The night was still early and the music was just warming up when I was pulled into the jazz club that had opened in the last week, Jump and Jive. We had all been waiting for a proper reason to visit the club, and with the promise of a performance from some of the swing greats themselves, it was as though fate had made this our day. As though destiny had made sure that tonight, not only my friends would come away with a partner to entertain them.

To be honest, I had not wanted to come out tonight. The last week had been hell for me, finding out about a friend of mine, not really close or I would have known earlier, who had died during the War last year. Then there was also the harsh words thrown at me from alleyways, and many a fight I had to sustain because of just one reason. It was not like I threw the information out into the streets for them to find out in the first place, so why should they pry into my life just to drive the barely concealed threats and poison tipped words at me.

Marietta though, sweet charming Marietta, convinced me to leave the confines of my unit. She’s a tiny thing, top of her head barely reaching my shoulder even in her tallest heels, but, as I have discovered with most of the women of a similar stature, she makes up for the lack in height with a personality as bright as a firecracker. Of the group I called friends, she was amongst my closest, and it was often her positive outlook on life in general that would pull me out of some of my darkest slumps.

Tonight was no different as she had promised to be my cover up for the night after hearing about the taunting I had received. Her big eyes had narrowed as she had declared that she would set her brothers onto the men if ever she saw something like that happen around her. I had only been able to settle her down when I had detailed the four men I had sent to hospital just two days ago, and the way her eyes lit up; I could not have laughed any harder if someone had told me a joke.

So now, back in the present, I was walking through the doors into the hazy club, smokers already clogging the air with their various scents, bumping shoulders with the men who had grown up knowing just what sort of man I was. Raymond had a hand on my shoulder, fingers hidden beneath the arm Philip had slung over my shoulders as they detailed how they were going to reel in their catches of the night, Milton and Glenn behind us chuckling at their daring schemes. Already in the club, I could see Lewis and Tom were on the dance floor with a couple of dames, Walter, Richard and Kenneth seated with their own cigarettes in hand as they chatted amiably amongst themselves.

Walter saw us first, what with facing the entrance as he was, and called us over with a wave of his hand, smile brightening his round face. He, like myself, was born in America to Asian parents, though he was Chinese and I Korean.  With the attack from the Japanese on Pearl Harbour however, we were both lucky to be alive. There had been many a time when we had been pulled over by a cop questioning us on our heritage, and it was through Walter’s uncanny ability to lie through his teeth about how we were both of Chinese heritage that dated back several generations in America that we were finally let loose. I don’t know how many lives I owed him, but he always told me never to concern myself, that he was doing it so that I would not end up in more trouble than I already could.

“You took your sweet time,” Richard called as we made our way over. “I’ve been holding this table long enough to spot at least four lovely ladies I would regret not dancing with tonight.”

“If you want to blame anyone, blame Jonathan there,” Milton chanted as he walked around the group towards the bar. “Marietta had to drag his sorry behind from his home to meet up with us.”

“I got there at least a quarter of an hour before you even made an appearance Milton,” I retorted, slipping my jacket off as I seated myself across from Walter. A few chuckles sounded at my comment, but it was Glenn’s that set them off.

“I hear he was caught up in a certain lasses skirt when her brother showed up. I’m more surprised that his ‘sorry behind’ hasn’t been cause for his admittance into the hospital yet.”

Caught off guard at Glenn’s remark, Milton stumbled over a chair falling into the lap of possibly the last girl he would want to. Miss Bonnie Miller. As he hastily peeled himself away from the girl who, on recognising him, was trying her best to flirt from behind pasty make-up that made her look like a cheap porcelain doll, I could only recall the childhood romance that used to be the talk of the area. Many a parent had thought those two just and right perfect, but that had ended when Bonnie’s father had caught whiff of them. Milton had gotten over it quickly, but apparently Miss Bonnie could not forget the clumsy male no matter the better a suitor she was matched with.

“If you ladies don’t mind, I’m going to take my leave and see if I can score one of those baby-dolls I’ve been eyeing for a while now,” Richard announced, lifting himself from his seat, smoothing his blond hair though not a hair was out of place. “Come Kenneth, I have just the dame for you.”

The two ex-soldiers, obvious from their solid builds showing through their shirts, sauntered away, leaving empty spaces for Raymond and Philip to seat themselves, Glenn sitting at a table over from us, immediately entering into conversation with others of our group who I was yet to remember the names of. Names were not my forte, and since they had only been with us for the last couple of months, they were yet to discover my dark secret. I guess that was why I was yet to bother trying to learn their names.

“So, Jonathan, what happened?”

Leaning back in my seat, declining the smoke offered to me by Raymond with a wave, I answered Walter quietly so my reply would not be heard over the music. “Been through the wringer this week Walt, and not just because of the usual rag I get from those boys from north o’ town. Remember lil’ Billy from way out in the country?” I asked, twisting my head to look into the China man’s dark eyes.

“Billy Thompson?”

“Found out he didn’t make it home from the War this week,” I murmured. Finding my attention suddenly drawn to Milton making his way back from the bar, one too many an alcoholic beverage balanced in his arms, I whacked Philip next to me, gesturing at the stumbling male when I got my neighbour’s disgruntled attention. “Go help the knucklehead. He seems to have forgotten he can barely carry one bottle without dropping it.”

As Philip raced off, catching a bottle that slipped form Milton’s arms and loudly berating the other, the mood the big band had been maintaining bounced up a notch, and a hand suddenly appeared in front of my eyes. Following the delicate arm up to cheeky eyes, I smiled brightly as I accepted the hand. Seeing the musicians lifting their instruments to their mouths, I quickly removed myself from my chair and dragged the person with me, reaching the stage just as the tune began.

Spinning her about, Marietta and I began the upbeat swing dance all on the floor were attempting, smiles bright on our faces. Too many a time, we had danced to this tune, but never was I ever going to get over how well we just fell into synch with the music and each other. If it were not for our situations, I would say that she was my other half. As circumstances had it though, she was already hitched, somehow having convinced her soon-to-be husband that I be a part of his groomsmen for the wedding next month, and I…

“That guy over there has not taken his eyes off you since we got up here,” Marietta casually mentioned as she stepped past me at one point in our dancing. “And he’s quite the dreamboat, if I should know your tastes at all.”

Turning about to catch her, I glanced into the crowd, trying to see who she could possibly mean. When she described him, and the approximate area he was seated, I finally found him, and regretted the discovery just as quickly.

“Did you see who he was sitting with?”

Spinning around, she glanced around me, a frown creasing her brows. “Joe wasn’t there when I saw that guy a moment ago.”

“Just my luck,” I whined, twisting Marietta away and pulling her back into an open dance hold. “Possibly best looking guy I am to set eyes on, and Joe the ever so perfect Christian just has to shove his religious squabble on him.”

“Uh, Jonathan, you might want…”

“Am I forever to wallow in the pitiful loneliness of…”

“Jonathan!” Marietta’s quiet squeal stopped me mid-sentence, eyes falling to meet her excited ones. “Go and sit down, quickly.”

“What? Why-”

“Don’t question it you meatball,” she hissed, turning me around and pushing me away. “Just go. I think you are possibly about to get lucky.”

Still confused what she could mean, and upset I couldn’t at least finish the song with her, I slouched my way back to where the group still sat. Slumping into my seat, I caught up the beer bottle in front of me, taking a long draught before dropping it back on the table. Noticing the silence from the table, knowing that Raymond, or at least Walter, would have commented on my short time on the stage, I glanced up at the other Asian male to see what was going on. Seeing that his gaze, and after a quick scan I saw that it was not just him, was somewhere above my head, I quickly spun around in my seat so I could see what had caught the attention of the whole table.

First thing I noticed was the gold buttons on his vest. Of course I would, I hardly ever saw gold except in jewellery shops and on the wrists or necks of the upper-class women, and it was at eye level. I next noticed the hands resting on the back of my chair, long white sleeves still done up at the wrist. From there, I wish I had not looked up, because I now knew why Marietta had been so insistent of getting me to sit down.

Those slightly paler than chocolate brown eyes, the full lips that should not be possible for a man, and the teasing smirk that, though not obvious, slightly crinkled the corner of his round eyes and pulled at the corner of his mouth. I could not stop myself from staring, because for once, Marietta had been on the nose. Whoever this hunk of a man was, and wherever the hell he had come from, he was by no doubt exactly what I liked seeing in men.

And then he spoke and well, I think if he had asked me to kiss him in front of everyone in the club I would have done it.

“Mind if I join you?” Sweet heavens, his voice was amazing! “I like hearing about Christianity and all, but I don’t need it forced into me that I shouldn’t be staring at a queer unless I want to be taken as one.”

“Do you have a problem with them?”

I threw a glare over my shoulder at Walter, scowling when it was returned with a ‘give me a moment’ look. At the silence above me, I rotated in my seat so my whole body faced Walter again.

“None at all, since I consider myself a rather open one myself.”

It was fortunate that Philip had slung an arm over my shoulder again because if he had not, I would have dragged this stranger out of the club and straight to my unit so I could understand what my friends were often talking about. Something on my face must have given away what I was thinking about because a wide smirk ran across Walter and Raymond’s faces.

“Oh well then, please join us,” Raymond declared, dragging a chair from another table over to place by himself. To my confusion however, they did not offer the chair to the stranger, instead, shuffling over a seat each, Walter literally dragging Milton from his seat to where the China man had originally been sitting. “Here, have this seat.”

Trying to hide my curiosity at his reaction, I peeked over my shoulder to watch him slide into a chair with such lethal grace that I could only compare to a jaguar. The smirk of earlier had not left, and there was now a gleam in his eyes, one I had only ever seen when the boys had seen a girl they fancied.

I sorely hoped that excitement was because of me.

When no one began speaking again, I took it upon myself to ask of the stranger his name. “The name I’m known by around these parts is Zane Woo,” he replied steadily, at first not meeting my gaze. Then he turned to me, and suddenly there was no club, no swing music, nothing. Just his eyes that bore into me, as he said, “But I was born to the name Woo Jiseok.”

“Kim Jungwoo,” came my automatic reply.  A small inclination of his head broke eye contact, and I glanced around to Walter, noticing the curious eyes and suggestive smirk.

“Oy, Jonathan, you should know by now we can’t understand you when you speak your own tongue.”

I didn’t apologize, choosing instead to throw an aloof gaze over my shoulder at them telling them just how much I cared. I had not even realized that the question had been asked in Korean. The resulting punch was worth it. “So I can’t talk to one of my people in my mother tongue now can I?”

“All you said was your name,” Walter scoffed. “And I’m assuming he just told you his.”

“Xiào shēng.” The whine that slipped with Walt’s birth name was accidental, and with it a slurry of groans sounded.

“I thought we told you no whining,” Philip complained as he slapped my head upside. “You sound more pitiful than my sister when you do that.”

I frowned. “Well of course I’m going to sound more pitiful than her. She has enough attitude and fight in her to take out a gang if she were twice her size.”

“Talking about me boys?”

We all froze at the sickly sweet voice that snapped through the air, clear even through the be-bop livening the club. Philip and I dared not turn about, especially feeling the tight grip on my shoulder which by no doubt was also on my friend’s, too afraid of the electric blue eyes that would be full of threats aplenty. Peeking at Philip through my peripherals, I saw him gulp, his own blue eyes sliding around to meet mine.

“Charlene,” Raymond called, voice threatening to break.

“Ray, how are you dear?”

Though it was just a question, something beneath it threatened to injure the smallest of our crowd if he said anything against her, and he backed down immediately. When she removed her hands from our shoulders, I relaxed, knowing she was not in a bad mood yet. Depending on the liquor she would consume and how much her date ignored her, there was always a chance that she would develop a rather dark persona by the end of the night.

“Charlie?”

Once again, everyone’s attention was on the newcomer, shock and guarded curiosity radiating from all who had heard the too familiar nickname for Philip’s sister. Peering up at Charlene, I noticed the shock also on her face, a blush tinting her cheeks to but a few shades lighter than her lips. That had soon morphed into a wide grin as she seemed to recognise the man.

“Zane Woo,” she exclaimed, leaning forwards to wrap him up in a quick hug before stepping back to lean on the back of my chair. “I thought you were supposed to be attending some fancy-do with the riches tonight? What brings you this side of town?”

“You should know by now that I am about as welcome in their halls as any of you would be,” he replied brightly. “Only the pure and rich people can make appearances at such functions.”

Charlene scoffed at his words, waving a hand dismissively at him. “They do not understand purity, what with all their concerns being on the best way to climb higher in the economical rankings. If they are judging you solely on who you are, then you should be a prince among them!”

“Charlie,” he chided gently, a hand resting on hers to settle her. “I am fine with it. Yes, their attitude towards me does get under my skin occasionally, but if I can handle the scorn, then can you at least try for me please?”

They held each other’s gazes, his pleading and hers uptight. I thought that she would lose control of her temper and storm off. When she exhaled gently, eyelids covering bright blue eyes, I was bewildered. There must be some great history between these two for her to not blow up at him.

“Fine, Zane,” she muttered. Opening her eyes, she stared at him fiercely as she continued on to say, “But if I hear of any trouble being caused to you from any of them, they will regret it.”

“Arasseo, algesseo,” he replied casually, smile adorning his face.

“Stop answering me in Korean with that dorky smile on your face!”

Her growl was followed by a backhanded smack to his chest, booming laughter erupting from him at Charlene’s actions. If there was one thing I could notice from the Korean, he seemed exceptionally easy-going and cheerful especially for someone who should be constantly watching their back. I should know.

I waited until Charlene had finished talking to Jiseok, Charlene finally getting pulled away by a rather annoyed Marietta, before questioning him on his actions. Around us, the rest of the gang had started up conversation between themselves, and I hoped that what would be said between us would go mostly unheard.

“Why am I so open about who I am?” Resting an elbow on the table, supporting his head with his hand, his eyes studied me momentarily before he responded, “It’s just me being rebellious I guess.  With a mother who is trying to marry me to women left, right, and centre, and a father who ignores me for everything not related to the business, I’ve got to show somehow that they don’t control me.”

His answer did not sit well with me. Unable to formulate a response, I turned away from him, letting Walter strike up conversation with Jiseok in my silence. For all my life, since I had accidentally let slip about my uality when I was young, I had lived pretending that I was no different to the other males around me. Fortunately, during the time when my hormones would have caused more troubles than good results, I was stuck in rooms full of elderly businessmen, preparing me for the day I would have to take over from father. It also meant I had not gotten to see what being with another male exclusively was like, whereas, from the way Jiseok spoke, it sounded as though he must have been with many other men before.

I did not want to trust someone like him.

There was something about him though that caught my attention. The carefree nature he put on for show did not seem completely real, not if the interaction between him and Charlene could be accounted for anything. From what had been indicated, he must live out near The Greens, an estate out north of the city home to the richest families in the city. A father focussed only on the business, a mother trying to marry him off at every opportunity, attending fancy parties, it sounded all too familiar to me, though not completely on a personal level. It made me wonder if there was some detail about who he was that he was neglecting to mention.

Finding myself distracted by his laugh, I peeked at Walter and Jiseok, trying to be as inconspicuous as possible whilst trying to hear what they were talking about. All I found out was that I enjoyed listening to him talk. Though there was bravado in the way he told of a small gang he had singlehandedly defeated, admitting straight away that they had been drunk to the point of passing out, though he spoke of setting his brother up with his beautiful wife, the woman having apparently been one of his mother’s attempts at getting Jiseok a fiancée, and though he described with great detail his ideal type, to which I noticed I easily slot into each description, I found myself enjoying the way he spoke. The way his voice deepened when being serious, the lightness it developed when joking, and the occasional break in pitch which turned out to be the factor in giving away his lies, I could listen to him talk forever.

“So, Jungwoo, can we meet again?”

Before I had noticed, I had stuck myself into a half-daze filled with the voice of Jiseok, only just coming to my senses when the club was reaching the last hour of service. Glancing about, I noticed that, of our group, Walter and Raymond had left, Tom and Kenneth were saying farewells, Philip had joined the other table, and Milton was asleep beside me. Otherwise, only a few tables were still occupied, and the band was now playing something less upbeat, a slow, sobering tune.

“Jungwoo?”

“Hm?” I turned my attention back to Jiseok, trying not to blush at the cheeky and knowing smirk on the handsome face.

“Are you going to answer my question?”

“Um…” I bit my lip, trying to remember the words that had drawn me back to the present, but for some reason it evaded me. Now, I blushed, glancing up to smile a guilty smile at him. “Sorry, I forgot.”

“Was I really that charming? Or did I bore you?”

His cheek just made my face and neck feel like they were burning up, which, with a smirk as wide and, though I did not want to say it, charming as his, made me forget my secondary distrust. Once again falling for the charming exterior, I feigned irritation at his words, slapping the side of his head as I stood. Watching as he stared up at me in shock, I leant forward, making sure I was close to his ear as I whispered, “How about we meet again some other time and I’ll answer you?”

“Deal.”

The short answer painted a smirk on my face as I pulled away. The excitement in his eyes was almost childish, so bright and clear it was, and I almost started laughing. How could he be as excited as this just at the promise of being able to meet up? Even Marietta never got this excited about the days she would drag me through many clothing boutiques trying to find either her or me a new outfit.

“Well then, I’m off,” I declared, turning to the leftovers of our group as I swung my coat back on. Tom and Kenneth noticed me standing and tipped their hats as they escaped, stopping by the door to take the arms of two dames. “And still alone,” I added, after seeing that. Glancing down at Milton, I kicked his chair from under him, the shock of landing on the ground waking him quick. “Get up you lazy sod, and get yourself home if you’re that tired.”

“I’m not…” He yawned greatly as he stood, not even bothering to cover his gaping mouth as he did so. “Tired,” he finished, blinking innocently at me when I met his gaze with my own disbelieving one.

“Baloney. Philip?” I called out, easily drawing the other male’s attention. “Get your brother home before he sleeps in here like the drunkard we know he is not.”

“Marietta should be outside,” Philip called, gesturing at the door with one hand, the other at a woman beside him. “Send him home with her.”

Attention drawn by the woman beside Philip, I wondered if I had seen her before. Then it dawned on me that she must have been picked up sometime during when I had dazed off, because I had never seen her before. Understanding the signals, I nodded with a sly smile, chuckling at Philip’s glare, and turned back to Milton.

Slinging an arm across his shoulders, I said, “Come on you oaf, let’s get you to Marietta so we can get you home.”

“What about me?”

Turning back to Jiseok, who now looked rather lonely at the table, I shrugged disinterestedly. “Not my problem. I’ll see you around, Woo Jiseok.”

I barely heard his response, called quietly in Korean, but it set my face aflame and I tried to not turn back around and wring his neck. Instead, with a quick wave to the group still hanging around, returned by all of them thankfully, I dragged Milton out of the club as quick as possible. At the door, I braved a glance back towards our tables, glaring at the suggestive eyes Jiseok were aiming towards me, before racing into the chilled autumn night air. Seeing Marietta, I flung Milton towards, calling out a farewell as I strode into the night and back to my home.

As I walked home, trying to distract my mind by thinking of the tasks I had to complete over the coming few days, I found myself drawn back frequently to the last words Jiseok had said. It had been teasing, and I still could not prevent the blush that rose on my face every time I remembered it. If that was what he was already thinking, then I had no doubt in my mind that this… Whatever it was going to be, was not going to go the way I expected my first relationship to go at all.

If you keep up that feisty attitude of yours, I will see to it that you and that y of yours are my problem. Mine, and only mine.

I had not the faintest idea just where this was going to go.

Average first chapter... Sorry...

IT WILL GET BETTER FROM HERE!!!! I PROMISE!!!!

Maybe...

Anyways, hope it is interesting enough for you to possibly want to continue reading :)
Next chapters will happen as they come, so no flaming for slow writing, thanks :)

~Riri~