✅ Banana Fish - altenative ending [ENG]

Chapter 6

Max Lobo hung up the telephone from which prolonged beeping was coming out; he was surprised by Ash's phone call and how quickly he hung up. Was this boy getting into trouble again? Or maybe Eiji was in danger? STOP! He felt his journalistic imagination rushing too far ahead, expecting the worst-case scenario.

"Who called?"

His former and future wife Jessica appeared in the living room door. She must have just been in the bath: her waist-long, golden hair was still damp, and her face was pleasantly flushed. Max thought she looked beautiful.

"Ash" he replied. "He wanted to call Mr Ibe."

"For what?" she asked with mock indifference; untangling tangled hair in the meantime.

"I'd like to know too. God, this boy will lead me to my grave."
He ran an open hand over his face and rubbed the nape of the neck where sweat droplets appeared.

"Go."

He thought he was overheard. He turned toward her, seeing the car keys flying in his direction. He didn't ask where she got them so quickly.

"Go and don't whine, I know you too well, Max."

At first, the man wanted to run to the car and drive away, but he couldn't. He didn't want to make the same mistake again.

"I don't want to leave you here alone again. You and Michael," he swallowed, feeling a lump rising in his throat. "Last time, I..."

"What happened last time?" Max didn't answer. "Go and help this boy, I can see how it bothers you. Don't worry about us."

"Are you sure? I can call your mother and..."
He fell silent at once, seeing the menacing look; it was one of those he preferred to avoid.
"I'll be back as soon as possible, but maybe ... okay, I'm on my way."
Max immediately found himself in the driveway and got into the car. It took him a moment to realize that he didn't know where to go.

***

Yut Lung closed the room door behind him. He blindly found the belt that held his waist and slowly pulled it, untangling the material bound on it. The silk robe slipped off his shoulders and fell to the floor, issuing a pleasant rustling. Then he reached higher and removed the ribbon around his hair. It was quite warm here, despite the snow and wind falling outside the window, which tried unsuccessfully to get inside. Red and gold predominated in his room: red curtains hung from the windows, red lanterns hung from the ceiling and on the walls - pictures embroidered with gold thread. All this delighted with its intricacy, warming the hearts looking at them. Yut Lung has long ceased to admire them, he was neither a child nor an old man who would miss his homeland. He decided to let go of today's bath and slipped under the quilt embroidered with dragons. His body shuddered in contact with the cool sheets, so he lay down on his side and pulled his knees to chin. He slid his hand out from under the covers and with one movement brushed the hair from his face. He wanted to sleep. He wanted it so badly, but he couldn't.

"Hi!"

He didn't have to turn around to know who had interrupted him.

"Go away, Sing."

"Oh, come on, don't overdo it. Who goes to bed at this time? It's too early."

"What did you come here for?"

Sing approached him, but before he sat down next to him, he gathered his hair and placed it higher on the pillow. Yut Lung felt the boy accidentally touch his neck, but he said nothing.

"How are things in Chinatown? Have you managed to calm down the gangs around you, are they still jumping at each other's throats?" He laughed, glancing at him.

"What do you have to do with it? As you said, I will face what I created."

"I didn't say anything like that..."
Yut Lung turned to him; for a moment Sing saw the tattoo on his neck - a sign of Lee's clan.
"I also said," - Sing began "that I won't leave you alone with this."
Tears welled up in Yut Lung's eyes, but he didn't let them run down his cheeks.
"My people saw your car heading towards Chinatown, but then unexpectedly turned back... You could say that you are afraid to go there, I would go there with you," he laughed again.

"You followed me?!" Yut Lung rose sharply on his elbow, no trace of tears anymore.

"Calm down, calm down..." Sing raised his hands in a defensive gesture. "My fault is that your car is so obvious? Not every New Yorker can afford such a thing ..."

Then another person entered the room. This time he was a servant:
"The Young Master, Ash Lynx asks you for a word."

"Who? What is Ash doing here?" inquired Sing.

Yut Lung ignored him.

"Tell him not to come to his every call," he said to the servant.

"I told him so, young master."

"And?"

"He replied that... Here I quote: "It was necessary not to connect me with millions of pipes, then I would go to him myself."

Yut Lung made a menacing face and threw the quilt aside. Without embarrassment, he walked naked to the chair and threw on a soft bathrobe, also red; and then in a few agile movements, he tied his hair into a tight bun, which he pinned with cherry tree chopsticks. The servant stepped aside, paving his master's passage.

"Give somebody an inch and they'll take a yard." Yut Lung snorted as he left the room.

Sing sat for a while, then followed Yut Lung upstairs. He wondered what Ash was doing here and why he couldn't walk?

Millions of tubes? What was this about?!