Life Improvement Services

Chapter Two

Nick had always felt that he looked “okay.” Not hideous, but also not too eye-catching. He was the type of man that one would probably approach after he was given a second or a third look. He was of average height, and he tried to work out at home at least twice a week just to maintain healthy. His hair usually grew long to the point that they’d reach his eyes, because he would often forget to get a haircut. He shaved his beard and moisturized daily–a habit he had acquired because his mother used to comment on how his skin looked dry and a stubble made him look unkempt. Aside from those, he did not care much about his appearance. He wore comfortable, plain clothes at home and in his clinic. The safest choice, he thought, as he put on a clean white shirt and a brown jacket.

Outside his room, he could hear footsteps and humming. For a second, it dawned on him again how surreal the entire thing was. He had just taken a bath and let a man he literally met a few minutes ago just walk around his apartment unattended.

He took another look at the mirror and fixed his hair. 

“It’s not as if he’s going to steal the TV.” Nick muttered to himself, as he put on his glasses. He went out of his room to find Colin crouched on the floor, examining his cat's toys. He made another mental note to clean it up.

“You have a cat?” Colin looked up at him.

“Cal, yeah. Adopted him a few weeks ago. She comes and goes. She isn’t too good with new people, so be careful when you see her.” Nick thought of how Cal was probably just behind the apartment, and hoped she wouldn’t bring in any dead animals.

Colin stood up and followed Nick to the door. “Don't worry, cats love me. And, Cal? Where’d you get that name from?” 

“It’s really… it’s pretty nerdy.” Colin smiled as Nick avoided his gaze, obviously shy. Nick locked the door behind them.

“Do tell, I don’t mind. I like nerdy.”

“It’s a nickname for Corpus Callosum, the part of the brain that connects–,”

“The left and right hemisphere, yeah, Corpus Callosum.”

Needless to say, Nick was impressed and shocked, and it showed on his face clear as day. “Y-yeah, it’s the largest white matter structure in the human brain, and Cal is white, so…”

Colin chuckled. “That’s very smart. How’d you know so much? Are you a doctor?”

Nick led them towards the elevator, obviously red at the compliment. “A vet, actually. Cal was dropped off at the clinic's doorstep, all sick and frail. I figured someone had to take care of her.”

Nick could see Colin smile in his peripheral vision. He couldn’t help but feel a bit silly, sharing all of this with someone. He cleared his throat. “So are you really just going to follow me around for days?”

Colin nodded and sweetly smiled at him. “Of course. I want to get to know you better. Your likes, dislikes, pet peeves, interests. Haha! Now that I think about it, it’s kind of like speed dating, isn’t it?”

Nick didn’t know how to respond. Thankfully, the elevator doors parted, so he quickly stepped out and proceeded to walk out of the building in a faster pace.

“So, where exactly are we headed?” Colin asked as he jogged to catch up to him. He looked around the street with his hands in the front pockets of his black leather jacket. Nick thought about it before, that with his hair brushed back, his black boots and thumb ring, he looked like a happy, fluffy dog dressed in dark, edgy clothing that didn’t fit his personality.

“To the clinic. I forgot to finish some paperwork. It’s just a couple of minutes away.” Nick’s mind was full of questions he wanted to ask, but he couldn’t concentrate when Colin was noticeably watching him.

“So, a vet clinic, huh? You like animals, Nick?”

“Yep.”

“Y'know I had a pet parrot once. He was my best friend for years. He was a huge part of my childhood. Died of a disease, and I cried for days!” Nick glanced at Colin. He was smiling, even though he had just shared about a tragic death of beloved pet.

Nick couldn’t help but ask. “Aren’t you supposed to be sad about it?” He quickly realized his tone might have sounded rude. “Sorry, I didn’t me–,”

“No apology required, don’t worry.” Colin chuckled and patted Nick’s shoulder, then let his hand linger there for quite a bit. He immediately felt a sense of relief.

“I personally don’t think I should be sad about it. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I was extremely devastated for weeks when I was a kid. Now, though, I just remember the love and the good times with Mr. Parsley–my parrot. Instead of being stuck in the fact that he’s gone, I celebrate the fact that I got to spend time with such a loud, messy, foul-mouthed bird.” Colin chuckled, as if he remembered a funny memory.

Nick frowned at him. He was astounded. Before him was a man with such a different way of thinking. Such a different way of feeling. Of living. Most of the friends he had made were like him–closed off, law-abiding, straight A kids trying to live up to their parents' expectations. There was never any time to fully process, or even share about feelings. And here comes a man openly talking about his emotions like it was nothing.

Nick was amazed at Colin’s mind. How different could they have been brought up, to have such wildly contrasting world views? It had only been no more than two hours, but he felt like he’d already learnt life lessons worth at least ten years. Maybe it was right of him to answer the ad. Maybe this is what he needed all along. Wait, he’s getting ahead of himself again. It had just been two hours!

“Nick? Nick Shin? Shin bone?”

Colin was suddenly right in front of him, waving a hand. Nick snapped out of his thoughts, confused as to what’s happening.

“You okay? The pedestrian light's green now, we can cross.”

Nick realized he had been staring at Colin's face too long, and immediately turned red and started crossing the street. He adjusted his glasses and brushed the hair away from his forehead. Not far behind, he could hear Colin chortle.

What was supposed to be 5 more minutes of walking became 2, due to Nick’s sudden change of pace. He had a tendency to walk fast when flustered–a physical manifestation of walking away from his problems.

They entered the clinic with Nick’s key, and Nick proceeded to his office. Colin was the first to speak. “Can I have some water from the cooler?” He sounded out of breath.

“Sure thing. Help yourself to some snacks as well. Feel free to look around, just don’t mess up the papers and don’t spill food.” Nick said as he started looking through the desk drawers. Colin obliged, then went back carrying two glasses of water.

“Nick, man, you had me speed-walking. You know your legs are longer than mine, right?” He jokingly said as he handed a glass to Nick.

“Sorry, and thanks.” Nick took a few gulps then wiped the sweat on his forehead using the back of his hand.

Colin sat on the arm of the chair in front of the desk, like a perched crow. He quietly watched as Nick hunched down, wiping his face every so often. Very much to Nick’s surprise, Colin pulled out a handkerchief, stood up and wiped the sweat off Nick’s forehead.

Nick's surprise was visible as he froze and slowly looked up.

“Ah, you seemed to be having a hard time. Don’t worry, it’s clean, I promise.” Colin smiled, as if wiping someone’s sweat was something he was used to. Needless to say, that wasn’t the case for Nick. For him, such act was like an expression of physical affection. 

Colin handed him the handkerchief. “Thanks.” Nick managed to let out. He wondered if Colin meant it the way he perceived it. He may not have, since he just smiled and sat back on the arm chair looking all casual. Nick wiped the sweat off his face and neck, then proceeded to rummage through folders.

After a long minute, Colin broke the silence. “Have we met before? You look so familiar, but I just can’t place it. Have you ever been to the bars downtown?”

Nick smiled and glanced up at him, as if he had just said something funny. “I highly doubt.” He said. “Never been to a bar– well, there was that one time during college, but it was in another city.”

Colin’s eyes were wide and he almost fell of the armchair. “Just once?! What?! How– don’t you drink? Wait, you drink, right? I saw bottles of wine and tequila on your shelf!”

Nick let out a light laugh at his over-the-top reaction. “I do drink on occasion. Mostly at home. Bars are too crowded, and my friends have never been the type to go.”

“Look, Nicholas, I know we’ve only known each other for less than a day, but I would happily act as your tour guide downtown at some point. Only if you want to, though. No pressure.”

Nick thought about it for a while. Finally, he found the papers he was looking for. He sat on his chair, placed his laptop on the desk and started typing. “Is this part of the three-step improvement plan?”

Colin shrugged. “Not necessarily.”

Nick’s eyes narrowed. He wasn’t sure how to take that answer. “Speaking of which, you’ve barely given me any information about this… program. For all I know, you could be a con artist.”

Colin stood up and started admiring the frames that hung on the wall. He was slightly turned away, but Nick had a glimpse of the smile on his face. One he couldn’t read.

“You ask this now? I’ve given you very little information and I could very much be conning you, and yet you let me roam around your home unattended. Now, you’re letting yourself be alone with me.”

With a sudden reversion to his usual innocent smile, he turned to look at Nick, who had stopped typing. “But, of course, this isn’t a con. If it were, I would’ve escaped the moment you took a bath and left your bedroom door open.”

He walked around the desk and sat on the edge of it, just a few inches beside the laptop. Nick suddenly felt conscious of how close his elbow was to Colin's thigh. This man's regard for physical space was just… nonexistent.

Colin seemed to be scanning his face, but Nick didn’t dare look up at him. With a sigh, Colin lightly patted his head. “You're too precious, Nicholas. Too trusting for such a guarded, calculating person.”

Nick wasn’t sure which he should concentrate on first–Colin's physical proximity, or the fact that he had just been called out. He fixed his hair and glasses, not knowing how to respond. Thankfully, Colin didn’t wait for a response. He stood up and started admiring the painting behind Nick.

“Anyway,” he sang. “Let’s do a rapid fire of questions, shall we?”

Nick cleared his throat and resumed typing. “Sure.”

“Alright, just say the first answer that comes to mind. No thinking too hard.” Colin warned. “Let’s start with easy ones. Favorite food?”

“Quesadillas.”

“Favorite dessert?”

“Milk chocolate.”

“Siblings?”

“None.”

“Parents?”

“Divorced.”

“Significant other?”

“None.”

“Why not?”

“Not interested and I don’t want anyone to meet my parents.” Nick froze for a second, realizing what he had just said.

“Oof, lots to unearth there, but let’s keep going.” Colin said as he circled the office. Nick shook it off and resumed his work. “Dislikes?”

“Um, blatant rudeness and mess.”

Colin c****d his head teasingly. “Your place is a mess, though.”

“Mess that’s not mine.” Nick corrected.

Colin smiled. He made his way towards the bookshelf behind Nick, just beside the large painting. “Favorite book?”

“None.”

“Tattoos or piercings?”

“None.”

“Shame.”

Nick’s frowned and turned his head towards Colin, unsure if he had heard him correctly. “What?” He asked.

Colin turned to flash a smile at him. “Nothing.”

Nick was about to say something when Colin's phone rang. With one look at the screen, his smile faded. He held up a finger and quickly made an exit. A minute later, Colin went back. Nick saw his face change from having no expression to smiling widely in a millisecond. It was obviously fake. Something must’ve gone wrong.

“Hate to leave you like this just when things are getting exciting, but I gotta go. Catch up with you later, ‘kay?” Colin waved.

Nick stood up on impulse. “Wait! Do you– can I help?”

Colin just smiled at him reassuringly. “Everything’s fine. I’ll find you later. See ya!” With that, he was out the door and wasn’t  heard from for 3 days.