CATALYST

DAVID

At a stoplight, I glanced into the back seat of my car, pleased to see absolutely nothing there. Nothing in the passenger seat either, and no old coffee cups or water bottles in the cup holders. No crumbs or napkins or stray French fries. It even smelled good. People who rode in my car said that all the time.

"Wasn't that a good thing? Weren't you supposed to take good care of your house and your car and other things you'd paid a lot of money for? Sowon had dipped into her trust fund a million times, but I hadn't touched mine after paying for school. I'd worked hard for everything I owned, and I wanted them to last. Besides that, appearances mattered. People judged you by them.

And what else did I have?

I parked in a downtown structure and made my way to The Black Label. A few people were coming out as I was coming in, and I held the door open for them before moving through it.

Sowon spotted me right away. "Hey!" She came around the bar, rushing up to kiss my cheek before grabbing me in a bear hug. "Thanks so much for this. You smell good, by the way."

"Trying to flatter me?"

"Yes. But it's also true." Laughing, she let me go and glanced over her shoulder. "He's sitting over there at the bar. I feel so bad for him."

      "And what's your Japanese orphan's name?"

      "Travis Watanabe," she said with an accent.

      "Wait, does he speak Korean?" For a moment, I panicked that I was stuck with someone who wouldn't understand anything I said. My Japanese vocabulary was sparse, to say the least. I knew some basics thanks to a college language elective class, but I thought that might be a little difficult to work into a conversation.

      "Yes a little. Don't worry, you can tell him to wipe his feet and close the lid and hang up his towel in English, and he'll totally understand."

      I rolled my eyes.

      "Be nice. I think he feels weird about accepting the offer. He keeps trying to tell me this is ridiculous."

      "It is."

      She gave me The Face, and I sighed.

      "Come on. Introduce me."

      She took me by the hand and pulled me through the crowd toward the bar.

      I saw him first from behind. At least, I thought it was him—he was the only person sitting alone. Black short hair. Slender, muscular build. He sat up tall, his back straight.

      Ellen touched his shoulder. "Travis, this is my brother, David."

"He turned to face us, and even in the bar's dim light, his eyes were a piercing black pearls. He looked younger than I'd expected, and somehow look exactly like those Anime like characters in Japanese Manga. I don't know what I was expecting, short and kimono type maybe?—but not the tall, trim hot guy who stood up and offered his hand. Not the ebony eyes. Not the sharp-angled jawline.

      I wasn't expecting him at all.

      I wasn't expecting any of it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

                               TRAVIS

I was a little in shock.

      This man was Sowon's brother?

      She'd told me he was twenty-eight, not married, and not to worry if he came off a little gruff at first.

      She'd failed to mention he was fucking gorgeous.

      "Hey," he said. "Nice to meet you."

      He offered his hand, and I met it with mine. His grip was perfect—warm and strong and just long enough.

      "So I hear you've had some back luck." His voice was deep and a little gravelly. It did something to me. Something that made it difficult to look him in the eye.

      I forgot my entire speech ability.

      Sowon came to my rescue. "He can tell you the whole story later—poor thing has to be exhausted by now. But tomorrow we're going to fix everything. All he needs tonight is a place to stay."

"No problem," David said. I liked the way he stood, with his feet wide apart and his arms crossed over his chest. He looked strong and confident. The kind of guy who made no apologies for himself. Who took initiative and got things done. I liked it so much I forgot to argue that he didn't have to take me in for the night.

Sowon punched him on the shoulder. "You're the best, brother. Biggest sweetheart ever."

"Biggest pushover ever," he grumbled.

"That too. Now be nice to him," she said, shaking one finger at her brother. She turned to me. "Travis, I'll see you tomorrow, okay? Don't worry about a thing. Get some rest." She gave me a quick hug, and when she let me go, I finally found my voice.

"Thank you so much, both of you. I'm sorry to be a bother."

"No bother," he said, and he seemed to mean it. "Ready to go?"

I nodded, grabbing my notebook with the picture of Ara in it off the bar, then I followed him through the crowd and out the door. I didn't know if it was the jet lag or the theft or the alcohol on an empty stomach or the surprise gut punch of being attracted to Sowon's older brother, but something had me feeling a little off balance.

Come on, Travis. Pull yourself together.

At the end of the block, we stopped at an intersection, waiting for a green light so we could cross the street. I took a few deep breaths, hoping the cool night air might clear my head a little.

~~ 6 ~~