Chapter 17: Found

I stood in almost utter silence. At first I wasn't sure that what I was seeing was even real. How did they find me? Although it'd felt like moments had passed, it'd only been about a second since I opened the door.

"Julia?" I managed to say. I was greeted with a firm slap across the face.

"Don't EVER pull a stunt like this again! Do you hear me?!" I'd never heard her voice sound so angry. Before I could respond, she embraced me tight and began to cry on my shoulder. Slowly reaching around her, I hugged her back and leaned my head against hers.

"…I'm so sorry, Julia." Holding her like this after having not seen her in over two years felt surreal. But as my mind processed that she was really here, I felt myself at ease. I missed her so much, she was the one person I regretted leaving behind the most. She was always there for me, never turning her back on me even when I hurt her.

"I thought you were dead, Peter. I really thought you were dead." After another brief moment of silence, she pulled away and looked up into my eyes. She had barely changed at all. She looked exactly as I remembered her. Smelled like the same perfume, had the same glasses. Sighing, she wiped her tears away and slowly began to smile, a small laugh of relief escaping her lips. "Sorry about the slap, I didn't want that to be the first thing I did seeing you after all this time." I chuckled slightly at her words, shaking my head.

"Don't worry about it. I had that coming. Come on in." Motioning to the couch, I guided her inside my apartment and closed the door. Heading to the kitchen next to her, I pulled out two wine glasses and reached into the fridge. Dabbing her face with a tissue, Julia looked over and widened her eyes slightly. Seeing her reaction, I poured her a glass and handed it to her. She accepted it and took a small sip, looking back up at me.

"You remembered how much I like red wine?" she said.

"I only drink it because of you, if I'm being honest." Taking a seat next to her, I took a deep swig and faced her. "How did you find me?" She paused for a second and then set the wine down on the table in front of us.

"It took me a long time, but I was able to recover my data. Once everything settled with Jin and his war, he started cleaning up as much as he could. He gave me access to the Zaibatsu's resources and I've been searching for you ever since. You've been covering your tracks pretty well. But someone tipped me off about your whereabouts."

"Someone tipped you off?" She looked to the floor for a second and then cleared her throat.

"I…hired someone. Anna Williams." Shaking my head, I laughed.

"There's nothing that woman can't do." There was a pause in the conversation. Julia shifted slightly in her seat, as if searching for the right words to say.

"You're not mad at me, are you?" Looking into her eyes, there was such a sense of innocence. She didn't do this to invade my privacy. She did this because she cares about me. After everything we'd been through together, she didn't give up on me. I ran and she was the only one to chase me. Allowing my mind to process everything, I put my hand on hers and shook my head.

"I'm not mad. I'm impressed. And I'm flattered. It means a lot to me that you went through all that trouble to find me. I just feel bad that you had to do this much to be here. I'm sorry."

"Peter, why did you leave? And why didn't you say anything? King has been worried sick, he's changed so much." Hearing his name, my blood went cold and my eyes froze for a second or two. Ever observant, Julia caught on to this quickly. Nodding slowly, she took another sip of wine.

"Something happened, didn't it? You don't have to tell me, but I just need to know that you're okay." Her voice soothed my soul. With the gentlest of motions, everything she did was just so graceful. I contemplated deeply about what I was going to say. At first I thought I should lie and tell her that I just wanted a fresh start. But after seeing how much she sacrificed to find me, I felt I owed her the truth. Taking a deep breath, I picked a spot on the wall over her shoulder to look at and exhaled.

"I messed up. I ended up telling King how I felt about him. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but I was wrong. I…kissed him." Stopping, I looked into her eyes to see her reaction. To my surprise, there was no judgement on her face. She just listened intently and nodded for me to continue. "Everything felt fine for a moment but then I quickly realized that he didn't take it well. He left the house and I didn't see him for the rest of the day. When he did come back home, he was drunk. I planned to just apologize and try to mend things again. But he came onto me. We…we had sex. After it was over, I just felt like something was wrong. I knew there was no going back after that. So I snuck out of the house while he slept, got in my car and never looked back. I just drove and drove and somehow, I ended up here. I got tired of running, so I decided to start my life over. It just seemed like a good move at the time."

"Peter…I'm so sorry. I know how much you cared for him. But you could've come to me. I would've helped you." I could see her fighting back tears, her grip on my hand tightening. "Did he hurt you?"

"No, he asked me if I wanted him to stop. But I let him continue. This whole thing is my fault. I was selfish." Shaking her head, Julia began to reassure me.

"This wasn't your fault, Peter. You were brave enough to tell the man you loved just how much he meant to you. You couldn't possibly control his reaction to that." Looking to the floor, I swallowed hard and felt my body begin to sweat.

"…How is he?" After the words left my mouth, I slowly let my eyes travel back to hers, almost afraid of the answer.

"He misses you. He never told anyone anything. Just that he woke up in the morning to find you gone. You left everything there. Your phone, your clothes, everything besides your car. We weren't sure if something had happened to you. He made calls, looked for you for months. He went to every tournament hoping to see you there. I did, too." I went completely silent, unsure of what to say. Before I could ask her what I was thinking, she spoke again. "Don't worry. He doesn't know I'm here. I wanted to find out what happened to you first before I said anything. I don't plan on telling him anything. Your secret is safe with me."

"But he's your friend too, how could you not?" Just then, she gave me a small smile and tilted her head to the side, never breaking eye contact.

"I wouldn't jeopardize our friendship just to keep his. You mean so much to me. I would never betray your trust in me, Peter. It's up to you to talk to him if you want to. I can't make that choice for you. And in the end, if you choose to move on and never look back, I will support you. Just please don't leave me behind too. We've been through too much to end it all now." As much as I didn't want her to see it, I was getting choked up. The last time I cried was the night I left my old life behind. Pulling her close, I hugged her and held her for what seemed like forever.

"I don't deserve a friend like you, Julia. Not after what I did to you."

"Yes you do. You forget, you've been there for me through all my darkest moments. You helped me find Michelle when she was missing. You helped me fight for my reforestation data back. Whenever I was ready to give up and fall down, you were right there to catch me. I'm happy to do the same for you, if you'll let me." Allowing myself a moment of emotional release, I dug my face into her hair and sighed deeply.

"Thank you. Thank you so much."

"We'll get through this, together. I promise." Letting her words comfort me, I took in the flowery scent of her hair before I spoke again.

"Please stay. I don't want you to go." Laughing into my ear, she sniffled before responding.

"I wasn't going to give you a choice. You're stuck with me for a few days. Besides, it's been too long. We need to catch up." Knowing that she was going to stay with me for a while made my heart melt. I'd been thinking about reaching out to her for so long, I was just too afraid to take the first step. It's funny. They say time heals all wounds, but in this case, all time did was prevent me from living. Deciding to change the mood, I pulled away from her and looked her over.

"You look amazing by the way, you look beautiful as always." She blushed just then and lightly tapped me on the knee.

"Now you're just trying to guilt me for slapping you." Grabbing my wine glass, I took another deep swig and finished it before getting up to grab the rest of the bottle.

"No, what I did was a total dick move. To you, anyways. But I mean it. I thought about you every day. In fact, the other night, you came to me in a dream." My words seemed to take her off guard, but I could tell she appreciated what I said.

"I hope it wasn't a bad dream."

"Not at all. I was lost, stuck in some kind of weird industrial area at night. King was there too. But that wasn't the good part. You came to me after I was in literal pieces and your voice healed me. You told me that nobody could break me and then you left into a bright light." Hearing the dream out loud, it sounded so ridiculous. But if there was anybody that I felt comfortable telling this kind of thing to, it was her.

"Did you follow me?" she asked.

"I did. And oddly enough, you came to me days later. Isn't that weird timing?" I poured myself another glass from the bottle and topped hers off as well.

"Maybe it was meant to be. Maybe you called to me." Julia was always the type to believe in signs and spiritual relevance. While not religious, she always believed in the power of nature and being one with it. She felt that dreams were almost like doorways. When we were together, she'd always tell me about her dreams. She'd wake up one morning and tell me about how she dreamt that she recovered her stolen data. She saw her homeland being reforested, full of greenery and serenity. Somehow, she made that dream a reality now.

"Who knows, maybe I did. And if that's the case, I'm glad you heard me. I've missed you so much. You have no idea how hard it was to keep my life a secret from you. I'm just glad that you're here now." Putting on some peaceful music, we sat up for hours after that, filling each other in on one another's lives since we last spoke. I chose not to mention Scott or the fighting arena from earlier. The whole thing was still so new to me, I wasn't sure what to make of it myself just yet. It was getting late and I was beginning to get tired. I could tell she was too because she kept stifling a yawn.

"You're welcome to stay in the guest bedroom. There's a bed in there and I've got some incense and candles if you wanted to burn them. She looked down and smiled to herself before replying.

"You really didn't forget me after all this time. You remember everything like it was yesterday. Thank you, Peter. It means everything to me."

"I would never forget one of my best friends, Julia. But just so you know, don't light the dragon's blood scent. It's disgusting." My joke earned an honest chuckle from her, rubbing her eyes ever so slightly.

"That's what you get for buying the ones that sound cool. Those are usually the weirdest ones. Thank you. I'm going to get some sleep. It was a long drive. I'll see you in the morning." Standing up, she stretched her arms and yet out a long yawn.

"Help yourself to anything you want, no need to ask." After another hug, she disappeared into the guest bedroom and closed the door. Feeling as if a huge weight was lifted off my shoulders, I made my way into my room and got undressed. Laying down, I went to plug my phone into my charger. Once I did, I saw a text ding onto the screen. I must've missed it earlier. Opening it up, my heart jumped once I saw Scott's name.

"I made it home. Just wanted to say thanks for being there tonight. We don't know each other all that well yet, but I really enjoy being around you. Nighty night;)" Remembering the night we had, I couldn't help but grin as I read it. Quickly texting back, I found my fingers shaking slightly.

"I can't wait to get to know each other better! I like being around you, too. Talk soon and good night." Hitting send, I sighed and rolled over to my side. Before I knew it, I was drifting off into a heavy sleep.

Opening my eyes, I began to smell the distinct scent of coffee. Looking over to my window, I realized it was still dark. Had I really slept? It felt as if I had just closed my eyes. Allowing my eyes a chance to glance over at the alarm clock on my nightstand, I saw that it was 3:45AM. After a stretch and a yawn, I stood up and rubbed the sleep from my eyes. Getting dressed, I walked out into the kitchen and saw Julia sitting there.

"I'm sorry, did I wake you?" she said.

"No, I just woke up. You okay?"

"Yeah, just couldn't sleep much. So I figured I'd start my day." Julia was always one to be up early. After years of being a researcher, I understood why. Her schedule always changed so much. Taking a seat, I poured myself some coffee as well.

"Have you ever been here to North Carolina before?" Julia shook her head at my question. Just then, I had an amazing idea that I knew she'd appreciate. "I have a surprise for you then. Go ahead and shower and change, I have a place that you need to see." Her facial expression was confused at first but she cracked a smile and nodded.

"Okay, that sounds nice! Be ready in a bit." With that, she stood up and walked into the bathroom with one of the bags she'd brought along with her. I took a minute to finish the coffee I'd poured and went back to my bedroom. Once I reached the bathroom, I turned on the hot water and stepped inside. Thinking about everything that'd been happening the past few days, I felt a new sense of appreciation for my life. It was still hard to believe that Julia was here, but I planned to take full advantage of the time we had together. She'd only be here for a few days, but I wanted us to go back to the way we used to be. I wanted us to be the friends we once were.

Knowing exactly where I wanted to go, I showered as quickly as I possibly could. About twenty or so minutes passed before Julia and I found ourselves heading out into the dark morning sky. We got into my car and began our drive to my secret place. Along the way, we began to reminisce about old times. Julia began to snicker, bringing a particular memory to mind.

"Do you remember that one night in Japan where we snuck out of the Mishima Hotel?" she said. I already knew exactly the day she meant.

"Where we wanted to see the beach at night and I ended up diving in the water, clothes and all?"

"Yes! That water was freezing, you should've seen your face when you came back up." She looked over at me and flashed such a genuine look of happiness.

"I don't even know why I did that, it was so cold that night, too. I should've known better. And then we had to run because security found us hanging out there?" As I spoke, it was almost as if I could feel myself back in time during that exact moment.

"Peter, I've never seen you run so fast in my life. We barely made it back onto the property before they caught up to us."

"And I swear, we ONLY made it because you brought that flare with you. Wait now that I think about it, why did you have that on you again?" She chuckled, throwing her head back against the seat at my question.

"We were going to try and shoot it up over the ocean to see how bright it was, remember? We stole it off one of the Tekken Force soldiers a few nights before." Shaking my head, I remembered it vividly now.

"We were so random, but it saved us. They chased the flare. Damn it was dark that night." We both talked about it for a few more minutes, going over every minor detail of that night. It felt beautiful to remember a time in our lives when everything felt so simple. We were just two people, hanging out and doing adventurous things. If I recalled correctly, it was my idea to do it. Julia had been having a rough time during that particular tournament, so I came up with something to take her mind off things. Looking over at her, I felt truly at peace.

It wasn't long before we reached our destination, Grandfather Mountain. After paying the fee to get in, I found a place to park and grabbed a water bottle for each of us. Julia seemed so excited, looking around trying to get a good view of where we were. I knew a specific trail that she would greatly appreciate.

"We're here. Follow me." Handing her a flashlight, we began walking through the forest trail. Everything was so quiet, except for the sound of crickets chirping in the distance. The sky was slightly lighter now, but still too dark to see without our lights. Every now and then, I'd turn back to Julia and she'd looked so thrilled to be having another one of our random adventures after so long.

"This place is beautiful, Peter. Do you come out here often?" she asked.

"Not lately, but I found it to be a nice place to meditate during my free time." We pressed forward, occasionally stopping to sip from our water bottles. The air was cold and crisp, a slight breeze blowing against our faces. Thankfully, we were both dressed for the occasion. I could faintly smell campfires in the wind, most likely from people staying the night or nearby houses.

"Hey Peter, I meant to ask you last night. But what have you been doing for a living out here? It seems to be a fairly small town from what I've seen so far."

"I help out in a local dojo here. Teach kids self-defense mostly, but I give private lessons to older clients also. The owner has always been really good to me, and I get to help people feel confident with themselves. It's a nice feeling." It was too dark to see her reaction, but I could feel her looking at me.

"You always did like helping people. That's amazing, I'm proud of you. So are you seeing anybody?" I felt like I almost froze in my tracks. I hadn't planned on talking about that while she was here, but she was bringing up the subject. I wasn't sure if I should lie to her or not. Then again, she'd know if I was. She always did. Clearing my throat briefly, I kept my eyes on the rocky path we began to go uphill on.

"Well, I didn't want to bring it up, but there is a guy I'm interested in." Scared to hear how she would react, I stopped talking and waited for a response.

"Is he handsome? What's he like?" Her reaction stunned me a bit, you'd never guess that we'd dated in the past. Sensing that she was okay with the subject, I decided to continue on.

"I find him very handsome, he's older than me though. I'm actually not sure by how much, but I'm guessing he's in his early thirties. So we might have a ten year or so gap between us."

"Age is just a number, they say. Plus, that seems kind of exciting!" she responded.

"I don't know him all that well yet, but he's very kind to me. He always makes me feel special." Feeling slightly uncomfortable telling my ex about my current love interest, I paused for a moment while continuing to ascend the mountain trail. "Not saying that you didn't, Julia. I'm sorry, does this ever make you feel weird?"

"To be honest, in the beginning, I was really hurt. But as time went on, I understood that you were just coming to a point in your life where you finally understood who you were. I can't fault you for staying true to yourself. I'm just happy that we were able to remain friends through it all. I'm completely fine now, though. Don't ever feel like you can't share your life with me, I'm here for you no matter what." Her answer relaxed and reassured me that she wasn't holding onto bitter feelings from the past between us.

"I wish I could be as strong as you, Julia. You always find it in you to forgive and move on. If only everything could be that simple. But yeah, his name is Scott. He's actually a fighter too. He does underground fights, and he's surprisingly pretty good."

"You are strong too, Peter. You just don't see it sometimes. But I do. I'm so happy for you. I hope things work out with Scott, he sounds like a good fit for you." Smiling to myself, I felt the anxiety lifted from me. It felt so good to have her support, knowing she was truly on my side. Reaching for her hand to help her across a series of small streams we had been crossing, I wondered about her love life.

"So what about you? Is there a special someone in your life, too?"

"Well…I didn't want to reveal it right away but I might as well. Ganryu and I are engaged…" I literally stopped and looked back to her, flashing my light in her face. The sounds of the water droplets from the streamed seemed to echo. At this point, I couldn't tell if the crickets I was hearing were real or just my thoughts. She looked up and smiled slowly, breaking out into a fit of laughter. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding! You should have seen your face just now!" Exhaling, I started laughing along with her, flinging some water at her from my bottle jokingly.

"You had me for a second there! I honestly thought you were telling the truth!" She tossed some water back at me and embraced me in a playful hug.

"Believe me, Peter. I could do better than a stalker. But yes, there actually is someone I'm seeing. His name is William, he's a scientist I met through the last tournament. He's done astounding research and has been under the tutelage of Dr. Bosconovitch for quite some time." Raising my eyebrows, I high fived her and smiled.

"Look at you! I always knew you'd end up with someone who could match your intelligence. You deserve to be happy, I'm glad you found him. Does he treat you well?"

"He's been completely charming, and generous. He's been helping me with several of my own projects as well. You guys would get along just fine, he has a great sense of humor." Everything felt like it was falling into the right places. The air had a positive tone to it for once, and I was honestly enjoying it.

"Well good. If he gives you any trouble, let me know, I'll kick his ass for you." I said with a playful wink. Just then, we reached the end of the trail and stepped out onto a large rock overlooking the rest of the mountain. The sky was beginning to brighten and just as we sat down, the sun began to emerge from over the horizon.

"Oh, Peter…this is beautiful…"

"I knew you'd love this. Nothing but trees and mountains as far as the eye can see up here." We both sat together, taking in the beautiful scenery before our eyes. Wrapping my arm around her, I leaned my head against hers and closed my eyes. "I'm so glad you're here, I missed our moments together."

"Thank you for taking here to see this, I'm lost for words. Everything about this is perfect." The sun slowly began to rise, splattering the sky with hints of reds and pinks. Birds began flying through the air in the distance, signaling that all life was beginning to awaken and flourish. Feeling Julia rest her head against my shoulder, I sighed peacefully and watched the sunrise with her. Through all the bad that had happened in the past, there were these moments of pure happiness. And it was these moments that I was beginning to live for once again.