"Please Please! I'll get you the money! I just need a little more time!" The man says pressing his body against the back of the alley trapped between me and a wall. "Sorry, but you owe us over 30 thousand at this point. And last I checked with your wife, she very lovely by the way, she said you bet 40 thousand on the races this past weekend." I cock the gun in my hand, it's purely for show at this point. I like to get down and dirty with low lives like this; hand to hand. "Your wife was also kind enough to tell me you bought her from her soulmate, in exchange for 'freedom'. So this," I say and rush in front, my knee connecting with his abdomen. "Won't hurt her." He attempts to double over but I pull his hair making him face me "Boss is giving you two months. One to pay him back," I pull his arm behind his back till I hear a sickening pop then a crunch, "And one to heal from this."

His screams filled the alley before a black piece of cloth in his mouth makes any noise much harder. His blood makes the nylon gloves stick to my skin, drenched in red. I hate that there's someone out there suffering because of this man's mistakes. I'm not sure what his crime against Katsuo is, and I don't really care. Katsuo has people who figure that out for him, my job is just to make sure they pay. This piece of shit got one lucky hit in a scratch across my face from a piece of glass I should have seen coming from miles away, that's gonna cost him another finger. I grab his phone as he withes on the ground, "Hey Katsuo... It's done. Yeah, I'll head there now." I say before turning back to the man. He'd look lovely with a lilly carved into his back but sadly he does have a soulmate out there. Too bad it'd scar quite nicely.

"Uncle Kenji!!" A little girl yells as I walk into the house, dressed to the 9's in princess attire. "Ah! Her majesty Angelina! I have returned from my travels safely. And with a reward for my Princess!" I say dropping to one knee and pulling out a cupcake, pink frosting towered high and sprinkles galore. "Thank you dearest knight Kenji!" She says doing her best to curtsy. "Of course her majesty! I live to make you smile Princess, Please accept my offering." Kenji! Stop it! Having you bow down to her is gonna make her have a big head," Jennifer says standing in the doorway to the kitchen, watching the reunion of knight and princess from afar. "But Mum! Im already 5 my head isn't going to get much bigger till I'm wayyyy old like you and Daddy!" Angelina says running over to her mother's side cupcake held tightly in her hands. 

"Hello, Jennifer. How is my knight in training?" I say walking over to her as she walks into the kitchen. "They're doing fine, a little clingy towards their father, but no complaints," Jenifer says walking over to a dough ball and pushing Angelina closer to the counter to eat her cupcake and watch. "That's good. Katsuo finally got his little helper," I say standing away from her, as not to interrupt her cooking escapades. "yes, he's always wanted someone to follow him around, like how Angelina does. But I do believe her love will always be with you 'Honorable Knight Kenji'," Jeniffer says curtsying as Angelina giggles. "Of course! Sadly I must visit the king, my queen. Be a good little princess!" I say bowing and turning on my heels to leave. "Bye-Bye Uncle Kenji! You'll play with me later right?" Angelina asks pink frosting covering her face. "What kind of knight would I be to deny a request from my beautiful princess!" I gasp in mock horror and the kitchen bursts into giggles.

Katsuo's office door is wide open, I raise my hand to knock, "Kenji I swear to god, you better not be trying to knock on an open fucking door! Just coming you fucking psychopath." Toko does their best to yell at me too, though it only comes out in the most adorable baby babble ever. "Boss," I say making a show of me knocking and then letting myself in the door, closing it behind me. "Kenji really??"He gives me the side eye even, Toko's doing it before bursting out in giggles. "You're in my house you don't have to say boss unless we're at the base dude! I think over 10 years of friendship cancels out the fact you work for me," Katsuo says crossing his arm over the 'Coke' shirt.

"Fine. The mission was successful. His wife remained unharmed due to the lack of a soul bond. Paramedics were called by one of our agents: he should be in questioning right now, trying to blame it on another mafia, of course. The money should be in our hand in two months." I say walking over to Toko as they try to pull themselves up on their legs using Katsuo's desk. They tumble and I catch them before their cute little face meets the carpet. "That's great! I expect nothing less when I send you out. Now," He says typing on his obnoxious keyboard. "The next person is known to frequent a club. Tonight you will go with me to said club. we're going to put a little something in his drink. According to his medical records, he's been trying to weaken his peanut allergy via exposure in low amounts. The doctors have already asked him to stop but he has continued buying four more EpiPens in the past month." Kenji says walking over to me.

"Now go play princess. We have 3 hours," "Is that an order your majesty?" I say bowing with Toko pressed to my hip little squeals come out. "Hahaha! An order, could you also help Jen? She's been stress-making pasta and bread all day."Katsuo asks and I get a good look at him since the last time I've been over. He's paler than normal, which is an accomplishment this man is basically a vampire, and there are bags under his eyes that challenge any insomniac. "Are you two still-" "Yeah... She blames herself but I think everything her dad used to do is finally catching up with her. She's....She's battling it."I wrap him in a hug, Toko gently patting their father's side. "You both are so strong, even stronger together. You'll get through it."

"E se il dottore dice che non posso più avere figli?! So che Katsuo vuole di più e mi piacerebbe dare ad Angelina e Toko un altro fratello. Fanculo!" Jennifer says sprinkling another cup of flour onto the countertop. "Mom, what are you talking? Your words are all broken!" Angelina asks Jennifer starts pinching off balls of dough. "That's cus it's Italian sweetheart. Your great-grandpa taught it to me when I was a little younger than you are!" "Oohh is it like when dad talks all weird on the phone?" Angelina asks as I walk into the kitchen. "No, your daddy is speaking Korean. It's very different." "So since daddy is ko-kore-Korean and you're Italian, what does that make me and Toko?" "Well Daddy is more than just Korean, Angelina, he's Korean and Italian too. And I'm" she takes a deep breath, "Italian American. Your great-grandpa was straight from Italy." Her eyes are distant as she rolls the pinched-off pieces into balls and plays keep away with Toko.

"He had a feeling his soulmate wasn't in Italy but here; So he dropped everything joined the military and met GG, she fought alongside him. They fell in love on the battlefield then Gma fell in love with my father and had me. And at 19 I fell head over heels in love with your daddy and two years later we held you for the first time."She says walking over to tickle Angelina. "Nooo!" Angelina squeals as Jennifer blows raspberries into other cheeks and keeps tickling her. "Knight Kenji!! Help your princess!" "But I can not attack my own queen!" I say starting to clean up the wreck that is the kitchen. "I'll stop after you give me a kiss little lady!" "Fine Mom I will!!" Angelina says before making a show out of kissing Jennifer's cheek. "Hey! There better be a kiss left for Daddy!" Katsuo says entering the kitchen as I wash the dishes.

I've always imagined my life a lot like Katsuo's. A loving wife; I've always known my soulmate was a woman. One time, when we were teens, a mission took us into a gay bar, easy to say Katsuo and I knew we definitely had wives pretty quickly. A kid maybe a few and a house far away from anything having to do with the mafia. Katsuo and I made a promise the first time I had to kill two people with one bullet that I could leave this life after I met her if I wanted to. I would never tell Katsuo this but I don't think I could ever leave. I grew up in this world. It's a part of me no matter how fucked up it is. There's so much blood that stains my hand I could scrub for days and it will never be clean. I wouldn't turn into Katsuo though. When he first started showing signs of having a soulmate he didn't leave his room for weeks, it took even longer to convince him to leave the base. And when he did it was like he was walking on glass too afraid to "Hurt them! We are made for each other! I don't want to hurt the person I'm in love with ever!"

"Yo! Kenji! I think that bowl is clean enough my guy. Besides we have a meeting at the 'Galaxy' And you have to dress down and dress me up!" Katsuo says snapping me out of my trance.