The Siren (18+)

Chapter 10

April sat on the cold marble countertop staring at the shirtless man attempting to cook ramen.

"Are you sure you know what you're doing."
"Shut the fuck up you burnt eggs."
"That happened literally one time."
"That one time was five minutes ago."

April did not know how to cook at all. The blackened eggs sat in the bin as proof. She typically made her assistant bring her food from the different restaurants and food stalls in the city but this morning she felt adventurous. The acrid smell of burnt toast and eggs hung in the air and made the earlier sense of adventure disappear completely.

Today was an early day for her. She had made plans to rob some stores and banks with Ramee. They had been planning for a week since her return to Los Santos and she had been excited because it was the day she would attempt to hack into Paleto Bay Bank. The woman felt less nervous because her mentor would be around to take over in the event that she messed it up but she hoped that she wouldn't need to waste resources. Ramee had invested fifty thousand in the laptops hoping to come out with big rewards and she didn't want to ruin that.

She wiped the counter with a sigh. After her talk with Carmella, April decided to get her relationship with Ramee the way it used to be before she left. She knew that if they continued to act awkwardly around each other it would make the others question what happened between them to cause a rift. They had both agreed that they would remain friends and start hanging out more. They called each other more and texted more frequently. Their conversations went back to being natural and effortless.

Outside the apartment the streets of Little Seoul were busy as usual. She could hear cars driving past and the meows of Felipe the cat. The woman was not really sure it was Felipe. That's what she called all the stray black cats of Little Seoul.

Strong tattooed arms handed her a bowl of ramen. She carefully held the hot ceramic close enough to feel the steam gently hit her face. With a soft thank you to her friend, April inhaled the food. The noodles were hot and slightly overcooked but she hardly cared.

"You're such a pig."
"I'm going to tell Flippy you're being mean to me."

She had taken up Miguel's offer of staying at his place earlier in the week. A new hydra member had been blooded in and she would take the only apartment that was empty so April accepted the spare keys from her friend. She did not mind staying at Miguel's. Despite his sour temperament the Irish man was very kind towards her. She was already familiar with his habits after living with him for 6 months so occasionally sleeping over was no issue to her.

•••

After breakfast and a shower, April walked out of the snake pit and headed to the cubby. The September air was starting to get chilly and the city was covered in crunching carpets of reds, yellows and oranges. She smiled serenely at the sound underneath her shoes. Fall was her favorite season.

The woman was about to cross the street but stopped once she spotted a familiar chubby boy hanging around the park In Little Seoul. He was cornering weed, She realized.

"Hey kid!" She called for him. He slowly walked up to the redhead. "Yeah" he said when he reached her. "What's your name?" She asked. She had seen him around little Seoul a few times but knew nothing about him besides the fact that he was an orphan. She knew he somehow worked for CG and he must have been well known if he was cornering weed so causally on her family's turf.
"Lil Bleach." He said as he stared up at the woman.

She stood tall and confident. Her unusually bright blue eyes stared back at him. The kind lady was winter in her snow skin and frozen eyes. Her red hair was dancing wildly with the wind. Her smile was filled with summer warmth and he felt himself bloom under her nurturing gaze. He didn't even know her name. He was too afraid to ask in case she was a figment of his imagination. A way to cope with the struggles of the dangers he put himself in. A mother figure that looked like Mother Nature herself breathed life into her. Even the way she moved was graceful. He had never seen someone so willowy yet firm and grounded. He felt shy in front of her.