Year of the Golden Dragon by B.L. Sauder

told me to look for you here.”
    Oh, no! Hong Mei watched in dismay as an older teenager strutted towards Ryan and Alex. He looked about nineteen or twenty. Who was he? What was he doing here? She stood off to the side but still close enough to hear what the two brothers and young man were saying.
    “Wai-gong’s not feeling so good, so everyone’s gone back over to Hong Kong,” Winston said. “They decided to catch the last ferry.”
    What? They’d been left on their own? wondered Hong Mei. How could she be so lucky?
    A second later, her heart sank when Ryan asked, “What do you mean by the last ferry?” His voice was steady, but there was an edge to it.
    “The Star Ferry runs only until midnight,” said the young man nonchalantly.
    “They all went back?” Ryan asked, his voice squeaking, “Even Aunt Grace and Uncle Peter?”
    “Yes, but –” the young man started to say when he was interrupted.
    “I told you we should have waited for them,” Ryan snapped at Alex. “You and your stupid ideas!” he nearly shouted.
    The young man looked from Ryan to Alex. “Relax. It’s no problem! Wai-gong’s old. It’s normal for him to get tired. He’ll be fine.”
    Hong Mei listened closely. He had said “Wai-gong” for grandfather. Ah, he was the boys’ cousin.
    “Besides,” the young man coolly cocked one eyebrow at them. “I thought you guys might want to hang out in Kowloon for awhile.”
    Hong Mei held her breath as she watched Ryan frown. “It’s getting kind of late, isn’t it?”
    “This is Hong Kong! C’mon. What would you guys like to do? Do you want to go shopping? What about karaoke? There are tons of karaoke bars around here.”
    “Karaoke?” Alex’s face broke into a toothy grin. “We’ve got one of those machines at home!” He stopped smiling and his face grew serious. “But aren’t karaoke bars for adults? Don’t we have to be eighteen or something?”
    “Nah,” the young man said. “As long as you don’t order alcohol I can take you in with me. There are a couple of places that I go to all the time. They’ll let you guys in.”
    Hong Mei stuffed her hand into her pocket and felt for her jade. Why hadn’t she talked to them in McDonald’s? Just when she thought she’d got a break, she had to deal with this guy.
    “How are we going to get back over to Hong Kong Island?” Ryan asked.
    Winston shrugged. “We can take the mtr – the train – for another half-hour or so, or take a taxi. We could even stay in a hotel.” He waved his hand vaguely in the air at the streets teeming with flashing neon lights. “There are plenty to choose from.”
    “Come on,” Alex said to Ryan. “We’ll be okay with Winston. It’ll be cool!”
    Ryan’s eyes blazed at the younger boy. “You are so incredibly thoughtless,” he said. “Yeye could be dying right now, and all you can think about is you.”
    “Nothing’s wrong with Wai-gong,” Winston interjected. “He was just overexcited. I promise you, he’ll be fine.” He pointed to a 7–11 shop a few steps away. “Look, you two decide what you want to do. I’m going to get something to drink.”
    Hong Mei watched the Winston-man disappear into the convenience store. She heard Ryan say to Alex, “As soon as Winston comes back, we’ll get him to take us to Yeye’s. Uncle Peter and Aunt Grace would freak if they knew we were even thinking of going to a bar.”
    Her knees shook as she stood watching the two brothers. It was now or never. Hong Mei took a giant breath and stepped toward them.
    “Oh, I am so happy to find you!”
    Both boys frowned at Hong Mei, then glanced around to see if she was really speaking to them. “Are you talking to us?” Ryan asked.
    “Yes, I’m sorry. I am Lily. Your cousin.”
    “Cousin?” Ryan said, grabbing Alex’s arm and backing up toward the convenience store. “We don’t have a cousin named Lily.”
    Alex looked nervously over his shoulder.
    “Yes! I am from Beijing,” Hong