We Are Similar

Dead End

"You... Know how to play?" Yuuya asked, kind of surprised Jin knows how to play pool.

"Not by choice..." He replied with a sigh. "I used to have a lot of questions and she would never answer them unless I play. Now, I guess it turns into an occassional habbit."

"I'll let you take the first shot then." Reina set the balls in place before making way for Jin to shoot.

It was silent for a good couple of minutes before Asuka broke it. "You know, if Jin was wearing some kind of... Or any kind of formal outfit actually... No one would know he's a high school student. Not with this scene."

"It's actually kinda scary how serious those two are." Ran said quietly.

"You don't say." Niara said with a sweatdrop.

"Hey Eva." Jessica called from one side of the table. "If you were to play this kind of game, wouldn't you be able to win all the time? Like, you can calculate everything in your head, right?"

"Honestly, I've never thought of that." The blonde replied. "I don't think I should try though. It wouldn't be fair."

"You're way too much of a goodie-two-shoes." Kousuke snorted. "One of these days, you're gonna have to play the big bad... Oh wait, you already did. Twice, even."

"And there's not going to be a third." Kazu stated. "Right?"

Eva smiled, slightly unsure. "Technically, since we haven't explained anything to the adults back home, we're kind of still fugitives. I don't want to jinx anything."

"It's not jinxing." Jin said, looking up from Reina to her. "It's making a promise."

Her smile got even stiffer. "That's something..." I can't guarantee...

"She means to say 'yes'."

"Mizel!"

Just go along with it.

Reina's head snapped up after her shot. "Mizel?"

"He's with us now." Ban said quickly. "He's sort of taking care of Eva... Or actually, it's the other way around. But he's not trying to take control of the world anymore."

"Huh... Alright then." She nodded as she waited for Jin to shoot.

"Eh? Really?" Asuka blinked in surprised. "You're not angry? Or confused? Or anything? Just an 'alright'??"

"Well, of course." The brunette replied. "Out of everyone in the entire world, you all are the ones who had encountered him the most. You fought against him first-hand. If you say that he turned over a new leaf, I'll take your word over airheaded governments."

~~~~~

It was an hour later until Hugo came in. He was holding a box similar to the one they got in Niara's home, but he didn't seem happy. "Alright everyone, we're taking one last stop."

Eva turned to him and blinked. "Is something wrong?"

Her brother shook his head. "Don't mind it. We have one more stop to make and then we head back to Tokio."

They turned to each other with confused faces, but nodded. Before leaving however, Reina made Hiro and Kousuke stay behind for a little while. Prof. Mito asked them to have a quick battle for his research and when they were done, he bid them all farewell.

"Are you completely sure you're not going to that school?" Reina asked again once they reached the front gate.

"I am not going to be a teacher." Jin replied firmly. "But if you need a favor, then I'll be willing to help."

"Then I'll hold on to your word." With that, they parted ways.

~~~~~

"So where are we headed to next?" Jessica asked as she buckled herself in.

"N-City." Hugo replied, taking out his mini laptop. "We can land the Duck Shuttle at NICS HQ and take a bus there."

Eva glanced back at her brother and opened her mouth to say something, but decided against it and closed it again. Jin held her hand for reassurance, earning a thankful nod. Seeing this, the other girls exchanged smiles.

The ride was short. N-City wasn't too far away and they arrived in half an hour. After explaining things to Director Kaios, they were all dismissed.

It was getting late and Hugo decided that it was best to head for their destination the next day. He went into one of the unused meeting rooms and while the rest had gone out to eat, he had stayed inside.

"So what do you think he's actually doing in there?" Niara asked, chewing on a straw. She bought a drink on the way back and while the bottle is empty, she kept it and the straw.

Eva shook her head. "No clue, but he seemed pretty upset about something."

"You're not gonna check on him?" Asuka titled her head.

The blonde hummed. "I mean, I guess I should, but..." She shook her head again. "No, you're right. I'll go."

"Good luck." Hiro encouraged.

"Thanks."

With that, she stood up and headed for that room. Jin followed not long after.

~~~~~

After having checked 5 other rooms, they finally found the one with her brother in it. Hesitantly, she knocked on the door before opening it.

"Nii-san?" She called out. "Are you alri-"

A gunshot was heard.

The two at the doorway froze before turning to each other. Jin was the first to break the gaze. "Hugo-san? What was-"

"They were shot." The older blonde said monotonously.

The younger two turned to each other once again before letting themselves into the room and walking over to him. He was staring at the laptop and it seemed like he was going through some audio files. They found papers littering the desk. Some are music sheets, others were blueprints if not reports.

"Nii-san?" Eva called once again. "Who... Got shot?"

He didn't reply. Instead he replayed the recording he was currently listening to. There were multiple voices arguing with one another, none of which the two recognize until a very familiar laugh was heard.

"Your life, or little Evangeline's."

The sound of the gunshot rang around the room once again.

Hugo sat still on his seat. Having listened to this specific audio ten times in a row, he became numb of any sort of reactions. Eva was trembling. She didn't remember who her parents were or what they looked like, but like Hugo, she was why they died. And Jin was in shock. He thought he could put his past behind him for he had redeemed his actions by fighting along side Ban and the rest, but now he was back in that nightmare.

Kaidou Yoshimitsu killed Eva's parents.