"Every heartbeat in his arms taught me—
That desire and love can be one."
—Nil
"Stranger, aren't you hungry?"
Kao pulled Nil close by the waist, pressing him until their chests met. 'Mph.' Even after three months together, Kao's touch still made Nil weak in the knees, heat rushing through his entire body.
Nil closed his eyes, lips parted slightly, expecting a kiss. Kao's breath brushed over him as he leaned down, voice low, soft, carrying the song in each word.
"Seeing you... was the rarest gift of my life,"
"...Insecure because of my own trembling heart, I ran..."
Nil's eyes opened slowly, gold flecks catching the dim light. "Str—"
Kao caught his wrist, "...But every path I took led me back to you."
They began to move together, swaying deliberately, each step harmonizing with the rhythm of Kao's voice. Eyes locked, their movements intimate and fluid.
"I was broken," Kao whispered, his lips near Nil's ear, "shattered, unwilling to be mended. But loving you..."
Nil felt the pull of the music in his chest, the soft cadence beneath their bodies.
"...made me want to live, only with you."
Kao guided Nil's hand to rest over his heart, steady and warm.
Thump-thump.
Nil's fingers curled around him instinctively. "So soothing."
Kao's words fell over Nil like a rain of blossoms, each one soft, weighty, and unrelenting. Their bodies moved together, precise and unbroken, beneath the pale curve of the half-moon. Golden Ratchaphruek petals drifted on the cold air, trembling as though stirred by their rhythm, while neon lights from the room spilled in fractured colors.
"No matter what others say... I will never let you go."
"You are mine... and I belong to you."
"You are my angel, my light."
Nil leaned back slightly, shoulders tilting, head dipping, yet their hips remained pressed in perfect alignment.
Kao bent forward, his hand cupping the middle of Nil's back, guiding, anchoring, keeping them entwined. Hot breath brushed against Nil's ear.
"I want to seduce you," Kao continued.
They swayed side to side, foreheads brushing, hearts beating in mirrored time. "I want to be your whor—"
Nil's hand shot up, pressing against Kao's lips, eyes wide and pleading. But Kao tilted his head, gentle but unwavering, brushing Nil's fingers aside.
"Whore..."
"Forget all sanity..."
Nil swallowed hard, gaze fixed, caught in the storm of Kao's intent.
"...and be shameless... with me."
A pause. Then Kao's confession, quiet and final:
"That's why I love you."
Nil's eyes glimmered with unshed tears, shimmering in the moonlight and neon alike. He pressed himself against Kao, arms locking around him, fingers digging into his back. Tight—so tight it was as if he wanted to fold himself entirely into Kao.
Meanwhile, it was around nine in the evening. Boon sat in Suvarnabhumi Airport with his secretary, face masked, eyes hidden behind dark lenses. Ekachon, ever meticulous, leaned close.
"Do you really want to go to China?" he asked for the seventh time.
Boon's lips pressed into a thin line, a sharp "Hmpf" escaping. "I can't lose," he muttered, voice low, taut with stubbornness.
"And more importantly... I won't let that bastard Nil snatch everything I've earned."
"If he manages to get close to Kao Neptune... then there are other billionaires too," eyes flicking past the crowd.
Ekachon's hand landed lightly on his shoulder. "You're thinking too far ahead. Nil is new. You are not—comparable."
The boarding call rang, cutting through the hum of the terminal. Without another word, Boon and Ekachon rose, moving toward the gate.
Kao sat at the dining table, filling his mouth with sticky rice, eyes deliberately fixed elsewhere. Nil watched, unable to take a bite.
"Stranger..." he called softly. No response.
Again, a little louder, "Husb—"
Kao interrupted, "...Don't."
Nil set down his spoon, frustration curling in his chest. "At least... tell me what happened?"
Kao still did not lift his gaze. "...Who are you to me? Why must I share everything with you?"
Nil exhaled, a small, "Ugh... I'm sorry..."
Silence pressed down.
Then Nil's lips curled, mischievous. A flick of his tongue, a spark in his eyes. He rose from his chair and approached Kao.
Standing beside him, he bent low, lifting the spoon from Kao's hand with a delicate touch. Without hesitation, he parted his legs and settled into Kao's lap.
"Nil... what—"
Kao froze, caught off guard.
Nil wrapped his arms around Kao's shoulders, face brushing his, close enough to feel the warmth radiating from him. "Khun Kao..." His middle finger traced from temple to jaw, teasing. "...don't frown at me like that."
Kao's lips snapped shut over the approaching finger.
"Ah!"
Nil recoiled slightly, eyes widening, hurt, "You're cruel! You told me you couldn't bear to see me in pain..."
Kao exhaled. "Then you should think the same for me."
Nil tilted his head, a playful, sharp expression. "Ah—Stranger! Don't be so stiff."
Nil's hips ground harder, movements deliberate, teasing, as his fingers toyed idly with Kao's collar. He bent close, whispering against his ear, "Not moving? Then I'll keep moving... until you do."
Still, Kao didn't answer.
Nil leaned in, lips brushing dangerously close, his grin wicked.
"Stranger... if you can truly hold yourself back, then I'll admit defeat. But..." His voice sank lower, sinful, "...I don't think you can." His eyes glinted like a rogue.
He shifted again, slow and purposeful, hips brushing Kao with blatant intent. Fingers traced along Kao's lips, feather-light. "I know you're trying to stay proper... but your body is lying for you."
Kao's gaze darkened, sharp, molten, locking onto Nil with a single warning: enough.
But the thread of patience finally snapped. His grip clamped around Nil's waist, hard. A rough hand slid up his back and caught the nape of his neck.
Then—
Kao's lips pressed against the side of Nil's throat, hot breath scorching. His voice rasped low, hoarse, a command choked with fire:
"Enough."
Nil shivered. "Ngh..."
Kao's lips trailed rough, wet along the line of his jaw, leaving heat and slick saliva in their wake. In the next breath, his mouth seized Nil's lips—crushing, consuming, claiming.
Kao lifted Nil onto his lap, then stood, carrying him with effortless strength to the balcony. A narrow plunge pool stretched along its edge, water dark and still, like a polished mirror beneath the moonlight.
Kao bent Nil over the raised stone rim. Nil's hands caught the sharp edge, knuckles whitening, his reflection rippling in the water—hair disheveled, lips swollen, eyes glazed. Cloth fell away, one piece at a time, until nothing shielded him from the night air or Kao's gaze.
"Ah... at least a soft bed—I... deserve..." Nil's breath hitched into a cry.
Instead came hard stone. "Hng—too rough—!"
"Your punishment." Kao's voice was low, steady, as he pressed forward, hips driving with relentless force.
Nil gasped, fingers clutching at Kao's shoulders, chests colliding, skin to skin. His words spilled with desperate defiance: "You're as cold as your name. At least admit it, Stranger... you want this as much as I do."
His lips curled into a trembling smile. "Or else I'll regret harassing this breathtaking, disciplined CEO..."
"You talk too much," Kao growled, silencing him. His mouth claimed Nil's, biting, devouring, tongue plunging deep. "Mn—!"
"Ah... Stranger..." Nil's voice fractured as he arched, back bowing, while Kao's grip tightened at his hips, guiding him without mercy.
Hot breath brushed his ear. Kao's voice was a low murmur. "Never hide again."
Nil shuddered violently, body pressed flush against him, trying to hold back the cry that still tore free. "Y-Yes... I'll obey..."
"—don't stop..."
"... not until I beg..."
Kao settled Nil on his lap, then pressed him back against the glass. Nil's legs hooked over Kao's shoulders; city lights smeared beyond the window like distant stars.
"I'm sorry—" Nil breathed, voice thin.
"Stranger... it hurts—" he added, raw.
Kao answered only with pressure, measured and relentless. A low sound tore from Nil. "I'll— I'll break if you keep—"
"Then break," Kao murmured, controlled and fierce.
Nil shattered. Heat spilled across them both; he could not hide the way his body betrayed him. "Hhh... look—see what you've done to me?" Half plea, half astonishment.
Kao's strength crested, breath ragged. "Stranger...I—" he faltered, then steadied. "Again." His teeth grazed, some small, savage punctuation.
"I have a shoot—" Nil gasped, voice gone thin, "aah—beast—"
"Strangerr—" His name broke from Nil like a prayer.
Tears pricked at his eyes, bright and unwanted. For a long, slow beat, they did not speak; only the ripple of water and hush of breathing filled the plunge pool's tiled edge.
Naked and soaked, Nil rested against Kao's arm—solid, warm, the world reduced to the curve of muscle under his palm. He found his voice in a hiss that was almost a confession. "You... you're... I don't know— I'm yours."
"Mn." Kao's reply was a small sound, everything and nothing. He moved as if to rise, then paused when Nil clutched him tighter.
"Don't go. Please—stay like this." Nil's grip tightened as if he could anchor them both.
Kao's hand rubbed slow circles against his back. "I'm not leaving. I wanted to bringg..."
"You don't need to bring me anything," Nil snapped, though his tone softened immediately. "I only need you."
A breath, a closing of eyes. "I love you," Nil said, simple and sudden.
Kao lowered his forehead to Nil's, thumb brushing away the wet at his cheek.
"Love you too."
The snow-white bed lay in sunlight; curtains shifted in the breeze, scattering rays across the glass.
"Nil, aren't you busy today?"
Nil lifted his gaze. "Do you want me to leave?"
Kao touched a finger to his jaw, tilted it gently, and brushed his lips against Nil's.
"Mff."
"No."
Nil lowered his head to Kao's bare chest. "I have an afternoon shoot."
"It'll finish in a month."
"What do you want to do after it's over?" Kao asked.
His voice softened. "Go home. Bangladesh. It's been too long... I want to see my mother. My Didi."
Afterwards, they showered together. By the time they came out, breakfast was already waiting. Dressed in comfortable clothes, they sat down to eat.
Nil had just lifted a spoonful of steaming jok topped with a poached egg. Across from him, Kao was calmly spreading butter over a slice of bread.
"Nil," Kao said, almost casually, "I have to go on a business trip."
Nil froze. His brow furrowed. "Trip? For what?"
"Every year in mid-September, I travel personally," Kao explained. "Overseas branch management, international collaborations, investments, sponsorships."
"How long will it take?" Nil asked quietly.
Kao set down his knife. "One week. Two. Perhaps three."
Nil's face fell. His hands trembled faintly, and he lowered his eyes. "Mn..."
Kao's gaze deepened. "Nil, what's wrong?" He leaned closer, voice low. "If you keep making that face, how am I supposed to leave?"
Nil slowly raised his gaze, lips curving faintly. "I'm not sulking. I'm just making sure you feel guilty."
Kao took a slow sip of orange juice, eyes never leaving him. "Already guilty," he murmured. "I don't want to leave you."
"Ugh." Nil tried to laugh, but the sound was brittle. "Your work comes first. I'll wait." His voice was steady, yet heavy with the weight he tried to hide.
It was already half past eleven when Nil left. He looked as if someone had taken candy from him — small, stunned, oddly possessed by the hollowness of Kao's absence. Two weeks. He muttered to himself as he walked. "I'll miss him. Stubborn mule."
He didn't see her until he crashed into her.
"Watch it," Lava snapped, lips curving like a blade.
Nil's face went still. "You again."
Lava leaned in, smelling of perfume and contempt. "I belong here. Why are you here?"
"Let me guess." She tilted her head, amusement sharp. "Wife? Husband? Oh — right, so-called boyfriend."
Her voice was slow and hungry. "He'll ditch you when he tires of you. That's what money buys: new toys, new faces." She laughed as if the punchline pleased her.
Nil laughed once — short, sharp. Lava's grin faltered.
"There's a proverb in Bangladesh," he said evenly. "If you can't dance, you blame the courtyard."
Her amusement hardened into a sneer. "First, I was angry. Now I pity you. You're not even good enough to tempt a man."
"Pathetic," he added, voice dripping.
He deliberately let his collar slip. A pale bruise, a bite, showed at his throat. Lava's eyes jumped to it — interest, then shock.
"You..." she hissed, raising her hand for a slap.
Nil caught her wrist and twisted. His grip was quiet, cold. "Don't," he said. The single word cut sharper than any blade.
Nil's teeth clenched, "Listen closely," he said. "Keep fifty meters away. Today you swagger here; tomorrow you'll be nowhere. I will make sure of it."
He sighed, released her hand, and glared at her as he turned to leave.
On Lava's wrist, Nil's fingertips left flushed red marks.
"You will regret the day you tried to cross him... and the day you underestimated me," she said, voice low, sharp, venomous.
"You will remorse soon... very soon."
"Bastarted."