"Good morning, Mr. Anupart and welcome to Beijing. I am Zhao Han, and I am the in-house planner that is in charge of organizing today's media conference. Hope your journey was pleasant." 

"Yes, thank you."

"Great! Then, shall we begin?" Turning to the baggage carriers who had assembled behind him, he barked a few words in Chinese at them, before gesturing for Ngern to follow him into the building.

"As your management might have told you by now, we have a very long day ahead of us. For starters, we will head on upstairs for you to shower and get yourself ready for the big conference, which should take anywhere from two to five hours, considering it's going to be a packed house, then you'll have a group meeting with the various PR managements of the many brands acting as investors in the project, which shouldn't take over three hours, then there's the photoshoot that will be unveiled as the first official poster for the movie at tonight's soirée, and the ofcourse, the soirée itself, after which you'll be back on your jet and landing in Bangkok before you even know it." 

Ngern had to fight his urge to snicker. "Before you even know it"? Yeah, right. Ngern had done these things before. They were exhausting, and the journalists seemed to derive more satisfaction from asking about the artists personal lives, than about the film they were there to learn about. 

They were on the elevator and headed for sixtieth floor before a thought occurred to Ngern.

"What about my costars? Have they all already arrived?"

"Yes, and no. Kareena Rai landed last night and the glamour team arrived a few minutes before you did, so she should be getting ready for the conference right about now. Mr. Wu resides here in Beijing, so, he'll be arriving in about one-hour-thirty minutes time, half an hour before the conference begins..." The elevator dings as it reached the sixtieth floor, and the doors parted. Zhao led Ngern down the hallway. "...That should give you three adequate enough time to acquaint yourselves. I'll send two security guards up to you downstairs when it's time. Your glamour team is already waiting in your suite."

At that, Mr. Zhao stopped in front of a room, slid his keycard against the sensor and pushed the door open. Sure enough, there were four individuals in his suite already, and on the table sat several platters of food. Everything from fruits to sea food was displayed, and Ngern made a conscious decision right then and there to stick to trying only the things he knew. He had a hell of a day ahead of him and the last thing he needed was his digestive system to react unpleasantly to the wrong kind of stimuli. 

"Okay, then. I'll be leaving you in the very capable hands of the team. Bye." Zhao slammed the door shut before Ngern even got the chance to return his farewell.

 

Somewhere between getting his hair glossed up and his outfits picked out, Ngern Anupart had woken up. Like, fully woken up. The sun was shining in from his floor-to-ceiling windows which reminded him of his house, which in turn reminded him of August and the moments they'd shared, and now he couldn't focus on anything else too long because somewhere in the back of his mind was his August. Couple that with the lions roaring in the pit of his stomach and his nerves fraying at the press conference he was now making his way down to the conference to attend, it would be safe to say that Ngern was beyond shaken. 

You can do this, Ngern. You've been to many press conferences before. Your co-stars usually like me. This is nothing new. You can do this. He kept trying to tell himself, but the Chinese signs in the elevator, and the Chines bodyguards standing on either side of him said otherwise. This was new territory for him, and thought Tony Jaa had already paved the way for Thai actors in China, none other had followed in his footsteps until now. Besides, SPL: II was a long time ago. 

 

Ngern was led from the elevator and down a narrow hallway that didn't look anything as fancy as all the other places he'd seen in the hotel thus far. He figured it must be a back passageway to keep the media from spotting him too soon. 

Down a few more dimly lit corridors that crisscrossed and intertwined into each other so frequently that Ngern lost complete trail of where they had come from, the guards came to a complete standstill at a gray door, and motioned for him to enter. He guessed like most of his glamour team, the guards didn't speak any English or Thai. 

Ngern opened the door and walked in.

"No, Ms. Rai, not for another fifty or so minutes." It was Mr. Zhao, speaking into his cellphone. "Yes, Ms. Zhao, we've sent a limo to pick them up already. They should be here in less than fifty minutes--h-hello? Hello? Ms. Rai. Dammit, she hung up on me again--Ah! Mr. Anupart, right on time! Please, come have a sit. Make yourself comfortable." Zhao said, patting the couch he was standing by as the other hand fidgeted with his cellphone. 

"Is everything okay?" Ngern asked, seeing the scowl on Zhao's face.

"Yes, yes, Of course. As you can see you're the first of your co-stars to arrive, just make yourself comfortable, when all three of you are gathered, then you'll be escorted to the conference room. For now just have a sit and make yourself comfortable."

If the frown on his face wasn't enough indication to Ngern that something was definitely off, then the fact that Zhao kept repeating himself was a dead give away. Trying not to add to the man's burden, Ngern sat on the couch, and pulled out his phone. Though there were a few others gathered in the waiting room, they all seemed preoccupied on their phones and tablets, most-likely making sure that whatever the situation was, it was being taken care of promptly. 

A few minutes passed, and except for the standby server who occasionally asked if he needed anything, Ngern was still being kept out of the loop of everything happening. The traffic in the room circulated, with those who were already in the room leaving and others replacing them. It wasn't until five minutes before call time that the door sprang open, and this time instead of another team of smart-phone talking PR specialists and coordinators, a tall, slim, and blanched boy walked in, dressed in a flowery suit.

The room went quiet for a second or ten, at if his presence, before the hustle and bustle recommenced. 

Kris Wu had arrived.

Looking every bit the superstar, the actor was wore a flower patterned suit over a white dress shirt, and light brown oxfords. If Ngern hadn't been starring at him at that very moment, he would have found it hard to believe the former EXO member was truly in his presence.

"Yeah, yeah. Well, I'm here now." The young man said in heavily accented English. "Where is Kareena?"

"Ah, Ms. Rai is still up in her room. I'm afraid we won't be seeing her anytime soon." 

"Why? What happened?" 

"Oh, nothing for you to worry about--" Before Zhao finished his sentence, the young stars hands made their way up his neck and and over his head, and in that one swift swipe, Kris had attained the older man's key card. "M-Mr. Wu..."

"What room?"  

"Presidential B." Zhao sneered, clearly pushed to his wits end.

"Thank you." Kris turned around and made a dash for the door, then halted, his fingers around the knob. "You coming or not?"

It took a while for Ngern to realize the question was aimed at him. Slowly, he got off the couch, not sure what to do. "Follow me."

Ngern hurried behind his co-star, making sure to keep a few steps between them as Kris was fund of making abrupt stops as he tried to navigate through the maze he had been led through earlier. Finally, they emerged into the dead end where the elevator stood, and Kris pushed the request button.

"H-hi..." Ngern managed awkwardly. He had imagined a calm, collected meeting with brief handshakes, and a translator a few steps away helping with the introductions. This was anything but that. "I-I'm Ngern, your co-star..."

"I know who you are." Kris muttered coolly, not even sparing a glance Ngern's way. 

The elevator dinged and the doors open. 

They both stepped in.

"So...uh, what exactly is going on?" Ngern asked truly confused about the sudden twist of events. It was only a few minutes before the conference was due to begin, and one of his co-stars was MIA, and the other was... Well... Acting weird. 

"Ugh, it's just Kareena being her overly dramatic self." Kris replied. "Don't worry, you'll get used to it."

That was all the time they had for explanations before the elevator dinged again, and the doors parted. They had reached the presidential floor. 

On this floor, unlike on Ngerns, there were only seven doors, each identified by letters and not numbers like Ngern's. They stopped in front of  door B, and Kris swiped the card against the sensor just as he had when they got into the elevator. When it clicked in accordance and unlocked, Ngern reasoned it must be some sort of a master key which would make sense considering whom Kris snatched it from.

Kris opened the door and led them both in. 

The very first thing Ngern noticed was the smell of smoke in the air. Cigarettes. Someone had been smoking cigarettes, and probably a lot of them for the smell to be so strong. 

"Oh my God, I'm so sorry. " Kareena said unapologetically laughing as she untangled herself from him. She extended a hand to help him up, but he slapped it away irritably.

"Why are you always so crazy." Kris said trying to sound pissed, but the small smile forcing its way to his lips gave him away.

"Me? Crazy? Don't you mean awesome, cool, y? Crazy y cool?--Ooh, isn't that a TLC album?" Kareena spoke animatatedly, seemingly oblivious of the fact that she was dressed in nothing but a black lace bra and undies that melted so perfectly into her skin that very little was left for the imagination. "Don't go chasing waterfalls, please stick to the rivers and the lakes that you're used to..."

She sang along, taking both of Kris' hands into hers and forcing him to twirl her.

"Kareena, this is not time to be dancing, enough with the games." Kris admonished. "We have a press conference starting  in a few seconds and you've still got rollers in your hair."

"Games?!" Kareena scowled, letting go of Kris' hands. "They send in a make up artist here to 'whiten' me, and you think I'm playing games?!" 

At the mention of it, Ngern noticed Kareena's face did look a few shades lighter than the rest of her body. 

"Aw, Kareena, I didn't know that was what happened. I just overheard my manager talking to Zhao, saying you were being a diva, and knowing you... Well, it's not that far fetched." Kris teased. 

"Whatever." Kareena rolled here eyes and folded her arms under her s. "They're lucky I've been getting my om on lately in yoga class or else I would have shown them real diva behavior."

Seeing her standing there five feet five, barefooted, almost completely with a face that looked too pale to belong to the rest of her gold-kissed skin, Ngern almost fell in love.

Kareena Rai was gorgeous. 

"Okay, so what now?" Kris asked, plopping unto the couch, his head rested on the arm, and one leg hanging off the edge. "When I was coming in earlier the paparazzi were already outside in force, and the conference hall was packed. I understand why you're angry but we can't just not show up because of someone messing up your make-up, Kareena. Besides, didn't you say this is your chance to be the next Takana or whatever?" 

"Kangana! Her name is Kangana Ranaut, and who said anything about not showing up? I'm just giving them a hard time now so that they will be more careful later." Kareena said, tip toeing to the edge of her floor-to-ceiling glass wall and looking down. "You know why it is important to me to be this way, Kris. You of all people should understand me."

There seemed to be a mutual understanding between them as Kris sat quiet after that. Ngern found himself hoping that some day within the next month they'd be spending together, he'd get the chance to find out what she had meant by what she said.

"Ahem!" Ngern cleared his throat loudly as if to remind that he was still in the room. This day was just getting weirder and more fascinating and Ngern wasn't sure whether he liked that or not. "So... You two know each other already?"

"What gave us away? Was it the way I greeted him, or the fact that we've just had an entire conversation about something you couldn't possibly begin to understand?" There was a hint of humors in her voice, and Kris must have heard it too as he snorted. 

"All of the above." Ngern said, with a slight chuckle himself.

"Ah, looks like our co-star is a a genius. Would you mind if I called you Sherlock from now on, then?" Aria said stepping away from the window and sitting on the other arm of the chair Kris was laying on. 

"Not at all...but, how do you two know each other?" Ngern couldn't suppress the curiosity bubbling up inside of him. 

"Ugh, it's been years. We first met at Paris fashion week..."

"New York." 

"Was it? I thought it was Paris? Well, anyways, we met at some fashion event, somewhere in the world, and were put right next to each other. We barely shared a hello all night, but by the next morning it was already everywhere that we were seeing each other. Of course, seeing as I was eighteen and Indian, that was a big no-no. So, to make a long story short, we ended up bumping into each other again at the Hong Kong film festival and we had a good laugh about it, and since then we've been close." Kareena narrated, her eyes having that faraway look that came with the remembrance of a cherished memory.

"Oh, cool." Ngern said, feeling a bit out of place. Those two already had a friendship spanning years, and he was the outsider. "So, uh, when are we going down for the conference?"

"Okay, okay! No need to gang up on me, you two." Kareena said, dramatically throwing her hands up in surrender. "I got the hint, I'll go get myself dressed up, I think I've gotten my point across quite clearly." 

With that, Kareena got up from the arm of the chair and disappeared behind the door she'd emerged from earlier. 

"You should sit down." Kris said, placing his arm behind his head to make himself more comfortable. "We might be here for a while."

Ngern walked over to the sitting area and sat on the couch opposite Kris.

"Is she always like this?" Ngern asked, hoping to make some conversation. 

"Not really. She's just really passionate about certain things after what she went through--" Ngern half expected Kris to say more, but only silence followed after, giving him the impression that he'd said something that he wasnt supposed to.

"Oh, okay. I understand, I guess I'm like that too." Ngern said, thinking back on what had happened the day before. His big blowout at the studio and at Kim. He knew he was the last person to judge Kareena. "So... It must feel pretty cool, huh? Being cast with someone you're fund off. What are the chances that of all the actors you two would be picked to star in the same movie?"

 

"Actually, the chances are very high, considering I told the studio I'll only sign up if she does too." Kris said with a smirk. "This movie will be really good for her career and no doubt open her to other prospects beyond being an item girl."

"Oh! I-I didn't realize it was your idea..." Ngern said, again reminded of how far in status they were. Kris could actually choose whom he wanted to work with, on top of commanding the biggest salary in the production. "Was I also offered this role because you chose me?" Ngern teased.

"Why would I do that? We just met twenty minutes ago." Kris' voice was monotoned throughout, either oblivious or simply uncaring about offending Ngern.

"I guess you're right..." Ngern said, massaging the back of his neck awkwardly and wishing Kareena would hurry up as he'd already ran out  of discussion topics.

"Hey, Sherlock." Kris called out, opening his eyes for the first time since laying down on the couch.

"Huh?" Ngern muttered, meeting his stare for the first time since their meeting.

"Relax. We're not going to make your life miserable during this shoot." Kris said earnestly before smirking as he added, "At least, not intentionally."

With that understanding verbalized, the two men sat in silent companionship, as they waited a little over half an hour for their leading lady to emerge. 

 

+++++

 

 "I can not believe after all we've discussed over the past few days, you were still harboring this childish dream of yours, August!" His dad yelled, as he sliced into his omelet angrily. 

The both of them had barely said anything to him after watching the trending video the night before, and August had foreseen this speech coming. His mom had left for work before he woke up, as usual, and his dad was minutes away from stepping out himself. August had considered skipping breakfast all together, so as not to deal with all the melodramatics, but he also knew if he didn't now, he'd have to later. 

The scariest part of the whole ordeal was August didn't care. Everything his dad was saying was entering through one ear and right out the other, which was very unusual for someone like him who'd spent half his life clinging on to every word they said, hoping to make them proud. Now, it didn't matter if he was rebuke or not, his perspectives had changed.

He'd stayed up all night thinking it through. Everything. All of it. And it was all starting to make sense. He didn't have anything to prove to anyone. He was a young man on his journey to self discovery after years of being told who and what he was expected to be, and quite frankly, he was getting sick of it. The night before had been one of the greatest moments of his life. Watching himself on that YouTube video, and repeatedly refreshing the page to find that thousands more views had added to his video was beyond exciting. By the struck of luck, he'd some how rejuvenated his career, and was now trending on all the major social platforms. Was it too much to ask that someone else, especially within his family, was ecstatic for him too? Well, there were his grandparents, but that didn't really count. He'd never questioned their love. They had always been there for him, protecting him, loving him. Reminding him of what it felt like to have involved parents, every time his mom and dad would drop him off in  Chiang Rai because their lives had become too busy to make time for their son. No, his grandma and grandpa didn't count, because their love and acceptance of him had always been there, but the same could not be said for his parents.

Then there was Ngern who'd cared for him. Ngern who'd bent over backwards for him. Ngern who'd turned his whole life up side down for him. Ngern whom he'd run out off, and left behind like a used piece of rag. How must that have felt for him to wake up the morning after confessions of love to find he was alone in paradise? Why hadn't he thought it through? Was it Ngern's interest he was looking out for when he'd runaway, or his own?

There was so much August wanted to say to the other boy. So much he wanted to explain. 

"Are you listening to me?!" August jumped as his fathers fist slammed into the table. "I'm talking about your future and you're day dreaming? Do you know how  hard your mother and I have worked to build ourselves into the individuals we are today? Yes, it's true we aren't the wealthiest people, but we make more than the average worker and are each highly respected amongst our peers. You have worked ourselves half to death to provide the best of everything for you, August, and all we asked in return is that you focus on your education and get a great job so that you can climb even higher than we ever did. Instead, all you ever bring us is one disappointment after another. First with those mediocre grades, then that damn show, and now this?! Do you not care at all about how you're making this family look?!"

"What about me?" The words came out August's mouth before he even realized he'd spoken them. "What about what I want? Why is it always about you and mom and what you want?"

"What you want doesn't matter!" The words stung. "You've proven that even at your age you still can't make up your mind on What is beneficial for you and this family, so, what you want no longer matters. From now on, you do exactly as we say, and nothing more or less!"

"But dad..."

"No, August. No more buts. Your mom and I discussed this last night and came to a conclusion on how to move forward." August felt a cold breeze beat against his back, with the realization that whatever next his dad was going to say would not be great for him. "We've decided that since you can't seem to make any wise decisions on your own, then we'll have to lead the way. You'll report to my friends firm first thing tomorrow morning for work, and you will do everything necessary to build a good reputation for yourself. That way, in Two or three years time you can move on to a bigger and better firm, where you'd have more power and input. No more talk about this childish hobby of yours. No more films, and lakorns and definitely no more walking around on catwalks like a sissy. You're a man, August. It's about time you start acting like one." 

With that, August watched his dad push his chair backwards and get up. Tucking his laptop into his messenger bag and throwing his suit jacket over one hand, he made his way for the door.

"No!" August hadn't meant to yell it out. It was so unlike him to raise his voice at adults, but he justified within himself that this was an exceptional case. His parents wanted him to wither away like they were. Unhappy, and hollow. Abundant in money, but lacking in every thing else that really mattered. He wanted more than that for himself. And yes, the past few years had been tough for him, and his career had seen a down word spiral, but through it all he never stopped dreaming. He never stopped hoping that the next audition would be his lucky break, and the next and the next. And in those moments he'd learned more about himself than all the years he'd spent, sheltered under their overwhelming cloak of control. He'd tasted freedom, how could he go back to being a puppet? "No! Dad, I can't do it. I can't do it anymore. You have your life to live, and I have mine. I've done everything else you e asked of me so far, so, why can't you let me have this one thing?"

"I let you join that damned show, and see what happened? You went crazy and started dating that and running around from one party to another like a vagabond."

"I was working!"

"That is not work, August! No respectable person works in nightclubs. Leave that life for the strippers and cheap h00kers, son. You're meant for so much more. You should be aspiring to run this country one day, not prancing around aimlessly."

"But I want to prance, dad. I want to work in the nightclubs and walk around catwalks like a sissy. I like it. I feel alive when I do it. Why can't you see that? I want more than this. I want to travel and see the world and marry for love, not to improve my status." A tear slid down the young man's cheek at the horrified look on his fathers face. "I want more than you have to offer, and I'm not going to let anybody stop me from getting it. Not you or mom or anybody else."

August felt the weight that had been hovering over his chest dissipate. He'd spoken his truth for the first time in decades, and he prayed his father could hear him, really hear him, and consider what he'd just said. 

"Well, then I guess you have a big decision to make, son. You're either in This family and doing as we say, or you're out of it, wasting your life away. Either way, you have until we return home tonight to decide. And just in case you chose the latter, then leave your keys on the kitchen counter on your way out. You'll  no longer be welcomed here."

 Yes, the words hurt, but not nearly as much as August had expected them to. He was actually relieved. If he'd needed a bigger push than his trending video to get his career back on track, then that had definitely been it. First things first, he had to pay a visit to his apartment to find his cell. Surely, he must have an offer or two pending, all things considered, and he would definitely need the money if he was going to be packing out of home, once again.

 

*****

 

The apartment was just as he remembered. Tiny and cluttered. Or did he only think so now because he'd spent all that time in Ngern's duplex? Either Way, it did make him feel sad to notice all the flaws of the place now. Like how there was a small crack on one end of ceiling, and the windowsill was permanently sideways due to a poor construction job. All things that he wouldn't even have noticed before because of how in love with the place he was then. The apartment signified his first step towards independence, and even though it was now filled with sad memories, it had once been his home.

Ofcouse he'd been praying all along on his way there that Aim would not be home as apart from that time she called him through Ngern's phone, they were yet to have an actual conversation about everything that had happened.  So, August started by the door, then the couch, then the kitchenette, before coming to a stop at the bedroom closet. His duffle bag had been placed in it, and after opening it up and looking inside, he wasn't too surprised to find it looked exactly how he'd left it when he'd packed almost two weeks earlier. 

After filing through the bedside cabinets and checking under the bed--just for the sake of it--August came to the conclusion that his phone was truly missing. Maybe he'd dropped it somewhere along the way when he was running out? Maybe he could retrace his steps?

Absolutely not. It had been over a week and if he had indeed mistakenly dropped it, it was certainly someone else's now. 

Getting up to take his leave, August wondered if he should just gather up all his things and make his exit, but thought better of it. He still didn't know where he'd be staying now that he was been kicked out, and he felt until he figured that out, it was best he left all his belongings where they were. 

Knock! Knock! August froze. For a moment he thought he'd run out of his luck and Aim had come back home already, but then he reasoned if it was indeed Aim wouldn't she have just opened the door? His name might be on the lease, but she had the key, and now full ownership of the place. 

Knock! Knock! Went the person on the other side of the door again, this time louder, clearly impatient. 

"Yes, who's it?" August asked turning the knob on the door and pulling it open. 

Kim.

Ngern's P'Kim.

"W-Whah... P'Kim, what are you doing here?" August stammered at the sight of the older women, dressed formally in all black, with big sunglasses that seemed to cover half of her face. 

"Here to see you ofcourse. Why else would I have knocked on your door?" Kim answered. "You going to invite me in or would you rather talk out here?"

"Uh--C-come on in." August stepped aside to make room for Kim to enter. She stepped in, looking around inquisitively. "Please, have a seat..."

"That won't be necessary, this shouldn't take too long." Kim said, taking off her shades. "Listen, I know we started off on a bit of a rough patch, you and I, and maybe I got a bit too overprotective of Ngern that I spoke out of turn... But with all that has happened between the two of you, I hope we can put this behind us, and start anew."

"H-How do you mean?" August asked uncomfortably. He wasn't sure how much of everything that had happened during their week away had gotten back to Kim, but he suddenly felt too exposed under her intimidating glance. 

"YouTube, twitter, facebook, weibo... your face seems to be every where since that video was released, and as it is my job to keep an eye out for the next big thing, I couldn't help but be surprised when checking the trending topics this morning, I found that Ngern's Good Morning Thailand announcement had totally been eclipsed by some singer's 'intimate' fanmeet. You can't imagine how shocked I was when I found it was causing all the fuss."

"I-I don't know what to say. I didn't think this whole thing would blow up as much as it did, honestly, but I can't exactly say I'm not happy it did." August said, weighing his words against his tongue before saying them out loud. He still wasn't sure what exactly Kim's intentions were or how she'd even found out where he lived, but the sooner she got on with it, the better. 

"And you shouldn't be! This is a great thing that is happening for you dear boy, and for no reason should you be unhappy about it. Besides, I'm sure your little career is going through meteroic restitution because of that video. Which brings me to why I'm here."

Kim paced about for a few seconds, as if not sure whether to say what she had come there for or just run through the still slightly ajar door. Finally, she stopped, and turned to set her eyes on August once again, and the poor boys heart almost stopped beating from the pent-up anxiety of waiting to hear what she had to say. 

"I want to sign you to my talent management company." Of the hundreds of things August had been expecting to hear Kim say, that simply did not make the cut. 

"W-w-what? Sign me? You? Why? ME?" August struggled to formulate a sentence, but his thoughts were suddenly so jumbled up that he couldn't help himself. 

"Why not? You're young, handsome, and from the sounds of what I heard from that video, talented, as well. With the right representation you could become a favorite amongst the maleable tweens and eventually, a national star. You once had a great career, look at this as a second chance for your popularity to be restored to it's full glory."

August couldn't believe he was hearing those words come out of Kim, and as much as he wanted to hung her and throw her in the air out of gratitude, he couldn't help but feel something was off. His mom and dad may have been strict, but after years of him watching them butter up influnetial people with praises and backhanded compliments for one deal or another at dinners he'd been forced to sit through, August was very well versed in the art of the double-aged tongue. There was a catch. For everything she was offering, there was an ultimatim. He could practically hear it, even though she was yet to say so. 

So, in a bid to save himself the embarassment of having Kim run into Aim and finding out all the drama he was going through and maybe thinking of him as a bigger leech than ever before, August opted to get straight to the point. 

"Why? You've made it very clear that you don't like me much, so why are you trying to help me?"

"Help you? It's just business, kid. Ofcourse I won't be handling you personally, so, out of every baht you earn, twenty percent would be coming out of it. Your personal agent would be getting ten-percent, and the rest goes to my firm. When and if your career can be restored to glory, then we can renegotiate the terms. Surely, you've seen how incredibly well your...friend, Ngern, is doing since he signed with me, so, you know I'm not just bragging when I say that you have a better chance with me than with any other company."

"And this has nothing to do with Ngern?" Was that a twitch of her upper lip? A flinch of her eyes? August knew he was on to something, and he was going to get the answers he felt he deserved. This was a new day for him. He felt reinvigorated. And if there was anything his earlier scuffle with his father had proven to August, it was that he was going to have to grow a thicker skin. "This is about him, isn't it? Did he send you here?"

"no, don't be absurd, boy." Kim barked, that vicious edge of hers reading it's head for a second before she regained her cool. "I am here on my own accord. Besides, even if he did send me, what does that change for you? You're still walking away with the bigger share of the pie, in all this, you know. Isn't this what you want? Doesn't it feel great being a somebody again? I'm offering you a life of opportunities, August. I'm giving you a chance to be somebody in this town again."

"All for what? I'm not going to claim to know all about you, but I know where your loyalty lies, and it's not with me. So if you made a trip all the way down here, then it has something to do with Ngern. So, tell me the truth, P'Kim, why are you really here?" August couldn't believe himself. Where had all this new found confidence Coke from? Why did he suddenly feel so sure of himself? 

"You're quite the perceptive one, aren't you." Kim huffed. "Fine. I tried to be cordial, but I guess I have no choice. I know what's going on between you and Ngern. Though he didn't go into details, I've made a whole career out of reading between the lines. Now, he claims there was some kind of misunderstanding between you two, that he read the signs wrong, and the quilt is crushing him inside. But I saw you two together. I saw the signs for myself. You can't tell me there was nothing there, because the was. I saw it with my own eyes.

"I don't know what went wrong, or why you decided to break his heart after all he's done for you, all I know is that I have to keep him safe. I have watched him work tirelessly to become the he is now, and old be damned if you or anyone tries to take that away from him."

"Oh, I get it now." August sneered. "You're here for crisis management. You're trying to buy my silence. You think I'm going to try selling The fact that Ngern is gay?"

August had never felt more insulted in his life. His breaths came in short spurts and his fingernails dug into his fisted Palm. 

"Get out." His voice was but a whisper, but his rage rang through, loud and clear. "Fine, have it your way." Kim pulled out a card from her handbag and tossed it at August who made no attempt to try catching the piece of cardboard paper. "Sleep on my offer, I won't be asking twice."

she her heels and stormed out of the apartment, slamming the door behind her.

Finally, alone again, August crouched to the floor, unable to hold his legs up as tears ran down his face, unto the floor. 

 

+++++

 

Ngern was exhausted. His jaws hurt from smiling and his eyes from the flashing of cameras. Chinese paparazzi was no joke. It felt more like more like a militia force than a group of photographers. 

"Wait 'till you we release in India, you'll probably go blind from the flashes." Kareena teased, as they stood all three of them infront the first poster they'd shot a few hours earlier. Ofcourse Kareena got to stand in the middle, dressed in a beautiful knee length, dress that complimented Kris' very much. And now that Ngern was aware of the history between them, he had a feeling they had color coordinated for the evening. 

Oak, Heard and a few other big shots from LMS had flown in for the evening to mingle with the project investors and the media, and though there were less than a hundred people in the hall in total, August was struggling to keep track of his co-stars. 

Kareena and Kris had morphed into butterflies during the span of the day, and Ngern couldn't help but be envious of how easily they moved from one person to the other with their translators, shaking hands and ensuing laughter to all that they came across. 

Kareena's was the most surprising of the two, as Ngern was finding it hard to reconcile the audicious, loud mouthed brunette he'd been introduced to in lace lingerie with the soft spoken, serene, bodacious girl that he was now watching place her hand over to cover her teeth as she giggled into her palm at something a fat, bald-headed big shot in tailored suit was saying. Oh yes, Kareena was a big hit amongst the men, and Ngern was sure if he wasn't already borderline obsessed with someone else, he would have reconsidered that whole gay thing.  

"Is everything okay, Mr. Anupart? Would you like to sit down now?" His personal translator asked, watching him closely. 

"No, no, not yet. We've still got a few people to chat with, right? Who next?"

"Actually, that will be it for you, Mr. Anupart. According to my schedule, you should be making your exit through the back corridors in five minutes. Maybe you should bid farewell to your costars before heading out."

"Oh, but what about my stuff, I have to go get..."

"Your toiletries have already been packed and placed in the vehicle sir."

"Oh, okay. I guess I'll go say my goodbyes like you said, then."

 

*****

The braking of the car jolted Ngern awake. A few glances around and he realized he was already home. Thank God for P'Kim. That private jet deal she'd struck with the studio was proving to be a lifesaver. Not having to stand through hours of airport terminals was not only saving him an immense amount of energy, but the one thing Ngern found he seemed to never have enough of...Time.

He'd slept the whole flight long, and the whole drive to his apartment. 

Stepping out, he grabbed his traveling bag in one hand and waved goodbye to the driver before walking into the building. 

An elevator ride and two access card swipes later, and Ngern was savoring the sound of his apartment door lock click open. Though still a bit taken aback by the sight of his apartment now fully furnished, it was not the sight of it that made him gasp and drop his traveling bag after turning on the lights. No, the surprise was from the person he spotted, coiled up on his couch, as he snored lightly. Even from afar, Ngern didn't need a second to guess with utmost conviction who that was sleeping so peacefully in his couch.

August.

His August.

Still, Ngern had to make sure he wasn't just imagining it as he walked ever closer and reached out to touch the boy. But, just before their skin made contact, Augusts eyes flew open. He blinked rapidly as he came to, and quickly sat up with the realization that Ngern was hovering over him.

Ngern in turn took a step back as if he'd just been caught doing something embarrassing. 

"What the took you so long?" August muttered, eyes squinted against the harsh glare of the lights. "Do you know how long I've been waiting?"

"W-w-what do you mean? W-what are you doing here?" Ngern wanted to be mad. He wanted to be furious. He wanted to kick and scream, and make August see just how much hurt he'd cost him when he'd left without saying goodbye. He wanted August to see hard his heart had fallen to the floor that morning he'd woken up to the tweeting of birds and the smell of sea salt to find that his night time lover had disappeared into the sunset without a trace. He wanted... 

Ngern wanted to laugh. He wanted to grab the unruly haired boy in his arms and twirl him around like they were star-crossed lovers meeting again for the first time after a life time apart, because by the heavens, it definitely felt as such. He'd missed him. He'd missed him so much in the two dad they'd been apart, that Ngern now jus wanted one question answered.

"Why? why do you leave? Why did you make me think I was going crazy? That everything we'd shared had just been a figment of my imagination?" Tears welled up in Ngern's eyes, finally confronting the person all his anger from the day before had been meant for. 

"Is that why you sent your manager to come into my apartment and try to buy my silence?" August asked, standing up to meet Ngern's glare at a much more equal level. 

"What?! Sent who? Buy your silence? What are you talking about?"

"Oh, my God." August puffed, leaning forward and placing one hand over his heart in a sign of relief. "You have no idea how hard I have been praying all day that you'd say that!"

"Whah--what are you even talking about? Why are you here? What do you want? And how the hell did you get into my home?" Ngern was twenty kinds of lost, and seeing the look of relief on August's face both irked and excited him. "You shouldn't be here. You can't just appear infront of me whenever you feel like it, get me all wound up, and then disappear without an explanation. You can't just play with my feelings however you please and think it's okay. I-I trusted you. I let you in... And I thought you were letting me in too..."

"I did. I do. I still want to." August blurted out, his ears ringing from the sorrowful drawl of Ngern's words. "I'm so sorry Ngern. I'm so sorry for running away the way I did. I'm sorry for breaking your heart and driving you crazy. It drove me crazy too, you know. It drove me crazy, too, leaving the way I did. And I'm sorry it took me so long to figure it all out."

August reached over and wiped away the stray tear sliding down Ngern's cheek, and Ngern did thesame to the boy who hadn't even been aware he was crying too. 

"I'm sorry it took us being apart for me to realize what I really wanted was to be with you. It was never you, Ngern, it was me. I was just so scared..." The words caught in his throat as he chocked down a sob.

"I'm scared too." Ngern said, leaning low to rest his forehead against August's. "I'm scared too, Gust."

Then it happened again. Their lips met. The world faded away. There was no tongue dancing, no groping. No other parts of their bodies touched except their noses and lips  Why then? 

Why then did this feel like the most intimate moment they'd ever shared? Why then did this tear-sweetened moment of pure truth, terror and insecurity gave the two young men an abundance of peace and solitude? 

Was this fear or passion?

Was it anger or happiness? 

Was this another phase of hate?

Or...

Was it love?

 

 

*****

 

Hey guys, sorry for the delay. These few chapters have been so long that I'm having writers block In between. Anywho, I'm in a bit of a pickle and I need your advice. Remember how last week I mentioned that I was considering the possibility of turning this into a published novel? Well, that possibility just became all too real! Let me explain. So, I've been looking into possible ways I could publish this and I came across the kindle self-publisher from Amazon. The thing that's really making me consider this is that you guys could access it for free while I could still be earning a few bucks. Pretty much if you have a kindle unlimited account (even if you don't, the first 30 day trial is free) you can download the book via the Kindle app and for every page read, I would be getting paid. I know, I know. GreedyChan... But as a full time worker and student, I could really use the extra coins. I'm not a movie star like Ngern you know. (But I dream of being one every ing day. I swear it!) so, pretty much, what I really want to know is if any of you would actually go out of our way to read it via kindle unlimited if I published it there. Also, I'm going to have to change the names and such of the main characters for legality sakes, along with a lot of grammatical corrections. Anywho, please let me know. I'm really conflicted about this. :'(

 

Oh!! And can we take a minute to appreciate how ing beautiful Kangana Ranaut is? (That's the Indian actress I'm basing Kareena off of.) and btw, if you've never watched the movie QUEEN, that she stars in, you haven't watched any good movies. It's not BL but I feel like I must share how amazing it is with you guys. I fell in love with her since then and haven't looked back. Lol.