TAG: The Assassin's Guidebook

Washington D.C. is a hell of a place. A barrage of iconic government monuments drowned out by the sound of civil unrest. For every Washington Monument, Pentagon, and White House, you have a neighborhood like Brentwood or Shaw that has seen a history of violence. Jin's office glistened in the summer sun between the barred windows and gated front door. It was a low rent room in the middle of one of those aforementioned no-good neighborhoods. Given the paperwork and subject material of his profession, the office was able to blend in easily behind the larger issues of society that loomed beyond its four walls.

Inside the cluttered apartment, Sebastian sat at his desk, leaning back to the point of nearly tipping over. He was talking on a wired phone. A relic of ancient technology that Jin never bothered removing when he began renting the place. Sebastian's fingers twirled in the curl of the chord.

"I'm telling you Jessica, he's no good. I don't know what you were thinking with marrying the guy and putting yourself ten years and three kids deep into it." Sebastian said with a sarcastic bite.

As Jin entered the apartment, murmurs could be heard on the other end of the line. Possibly a barrage of gossip and self-pity. Sebastian initially ignored Jin's entrance as he was still wrapped in the conversation.

"Come on, leave the kids with the rich deadbeat and let's go light up the club tonight. Work has been killing me."

Jin removed his jacket and set it on the freestanding coat rack near the entrance. His undershirt was covered in a bit of blood; which also stained his forearms, knuckles, and face. Taking notice, Sebastian set the phone down and moved to grab the med kit in the bathroom.

Jin sat at his desk as his assistant moved over to clean him up.

"It's not mine." Jin said as Sebastian took out a cloth and some rubbing alcohol.

"Then who's is it?" Sebastian asked while unbuttoning and removing Jin's shirt.

"Any excuse to take my shirt off." Jin smugged.

"Fuck off" Sebastian laughed. He began cleaning off Jin's arms and chest.

"It was the usual shit. Some loud mouth at the bar. Harassed a girl. Didn't like his attitude–"

"And you probably threw the first punch" Sebastian interrupted.

"Always fire first."

"Quite a bit of blood for one bloke."

"Yeah, well let's just say his buddies weren't to thrilled seeing their friend get a crossover to the jaw."

"Police make their way over?"

"No. It wasn't a big place, and the others in the place weren't the kind to want the fuzz sniffing around."

Jin reached for a bottle of scotch at his desk while Sebastian finished cleaning him off.

"Clearly you didn't get enough to drink. Jin, it's only three in the afternoon." Sebastian remarked.

Sebastian rolled his eyes and flicked the cut on Jin's forehead. He stood up as Jin winced. While Jin was pouring a drink, he returned to his own desk and grabbed a folder.

"I need you to look over this paperwork from the main office. Also, this is me giving you your verbal reminder that you have your doctor's appointment tomorrow."

"I don't know why you scheduled that thing for me. I'm in pristine health." Jin said before slightly choking on the glass of alcohol.

He let out a light cough from the ashy burn of the scotch. There was a momentary pause in the conversation, as though Sebastian's point was already made. They both rolled their eyes at one another before Sebastian handed Jin the folder. Jin gives a slight sigh of defeat and begins to flip through the documents.

"As I was saying, go to your appointment. Your damn near almost forty. In your line of work, between your brittle back and damaged liver, you probably need it more than you want to admit."

Jin grabbed a nearby remote and turned on the television in the corner of the room. On the news was a broadcast covering the death of Governor Pines. Meanwhile, Sebastian was packing up his bag to head home. He glanced over at the television.

"Speaking of work, please go by the main office tomorrow and turn everything in. Rent for this place is due, and you owe me some cash."

"Yeah. Yeah. I'll stop by before my doctor's appointment."

The news broadcast reached a break point and commercials began playing. An advertisement for the new Bluto's Chicken Sandwich made noise in the background.

"Love that chicken from Bluto's" Sebastian hummed while the ad sang its slogan.

Next was an ad from Taco Gong. A new Chinese-Mexican chain that had been rising in popularity in the DC area. Orange chicken burritos, Moo shu pork tacos, General Tso spicy chicken quesadillas. Jin thought that the fad of mixing different cultures cuisine to be off-putting.

"I heard that place is actually pretty good," Sebastian said as he began heading to the front door of the office.

"Yeah, I don't think so," Jin responded.

"Anything you need from me before I go?"

"No, I'm okay. I'll see you on Monday."

"Have a good weekend, Jin," Sebastian said as they headed out of the door.

Jin gave a slight wave as they finished looking through the dossier folder. Nothing of interest was gained in their daily dose of reading. The television changed to another commercial, this time showing disabled veterans.

"I'm CEO Richard Burke of Incognito Incorporated. The industry leader in prosthetic and robotic technology that not only gives our veterans a second chance, but improves the lives of millions across our great nation. This year, I plan to–" the television blared before Jin abruptly turned it off.

"Yeah, that's enough of that." Jin muttered to himself before getting up from his desk.

Jin moved to the upstairs portion of the office which served as a small apartment. He set his glass on the nightstand next to his bed. As he laid on top of his comforter, he felt heavy in his own thoughts. Despite never being one for companionship, the feeling of loneliness and isolation occasionally reared its ugly head. His mind wandered at the words Sebastian had said. Hearing out loud that he was nearly forty brought a sobering thought to his cerebral, and despite his effort, the liquor wasn't drowning it out. He kicked off his shoes before passing out on top of the mattress.