Chapter Twelve: Running in the Rain, Heartbreak and Jackie's Siblings

Jackie ran down to the market with Tomishiro right beside her. They ordered of shrimp in a savory sauce over coconut rice and ate it out on the porch. "What did someone do to you that hurt you so deeply?" he asked her quietly. She fidgeted for a moment before replying, "I'm a freak. I'm too smart, too strong, too tall..." she started to say but he interrupted her by placing a finger to her lips. "You are not a freak because then more than ninety percent of the world's population would be considered freaks, everyone is different than the next person in unique ways. It is the way we can tell each other apart, including twins. Who said this to you?" he explained and then asked her.

"I was sixteen and in the begining of my second year at the University when I met a guy at school. He was eighteen, athletic, smart and good looking. He asked me out and I started dating him. Everyone said that we were the perfect couple. At the time I was the same height as him, about five seven. I went home for summer break. While I was home I grew three and a half inches. I hadn't realized it at the time because as I grew my mom was switching out my old clothes for new ones. When I returned to school that fall, Glenn freaked out at how tall I was. He broke up with me and started calling me all sorts of horrible names. He started going out with a girl that had hated me because I was Glenn's girlfriend in the first place. They tormented me unmercifully. One day, an advisor overheard them and recorded them on his phone. He checked into their school records and brought them before the University administrators. He had them expelled for Domestic Terrorism'. I pulled myself together and concentrated on my studies and Martial Arts" she told him.

Jackie couldn't figure out why she was able to confide in him so easily. "He was an asshole to let your height make a difference" he said placing a finger to her temple. "It's what is in here and..." he said and moved his finger to her heart, "here that matters but I'm glad he did or you wouldn't be here with me now." She grabbed his finger and moved it away gently. She smiled. "You're right but Glenn reopened those old wounds recently. He tried to contact me. His exgirlfriend called my house to warn me that he was going to get me back anyway he could because I had become famous and wealthy from the MMA. Coming here was a blessing in disguise, it got me as far away from him as possible. I just need time to heal. Can you understand where I am right now?" she explained. Tomishiro placed his other hand over hers that still held onto his finger. "Yes, but I'm not going to give up. I'm going to make you forget all about him" he vowed. She hoped he would not give up and nodded in acknowledgement.Tomishiro wanted to do a fist pump in the air and yell out, "Yes!" She hadn't snapped at him or threatened him this time. She had actually opened up to him about Glenn and accepted his declaration of his intentions. This way seemed to be working so far. Now he just needed to come up with a solid plan to keep it going so that she would eventually fall in love with him.

They finished eating and returned the bowls to the woman at the counter, thanked her and left. Jackie crossed the street and waited by the bus stop. Tomishiro caught up to her after he paid their bill. "What are you waiting for?" he asked. "You helped build these wonderful schools but there was a problem for three students that attend the High School. They couldn't always afford the bus fare and we're quite often late for school. Their determination to get there no matter what touched me. Do I paid their bus fares until the end of the school year. I just want to see how their doing. One of the teachers has taken a dislike for me and has told me to stay away from the three boys. I'm going to show him that I don't care what he thinks, those boys and their education is more important to me" she replied. Tomishiro smiled, thinking, 'That's my girl, fight for what you want and believe in.' The bell rang and the students came pouring out of the High School. Three boys split off from the rest and waved at them. They were waving test papers and talking excitedly. She took them and looked them over. "Excellent work. I knew you three were worth it. Any teenagers that tried as hard as you did to get to school, want to be the best that they can be" she said smiling.

Her smile faded a bit as she saw that same teacher coming towards them. He was talking animatedly to another older man that was with him. They arrived and the teacher said in a harsh tone, " I told you to stay away from our students." Jackie stood her ground, her spine stiffened. "Sir, no one tells me what to do, especially someone like you. You are rude and wrong about me" she said and then turned her attention to the other man. "I am Jacquelyn Wolf-Takahashi. I hold three Doctorates and four Master's Degrees. I am currently working on my Associate's Degrees in Pre-Law and Education. I graduated High School at age fourteen and am now twenty. I also happen to be a relative of Mr. Takahashi here." The older man bowed to Tomishiro and then turned his attention back to her. "Please forgive my associate. You are an intelligent and highly educated woman. Please feel free to council our students at anytime. If you are ever looking for a job when you graduate, please bring me your papers and I'll see what I can do. Mr. Hitome, you owe this woman an apology. Have a nice day" the man said and bowed to her. Mr. Hitome bowed and asked for her forgiveness. She graciously accepted.

The men left and the students boarded Mr. Hiro's bus. Mr. Hiro called out, "Hello, Miss Jackie." Jackie smiled and replied, Hello Mr. Hiro." Mr. Hiro saw who was with her. "Hello Mr Takahashi. I didn't know you knew our Miss Jackie. She is a wonderful person and cares about these children. Take care of her for us" he said. Tomishiro smiled and placed an arm around her shoulders, "I will and that's a promise. How are your wife and baby doing?" Mr. Hiro smiled, "They are doing very well. Thank you for asking. Little Tran is starting to crawl. It was good seeing you both again but I have to get going now. Good bye." The couple waved good bye as the bus pulled away.

Jackie started to jog back to the house. "Wait up!" Tomishiro called out. She jogged in placed until he caught up. "You have made an impression on quite a few people around here. I'm glad that you're settling in so well. How are your cousins doing?" he asked as they jogged along. She laughed. "They're doing really good so far I guess but I think they miss going out at night. Back home there were dance clubs to go to and hang out to dance and meet boys. We couldn't go to the regular nightclubs because they serve alcoholic beverages and we are too young. You have to be twenty one to drink in the States. The dance clubs I'm talking about only serve water, juice, soda, tea and coffee. It's a way to have fun, socialize and to possibly meet a guy or girl" she said. Tomishiro was thoughtful for a moment. "You know, I own a night club and business is real slow until well after ten at night. Maybe I could lock away the alcoholic beverages and open a dance club for the younger people, just serve the drinks you mentioned. It just might boost business. What days and time would you suggest?" he said. "Probably Friday, Saturday and have what's called an ice cream social on Sunday" she replied. "It sounds like it might be a good idea. We are going to have to sit down with Shou and discuss it with him in more detail" he said.

He suddenly grabbed her and pulled her back as a car came careening around the corner and came to a screeching stop. The window rolled down and a guy stuck his head out the window. "Hey, bro. What are you doing out here in the rain?" the guy called out. He looked at Jackie and smiled. He looked alot like Tomishiro but not as muscular, more lanky with his hair cut short. Tomishiro smiled. "I'm out for a run with this lady next to me. By the way Jackie, this is my brother Shou and his partner, Han. Shou, Han, this is Jackie Wolf-Takahashi from America" Tomishiro introduced. Shou got out of the driver's side of the car, smiling. He took her hand and kissed it. Han got out and walked around the car to do the same. "Welcome to Japan" they both said in unison. "Hey, that's not a proper greeting where I'm from" she responded and hugged both men. "You're not offended by our relationship?" Han asked in surprise. "Why should I be?" she asked. At their confused demeanor, she elaborated, "I have two gay brothers and a lesbian sister. My friend that did all my tattoos is gay as well. So it doesn't bother me or anyone else in my family. Just keep on loving each other to the fullest and be happy." She gave them each another tight hug. "Wow bro, don't let this one get away" Shou said. "I won't and that's a promise" Tomishiro stated firmly. Jackie glared at him. "Oooohh, fireworks. This is going to be fun" Shou said. "Can we give you a ride back? It's starting to rain harder" Han asked as he headed back around the car and got in. Jackie shook her head no. "I love the rain, it's refreshing." "Well, then we'll see you back at the house. Later" Shou said as he got back into his car when the rain grew heavier. Jackie and Tomishiro started running again.

They arrived back and were greeted at the door by Saiya holding towels for them. They dried off as best as they could, headed to grab dry clothes and went to the showers. Jackie washed up, dried and got dressed. She threw her wet clothes into the wash with some of her other clothes to wash them. She went into the bedroom and found Shou there, sitting in a chair. "Can I help you?" she asked him. "I was looking for my brother" he replied. "Well, I'm sorry but the roof leaked in your old room and there was only enough room in the girls' room for my two cousins. Uncle gave me this room to use in the meantime" she explained. Shou laughed and said, "My brother must have just loved coming home to find you sleeping in his bed." Jackie turned red at the memory. "Oh he did, didn't he?" Shou said laughing. "Sort of. I couldn't sleep and came outside to work off my excess energy in the rain. He watched me before making his presence known. We had a disagreement about the room so I challenged him for it. We were in the middle of our fight when Uncle came and put a stop to it. Uncle said I get the room and your brother either gets your wet room or the living room couch" she explained, still red-faced. "You fought my brother and didn't lose?" Shou asked in astonishment. "Why don't you tell him the whole thing, like what the actual bet was?" Tomishiro said, leaning against the door frame. Jackie's heart started racing at the sound of his voice. To cover up her reaction, she glared at him. When she didn't say anything, he did. "I told her, the room was hers, win or lose but if I win, she has to kiss me willingly" he said with a challenging gleam in his eyes. Shou looked from one to the other. Jackie walked up to start right in front of him and growled at him, "And your father said it was over." Tomishiro shook his head no and said "Only postponed for now." She growled again and pushed past him.

"Wow, now I see what you mean. She's very interesting, you definitely won't be bored." Tomishiro grinned. "It's to get even more interesting. After Kendo training, we talked. Some guy she used to date at the University, really screwed with her head and I plan on making her forget all about him. I also told her that I never give up. Right now I have been thinking through a couple of plans to get her to fall in love with me, but the most direct and honest way seems to be working the best. She kissed me of her own free will. I have to get her to kiss me more often" he said. He saw her coming back through the dojo as he was still standing partially in the hallway. "By the way, she came up with an excellent idea. A way for the club to make more money. I'll explain it on the way to the living room. Oh and sorry but your room is still wet" Tomishiro said. "That's okay, Han and I are going to stay at the club tonight. You mentioned that Jackie has an idea for the club to make more money. What is it about?" he asked. "How about I let Jackie explain it to you" he replied as she came into the room. She grabbed her laptop and glared at both of them.

Shou stood up, wrapped an arm around her shoulders and said, "My brother tells me that you have an idea for the club. What is your idea?" Jackie smiled. She explained about having a teen dance club during the club's off hours. Han was working out in the dojo and joined them on their way to the living room. Shou caught him up on the conversation as they walked along. "You know, there have been teen clubs opening up all over in the big cities. It gives the kids a place to gather and pretty much keep them out of trouble. The parent know where their kids are and can relax a bit" Han agreed. "Yes but you still have to be aware of gang members trying to work their way in and take over. That element brings in a whole host of problems like drugs, violence, weapons, fear, police, injury and possibly death. You have to know what to watch out for. My cousins and I had a small problem on the train a few days ago with some punks. We put an end to them bothering us and anyone else that day" Jackie informed them. "So it was you three that took them down. It made the papers in Tokyo. A bunch of punks got their asses handed to them and kicked off the train. They haven't bothered anyone since that day, they're afraid that you will show up again. How was it put? 'Avenging Angels' the passengers reported" Han said, patting her on the shoulder.

They entered the living room where everyone else was waiting. Jackie hooked up her laptop to the big plasma tv. She entered her skype account and logged into the chatroom her sister was in. Lea came up on the screen, so did the rest of the family. "Hey sis, how's it going?" Lea asked. "Everyone's here as you can see. I'll let them introduce themselves" Jackie replied. Komiko and Mina waved and said "Hi." They all introduced themselves and chatted back and forth for three and a half hours, catching up on the doings. "Hey, I've got great news. Jet's coming home. The Doctors have cleared him for release as long as mom and dad hire a private physical therapist for a couple of weeks. Mom and dad did, so he's coming home next Saturday afternoon." Jackie leaned forward. "You're kidding. That's a week from tomorrow. Why so soon?" she asked. Bruce laughed and replied, "It's probably because they got tired of him chasing the nurses all over the place." Jackie put her hands over her face as she stuffed a giggle. Lea beamed. "So, how's the love battle going over there?" she asked, looking smug. Jackie turned almost purple and couldn't speak. Tomishiro could and did, "Great. I think she's softening towards me. She even kissed me this morning." Jackie screeched, "You know why I did that! You're dead when..." But she was cut short by Lea's next remark. "Wow, you're good. I didn't think it would ever happen this fast. Keep it up." Jackie fled the room.

"Good now that she has left the room, here's the shots of her 'toys' you wanted" Lea said carrying her tablet into the garage. There she took shots of Jackie's truck, car and motorcycle. "I'll send you all the shipping costs to you on your phone. It's going to be one hell of a surprise" Lea said and hurried back in to the family room. "Well I thought she could use some things from home. Do you think Jet will be well enough to travel by then?" he asked, smiling at all the surprised faces surrounding him. "More than likely yes"Lea responded. "By the way, that kiss this morning was an act of revenge against another woman. She had made some pretty vicious comments about your sister. I heard the whole thing. That woman alluded to your sister as being worthless as a woman and totally undesirable. She is far from that and is slowly coming to believe how desirable she is. That kiss made me want to carry her off to someplace private. The more I get to really know her the more I love her" Tomishiro stated. "Just be sure that you don't overstep your boundaries where my daughter is concerned" a deep male voice said. Jackie's father's image filled the screen. He was massive. Tomishiro flushed. "I won't sir. I just want her to be comfortable and realize she is in love with me before I ask her to marry me" he explained. "Good, then you have my permission" her father said and smiled. "Permission to do what!?" Jackie demanded, coming back into the living room.

She seems to be back in control of of herself once again. "To intensify your training, starting now" he said looking directly at her. "But what about dinner?" Kiki asked. Jackie and Tomishiro, staring at each other said, "Later." Jackie said a little early, "Love you all and miss you all so much. Say hi to Jet for me. Bye." She closed the connection.