Exiles discussion

Outer Appearance of Inn:

Inside his room:

Somehow or other, the brothers made it back to the inn. They ascended the stairs and took a left to the communal sleeping area. Jun was aware enough to warn his brother to not wake the others and direct him to his cot.

The youngest Zhou sibling gently settled onto his bed And dug up a couple blankets and pillows for them. His home was humble, to be sure, but Jun was insistent on sharing what they had. What did Ming think of him? How mad was he on a scale of ignore the issue to full out rage lecture? With every concern, the merchant's head throbbed, begging for some kind of sleep or rest. He rubbed at his eyes tiredly and helped Ming set up his side of the cot. Would he stay? Or leave? The brother he remembered was the kind of guy that wouldn't leave someone alone until he was absolutely sure they were alright. Jun was anything but that given his tussle earlier that evening.

Ming took in the communal room his younger brother stayed it, his brow furrowing slightly. He tried not to be judgmental, but he couldn't help but think that Jun didn't have to live in such conditions if he just stayed at home. And that thought made him irritated at himself because he was sure that Jun probably wanted to protect the rest of them, including himself, so he felt guilty for casting judgment on Jun.

He took a deep breath, folding his arms across his chest as he stared down at Jun. Taking in Jun's tired appearance, it might not be best to talk about the last few years of separation. But he couldn't ignore it either.

After a moment of silence, Ming asked in a low voice, "Are you okay? Need me to fetch anything?"

Jun shook his head lightly and immediately realized he should just verbalize the sentiment instead. "No, thanks. Isn't it usually the host that's supposed to ask those sort of things?" He offered a small smile with his sad excuse of a joke. "I think I'll be fine on my own if you need to leave..." He didn't want to hold his brother back from his other responsibilities. He struggled for words, any words, or any kind of explanation as to why he suddenly disappeared on his family for so long. He owed him that much, right?
"Zhi's doing well." He began, though wasn't sure if the mention of the eldest Zhou sibling would be a good place to start given Ming's relationship with him.

Ming only grunted in reply, his face deadpan. Granted, Ming wasn't really someone to joke around in the first place, but he was even more humorless when he was trying to fight off his anger.

At the mention of Zhi, his expression fractured and his eyes reflected pain that he couldn't hide very well. While Ming was closer to Jun, both in age and their relationship, Ming admired Zhi. There were many times he went to his older brother for advice. He could remember the times before Jun was born when he followed him everywhere. Usually it was to avoid being made into a dress up doll for their sister as well.

He let out a soft sigh and he had to resist the urge to sink down to the ground. Instead, he folded his arms tightly across his chest as if that would keep him standing. "That's good." What else can I say? "So, other than the concussion, you doing okay too, right?"

Perhaps he shouldn't have brought up Zhi. Still, if there was a part of Ming that still cared for their other brother, then at least he could give him some kind of assurance. It's not like he could have given him much information on anything else anyways.

Jun had a million questions he wanted to ask.
How are our parents? And sister? Are they alright? Mom's not sick anymore is she? Are you alright on money? Are you alright? What have you been up to these days? Dating anyone? Is she pretty? Do you miss me? I missed you so much...

"Yeah, I'm okay." He says, but he can hear the tightness in his words, the tell-tale sign of his rigid body language screaming he is holding himself back from blowing up. Jun wants him to get angry. To do... or say something. Or not. Jun wanted to figure out what he wanted, but his concussion wasn't having it.

"How's mom?" He dares to ask. He picks a spot on the floor to stare at. It seems to help with the headache a bit.

It was strange for Ming. Jun's face looked so familiar and his voice and body language, yet at the same time, after his response, he was a complete stranger in Ming's eyes. For a moment, he just wanted to shout it was none of Jun's business and just leave. But he was rooted in place. He took in a breath and exhaled slowly in a sigh, either to remain calm or he was just exasperated.

He turned his face to the side, avoiding looking at Jun same as his brother avoided him. "She's fine, Dad's fine, and sis is fine. She's actually engaged. Well, she says she is. It's been a year, but they still haven't got a ring yet." Ming let his words run away from him, suddenly felt that wave again, that Jun was a stranger, and cut himself off from speaking more.

Ming was being remarkably patient, Jun knew, and it killed him. Ming had every right to explode and get angry and he wasn't. He should have been yelling, breaking things, cursing him to oblivion. Wouldn't that have been healthier for him than holding back?

"A ring? I could probably swing something with one of the merchants around the marketplace. Remus is just down the way from me and he'd give me a deal." Was he pushing? Probably. His headache was improving, but he kept his sights on the spot on the floor. Does the guy seem nice? If he's going to be part of the family, I hope he's nice."

Ming's expression hardened and his hands clenched into fists. "Maybe before you start doing favors for anyone, you should let know our family that you're still alive. Mei took it hard when you two left." Ming didn't bother to mention the few months he barely slept and ate when he tried searching the city for his brothers. He tried to black out that desperate time of his life because the despair he had reached was at a level where he almost didn't make it back to stability. Mei was the one that helped him the most. In fact, she was the one that mainly kept their family together and rejuvenated their parents. "She worked really hard and still works hard. And I trust her in whoever she chooses to marry. She's very capable of that."

Jun pressed his lips together, nodding lightly. Mei had been the self-proclaimed queen of their hovel castle, the only one really capable of reigning in all the brothers and making them behave. She wasn't particularly strong, but incredibly fierce in her own way. It was hard for Jun to imagine her getting married, but he supposed life was supposed to have gone on without him there in the first place.

Ming's own hands were fisted at his sides. Jun's brother didn't say anything about how he himself had been affected by his disappearance. They'd always been so close... Jun spent a lot of time missing his impulse control the first year. He coped by imagining himself going home and Ming would waiting with his arms crossed and a stern scowl on his face. Jun would laugh apologetically and smack him on the head for being an idiot and then they would go inside and swap stories enthusiastically like they used to.

This wasn't the reunion he had hoped for, looking like an even more hopeless idiot that needs to rely so heavily on others to get by. He wanted to return stronger, matured, and on equal footing.

"Then let them know I'm alive if you think it's so important but you know any contact is dangerous." His voice came across almost annoyed. Maybe he was. "You know that, right? You know it was for a good reason I didn't... I couldn't do nothing when mom was sick." He turned momentarily to face his brother, though he quickly receded, suddenly feeling like all his reasoning meant nothing. Ming's stoic expression had a way of doing that. Reminding him there was no excuse for his failure. "It's not like I was doing well in school. Even if I did graduate and scraped up some crappy job, there wouldn't have been enough time. It was best." He tried to convince himself.

Ming's anger flashed hot through his limbs and his arms trembled. He had to resist the urge to go up and slap Jun on the side of his head. He waited until Jun finished speaking, absorbing his words with the kind of silence that spoke of an upcoming storm. It was hard to look at his brother, his baby brother and not think of the many nightmares he had, picturing that face in various states of harm or even decay.

"The best?" His voice was low. Ming let out a scoff, a bitter expression on his face now. "Do you think two of her sons disappearing was the best for her health? At least with some 'crappy job,' she'll know you're alive. Hell, Mom and Dad might have given you a medal for graduating since they all thought you would be the one to go through instead of me."

Jun's spine tingled anxiously at Ming's towering visage. It took every bit of courage in him to maintain his look of resolve in the face of his elder brother's glare. And still, he hesitated.

"I..." His mouth felt dry and weak. He took a moment to breathe before responding. "Medals and graduation were nothing in comparison with her life. Not to me at least..." He bit the inside of his cheek nervously. "My grades were never anything to be impressed with anyways..." He shook his head. "Whatever reasons I had don't matter now. I did what I did because at the time the reward was better than the price I would pay. They held up their end of the bargain so you could afford mom's treatment. It's only right I hold up my end of the deal. I can't go back."

That was the mature thing to do, right? To be a man of his word? Ming should understand that, right? Everyone had always wanted Jun to "grow up."

Ming turned his face to the side, his frown deepening as he both understood about keeping to one's word, but also hating that he did understand. He remembered so many times he had scolded Jun when they were younger about keeping promises and how important it was.

He slowly shook his head, both at himself and also to dismiss anymore thoughts. With a deep breath, Ming faced Jun again, his face carefully blank. "You're right. You can't go back. So what do we do?" Ming gestured between the two of them. "You want me to just keep on pretending that I never saw you again? That would be better for you, wouldn't it?" His voice almost cracked with emotion, but he managed to rein himself in and finish strongly.

Jun didn't want Ming to leave. He hadn't seen him in years! He wanted to hear news about his family, ask about Mei's fiance, learn about Ming's latest project and how he got into the racing scene. He wanted to talk about how their brother was doing well and was respected among many of the Overlooked. He was a great strategist and kept fairly frequent contact with Jun. He wanted to complain that even after all this time, Ming was his best friend and he'd missed him so so much. He wanted to break that wall of emotionless expression and find that smile that assured him everything was going to be alright.

He fought the trembling of his lower lip. He could feel his eyes begin to tear and he had to take a deep breath. He pressed his lips together and nodded silently. "I think... that would be best. Tonight, you helped some idiot out of a fight he couldn't win and then you return to your life as you normally would. Everyone's safer that way."

"Yeah, the most annoying idiot I've ever met." There was a hint of a teasing tone in his words. Ming wanted to smile, but he couldn't.

There was a long pause and Ming looked more like his usual, worried self, his brow creasing. "You sure everyone is safer? You and Zhi too?"

"Hah." Junjie nearly laughed, his lips curling into a bitter smile. He wiped his eyes quickly and did his best to compose himself, facing his brother. He knew better than to lie to Ming. Of course, him and Zhi were constantly one misstep away from Exile. Nothing could really save them from the war looming just beyond tomorrow. If the wrong person heard he was with the resistance he risked spending the rest of his life in hell and it terrified him.

It was ironic, considering his past. He'd always been a thrill seeker, pushing his boundaries and safety. It's surprising his family didn't expect him to get caught up in some of the most dangerous business one could deal in for their generation.

The youngest sibling had missed Ming's protective sibling face. It was the one he got when Jun would be recovering from their latest adventure or when Jun would get upset by another bad grade or when their mom was sick and Jun would be frustrated and crying. He hadn't felt so cared for in years.
"There's not much we can do at this point." He admitted honestly, "But, when all of this is over, if I'm still here, the first thing I'm going to do is run home and see everyone. I'll run so fast, I'll beat Zhi."

Ming let out a short, mild laugh at Junjie's words this time, though part of him was embarrassed that he felt his throat close up with emotion as well. As their conversation went on, an exhaustion fell over him and he couldn't maintain the anger that filled him earlier. The exhaustion was something he was familiar with and though he hated it, Ming was used to it and so in a way, he welcomed it. The exhaustion has clung to him for almost every day now. It was because of the exhaustion he tried to join races in an attempt to wake up.

He let out a sigh and shook his head, using his forefinger and thumb to pinch the area between his brows. "Well, I hope it is over soon," Ming said softly. Then he looked directly into his younger brother's eyes. "As soon as you can, you need to tell our mother that you're alive, okay?"

((ok so do you think now's a good time for Jun to let Ming head out? And then after that... I'm wondering if we want to do a scene with Ming and Marika or if we should wait until we've got the research from Carolien so then the plot with jun going to earth can move forward?))

((Probably. I don't think they can do anything more. And sure, we can do something with Ming and Marika, though, what they do together is kind of up in the air. But I think it's best to end it.))

((ok I'll do a short thing with Jun and you can end with Ming?))

((I'm just thinking... cuz we haven't decided yet what your other character's role is... and otherwise these two are at a bit of a standstill cuz Ming needs to be recruited to work for the Paramount and then Jun can't get his mission until Ryo gets the research info from Carolien.))

((Which other character? The female one or the one for Carolien's dad? The female one, I have a pretty clear image, I think, in the notes I put in. I want her to be Paramount and either do an evil couple duo with her husband on the Council or she manipulates her husband on the Council.

As for Ming and Jun, well, I suppose what we could do is just side stuff like... Maybe have Jun do some recon on the places where the Exiled are sent on Earth. Is it random and he'll just land near Nymme and Peter by chance? Or is there a methodical rotation/pattern that they stay with every 3 months and then they'll change up the pattern again later and there's a limited window of landing near Carolien's dad, etc. It could be a one-off, or I could help by rping a NPC or something to help. As for Ming, well, I can get him to race or interact with his family to build him up.))

((The female one was what I meant. And ok, but like what does she do that's so evil and how are we going to fit it into our plot?

And as for Jun, I think that having them direct where they are landing makes more sense. Like I would say they could land anywhere in the bay area, Maybe it's easier for the connection to form in high energy consumption areas like big cities?

Yeah, ok so they can just kinda do idle stuff on their own until the plot with Ryo and Carolien allows them to move forward?))

Jun smiled, happy to have a semblance of an understanding. "Yeah, I promise." He gets up, feeling a lot better than when they had first arrived.

"I'll let you get going. Reuben, my room mate, usually gets back late because of his job and it would be better if he doesn't see you."

He presses his lips together, unsure if he should go on. There's still so much he wants to say and explain, but he knows that it would be better to keep most of it to himself in the long run.

"Um... I-uh- just-I missed you. Drive home safe." He really wants to hug his brother, but he knows he doesn't deserve it and the fear of making things even worse with his best friend holds him back.

((I was just thinking that she's evil in the sense that she just is horrible. She's manipulative, selfish, ruthless, and just wants to be in a position of power. She might not fit into the plot of things at all in the sense of interacting with the other characters. Maybe she'll only know Marika and Carolien or something. Her husband is in the council, so I suppose they influence who gets exiled. Perhaps she and her husband or she pressured her husband to vote on exiling Carolien's father after it was discovered he was helping the overlooked. Or she's friends with Carolien's mother in some way. But other than that, she's probably on her own. I don't know, I just wanted to try out a different character from the usual.))

Ming gave a short nod in acknowledgement. He didn't bother questioning his younger brother. If he made a promise, Ming knew he'd keep it. It might not happen in the time Ming wanted, but he always knew his brother kept his word. It sometimes irritated Ming that he played a part in teaching Jun that.

Keeping silent, Ming waited for Jun to finish. He rose a brow at his brother's awkward goodbye, and he had to resist the urge to smirk. Instead he stepped forward slowly. Using his right arm, he took Jun's right in his hand and clasped it so that their forearms were side by side and Ming's hand was at Jun's elbow. "Don't get into anymore stupid fights, okay? Being Overlooked is dangerous enough. Don't go angering thugs too."

((you want to end it?))

((I thought you can add a bit more and then I could end it after. I just wasn't sure that was a good place to stop earlier so I didn't think of adding more. Would you want me to add more? Would that be better?))

((I don't really have anything else to add for Jun... you can just end it))

Ming cracked a small smile at Jun one more time before he let his arm go and turned away. His back was stiff as he walked away, fighting the urge to look back before he stepped out of the room. If he looked back, Ming was sure he'd do something stupid, maybe something stupid like joining his brothers in the Overlooked cause. Or taking Jun home against his will.

He went over to his motorcycle, kicking the stand away as he got on. His eyes flicked unconsciously back to the door before he revved up the engine and headed out into the night.

*END OF SCENE*