DUSTY COFFINS ;; bnha

III : The Office

Ping!

An alert sounded from [name]'s burner phone. A text from an unknown number:

(XXX) XXX-XXXX : "Same place as where I used to be: 249-1115, Jogasawa."
(Read 4:31 P.M.)

[name] grinned at the mobile device, snapping the screen shit and pocketing it where it was before. She stood up from her worn down couch and slipped into her ratty white high-tops. She slipped out through her apartment door and locked it behind her, pocketing the keys. She lived in a rather shady apartment complex, it was all she could afford, and tended to be on the safer side of things when it came to her living situation: a ghost gun, extra bolts on the door, and locked windows.

She strode down the street, dirty white locks fluttering in the wind with her head held up high. Confidence wasn't something [name] came across often: with her looks and quirk, she tended to stay on the introverted side of things. But today was a good day! She reunited with her old pal Giran and got a job, all in one day! She kept walking until a familiar mossy-bricked building came into view. A grin involuntarily spread across her face, a giddy look in her eyes. A pep in her step kicked up until she reached the front door.

She opened it, a bell softly tinkling to announce her arrival. "Giran?" [name] called out.

"In the back!" Was his only response.

Stalking towards the back of the office, right leg hitting the floor heavily from her limp, [name] admired the office. Not much has changed. The paint was still the same and the ugly green couch in the lobby was still there. Reaching Giran's personal office, she cringed at how messy it was. "Hey, Giran." She greeted, a smile on her face, showing off her gapped teeth and sharp canines. Dimples indented her dust-colored cheeks -- lack of blood flow made blushing impossible -- when she smiled, a feature which she liked. Giran looked up from his work, a cigarette placed snugly between his thin lips. A smile slowly spread across his face as he stood from his chair, arms held out wide as he chuckled.

"Was waitin' for you to show up, lil' lady!" He laughed. [name] shyly chuckled, leaning in for a quick side hug from him, which he lovingly returned. He offered her an unlit cigarette, which she eagerly took and lit, before sitting back down. He waved at an unoccupied chair, which [name] launched herself into, snuggling down and getting comfortable. "Mind helpin' me sort these papers out? Trynna clean up this mess so I can move already..." He bashfully chuckled, glancing around the cluttered room.

"Same system as last time?" [name] asked, perking up as their hands flew to some random files. Giran nodded in response and the two set to work.

Hours had passed. At one point, Giran had left the office to go get takeout from a nearby restaurant. The duo had completed a significant amount of work in the time [name] had arrived, but had barely made a dent in the overall outlook of moving.

[name] leaned back in their chair, her back popping in the process. She groaned lowly as her body went limp. "My hands... they won't stop cramping..."

Giran chuckled before showing off his bandaid wrapped fingers. "I've lost track of how many paper cuts I've gotten!" He spared a glance at the gold, and probably fake, Rolex on his wrist. Rubbing his chin in thought, he finally spoke. "You oughta get goin' home, missy. It's gettin' kinda late and I don't want you walking around after dark."

"Aww, you care about me?" [name] teased, slowly standing up as her knees freaked in result. Giran waved her off as [name] left the office, stumbling down the street. The sun began to go down when she heard a commotion from a nearby alleyway. Taking a glance, she saw a sight she didn't like.

A group of men were surrounding, what appeared to be, a highschool girl. They were taunting her and she looked nothing short of 'about to piss herself' scared. She had a pocket knife in her hand, but other than that, no defensive weapon could be seen by [name]. Stalking closer, trying to mask the sound of her dragging leg, [name] began to eavesdrop.

"Aww, c'mon girlie." One of the men teased. "We just wanna have some fun!"

"L-Leave me alone!" She wailed, sticking the pocket knife out in defense. Her hands were shaking violently as she began crying. "P-Please, spare m-me!"

The men laughed at her words as they began to circle in closer.

"Step away from the girl." [name] suddenly spoke up, blocking the entrance to the alleyway so the men couldn't escape. The group of males snapped their heads towards [name], looking at each other before chuckling.

"Lookit, fellas." One, who could be assumed to be the leader, spoke up. "Another toy wants to play." He sneered. He began stalking closer towards [name], his goonies close behind.

"I can smell your breath from here, numbnuts." [name] spoke up, leaning all her weight onto her good leg. She lifted up her shirt, flashing her gun hidden in her waist band. "I suggest you leave my friend over there and I alone."

The leader looked at his friends before turning his attention back to [name]. "Heh, you think I'm scared of a little gun?" He teased, stepping closer inch by inch, making [name] back up slowly. "I've dealt with w— BANG!" A resonating shot rang out, echoing in the small alleyway. The ping of a bullet shell could be heard hitting the concrete, followed by silence. Soon, yelling ensued. "AAAAH! I'VE BEEN SHOT! HELP ME!" The leader sobbed out, holding his knee as tears ran down his face.

[name] dashed towards him and kicked him in the injured knee, knocking him down and rendering him useless.

"You bitch!" Goon #2 yelled out, dashing towards [name] with his hands outstretched. His fingernails began growing long and he went to scratch her. [name] evaded, ducking under his arm and elbowing him right in the kidney. He bent over, breathless, and [name] kicked the back of his legs, making him fall to his knees.

Two down, two to go.

The other two charged [name] at the same time, one spirting a stream of smoking liquid from his mouth, the other sporting a knife in his hand. [name] watched the mysterious liquid fall from the goon's mouth and heard it sizzle, melting the concrete below: acid.

Knife Goon slashed at [name]. She ducked low and swung her leg out, knocking both of the large men down onto their backs. She quickly stood back up and disarmed the Knife Goon. Holding the small dagger in hand, she curb-stomped each goon in the ribs, making sure she heard a crack before leaving them alone.

"B-Behind you!" The damsel in distress cried out.

"Huh?" [name] tilted her head, ready to turn around but was effectively stopped by an arm wrapping around her neck. The arm squeezed tight, choking her. [name] dropped the knife and began clawing at the bulging arm.

"Nice try, lil' lady..." Hot breath blew into her ear. [name] began gasping for breath, scratching at any flesh she could get her hands on.

Her eyesight began to blur before she watched the highschool girl before her make a run for it, her own kitchen knife in hand. "Leave her alone, ugly!" She screamed out, reaching over [name] and stabbing the male in the eye. He let go of [name], who fell to her hands and knees and began wheezing, filtering precious air back into her respiratory system. With blurry vision, she watched the girl yank the knife out of his eye socket before stabbing him in the abdomen. She watched the fiery, blonde girl stabbed the guy multiple times before the life lefts his eyes.

The girl stumbled back, blooding covering her hands as she rushed over to check on [name]. She fell to her knees beside her and began speaking: "Miss, are you okay?!" She rubbed [name]'s back, who was still struggling to catch her breath.

Once [name] was breathing again, she sat back on her haunches and finally took a good look at the blonde highschool girl. She had blonde hair and yellow cat-like eyes. Fangs peaked over her top lip and snugly rested on her bottom. Her uniform was torn in a few places and tears were welled up in her eyes.

"Depends." [name] finally spoke. "Are you okay?"

The girl opened her mouth to respond but hesitated, before finally shutting her mouth and nodding, letting out a whimper as tears began to flood down her face. [name] sighed and scooped the small girl up, letting her curl up into her chest and cry on her shirt as she began to long limp home.