Who: Jack and Motoko What: Random meetings: When: Before the Pelannor event Where: Beach Status: Placeholder!
Motoko Kusanagi was at the beach. She wasn’t investigating, or hunting down leads in her case. She was taking a goddamn day off and she was going to enjoy herself. She walked along a boardwalk in a purple bikini, watching the world go past behind aviator sunglasses.
Jack was trying to avoid his father, which had, annoyingly, become the way he spent most of his time these days. They hadn’t come face-to-face yet, but since his father apparently knew where he lived, Jack had taken to spending as little time there as he possibly could. Silas knew that he wasn’t fond of the beach, so Jack had decided to spend his day there, hoping that would keep his father from finding him. He walked along the boardwalk, keeping his eyes on the ground as he walked. He really, really didn’t like the beach.
She liked the beach. She could relax, and be a bit more herself. Which mean flirting with the pretty rollar skater, or trading winks with a bronzed adonis. She was distracted by one of the latter when she ran into some poor man. “oof! Sorry.” She reached out to steady him.
In hindsight, probably looking at the ground while he was walking was a bad idea. Unfortunately, that thought only occurred to Jack when he actually ran into someone, and he reached to steady her even as he stumbled. “Sorry, sorry, are you okay?” he said over her, then chuckled when he realized she was asking the same thing. “No, it was my fault, really, I wasn’t looking where I was going. Too caught up in my own thoughts. Are you alright?”
“I’m okay. Thanks.” The Japanese woman smiled at him, adjusting her sunglasses as she took him in. “I’ve had rougher scrapes before. Don’t worry about it.”
“If you’re sure,” Jack said, dropping his hand and smiling at the woman. “I really am sorry. I should have been paying more attention. I don’t even know why I’m out here, I don’t really like the beach,” he admitted.
“You want to know the truth?” Motoko gave him a grin. “I just like being able to wear a swimsuit and not get looked at funny.”
That got a laugh, and Jack shrugged. “Fair enough. I just hate all the sand that gets everywhere, and I burn easily, so the sun’s not my favourite either. But I suppose the view is nice.”
"I don't mind sunning. You're right about the sand though." She winked at him, turning her head to look out towards the beach. The view was fantastic. Human bodies everywhere, and she loved it. She stretched, wondering if she'd catch Jack's eye. A woman could hope, right? Her luck had been abyssmal.
Sadly for her, Jack was most definitely not looking her way -- or really, at anyone at all. His father’s degradation hadn’t really put him in the mood for that sort of thing. Even if he were, he wouldn’t come to the beach to find a man. “I don’t think I would mind the sun either if I weren’t so prone to burns, but no matter how much sun screen I put on I never seem to be able to escape it.”
Just her luck. He was either heavily distracted or interested in the wrong sort of plumbing. She dropped her hands to her side with a light, slightly amused sigh. "Yet you've come to the beach. Surely it's not for peace and quiet? I've never seen such a rowdy, loud place." She considered that, then shook her head. "Hong Kong is louder and much more rowdy, but I was there on business and not pleasure."
Jack frowned at her question and shrugged uncomfortably. “I didn’t want to be home. I’m... avoiding someone. A very persistent someone who knows where I live. He knows I don’t like the beach, so I’m hoping I can avoid him here,” he admitted, then quickly changed the subject. “Hong Kong? That sounds interesting. Why were you there?”
"I was working a business contract," Motoko replied, folding her arms and leaning against a wall. She pulled her glasses down as a pair of tanned blonde bombshells walked past. "My job takes me all over the place, though this is the first time I've been in the United States since I was a child. I welcome the trip. Today is a day off."
“Oh? What kind of business?” He leaned against the same wall as her, trying to stay out of the way of the other people walking along the boardwalk. “Today is my day off, too. Usually I’d spend it at home, but.”
"But you're avoiding someone. I understand." She flashed him her smile, and considered how much to share. She felt a little concerned. "Are you having problems at home? I work in the sort of business that helps people." Not exactly her jurisdiction, but she had that nagging conscience and need to help people. She wouldn't feel right at least making a token effort to make sure he could get help if he needed it.
“Oh, no, I’m fine. I mean, it is a problem, but I’m handling it. My father is... persistent, but I can avoid him. And if I can’t, I’ll move.” He shrugged, as if it would really be that easy. Of course it wouldn’t be, but he didn’t want to talk too much about it to a stranger. “Anyway, what kind of job do you have that takes you all over the world?”
She raised her eyebrow at him. She didn't have her badge on her (there was no place to put it in her swimsuit), but she decided he deserved a little honesty. "I'm with Interpol. I'm investigating a dangerous international criminal syndicate. I'm taking a bit of time off because I need to clear my head."
Jack’s eyes widened at that, and he looked back at Motoko. She didn’t exactly look like the type of person who would work with Interpol and take down international crime syndicates, but probably that was the point. “An international crime syndicate here in Newport? I have to admit, I find that more than a little hard to believe. Not that I’m doubting you, exactly, it’s just. Difficult to wrap one’s head around.”
“They’ve recently established themselves in the county. Drugs, prostitution, protection rackets. They have a large presence in San Francisco, too.” She rolled her shoulders and added, “I don’t think they’re based out of Newport.”
“That all sounds less than pleasant. Well, I don’t know if I realistically could be any help, but I was in the military for two years and have been working with private defense companies and as a bodyguard since then, so if you need any help with the kind of thing that involves shooting or fighting people, just send me a message on the Net -- you do use the Net, right?”
“I do. And if I need your help, I certainly will look you up.” Motoko gave Jack a smile. “I should get back to sunning myself. I see a pretty blonde out there I want to get to know better.”
“And I should get home. Can’t avoid it forever,” Jack responded with a smile in return, holding out his hand for her to shake. “I don’t think I’ve properly introduced myself. Jack Benjamin, ma’am, it was a pleasure to meet you.”
“Motoko Kusanagi,” she replied, taking his hand. “Be safe.”