Chapter Text
It caught Chay by surprise, the same as it had when Kim had first kissed his cheek in the studio. He acted the same, lunging for Chay, only to freeze when he reached him like he didn’t know what to do next.
When Kim’s lips didn’t move against his, Chay regained his senses and pulled away, grabbing Kim’s wrist. Chay didn’t want to cry. He wanted nothing more than to not cry right at that moment, but his body betrayed him.
Turning on his heel, Chay rushed out of the cafe, trying to keep his sobs at the lowest level possible as he looked for somewhere to hide. His hands were shaking as he pulled his phone out and dialed Pete’s number.
“Porchay?”
Chay opened his mouth to answer, but all that came out was an injured wail.
“Get somewhere safe,” Pete snapped gently. “Take a picture of a street sign or something. I’ll be right there.”
Chay nodded, hanging up so he could send a picture of a small bookstore before he ducked inside. He found a quiet corner and curled in on himself, dropping his head onto his knees as he let his tears soak his jeans. Only a few minutes later, he was startled by a broad hand touching his back.
“It’s me,” Pete whispered. “I’m here.”
Chay wrapped his arms around Pete’s neck, clinging like a child as Pete helped him to his feet. “Vegas is outside. Let’s go.”
Pete gave the salesclerk an apologetic nod as he shielded a sniffling Chay toward the car. Vegas was outside, as he had had said, but he wasn’t alone. He had Kim pinned by the throat to the side of the car.
“Vegas,” Pete called sternly, getting his attention. “Choke him later.”
Vegas growled, but he let go of Kim, who hadn’t even been trying to defend himself.
Kim tried to say something to Chay, but Vegas cut him off, pointing a finger at his chest as he said, “Later. Give him space, you dick.”
Chay collapsed into the back seat and Pete crawled in with him, wrapping his arm around Chay and covering Chay’s eyes with his hand.
“Where are we going?” Vegas said, shutting his car door.
“Just drive for now,” Pete said gently.
“You got it,” Vegas said, starting the engine.
Chay took several deep, slow breaths as Vegas made random turns and coasted down side streets.
“Sorry,” Chay finally managed to croak. “I didn’t know who else to call.”
“Don’t apologize,” Vegas huffed as Pete brushed Chay’s bangs away from his face.
“Do you want to talk about it?”
Chay exhaled. There were a million questions in his head. Eventually, he settled on one they might be able to answer.
“At the warehouse–when Tawan took me–was Kim there?”
“I wasn’t there,” Pete replied, turning toward Vegas. “Sweetheart?”
“I was,” Vegas murmured, his shoulders slumping. “And yes, he did show up. He seemed pretty pissed. I had already known that he had been sniffing around you, but I was still surprised, honestly.”
“What the fuck is wrong with this family?” Chay griped.
Pete gave him a soothing shake and asked, “What isn’t wrong with this family?”
Finally, they made their way back to the main family home. Chay was meant to be having a slumber party, and he didn’t want to worry Macau by coming home early and in tears.
Pete helped him out of the car, and Chay gave him a tight hug before he stepped away.
“Thank you, Phi. Both of you.”
“Are you still coming home tomorrow?” Vegas asked. Chay could tell that he wanted to ask more because of Macau, but he was holding back.
“Yeah,” Chay said. “I’ll be back tomorrow. I just need to calm down.”
Vegas nodded. Pete had been watching Chay closely, and hadn’t gotten back in the car yet. Putting his hands on his hips, he blurted, “I’ll be home tomorrow, too.”
Vegas gave him a questioning look, so Pete shrugged.
“Tell Macau that Khun wanted me to come over to watch scary movies or something.”
As much as Chay wanted to tell Pete that it wasn’t necessary, he was glad that Pete wanted to stay with him. Chay still didn’t know what would happen if Kim tried to talk to him again before the day was through.
“Love you,” Vegas said, giving Pete a kiss through his window. “I’ll see you both tomorrow. But tell me if Kim bothers you again. I’ll have a talk with him.”
“You’re biased,” Pete said.
“So are you.”
“Yes, but…” Pete sighed. “Anyway, we’ll see you tomorrow. Love you.”
Pete spun around, putting his hands on both of Chay’s shoulders to steer him inside so they could hide out in Chay’s bedroom. Chay showered and got into his pajamas, even though it was early, while Pete gave him some privacy. He came back in sweats and a shirt he had gotten from somewhere with a tray of food.
“I’m not that hungry, Phi.”
Pete gave a warm smile. “I figured, but you should try to eat a little.”
Chay wept silently as he forced a few bites down. Pete sat beside him, petting his head and humming like Chay were his fevered child. Pushing the tray away, Chay leaned back on his pillows. Pete got up to set the tray aside and tucked Chay into bed before climbing up to sit beside him atop the covers. He didn’t speak, he just waited until Chay was ready.
“I love Macau,” Chay began, turning to make sure that Pete understood. Pete nodded, so Chay said, “But Kim hurt my heart. And I just want answers from him. I want to know why. What did I do wrong? What if I do the same thing, and Macau doesn’t want me anymore?”
He sighed, and Pete took a deep breath.
“I can’t speak for Macau, but from where I’m sitting, I think all of you just need some more time to work this out. You need to talk to both of them, and then you’ll know your answers.”
“Yeah, but…” Chay trailed off, worrying his hands together. “What if I hurt them both?”
“You might. But just like you can choose to forgive Kim or not, they can choose to forgive you, if you’re sorry.”
“How did you forgive Vegas?”
Pete hissed. “That’s different. I thought I was going to lose him, permanently, so I did whatever I could do to keep him. I had to keep him alive, first. After that, we talked. I told him how the things he did made me feel, and he listened. He apologized. He was sincere. And I love him.”
Chay nodded. “Can you really stay with me?”
“Of course,” Pete said with a grin.
“I’m really tired, but I don’t want to sleep just yet.” Chay was waiting, remembering that Porsche had said he would see him.
“Want to watch some TV?”
Chay nodded, sliding further under the covers as Pete found the remote. He found something light, and Chay let himself mentally check out, safe next to Pete. At one point, Porsche did show up. He took one look at Chay’s red-rimmed eyes and crawled in the large bed on the other side of Chay, throwing an arm over him. Chay couldn’t tell if Pete had already texted Porsche, but he didn’t care. He just wanted to sleep.
Chay had a nightmare, snapping awake. The television glowed faintly in the dark room, and he could hear a commercial playing over the soft sounds of Pete and Porsche breathing on both sides of him. Tears fell, wetting his hair and his expensive pillowcase. Chay wanted Macau. As soon as the nightmare began, he had wanted Macau.
Chay sat up. His phone was on the nightstand, and he knew that Pete was a light sleeper, so he crawled over Porsche, moving slowly so he didn’t wake. Phone in hand, Chay slipped into his bathroom and sat on the edge of the tub. It was two in the morning, but still he sent a text.
I had a nightmare.
Macau was likely deep asleep, but Chay still waited, his eyes fixed on the screen. He exhaled when he saw the dots appearing to tell him that Macau was responding.
I’m coming.
Chay waited a few minutes, knowing it would take Macau time to get dressed and get on a bike. There shouldn’t be much traffic, so once Chay thought he would be close, he snuck out of his room to wait by the front entrance. The bodyguards gave him surprised looks, but no one said anything.
Chay tapped his hand on his thigh, feeling nervous. Had he overreacted? Would Macau be irritated at being woken up for nothing?
Macau pulled up, barely letting the kickstand connect with the ground as he got off the bike and tossed his helmet aside. He was still dressed for bed, he had just thrown on shoes.
Chay ran to him, and Macau’s eyes went wide when he saw him. As they collided, they wrapped their arms tightly around one another. Chay’s limbs relaxed as he buried his face in Macau’s neck to inhale his smell.
“You okay?” Macau asked, leaning back to cup Chay’s face in his hands to get a better look at him.
Chay wanted to kiss him, but he could feel the eyes of the guards on them. “Come with me.”