Wrestling

Jey opened the car door with the plastic takeout bags of food in his hands. "Bam, you wouldn’t believe who I just saw."

He slid into the driver’s seat of the sedan, pulling the door shut behind him to block out the overwhelming noise of the street. He placed the bags from Matsumoto’s onto the center console between them. The scent of hot braised pork belly and extra spicy sauce immediately filled the car out.

Bambietta looked away from her phone screen, her brow shaping slightly. "Who?"

"Tyler Briggs," Jey said. He didn’t start the engine right away. He kept his hands resting on the steering wheel, staring straight ahead through the windshield.

Bambietta paused, her hands dropping to her lap. "Briggs? The rookie?"

"Yeah."

"The one Billy destroyed last week? The one who took a Tiger Driver and a Mexican Destroyer?" she asked, her tone sharpening with disbelief.

"That’s him," Jey confirmed. He turned his head to look at her. "He was standing right next to me at the pickup counter. He ordered a chicken bowl."

Bambietta stared at him, waiting for the punchline. When Jey didn’t smile, she shifted in her seat, turning her body to face him. "Okay. And? Was he visibly injured? Was he limping?"

"No, Bam. That’s the entire point. He wasn’t limping at all. I mean, aside from the few bruises on his face he was fine. He moved his arms perfectly. He turned his head without a single wince."

"That’s really surprising." Bambietta said, tussling at the order of food.

Jey started the car. The sedan’s engine roared to life, the air conditioning immediately kicking on and blowing cool air against their faces. He shifted the car into drive and carefully pulled out of the parking spot, back into the afternoon traffic of Osaka.

The drive was slow. The streets were densely packed, vehicles inching forward between traffic lights.

"Does it change anything?" Bambietta asked softly after taking a bite from the food, breaking the silence as they waited at a red light.

Jey looked over at her. "Does what change anything?"

"Knowing that Briggs is fine and all."

"No. It doesn’t change anything."

They navigated the remaining blocks toward their apartment. The afternoon sun was beginning to dip lower in the sky, casting long shadows. Jey turned the sedan into the underground parking, finding his usual parking space near the elevators and eased the car in.

He cut the engine. The sudden absence of the engine noise made the quiet of the garage feel profound.

Jey reached into the back seat to grab his own bag, then picked up the bags of Matsumoto’s takeout. The food was still incredibly hot, the containers radiating heat against his palms.

"You were eating it like this?"

"Uh huh."

They stepped out of the car and walked to the elevator.

They got off and walked down the carpeted corridor toward their apartment. Bambietta reached into her pocket, pulling out her keys. She slid the key into the keyhole, turning it as quietly as possible, and pushed the door open.

Jey stepped inside, pulling the door shut behind him with a soft click. He expected the immediate and chaotic greeting of flying fur and soft paws. He expected Billy to come bounding around the corner, with his tail wagging furiously.

Instead, silence.

Bambietta placed a finger to her lips, gesturing for silence. She slipped off her sneakers, lining them up neatly against the baseboard. Jey followed suit, toeing off his shoes and setting his gym bag down gently on the floor.

He carried the takeout bags, stepping into the open-concept living area.

The television mounted on the wall was turned off. The usual ambient noise of the local news or a daytime variety show was absent. The apartment was peaceful.

Jey stopped near the marble kitchen island.

Across the room, Linda was asleep on the large fabric sofa. She wasn’t in her wheelchair. She was lying down comfortably, a soft knit blanket draped over her legs and pulled up to her waist. Her breathing was slow and even. Her face looked relaxed, the lines of worry smoothed out by deep, restorative sleep.

Curled up against her chest, snoring softly, was Billy the dog. The terrier mix had his head resting on Linda’s arm, his floppy ears splayed out against the fabric of her sweater. He didn’t even twitch as Jey and Bambietta entered the room. He was fully committed to his duties as a guard dog on a nap shift.

Seeing his mother resting peacefully, free from the stres, was the only victory he actually cared about.

Bambietta walked up beside him, her footsteps silent. She looked at the sofa, a warm smile spreading across her face. She bumped her shoulder gently against his.

Jey turned to the kitchen counter. He carefully set the plastic bags from Matsumoto’s down on the marble surface, making sure the containers didn’t clatter against each other. He unknotted the plastic handles, letting the bags fall open to release some of the steam so the food wouldn’t get soggy.

The braised pork belly and extra spicy sauce would wait right there for when Linda woke up from her afternoon nap.

He turned away from the kitchen and walked over to the living room area. He passed the main sofa where his mother was sleeping and moved toward the smaller, plush loveseat positioned near the windows.

He sat down, sinking into the cushions with a quiet exhale.

Bambietta followed him. She sat down right next to him, no distance between them. She kicked her feet up onto the low glass coffee table and let out her own long, satisfied sigh.

Jey shifted his weight, leaning back into the corner of the couch. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders, pulling her close. She went willingly, settling her weight against his side.

The apartment was almost silent, except for the ticking of the wall clock in the kitchen and the soft snoring of the dog.

Bambietta shifted slightly, finding the most comfortable angle. She let her eyes close, breathing in the quiet of their home, and rested her head on Jey’s shoulder.

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