A new start

The Colonel puffed on his stogey as he looked at the young man's face, "so what you're saying is you need me to be your co-signer on this place you are going to look for? Hmm" he rubbed his chin before answering. "Luckily for you I am retired and other than volunteering around town I can take any day off." Francis let off a deep breath, he looked ragged and had not slept at all the previous night. "I ll call my nephew he is a realtor and I am sure he can connect us with someone who can help. But just how much you fixin to pay? Rent ain't cheap in Saint City." Francis smiled, "honestly price isn't a problem."

…

"$4,500!!! How is a kid like you making that much monthly?" They were in the car Francis had been loaned as they drove to the 4th apartment today. The Colonel's nephew found a leasing agent who was free today and the requirement of the apartment was that it would need a washer/dryer, parking and preferably downtown. Before Francis lived in the east side of town and would commute to work to the west side. Downtown was right in the middle of work and school and so happened to be where the club Tesoro was. If he was going to work there temporarily he needed to be close enough to sleep after work. "Well I get paid more but that is how much I make per month on a contract I have. You see I take care of the chemicals and devices after their trials, it's technically called "hazardous waste management". One night I noticed the applicator they used was kind of off from my perspective so I made a new one. My chemistry teacher saw what I did and helped my negotiate selling them the blueprint to be patented. It was a lump sum coupled with 5 years of fixed royalty payments. In the long run they will make more money but it got my name out there and I was just waiting to graduate school to leave this fucked up city behind." Francis kept in mind that everything would change when he graduated but the feeling that everything could have changed if he just took Erika away to begin with. He shook his head at the thought, "Well at least you don't have to worry about your daddy anymore, that bum has always been a thorn by your side. The older you get Fran the more you will realize that some people you just gotta cut out of your life. People like to say blood is thicker than water, but I think we should choose who matters based on their actions, like the real saying goes "the blood of the covenant is thicker than the water of the womb" you know?"

Francis nodded absentmindedly as he half drifted off to sleep. The downtown area wasn't terrible, just crowded. Safety wasn't an issue if one knew where to go, the west side of town had a lot of corporations and businesses in general. It was known as the business district and had little else other than high rises and small eateries and bars for people to stop by. The Eastside was home to many of the poorer people in town, of course not everyone was poor. The south side was the beach neighborhoods, plenty of parks and middle class to upper class families. The north side of town was the hyper rich and film part of town. It was where many studios were and also where many of the top earners lived. Of course like in many cities these neighborhoods weren't all the same but they were known for specific industry or make up. Saint City held many nooks and crannies but Francis wanted little to do with it much less explore.

They met the realtor on the 8th floor of the apartment complex. A stout man that had an open personality, you couldn't help but follow his pace as he talked about the different places. "The apartment is a studio loft, it has a great view but it's the most expensive place on the list at $3000 rent. It's pricey because it actually comes furnished, the previous tenant decorated the place but then left to the east coast a few months later after a promotion. The owner reached out but he didn't care for the furniture as he took the things that mattered to him. Instead of throwing out the high end furniture he figured he would let the new tenant decide to keep it or to have us clear it out."

Francis was man of little needs, he had a personality of course and a preferred style but something about realizing he would need to decorate his new apartment made him feel uneasy. He wasn't looking to set roots. He looked around and found the apartment looked like it would be in a catalog. Posh furniture of modern design based off gray and navy green colors filled the loft. It was tasteful and detached enough for him to feel comfortable taking over the shell of this man's life in Saint City.

"I am not sure…" before he could finish Francis spoke up. "We ll take this one, it's perfect and I won't have to spend money furnishing." The realtor looked relieved "perfect I'll bring up the contracts, you will need to pay first month, last month and a deposit. I will let you explore the apartment but come to my office in an hour with the funds and I will have the keys and paperwork ready." Francis took a look around and felt content in his choice.

…

Meanwhile, at school Mr. Morales was cleaning up after lunch, "hey, it's kinda weird, Francis didn't come to my period and when I checked his attendance he was absent. That boy hasn't missed a day of high school since he entered. Did he seem under the weather to you?" Natalie looked at her uncle and wasn't sure what to say. She thought it could be because of their fight but for a serious guy like that she isn't sure it would actually be something so petty to keep him from school. "I didn't notice anything" she shrugged.

Morales squinted at her and examined her expression to see if she was hiding something. However Natalie had mastered her poker face long ago. "Well at least he reviewed and signed his contract yesterday. It seem his income will nearly double along with a signing bonus…" as her uncle droned on about work she couldn't help think about the boy with emerald eyes. His whole demeanor sent a shiver through her body somehow. His presence, his ability to control a situation, his generosity to help her when a creep tried to hit on her. She found herself sighing and wishing she could talk to him again. Then she looked up and saw a meek figure in the doorway. A girl taller than her by a few inches was at the door. While Natalie was a confidant in her looks, she wasn't very tall. The girl called out to her uncle "Dr. Morales, have you seen Francis? I didn't see him anywhere today. "

"Ah Erika, hey Natalia, this is Erika, she is Frank's girlfriend. Erika this is my niece Natalia." They both had a slight jump to their reaction at his introduction. Erika clenched her hand when he called her Francis' girlfriend knowing the title was no longer hers to claim. Meanwhile Natalie evaluated her from head to toe "You can call me Nat I am 20 years old and I go to Saint City University the private one in downtown." She outstretched her hand as they shook. "It's nice to meet you, I am Erika I am 16 going on 17." She turned her attention to the teacher but Natalie followed up "wait so how old is Frank?" Erika was taken aback by how close she called Francis. She eyes her suspiciously before answering, "he is 17 going on 18 in a week why? Also how do you know Francis?"

Natalie walked back to her seat, her voluptuous figure brought thoughts of jealousy as she imagined the relationship she has with Francis. She coyly looked back and she wondered if she gave that face to man she loved as well. "Oh it's no big deal, he just took me on a date yesterday to get pizza." Natalie once again thought she screwed up, she couldn't help but provoke the girl but she also didn't want to be on his bad side. Then she felt a small hit on her head and saw her uncle karate chopped her. Erika looked like she lost the color in her face. "Please pay no mind to this trouble maker. I asked him to get her some food as a favor to me, as far as I know the day after you guys got together was the only day I ever saw a genuine smile from that boy. He showed up to work and we were honestly all shocked by his expression. It was touching for us to see the kid with the steel face suddenly come in blooming like a flower in spring hahaha" Dr. Morales gave a boisterous laugh.

Erika hadn't known about that, she remembered how happy he was when she said yes. It was one of the happiest moment of her life, she then clasped her pendant but couldn't help but feel a sense of helplessness knowing that she broke his heart. "Make sure you take care of him!" Dr. Morales goofy smile made Erika shrink and quickly leave before she broke out in tears. As she scurried away Natalie thought of the stone of man in her vision giving a genuine smile. One of love and understanding, it replaced his face of indignation. "Well he is almost legal…" she muttered to herself. She couldn't help but bite her lip, the last time she felt this attraction was in high school when she had her first boyfriend.

"I didn't ask but how was lunch?" Natalie shrunk and then told her uncle she needed to use the restroom. Dr. Gonzales simply shrugged and began to prepare for his upcoming lecture.

…

Jacob went to club Tesoro that afternoon. Yesterday had been one shit storm after the other. First he was assaulted, then he was visited by Erika and then his son left him. He knows he had not been a good father since his wife passed. However, he never thought his son would leave. He walked into Aria's office only to have her give a huge bow. "I am sorry about how I treated you yesterday, I spoke to my sister and I know you did what you could." Jacob was unsure how to react but this whole situation gave him a headache. "Not sure what this is about but I am sober and I came to balance the books. " he rubbed his temples as Aria saw the familiar Jacob. "Ooh I thought you were Francis, when you are dressed in uniform you look alike. You know I mistook him…ah" before she could finish Jacob grabbed her shoulders strongly. "How the fuck do you know Francis! Why was my boy here?!" His voice held a conviction she had never seen and felt afraid. " I… I don't know last night was his first day and he helped my sister. Ask O… Osito about his appointment." Jacob bolted out of the room and to Osito's office. He was stopped at the door. "Ay foo, you got an appointment?" the guard told him. "No but can you tell him I am here to ask him something?" The guard went inside for a brief second and the other guard stayed stoic. "Okay, you can come in."

Jacob entered and saw Osito nod his head in the direction to the seat in front of his large desk. Jacob sat and looked at him with a stern look. "Why was my son here?" Osito blew out a puff of smoke and smirked at Jacob. "What I can't see my god son? I haven't had a conversation with him since my cousin's funeral." Jacob stayed stern and Osito sighed and stood up. He walked toward Jacob but this time he didn't waver from his resolve. Osito put his hand on Jacob's shoulder in a caring caress. "Ever since she died your life has been one pity party after the next. At first I felt bad for you and gave you a job… but that ends now." He squeezed his hand and it caused Jacob to look up at him in pain. "You've done him wrong Jake… there is something wrong in him. He broke my initiates and then murdered two Gravel St gangsters." Jacob froze when he heard his words. Osito saw his shock and sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Did he not speak to you about last night? We beat you because we wanted to give you a lesson. Francis stopped them and took you home…" after explaining Jacob was flabbergasted. Osito looked at him and felt a deep sense of disappointment. "He is no longer your son, forget you had one. I will look over him, if he decides to join the gang I'll bring him in the fold if he decides to got to college I'll make sure he has the money to go. You lost all right to be a father when you abandoned him. I had my guys look into you and I found out how neglectful you are. You should be ashamed for treating my sweet cousin's son like that. Get out of here, you are fired. I don't want to see you again." His voice was cold and angry. Jacob could do nothing but leave the club with his shoulder's slumped.