It was early in the morning, close to five a.m. I've only slept for a couple of hours after leaving the bar. I was back in the comfort of my cozy apartment. Safety and warmth embraced me, without worry. Jackie questioned me earlier about what was on my mind, I told him a brief summery that I'm worried on how much time I had left. That was the hardest part. I had to prepare if this was going to be it. I didn't get to finish things that I wanted to do on my bucket list. I didn't want to die alone, but I scratched that off the list. I knew I had the warmth and kindness of my friends around me. I hated sitting alone and constantly hiding the fact I am afraid. 

I bragged to many clients how I wasn't afraid of anything, when I first began this path. My biggest goal was to make it to the big leagues, to become someone who isn't forgotten in Night City. But that's everyone's dream. 

"Just wanted to let the world know: I was here. And that it was worth fighting for." I whispered my thoughts to myself.

I felt weaker after the two hours of rest. So I managed to keep myself occupied with some old Sci-fi  and actions movies from 2021 and down.Along with a couple of cups of strong coffee. Even though movie productions have advanced in the past few decades, I loved the older stuff. 

I comfortably leaned my back against the bed board of my bed. I decided to take the day off with some rest. But if Jackie needed me to show up, then I will show up.

*Knock*

*Knock*

*Knock*

My attention transferred from the T.V. and over to the front door. I pushed the covers to the side not giving a single care about having Pj's on. Whoever this was, probably needed directions to one of my neighbors apartments. The floor quietly creaked while I made it over to the front entrance.

I opened the door and a pit formed in my stomach. My eyes locked on familiar red shades.

Johnny Silverhand...

"Hey, came to see how you were doing. I had to see you myself, considering everyone was joking around about you looked like you were fuck'n dead." Johnny started, breaking the awkward silence between the two of us. I knew the 'dead' part was a joke, and I tried to take thin gs lightly.

I chuckled lightly hearing a side of morbid humor. "Ya, I'm doing...better." I lied. Johnny held a bag in his hand, he kept a calm expression, not making it obvious. The atmosphere was awkward, due to my lack of conversation. If I expected Silverhand to show up, then I'd be prepared.

"Great to fuck'n hear. Mind if I come on in? I cannot understand why so many people hang out in the hallways of this place." Johnny implied. My focus traveled over to the small group of girls that seemed to be staring.

It wasn't everyday you are antiquated with a celebrity. His attitude seemed to of changed since the last time we met. I did spare Silverhand the grief of dieing in the back of the bar's storage room. I regret fighting Nash, because it left some scars.

"Ya, ya, sure..." I replied, parting paths, so he could walk in. He closed it behind him, taking a moment to look at the place. 

"Nice outfit, I really dig it." Johnny joked. I felt my cheeks start to flare up. I looked down at my Pj's and chuckled lightly. I wore a black T-shirt and purple Pj pants that had cartoon characters of Garfeild.

He took a seat on the sofa and placed the bag on the table, "So how have you been Johnny? After Nash..." I hinted him, taking a seat at the armchair near the glass coffee-table.

"Nothing I couldn't handle, unlike you, you nearly passed out in the alleyway-"

"Johnny if you came here to insult me, this was the wrong day." I cut him off. 

Johnny chuckled, "How come?" He questioned with a casual tone. I felt my stomach twist, I didn't want to dump this on him. There's nothing wrong with telling someone what's going on, but I didn't want to make him miserable. Johnny flipped his shades off of his head and stared out the balcony window. I fidgeted with the pen in my pocket and avoided his question. 

"Would you like something to drink?" I questioned calmly. My voice clearly indicated Johnny that I was trying to avoid the topic.

"You avoided my question, Ronin. It's written all over you. It seems like your uncomfortable as hell, body-language, and the pen in your hand is indicating you are nervous. " Johnny answered.

"I-" I bit my lip and looked the opposite direction.

I stayed silent for a couple of minutes. Should I tell him? Or keep it to myself? Johnny's gaze traveled from me and over to the balcony. He calmly waited for an answer.

"I think I know what this is about." Johnny suggested. It was like if mind reading was an ability. But how did he know? Or maybe this was entirely different.

"Nash spoke about it. The virus, he thought using you in the conversation would promote my fuck'n anger. And it did, I ended up fighting Nash. He spoke briefly about it, from patient zero escaping, to Scavs trying unlock it's secrets, to you di-"

"I didn't think that you knew..." I whispered quietly. Holding back the tears that welled up in my eyes.

"And I did. Test of a person's true value? Death. Facing it, staring it down. You still have a chance." Johnny implied with a confident voice. I wasn't scared of anything until now, Death was the one thing that paranoid me.

"I won't know until the time happens. I'm still grasping onto hope that Arasaka is able to remove the virus." I wiped my tears with the edge of my shirt.

"Are you kidding?! The Corpo's will want you for testing, they won't use another host, nor a mouse-"

"I don't have a choice, Johnny. It's either pay them up front to remove it, or die. But it's pretty clear I don't want to shake hands with the Reaper." I interrupted Johnny. I crossed my arms, and my chest swelled. 

Johnny crossed his arms and shook his head, "Emperor Saburo Arasaka is: the reaper of this damn city. It's suicide if you do this." Johnny argued aggressively against the situation.

"As I said 'I don't have a choice, asshole.'" I reminded him. He slapped his forehead, dramatically.

"Ronin, I can't imagine what they'll do to you in there! You have to get this through your fuck'n head that how many people never came back, after having similar things as you, in the past!" Johnny yelled. I felt anxiety shrivel through my gut and rise. I hated when people yelled.

I felt like yelling at him, releasing my anger. But there's no saying what he would do. He was unreadable.

I sighed, wiping away the hot tears that streamed down my face, "What do you suggest?" My breath quivered.

"Taking Arasaka by force. Threaten him with his life to take it out and discard it." Johnny suggested. Maybe that was a brilliant idea, but he was so old he wouldn't do it. He did things better than his son Yorinobu.

I'll do both if he isn't willing to help.

"Alright..." I replied to Johnny. He was strategic, I knew that. The Dog-tags mentioned everything that he was in the wars. Tough and dignified he was.

"I didn't mean to make you cry." Johnny said with guilt. 

"It's fine. I haven't been able to hold this lightly since Vik told me." I replied to Johnny. Johnny's jaw clenched.

"Who's Vik?" Johnny questioned with an envious voice, both protective and hiding back jealousy.

"He's just a Doctor, specifically a Ripperdoc. Vik was a family friend of mine, even after I got kicked out of my parents house at the age of sixteen." I simply brought up. Johnny's muscles became less tense. He relaxed.

"Alright. Anyways, I brought you something. He tossed me the bag like if we were playing indoor doge-ball. If I didn't catch that it would of hit my face. I slowly unfolded the cheap bag and pulled out something decently heavy. I examined it. It had beautiful line work, the stitching was perfect. The leather was genuine, I flipped the coat over. My eyes widened at the red electric lining on the back, along with a Phoenix logo. I was in awe how thoughtful and stunning the jacket was.

"I am a loss for words."

Johnny smirked, "Well, put it on." He suggested.

I gave him a nod and spun the jacket around my shoulders, placing my arms through the sleeves. The jacket was a bit larger then my size, but comfortably sat bellow my waist.

"Badass." Johnny chuckled.

"One more thing you are missing." He motioned me to walk over to him. He stood up when I followed over to him. He grabbed the left sleeve and swiped it. A small, red, translucent screen, popped up above my arm.

"Heat resistant, monitors your heart, but it isn't bullet proof." Johnny listed. He straightened the collar on the jacket. I couldn't help but to smile. Without thinking I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him into a slightly forceful hug. Johnny muscles tensed for a moment, but then relaxed.

"Thank you." I commented, patting him on the back. 

Johnny chuckled, "For a moment there that scared the living shit out of me." Johnny joked, referring to the hug she gave him. 

"Sorry." I replied, awkwardly. Johnny crossed his arms and had a smug expression on his face.

"It's fine, I gotta get going anyways. I've got things to do." Johnny suggested with a smile. He kept his eyes glued to the floor. I couldn't understand why I felt so comfortable around Johnny. Even after everything I've been through with him, from him saving my ass from Nash, to me saving him. From thick and thin, I believed he was showing his true colors instead of showing the tough side around other.

A/note: Hope everyone enjoyed this chapter. I wanted to start a bit of the romance between the two. Though I'm taking it slow, making sure it's right and not too fast. Feel free to leave a comment, vote, or even tell me what you think of my story. I truely love writing this story and I hope you guys love it just as much as me. There are seriously massive parts coming up in the story to spice things up. Lol I hope it's worth the wait. XD Thank you for reading.