So here's the first chapter. Please, correct me if my history is misplaced/confusing, so I can make the proper corrections. I'm taking a lot of liberties with Chinese history for my own creative benefit, but let me know if any changes are offensive/misguided. I'm going to try my best to make this story as timely as possible, and if they are any glaring anachornisms, let me know asap.

Thank you and Happy reading ~ Comments are not necessary but are appreciated.

Part One: Dance In The Dark

 

 

Shadows cloaked the dark Persian room, but, suddenly, an ethereal light shone in the midst of it, moving towards the crowd of anticipatory men. The announcer, like Scheherazade to Shahryar, began to weave a tale of a far-off land, with vast wastelands wrapped in aromatic spices and silks, and of a desert flower born of sand and sun in the hearth of a pool of tranquil waters and beautiful flowers. Slowly, a figure rose from the shadows, its body bejeweled with sparkles that etched across its sculpted, golden skin. The figure was , with only a pale loincloth tied around its waist. The figure looked terribly young, but the crowd of wealthy men eagerly anticipated as he approached them as the lights burned once more and their desert flower left the shadows and began to slowly spin in time with a rebab and a lute played softly in the corner of the room.

The figure danced as the wealthy men clapped and laughed jovially, as the flower bowed and bended, his arms raised and his hips swivelling. His kohl-covered eyes gazed at one man, who looked tired and starved, and looked like he was drowning in his clothes. The figure smirked, with a veil guising his pink mouth as he twirled and gyrated towards the man, while still keeping in sync of the steady beat and the claps. As much as he spun around the man, all the man did was smile at him, with a sly grin. It confused the boy as he kept his face looking as seductive and breathtaking as possible. With the lack of reaction, he moved on to the next man, a portly man whose clothes seemed like they would burst at any moment, completely engrossed by the flower’s movements. The flower’s arms swept around the portly man’s neck to the awe of the others, as the flower wantonly quickened its pace, as drums began to pulsate in other corners of the room. The portly man’s eyes were wide and entranced as the flower closed his eyes and began to make sounds akin to the rhythm. The other men couldn’t stand it any longer and began to throw money at the boy, tying bank notes to his loincloth.

The flower’s black orbs opened slowly, as if waking up from a slumber, and began to walk away from the men, as the lights began to fade and the rhythm began to slow, and like a mirage, the desert flower disappeared back into the shadows.

The other men went into an uproar but a young woman dressed in only pink pants took the flower’s place and the men grew silent. The desert flower looked over his shoulder as he entered the back room, that was shrouded by curtains, to see the starved-looking man slink out of the room. The boy smirked as he removed his loincloth to the disdain of the other workers in the back, who were preparing for the next act. He laughed as he handed the money to the attendant, and as two women began to dress him, and another removed his make-up.

“It’s like I’m a king,” He said, laughing as one of the women scolded him.

“Remember your place, boy.” One of the women hissed at him, “You’re still nothing but a filthy .”

“But at least I’m not a filthy ’s servant,” His black orbs flickered as he shoved past them and put on his clothes himself, a simple shirt and pair of loose-fitting trousers. He was desperate for a cigarette but before he could go to his room and grab one, he saw Hyuna, the woman in red, rushing towards him, her auburn curls in a mess and a pink tint over her cheeks. She looked flustered and excited.

“What is it, Hyuna?” He asked her, a little worried. Hyuna smiled playfully at him and whispered in his ear, “Your regular has arrived.”

The boy’s heart began to pound and before he could breathe again, he was gone.

As the boy entered the hallway, in search for his regular, he saw the starved-looking man, speaking with the brothel owner. They looked like they were having a pleasant conversation and just as the boy noticed a flash of golden hair, the brothel owner called for him.

“Kai,” He said, in his typical gruff manner, “Come over here.” The brothel owner was a tall, balding man, who had a fondness of pickled beets. Kai always had to look away in between conversations with him, to prevent suffocation. The starved-looking man was acting as if it was the perfect smell in the world. Kai felt antsy but he obeyed anyways, hopeful that his regular would be still waiting for him, wherever he was.

“Yes sir?” Kai said as he approached the two men. The starved-looking man looked very amused as he looked over Kai. “He looks more handsome without gold sparkles,” The starved-looking man said, his smile widening, revealing all white teeth that looked almost like fangs. Kai thought the man was a little off as he turned to the brothel owner, hands in his pockets, “I’ll pay you a hundred bucks to borrow him for the night.”

The brothel owner scoffed, “An average customer pays at least a thousand for Kai.” The brothel owner wrapped his arms around Kai’s shoulder, “He’s our golden boy. A thousand bucks, and not a cent less.”

The starved-looking still held his smile, unflinching at the number. “Hmm, I’ll double that price,” The starved-looking man extended his hand towards him, “And not a cent more.” Kai stared at the starved-looking man; his clothes looked shabby-looking and worn. Kai inwardly scoffed, this man definitely doesn’t have two thousand yuan, let one yuan.

“Deal,” The brothel owner shook the starved-looking man and out of nowhere, the starved-looking man dug from inside his suit jacket, pulling out several bills. Kai’s eyes lit up at the sight of the notes.  “Can I pay afterwards, and would it cost extra to bring him to my own house?”

Kai wanted to burst out, “You have a house, two thousand dollars in cash, and you can’t afford a decent suit?” as the brothel owner began to ponder, pulling at his small beard, “That’s all right, you can take him there at no extra cost, but bring him back in one piece,” with a warning tone at the end for good measure. After the two of the men exchanged money, the brothel owner patted the boy’s back and left him with the starved-looking man. Kai wondered where his regular was waiting as the starved-looking man examined him carefully, eyeing his almond eyes, sloping nose and supple lips. Kai gave the man a bored look as he placed his hands into the pockets of his trousers and asked, “Aren’t we going to your house?”
 

“Patience, my good boy,” The starved-looking man said, as he looked up, over Kai’s shoulder, his smile widening. Kai turned around to see no one standing there. He turned back to the man, a little nervous, was the man a schizophrenic? Before Kai could say another word, the starving-looking man grabbed at his arm, saying “Come,” and they left 80 Days together. The starved-looking man grabbed his coat from the cloak room before leaving. It was terribly cold, his skin prickled with goosebumps, it was November, and it was already getting cold. It had been a while since Kai had seen what the weather was like, it had been sunny the last time he was outside, and this cold weather made him grumble and whine silently. The streets were powdered snow and sparkled under the nightglow. Kai hated winter, and didn’t like how it was coming so quickly, and placed his hands underneath his armpits as the two of them quickly walked down the streets, side-by-side.

“Don’t you have a coat?” The man asked as they walked up Nanjing Road. Kai’s lips were turning blue as they began to move closer to a restaurant, “I’m fine.” The man nodded as he looked up to the restaurant up ahead. “Well here we are,” Kai turned around to 80 Days and could still see its neon sign from where they stood. He turned back to the starved-looking man but he had already disappeared inside. They entered and the restaurant looked empty, with tables covered in white.

“Wouldn’t it have been easier to have stayed at the 80 Days?” Kai asked, rubbing his hands together. The restaurant was as cold as it was outside. Kai didn’t think it had been used in a while, as he looked at the cobwebs hanging from the bannisters and lack of candle wicks in the lights. He looked up the starved-looking man who reached for a door knob at the far corner of the room. He pulled out a key from his coat and opened the door. It led to an upstairs and the starved-looking man turned to Kai, his black eyes glowing in the dark. “Come,” He beckoned Kai over, not answering his question, as he went up the stairs alone, “Shut the door behind you,” He said as he walked quickly up the stairs. Kai followed him and shut the door behind him, wrapping them completely in darkness. Kai’s heart pounded a bit until a light opened and the starved-looking man had reached the top of the staircase, turning on a light that hung from the ceiling. Another door? Kai thought nervously as the man opened the door that stood from the top of the staircase. It opened to a room, Kai saw as he reached the top himself that was painted gray and was filled to the brim with random objects, two large bookcases, a desk that was overflowing with papers and books. A bay window was stood behind the desk, and it opened to the entire Nanjing Road and it had a good view of 80 Days.

As he looked around, there were several antiques that lay haphazardly around the room. If Kai was well-versed in foreign antiques, he would have noticed that many of the m came from around the world, and were priceless. But Kai carelessly touched them, an 18^th century globe that lay atop a late Ming desk, that was bursting with more papers. His fingers spinning as he touched all the bumps and looked at all the countries, their names written in cursive script, in a language Kai had never seen before. Ceylon. India. The Congo. The Americas. When he saw China, he noticed how large his adopted country really was, as he spun the globe around. Britain. France. Russia. He had seen a globe like this at school once, it had puzzled him as a child, how vast the world was, and yet how it felt so small to him.

It was at this time Kai noticed that there wasn’t a bed in sight.

Kai looked up at the starved-looking man; he was pushing away some papers and dusting off an armchair that sat behind it. He placed himself upon and pulled on the string attached to the lamp that nearly hung off the desk. The starved-looking looked up to him, his face covered by a halo, accentuating his sunken cheeks and the dark circles under his eyes. The starved-looking placed his elbows onto the desk and stared at the boy, his eyes twinkling besides the lamplight.

“So,” Kai said, placing his hands in his pockets, still nervous. “What will we be doing?”

The starved-looking man shrugged, “I don’t know really, but I want to get to know you. What’s your name?”

Kai blinked. Once, only once did a client ever tell him that he wanted to get to know him, without being the action that followed. The starved-looking man just sat there, hands to his chins, elbows on the desk, waiting for him to speak.

“Uh,” Kai said, “My name is Kai.”

The starved-looking man laughed a little. “No, tell me your real name.”

Kai paused, before saying, “Jongin.”

“Ah, a Korean,” The starved-looking man looked pleasantly amused. “Your Chinese is good.”
“I was born here,” Kai mumbled, digging at the insides of his pockets. The starved-looking man nodded and placed his fingers at his temples, as if in deep thought. “So are your parents from Korea?”

Kai nodded and the starved-looking man pointed to a sedan besides the desk he was standing next to for him to sit. Kai sat down and placed his hands on his lap. “When did they first come here?”

Kai bit his lip, and wondered if he should lie. He didn’t like discussing his family life, especially with strangers, and his family history wasn’t one he particularly liked to discuss. “Don’t worry,” The starved-looking man said honestly, “I won’t tell.”

Kai sighed and told him, “My parents came to Shanghai in 1910, yes, during the annexation, and I was born a little after.”

“Fascinating,” The starved-looking man began to dig through his pockets and pulled out a cigar. Kai’s fingers hummed as the starved-looking man lit the cigar and placed it between his lips, chewing at its end. “Oh, did this offend you?”

Kai laughed, and shook his head, his curly black hair getting into his face, “Not at all.” The starved-looking man smirked and said, “So 1910, that means you’re eighteen, right?”

“That’s right.” The starved-looking man danced his fingers against his chin, “So do your parents know your line of work?” Kai shook his head, “My parents…”

“Are they dead?” The starved-looking knitted his eyebrows in sympathy, “If so, my apologies.” Kai looked away and shook his head, “They don’t know…they’re not…” He sighed a little, “around…”

“Do you have siblings?”  Kai didn’t answer. “Jongin?”

“Please,” Kai said, shaking his head, “Just call me Kai.”

The starved-looking man pouted slightly and removed the cigar from his mouth, “All right, do you not feel like talking about your siblings.”

“Can we just…” Kai said, feeling tired all of a sudden, “Can we just get to the ing?” Kai looked around, “I don’t see a bed around here, but did you really bring me here, in this secluded room, just to talk?”

“That’s right,” The starved-looking man grinned as he placed the cigar back on his lips. “Oh, and probably help me with my work. I have some filing to do, and it’s been an absolute mess…”

Kai looked at him as if he were lying, “Help you…with your work?” The starved-looking man nodded, “Yes, please, it’s a nightmare going through these papers,” He said as he flipped the piles and piles of notes and books, “A nightmare,”

“You do know that I’m a e right?” Kai said, shaking his curly black hair out of his eyes, “You pay me so I can sleep with you, not so I can help with your…work.”

“Oh, heavens,” The starved-looking man looked at Kai with a scrunched-up face, “When did you children get so interested in ? Can’t we just be friends?”

Kai didn’t believe this, “So you wasted two thousand dollars, just so we could be friends?” The starved-looking man shrugged his shoulders, “I’ve paid a lot more for worse people,” A smile crept on his face, “And you seem like a fine young man.”

Kai shook his head and stood up, “I’m leaving,” The starved-looking man frowned as he chewed on his cigar a bit more, “Wait, Jongin, don’t leave.”

“My name is Kai,” The boy said as he slammed the door behind him, running down the stairs and out the door. What a freak, Kai shook his head again as he wrapped his arms around him as he ran down Nanjing Road back to the warmth of 80 Days. And as the young lad passed through the doors and into the arms of his regular, a shriek echoed down Nanjing Road, jolting the starved-looking man from his stupor. He stood up and looked out of his bay window, chewing at his cigar vigorously.

“Something is lurking in the shadows,” He said, as black residue flecked against his thin lips. He looked 80 Days, his mind drifted back to the boy, Kai, or Jongin, and smiled. “Looks like I’ll have to pay him a visit soon.” But first, something had to be done about the shriek.