After dropping off Ally at the fighting agency, Jon wondered if this is all legit. The reviews on the internet are split halfway, though the bad reviews are usually about the treatment of the lower end fighters, which has always been shitty regardless of which city you are in.
Looking down at the name of the contact, Jon felt...afraid for the first time. He only reached out half-expecting not to hear back from her at all, and yet to his surprise, the old email address appeared to still be active, or so he thought. Whatever happened over the past five years, his contact would not have been happy with him in the slightest.
Still, contact is still contact, and Jon will just have to brave it through. Taking a breath and stilling his usually fast heart rate, he willed himself towards their meeting point, A cafe out of the zone five/six transit.
As he walked into the cafe, his contact is already sitting at a table in the corner waiting for him.
A girl.....no, a woman with dyed blonde hair and a pair of red thick-framed glasses. Her freckles are just as before, but her general attire has changed so much. Before, she was messy, uncaring, and carried a stereotypical nerdy look with loose-fitting shirts and long black trousers. Now, she is clean, tidy, and dressed in formal business attire, to the point that Jon started feeling under-dressed for the occasion.
In his original email, Jon only intended for this to be a catch-up chat, so he came as such. However, the woman appeared to have other ideas, or she is just dressing like this on a daily already.
Jon gestured lightly towards her, and she tapped her fingers on the table as her glare tracked Jon all the way to the table until he was seated.
'You look great.' Jon complimented with a smile.
'You look shit.' She shot back with her usual slightly muffled way of talking. Then, her eyes widened and she cleared her throat slightly, 'why are you here?'
'I...I am back here with a friend.' Jon replied vaguely, 'and I just want to know what has happened since...'
'Since after WHAT YOU HAVE PULLED?' She said coldly, strands of her hair swaying with an underlying rage.
'Since....my exile.' Jon suggested.
'What did you think happened?' She said, leaning back and cross her arms over her long blue jacket. Her eyes are sharper than before, and her natural beauty shined through now that she is more aware of her appearances, 'you ruined everything, for all of us.'
'...' Jon didn't say a word and simply took in a heavy breath.
'You thought you know what's best, you thought you did what's right.' She leaned forward, poking her fingers angrily at the table and yet Jon felt like her fingers are stabbing directly into his heart like a torture knife, 'YOU did this. YOU were kicked out of here. YOU ruined everything. YOU do not deserve shit. YOU thought you can just come crawling back here to me seeking for...forgiveness?'
'Patty, I...'
'I am Miss Lusher.' Patty corrected Jon before he could continue. Swallowing the rest of her worlds, Jon changed how she is to be addressed as through the remainder of their conversation.
'Miss Lusher, I am merely seeking for some information.' Jon continued, 'What is the current status of the cameraman profession here?'
'There is NONE.' Patty said, swiping her finger across the table, 'it is a new age now. Perhaps I need to thank you for that.'
'None.....? How is that possible?' Jon asked, 'we were integral to everything around here!'
'When one cameraman goes down, another takes it's placed, remember?' Patty said as she stood up from the table, picking up the drink that she hasn't touched since the purchase, 'that was what happened. Things changed, and we were replaced. Did you even remember what you have done?!'
As the woman marched angrily away as if the two of them has had a brutal breakup, Jon looked down at the napkin left behind on the table and thought back to his past. The past that he buried and the one that he left behind.
The one that is now staring at him in the face like a ghostly shadow.
Before Jon 'The Spectator' Bo at the top of the Cameraman's Association in S city, he was Jon Borneat, son of the head of the Borneat Association, one of the bigger family-owned 'business' in the underworld of the S Prime city.
He was raised and groomed to be an outstanding human in every sense. He was trained meticulously in combat, taught everything a superhuman needed to know and much more. His father was often absent throughout his childhood, often managing his business venture and the fate of his son from behind the scenes.
The thing is that there is nothing that isn't shady in the underworld.
Jon Borneat had no idea what his father was doing back then, and the secrecy surrounding everything around him didn't help either.
In his formative years, he came to a quick realization that there is no point for him to investigate all by himself without the requisite tools. He wanted to know more about what his family actually does, what his father is doing, and how he is doing. Instead of being involved in his family's every venture, he was instead trained as a raw specimen and kept in the dark.
However, he knew that this isn't so that he can grow up without worrying about those issues. It is the opposite. There will be a day when everything is revealed to him, and he will be slammed in the face with truth, which will force him to make the ultimate decision which only had one right answer.
That day is coming down the line, and Jon isn't so stupid to think otherwise.
Deep down, quietly and slowly, he started to prepare for that faithful day, and eventually, he managed to convince his carer to allow him to go up to zone one to complete his higher education.
He applied for the University of Zone One, the single most prestigious university in all superhuman societies. Once he got in with outstanding performance in the entrance exams and interviews, his father made a surprising comment.
'Let him go. He will learn much.'
Was he involved in the application process too? Did he do something behind the scenes? Jon Borrneat often wondered when alone in the night. Does it matter? Was it really his strength that allowed him to come here, or was he still walking in the path designated by his father?
DOES IT MATTER?
Packing up all of his formal attire, fancy clothing and shoe wear, Jon Borneat exited the underworld temporarily and began his university lifestyle.
In his first day on campus, there was a list of recommended courses for him to take, and it was so obvious that the recommendations are not coming from the dean in the academic office, but rather from his shadow in the underworld. Tossing that piece of paper in the landfill trash bucket, Jon went ahead and selected all those courses that interested him, a few of those being forensics, journalism, photography and cameraman training.
All those are extremely specific to what he wanted to do, and he doesn't care for the meddling of his father any longer.
On the first day of classes for cameraman training a week in from the start of the university, he sat alone dressed in his black suits at the front of the classroom. The students trickle down one by one after the class starts, dragging their feet and rubbing their eyes from the previous night out just like students from anywhere else. That is surprising, but not entirely unexpected.
Then, she walked through the door.
An angel with a light glow coming out of her body. She wore a light striped shirt and a black skirt that day. Her long runny brunette hair gently brushed against the patterns on her top in a dazzling fashion, and Jon found his eyes locked onto her, not just cause of her appearance, but also her aura.
He was trained to sense others from a young age, and he immediately grew to like this girl from the warm she emanated.
She sat at the end of the row through the class, and Jon found himself glancing over at her occasionally as she actively participated in class discussions and other assignments.
In the end, they didn't exchange a single word, and Jon moved through his classes as normal.
The photography glass came a bit later in the day, and Jon has carefully chosen his pick up line and conversation starter, arriving just early enough for the class to have a semi-complete conversation.
'Are you here for the photography class?' Jon asked, catching her attention as she turned quickly, her hair waving back and forth with her movements. The warmth returned, and she smiled and at him.
'I am!'
'Were you there at this morning's class too?' Jon asked yet another obvious question, as he looked in the direction of the shut classroom door, 'I was quite surprised by how much ground we covered in the first day.'
'You are so right!' She said excitedly and took half a step towards him as she lowered her voice, 'I was totally not prepared for it AT ALL!'
'But you looked so comfortable there, always engaged with the lecture and stuff...'
'That's the only way I know I can keep up with you guys!' She said with a smile, 'plus...the material is so great...'
Catching himself staring at her beauty, Jon poked himself with his fingernails and carried on the conversation, 'My name is Jon, by the way. Nice to meet you.'
'I am Hannah!'
The door to the class opened, and the two moved forward towards their shared future.
'Do you mind...that I sit next to you?' Jon asked awkwardly, and Hannah replied with a bright chuckle and a nod.
'You will have to help me if I am stuck then!'
Any time. Jon thought I will be here at any time.