#countd

 @factaimpia

Anything goes in Chinatown. Anything at all...

Everyone who is anyone knows that, they know that if they immerse themselves in the cacophony of sound, if they melt into the hive of people, the exotic pleasures of this mysterious place are sure to be revealed. Name your poison, is it lust? Is it money? Or perhaps...something more illusive. The later is sure to disperse from the crowd, away from the warm lights and smells of sticky, sweet sesame buns and dim sum. They’ll follow the gloomy path ways, the odd stares and occasional sneer will not detour them from their path nor will the sudden chill of leaving the company of such a dense crowd. There is something truly daunting about the prospect of wondering around in the darkness in one’s quest for light but that doesn’t stop the ones who would end up at the doorstep of a certain...Petshop.

They say that there is no coincidences in life, only fate and fate is quite the trickster it would seem. At first glance, one would say “your run of the mill Chinatown shop, why would I stop here?” And indeed that would take us back to the beginning: Anything goes in Chinatown 

So the doors part to reveal the dark interior, lit by a single blazing red lantern, the dull light it provides shining just enough to reveal a staircase heading down into this seeming abyss. At the bottom of the staircase, a parlor stands enveloped in a soft gloom. A fragrant yet spicy aroma envelops the space curling in thin blue snake like strands around ornate, oriental furniture and heavy, burgundy velvet curtains. What they hide behind them, nobody knows. Is this truly a petshop you might wonder, surely it can’t be but then all contemplation ceases as a warm and surprisingly benevolent sounding voice breaks the thick silence. “Welcome to our Petshop. We sell everything from dogs, to cats to reptiles, how may I assist you, dear customer”.