Generation Gaps

[Won Ki Jun]

This was distressing, to say the least. Not only had Ki Jun lost his hunting partner, but it also seemed he'd lost sight of his kids, too. After the entire affair went down, they all seemed to scatter and Ki Jun was left to think about what just happened on his own. Steven was... gay? He... was attracted to men? That part was easier to digest than the rest. His own partner had seduced his son. There was no doubt about it. A man his age and a kid Steven's age? Somebody had duped the other and it tore at Ki Jun for not seeing it.

Strange, how he wanted to dial up his ex-wife to speak with her about it. Did she know about Steven? Of course not. Or if she did, this was the reason Steven was here now. He was looking for love, acceptance. He didn't need his own father staring at him like he'd grown another head. It was just... he had an old fashioned up-bringing and some things were hard to let go of. He had mixed feelings because he knew what it was like to be young, to wonder, to think maybe things weren't so black and white. But he'd eventually grown up, and mostly, he'd grown out of such things.

Maybe Steven would, too.

But at the moment, he wandered downtown, hands in his pockets, lost. He was looking for his kids, it was true. But he was also struggling to define what he was feeling. Anger toward his partner--for sure. But... he didn't think he was angry at Steven. And if he was, it was more from the fact that his own kid didn't feel comfortable telling him about himself. Maybe because he knew you'd react badly. Would he have, though? If they just sat and talked about, rather than having him walk in on his son and his business partner together?

And his daughter. Nicole. Where did she fit into all this? She probably knew. Those two were always so close. Ki Jun frowned at himself. And when he looked up, he swore he saw her, his daughter, out of the corner of his eye. Turning, he saw that it was indeed her, in front of a shop across the street. Worried that he'd lose her or that she'd run if he called out to her, Ki Jun sprinted quietly across the street, then reached out and grasped her shoulder to turn her toward him.

"Nicky! Nicole," he amended. "I've been looking all over for you kids."

RinR

[Nicole Won]

After shit had hit the fan, Nicole spent most of her time keeping an eye out for Steven, making sure he didn't do anything rash. Thankfully she had managed to talk him into staying with her for a while, it give her a little bit of comfort to know he was safe. It still seemed to be a sore subject for him, so she avoided bringing it up, and merely listened when he brought it up. If she tried to reason with him he might get upset and think that she didn't care.

She hadn't seen their father since; she wasn't sure how to get in contact with him, and she wasn't going to ask Steven. Although they hadn't exactly fought, she got the feeling he wouldn't be too thrilled with her talking to him. But he deserved to know that Steven was okay.

With Steven at the hotel as well, she found herself getting out more, to give him, and her some space. There was also a lot of Hazelton she had yet to see, and the possibility that she might bump into their old man. No stupid, creepy business partner. And no Steven putting walls up and refusing to talk.

"Hey, if you wanted me to move y--" She frowned for a moment, brushing her shoulder off.

Her expression lightened up once her eyes reached his face. "Oh, I thought, never mind." She waved her hand dismissively before folding her arms. "Sorry, I was trying to stop Steven from running. I managed to talk him into staying with me, but I don't think he's up for visitors, or talking. I'm worried about scaring him off, then neither of us will know where he is. So I didn't want to ask him for your number, and he won't leave his phone alone, so I couldn't just grab your number either.  He's hurting now, but I think he'll be okay." She placed her hands on her hips and took a breath. "Phew, it feels good to finally blurt that out."

"You know, since Steven isn't around, I wouldn't be opposed to finding that creep and introducing him to my fists." With the dark expression on her face, and the cracking of her knuckles, it was rather difficult to tell if she was joking at all.

[Won Ki Jun]

"Ah, so that's what happened." To be honest, he had been afraid they both left Hazleton, that they decided this life really wasn't for them after all. Ki Jun would have been fine with that--disappointed, but perhaps also relieved. His ex-wife had some points when she said it was no life for a family. At the same time, he couldn't help swelling with pride, knowing that two of his kids had sought him out. (Did Nicky really seek him out, though? Or just Steven?) Either way! They had come to him and they wanted to work with him. And he wanted to show them the ropes.

Maybe it was irresponsible but it was hard for Ki Jun to justify it that way. Teaching them how to defend themselves against specific creatures that might harm them out there... Wasn't that a dad's job from the start? He could teach them everything he knew and they'd go on to teach their own kids. That way, none of them would be caught unawares.

Too bad none of that training taught him how to deal with creepy co-workers hitting on his young son.

"If I find him, we can double team him," he said with a grim smile. He had no problems with Nicole wanting to punch that asshole in the face. Hell, he'd kick the man in the damned balls if he saw him. Nobody was going to accuse him of fighting dirty when he told them what that creep did. But...

"But back to Steven," he said after a moment of thoughtful silence. He brought his hands together. "Any way you could send a message back to him? For me?"

[Nicole Won]

Nicole nodded and casually crossed her arms. "The only thing stopping me from losing my shit was making sure he didn't bolt. He was scared of coming out. Though I still regret not breaking that creep's nose; he took advantage of Steve." Her jaw tightened. "I try not to wonder how long it had been going on for; it just pisses me off more." She sighed. "How have you been since shit hit the fan?" She tried to put herself in his shoes, but their difference in age and life experience made it difficult.

"Fine, but I'm claiming his nose. He'll never breathe the same again." With a twisted smirk she scrunched her hands up and knocked her knuckles together.

She nodded. "What's the message?" She placed her hands on her hips.

"I have some time to spare, if you want to catch up or anything." She slipped her hands into the pockets of her shorts.

[Won Ki Jun]

At the very least, he was glad to know that his ex-wife had raised a girl (woman) that could handle herself. The more he saw of Nicole now, the more he saw that she definitely wasn't the little girl he'd left behind. Maybe his being gone had helped pushed her to be the kind of person she was now. He didn't know how to feel about that. Of course, he wanted to be there. But on the other hand, he had to make the world a safer place for her and her brothers.

Now he felt he must have failed. The enemy wasn't just a number of monsters and non-humans. The enemy was closer than he had ever imagined.

The thought of his own colleague taking advantage of his son still made him sick. As he regarded Nicole's defensive stance, he had to wonder if she thought his message would be detrimental. Obviously, she was acting as gatekeeper to protect her brother. She wouldn't let Ki Jun even look at him if what he had to say next didn't sit well with her. That made him wonder what exactly they expected.

"I'm not angry," he said after a moment, rubbing the edge of his nose almost sheepishly. He felt like it shouldn't even be something he had to relay but if Steven was hiding, he must be afraid of him. "I'm not angry at him. I'm angry at that disgusting perv of a..."

He crossed his arms and made himself take a breath before he went off with a string of curses in front of little Nicky.

"I really don't know much about you kids, do I?"

[Nicole Won]

Her lips twitched when he started to get worked up, fighting back a grin. It was amusing to see such behaviour from one of her parents.

She cocked a brow and straightened up. "That's a good start..." There was no point in sugar-coating anything; she'd talked to her brother and knew the kind of things he wanted to hear. "So you're not angry at him, go on." With a small smile she gestured for him to continue, not wanting to scare him off. Steven seemed to look up to him a lot, and he seemed easier to get along with than their mother. She wouldn't mind getting to know him, but she could tell that he meant a lot to Steve.

"Maybe that's a good thing, it means we get a clean slate, and we can focus on the present." She sighed. "Ugh, now I'm being all mushy." She frowned and stomped her feet.

"Is there anywhere quiet to hangout around here?"

[Won Ki Jun]

"Nothing wrong with being mushy with your old man, is there?" His smile was genuine, if slightly lopsided. He wanted to reach over and give her a half hug, the way he used to when she was tiny and sitting next to him on the couch. Now he felt he didn't know what lines were allowed to be crossed or whether little Nicky would appreciate them or despise him for them. Ah, he really didn't know his kids at all, did he?

He smiled at her, though. Her stubborn streak definitely reminded him of somebody. Now he did lightly put his arm around her shoulders, not too pushy about it, not forcing her to step closer, just enough to know that he was there but giving enough room for her to slide away if she didn't like it.

"You still like ice cream, right? Because there's a parlor that sells the best sundaes in town like three blocks from here!"

[Nicole Won]

"What isn't wrong with being mushy?" Nicole shook her head. "I suppose it's fine if you can reign it in, but damn, I feel for bartenders everywhere. They only get paid to serve drinks, not listen to sob stories." After she realised she had gotten a bit carried away she cleared her throat and brought herself back on topic. "I'm not a fan being mushy, or anyone being overly so. It's..." She frowned while she also looked rather confused. "Weird."

She slipped out of his reach. With the added height of her high heeled boots, she stood on tip-toes and put her arm around his shoulders. "

"No, ice cream is stupid. Why would anyone like ice cream?" For a long moment she stared blankly at him, until he seemed to believe her. "Ice cream is an essential part of a balanced diet; it is best served covered in topping of any kind, unless it's fruit. Only yellow-bellies eat fruit, so if you have fruit with ice cream I'll have to put you on the party-pooper list." She wagged her right index finger in a scolding manner.

[Won Ki Jun]

"Hm... and what do you know about bartenders?" He tilted his head and gave her his very Dad stare. A girl her age in this country shouldn't be in any bar, as far as he was concerned. (Then again, even if she was over 21, he would still have a problem with it--he couldn't help it. Despite how she held her own, he kept seeing the little girl with the mismatched pigtails and the dress flapping up as she ran after ducks at the park.)

"And hold on a minute, there's plenty of reason to put fruit on ice cream!" he protested, wagging a finger right back at her. "Haven't you ever had strawberries in syrup on your ice cream before?"

He kissed his fingers like a cartoon chef. "Delicioso!"

[Nicole Won]

She shrunk back a little at his stare, but shortly after, straightened up and stared back at him.  There was nothing to hide. "All I know is from video games, movies, and television." She shrugged her shoulders. "So probably-" she cut herself off. "Shit all. But there's always someone willing to tell you their life story when you didn't ask for it."

"I suppose you have a point," she said begrudgingly and folded her arms. "I'd put strawberries on ice cream if I was old and my taste buds were faulty too."

She looked at him in disapproval. "Let's go before I change my mind." She nudged him with her elbow and took off. He'd have to pick up his pace if he wanted to keep up. "The loser pays!" And she didn't intend to lose.

[Won Ki Jun]

The Dad stare continued for a moment but he had no reason to disbelieve Nicole. She did seem to love her video games. And there were a hell of a lot of depictions of down and out people going to bartenders to talk their ears off. Ki Jun had never actually done it himself. He preferred to keep those things to himself. If he talked to strangers, it was about inane and innocent things like his children or whatever was playing on the television or what drinks they were drinking. Not much to talk about when it came to strange drunks.

"My taste buds aren't faulty," he protested immediately. Strawberries belonged on ice cream! Most fruit belonged on ice cream, if you asked him--and that didn't make him old and faulty! He watched her for a moment with a half open mouth before he moved to catch up to her, then intentionally put on a burst of speed to pass her.

"I hope you have a big wallet," he taunted. "Because I have a big appetite!"

[Nicole Won]

"I'm not saying that I did, but I spent most of my money on video games and food, so there's no way I could afford a fake id and drinks. Besides, there are plenty of sober weirdos around, and I don't have to pay to see them." She shrugged her shoulders. "There's one standing right in front of me." She grinned devilishly.

"It's okay, everyone has their faults." She gave his arm a pat.

When he passed, Nic frowned. She swung her arms faster and shortened her steps, gaining speed. Instead of retorting, she focused on catching up. She was on his heels, and could spot the ice cream parlour nearby. after swiftly avoiding a crash, she caught up to him. Curse her tiny body! She wasn't sure if she would be able to pass him.

((He can win if you want, so he can gloat. :D I don't mind~))

[Won Ki Jun]

He laughed--he was winning. For some reason, racing his daughter to an ice cream shop made him feel more like he was ten again than a father but that was okay. It was nice to feel young again, with the wind in his hair and his laughter genuine. Smiling, he turned his head to see that she was closing the gap between them. Purposely, Ki Jun slowed his steps just as he got to the entrance and then he swept his arms out so that he could grab Nicky and swoop her up in his arms just as he had done when she was tiny.

"You're still tiny!" he marveled. All right, a lot bigger than she was when he left but she was still tiny enough for him to tuck in his pocket if he wanted to. He pushed the door open with his elbow.

"I think it might be a tie, Nicky. What do you think?"

(I'm going to say this is done since we've gone ahead with the twins switching and stuff and I like to have one per character to keep timelines straight in my chaotic head!)