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“Enjin.” Semiu snaps, looking unamused at him. “It’s ridiculous. I get that you ain’t happy with him, but your little grudge is gettin’ in people’s way.” Enjin leans against the counter, leaning back and looking down at her.
“I have-”
“-I know you have your reasons; everyone’s heard you have your reasons, but you need to be the bigger person. You're almost thirty. I’m sending you both on a mission, a quick get-in, get-out, with lunch. Be grateful I'm not sending you to the mission five hours out.”
Enjin backs up a little in shock, “You can’t just do that.”
“I can, and I am. If I find out that you hurt him, or you got into a fight, I am going to be having it be duo missions for the next month.”
He groans.
“I don’t see why you're getting so pissy about this.”
“I’m gettin’ pissy because Zanka’s productivity rate has dropped, which means fewer lessons with Rudo, which connects to Amo, which connects to Eishia- and must I continue? We are a team here, ‘jin, and you should know that more than anyone.
As she talks, his eyes widen slightly before he narrows them again and turns around.
“Fine. If you have mission details, hand ‘em over.”
She takes a breath out, looking him up and down before picking up a few sheets of paper and signing off at the bottom before handing them to him. “Simple thing, ‘bout thirty minutes away, trash beast spotted in rural town. Just find it, take it out, don’t kill him, and get food.”
He looks through the papers, sighing as he looks back up at her.
“You’re an evil woman, you know?”
“Mm, whatever you say, loverboy.” She picks up another stack and signs at the bottom, handing it to him. “Go bring that to him, share the good news.” Her voice is nonchalant as she waves a hand to dismiss him.
He looks down at the papers and over at her again, a last chance of not having to do this.
“Fuckin’ hell.” He mutters as his grip tightens on them and he starts to walk away.
“Hey, ‘Jin,” A voice interrupts him, and he glances as she tosses a new box of cigarettes to him, then she goes back to her work.
He stares a hole through the box that now rests in his hands before putting it into his pocket.
“Least she could do.” Shaking his head, he walks into the main room, looking around at the cleaners, a cloud of overlapping conversation over the room.
In the far corner, he can see Zanka, a book in her lap, and Jabber, back against the girl's shoulder and talking about something he can’t hear from where he is.
“J! Get your ass over here!” He makes sure to project his voice and puts a hand on his hip when he sees the boy look over at him.
He sees him raise his eyebrows and point to himself, of which he nods and then pulls his head up to tell him to come. Jabber pecks Zanka and is handed the rings of Mankira that she normally wears.
“So... What’s up, Pop’s?” Jabber says after he walks over, and Enjin wordlessly hands him the paper.
After a moment, Enjin says, “Mission.”
Jabber opens it, scans over it before his face drops, and he takes a sharp breath out.
“Fuck! I was gonna do weird shit today!”
“I think you do weird shit every day.” Enjin says, making a follow motion with his hand and walking away, before looking back, “Jabber, follow me.” He breathes, an exasperated tone that turns into a small laugh at the end.
Ever since he’s been a leader, he’s taught the kids several silent hand motions, making missions easier, both when he’s hungover because then he doesn't have to listen to their talking, and when they need to make sure to not get caught. (When they had finally gotten a teacher in the cleaners, more of the young/ the ones that volunteered learned actual sign. Outside of that, it's mostly just, go, stop, pause, wait, shut up, you know, the needed things when you have a team of stupid people and kids.)
“Yeaaahhhh I know, but also, I had a super cool expe-”
“Jabber, just shut up.” They walk into the garage, and Enjin digs through his pockets for his keys as he throws himself into the driver's seat.
Jabber moves to open the passenger door, but Enjin glares at him, so he narrows his eyes and sits in the back.
“Y’know this isn’t the vibe of family bonding,” Jabber says solemnly, holding a hand to his chest and shaking his head slightly as he gets in.
“We aren’t family. No reason for family bonding.” Enjin says, and Jabber rolls his eyes, a slight smirk playing as he makes himself comfortable.
He runs his hand over the dashboard of the car before starting the ignition. Taking a deep breath in, he fixes the rear-view mirror before pulling out, a CD that was already in beginning to play.
“I mean teeeechnically-”
“Technically what? You and Zanka aren’t married, and probably never will be.” He tilts his head, a slight, hardly-there grin on his face as they begin driving.
After a moment of silence, he looks up at the mirror and sees Jabber’s jaw dropped.
“We aren’t? I mean, yeah, she totally didn’t lose nose-goes and totally wasn’t supposed to say anything at the party last MONTH-” He leans back, propping his feet on the center console as he brings a hand to his hair, “Yeah, totes,”
His brows furrow as he turns, looking back at him for a second before blinking.
“Wait- wait, you and Zanka got married and played nose-goes to see who was gonna tell me?” He says, tone vociferous as he turns his body to look back at him-
“Pop’s watch the fuckin’ road!”
Jabber shouts, and Enjin snaps forward, scoffing and throwing a hand above his head.
“Don’t fuckin’ tell me what to do-”
“Then stop trynna hit shit!” Jabber’s hand grabs a hold of the seat in front of him.
As he says it, Enjin swerves and Jabber damn near hits the roof of the jeep from how hard they go over- something that was on the road.
“I’ll drive how I damn please, hell, I’ll hit every-fuckin’- thing if I wanna.” Enjin shakes his head as he talks to himself.
“No wonder the mechanics center is so in need of new people, damn pops, you might just be the one person keepin’ them folks in business. Good on you, supporting our local tire shops and repair stations.” He laughs, and he can see Enjin look back at him for a moment.
Enjin’s grip on the wheel tightens. He hums, biting the inside of his mouth as he fights not to argue or to turn and kill this punk in his backseat.
“Yeah, like you did much better when you had one of the company vehicles.” He mutters.
“Oh, yeah, don’t act like you aren’t still pissed off I beat you in that race.”
Enjin rolls his eyes and puts his hand on the console.
“The only reason you won is that I hit somethin’.”
“You say that like it's a rarity.”
Enjin just pauses, glancing up for a moment because he knows what's coming.
“Oh my gosh, like my little pony. I'm so fucking peak.”
He lets out a weary sigh and has a slight smile on his face as he keeps driving.
For the rest of the drive to the small town, it is relatively quiet. Enjin, at one point, punches Jabber’s foot off of the console ‘accidentally’ and Jabber chooses the most grating songs to sing to himself.
As they pull up into the area, he can already see the thing. Not quite as tall as a house, but with how trashed (hah) the whole area is, it wouldn’t take it long to get to that point.
The car rolls to a stop next to some small restaurant that seems to be closed down for the day. It’s always annoyed him that they do that, goodness forbid a guy wants a decent fuckin’ burger after he deals wi-
“Aight, Pop’s, you can sit outta this’n- Wouldn’t want you to break a hip,” Jabber says, a smirk on his face as he pops his neck and stretches his arms out, activating Mankira with a purple glow.
Enjin raises a brow and scoffs, closing his eyes, then looking down as he activates Umbreaker. By the time he looks up, he can’t see Jabber anymore, and for a slight moment he feels the same fear he felt when Zanka used to get overstimulated and find a quiet place when they went out, but remembers this is the bastard that’s dating his daughter.
He sighs and walks forward, looking around for a moment before he- first- hears it. A loud shriek that he would’ve mistaken for a woman if not for the fact he’s had to hear it about a billion times, that then turns into maniacal laughter as he turns the corner, watching as the thing picks jabber up and slams him against the ground. Only for him to pop back up a few moments later with a newfound fervor that makes Enjin sigh. Picking up Umbreaker, he aims and fires, and the creature crumples. He watches as Jabber’s brows furrow as he looks around.
“I’m not an old man.” He watches Jabber’s expression drop, a smirk falling on his face as he props his hand on his hip.
It’s quick for Jabber’s smirk to come back as he deactivates his baby and jaunts back, walking by him as he speaks.
“Well, young men don’t need to shout it.”
Enjin looks back at him, a hum leaving him.
“You’re lucky my daughter loves you.”
A short laugh from Jabber as Enjin begins following him.
“That, my friend, is.. The only thing you’ve said that I agree with!”
He ends up walking up to a fast food booth, motioning his head for Enjin to order, then doing so himself and paying.
Jabber takes a bite of his burger as they walk back to the car.
“Zanka’s the best thing that ever happened to you,” Enjin says, looking forward.
Jabber nods, “Yeah,” and listens as he continues.
“You’ve done a lot of bad shit to her. And I don’t think you’re worthy of her. I think you’re lucky I didn’t kill you the first day you were there. But..” He swallows, looking to the side and sighing. “You’ve helped her. I don’t know what she sees in you, and this doesn’t mean I forgive you, but it does mean once you settle your score I might.”
“Settle my score?” His voice has a slight tone of amusement in it.
“The amount of times you’ve almost caused her to die, slash, have hurt her, to the amount of times you’ve saved her, and made her feel better. You’ve got a while to go.”
Jabber bites the inside of his lip and nods his head slowly.
“I dunno what to tell you bossman, but I do know that when I’m leaving is either when she kills me or when she tells me to fuck off..” He pauses for a second, “And when he actually means it, not when she’s just fuckin’ around.”
Enjin puts a hand on the roof of the car and looks at him.
“That’s honorable.”
He shrugs, “You’re right about one thing, and that’s that she’s the best damn thing that’s happened to me. If I lost her to somethin’, I’d probably kill it then myself. To be honest, I’d go on a Moby Dick ass adventure for that chick.”
A chuckle.
Enjin takes a breath in, and then sighs of resignation. “Get in the car.” He says, but his tone is lighter, slightly so, but still a little.
“Wait, can I put how many times she’s almost killed me into the equation?” Jabber asks as he opens the back door.
“Front seat,” Enjin directs, before scrunching his brows as he gets in. “Also, I don’t think that would help you any.”
Jabber slides into the seat and shrugs, “I mean, genuine death attempts would probably be like five to.. Three and a half.?” He pauses before shaking his head- “Wait, I only actually tried to kill her once. I knew she would survive that other shit; she’s a strong girl.”
Enjin raises a brow as he starts the ignition, the engine roaring to life.
“I don’t trust that, for some reason.”
He pulls out of the lot, and they start making their way back home. The CD starts back up where it had left off, and Jabber starts bobbing his head to the beat, humming along to it.
“You know the Offspring?” Enjin asks after a second, looking over at him as Jabber raises his head at the female voice.
“Of fuckin’ course I do? What do you take me for, uncultured?” He throws a hand to his chest and scoffs.
“Ehhhhhh. You seem like the kinda guy that listens to weird shit.”
“Well, I’m listening to your voice soooooo- anyways. Um, I mean yeah? I listen to anything good, ‘n some of that shits funky.”
There’s a moment of comfortable silence.
“I don’t know how to break this to you, but I don’t think you’re pretty fly for a white guy, Jabber,” Enjin says, in a slightly amused voice.
“You’re daughters the fly white guy to my-” The song starts back up, and he sings along, “Give it to me baby!”
Enjin takes a deep breath out, rubbing his brows with the hand that isn't on the wheel.
“I deserved that.” He nods.
Jabber cackles, and they fade into quiet again before Jabber reaches for the AUX.
“Don’t.” Enjin takes it from his hand.
“What the freak, bro!”
Enjin places it back down and looks back up at the road.
“You know you’re banned from the aux.”
“Bro, that was once.” Jabber deadpans, and Enjin looks over at him.
He tosses a hand in the air.
“Yeah, that once just so happened to be a very specific moment! I can’t help you; if you’re banned, you’re banned.”
Jabber looks down, and his voice is a little quieter as he says, “But you have to admit it was funny.”
Enjin glares over at him.
“You played ‘No one lives forever’. After we all almost died.”
“Yeah.”
Enjin rubs his eyes again, sighing before cracking a slight smile.
“It was just a little funny- but! That doesn’t mean it was ok, or that you’re getting your privileges back.”
“That’s not fair, how come Gris with his sad lesbian music and you with your bull-shit get to, but I don’t?”
He rolls his eyes.
“Gris doesn’t listen to sad lesbian music- and if your little girlfriend ever gets rights to one of the cars, she can choose if you’re allowed to.”
“She ain’t my little girlfriend, she's my buff ass wife!”
A groan.
“I *really* don’t want to have to deal with that today.”
“Then eat your food; it's gonna get cold if you keep bickering with me.”
He nods his head and picks up his burger again.
“Thanks for getting it for me.”
“No problem, Pop’s!”
He rolls his eyes and takes another bite. You know, maybe dealing with this kid won’t be so bad.