutes.
“Yo, Lex!” she cried out, making the young man jump.
“Hmmmm?” answered a somewhat disgruntled Lex, who had been very busy wiping his badge and had accidentally smudged it when startled from Jinx’s cry.
“I need to use the washroom… can you look after my table for a second?”
“B-but if I leave the front, who will greet the guests?” Lex looked simply shocked at the idea.
Jinx began to dance back in forth.
“I think the guests will survive. Please, if I wait any longer, I’ll explode!”
Lex looked even more shocked at that idea.
“A-alright, but be quick!” called out Lex to Jinx, who was already halfway down the hall.
“Thanks Lex baby! I owe you one!” came Jinx’s voice from the far end of the casino.
Instead of turning left, as she should have done to reach the lavatory, she continued straight towards the back entrance. Jinx pushed the door open and found herself in the alley beside the casino, facing a cold, silent night. She smiled to herself, pulled out a cigarette, and mumbled under her breath “What an idiot.”
Before she could enjoy her cigarette, however, a voice came from behind her.
“Who’s an idiot?”
Jinx inhaled too quickly, and the cigarette smoke went down too quickly, leaving the feeling as if dozens of little knives had jabbed at the inside of her throat. Hacking, she turned her tear filled eyes to whoever was behind her who had frightened her so easily. She was faced with a blond haired man wearing a ridiculous grin.
“Ace! What the heck are you doing back here?!?”
Ace looked up at the sky. He still wore the silly grin, cherishing the few moments he had seen Jinx look so frightened. His face resembled that of an over-sized child’s.
“I needed a break.” He said.
Jinx cast a suspicious eye at Ace.
“Then who’s watching your table?” she asked.
“No one, I suppose.”
Jinx rolled her eyes and began to smoke her cigarette properly. As she smoked it, she looked up to the stars, who danced in the sky like light does on the water. A slight wind began to blow. Jinx closed her eyes, appreciating its coolness.
Ace shifted from foot to foot. Finally he thought of something they could talk about.
“So, did you hear about Johnny Gambino?” he asked.
Jinx opened her eyes and looked at Ace.
“You mean how he’s come back? Who hasn’t? ” she replied.
“Yah… and guess what? That huge explosion that happened a while ago? They caused that.”
“Okay.”
“If you can say anything good about the Gambino’s, they sure do know how to make an entrance, huh?”
“Emmm.”
Jinx inhaled on her cigarette. It was a nice family reunion and all, but no one seemed able to explain it. The G-virus, the explosion, Johnny Gambino magically coming back… it was just too weird.
“I think they’re keeping something from us.” She thought aloud.
“Yah? Like what?” Ace asked.
“Something else happened at that cliff. Something Cindy didn’t notice, so she couldn’t report it. Something’s definitely going on with those two.” Jinx speculated.
“You should be careful, saying stuff like that. He is our boss, you know.”
“You’re the one who brought it up.”
Ace and Jinx both went silent. This silence was a thoughtful silence, whereas before it had been strained.
Ace broke the silence with a small cough. Jinx turned to him once again.
“So, Jinx, I was wondering, if you’re not doing anything tomorrow night, we could, you know, get together-” Ace began.
“Look, Ace, you’re a nice guy and all, but we’ve been through this before. NO.”
“But how about-”
“NO. N-O. Nooo.”
Ace sighed.
“Gee, talk about playing hard to get.” He mumbled.
Jinx rolled her eyes.
Suddenly, a shadow past over both of the employees. From beyond the alleyway, a young, stunning girl was walking towards the casino. She had a flowing brown hair, streaked with blond here and there. Her skin was a deep brown color from many days spent out in the sun, and in Jinx’s opinion, she was showing too much of it (too much skin, that is).
“Evening, Miss Sasha.” Ace called out, the ridiculous grin back on his face.
Sasha giggled, waved, and kept walking. Jinx watched Ace watch Sasha. He looked like a puppy who had just received a word of praise from its master. And he still had the stupid grin on his face.
“Slow down thar boy, she’s way out of your league.” Jinx pointed out.
“Psh, she’s crazy about me. You’ll see. Let’s go back in now.”
Jinx turned around and headed back in. Just as she was about to turn the corner to go back into the casino’s main room, she stretched out an arm to stop Ace and put a finger to her lips.
“What are you-?” he questioned.
“Shh. I want to see what she’s doing.”
“Sasha?”
“Yah.”
“You want to spy on Sasha?”
“Yup.”
“Why?”
“Shut up. We might be able to hear from here. Look! She’s at Lex’s table… should have known.”
Ace hurriedly stuck his head out around the corner.
“What?!? That slut! I don’t know why she would go for Lex when she could have me, the hottest thing on Gambino Island, possibly all of Gaia-”
“Shhh! I’m trying to listen. And we don’t know if that’s why she’s playing at Lex’s table. She could just be playing some blackjack.”
~
Over at the blackjack table, that was exactly what Sasha was doing. She wasn’t a very good player, but she seemed to be enjoying herself anyways. Lex immediately noticed this, but instead of taking advantage of her, as a most dealers would, he fed her small hints of what she should do. Hmm, I wonder why Lex doesn’t work the tables more often?
“Um, hit me!” Sasha said.
“Are you sure you want to do that, Miss Sasha?”
“Oh, shouldn’t I?” Sasha frowned, and stared hard at her cards. Lex sighed.
“See, you’re already at eighteen. If I put another card out, you might go over.”
“Oh. I see.”
“So what would you like to do, Miss Sasha?” Lex asked again. “Um, Stand?”
“Ok then…” Lex smiled, and flipped over his cards. His cards totaled 26.
“You win, Miss Sasha!” Lex laughed, and Sasha joined in.
“Oh Lex!” Sasha giggled, and smiled at Lex “You’re so helpful. And I’m so hopeless at Cards…”
“I-I could give you lessons, if you want, Miss Sasha.” Lex said.
“Oh, could you, Lex? That would be great!”
“If you’re free tonight, you could come over to my place, and I could show you some hints, Miss Sasha…” Lex said nervously.
“Oh, enough with the ‘Miss Sasha’ stuff Lex!” Sasha giggled “I’d love to!”
“It’s a date, then! I get off-” Lex saw Sasha’s face fall, and stopped mid-sentence.
“A-a date?”
“Oh, no, Miss Sasha! I didn’t mean it like that! It’s a saying, you know-”
“I-its okay, Lex…” mumbled Sasha. “I just remembered I have to go visit Ian… I’m sorry.”
“No, no Miss Sasha! I totally understand! Totally! Maybe some other time.”
“Yah, maybe some other time…” Sasha stood up. “Well, I have to go now… bye.”
Sasha gave Lex a small smile, which Lex attempted to return, but failed. Sasha picked up her winnings and practically ran out of the Casino, leaving a bewildered and flustered Lex behind.
Lex stared at the doors. He didn’t understand. One minute she had been flirting like crazy, the next acting like Lex had done something wrong. Had he? Maybe she was, really, just trying to be nice. Maybe, simply because she was a girl, he had misinterpreted that as flirting. But how could he have not done so? She was gorgeous, affecting any man who stood within 3 miles of her.
Being beautiful can be such a curse sometimes.
Seeing that Sasha had left, Jinx and Ace headed back towards the front of the casino. Ace walked straight up to Lex and slapped him on the back.
“LOL YOU SLY DOG YOU.”
Lex jumped, and began rubbing his back.
“What happened to you guys? You've been forever!” he croaked.
Ace waved his hand casually, and rolled his eyes.
“Stop trying to change the subject. So you and Sasha, eh? Impressive! I wouldn’t have thought you had the guts.”
“No, no! It’s not like that.” Lex cried, realizing for the first time what, for someone who had not actually heard everything he and Sasha had talked about, their little encounter at the table would have looked like. He twisted his head around, trying to get a better view of everyone around the table. A few people had been looking Lex’s way, but had shifted their gaze when he had looked at them.
“Really? Then what was it?” asked Jinx.
“I really think she was just trying to be nice…” Lex trailed off and looked back towards the doors, and stared out at the night.
“Err, sure, lover boy.” Jinx said.
~
In Barton, the streets resembled those of Gambino Island’s, with the addiction of a thin mist that hovered inches away from the ground. Sasha shivered as she walked along the cobblestone streets, and closed her eyes momentarily. She opened them again, took a large breath, and continued to walk. She approached a modest sized house and rang the doorbell.
Seconds later, a light appeared in one of the downstairs windows, and a pale face appeared at the window. The face spilt into a grin immediately upon spotting Sasha. The figure disappeared from the window and appeared at the door.
“Sasha! I didn’t expect you tonight!” Ian said, his voice filled with more glee then anyone would have thought possible.
“I’m sorry if it’s late Ian-” At this Ian shook his head vigorously “-I just wanted to see if you were alright. The doctor said you would still be weak for awhile now.”
“Oh no, I’m feeling great Sasha! Come in, I’ll make some tea.”
Ian stepped aside and let Sasha in. She walked into the living area, with Ian following behind, leaning heavily on a cane.
“I’ll be right back. Just make yourself comfortable, Sasha.” Ian grinned again, and this time Sasha managed to return it. Ian always made her feel better.
As Ian bustled around the kitchen, Sasha examined the room. It had the air of the house of an ill person; it was somewhat stuffy, and the table was covered with a thin layer of dust. Just then, Ian returned.
“Here. I put out some biscuits too, but they’re a little hard… I haven’t, um, been out much lately.”
He poured each of them a cup of tea, and dropped down onto the chair opposite the one Sasha sat in.
“So, what’s up?” Ian asked.
“Oh, not much…. I’ve been fairly busy with my shop, you know. Is Rufus still running yours?”
At the sound of his name, Rufus poked his head into the room and trotted up to Sasha, who he allowed to pet him.
“Hullo Rufus!” Sasha giggled, scratching under Rufus’ chin.
“Why, hello Sasha! And yes, I’m still running Master Ian’s shop, and will continue to do so until he feels better.” Purred Rufus.
“Which I’m beginning to already.” Laughed Ian, smiling down at Rufus.
“Are you sure Ian? You still seem pretty weak- and you just said that you haven’t been out lately. You shouldn’t try to do anything that would, like, make your condition worse.”
“No, Sasha! I swear, I feel great.” But this was a lie. Ian did not feel great. It had nothing to do with the bullet wound, but none the less he felt a great sagging around his heart. It had caused many sleepless nights; many hours spent contemplating what he should do.
No, Ian was not a man hurt by any visible pain. He was a man in love, not knowing what to do. He truly wanted to tell Sasha how he felt, but he feared that she did not return his feelings. She hadn’t mentioned the Valentine* incident since it happened.
Worst of all, Ian feared that Sasha was already in love with someone else.
Ian watched Sasha sip her tea. She was the loveliest creature he had and would ever set sights on. When he looked into her eyes, he saw reflected back at him neither the klutz nor dope that he was; he only saw the man that, at times, Sasha saw him to be: a kind, thoughtful man. Sasha made him laugh, she made him cry, and she made him think. When Ian was with Sasha, he was the happiest man alive.
If only…
“Sasha, have you talked to Gino lately?”
Sasha dropped her cup abruptly, sending shattered glass and tea all over Ian’s carpet.
“I’m sorry Ian, I made such a mess. I’ll clean it up…” Sasha mumbled, picking up her napkin, her eyes fixed on the floor.
“Sasha, I-”
Ian limped around the table, and began to bend down to help Sasha, but Sasha, eyes still fixed on the floor, shook her head.
“Don’t worry Ian, I’ll clean it up! It was my fault, I’ll clean it up!” Sasha voice came out high pitched and choked.
“Sasha, I-”
“It’s okay, everything’s ok! And Gino doesn’t need to talk to me! He’s a little kid again, right? He barely remembers what happened, he barely remembers me…” To Ian’s horror, drops of water began to mingle with the tea spilt on the floor.
“Sasha…”
Sasha sprang up and clutched the front of Ian’s shirt. She sobbed into his chest, shaking from head to toe. Ian put his arms around her. His vision began to get blurry, and his head felt very hot. He barely noticed the pain coming from his side, where the bullet hole was. All he thought about was the figure crying her heart out in front of him.
“Do it now man, tell her how you feel!” Ian thought.
“S-Sasha, I really- I mean to say-”
Ian let go of Sasha, and stumbled backwards. He clutched his head, then his side, where he felt blood seeping through his cloths. He looked up at Sasha, whose face was filled with horror, and fainted.
Sasha let out a cry, and ran over to Ian’s side.
“Ian?!? IAN?!?” she shrieked, her sobs doubling.
~
In Durem, Edmund was closing up shop after a late night. He had a splitting headache- it had been a hard day. Just as he was about to head into the back of the shop, he heard the bell over the door ring, signaling that someone had just come in. Edmund didn’t turn around, but said calmly:
“I’m sorry, but we’re closed. Please come back tomorrow.”
Edmund heard the person cough, and became angry. Did this person not know the meaning of ‘closed’?
Edmund turned around, his face red.
“I’m sorry, but please come back-” just as he was about to finish his sentence, Edmund stopped and gapped. His face went from red to deadly white.
“Johnny?” he asked.
The mysterious person smiled.
WILL SASHA EVER FIGURE OUT HOW TO PLAY BLACKJACK? WILL IAN BE ALRIGHT? AND WHO IS THIS MYSTERIOUS STRANGER WHO MET WITH EDMUND? IS IT REALLY JOHNNY GAMBINO??? FIND OUT IN CHAPTER TWO!
*Valentine incident: go read the comic, you lazy bugger.
chibimama · Mon Sep 04, 2006 @ 11:55pm · 13 Comments |
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