|| the name ||
~
The event turned out to be much more riveting than what Andi had initially anticipated.
He's been here all of thirty minutes and there hasn't been a second where he's found himself bored. Andi hopes to have all of this to himself one day. It's a dream of his to host his own art exhibition, have people from all walks of life come out to celebrate his hard work.
Yeah, Andi wants that. And he wants his friends and family to be right there by his side whenever he finally gets it. No ifs about it.
"Do you have a favorite?"
Andi sighs before taking a long drag from his glass of champagne.
Those on the VIP list got to access the second floor which has been set up to be like a lounge area. If you weren't on the VIP list, you had pay $75 to go upstairs. Why? Because the food up there is better, the alcohol is of higher quality, and you get the opportunity to sit down and chat with Arthur Crane, the star of tonight's event.
After walking the entire floor downstairs and taking in all of the amazing artwork, Andi decided to come up to the second floor and chill out for a bit (free of charge, thanks to a mysterious someone having covered his fee). Had he known that he'd get hit on left and right, however, he'd have stayed downstairs a little while longer.
In any other situation, Andi would've loved the attention. But in this particular case, Andi hadn't come out here to catch some random dick to bring back to his apartment. He came out here to meet K; someone who has yet to make his presence known, making Andi worry that he's potentially been forgotten about.
"A favorite what?" Andi asks, looking up from his phone to properly acknowledge the stranger.
His eyes are what Andi notices first.
The man has gorgeous light brown eyes. They're almost the same shade as his tan skin. And then there's his figure; tall, bit of an athletic build, nice broad shoulders... pair that with his clean shaven face, pearly white teeth, and dimples that appear whenever he smiles, Andi is certain he's staring at his future one-night stand.
Andi has no idea who the guy is, hasn't seen him around here before now, but Andi is sure he isn't K.
The man's outfit screams fuckboy, not classy award winning artist...
"Your favorite piece of the night," the man clarifies, his voice deep and sexy. "Mine is The Broken Ceiling. I liked how..."
Andi listens and judges the man silently, boldly staring him up and down.
He's wearing scuffed black shoes, black skinny jeans with rips in them, a thin dark grey hoodie with a partially bleached and torn blue jean jacket over top of it, along with a black cap that hides a head full of jet black hair... the guy looks like he's ready to attend some trashy house party rather than the upscale event that he's currently at.
"Oh. My favorite piece?" Andi pauses, giving the man a weird look when he takes a seat next to him, without asking. "I guess it'd have to be the one of the train tracks with the puppy walking alongside it. I can't remember the name, but I'm somewhat of a stickler for minimalistic art, despite my own being the opposite."
"So I've noticed."
"Excuse me?" Andi questions, unsure if he heard the man correctly or not.
"I said I'm already familiar with your work, Andi." The man smiles again, his dimples making another appearance. "And it's a pleasure to finally meet you in person. Sorry it took me this long to approach you. I'll admit I was a bit nervous..."
The champagne glass nearly falls out of Andi's hand as his brain plays catch up with his eyes.
"Holy shit. I-Is it really you? You're really him? You're... K?"
"The one and only." The man nods, then says, "We aren't exactly strangers anymore, so feel free to call me Karlos instead."
"Karlos," Andi repeats, finally getting a name to put with the no-longer-faceless artist that he's admired for years. "I can't believe it's really you... I-I can't believe you're actually sitting here right now... s-sitting next to me, talking..."
Karlos laughs at Andi's reaction, patting him on the knee. "Breathe, Andi. It's just me. No one special."
"Lies! You're totally special, you're everything..." Andi stops, then blushes beet red. "Oh my God, I'm such a fucking cliche! Ugh." Andi places his drink on the floor in order to hide his panicked face in his hands. "I'm sorry. Just ignore me, please."
"I could never." Karlos chuckles, playfully poking Andi in the side. "You're way too adorable to ignore."
Yep.
Andi definitely isn't going to survive this night.
Not at all.
~
[ checking in to make sure everything is still working, can you guys see the picture in this chapter? ]