"Marry me, Tine."
Tine's POV
"Excuse me, what?"
"I said..." He moved closer to me and I could finally see his face under the dim lighting outside my apartment. The building's corridors light usually dimmed out as it got closer to midnight, but somehow, his eyes were shining just as brightly as they did in the sunshine. "Marry me, Tine. I have decided to help you."
I stared at him confused. "I am sorry. Can you please speak a little louder? I think I am hearing the wrong thing."
"I said, YOU SHOULD MARRY ME, TINE!" Exasperated, he yelled out this time and I realised I hadn't heard him wrong the first time. He was just saying the most incoherent and illogical thing I had ever heard in my whole life.
"EXCUSE ME, WHAT?" I yelled back.
"I said... "
"He is asking you to marry him. He has already said it twice." An old lady who lives a few apartments down from me, passed through us, and gave me the most judgemental look I had ever seen in my life. "Just say yes already. He is handsome and he is asking you so earnestly. Why are you making him work for it?"
"I am not — He is not — We are not together —" By the time I turned back to respond to her in may be a little more words, she had already hopped on the elevator. The doors of the elevator were closing but I could still see her shaking her head disapprovingly.
"God damn.." I murmured under my breath.
"I am asking you very earnestly indeed." I turned back hearing Guntithanon, only to find him smirking at me.
I started back at him all confused, wondering what to do with this weird man. "Oh just get inside and stop embarrassing me in front of my neighbours."
I opened the door to my apartment and pulled him inside. As I switched on the lights and closed back the door, I noticed Sarawat was looking around my apartment.
And that's when I started to feel nervous being so close to him. I needed at least a 2 foot safety distance between us. How did I just see him 12 hours ago and he somehow looked hotter? May be its the black suit. Come to think of it, I have only ever seen him wearing black clothes, except for that one time he was swimming in his swim shorts and... No, no don't even go there Tine. Don't think about him in his swim shorts. Don't think about it at all.
"Nice place you got here.." I looked up, trying to clear my thoughts and saw Guntithanon sitting on the sofa in my living roof. He was sifting through the receipts on the coffee table.
"Mr Guntithanon, seriously, why are you here?" I leaned against the wall opposite to him just keep our safety distance intact. "I thought we decided to never see each other again."
"I don't recall having a discussion like that with you..." He picked up a receipt from the table. "For someone who lives alone, you order way too much takeout food."
"What am I supposed to do? Go hungry?"
"Well, you could cook at home."
I sighed, staring down at the box of noodles in my hands. My stomach was rumbling and I had absolutely no patience for this weird man.
"Why are you here Mr Guntithanon?"
"As I told you, I am here because I want to marry you."
"Are you drunk or something?"
He shook his head. "Absolutely not. I am stone cold sober."
"Then.. did you hit your somewhere?"
He smiled and my heart started to melt. Stop it Tine, stop it. He is the devil. He frustrates you. You are not supposed to like this.. or him.
"No, god, I hope not." He answered. "I really want to marry you."
"If this is a joke Mr Guntithanon, its not really landing."
"I am not joking."
"Listen, I am too tired to get into whatever this... is. Just please leave."
"Why would I leave? I am literally helping you here, Tine. You can marry me and get your inheritance back — Its as simple as that."
"How self-centered do you have to be to think that you are 'helping' me when I never even fucking asked for your help?" I snapped back.
"Self-centered? I am telling you that I will marry you and help you. Why is it so hard for you to understand?"
I chuckled. "And I am telling you, I am not fucking interested in marrying you Mr Guntithanon."
Right then, his mood changed. He looked at me carefully as he shifted forward in his seat. "Why not?"
"Why not? Because I don't want to marry anyone — As simple as that. I am not even sure why we are having this discussion right now, to be honest."
"You don't want to get married? Not even to me? Do you know I was voted the Most Eligible Bachelor last year?" Sarawat smiled smugly and for a full second or two I contemplated throwing him out of the balcony.
"Wow. Self-centred and conceited. Why am I not surprised at all?" I shook my head. "You really have some audacity to just walk into my house and ask me to marry you, huh?"
"Well, you had the audacity to come into my house without anyone inviting you and just kiss me out of the blue... so I guess we are even?"
"That—that was a mistake. I already apologised for that."
"Was it... a mistake Tine?
I didn't want to answer his question. I didn't even want to think about that day. I would talk about anything but that.
"Listen Mr Guntithanon.." I took a long, deep breath. "I don't know what this is about. I don't know why you are suddenly here. I am not that stupid to believe that us meeting in the last few days has all been a coincidence. You suddenly RSVP to my father's party out of the blue. You suddenly show up at the bar I was at last night. And then you suddenly show up at my door today? Its not all a coincidence, is it? I don't even think I have to ask how you found me here, do I? I am sure you have your own ways to get what you want when it comes to business."
"This is not business, Tine."
"Then tell me why the fuck you are even here? We met by accident and I truly apologise for that. If you are still offended over it, feel free to file a case against me. Like I said, I will cooperate with the authorities. But I would really like it if we dont run into each other over and over again. If you heard even a small part of what I was blabbering last night, I am sure you might have realised I don't have the best life. I already have too many problems of my own and I just don't want to add to those." My voice went higher even before I could register it myself. "So, I don't care what you are trying to proposition here but I am definitely not interested and I would like for you to get the hell out of my house so I can eat some god damn noodles because I haven't had a meal since morning and I am fucking tired." I yelled out all at once.
That's when Sarawat's eyes went to the packet of instant noodles in my hand and he stood up.
"Okay. Okay..." He whispered. "I understand I am pushing my limits by showing up here suddenly and I am sorry by taking you by surprise. Why don't you let me cook those noodles for you? Hear out what I have to say until the noodles get cooked. If you are still not interested after that, I will leave — and you can have your dinner in peace."
Closing the distance between us, he took the packet from my hands and I just stood there staring at him. Feeling his fingers brush against mine.
His hands are surprisingly calloused. I hadn't noticed that before. But his touch felt electric.. No Tine, he's a stranger and possibly a stalker. This is all Stockholm Syndrome. Wait, but I kissed him first, does that still make it Stockholm Syndrome ? No. No. No. Don't even think about the kiss.
"Tine, what do you say?"
Sarawat's voice brought me out of my daze.
"What makes you think I would even be interested to hear whatever it is you have to say?" I finally answered.
He shrugged his shoulders. "Well.. not to be the one to brag, but I am really good at cooking."
'All you do is brag, Guntithanon."
He chuckled. "In that case, I'll give you a better reason to hear me out.
I can help you get your inheritance in less than a month — the money and the property your mother left you. You could have your law firm open in two months at the most"
I stared at him shell shocked. "That's not —"
"Possible? Yes it is. With my legal team and my power, it won't be difficult at all." He raised his eyebrow, smiling. "You are interested, aren't you? I can see it on your face, Tine. I guess I'll just put the noodles to boil then.
Sarawat walked to the open kitchen and I help him find pots and pan. Why? I have no idea. His claim sounded all to bizarre to be true. But he said he was a good cook and I was too hungry to care. I just had to listen to his stupid gibberish and at the end of it, I would get a hot bowl of noodles. Sounds like a good deal to me.
"You really don't cook do you? There are hardly any vegetables in the fridge." He asked as started chopping the vegetables.
I laughed and jumped on the kitchen counter to face him. "Are you now making excuses because you know you can't follow on your claim of being a 'really good cook'?"
"Of course not. I'll make do with what I can." He poured the chopped vegetables into the pan and stirred it all. "So... like you said, your father is never going to give you access to your inheritance and waiting 10 more years would be a really stupid thing to do. So you could just get married...to me and I will make sure you can get everything that you want. Its a win-win situation."
"No its not a win-win situation at all actually." I answered like a reflex. "I get access to my mother's inheritance by marrying a whole billionaire and you get married to a supposedly psychotic and clearly alcoholic man who lets strangers into his house. Mr Guntithanon, you really haven't thought this through, have you?"
Sarawat started laughing out loud and I realised I had never even seen him laugh like that. He was wiping tears from his eyes — And that's when, his hiccups. What an absolute idiot.
I laughed as I got up to fetch a glass of water and hand it to him. "I was taking a small jab at myself. You didn't have to laugh so loud — Its fucking mean."
"But that was really funny *hic*..."
"Just drink up and stop talking"
It took Sarawat quite while to finally feel better, but his hiccups finally stopped after a few minutes, and lots of water.
"Listen Tine..." He said in a serious tone, minus any hiccups. "I need to marry someone soon to show the shareholders and my investors here that I have made Thailand my home base and I am not going anywhere anytime soon. People keep assuming I will move back to China and that might severely affect my business. If we get married, I can show people I have settled down my position here will be solidified.. and you will get your inheritance. Its a win-win situation. And no... I don't think you are psychotic or an alcohoholic."
"Mr Guntithanon, I don't think you understand what you are asking for right now."
"I have thought it through Tine. I spent the whole day thinking about it and that's how I found myself at your door."
"Why would you marry me of all people, if you really want to be married? You could find someone else just like that. You are filthy rich and you are obviously not that bad to look at. You are also 'allegedly' a good cook. Like you said, you were voted the Most Eligible Bachelor last year — may be you can just marry one of those people who voted for you."
He nodded. "May be I could marry someone else — but just like you said, they would marry me for my name and my money. Not for me.
You, on the other hand, Tine. You don't need my name. Your surname is enough for you to get through any door you want. The people in high society here probably know you better than me because you have grown up in this place. And you definitely don't need my money — If you just wanted money, you could have agreed to take a loan from me "
"What makes you think I would marry you, for you? I mean, no offence, but you don't really have a very pleasant personality Mr Guntithanon. You are rude, self-centered, and have some obvious stalker type traits."
"About my personality, I am not really sure how I can fix it." He shrugged his shoulders "May be if you can give me some pointers, I will try my best to work on it. I am serious when I say this Tine — I can help you get your inheritance in less than a month. Let me help you."
I stared at him wondering if he was serious or just joking. "You can't help me. My father is hell bent on making me join the family business. So please don't think--"
"And I am powerful enough to face him, Tine. I can get you what always belonged to you."
I laughed at his crazy idea. "Inheriting my mother's estate isn't as easy as getting married and signing a few papers. My father is hell bent on making me join the family business. I am not sure you understand what that means in a legal sense — He could file his claim on the property mom left for me, since she was still married to him when she died. I could fight him in the court, but if the property goes into litigation, it gets frozen until the case is done and dusted, which could take years. My father would have nothing to lose but I—I would lose a lot."
"I know that and I have been thinking about this a lot too. What I couldn't understand is — Why is your father so fixated on making your join the family business? He obviously doesn't care about you. If he did, he wouldn't make you live here alone on your own and he wouldn't be forcing you to do things you don't even want to do. So, why?"
I stared back at him, wondering about the exact same thing.
He had raised a very good question that I hadn't thought about before. He was right. Dad was too obnoxious and greedy to care about anyone else. He didn't even care about Type who was alerady working 15-16 hours in the office everyday. He insults Type in front of others the first chance that he gets. So why was he so fixated on having me there in the company? He wouldn't like me to be there, that's for sure.
"You are thinking about it too Tine, aren't you?" He smiled." Here's what I think: Your dad has figured out that you want to become a human rights lawyer who fights for factory workers and unions — And that's what he doesn't want because it goes against everything he has built.
Given your relationship with him and proximity, your father may become one of your first and biggest targets. You know the ins and outs of your family business. And a son going against his father in court would be media fodder. It would ruin your father's reputation. Imagine the headlines: Teepakorn vs Teepakorn."
What Sarawat said did make sense. Dad couldn't care less about what I was doing when I was in college. He didn't even know where my college building was or what I was studying in college. Suddenly, a month after college was over, I move back to the house from college dorms, and — Dad lost his shit. He started forcing me to join the business ou of the blue.
Now that I start to think about it, I did have a lot of my books lying around at home, may be he just got a whiff. All he would have to do is contact my college professor or dean to know what I had been doing in college to know everything. I was studying case studies and entering mock trials where unions defeated big corporations. Of course he had known!
Fuck, I have been so busy with everything, I didn't even stop to consider all that.
But, god the idea of going against Father sounded so luring. This was one of the main reasons I wanted to become a human rights lawyer — I saw everything that was wrong in this world with my own eyes.
"You know..." I finally said. "I actually really like that headline. I'd love to see it in the papers one day."
"I know you do." He smirked. "And I am telling you, I can help you, Tine. If this is really the reason your father doesn't want you to practice law, then he will never let you practice law — with or without your inheritance. "
"And I am supposed to believe you don't want to do all this just to spite my father?"
"Spite him for what? I don't care about your father, Tine. I have never been interested in his business and I will never do business with him. There is nothing that your father could give me. I hadn't even met him face to face until at the party yesterday."
"Not that , I am entertaining this entire idea, but if I were -- I am sorry but the fact that you would want to marry me just to impress some shareholders and investors doesn't sit well with me. There is obviously more here."
"I am new money, Tine. No matter how much money I make, no matter how big of a house I buy, people here still see me as an outsider. Many of the old businessmen whos families have been doing business in Thailand for decades, hate me — including your father. Its like a ticking time bomb — It will only take so long for them to band together against me."
"He does hate you but for some reason he also wants to do business with you."
"That's because everyone wants to make money from me. But I also know they would drill me into the ground the first chance they get."
I nodded. "True again. I have seen quite a few people refer to you as 'the devil.'"
"Do you also think, I am the... devil?"
"I am not sure Mr Guntithanon. I don't know you enough to call you anything."
"Then we could get married and you could know me enough. " Sarawat smiled as he poured the cooked noodles onto a plate.
It looked delicious. But it also mean that our time was up. Sarawat had said what he wanted to say and now it was time for me to say what I wanted to say from the moment I saw him standing at his door.
"Thank you for the offer Mr Guntithanon and thank you for making me dinner, but I am not interested. If I wanted to marry someone just to get my inheritance, I would have, by now. I don't want to end up in a sad, arranged marriage just like my mother." I got up from the kitchen counter and stood straight. "You need to leave."
"Very well." Sarawat looked down with a straight face, his smile disappearing. He tugged at my arm to pull me closer and suddenly, we were so close I could feel his breath on me.
"I'd make sure you are never sad, Tine. I'll always keep you happy." Sarawat slid his business card in my hand. "Think about it and call me if you change your mind. This is my personal number."
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Three weeks later
My phone was buzzing continously and I jolted up out of the bed finally realising I wasn't in a weird dream. I was still in my apartment and my phone was ringing off the hook. I checked the clock again, it was 8am. Did I miss a morning meeting?
No Tine, you have no meetings or clients for that matter. All you do is, look for clients during the day and then during nights, you think about the strange man who came to your house to ask you to marry him. The strange man whose business card was still lying on my bedside table. I stared at it everyday but I never had the nerve to dial that number.
My phone had stopped ringing, but I could still hear the notifications going off one after the other.
The first message I saw was from Fong.
Fong[08:01] TINE, WHAT THE FUCK??? YOU NEVER TOLD ME THIS
Fong[08:01]: (Link Attached)
There was a news article link attached and when I clicked on that link, I got the shock of a lifetime. There were pictures.... pictures that seemed from the night of the party when I met Guntithanon. We were walking down the road. I was clinging onto him and he was trying to help me get into a car.
Wait, I don't remember this happening. The location seems to be right outside the bar we went to. It is that bar isn't it? It was late at night and I had already blacked out by then.
The bigger shock came when I read the headline: Thai Billionaire Guntithanon seen cozying up with Industrialist Teepakorn's Youngest Son
"Oh god." My heart dipped and before I could read the whole article, my phone started to ring again.
Father calling....
Sarawat's POV
"The article has been published." Dim said, as he walked inside my office cabin.
"You could have knocked." I said, without taking my eyes off my laptop. I knew the article had been published, I had been staring at it.
"You could have not published those pictures. We had already paid the photographer to buy those pictures and his silence."
I tapped my fingers. "Its been three weeks. Tine hasn't gotten back to me yet. I had to do something. I can't help him if he doesn't let me help him."
"That's not how helping people works, you know."
I glared up at him. "Dim, stay in your limits. I know what I am doing."
"What if he finds out, Wat?"
"He will never find out about it. He can never find out about it."
I heard my phone ring right then. Not the phone that I used for work, but my personal phone. Only a handful of people knew this number and seeing an unknown number on it, I knew exactly who it was.
It was Tine.
"Get out Dim. I have to take this call."
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A/N: So... that was quite a twist? Like I said, Sarawat in this story is sort of a gray character and he has his reasons for that.
Sarawat's character is somewhat a mix of Mr Darcy from Pride and Prejudice and this version of Hades I read in a book. He's dark, he's mysterious, he's broody, but he is also a loner and eternally confused when it comes to social settings or relationships in general. I am actually quite enjoying it because I have never written a character like that before.
Like he is so surprising and dorky at the same time — I am having a field day. I have actually already written the next 4 chapters, so this might get more frequent updates
And thank you for all the kind comments last week. I took a trip with my family this weekend. I'm feeling a lot better💖💖💖