On a stormy night, when most people had already gone home early, Jax Tam closed his umbrella, carefully flicked off the raindrops from his coat, strolled down a long hallway, and rapped on the office door of the Chief of the Public Security Department.
"Enter." The boss, Cass Chow, sat behind his desk, going through papers. His square face, heavy brows, and eyes twinkling with a smile made him look like he was in charge but also kinda like a wise teacher.
"Evening, sir." Jax greeted, walking up to the desk.
Back when Cass was the head of the alpha academy, Jax was one of his students. After Cass got promoted to be the Security Chief, he pulled up some of his favorite students to work with him, so the two were pretty tight.
Cass's pen raced across the page as he didn't even glance up, "What's up?"
"It's about Ren." Jax leaned in towards the desk, "He's been cooped up in the Military Administration for a few days now."
"That kid was bound to end up in trouble. Let him sweat it out a bit." Cass lifted up the document he'd just signed, blew on it, gave it a careful once-over before finally looking up. "So what, you guys were buddies back in the day, you want to pull some strings for him?"
Jax quickly said, "No, no, no, I always follow your lead."
Cass sat back behind his big desk, fingers laced together, looking at him with a grin. He reminded Jax of a nice, caring school principal, worried about a student who got in trouble for breaking school rules.
Jax thought over his own feelings, trying to figure out what Cass was thinking, not sure how to say something that his teacher would like. Honestly, he really didn't want to see Ren again.
Ren was like a big cloud hanging over his school years. Back then, Ren was a shining star. He'd always win the title of the top soldier in the alpha academy competitions. As long as Ren was there, everyone else seemed boring and unremarkable.
Jax had spent all these years working hard, almost throwing away his self-respect, buttering up Cass like a lapdog. Only then did he become Cass's right-hand man. He was worried that if Ren showed up again, he might steal his spot. He knew Cass had mixed feelings about Ren, and Ren's past rebellious streak was something he still thought about a lot.
"I'm not being cruel, he was one of my students too." Cass, sitting behind his desk, spoke slowly, sounding like a worried parent. "Young guys like Ren can get cocky, especially if they're pretty talented. They always think they don't have to answer to anyone. Only when they've taken a few knocks and gotten a few scrapes, do they understand that life ain't that simple."
He went back to looking over his papers, "Let him tough it out a few more days with those Military Administration goons, to understand his past screw-ups, to think about asking for my help. Then go and bail him out."
Watching Cass's subtle facial cues, Jax muttered, "Sir, I just heard that Ren got let out. They said he was innocent."
Cass lifted his eyes from the desk, a small smirk dancing across his face as he locked eyes with Jax.
A cold shiver went down Jax's back. He quickly raised his hands, "Sir, I swear I didn't know. I was keeping an eye on him just because you asked me to. Today, outta nowhere, somebody proved Ren was set up. The evidence got out in front of everyone, and the folks at the Military Administration had to let him go."
Jax had been with Cass for a lot of years and knew the man inside out. Cass was known for his nice guy act, but he was really picky about stuff. He wanted to use Ren, but first, he wanted to knock him down a peg or two, just like he did with Jax. Even though he knew how those guys at the Military Administration would treat someone stubborn like Ren, he had played dumb, waiting for Ren to get tormented and finally crack before swooping in like a hero.
Getting his mentor's drift, Jax added, "Even though he's out, he's got nowhere to go in the city. Plus, after his stint at the Military Administration, he's pretty beat up. He's probably still camped out outside the Military Administration building."
Cass got up from his desk and gave Jax a pat on the shoulder, saying, "I'm not mad at you, Jax. You guys were classmates and used to be tight."
"In that case, you should go pick up Ren, clean him up, and let him know his old teacher hasn't forgotten him. I want to know what he's got on his mind."
Jax nodded, relieved, as he walked out of the office.
Watching Jax head out, Cass let out a chuckle, thinking to himself, "Still so green. All his little schemes are so easy to see. Back in school, Jax was always following Ren around. A lot of their wins in competitions were all thanks to Ren."
"Looking at Jax now, it seems like he doesn't care about Ren, and maybe he even wished Ren didn't make it through this mess. Otherwise, with Jax's smooth-talking skills, he could've swung something for Ren in a place like the Military Administration known for its shady deals. Ren might not be so beat up that he can barely walk."
Outside, the rain was coming down harder. Ren sat in a dark alley, looking up at the gray sky, letting the rain fall on him. "It's still warm here in Imperial Nexus. If it was the North, it'd be snowing by now."
Around this time of year, they'd already have their walls built up high and their supplies stashed for the winter, all huddled up around a fireplace.
Shutting his eyes, he decided not to think about the folks he'd never see again.
Footsteps echoed down the alley, and a small smile crept onto Ren's face. The people he had expected finally shown up.
A neatly dressed officer, holding an umbrella, ran towards Ren from the other end of the street. His face was a mix of shock, worry, and urgency.
"Ren, is that you?" Jax bent down to help the man sitting in the rain. His voice was a blend of nerves and scolding, "I just got the news. I couldn't believe it. You should have let us know right away when something like this happened."
Ren didn't say a word, just let Jax help him up. He listened to his old school buddy, his once best friend, prop him up and talk non-stop:
"You should have talked to Mr. Chow. After all, we're both his students."
"I know you and Mr. Chow had a big fight a while back, but he still cares about you."
"See, as soon as he heard the news, he sent me to get you."
"I can't believe what those jerks at the Military Administration did to you. I'll make them pay one day."
Ren was in bad shape, barely able to stand on his own. He leaned heavily on Jax, who held him up. His eyes were on the puddle of rainwater gathering at their feet. Ren's sight was super sharp. In the water's reflection, he could clearly see Jax's face.
On the dirty surface of the water, that face looked down at Ren's banged-up body. Seeing the rough shape Ren was in, the corners of Jax's mouth curled into a weird, uncontrollable grin.
Ren felt a sense of irony but didn't call him out. Instead, he leaned all his weight on Jax and said, "Yeah, I figured you and Mr. Chow would come looking for me."