An Engineer In Night City - ch 11.6 (Patreon)

Preparation (6)

It is a typical evening in Night City. After sunset, the bright Neon lights illuminate the streets with posters, videos, and other advertisements on every corner. Every street has at least one shop open, with law-abiding citizens and street punks filling the streets at all times. In this city of extremes, the worst and best of humanity are born daily, and in this environment, an unlikely bond forms.

Inside Gloria Martinez's room, she checks her reflection in the full-length mirror.

Blushing at her reflection, Gloria adjusts her white, form-fitting dress. It is a present given by Yorinobu Arasaka meant for her to wear on special occasions, like a date between the two. At first, she was reluctant to wear the expensive dress, but her new healthy diet and enough rest filled her body to enhance her natural beauty.

Someone knocks on the door of her room, "Enter!"

David enters the room and looks at his mother readying herself for the date. "Mom, are you sure you want to go? What if something happens while you're away?" 

The mother sighs in fond exasperation at her son's worry. “Don’t worry about it, David. It will be fine. You know Yorinobu, don't you?”

Her son grimaces at the reminder. “That’s the problem, I go to work with him almost every other day! How can I see him in the eye knowing he's," He hesitates, choosing a delicate word for their relationship, "dating my mother?”

Slowly, Gloria Martinez turns to face her son with a fake smile. Her hand snaps ahead like a whip to pull David's ear, the angry smile remaining on her face. “What do you think I feel when I talk with Lucy and Kiwi daily, huh? Did you finally understand how your mother feels now?"

With each ear tug her son cries in pain, his embarrassment painting his face red. "Alright, alright, you win!"

Gloria releases his ear and he rubs the pain away. "I just feel awkward, you know?

“Ouch, ouch! Alright, alright!” With a red face, he answers his mother, “It just happened, you know? I didn't plan to have two outputs at the same time.”

Sighing, Gloria looks back into the mirror to check her makeup for the last time. “Well, it's not the most complicated relationship I've ever seen. Just be respectful to each other, normal relationships are already complicated, I bet your situation can degrade faster than expected.”

With practiced ease, David answers. “I understand, Mom.”

Gloria isn't done with her lecture yet, “Treat those two girls right, if they decided to share you instead of making drama, then you know they’re keepers.”

David looks weirdly at his mother, “Mom?”

She continues her speech without pausing, “And don't break their hearts, do you hear me? I didn’t raise a son to pump and dump like an irresponsible gonk!”

The young man takes a step back at the offense, “Mom!”

Turning, Gloria pokes her son in the chest, giving her last counsel, “But if either of those girls breaks your heart, your mama will kick their asses for toying with my little boy's feelings.”

Raising his hands, David takes a step back, “Since when became about me, Mom?”

With her hands on her hips, Gloria smiles, “David, your mother is not a little girl, she knows what women are like when someone is a problem.”

“Like dad?” The young man speaks before realizing what he just said. “I’m sorry Mom, I shouldn’t have said that.”

Closing her eyes, she shakes her head, “No, it’s alright. I don’t usually talk about your father, but I believe you deserve the full story now that I am dating again.” 

A sad, nostalgic mood fills the woman. “Your father came from a Nomad clan seeking Night City for stability. According to him, the life of a Nomad is too unstable. We met when I was in college, and we had a wonderful time together. Unfortunately, he died a few years later in an accident, and I lost contact with his Nomad clan afterward. My parents had already died, which is why I raised you alone."

Gloria watches her son's reaction, his expression alternating between incredulous and confused at the confession. “I thought he had abandoned us once he realized you were pregnant.”

Gloria snorted, “Give your mother some credit, Hijo.”

A message pings on Gloria's internal agent, showing that Yorinobu will soon arrive. "I have to go, Hijo. Stay safe while your mother is away, alright?"

David opens his mouth to say something, but he changes his mind, "Have fun, Mom."

Fighting back tears, she hugs her son, "Enjoy your evening, Hijo." 

As she leaves her son eases her, "Don't forget to use protection!"

She points to her belt before replying, "You too David, don't make me into a grandmother while I'm away!"

Outside her new apartment in Pacifica, Gloria waits in front of the gate where her escort will arrive, and soon the limousine stops in front of her.

From the luxury can, Yorinobu Arasaka steps out of the car to greet his date. The man wears a grey overall, his red tie contrasting his black designer suit. “Hello, Gloria-san. You look stunning as always.”

A fair blush shows on her tanned skin at the compliment, “And you’re a charmer as always.”

The heir to Arasaka extends his hand to Gloria. “Shall we?”

The pair enters the limousine and sets out for their date. During their journey towards their destination, Gloria remembers the day they met.

…

That day, the infirmary was full of patients because someone messed up when pilling up the boxes of RGB Chips in the warehouse. Mark wasn't concerned with the chips' integrity, but he took his employees' safety seriously, making that day uncharacteristically busy for Gloria. Thanks to the medical kits, patients were stable, but they needed more kits to bring everyone to full health.

Stepping out of her office, she yells at a pair of new employees to help her bring more medical kits. “Hey, you! Over there!”

The man turns around, and his friend follows suit. “Come here and give me a hand, we need more medical kits delivered to the infirmary right now!”

One of the pairs steps up, trying to impose his size against the doctor, "Do you know who," however, before the man can continue his rant the other man raises his hand.

“Sure, but we’re new here." The older man replies, "Can you show me the way miss… Martinez?”

She nods, “Excuse me for my rudeness, but there's a medical emergency. Just follow me. You too, tough guy, we don’t have time to waste.”

Gloria leads the pair to a small room with several boxes containing the Medical Kits meant for the employees, and after tagging the boxes they return to the infirmary. “Please, put those boxes over there and help me move the patients too, alright?”

The pair silently follows the doctor's instructions until all patients return to full health. Even the skeptical friend looks impressed. “So this is Wube Inc.’s famed medical kits. No wonder they only sell this in limited batches.”

Satisfied with her results, Gloria turns around and thanks her improvised help, “Good job, you two! Thanks to your help we finished quickly. I will recommend you two for a bonus to Mr. Henderson. You may already know, but I am Gloria Martinez, the doctor charged with the worker's health. May I ask your names?”

The older Japanese man smiles as he adjusts his glasses, “Oh, you see, I don’t work here, I am just a guest.” He flips his red pass to show his photo and name, “My name is Yorinobu Arasaka, Martinez-san, you might have heard of me before. I work with your son.”

Her face slowly pales as she realizes the weight of what she did before furiously bowing to the man, “Please, I am so sorry for disrespecting you! I implore you, don’t take it out on my son or the company for my mistake! I beg you, Arasaka-sama.”

Yorinobu's smile falls when he hears the form of address but is soon replaced by a smirk, “Well, I admit your attitude was disrespectful. If you want to repay me and keep things quiet,” Gloria's heart skips a beat, beating faster while he pauses for dramatic effect, “How about you treat me to some coffee? I heard Wube Inc. gives their employees good coffee during work hours.”

…

“You’re smiling,” Yorinobu’s voice snaps Gloria from her daydreaming, “Thinking about something funny?”

She smirks, “Just remembering the day we met.”

The heir to Arasaka chuckles, “That was an unforgettable encounter.”

“Yorinobu-sama," the driver calls from the front, "we will arrive in one minute.”

Gloria checks her makeup in the mirror before smiling at her date. “What do you have planned? You said it was a surprise.”

Yorinobu matches her smile with his, “You will see.”

Once the limousine stops, Yorinobu exits the vehicle first and extends his hand to Gloria. She gracefully takes his hand, and walks on the red carpet, feeling like a Media celebrity during a gala. 

The restaurant is near the top floor of the building, with the entrance being discreet and tasteful, contrasting the excess of Night City.

Extending his arm, Yorinobu motions ahead, “Shall we?”

Smiling, she takes his arm and enters the restaurant for a night with only her, her date, and the bodyguard.

Post Chapter Notes

Here is the new chapter, I hope you guys like it. I hope you felt the difference in quality between a better edited chapter, and the previous word vomit.

More chapters to come!