Episode 15: Do I Really Look Like This?
“Kai? It doesn’t look good on me… does it?”
Nari kept her eyes lowered, too afraid to look at him.
Too afraid to see what she has always believed she was.
Plain.
Boring.
Competent.
It will do for now.
She never saw him advancing toward her.
Kai was speechless.
Again.
Twice in the space of an hour.
This time, it wasn’t because he had met a woman who had stolen his breath.
It was because his sister was shining.
As he advanced, he absently handed the armful of clothing to Na’Alarae without taking his eyes off Nari. Kai gently took her hands, causing Nari to look up at him.
The unshed tears in his eyes made her heart stop.
Without saying a word, he drew her into a tight embrace.
For a long moment, neither of them spoke.
Nari simply stood there.
Stunned.
Finally, he whispered,
“You look stunning, Sis.”
His voice was thick with emotion.
Nari stared at him.
That had never been a description Kai had used for her.
Pretty? Yes.
“That’s okay.” Always.
“I love you, Sis… but what is that?” More times than she could count.
But…
Stunning?
Never.
“Kai?”
“This dress has removed the chrysalis you’ve been hiding yourself in.”
He smiled softly.
“You can’t hide anymore, Sis. You need to see what I’ve always seen.”
Taking her hand, he gently led her to the three-way mirror.
As she approached, Nari’s breath caught.
Walking toward the mirror was an elegant, gorgeously regal woman.
“That’s… me?”
She looked from her reflection to Kai.
He simply nodded.
“This is my beautiful sister.”
He turned toward her reflection and smiled.
“Nari… meet my sister, Nari.”
Nari could only stare.
She had never seen herself this way.
“Na’Alarae… this dress makes me beautiful.”
“No,” Kai answered before Na’Alarae could speak. “You make the dress beautiful.”
“It’s your beauty that’s shining… not the dress.”
She looked at both of them in the mirror.
“This is really how you see me? Like this?”
Both of them nodded.
“You’ve been hiding, Sis.”
“I don’t know why… but you’re not going to hide anymore.”
“You can’t put the butterfly back into the chrysalis.”
Nari covered her mouth with trembling hands, fighting the tears threatening to fall.
“But… I haven’t been hiding, Kai.”
“I’ve always been here.”
“No.”
His voice was gentle, but unwavering.
“You’ve been hiding, and I’m not going to let you hide anymore.”
“The chrysalis did its job. It protected you until you were ready. But it was never meant to become your home.”
“I want the world…” He smiled through the tears gathering in his eyes. “No… the universe… to see and know that my sister is a beautiful, wonderful, loving, strong, sweet…”
He grinned.
“…and yes, stubborn…”
Nari laughed through her tears.
“…woman who outshines even the brightest diamond.”
He reached up and brushed a tear from her cheek.
“You have always been this woman to me.”
Na’Alarae stood quietly in the background, watching with glistening eyes.
This was why she designed.
Not for the silk.
Not for the jewels.
But for moments like this.
The love Kai had for his sister was palpable.
A single tear slipped down Na’Alarae’s cheek.
Quietly, she turned away, giving them the privacy they deserved.
She wished…
…that someone believed in her as fiercely as Kai believed in his sister.
She understood Nari’s need to protect herself.
Because she had once built a chrysalis of her own.
So lost was she in her thoughts that she never heard Nari approach until she felt a gentle tap on her shoulder.
She turned…
…and found herself wrapped in the warmest embrace she had ever known.
A slow breath escaped her lips.
One she hadn’t realized she had been holding…
For a very…
Long…
Time.
For the first time in years, she simply let herself be held.
Then she heard Nari whisper softly in her ear.
“Thank you for saving this dress for me.”
Na’Alarae let a single tear slip down her cheek.
“I don’t think I was saving it…”
She smiled softly.
“…so much as it simply wouldn’t belong to anyone else.”
Another tear slipped down her cheek.
“You are the first person who ever tried on this gown and made her shine.”
“I think… she chose you.”
She laughed softly.
“I was beginning to think I was going to have to retire her to the Gown Elysium.”
“I’m glad that she found her someone.”
“Me too.” Nari gave her one final hug before stepping back.
“But I’m even happier that I found the woman who created her.”
Nari smiled warmly.
“Anyone can sell a dress.”
“It takes an artist to recognize a masterpiece waiting for its moment…”
“…and to love it enough to wait until it finds the woman it was always meant to belong to.”
“Or not at all.”
Na’Alarae’s smile deepened as another tear escaped.
“Thank you.”
Kai came over and slipped an arm around each woman, drawing them into a group hug.
He sniffled theatrically.
“Touching. Very touching.”
Then his expression brightened, his trademark smile slowly spreading across his face.
“So…”
He turned to Na’Alarae and flashed the smile that had talked countless clients into saying yes.
“How would you feel about becoming my sister’s personal designer?”
Nari groaned.
“Kai…”
“What?”
“I’ve seen your closet.”
Na’Alarae smiled and gently shook her head.
“No.”
Trying to hide his disappointment, Kai looked at her in surprise.
Before he could say anything, Nari lightly smacked him on the arm.
“Stop pressuring her.”
She smiled apologetically at Na’Alarae.
“I’m sure you already have more than enough on your plate.”
“No…”
Na’Alarae said softly.
“It isn’t that.”
She turned toward Nari.
“I think you need time to become accustomed to seeing who you truly are…”
“…instead of who you’ve always believed yourself to be.”
“When you’re ready…”
Her smile warmed.
“…it would be my honor to design a wardrobe worthy of the woman you’ve become.”
“Right now…”
“I see the legendary Phoenix.”
“She has risen from the ashes of old beliefs.”
“Her wings are still unfolding.”
“She hasn’t yet discovered the full beauty of her own flight.”
Kai never took his eyes off Nari.
He studied her quietly.
Then a slow smile spread across his face.
“She’s right.”
He nodded.
“You are a Phoenix.”
“You’re burning away everything you thought you were…”
“…making room for everything you’ve always been.”
“I-I’m going to take this off.”
Nari turned and hurried toward the dressing room before her face betrayed what her voice already had.
The moment the curtain closed behind her, Kai turned to Na’Alarae.
“I want twenty mix-and-match pieces she can pull out and wear without having to think about whether they go together.”
He nodded toward the clothing draped over her arm.
“Things that work with the pieces I handed you earlier.”
Na’Alarae grew thoughtful.
Without saying a word, she picked up the blouses and trousers Kai had selected.
Then she slowly wove her way through the boutique, moving from rack to rack, selecting blazers, shirts, camisoles, skirts, and a lightweight jacket.
When she returned, she carefully arranged the twenty pieces across the counter.
Kai studied them thoughtfully.
Just then, the dressing room curtain parted.
Nari emerged in her own clothes.
Her eyes moved from Kai…
…to Na’Alarae…
…to the collection spread across the counter.
She narrowed her eyes.
“What are you two up to?”
Kai looked up, momentarily startled.
Then, almost instantly, his trademark smile slid back into place.
“Oh… nothing.”
He gestured innocently toward the counter.
“Just a few things, Sis.”
Nari’s eyebrow arched.
It was a thoroughly unconvincing performance.
“Kai…”
“What?”
“You have that smile.”
“What smile?”
“The one that says you’ve already made a decision and are pretending to ask for my opinion.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“I know you. You’ve had that smile since you were six.”
Na’Alarae bit the inside of her cheek, desperately trying not to laugh as she quietly began folding the garments.
Kai looked at her.
“Don’t encourage her.”
“I wasn’t.”
“You were thinking about it.”
“I was.”
“I knew it,” Nari said, folding her arms.
Kai sighed dramatically.
“Fine.”
“I may have asked Na’Alarae to put together a few capsule pieces.”
“A few?”
Nari looked at the collection spread across the counter.
“There are twenty.”
Kai shrugged.
“I rounded up.”
“Rounded up?”
“Kai, twenty is not ’rounding up.’”
“It is if you start at fifteen.”
“You didn’t start at fifteen.”
“I was thinking about fifteen.”
“You thought about fifteen for all of three seconds.”
“It was a very productive three seconds.”
Nari just stared at him.
“You are impossible.”
“I prefer ‘persistent.’”
“Meddlesome.”
“Caring.”
“Interfering.”
“Thoughtful.”
“Manipulative.”
“Strategically persuasive.”
Nari looked toward Na’Alarae.
“See what I have to live with?”
Without looking up from carefully wrapping the emerald gown in tissue paper, Na’Alarae smiled.
“I think…”
She gently placed the gown into its garment bag.
“…it’s rather charming.”
Kai grinned triumphantly.
“See?”
Nari pointed a finger at her new friend.
“Don’t encourage him.”
“I wasn’t.”
Na’Alarae looked up innocently.
“I was agreeing with him.”
Nari looked from one conspirator to the other.
“Oh no…”
She sighed dramatically.
“There are two of you now.”
Kai beamed.
“I’ve always wanted a teammate.”
Kai immediately slipped into his most polished Marketing Director presentation.
“Think about it, Sis.”
He gestured toward the collection spread across the counter.
“Every piece works with every other piece. You can dress them up or down. You’ll spend less time deciding what to wear, and more time doing the things you actually enjoy.”
He pointed to one of the blazers.
“This with the trousers.”
Then to a skirt.
“Or this.”
“A different blouse.”
“A scarf.”
“Different shoes.”
“Completely different look.”
“These pieces will pay for themselves in no time. Once you see how versatile they are, you’ll wonder how you ever lived without them.”
“Kai…”
She interrupted him.
“I’m not a business project.”
Kai looked absolutely mortified.
His expression was one of complete disbelief, as though she’d just suggested he couldn’t walk and chew gum at the same time.
“Sis…”
He stepped toward her.
“You are the single most important person in my life.”
“If I ever start treating you like a marketing campaign…”
He placed a hand dramatically over his heart.
“…I give you permission to fire me as your brother.”
“Kai…”
“You’re fired.”
She deadpanned.
Then burst into laughter at the utterly wounded puppy-dog expression on his face.
“You are so infuriating.”
She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around him.
“But I wouldn’t trade you for anyone else as my little brother.”
She hugged him tightly, softening the sting of her words before leaning back to look at him.
“But seriously…”
She gestured toward the growing collection.
“I can’t afford all of this.”
“I’m sure the dress alone is going to cost me a pretty penny.”
Having fully recovered from the shocking threat of unemployment, Kai slipped seamlessly back into his presentation.
“That’s the beauty of it, Sis.”
He grinned triumphantly.
“Birthday and Christmas.”
He pointed dramatically toward the clothing.
“Wrapped up in one.”
He folded his arms with complete satisfaction.
“There.”
“Problem solved.”
Na’Alarae continued carefully wrapping each garment, quietly smiling to herself.
She had only known Kai for an hour…
…but she already understood one thing.
His sister never stood a chance.
Not because he was stubborn.
Because he loved her with his whole heart.
Eventually…
He would win.
After exchanging phone numbers and promises to meet for lunch sometime, Nari and Kai said their goodbyes.
Nari walked out of the boutique carrying the “Emerald Empress,” followed by the additional garment bags.
She stopped beside the car, looking at the collection.
“How did you talk me into this?”
Kai carefully placed the last garment bag into the back seat.
“It’ll replace some of the things I got rid of earlier,” he absently replied.
Then he immediately realized what he’d said.
Silence followed.
Nari slowly turned toward him.
“…You got rid of some of my clothes?”
She stared at him.
Kai blinked.
“…”
“I suddenly feel like I should have led with that.”
Nari slowly narrowed her eyes.
Then, with deliberate purpose, she began walking around the front of the car toward her brother.
“You THINK you should have led with that?”
Sensing—perhaps for the first time all afternoon—that he might have pushed his luck just a little too far, Kai took an instinctive step backward.
“In all fairness…”
He held up both hands in surrender.
“…you did leave me there alone.”
“KAI REN CRUZ ST. CLAIRE!”
Nari pointed a finger at him.
“I’M GOING TO KILL YOU!”
Kai didn’t wait to hear another word.
He turned and took off running across the parking lot.
Laughing.
Nari chased after him.
“You get back here!”
Hearing Nari’s voice echo through the parking lot, Na’Alarae looked up just in time to see her newest customer chasing her brother between the rows of parked cars.
She couldn’t help herself.
She laughed.
A deep, heartfelt laugh that she hadn’t realized she needed.
She watched them disappear around the corner of the building…
…still arguing.
…still laughing.
She shook her head and smiled to herself.
“They’re going to be all right.”
By the time Nari made it home and rescued her discarded sweatshirts and clothing, it was already 4:30 p.m.
Lakshmi had said cocktails began at 6:30, with dinner at 7:00.
That gave her two hours.
She found the slip of paper with the Rhaminjins’ address, entered it into her phone’s GPS, and frowned.
“Damn…”
“It’s going to take thirty minutes to get there.”
“That leaves me an hour and a half.”
She carefully hung the new clothes beside her rescued clothes.
Stepping back, she surveyed her closet.
“…Well…”
“I suppose it does look better.”
She let out a resigned sigh.
“Kai: 205.”
“Nari: 177.”
Carefully unzipping the garment bag, she lifted out the Emerald Empress.
Her phone chimed.
She glanced at the screen.
Kai: 210 😁
Nari laughed despite herself.
Cheater.
She typed back.
205… Stop cheating. 😒🤥😠
She set her phone down on the dresser.
The smile lingered as she looked toward the Emerald Empress.
“Let’s see if this is really true…”
An hour and a half later…
She placed the final touches on her makeup.
She slipped into the champagne-colored sandals Na’Alarae had chosen to complement the ensemble.
Looking at herself in the mirror, she smiled.
Ten minutes later…
She was running out the front door.
“Damn, I’m late!”
6:41 p.m.
Nari pulled into the circular driveway of the Rhaminjin residence.
She slowed to a stop and stared.
“Am I at the right house?”
She glanced down at the address on her phone.
Then back at the house.
“This can’t be right… Can it?”
The grounds were immaculate.
The home was large without being ostentatious.
Elegant.
Timeless.
Rich shades of charcoal and black were accented by natural stone that wrapped around the lower third of the home.
She swallowed.
“You’re not even playing in the same ballpark, Nari.”
She sat there for another moment.
Then drew in a slow breath.
“Well…”
“They invited you.”
She climbed out of the car.
Nari stood outside the front door.
She took a deep breath.
Then rang the doorbell.
A moment later, the door swung open.
“Nari!”
Lakshmi’s face lit up.
“We were beginning to wonder if you were going to make it.”
“I’m so sorry. I lost track of time.”
Lakshmi waved away the apology.
“You’re here. That’s all that matters.”
She stepped back to let Nari inside.
“You look absolutely stunning in that dress.”
Nari smiled shyly.
“Thank you.”
As they walked toward the living room, Nari continued apologizing for being late.
Across the room, Kai and Arjun stood near the fireplace, talking quietly.
Kai glanced toward the foyer.
His face immediately broke into a grin.
“She’s here.”
Arjun followed his gaze.
A slow smile spread across his face.
Then…
He looked toward Ryú.
Waiting…
Ryú was in the middle of a conversation with Winston and Elizabeth Stanton.
“So, we finally settled on the slogan for Stone’s Throw Café.”
“‘A Southern Gem Meets a Pacific Pearl.’”
Ryú nodded.
“I think it captures exactly what we’re tr—”
Nari laughed softly at something Lakshmi said.
The sound drifted into the room.
Ryú looked up.
…
…
…
“And I think we’re tr…”
Nothing.
The rest of the sentence never came.
Silence.
Winston Stanton waited politely for him to continue.
When he didn’t…
Elizabeth followed Ryú’s gaze.
She gently nudged her husband.
Winston turned.
Standing in the doorway was an elegantly dressed woman.
Confident without arrogance.
Graceful without trying.
Her hazel eyes sparkled with life as she laughed with Lakshmi.
The warmth radiating from her seemed to brighten the room itself.
The emerald gown embraced her from the elegant off-the-shoulder neckline to her hips before flowing effortlessly behind her.
Each step sent the train drifting around her like the soft, floating feathers of a phoenix’s tail.
Ryú stared.
“I…”
He swallowed.
“Pearl…”
Another heartbeat passed.
“…Gem…”
The words escaped in no particular order.
The Phoenix, in Emerald Empress, just short-circuited the Dragon.
System: SHUTDOWN.
