asian chic(k)

I encounter the Asian chick again, this very evening, at a medium class, even by US America standards, steak house. The food, by the way is quite tasty, my steak, done to perfection. The Derby, in Arcadia, California. Across the isle from me, the Asian chick sits with her beau, maybe her husband, perhaps her brother; either way, they are not lovers in love. Her date of the evening, seated to her left, and she chatted amicably but there are obviously no sparks. Occasionally the Asian chick steals glances in my direction. She does not acknowledge my presence directly, obviously, but we both know each other were in the room.

When the fellow in question gets up to use the loo, I make my move. There have been too many times the Asian chick has crossed my path. Was she keeping tabs on me for Zhongguo or is she looking for a job; I needed to know.

Knowing I have only a few minutes alone with her, I quickly sidle over, to her right, in the booth where she is dining. To her right, just in case I get cut short and beau returns too early, we could pretend to be old friends or something, without minimising his position. I get directly to the point.

“I work for (*)”, a half-truth, more on that later, I convey. “Are you searching for a better employment opportunity?” I complete. This leaves her open to discuss her intentions. If she hesitates, it means she has been spying on me, for some agency. Her answer however conveys a different universe. She was assigned to my case, initially, with the thought that the Zhongguo clandestine services might bring me into their fold, but after observing my ways and means, she decided she wants to become a part of whatever organization(s) I am employed by. She digs my style.

Just then, beau returns from doing his business. The Asian chick and I share a fake laugh, for his benefit, and I get up to return to my table whilst slipping her a business card. What she tells him of us is her business. On a whim, I covertly take a few snaps of beau, to run through the C.I.A.A. database. As I await my dessert, the search returns a negative response on beau, just some guy.