Rain.
- Are you okay?
I turn my head to my brother as we walk towards another wedding store in a huge mall outside Bangkok. After everything that happened, I really didn't want to come, but I promised him. And when he showed up at the door with Mr. Porsche, insisting that I absolutely must be there, I was literally forced to go with them. Mom came along too. She and Mr. Porsche walked ahead, having there own conversation.
- Yes, I'm fine.
- Let's go into this one, - says Sky, already pulling me towards the store.
We enter a spacious, bright store with so many clothes that it makes your head spin. We head to the section with suits, and Sky starts examining the numerous white outfits on hangers. I approach him.
- Venice really didn't do it on purpose. She just doesn't stop bothering him. She's so annoying, - says Sky, looking around. Suddenly, he turns to me and leans on the iron railing. - How have you both been lately?
- What do you mean?
He raises an eyebrow.
- It seems to me like you're trying to fix things. Venice talks about you all the time. He says how much he loves you. - he crosses his arms over his chest, looking at me playfully. - And I see that sparkle in you, the one that was in your eyes when you were together.
- Yes, we all witnessed his love today, - I say, ignoring his comment about me.
He huffs.
- You're impossible. I'm telling you, there's nothing there. You're imagining things. We all know who Venice is interested in and who he's not.
I stop listening to him and look around. A suit catches my eye. Nothing special. White, sleek, with a tailored cut. I run my fingers over the fabric. It's really stylish and elegant.
- Do you want to try it on? - Sky comes to me, holding two hangers with clothes.
- Are you crazy? I'm just looking.
He takes the suit and examines it.
- Yes, it's nice. And you need clothes too. After all, you're my best man. - he says, placing it on his arm with the other clothes. - Let's go.
We head to the changing rooms, and Sky pushes me into a cubicle, handing me the suit and a floral wreath.
- They come as a set. Get to it. - he says, smiles, and pulls the curtain.
I groan. Why do I have to wear this? When he sets his mind to something, my brother can be quite stubborn. Although the suit is really nice. And the fabric...
Oh well, I'll just try it on. Where did Mom disappear to?
I undress and carefully, so as not to damage anything, put on the pants first, then the jacket. I wasn't wearing anything under the jacket. Maybe I should have brought a shirt, but since I had a T-shirt on, I took it off because it didn't match. I button up the buttons and look at myself. I think it suits me. I take the artificial flower wreath and place it on my head. That's better. I smile at myself in the mirror. As immodest as it may sound, I look great.
- Sky, I'm ready. Come see me. - I call out, looking at myself in the mirror.
I hear some noise and voices. I turn, and right then, the curtain is pulled. I freeze. Behind it stands the last person on Earth I wanted to see at the moment.
Venice
- What are you doing? Let me go.
- Come on, move faster. I won't wait for you all day.
As angry as I was, I was about to unleash it on him. Not only did he bring me out in this heat to buy a suit for the wedding, but he made me do it outside the city. As if Bangkok didn't have any stores, so we had to come all the way here. And to top it off, he made me put one on, and now he was leading me to some other store. I am not a doll.
He takes me straight to the fitting rooms, where Sky is nervously pacing.
- Here we are, finally, - Natt says, giggling like an idiot.
- Look, I really don't find this funny...
Sky puts a finger to my lips.
- Quiet. You'll thank me later.
He pushes me in front of a fitting room, and both Natt and Sky stand beside me, clasping their hands as if they're about to watch a performance. I don't understand anything. What's happening? A voice comes from inside.
- Sky, I'm ready. Come see me.
That's Rain. My Rain is in the fitting room. I look at Natt and Sky, and they nod enthusiastically. I grab the curtain and pull it aside. In front of me stands the most perfect creature on this planet.
Rain, dressed in a white, elegant suit with a floral wreath on his head, looks at me intently from the other side of the curtain. His face reddens, his eyes widen, and he gasps.
- What are you doing here? - he asks, adjusting his jacket to cover the small part of his chest that was visible.
- You look beautiful! - I whisper, enchanted by his beauty.
- Get out. - he says, but he approaches me as he exits the fitting room. Once he stands next to me, I catch a whiff of his scent.
- You look beautiful! - I say again, mesmerized.
Rain angrily crosses his arms, looking towards the giggling duo who clearly orchestrated this plan.
- What's going on, Sky? Is this why you brought me here? - Rain asks, and his brother smiles apologetically.
- It happened accidentally. We didn't know you'd be here. - I say, fixing a fallen curl on Rain's face. He pulls away.
- Get away. Don't touch me.
- Yes, entirely by accident. - Natt nods, even though he knows his act won't pass.
- I'm sorry. But look how beautiful you both are. - Sky says, looking at his masterpiece. - Right, Natt?
- Yes. - he confirms and raises his thumbs in the air. - You're ready for your wedding. Do you want to get married? I can arrange it right away.
- Wonderful. I'm ready. - I raise my hand, and Rain sighs. Apparently, he doesn't like our joke at all.
He sighs and closes his eyes, presumably to calm down.
- I'm going in to change now. - Rain points a finger at his brother. - And when I come out, I want you to return this suit where it was. And you - he turns to me. - Leave before you drive me completely insane, because I won't be responsible for the consequences.
He enters the fitting room and angrily pulls the curtain. I look desperately at Natt and Sky, who just shrug and walk away. Thanks for the help, idiots.
I lean against the wall next to the fitting room.
- Do you need help? – I shout out.
- Go away! - he replies tersely. His voice comes out muffled, probably because he's getting dressed.
I take a risk and gently pull back the curtain, sticking my head inside. Rain is shirtless, only just buttoning his pants. He looks into the mirror and notices me. I flinch.
- You're so beautiful. - I say, looking at him in the mirror.
He rolls his eyes and puts on his T-shirt.
- You really get on my nerves.
- Come on, babyboy. Can't you see that I regret it? There's absolutely nothing between me and her. I swear on my mother.
Rain takes his clothes and exits the fitting room, pushing me aside.
- Just like there's nothing between me and you, so I guess there's no problem. - he says, heading towards the exit of the fitting rooms.
I sigh. He's so stubborn. I decide to change the subject. I'll convince him later somehow.
- How about we go somewhere to eat? And then maybe we can go dancing. What do you say? - I try to get his attention, but he walks straight ahead and is as cold as an iceberg.
- No.
We see Natt and Sky at the counters.
- Are you ready? - Sky asks, putting something in his bag. Natt looks disgusted.
- Let's grab something to eat. I'm starving. - Natt complains, and that's my chance.
- We were just talking about that. Rain will be in the mood after that. - I say and put my hands on his shoulders.
- No, I already refused you. - he protests.
- Really? - Sky bursts into euphoria. He pulls his brother, and the two of them start walking. Rain turns to give me a stern look, and I just shrug apologetically. - Come on, I need to loosen up a bit. You'll have fun too.
- What about Mom? - Rain asks.
- I told them to have fun without us. - Sky waves his hand, and the four of us leave the store.
I need to change. I can't walk around like this on the street.
- Wait. - Rain stops and looks at the clothes in his hands. - We didn't return the suit.
- Oh, relax. I already paid for it.
- SKYYY!
Rain.
For the early hour we arrived, the place at Natt's friends' establishment was quite crowded. People were already bumping into each other, and the music blasted loudly from the speakers. On stage, there were musicians tuning their instruments. Natt's friends, whose names I forgot, were talking with him and Sky, while also serving drinks to the customers. We were at the bar, and I looked around nervously.
- Join us. - one of the girls slides a glass toward me, smiling. The flush on her face suggests that she's not very sober.
I nod and take the glass.
- Well, what did I miss? - Venice stands too close to me, making me uneasy. He had gone to the restroom. He looks at my glass. - What are you drinking?
- I... - I look at him, and he smiles slightly, sensing that I'm staring at him. I take a sip of the drink. As I suspected, it's vodka. I have terrible memories associated with vodka. - Vodka. It tastes awful.
He smirks. Looking into my eyes, he takes the glass and takes a sip. Electricity runs through my body. He puts down the glass and licks his lips.
- I think it's sweet. - he whispers, and the sexual undertone in his voice doesn't bode well.
I swallow hard. This guy wants to mess with me. I need to control myself.
- Are you having fun? - he asks, grabbing my hand. I nod and look around for help, but no one seems to notice us. - You know, I remembered the first time we came here. You were so small and innocent.
- Not so long ago. - I observe, watching as his hand casually moves over mine.
- Yes, but still small. I remember how you used to irritate me with your silly stubbornness and the constant need to fight with me. I remember how I gave you your first kiss, and then you wouldn't let me sleep. - he smirks and looks at me. I glance into his chocolate eyes, and all I see is myself. It scares me. - After that, you became so deeply embedded in my life and my heart that sometimes I wonder how I lived without you. I don't remember exactly when I fell in love with you. At first, I was annoyed that I couldn't stop thinking about you and that I was so interested in you. But you became the most important thing in my life. The most special person to me. And I will never forgive myself for the terrible things I did and hurt you a lot. I will never forget it. Because of me, you changed so much.
- How? - I ask, quickly wiping away the tear running down my cheek.
He smiles slightly, touches my cheek, and brushes away a fallen strand of hair.
- I think you grew up. Because of me, you grew up a lot. You are no longer the little brat who used to fight with me. You are a man who has experienced a lot and doesn't want to suffer anymore. Your hair, your face, your black-painted nails, even your style of dressing is different.
- Is that good?
- Yes, somewhat. I just wanted to see the little boy again. But I love you as you are. Whether your hair is blonde or black. I love you, Rain. I still love you very much. And I want to make you very happy. - he caresses my cheek. - If you allow me... - he leans toward me.
- Venice. - I put my hand on his chest.
- I know. It won't be now. - he whispers to my lips. - But someday...
- Rain.
As if someone poured ice water on me to wake me up. The voice of Yi is the thing that stops me from bursting into flames, and I return to reality. I push Venice away from me and turn to Yi. My hands are shaking as if I've done something forbidden.
- Hi.
- Excuse me. Am I interrupting something? - Yi asks, trying to meet my eyes.
- Yes.
- No.
We answer in unison with Venice, and Yi's smile becomes even bigger.
- Why is he here? - Venice asks behind me.
- Why is it forbidden? - Yi shrugs, looking at Venice.
- I don't want to see you around Rain. Do you understand me? - Venice stands up and is ready to attack Yi.
- Stop. - I shout, drawing the attention of the people around.
Natt stands behind his cousin.
- Venice, what's going on?
- Nothing. - I say and grab Yi's hand, but I look at Venice. - I heard what you had to say. Now I'm going to have fun.
I pull Yi by the hand, and we go to the circle of people dancing in the middle of the bar. I wrap my arms around Yi's neck, and he places his on my waist.
- Are you okay?
We start dancing.
- Yes. You came at the right moment. I think I was about to faint. - I say and secretly look over Yi's shoulder at the bar to see Venice. He turned his back to us.
- Calm down. You're shaking all over. - he says and pulls me closer to him.
I sigh deeply. Only now do I notice how he's dressed. With a blue cotton sweater and beige pants.
- What did you wear? - I look him over. - I haven't seen you dressed like this.
- What?
- So normal. - I say and touch the fabric of his sweater. It's very soft.
He smiles warmly.
- I'm leaving, Rain. - he says, and I look at him. - My flight is in an hour.
We stop dancing.
- Where? - I ask shocked by the news. Why is he leaving me?
- To Switzerland. I'm going to see him.
Yi smiles, and I see how excited he is about this step. Who am I to stop him from going and bringing back the love of his life?
I smile and hug him tightly.
- I'm happy for you. I wish everything works out for you two. - I say and stroke his cheek. He's been so good to me and helped me a lot. He deserves to be happy.
- Thanks.
Suddenly, I notice that Venice gets up and takes his jacket.
- What should I do? - I ask my friend anxiously, watching as my love leaves. Damn it, I had completely different plans for tonight.
- What does your heart say? - Yi asks, holding my hands.
- It... - I start to stutter. I see him heading towards the exit. - It tells me to follow him.
- Then do it. - he encourages me and squeezes my hands.
- But what if it's wrong?
- Rain. - Yi says, making me look at him. Just then, Venice avoids my gaze. - The heart never makes mistakes. It always knows what it wants. - he kisses me on the cheek and lets me go.
- Thank you. Thank you so much for everything.
I hurry towards the exit. A light breeze hits my face as I step outside. It's dark. There's no one around. And then I notice the dark figure moving away down the street.
- Where are you going, Venice? - I call out, and he stops. He turns towards me, and I walk towards him.
- I'm going home.
- Are you running away again? - I ask, stopping next to him.
He doesn't answer. He shoves his hands into his jacket pockets.
- I won't allow it. - I look him in the eyes. - I won't let you run away again. I'm tired of fighting this. I'm tired of suffering and being hurt. I'm tired of crying.
He takes a step towards me and opens his mouth, but I raise my hand to stop him from saying anything.
- I can't take it anymore, do you understand? - I sob. - I can't fight my feelings. I can't tell my heart not to love you. We have to stop this back-and-forth wandering. You have to stay. Love me and make me the happiest person on earth. - I shout out of helplessness, out of exhaustion, trying to fight. - I deserve it. You have to love me.
He approaches me, cupping my face with his cold hands. He smiles beautifully.
- I will love you. I will love you insanely and I will fight against everything and everyone to protect you. I will protect our love from everything. I won't let you leave. This time, I won't give up on you. We made for each other. We must be together. Because when we are apart, nothing is as it should be. I promise you. I love you.
I smile, tears wetting my cheeks, and he gently wipes them away before kissing me tenderly on the lips. The kiss is like a caress, slow and gentle, expressing our feelings.
- Will you forgive me? - he asks after pulling back but not letting me go.
- No. - I say with a sniffle.
Venice laughs and kisses me again.
- Do you love me?
- No.
- Will you be my boyfriend?
- No.
- Rain, you're going to drive me crazy. You're so stubborn. - he complains, pouting.
- Try harder. - I say and kiss him again.
I won't give up so easily.
Happy New Years everyone. I hope the New Year brings health, happiness and a lot of positive emotions to everyone. I hope to achieve my goals in the New Year. I love you. Stay healthy. Happy reading with the last chapter of this year.