<center>Subway Jack vs Aaron Keening</center>

I forget when words, were only words...

"Look man, it was an accident." Aaron pleaded to Stoner after their match at Friction.

"Fuck off dude! You knocked Yasmin off the apron!"

Stoner was furious, shooting daggers at Aaron Keening with intense anger. Yasmin was okay, yes, but she could have been seriously hurt. And the fact that Aaron was the cause of such a fear put Stoner in such a rotten mood.

"Like I said, it was an accident! I would never go out and hurt her or any woman on purpose! You gotta believe me."

"Why should I? You got the W in the end man. Ya know, I actually believed your little rant the other day. I thought, hey, this guys different from most others around here. I thought you were an honest guy."

"I am!" Aaron was borderline between anger and sadness. He knew it was an accident, and he felt bad for what he did, but why wouldn't Stoner, a man he thought he got alone with, not see that truth? "Everything I said before was true. Im not going to be cheap to get a win, that's not my style!"

"But that's exactly what you did! You took advantage of what happened to Yasmin and beat me. That doesn't sound like an honorable man does it?"

Aaron was lost for words. Stoner had a point, and Aaron knew it. He did take advantage of Stoner's concern for a possibly hurt Yasmin and got the win. Aaron backed downed, his eyes on the floor of the arena backlot.

"I'm sorry man." he said quietly. "That's all I can really say except that I didn't mean for her to get knocked down."

Stoner said nothing. He turned away from Aaron and walked away, towards to medics examining Yasmin. He had made his point, and it was over.

"Fuck" Aaron whispered to himself. He screwed up bad. SLowly he turned away from the scene, intending to just leave the arena, go back to his hotel, and lose himself in the one thing that always helped him when he was feeling blue. His music.

But a man blocked his path. Blonde hair, trenchcoat, this man simpley stood there, looking directly at Aaron. There eyes locked, and Aaron had a feeling he knew this guy, but couldn't quite place it.

"Umm..hello?" he said to the stranger.

"You look like you need to get away for a while. Care to accompany me?" Jack remembered him of course, also knew the man had a reputation; but how much was advertising and how much was an evidence trail wasn't any of his business. Not yet, anyways.

The other man studied him. Strange how the eyes of a cop and a guilty man are the same. "I think you've mistaken me for someone who needs the company."

"No, I think you're looking to lock yourself up for a while."

"I think I can handle the sentencing fine, thanks." He moved to get around the man, who instinctively moved to get in his way. Just because. Something inside had long ago made him into an asshole around authority. "You don't want to do that."

"And yet I have. Where do we go from here?"

"Jack?" A smile. The smile was attached to a woman named Chris, wrapped in black jeans, black trench, custom T-shirt of her own design, what looked like a white cross with two white snakes wrapped around it. The smile was the kind you saw on a Sunday morning, greeting you in Church. She nodded at the other man. "He's coming with us?"

Jack's eyes flicked back to her, took in his opponent. Weighed risk. "He dosen't have a date."

She knew an exit line was being provided, if the man wanted to take it. A potential date in her younger sister was waiting in the car.

Both waited for the man to make the next move.

Nobody knew that that his answer, a simple yes or no, would lead to all that followed.

Nobody woud never know that it was simply asking the question that set the game in motion...

... she knows the party makes me nervous...

"Ummm...." was all Aaron could reply. This was certainly a strange conversation. Lock up, sentancing, date? What was all this?

But Jack just stared at him with the same hard look he always seemed to have. It was cool and calculating, the stare of a man who had been done the rough roads in life and remember the things he had seen. And would never repeat the mistakes of others. In contrast to Jack's demenour, Aaron was niether cool nor calculating. Nervous, taken aback, and anxious, his eyes displayed all those emotions, which the experienced Jack could read like a book.

"Simple proposal. Yes? or No?"

His voice carried no malice, but had an edge to it that cut the room. Aaron wieghed the choice. He didn't know this guy, nor did he know the girls. How could he trust them? And more so, how could they trust him? Had Aaron years of experience under his belt he would have walked away, trusting his gut. But the kid was the color of grass and he didn't know any better. So in typical Aaron fashion, he gave it a shot.

"Why not. Been a rough day."

The man before nodded with a tight smile on his face, before leading Aaron outside and to the waiting car.