Outlaw Star Fan Fiction ❯ Just The Way You Are ❯ Chapter 2

Outlaw Star doesn't belong to me in any way, shape or form.

Part 2 of Just As You Are: A Gene and Melfina story. No lemon in this one folks but chapter 3 I'm sure will have plenty.

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Melfina entered the market wondering what she should pick up for dinner. She knew she had to bring something home because that had been the excuse she had used on Gene when he asked her where she was going.

"Ouch!" Melfina quickly covered the sore spots on her arms where the nurse had administered the shots.

"I'm sorry there cute stuff." Said the gentleman who had bumped into her. Melfina stepped back and meekly smiled.

"Oh, it's all right. I'm fine. But can you please kindly refrain from calling me cute stuff." Her eyes went slightly wide as she looked at the brown haired man begin to chuckle.

"Why are you laughing? Stop it...please." The man narrowed his eyes to look at her as his laughter came to a still.

"Sorry. It's just you have such a soft demeanor. Any other woman would have just clocked me one." Melfina felt an emotion deep inside herself that she had rarely ever felt. Anger. This man had laughed at her and insulted her. After last night she had considered herself the same as other woman, obviously her evaluation had been wrong and she had much more to learn.

"Clocked you? Like this?" A force that Melfina found herself unable to control rushed to her right hand as she curled her fingers into a ball and pulled her arm back. Her fist flew forward, sprung by her arm making contact with the jaw of the man. The force of her blow snapped his head sideways and he stumbled back catching himself just in time before he fell to the floor.

"Next time watch were you're going as well as your words!" She rushed out of the store as pain coursed through her arm; she had punched the man with the same arm her shots had been given. But that feeling of pain seemed to fade replaced by another feeling. She was proud and had a sense of self-confidence she had never remembered herself as having in the past. She had stood up for herself in a way she had never done before and the feeling of self-empowerment soared through her veins. Of course, it had cut short her grocery trip, but she would simply make something else for dinner.

~Back at the shop~

"I'm comin' I'm comin'!" Gene growled as he stumbled half asleep through the kitchen to get to the phone; he picked it up and saw a familiar face and felt as if he wanted to puke.

"Make it quick Jason, cause I'm not in the mood to talk." The blonde haired man smirked.

"I'm happy to see you too Gene. We should get together like old times. Ya know gettin' drunk and carousing for chicks til' the sun comes up." Gene was on the verge of growling. At one time him and Jason had been friends but that night ended when Jason had decided to get a little to rough with Iris and ended up breaking her arm.

"Get to the point will you Jase or I'll hang up on your ass right now." Jason's smirk grew into a grin.

"All right all right. I want you to find out about someone for me. A girl. She was here last night. She's a real petite thing. Large brown eyes, black hair, the tightest cunt I've ever..."

"Forget it." Gene cut off Jason in mid-sentence. "I'm not helping you find any information about some girl who you want to turn out. Now leave me alone and don't ever call here again." Gene hung up the phone and thought briefly about the naïve girl, whoever she was, getting mixed up with the likes of Jason. "Asshole!" Gene yelled as he slammed his fist into the wall cracking the plaster wishing it had been Jason's face.

"Gene. What happened? Why are you upset?" Gene's temper cooled almost immediately hearing Melfina's voice.

"It's nothing. Don't worry about it." He spun around on his heel brandishing a grin as if the incident that transpired a few moments ago never happened. "What did ya get us good to eat?" Melfina hung her head.

"I didn't' get anything Gene. There was a rude man who insulted me and I left the store before getting anything."

"Aw Mel. I'm sorry." Gene pulled her into a hug and patted her back. "There are so many insensitive men out there. Trying to take advantage of a sweet kid like you."

At first Melfina had felt comforted in the hug that Gene offered but his words turned her contentment into frustration and Gene suddenly found himself being pushed away by her arms.

"Will everyone stop treating me like a child! True I may naïve when it comes to life but I'm not stupid! I learn new things everyday! I experience feelings and sensations that are new! I'm learning Gene! At first I thought you were the only one who could teach me about love and life but today I realized I'm perfectly able to obtain such objectives on my own! Without your help!"

Gene had taken a step back and was staring at Mel in bewilderment trying to comprehend her mood. He had never seen her like this before and it was unsettling to him but he didn't like to be yelled at either; pride took over his logic.

"Well your pretty much acting like a child right now aren't you Mel?"

"I'm merely standing my ground! What will it take Gene to make you see I'm not the same as I was? I've grown Gene. Why can't anyone see that? If you aren't willing to help me grow Gene and accept the fact that I am changing then...just leave me alone!"

"All I've ever done is help you out Melfina! What more do you want from me?" Gene grabbed his coat and stormed towards the door. "Fine! You want me to leave you alone! I'll go!" Gene jerked open the door. "You're right Mel, you have changed! You've turned into a total bitch!" With those words Gene slammed the door behind him leaving a shaking and teary Melfina behind.

Melfina screamed at the top of her lungs. "The arrogance of that man!" She felt tears fall from her eyes but they were not her normal tears, they were tears of anger and resentment, tears of rebellion. What she was rebelling against she didn't know.

Storming up the stairs she went to her room and immediately began rummaging through her closet. Checking the time she noticed that she had an hour left before having to be at the club. She had been having second thoughts about whether returning or not but tonight's episode with Gene was the final straw. One way or another she would show everyone, show Gene that she was by no means a child any longer.

TBC...