"You helping or not?"
Leighton shoved her camera bag higher on her shoulder and stepped through the doorway before the question finished. The bar smelled of spilled beer and lemon cleaner. A neon sign buzzed over the pool table. Voices folded into the background hum of the city.
"Meng, sit down. You promised you'd behave tonight," she said.
Meng waved a sticky hand. "Behave is boring," he slurred. "Come on, take a picture. People need to see my new jacket."
"Not tonight," Leighton said, tightening her grip on the strap.
"You're no fun, Leighton." Meng laughed and leaned across the booth.
A man at the next table reached out and touched the shoulder of a woman standing by the bar. His fingers stayed. His laugh was too loud. He slid his hand down.
"Hey," the woman snapped and pulled back.
The man didn't stop. He smiled like he owned the room.
Leighton moved without thinking. She stepped between them.
"Hands off," she said.
"Mind your business," he said.
"It is my business when someone gropes a woman in public," she said.
He said something crude. Leighton said something louder. Around them, people tuned in.
"Easy," the man warned.
Leighton snapped her fingers. She shoved his wrist. Her taekwondo years found purchase in one practiced motion. The man's elbow hit the table. He tried to recover and his grip loosened.
"Ow!" He staggered back.
Meng cheered from the booth, sloshing his drink. Some people laughed. Others recorded
