Elian swirled the golden champagne in his glass, his legs crossed elegantly as he leaned back in the chair. His expression was unreadable, though his brown eyes gave him away, he was searching for someone.
For him.
The infrastructural bitch with a stick up his ass, and his loyal shadow dog.
He hadn't seen them for about half the past hour, that very moment he walked over Elian like a street rag.
No one walked all over Elian Cruz and got away with it. No one.
His irritation burned hotter with each sip, until a movement at the edge of the room snagged his gaze. He spotted a rigid back and broad shoulders, cutting a path through the crowd and heading toward the hallway beyond the chandeliers. Restrooms, most likely.
Elian's lips curled. Perfect.
He was already rising before Marisol, his PA's voice caught him.
"Where are you-"
"I'll be right back. I need to go to the bathroom." He said and rushed off, leaving no room for questioning.
He navigated the gilded hallways with determined haste, the closer he got to him the more irritated he felt. It didn't take long before he found the right door, pushing it open to the restroom.
There he was. Damian Moretti. Washing his hands like he owned the sink.
Elian's eyes narrowed as he moved to the sink beside him, fingers tugging at the hem of his velvet shirt, adjusting it with care, looking in the mirror. He side-eyed the taller man, waiting for a flicker of acknowledgment.
Nothing, as expected. Arrogant bitch.
Damian dried his hands slowly, then turned to leave.
Only to find Elian stepping in front of him, blocking his path with a stare as sharp as blade.
Dark eyes swept over him then, Damian's gaze raking unhurriedly from Elian's boots, to his very obvious slender waist, up to the silver chains resting against the velvet opened shirt that showed his bare chest, before locking onto his face again. For the first time, Elian realized just how much taller Damian was, he loomed like a wall.
But Elian didn't flinch, men like this barely terrified him.
"Can I help you?" Damian asked, one eyebrow lifting, voice low and smooth.
Elian's lips twitched, a dangerous little smirk tugging at them. "My name is Elian. We met earlier. Though you wouldn't remember, since you were too busy glued to your phone to notice. Honestly, I thought you were deaf. Or mute. But now that I hear you talk…." he gave a little shrug, eyes glittering with sarcasm, "....you definitely ignored me on purpose."
A heavy beat of silence came afterwards. Damian's face was unreadable as he stared at Elian, unblinking.
Then he repeated what he asked , tone flatter and colder. "Can I help you?"
Elian blinked, then laughed. A short, disbelieving sound, tinged with venom. He ran his fingers through his fringe, adjusting it like armor, before tilting his head. "Being this rude must run deep in your blood."
He saw Damian's shift, but he still didn't say anything. He simply regarded him, eyes like granite.
"You know," Elian went on, his voice dripping with cool disdain, "most men would kill for the chance to have me near. But you...." his gaze slid over Damian with deliberate slowness.
"You think ignoring me somehow makes you different. But it doesn't. You're just another fish in the pond." Elian said and moved impossibly closer to Damian. "And I will get that fish no matter what."
Damian regarded him silently, before he finally spoke, his tone as steady as stone. "Do you always throw yourself at people like this? If respect isn't given, you simply just walk away, you don't just demand respect from people, it's not like you deserve it all the time."
The words hit sharp, and Elian's lips parted for just a fraction of a second before curling again. "Cute. Trying to belittle me? You'll have to do better than that."
His hand laid over Damian's chest and nudged him back, flicking his hand dismissively towards Damian's tailored suit. "Because if memory serves, and trust me, it does. That jacket you're wearing tonight? Designed by me. Every stitch, every detail, handpicked by my team. So you can pretend I don't exist, but the truth is, you're literally wrapped in me."
Damian glanced down at his jacket, then back up at Elian, expression unchanged. The indifference burned hotter than an insult.
"You-"
Elian began but was cut off by a sigh.
"If that's all you're going to talk about, I'll get going now." Damian's lips curved, barely, the faintest shadow of a smirk.
With that, he stepped sideways, brushing past Elian as though he were no more than air.
The audacity.
Elian spun, eyes blazing with anger.
But Damian didn't look back. His broad figure disappeared through the door, leaving Elian standing alone, and his chest heaving, fury simmering beneath his elegant exterior.
Elian laughed then, a sharp, disbelieving scoff, raking his fingers through his hair. "Unbelievable."
"Walk away then,That's all you're good at, isn't it?" He muttered under his breath.
"I'll get you right under my palm, you just wait."