Chapter Text
Rain tried to take a deep breath, but gasped instead, as Phayu’s cock entered him a little more. “Phi!” he moaned. Phayu looked down at his boy, his beautiful prince, who had stolen his heart. It was an year to the day he had first met Rain, and nothing in this world had prepared him for that first meeting of the eyes, as Rain had bumped into him. Even though he had not even been looking for love, and neither had Rain, they had found each other and now, as the rings he had bought last week lay snug in his riding jacket, he knew for sure that Rain was it for him; his one, his only.
One year ago, 15 days before Halloween,
“Rainnnn! Please! You have to make it this time!” Sky whined, his pout visible through the phone. Rain rolled his eyes. It was rare that the tables were turned, and Rain was not as susceptible to Sky’s puppy eyes as he believed. Although, in a weak moment, Rain had admitted that Pai had taught Sky well, but Rain was a master of that look, and there was no way in hell he was giving in. “Sky, I have an important presen..,” he trailed off when Sky hmphed. “I don’t believe that for a second. Also, if you are afraid to come alone, I can set you up with someone. P’Pai has a fr..,” “Yut! Stop! No fucking way!” Rain cut Sky off before he would start extolling the virtues of one of P’Pai’s myriad friends. He was just not interested in anyone. He had worked very hard to make it this far in his life, and he didn’t want any distractions changing up his life.
“We will all be there Rain. And you haven’t properly met anyone since you came back from Singapore. It has been 3 months buddy! Na? Na? Na?” Sky begged. It was true. He had set out to create a name for himself here in Thailand, and he had not been able to make time for anyone. It rankled that everyone had someone, and Rain, the one who had always wanted to be loved, had no one. So he had changed his life and put himself on the path to success. But maybe, this was a good way for everyone to meet. So finally, Rain relented. “Okay! Fine! I will come. I know it’s Halloween, but is there any specific theme within?” he asked. “We are looking for the ‘enemies to lovers’ trope. So you can dress in a particular costume, and your partner in another. If anyone doesn’t have a partner, there will surely be someone who will be dressed in a rival’s costume, so we will judge them as a couple,” Sky said, beyond excited that Rain was coming.
Halloween Day, 31st October:
On the day of the party, Rain sighed, standing in front of his wardrobe. He knew how he wanted to dress, but he was not sure whether it would be okay to dress that way. He had changed over his time in Singapore, and that was another reason he was not willing to step out and meet his friends. But he also knew that a little more procrastination, and he just might end up with Sky on his doorstep. He had made Sky promise that there would be no matchmaking done, otherwise he would stage a walkout, and his tone was clear enough that Sky would take him seriously. He sighed again, and then took out what he wanted to wear. He quickly dressed, and then applied his make-up, his strokes quick and deft. Make-up had always been something he had loved, something that gave him confidence and strength to face the world he had always hated, his perfect façade.
He walked into Sky and P’Pai’s house (mansion?) gawking considerably. When Sky had said that he and P’Pai had moved into a bigger house to be close to his parents, he hadn’t expected an entire fucking estate. Each part of the place was brightly lit and large number of people milled about, making Rain sigh in relief. He just had to manage not to catch anyone’s eye, have a drink, and then conveniently disappear. Later, he could message Sky from the relative safety of his home, saying he had made it, but didn’t see anyone and left. He gave himself half an hour, inching his way inside, away from the place where the throng of people seemed the most. He had almost made it to what seemed like the quietest corner, when he bumped into someone. He looked up, intending to apologise, and was struck dumb.
In front of him stood the most beautiful man he had ever seen, and he had seen enough (he was a STAY of course!) The man was tall, nearly having at least 4 to 5 inches on Rain, who was not very short either. His hair lay floppily across his face, his eyes pitch black. He was dressed as a shaman, and although the make-up he had on left much to be desired, Rain could not deny that he was beauty personified. “Are you done staring Nong?” the man asked, his voice deeply dreamy as Rain finally looked up into his eyes. He blushed, ashamed of getting caught at being so obvious. But the man simply grinned. “Hello ghostie!” the man said, his smile lighting up his eyes. Rain blushed again, waiied politely, and tried to slip past the man. “No reply for me?” the man asked, clasping Rain’s wrist. His warm palm sent a thrill shooting up Rain’s nerve ends, and he stared at him again, unable to utter a word.
Phayu couldn’t believe his luck. How he had gotten roped into the godforsaken party was anyone’s guess. Couple of years ago, his Uncle Khun had attended something like this in America, where he had been visiting some friends, and had taken it into his head that they should start doing this as well. Phayu’s Pa, Uncle Porche, Uncle Macau and Uncle Chay, all regularly fed into Uncle Khun’s horrible plans without a single thought, so it was left to the others to pick up the pieces. The year before, Phayu had managed to escape this whole shebang by the skin of his teeth as he had been in Japan for some urgent meetings. But this year? Not only did he have to attend this one, but had somehow been roped into hosting the next one in his own house. He had stared aghast at his Uncle Khun, before looking at his Dad with pleading eyes. And that man, that horrible, horrible man, had simply shrugged his shoulders as if to say ‘you are on your own on this one buddy’. He had never felt so let down by his Dad in his entire existence.
Which is why he was slowly sidling away, wanting to escape, trying to see if there was any way out of this mess, when he had bumped into someone. He had stepped back, apology on his lips which had petered out as he stared at the vision in front of him. The boy was.. Phayu had never seen anyone this beautiful, this ethereal. He was dressed as a ghost most likely, red staining his lips, and a bloody line drawn to one side of the mouth, eyes pale, almost white, most likely contacts, his short black hair, black vest that showed off the most spectacular collarbones; everything making him look absolutely delish. “Hi ghostie,” Phayu said, then mentally facepalmed. Like.. could he be anymore lame? The boy simply waiied, wanting to step past Phayu, but he couldn’t let this one go. He immediately grasped the boy’s wrist, and was shocked at the tingles that went through him at that first touch.
The boy just stared at him, seemingly surprised, and Phayu immediately released the wrist. “Hi. I am Phayu,” he said, hoping to get a response at least this time. “Rain,” the boy said softly. “I am sorry Phi, but I need to leave,” he added. “Oh!” Phayu said, feeling tongue-tied and stupid with it. He was supposed to be smart and suave, a born businessman like his fathers and uncles, but in front of this boy, he felt like a stuttering mess. Was there nothing better than ‘oh’? He mentally facepalmed. Again. “Why don’t we get a drink first Nong?” he asked. “I don’t drink Phi. I really must go befo..,” Rain trailed off and grimaced before he squeezed his eyes in utmost panic when he heard someone call out his name. “Shit!” he said, very softly, almost under his breath, before turning around with a brilliant smile. Phayu’s instincts perked up. It was pretty obvious Rain was not at all happy at being caught; after all, his smile didn’t reach his eyes. “You know what? Since I was the reason you got caught ghostie.. half an hour. Give them half an hour. I promise to rescue you. just say you are going to the bathroom,” Phayu said. Rain looked up at him in surprise, but before he could say anything, the shaman had disappeared.
He turned back around to look at Sky. “Hey!” he said quietly, not wanting his best friend to think that he didn’t want to be here. Sky had been the sole reason Rain had managed to finish his Uni and he was indebted to him in a way that Sky would never understand, maybe not even accept. The two boys hugged. “I am so glad you came Rain! I am so happy to see you!” Sky said, pulling Rain towards where the others were sitting. “Hey guys! Rain is here!” he said, as everyone looked up. Everyone smiled at him, but Rain got the feeling that nothing would have changed had he not been able to make it either. They had not been a close knit group in college, so only Sky had known Rain’s background. Rain hadn’t wanted anyone to feel that they were carrying him, so he hid his real self away. Sky had known him longer, which is why he had always been the one to fully support Rain in all his endeavours. Which was another reason he had decided to take up the offer he had received in Singapore, rather than stay on in Thailand.
“Hey Rain! What’s up? How have you been?” Sig asked. “I am good. But really busy,” Rain said, smiling gently. “You have been back for almost 3 months buddy, and no time to meet us even?” Por asked. “I got tagged on a really big project as soon as I reached. So, between that, and finding and setting up a place to stay, I have been pretty much all lost,” Rain said. Inside, he was seething. Why did he have to justify himself at all? But he didn’t say that out loud, knowing it might not go down well. Yes, they had been friends, all four of them, and sometimes Ple and P’Som, but they had never made him feel all that great too. Sig had constantly teased him, sometimes to the point of discomfort and Por had been right there with him. Som had never liked him much, so by association, Ple maintained distance in her own way. Rain knew very well that Sky was the glue holding them together, and if he hadn’t met Sky so far, he had no need to meet anyone else.
“So? How was Singapore? Were you able to actually do anything or were you roaming around there too with your head in the clouds?” Som asked. “It was fine Phi,” Rain said, not bothering to say anything more. There was no need to tell this condescending fool the projects he had actually been involved in there. Ple didn’t bother asking any question, instead turning to Sky. “So? Is P’Phayu here?” she asked, sounding like a besotted fool. Sky nodded brusquely. “P’Phayu?” Rain asked. “Hmm. P’Pai’s cousin. He was also our senior in Uni,” Sky said. “Oh,” was all Rain said. “He was Student Body President, and one of the most famous alumni. And so, so, handsome,” Som said, simpering. “Yup. He even won so many awards. If you had not been so airheaded, you would have realised that sooner,” Som said. Rain smiled and nodded. He had been member of the Student Body Council only for Sky’s sake, because there were days he could not manage things on his own. So at his best friend’s behest, he had taken up the post.
“P’Phayu was working for a prestigious firm in Los Angeles when we were in Uni. He left when we were in our 2nd year, and came back just couple of years back,” Sky said, smiling at Rain. He knew Rain did the Council work for his sake. Som had never allowed him to come for meetings, so he had obviously never met Phayu. And honestly, with the amount of work Rain did, for his studies, helping Sky and his part time jobs, it would have been a wonder if he had ever heard about Phayu. “I want to meet him. Where is he?” Ple asked, tucking her hair behind her ears, hoping she looked pretty and sexy. “If he is here, I will meet him first,” Som said, cutting his sister down to size. Rain wondered if he was the same man he had met earlier. Didn’t he say his name was Phayu as well? Could there be more than one Phayu? What were the chances? he thought, glad he had not gone off with the man. He had too many admirers and Rain was not interested in someone like him, no matter how handsome.
After sitting around for some time, Sky tugged Rain up. “Come on. You have to meet P’Pai and everyone else,” he said, dragging Rain off. Rain quickly smiled at everyone before Sky pulled him away. Soon, he pulled him upto the table where family was sitting. “Rain, meet everyone. This is P’Pai, his fathers Dad Kinn and Pa Porche, his Uncle Vegas, Uncle Pete, Uncle Kim and Uncle Chay. There are more.. where is everyone else?” Sky asked, looking around. “On the dance floor my Sky,” Pai said, smiling at his boy. “And who is this cutie Sky?” Pete asked, looking enamoured. “This is my bestest friend in the whole wide world, Rain. I don’t think I would have been able to survive high school and Uni without him,” Sky said proudly, as Rain waiied politely. “So you are Rain?” Pai asked. Rain nodded. “I have heard so much about you from my Sky, I was almost jealous,” Pai said, grinning widely. “I hope all good things,” Rain said, but voiced it like a question, not really expecting a reply. The six older men at the table looked at each other.
“So Rain, Sky tells us that you just got back from Singapore?” Vegas asked. He could see the harshness of life that the boy had seen behind his sweet smile. “Yes Khun,” Rain replied, not adding anything more. He was not obligated to answer anyone, and everyone knew that. They could all see and feel the façade around him. “Sky, I think I should go,” he said suddenly, looking at his phone. “I have an important presentation tomorrow that I have to still complete. Maybe we can all catch up later,” he added. “Can’t you wait for few more minutes? I really wanted to introduce you to P’Pai’s cousin,” Sky said. “You mean P’Phayu?” Rain asked. Sky nodded. “You know our son?” Pete asked, jovially, but Rain could hear the underlying steel in it. “No Khun. Not personally. But there are quite a few of Sky and my friends who seem to be waiting to meet him. I will leave him to them,” Rain said, his voice completely deadpan. “I would like to take your leave. It was lovely meeting you all. Hope to see you all again,” he added, knowing that would never happen. He waiied politely and left before Sky could stop him.