his face with some members of the high school team kneeling and some standing behind him all smiling. He having his hands holding up the Championship trophy in front of him.
He recalled to himself after the competition and a teammate’s betrayal of taking the credit for his winning a major title in a match. Posing for the photographers with his team which his coach seeing him hurt with pity in his eyes selected him to hold the trophy for being the winner of the competition. That instead of press there blaring his teammate giving him coaching for credit on winning the major title. It was his own idea on how he won the major title and not with help by the teammate as blared by person and presses.
Jinx exhaled a breath through his mouth as the memory left his mind.
He recalled himself of continuing to look through the scrapbook. He seeing photos of himself graduating from high school in an outdoor auditorium in the space station’s garden. He continued to recall as the announcer said his name he heard loud cheering applause from the crowd while getting his diploma. He discovered that the crowd had sounded the loudest towards him after seeing the other students totaling twenty five of them get their diplomas. That despite the high school was actually very small private school for space station children to attend for any grade level. They were in for schooling on various subjects along with only holding ceremonies for high school graduations each timed yearly cycle.
He frowned of the memory as he kept looking in the scrapbook from memory of it to see at the last page file was a letter addressed to him.
He read "It's from your Father. I give out a plea to have you in my life. I missed seeing you growing up in person. I wanted to see you in person. Not by pictures by hired photographers to take pictures of you."
Jinks felt himself better from the memory.
He recalled closing the scrapbook and went to his altar to place the computer pad on a shelf below the altar’s shelf.
He sighed again to go back to the wingback chair due to not keen on leaving his bedroom.
He kept on recalling on waking up on a work day while at the space station. Of going to the laundry machine to pull out his janitor uniform taking it out while going to the dresser next to the bed’s bed stand on its right side to yank out some undergarments. He proceed to get dressed and went into the bathroom to fix his long black hair combing it neatly. Then he went out of the bathroom to the refrigerator grabbing an apple as they were dubbed the round orange and red fruit.
He grabbed his key which he walked out of the apartment munching on the fruit. He walked to Richardson Industries. He tossed out the apple core in a trash can sitting outside the doorway and went inside. He sighed whiling away the hours doing his cleaning job in the cafeteria mostly mopping up the floor and cleaning up spilled messes on the tables and chairs. Till lunch time when his stomach growled its noises while feeling hunger running through him. He got in line to the food processing units. He took a tray filled with dishware full of food to a table and sat eating lost in thought thinking about the scrapbook and its contents.
He heard a female voice speak “Mind if I sit here?”
He looked up to see Tara who stared at him with a hint of a smile in her eyes a look he recognized. He remembering would often get from Melania whenever she told him the baby inside her was kicking. Along with him granted permission to touch her to feel the movements. That despite repeatedly hearing the Daddy comment from the area in a male voice. The voice led him to believe he fathered the offspring but wasn't sure of how that was done.
He stared at Tara and gestured to the chair in front of him with his fork while nodding his head. He ate his food in silence eyes on Tara who sat across from him eating quietly with no comment from her. He paused from eating to stare at the table still thinking of the scrapbook’s contents. He broke his reverie when he heard Tara’s voice speaking to him.
He spoke as he looked at her “Excuse me? I missed what you said.”
He stared at Tara who spoke “Are you alright? You seemed distracted.”
He sighed loudly and spoke “I don’t know but I feel fine.”
He heard weariness in his voice tone that surprised him as he eyed her. She reaching a hand towards his left hand sitting on the table to grip it in a gentle grip. He exhaled a breath feeling soothed by her hand holding his which made him feel better. He saw a hint of concern in her face. He smiled a small smile at Tara and rubbed her hand with his thumb while hearing her sigh with relief appearing on her face.
He spoke “Tara, you mind if I escort you home after work?”
He saw a smile form on Tara’s face as she spoke “I don’t mind, Robert. I figured out your name is Robert O'Neil and not Lance excuse me for saying that. I live half a mile from this place. I’ll meet you in the lobby.”
He nodded his head as he and Tara continued to eat food in silence. Once done eating he and her parted ways her going into an elevator and himself going back to his cleaning cart to resume cleaning the cafeteria room.
Jinx eyed the door to his bedroom still seeing the doors shut which he grimace recalling himself in the lobby of Richardson Industries bursting with impatience. He watched people walk by him going out of the doorway. He eyed the elevators to see Tara walking out with eyes looking around. He waved a hand getting her attention.
He saw Tara’s eyes lit up seeing him. He watched as she reached him which he walked with her out to hallways. He noticing she was going to the bad part of the space station.
He eyed Tara during their silent walk not paying attention to anything all around him and her. He groaned as pain hit him in the back. It was followed by a foot connecting with the back of his knees forcing him to kneel while hearing her gasp out in pain. He twisted his form as Tara fell to the ground going unconscious.
He saw two men wearing coveralls one holding a bloody knife and another holding a baseball bat yank Tara’s purse from her arms. He groaned as man with a bloody knife pawed his neck yanking out his necklace tearing the chain off his neck before jogging away with his companion. He grimaced from the pain in his back put his hands on Tara’s jacket to feel a budge in a pocket. He took out an object he recognized as dubbed cell phone and dialed for emergency.
He heard the emergency operator on the phone speaking in a female voice “This is Luna emergency, operator speaking. What your emergency is?”
He spoke with a groaning tone “Send for the cops and medical personal I and a female companion was attacked.”
He heard the operator speak “Stay on the line for we’ll trace your location.”
He adjusted his position to sit putting a hand on Tara’s arm. He sensing her breathing deeply while hearing nothing from the operator.
He heard the operator again speak “We have your location. The appropriate people have been sent to your location so stay on the line till they arrive.”
He reached with a hand to feel his back and felt a hole in his shirt with liquid like substance slowly pouring out. His hand felt sticky to the touch and brought his hand back in his eyes sight to see the stuff was dark red color. He groaned shaking his head as he heard the sounds of sirens faintly becoming louder and louder.
He looked up to see a police motorcycle come into view followed by a computerized ambulance car. He sighed as the cop he saw was a male got off the motorcycle heading towards him in a jog.
The cop reaching him took his phone from him and spoke “Emergency personal arrived.”
He saw the cop cut off the call with a press of a button before handing him the cell phone which he pocketed in his pants.
Jinx sighed as the medical personal got to work examining him and Tara while seeing another computerized ambulance car arrive.
He was led to an ambulance where the crew ordered him "You're to take off you're shirt."
He obeyed and allowed them to examine his back despite hearing snickering sounds from the female medics. Jinx grimaced sitting in the ambulance feeling the paramedics spray the knife wound in his back. This includ
ing putting some gooey stuff on it from the feel.
He was told by them "The knife has missed vital organs and was only a flesh wound. It's due to you're rib bone blocking the knife from plunging further into you're back when you were stabbed."
Once done with the medicinal administering he was told "You're fine. You don’t need a hospital stay."
They added "You're companion was taken to the hospital for tests due to trauma to being hit on the back of her head."
Sighing he walked out of the ambulance to watch the ambulance drive away. He noticing the cop and the motorcycle was already gone which he grimaced to himself. He rubbed a hand on his neck where his necklace was gone. He raised a hand feeling it pull him towards a direction further down the hallway. He allowed his hand to guide him walking into the garden putting the security guard asleep. He’ll slip through till he reached another entrance and went through.
He walked inside through stain filled hallways going up the stairs looking dirty till he reached an open doorway with the door open. He went to peer inside seeing the men sitting in arm chairs backs to him riffling through Tara’s purse contents lying on the table in front of him. He spotted his diamond ring among them.
He silently walked further into the seedy stained apartment unnoticed to kneel and shut his eyes. He ghost walked out of his form using his karate to attack