Last Angel: The Zone Complex [Part 2]
A/N: Things to know
~If you don't know what the "Descent" is, refer back to the Prologue.
~There's several POV [point of view] trades here in this entry once Changmin comes in the picture:
Once Changmin's thoughts are written when he first comes in to the shop ['Gawd I can't believe I'm back at this dump already.' ] that is HIS point of view. The next paragraph that starts with 'The next morning', is NEMI'S brief POV. The next paragraph after that is CHANGMIN'S POVonce again. Finally, after that, the final paragraph is NEMI'S POV.
~Hope none of that is confusing T_T
The next morning Zoe's once again hunched over the same glowing PDA system when she hears a six digit number, as opposed to the customer three digit number, being put into the high-tech lock box outside of the garage style door. Suddenly, the smaller employee entrance door swings open and as the figure steps through, the strong taps of heels can be heard on the cold, concrete floor of the shop.
Zoe stops her calculations for a moment to happily look up and exclaim, "Hey, you made it back! And in one piece!"
"Very funny." Nemi says humorlessly with a small, cynical smile on her face.
Zoe suddenly looks at the girl's attire which consisted of heeled black combat boots, black fishnet tights with black over-the-knee high socks layered over them, a tiny black mini skirt, a gray t-shirt with an adorable black and white panda on the front, and covered by a familiar, white, shrunken winter jacket with gray faux fur. "What in god's name did you step out of the house wearing today?"
"Oh /looking down at herself/ this?" she beams an innocent smile, "What? I wore a jacket like you said."
"Yeah, but I didn't tell you to wear my freaking jacket! And that coat doesn't make up for the fact that you're dressed like a whore."
"Well, Micky liked my outfit." she pouts while casually strolling behind the counter.
"Of course he did." Zoe says stoically while continuing to push away at the PDA.
Nemi only laughs mischievously as Zoe continues, "But honestly, how does he even like anything? You know he's nearly half way through his Descent, don't you?
"Zoe, the Descent only lessens the feelings simulated in the head on your shoulders." Nemi decrees with a suggestive eyebrow wiggle.
Zoe only blinks once at her blankly before she catches her drift, "Oh god, Nemi! Did you really just say that?" /now shaking her head/
Nemi only laughs at her older sister.
"Anyway," Zoe continues desperate to change the subject, "skimpy clothing like that is most likely the very reason you've been out sick for two days."
"Yeah well, then let me get back to my job please," Nemi begins pushing her sister away from the PDA but her playful expression falls when she catches glimpse of the screen.
"Holy shit, Zoe."
"What?"
Nemi doesn't reply right off but instead intensifies her gaze at the screen, "Shit!"
"Am I going to get a reason for all the profanity or is it just going to keep coming?" Zoe asks now impatient, her hands briefly thrown in the air before crossed across her chest.
"Geezus, Zoe, I was gone for only two days and you've already somehow managed to fuck up the nearly all of the calculations?"
"What?!" Zoe screeches. "I did everything the way I was supposed to! Even Koda helped me a little bit!"
"Well it must have been quite a 'little' bit because all these calcs are screwed nearly beyond repair! Gawd, Zoe, who the hell taught you basic math?"
"Shut up!" Zoe barks back. "Look, now you're back, so you fix it if it's as 'fucked up' as you say it is!" Zoe storms off to the back of the shop.
"Well it is!" Nemi spews after her.
____________________________
Lunch time.
"Okay, dude, you should've seen the guy that came in the shop yesterday," Zoe begins as soon as Nemi plops down across from her at the small stainless steel table in the back of the shop.
"Oh yeah he was chou-kawaii!! [totally cute!!]" Koda adds enthusiastically, nodding her head a little before taking a nibble of her flavored rice ball.
Nemi looks over the girl's way and in a blunt tone says, "Koda, use that phrase again, and I'll knock your teeth out."
Zoe glares harshly at her then glances over to Koda, "It's her way of saying I love you." before continuing on with her tale, "So anyway, this guy was totally goregous, like he looked like a freaking model."
"Really now?" Nemi asks, raising a brow and biting into a french fry.
"Yeah, definitely, but he was a total douche bag!"
/now laughing/ "I bet! The sexy ones are always the worst...well besides Yoochun that is." she concludes smiling to herself.
Zoe only glances at Koda as they roll their eyes.
Zoe chews on one of the ends of her chopsticks before thinking aloud, "He might've been a complete and utter jerk...but I still would've hit that."
Nemi finds this hilarious and slaps the table "I'm sure if he was as good-looking as you say he was, then any of us probably would have."
"Hai [yes]... but he seemed like kind of a bad boy." Koda suddenly interjects.
"Psht, the pretty boy? Naw, he just seemed like the type to put up a good front. If you would've seen the way he blushed yesterday when I corrected him, you would've seen that he was really just an overprivileged...baby."
"Well a chou-kawaii baby if anything!" Koda couldn't help herself.
Nemi huffed out hot air, "Koda, I swear by all that is holy..."
"Gomen! [Sorry!]"
Nemi glared at her slightly before continuing, "If you really want a real bad boy, go find Jung Yunho."
"HA!" Zoe laughs sarcastically, "Yeah I'm gonna run right out and find his dwelling so he can have his henchman cut my freaking head off on arrival."
"Kowai [scary]...." Koda concludes while taking a sip from her iced tea.
"Exactly." Zoe agrees.
"I bet he's sexy as hell." Is all Nemi interjects looking off into the distance as she sips her drink.
"Hardly anyone has ever seen him, baka!" Zoe points out.
"You know Zoe, there's been this thing called the Internet available for the past fifty years. And you can even search people's images on it." Nemi says patronizingly.
Zoe scoffs, "Well I bet if anyone's ever searched a killer's picture to see if he's sexy, it you."
"You know me so well." is her sarcastic reply.
Suddenly, a raising noise is heard from the front as the garage door slowly opens.
"This could be our golden boy now." Zoe says, pushing up and away from the table to head to the front.
___________________________
'Gawd I can't believe I'm back at this dump already.' Changmin thinks bitterly as the garage door rises. 'All I want is an estimate and to get out of here.' He shifts uncomfortably before walking in.
To his misfortune, he sees the same girl behind the PDA he did yesterday. As he closes in on the distance, she leans leisurely on the counter and purrs, "So you decided to come back?"
"Of course I did." he spat, "I don't want to leave my bike alone with you too long."
He's surprised when the girl only laughs and offers sarcasm, "Yeah, because I'm definitely going to target only your property when I'm surrounded by a sleugh of other impressive vehicles." she turns her back on him and arranges a few things behind the counter, "what do you need today, pretty boy?"
"My name's Changmin." is all he bothers to reply in a stern tone.
"And what do you need, Changmin?"
"An estimate. Can you do that for me, Joe?" he returns nastily.
"I don't know, Changmin. For you, I might just start charging for estimates." is her snapping reply.
'Who is this girl, and why does she feel like she can talk to me any way she damn near chooses to?' he thinks angrily.
"Look, I don't know who you think you are, or why you think you're so special, but I don't want to talk to you any longer. All I want is my goddamn estimate so I can get out of here and away from you."
"I don't think I've ever felt so mutually in my whole entire life." with that, the girl makes a few key stroke on the PDA and within a moment a small chip is deposited. /holding it in front of his face/ "You can take this micro-flash drive and plug it in to any server. Log on to our site with the account information given on it and pay from there. I don't need you coming back in to give me the P.O.'s personally."
"Oh don't worry, the only thing I'll come back for is my bike-which shouldn't have a single scratch on it when I do!"
With this Changmin reaches up to take the tiny chip and storm off.
__________________________
The next morning.
Nemi's slumped over the PDA, rubbing her forehead in sheer frustration. 'Gawd, did she ever even learn how to operate one of these?'' Her thoughts are interrupted when she hears coding being put in and the garage door rising. She looks over to see a figure in the doorway and shouts in its direction, "If you're a customer please get out of the way of the sensor so the door will go back down, it's fricking freezing outside and you're letting the cold in!"
_________________________
Changmin would've been more relieved to hear the voice, being that it wasn't "Joe's", if it were more pleasant in tone. 'Gawd, do none of these broads know anything about customer service?'
He hears the robotic "How can I help you?" he seems to hear every time he sets foot in this shop.
"Yeah, I was just here yesterday, and I'm sick and tired of coming back, but one of your employees gave me a completely bogus estimate. Even a blind man can tell that price was inflated!"
He hands the new girl the micro-drive from yesterday, she snatches it from him and shoves it in the machine. Within about 0.21 a reading is brought up on the screen.
"Hmm...."
He hears the girl thoughtfully say and watches her eyes scan the screen and the numbers on it. He's almost sure the next words she speaks will be an apolo-
"No, these calculations are actually correct."
'What?!"
The girl continues to scan the screen while murmuring to herself, "Yeah, this might actually be the only correct calc she's done in two days..."
"What?" Changmin demands once more.
"Well your bike is a 2050 model with a fuel source that's restricted to the public right now. So for two shipments, that's assuming we can get our bid in on the very first of the stock, of two very expensive strains of fuel, and assuming you want a full tank's worth of each, that is in fact going to cost you three hundred P.O.'s" the girl finishes.
Changmin can't repress a deep, dissatisfied groan as he rests a hand on his forehead before running it through the soft waves of his hair, "Un-be-lievable."
What's even more unbelievable is when he looks down to find the very same girl looking at him-no examining him- with a devilish look in her eyes.
'Oh for the love of...'
He once again takes a few breaths to calm himself and his thoughts when he's suddenly disturbed by the girl's inquiring voice, "You're him aren't you?"
"What?"
Just as Changmin believes he can't get any more upset, his hearing catches the sound of six digits being punched in the computerized lock box outside. 'What the...' And as he looks over to see a girl's figure emerge from the cold outside through a side door entrance he can't hide his disappointment as he recognizes the voice that goes along with it.
_________________________
"You're late." Nemi turns her attention away from the boy in front of her.
"Yeah well it's kind of hard to get through hovering traffic without killing yourself during the late rush, Nem-"
Before she finishes her statement, Nemi sees Zoe's eyes dart over to the guy she had been talking with and then hears her carry on in a less than excited tone as she closes in on them, "Oh, look what the cat dragged in."
The boy only crosses his arms and shifts his weight from one long leg to the other as a frown forms on his face.
Her sister continues, "So I see you've met Changmin."
"This 'the model'?" Nemi asks in an playful tone, pointing absentmindedly.
"I bet he thinks he is." she replies as she walks behind the counter.
"You know I can hear you?" the boy, identified now as Changmin, spews as he leans forward a bit throwing his voice in Zoe's direction. "And the only thing I think I am is cheated!"
"You know, you're one suspicious mother-"
Nemi cuts her off, addressing Changmin again, "Like I said man, the estimate is correct. You're either going to have to pay the P.O.'s for the repair or for a tow to get your bike out of here."
"Fine!" the young man screams at her. "Take my P.O.'s-I don't care! I just want to get away from this shop!"
Nemi glances back to her elder, not bothering to whisper, "Oh, he is a douche bag."
~If you don't know what the "Descent" is, refer back to the Prologue.
~There's several POV [point of view] trades here in this entry once Changmin comes in the picture:
Once Changmin's thoughts are written when he first comes in to the shop ['Gawd I can't believe I'm back at this dump already.' ] that is HIS point of view. The next paragraph that starts with 'The next morning', is NEMI'S brief POV. The next paragraph after that is CHANGMIN'S POVonce again. Finally, after that, the final paragraph is NEMI'S POV.
~Hope none of that is confusing T_T
The next morning Zoe's once again hunched over the same glowing PDA system when she hears a six digit number, as opposed to the customer three digit number, being put into the high-tech lock box outside of the garage style door. Suddenly, the smaller employee entrance door swings open and as the figure steps through, the strong taps of heels can be heard on the cold, concrete floor of the shop.
Zoe stops her calculations for a moment to happily look up and exclaim, "Hey, you made it back! And in one piece!"
"Very funny." Nemi says humorlessly with a small, cynical smile on her face.
Zoe suddenly looks at the girl's attire which consisted of heeled black combat boots, black fishnet tights with black over-the-knee high socks layered over them, a tiny black mini skirt, a gray t-shirt with an adorable black and white panda on the front, and covered by a familiar, white, shrunken winter jacket with gray faux fur. "What in god's name did you step out of the house wearing today?"
"Oh /looking down at herself/ this?" she beams an innocent smile, "What? I wore a jacket like you said."
"Yeah, but I didn't tell you to wear my freaking jacket! And that coat doesn't make up for the fact that you're dressed like a whore."
"Well, Micky liked my outfit." she pouts while casually strolling behind the counter.
"Of course he did." Zoe says stoically while continuing to push away at the PDA.
Nemi only laughs mischievously as Zoe continues, "But honestly, how does he even like anything? You know he's nearly half way through his Descent, don't you?
"Zoe, the Descent only lessens the feelings simulated in the head on your shoulders." Nemi decrees with a suggestive eyebrow wiggle.
Zoe only blinks once at her blankly before she catches her drift, "Oh god, Nemi! Did you really just say that?" /now shaking her head/
Nemi only laughs at her older sister.
"Anyway," Zoe continues desperate to change the subject, "skimpy clothing like that is most likely the very reason you've been out sick for two days."
"Yeah well, then let me get back to my job please," Nemi begins pushing her sister away from the PDA but her playful expression falls when she catches glimpse of the screen.
"Holy shit, Zoe."
"What?"
Nemi doesn't reply right off but instead intensifies her gaze at the screen, "Shit!"
"Am I going to get a reason for all the profanity or is it just going to keep coming?" Zoe asks now impatient, her hands briefly thrown in the air before crossed across her chest.
"Geezus, Zoe, I was gone for only two days and you've already somehow managed to fuck up the nearly all of the calculations?"
"What?!" Zoe screeches. "I did everything the way I was supposed to! Even Koda helped me a little bit!"
"Well it must have been quite a 'little' bit because all these calcs are screwed nearly beyond repair! Gawd, Zoe, who the hell taught you basic math?"
"Shut up!" Zoe barks back. "Look, now you're back, so you fix it if it's as 'fucked up' as you say it is!" Zoe storms off to the back of the shop.
"Well it is!" Nemi spews after her.
____________________________
Lunch time.
"Okay, dude, you should've seen the guy that came in the shop yesterday," Zoe begins as soon as Nemi plops down across from her at the small stainless steel table in the back of the shop.
"Oh yeah he was chou-kawaii!! [totally cute!!]" Koda adds enthusiastically, nodding her head a little before taking a nibble of her flavored rice ball.
Nemi looks over the girl's way and in a blunt tone says, "Koda, use that phrase again, and I'll knock your teeth out."
Zoe glares harshly at her then glances over to Koda, "It's her way of saying I love you." before continuing on with her tale, "So anyway, this guy was totally goregous, like he looked like a freaking model."
"Really now?" Nemi asks, raising a brow and biting into a french fry.
"Yeah, definitely, but he was a total douche bag!"
/now laughing/ "I bet! The sexy ones are always the worst...well besides Yoochun that is." she concludes smiling to herself.
Zoe only glances at Koda as they roll their eyes.
Zoe chews on one of the ends of her chopsticks before thinking aloud, "He might've been a complete and utter jerk...but I still would've hit that."
Nemi finds this hilarious and slaps the table "I'm sure if he was as good-looking as you say he was, then any of us probably would have."
"Hai [yes]... but he seemed like kind of a bad boy." Koda suddenly interjects.
"Psht, the pretty boy? Naw, he just seemed like the type to put up a good front. If you would've seen the way he blushed yesterday when I corrected him, you would've seen that he was really just an overprivileged...baby."
"Well a chou-kawaii baby if anything!" Koda couldn't help herself.
Nemi huffed out hot air, "Koda, I swear by all that is holy..."
"Gomen! [Sorry!]"
Nemi glared at her slightly before continuing, "If you really want a real bad boy, go find Jung Yunho."
"HA!" Zoe laughs sarcastically, "Yeah I'm gonna run right out and find his dwelling so he can have his henchman cut my freaking head off on arrival."
"Kowai [scary]...." Koda concludes while taking a sip from her iced tea.
"Exactly." Zoe agrees.
"I bet he's sexy as hell." Is all Nemi interjects looking off into the distance as she sips her drink.
"Hardly anyone has ever seen him, baka!" Zoe points out.
"You know Zoe, there's been this thing called the Internet available for the past fifty years. And you can even search people's images on it." Nemi says patronizingly.
Zoe scoffs, "Well I bet if anyone's ever searched a killer's picture to see if he's sexy, it you."
"You know me so well." is her sarcastic reply.
Suddenly, a raising noise is heard from the front as the garage door slowly opens.
"This could be our golden boy now." Zoe says, pushing up and away from the table to head to the front.
___________________________
'Gawd I can't believe I'm back at this dump already.' Changmin thinks bitterly as the garage door rises. 'All I want is an estimate and to get out of here.' He shifts uncomfortably before walking in.
To his misfortune, he sees the same girl behind the PDA he did yesterday. As he closes in on the distance, she leans leisurely on the counter and purrs, "So you decided to come back?"
"Of course I did." he spat, "I don't want to leave my bike alone with you too long."
He's surprised when the girl only laughs and offers sarcasm, "Yeah, because I'm definitely going to target only your property when I'm surrounded by a sleugh of other impressive vehicles." she turns her back on him and arranges a few things behind the counter, "what do you need today, pretty boy?"
"My name's Changmin." is all he bothers to reply in a stern tone.
"And what do you need, Changmin?"
"An estimate. Can you do that for me, Joe?" he returns nastily.
"I don't know, Changmin. For you, I might just start charging for estimates." is her snapping reply.
'Who is this girl, and why does she feel like she can talk to me any way she damn near chooses to?' he thinks angrily.
"Look, I don't know who you think you are, or why you think you're so special, but I don't want to talk to you any longer. All I want is my goddamn estimate so I can get out of here and away from you."
"I don't think I've ever felt so mutually in my whole entire life." with that, the girl makes a few key stroke on the PDA and within a moment a small chip is deposited. /holding it in front of his face/ "You can take this micro-flash drive and plug it in to any server. Log on to our site with the account information given on it and pay from there. I don't need you coming back in to give me the P.O.'s personally."
"Oh don't worry, the only thing I'll come back for is my bike-which shouldn't have a single scratch on it when I do!"
With this Changmin reaches up to take the tiny chip and storm off.
__________________________
The next morning.
Nemi's slumped over the PDA, rubbing her forehead in sheer frustration. 'Gawd, did she ever even learn how to operate one of these?'' Her thoughts are interrupted when she hears coding being put in and the garage door rising. She looks over to see a figure in the doorway and shouts in its direction, "If you're a customer please get out of the way of the sensor so the door will go back down, it's fricking freezing outside and you're letting the cold in!"
_________________________
Changmin would've been more relieved to hear the voice, being that it wasn't "Joe's", if it were more pleasant in tone. 'Gawd, do none of these broads know anything about customer service?'
He hears the robotic "How can I help you?" he seems to hear every time he sets foot in this shop.
"Yeah, I was just here yesterday, and I'm sick and tired of coming back, but one of your employees gave me a completely bogus estimate. Even a blind man can tell that price was inflated!"
He hands the new girl the micro-drive from yesterday, she snatches it from him and shoves it in the machine. Within about 0.21 a reading is brought up on the screen.
"Hmm...."
He hears the girl thoughtfully say and watches her eyes scan the screen and the numbers on it. He's almost sure the next words she speaks will be an apolo-
"No, these calculations are actually correct."
'What?!"
The girl continues to scan the screen while murmuring to herself, "Yeah, this might actually be the only correct calc she's done in two days..."
"What?" Changmin demands once more.
"Well your bike is a 2050 model with a fuel source that's restricted to the public right now. So for two shipments, that's assuming we can get our bid in on the very first of the stock, of two very expensive strains of fuel, and assuming you want a full tank's worth of each, that is in fact going to cost you three hundred P.O.'s" the girl finishes.
Changmin can't repress a deep, dissatisfied groan as he rests a hand on his forehead before running it through the soft waves of his hair, "Un-be-lievable."
What's even more unbelievable is when he looks down to find the very same girl looking at him-no examining him- with a devilish look in her eyes.
'Oh for the love of...'
He once again takes a few breaths to calm himself and his thoughts when he's suddenly disturbed by the girl's inquiring voice, "You're him aren't you?"
"What?"
Just as Changmin believes he can't get any more upset, his hearing catches the sound of six digits being punched in the computerized lock box outside. 'What the...' And as he looks over to see a girl's figure emerge from the cold outside through a side door entrance he can't hide his disappointment as he recognizes the voice that goes along with it.
_________________________
"You're late." Nemi turns her attention away from the boy in front of her.
"Yeah well it's kind of hard to get through hovering traffic without killing yourself during the late rush, Nem-"
Before she finishes her statement, Nemi sees Zoe's eyes dart over to the guy she had been talking with and then hears her carry on in a less than excited tone as she closes in on them, "Oh, look what the cat dragged in."
The boy only crosses his arms and shifts his weight from one long leg to the other as a frown forms on his face.
Her sister continues, "So I see you've met Changmin."
"This 'the model'?" Nemi asks in an playful tone, pointing absentmindedly.
"I bet he thinks he is." she replies as she walks behind the counter.
"You know I can hear you?" the boy, identified now as Changmin, spews as he leans forward a bit throwing his voice in Zoe's direction. "And the only thing I think I am is cheated!"
"You know, you're one suspicious mother-"
Nemi cuts her off, addressing Changmin again, "Like I said man, the estimate is correct. You're either going to have to pay the P.O.'s for the repair or for a tow to get your bike out of here."
"Fine!" the young man screams at her. "Take my P.O.'s-I don't care! I just want to get away from this shop!"
Nemi glances back to her elder, not bothering to whisper, "Oh, he is a douche bag."