Page 9 of Damian & Jun: Episodes 1-4
“Gigi doesn’t talk. She yells or she sings, or she lays on her back and waves her hands in the air. Everyone says she’s weird. But she’s really good at what she does.”
No one bothered them entering the hotel, and they made it up to Damian’s room without incident. Jack glanced around the room before pulling off the coat and hat and laying them over the desk chair.
Damian scanned the QR code by the TV for the room service menu. “Are you hungry?” He looked up and got his first full look at his companion in clear light.
Like many Asian men into fashion, to the American view, Jack had a bit of the ageless youthful appearance that came with athletic activity, good skin care, and regular salon attendance. There was something vaguely familiar about him. He gave the appearance of being about average height, but he was still a few inches shorter than Damian and about half Damian’s width. But Damian had wrestler’s shoulders as someone had once told him in the gym. Jack's eyes were dark brown and lined with color, making them appear larger and edgier. Light shimmery makeup creased his eyelids and dusted his cheeks, but it was wearing off with the night. He had unmistakably male hands with large knuckles and knobby wrists paired with articulate fingers that would do well for either music or dancing. The collared silk shirt hanging off his shoulders was unbuttoned from the neck almost down to his breast bone, and the ends were tucked into dark skinny jeans with artful rips that showcased well-developed legs that matched the rest of his body.
“Are you a dancer?”
Jack raised an eyebrow. “Trying to figure out who I am?”
“No, just wondering more about how you spend your days.”
“I do dance. That’s how I know Gigi.”
Jack turned in place, looking at the room, clearly wanting to talk about anything else. “What do you do?”
“I’m a contract law attorney, specializing in international law and specifically US and South Korean trade though I do a lot of other things for my clients.”
“So, you’re here to make a deal?”
“Not this time. Just updating some contracts to reflect new laws that were passed recently here in Seoul to make sure my clients are in compliance. It never hurts to have face time.”
“No, relationships are important.” Jack said the words as if he were parroting someone else and not stating something he believed himself. “Are you married?”
“No. Not married. I lived with my mentor and his husband.”
“Your mentor is gay?”
“Yes.” Damian watched Jack's face. Whoever Jack was, he had practice controlling even the flicker of emotions in his eyes. What gave him away was not a reaction but the complete lack of a reaction while he chose what to display.
“I suppose he’s American, then.”
“His husband is French, but he’s American, yes.”
“Why do you live with them? Is he like your father?”
Damian couldn’t help the way his face creased up, and a chuckle rumbled in his chest. The idea of Richard being his father was not only absurd when comparing the two men but also illegal considering what he got up to with Richard.
“We have a very close relationship. Not a father kind of relationship.”
Jack let his perfect rear rest against the edge of the bed. “Most Americans I’ve talked to say they want to live on their own once they’re adults. But not you?”
Damian paused in his answer. This was always the hardest part of potentially dating. While Richard wasn’t a romantic partner, he was an intimate partner—as was Émeric on occasion—and they were both his chosen family. But explaining that to random people invited a level of scrutiny and media focus that everyone in The Residency eschewed.
“I don’t feel that need. I travel a lot, and my mentor and his husband are better to me than my own family. I think we’re all more stable with good community. Do you have anyone you live with?”
Jack shook his head. “I live at work. Literally. So, I guess you could say I live with people but not like that.”
A silence hung between them in the room. Damian was leaning against the writing desk. Jack was leaning against the bed. The clock ticked.
“Jack, do you hook up often?”
A blush spread across Jack's face. But he lifted his chin a little. “Are you gay?”
Damian smiled, just a bit. Jack's sass was all the more endearing for how brave it was. “Yes.”
Jack studied him for a long moment and crossed his arms. “If you tell anyone about what I say next, I’ll go to the police and say you kidnapped me.”
