"Let them brand me foreign, insignificant, expendable—
I only ask to remain where I am—beside him."
—Nil
CRASH—
Golden liquid splintered across the polished floor. Boon's voice cut the quiet like jagged glass.
"That bitch—"
His words trembled with venom, sharp and bitter.
"...stole my role. And now, fucking around with Kao Neptune."
He slumped to the floor, back pressed to the bedframe, the condo's dim light painting hollow shadows across his face. The phone he had flung aside moments ago still glowed faintly where it lay on the carpet, the headline burned into his mind though he no longer dared to look:
'Bangladeshi actor Nil secures lead role in high-budget BL drama. Rumors swirl: Is Kao Neptune, heir to Neptune Music, behind his rise? Leaked photo—Kao dragging him into his car.'
Boon laughed, low and broken, snatching up the liquor bottle and drinking straight from the neck. The sound scraped like glass in his throat.
"A foreigner comes crawling in, learns whoring quick, and gets crowned."
Another swallow—another laugh,
"...Kao Neptune despises me, treats me like filth..."
"Yet he holds Nil as if he were his own, like a wife." he muttered, a crooked, hollow grin stretching across his face.
The phone, screen dim and nearly dead, flared back to life—an abrupt vibration across the floor.
Name flashing coldly: Ms. Bhoopa.
Boon froze. His breath caught, chest tightening. Eyes widened in dread. For a long moment, he simply stared, before his trembling fingers reached out and pressed "accept."
"Ms. Bho..." his voice cracked, low, pleading.
The reply was a whip—cold, sharp, impatient, "Why didn't you go?"
Boon stammered, "I... I don't want to do that—"
"Ooo, really!" Bhoopa's laughter cut like broken glass, laced with venom.
"You dare to refuse? Three dramas under 'Lianhua's' banner—only one scraped success."
The others? Catastrophes. Disasters. Still, the company keeps feeding you, signing contracts, pouring money into your hollow fame." She added.
Boon's throat worked. His hand clutched the bottle tighter, knuckles white.
Bhoopa's tone turned vicious,
"You earn nothing. No talent, no worth. What you have is a face. A body. That's all."
The next words split through the silence like a blade across flesh.
"Go use it. Spread your legs."
Boon's pupils quivered. For a long moment, he couldn't breathe. His voice came out raw, almost inaudible.
"...What if I refuse?"
A cruel smile unfurled across Bhoopa's lips, "You signed a contract for five years. It has only been two and a half."
" If you dare talk of quitting, then prepare to cough up five million baht—within seven days." sighed heavy.
Her voice slithered darker, "And don't forget, every clip, every filthy little video—I hold them all."
Boon's end was brittle. His throat bobbed, but no sound came out. She added,
"One command from me, and they'll spread like wildfire. Let's see then, Boon... if any director hires you for a drama, or if you're only invited to spread your legs on a porn set."
'Gulp'.
His throat locked. His breath faltered. The silence on his end was louder than words.
Bhoopa's tone turned final,
"A plane ticket to China. An address. I'll send both. Show your ass there, or I'll make sure the world sees you stripped to nothing. Choose carefully."
'Click.' The line cut.
The phone slipped from Boon's hand, striking the floor with a hollow clatter. His chest heaved, rage and humiliation tangled into a knot that burned his throat raw.
A broken laugh tore from him—hoarse, bitter. His lips curled in self-disgust.
"Sex worker..."
"Prostitute..."
He barked out the words, spitting them at himself, until laughter broke through. But the laughter carried no joy—only jagged edges, splintering into sobs. Tears streamed down as he laughed harder, the sound raw.
One the other hand, in the study room, Nil still rested in Stranger's arms, the quiet warmth between them unbroken—until a light laugh rang out.
Achara leaned against the doorway, eyes glinting with mischief. "Are you two finished...?"
Nil startled, pulling back at once. His hands slipped from Kao's chest as though scorched, face stiff with embarrassment. He stammered, "I... there was something on his shirt. I was only helping him."
Kao let out a long breath, half exasperation, half surrender. "Achara..."
Achara chuckled, wholly unrepentant. "Brother... dinner is ready."
Kao's voice turned curt. "We'll be there! After a while..."
Nil, flustered yet resolute, tugged at his sleeve. "Stranger. Let's go."
Kao lowered his lashes, his tone languid, hopeless, almost spoiled. "But Nil..."
Nil did not allow another word. His fingers tightened, catching Kao's wrist, and he dragged him firmly out of the study room.
Everyone gathered in the drawing room, chatter light, anticipation in the air as they prepared to move toward the dining area—everyone, that is, except Lava. Ms. Nin's sharp gaze caught the absence. She summoned a maid with a slight lift of her hand. "Call her, for Dinner. "
As they began moving toward the dining area,
'CRASH.'
Lava emerged, staggering slightly, her elegance fractured. Her eyes glistened, unsteady steps betraying her composure. Every head turned; every eye fixed on her trembling figure. Shian stepped forward instinctively, hands reaching, but she shoved him back, voice raw,
"Why are you here? "
Her voice cracked, raw and trembling. "I don't need any of you..."
Kao's face only darkened, irritation flaring as if the timing of her storm were an inconvenience. He gestured sharply to Servant Surasak.
"Take her inside."
Nil's gaze never wavered, steady and unflinching, locked on her trembling figure.
Lava's laugh cut like shattered glass, raw and unyielding. Her eyes, glinting with desperate need, locked onto Kao.
"What I need... is you?"
Lava eyes burning with reckless determination. "I love you... not for months, not for years," she said.
"I have loved you since the moment I saw you... since childhood,"
Nil instinctively took a step back, heart constricted.
Achara interjected, exasperated, "You're drunk... not even realizing what you're saying."
Lava's gaze snapped to her, sharp as a blade. "I am wide awake today..."
Her lips quivered, but her eyes flared with raw honesty.
"All these years, I've been drunk on dreams, waiting... hoping he might come... and yet," her stare cut to Nil, "he is holding this Bangladeshi's hand."
Lava's gaze cut through Kao, tears spilling unheeded. "This... this is how you repay me, Kao..."
Kao's eyes never wavered from Nil, silent, contained. "This... shouldn't be happening," his mind whispered.
Lava's laugh trembled, sharp and bitter, her feet swaying.
"Still... caring for him, aren't you? Too selfish!"
Nil inhaled slowly, voice calm yet edged, "Love isn't something to be repaid."
"It is a feeling... it can rise for anyone—me, or someone else."
"He is not selfish," Nil's words cut smooth and cold, "you are the one obsessed."
Lava's eyes narrowed, a venomous curve on her lips.
"Obsessed? Me?"
Her voice cut like a blade, mocking, unflinching.
"You... standing there, beside him, holding Kao's hand... and yet you dare call me obsessed?"
Her laughter was cold, sharp, slicing through the air,
"If the roles were reversed... if I had what you have today, I wouldn't waste words. I'd call you a prostitute,"
Kao's jaw tightened, "Enough."
Lava stepped before him, eyes blazing.
"Feeling bad... just because I called him a prostitute?"
Her voice dropped, bitter and raw. "How dare he... call my love—my devotion for you—an obsession?"
Lava lunged, her fingers clawing at his collar, dragging him closer.
"Forget him? No. Love me... say you love me!"
Her hand pressed against his shoulder, her lips trembling, desperate to press against his parched, untouchable mouth.
Kao shoved her with force that was careful, precise—dangerous. "Are you out of your mind?"
She tumbled against the sharp edge of a candle holder, the crash ringing like a bell of chaos. Every eye in the room froze, and disbelief.
Lava's gaze snapped to Nil.
"You stole him from me... and I will never let you take him so easily!"
Lava's fingers curled around the candle holder, a flash of madness in her eyes, ready to strike.
Kao moved faster than thought, his arms a vice around her, wrenching the sharp object from her grasp and hurling it across the room. It clattered against the marble, a harsh echo that silenced everything.
His chest heaved, like wildfire. He raised his hand and struck her—not soft, not forgiving.
'SMACK'
"Don't you dare—" he growled.
He spun fixed on Nil. "Thank your lucky stars I am not who I used to be."
"Otherwise... I swear..."
"You would already be nothing."
Without hesitation, he pointed toward the door,
"Out."
Lava's lips parted, shock and fury tangled in her expression as he ended it—all.
Lava's hair tumbled messily over her shoulders. She exhaled, disbelief cracking her voice, and walked out.
Kao's gaze followed, "Sian. Take her home. Safely."
Shian nodded, silent, and left.
Kao turned slowly toward Ms. Nin, expression cold, controlled, "Why invite her?"
Ms. Nin's eyes flared. "Am I not allowed to bring a guest into my own house?"
"You knew Nil would be here," Kao's words were clipped, "You knew how she feels about me."
Ms. Nin's fingers curled into fists, knuckles white.
"And what do you want me to do? Watch you throw your life away for someone like him?"
"Kao," she continued,
"This is a world where men and women marry, not men with men. Society will never accept you. There will be no place for you both."
Kao's hand clenched around Nil's, fingers pressing like he could hold the world in place. He exhaled, slow,
"I never wanted a place in any society." His voice was calm, but each word carried iron.
Nil's gaze rose to him, admiration and something deeper flickering in his eyes.
Kao stepped closer, "If Nil is not beside me..."
Ms. Nin's eyes fixed on Kao, disbelief etched into every line of her face,
"One day...you'll understand. I was right. You were wrong."
But Kao's gaze never wavered, locked on Nil, unwavering, absolute. In that look was surrender—pure, unspoken—a promise that he would remain by Nil's side for eternity.
Ms. Nin exhaled, the fight in her words dissolving into emptiness.
"...!" She turned and left.
Nil exhaled, an awe and warmth pooling in his chest. To be held like this—his hand cradled, as if no one else existed—was a blessing he never dared dream of.
"If the world cannot accept me..." he thought, eyes shimmering as they met Kao's,
"Then let the world burn." Nil murmured, a promise no one else could hear,
"I need nothing from it—only him,"