Keep Your Filthy Money
Something Like This
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"Good Evening Mr. Wu," said the valet as he opened the driver's door and got Kris' keys.
While Tao speechlessly watched as the valet drove off with Kris' Lamborghini. He was in awe. Why would anybody let just anyone drive off with their very very very expensive car like that. Oh geez, that sounded dumb didn't it? But anyway, the idea of a valet's job just always seemed absurd to Tao. Like seriously, only lazy rich people would think of such an occupation.
"Hey, are you coming?" said a smooth, deep voice.
Tao's thoughts came back to present as he followed Kris into the Imperial Palace Hotel they had arrived to. And they weren't kidding with a name like that. There were high porcelain tiled ceilings, big sparkling chandeliers, grand red wood columns and elegant ivory (colored) arches, with polished marble floors having intricate patterns forming star-like shapes. And the amber lighting made the place glowed like a classy vintage setting from the movies.
Passing the spacious lobby they come to the elevator which was just as lavish. But Tao didn't have time to admire its gold moldings before Kris was standing inside the elevator calling him in with a beckoning finger.
Tao dropped his gaze as he went in after the elevator door closed, with a sudden feeling of nervousness. Maybe because they were in a small enclosed space with only the two of them. Or the fact that Kris was scanning his body up and down.
"W-what are we doing here?" Tao couldn't help the small stutter that came out.
"What do you think we're doing here?" Kris smirked at him.
Damn it, don't do that. Looking away (though not helping anything since the elevator walls were covered in mirrors), Tao was thinking something in the lines of cheap motels, sticky floors, musky-cigarette smelling rooms and dirty bed sheets. But that's only because he might have seen a little too much indie films with es in them. 'Cuz really, Tao has never been to a cheap motel before and he doesn't plan to. And he decided he didn't want to answer Kris.
The hotel's master suite (not just a room) was as grand and amazing as the hotel's lobby, except Tao didn't have a chance to marvel at it before Kris started towards him.
"Take off your clothes."
"W-what?" Tao said, voice shaking as he tried to move away from Kris.
"Excuse me, let me rephrase that. Take off your suit, and put that one on." Kris pointed at a full tuxedo laid atop the king sized hotel bed before them. "I don't want you embarrassing me with that cheap suit of yours that you probably bought from the outlet store for 30,000 WON."
"Excuse me, but that's n-" Tao stopped himself because it's kind of true. It was actually 29,000 WON during a clearance sale. "...err, nevermind. But what exactly am I here for?"
"This is one of my family's hotels. It's the anniversary today. So there's this party we're having tonight with a lot of very important people attending," Kris explained.
"And...?" Tao was expecting more.
"And you're taking off your cheap suit to put on the one I bought you. Then you're going down to main ballroom where the party is." Kris makes a turn to the door.
Tao was still confused. "Wait, where are you going?"
"I'm one of those very important people too. So when you're done just meet me down there. Don't take too long. And don't try to runaway." Kris wagged a finger at Tao, then left.
This is some kind of weird , Tao thought. Maybe he can go out the window to escape.
Tao didn't go out the window. It was too high and he didn't like hospitals and broken bones. So he arrived at the hotel's main ballroom, which wasn't that hard to find with all the dozens of big floral wreaths with "Congratulations, Happy Anniversary!" banners lined up against the wall in that area.
The main ballroom was just at majestic as the lobby, with the highlight being the huge chandelier in the center with strings of crystals raining down from the ceiling. It was very sparkling just like everyone there, except himself. Tao knew he didn't belong there. He was already turning on his heels to leave too, that is until something tugged at his arm.
"Where do you think you're going?" Kris' hand slid down Tao's arm and interlocked their fingers together and his face brightening up with a smile. "Come with me."
In this moment all Tao saw was Kris' handsome sparkling smile as he was pulled along by the latter. His focus came down to their hands. How they held on to each other, how they fit; and especially how their fingers laced together like the strings of yarn in a warm knitted sweater. (Yea, it's a weird metaphor, but forget that.) Tao never had someone hold his hand like this before, so intimately. He suddenly felt his face heat up.
"Everyone thank you for celebrating with us on this special night. To that fact, I also have a special announce to make as well."
When Kris' voice echoes through the microphone sound system, Tao finally looked up and realized he was up on a stage looking down at a sea of people. Men in expensive tuxedos like the one he was wearing (given by Kris). The women in elegant ball gowns, who were adorn with jewelry that were dripping with diamonds and gems. Almost all of them holding a glass of red wine or champagne between their fingers.
Why am I up here? Tao wondered, in a daze.
"Everyone, I want to introduce to you all my fiancé, Huang Zi Tao."
Tao turned to Kris in awe, disbelief, and utter shock shown on display on his face (bugged out eyes and jaw dropping 10 floors down. Okay, that's a bit exaggerated). It doesn't stop there, of course. Kris pulls him in by the waist, reminiscent of the first time they met, and presses their lips together in a kiss, right in front of the whole world. Well, not the whole world, but their was a heck of alot of people there now watching them.
Tao catches his breath when Kris lets him go. And he was burning from the inside out.
"Since I already have someone, I will not accept any offers of marriage, mom and dad. So aunties and uncles please refrain from introducing me to your daughters, step-daughters, grand-daughters, nieces, and etc."
"But isn't that a man?" someone said out of nowhere, distinct of an older woman's voice.
"Yes, he is. And he is the most beautiful being I've ever met, and I have fallen deeply for him," Kris said as he looked sincerely into Tao's eyes and kissed the young host boy's hand which was still in his grasp.
Tao was speechless. Nothing seems real now. It's like a dream sequence where a white knight, (or the prince) from some far-far-away kingdom has just gallop into his world on a white stallion and came down on one knee to asked for his hand. There were soft lighting, sparkles and roses all around Kris. But Tao... he wasn't anything. He wasn't even a damsel in distress (not that he wanted to be one anyway). He's just a mere peasant.
Tao quickly snapped out of it when he started hearing noises from down below. There were whispers, furious chattering, looks of disgust, and fingers pointing straight at him. Something awful began bubbling inside of him. Tao looked around desperately until his eyes landed on a door at the corner of the stage with a sign glowing red, reading: "EXIT".
Tao made a dash for it. He ran and ran (maybe 5-7 minutes or so) until something caught him by the wrist. He saw it was Kris and quickly shook the man's hand off of him.
Tao looked around their surroundings and realized they were in a rose garden. There were walls of well-manicured bushes of roses in a variety of colors. There was even a big waterfall-style fountain with colorful changing lights in the center, circled by cobblestones. This scene looked so beautiful (dream-like, again). And it didn't seem right.
Not right at all, Tao thought. He suddenly turned to Kris. "Was this a joke to you? Was I just a jester you hired for entertainment?"
"What? No." Kris shook his head, his lips curving slightly. "I just wanted you to fool my parents to..."
"I'm no fool," Tao interrupted loudly, almost in a growl. "And I hate being treated like one," he ended, walking towards the exit gate of the garden.
"Hey, where are you going?" Kris called back at him. "What about the money?"
Tao didn't look back, frowning he yelled, "You can keep your filthy money!" Then he stomped madly out the gate.
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Author's Note
Yup, so the "BIG" chapter is finally out. Was it not what you excepted? Or was it no surprise? Well, I hope it's the first. The next chapter Tao and Kris will actually get a littler closer, but that's all I'm saying to keep you all waiting.
On another note, thank you to all who subscribe (especially the commenters!) to this story to make it reach passed 100, which I was quite surprised. I thought I was just gonna write a couple chapters to get the story out of my brain and then give up like I usually do if there were low subscribers and/or minimal comments. So I guess I'll just keep writing until the story becomes "uninteresting".
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