Late Saturday night, in a bedroom decorated in soft purple tones, a lean young man stood with hands on his hips, staring down at the tall, muscular figure sprawled unconscious across the bed.
"Should I feel sorry for you or say you got what you deserved?" Toey gazed at Teeradon and let out a long sigh. He walked over to adjust the air conditioning to a warmer setting, then headed to the kitchen to boil water before returning with a cool compress.
"Never thought the playboy prince would get his heart broken like this." The young secretary placed the damp cloth on his boss's forehead. "But don't think I'm going to wipe you down or anything. Not happening."
"Wittawin..." Teeradon rolled over, his hand reaching up to brush the compress away from his forehead, then tugged at his shirt as if wanting to take it off.
"No, don't, Khun Don." The secretary batted his boss's hand away. "Just rest. Don't start stripping in my room."
"Pirayu..." Teeradon moaned softly.
"Seriously? What kind of person rambles about two different people when they're drunk? When are you actually going to get yourself a real boyfriend?" Toey grumbled, trying to extract the compress from under Teeradon's cheek.
"Toey..."
"Oh hell no. Don't drag me into this mess." The young secretary's eyes went wide. "I refuse to become one of your chew toys."
Toey managed to retrieve the compress and quickly left the room, muttering complaints under his breath. "Was bringing Khun Don home a mistake or the right call? What if he goes crazy and tries to jump me? I should have known better than to go drinking with him. I have to babysit him at work, and now I have to babysit him after hours too. When are Khun Tin and your father going to transfer me back to work with them so I can finally escape you? What's wrong with you anyway? Acting all different from everyone else, thinking you're so handsome and charming. Look where it got you now—fallen from grace like a hawk with broken wings. I'm dying to know who rejected you first, Wittawin or Pirayu."
The young secretary, stuck caring for his thoroughly intoxicated boss, went to brew coffee and sat drinking it quietly, wondering what to do next. Initially, he'd planned to take Teeradon to his family home, but ultimately changed his mind and brought him to his own condo instead, thinking it would be more convenient. He'd also remembered that getting to Teeradon's penthouse required a private elevator that only the owner could operate with a special code.
"If you're going to live somewhere, why make it so complicated?" Toey complained when this thought crossed his mind. "Should have bought a two-bedroom condo while I was at it."
Wait, Niwat. Right, Niwat was Teeradon's right hand man. If the boss was drunk, why didn't he call Niwat to take Teeradon away? He couldn't go home, but he could crash at the club—Teeradon's office had a bed and bathroom. How could he have forgotten...
Toey grabbed his phone and dialed Niwat's number. The man answered immediately, but his response nearly made Toey shout in frustration.
"How can you say that, Khun Niwat? Khun Don is your boss. When the boss is drunk, his subordinates should take care of him."
"You're Khun Don's secretary. I'm driving home—my girlfriend is waiting. And Khun Don is already at your place. Why make things more complicated?" Niwat replied, then said he had to hang up because another call was coming in, probably from his girlfriend.
"Just perfect." Toey grumbled as he ended the call. He finished his coffee and walked back to the bedroom to check on Teeradon.
His boss had successfully removed his shirt and was now lying face-down on the bed, arms and legs sprawled across the entire mattress, looking peacefully asleep.
"Khun Don." Toey leaned down and shook Teeradon's body, but the drunk man didn't respond.
"This is insane. If you weren't my boss, I wouldn't let you sleep on my bed. And your pants look tight—don't expect me to take them off for you." Toey complained to himself, though he hesitated for a moment before sighing heavily and attempting to roll Teeradon onto his back.
"Heavy as hell."
Soon enough, the capable secretary succeeded. Teeradon lay sprawled across the bed, his broad chest rising and falling with each breath, muscles rippling beneath smooth golden skin. His belt was already undone and the zipper pulled down just enough to reveal the white waistband of his underwear.
"Pretty skilled, considering how wasted you are—managed to take off your own shirt and undo your belt. If you're this capable, why couldn't you figure out how to win over Wittawin?" Toey reached toward Teeradon's thigh to grab the zipper, but suddenly pulled his hand back.
"Well, well. So this is what all those actors and singers go crazy over? This right here? I thought it was supposed to be about the heart or something." Toey continued his solo commentary, but his mind wandered to a sweet face with a beautiful smile—someone he'd initially thought would become an obstacle to his own romantic feelings. But Wittawin's face replaced those thoughts, completely driving away any image of Pirayu from his head.
Sarayoot has feelings for Wittawin...
Teeradon was disappointed by Wittawin. He was disappointed by Sarayoot. Secretary and boss, sitting there drinking together. Teeradon rambling on while he mostly just listened...
Teeradon seemed to be taking it harder than he was. He was still puzzled why he wasn't as devastated as the protagonists in music videos...
"He rejected me like, like, like..." Toey remembered how Teeradon had lamented.
"Oh, I get what you mean now." The secretary nodded, pretending to understand what his boss was trying to say, only to be scolded for daring to think his boss was like a dog.
"No, no. I understand—you're like a wounded lion." Toey shrugged.
What was he like then? Delusional about Pirayu. The truth was, Sarayoot had secret feelings for his own nephew...
Secret feelings, or was he in love? Did Wittawin know how his uncle felt? More importantly, did he know his own feelings toward his uncle...
Teeradon also has feelings for Wittawin...
Sarayoot has feelings for Wittawin...
He couldn't accept it...
Toey sighed heavily as he recalled the conversation with Teeradon from hours earlier. His mind wandered in all directions, thinking about both his own situation and his boss's, sighing periodically as he realized how hopelessly tangled everything had become.
It all started because Teeradon almost got hit by that wrench while Wittawin was fixing intranet network system. Then Teeradon got mesmerized by that pale face with dark brows, prominent nose, and red lips...
Ugh, what a mess...
Things wouldn't be this complicated if Pirayu hadn't gotten involved. And it must be weighing heavily on him—otherwise he wouldn't be rambling about two names back to back. Even after all that help with the Wittawin situation, Khun Don still managed to screw things up...
If he hadn't forced Wittawin to come apologize at the company, he wouldn't have fallen for Sarayoot. And if Teeradon weren't such a player, he wouldn't have gotten involved with Pirayu. Even at an academic conference, he managed to bring home a young man. Teeradon really does create nothing but problems. Whoever ends up dating him would probably get headaches until their head explodes. No wonder Wittawin never committed...
But what if Wittawin doesn't want Teeradon? And what if Sarayoot confesses his feelings to Wittawin like Baramee did? Then he'd just end up disappointed by Sarayoot too...
Alright, while Teeradon is stuck between Wittawin and Pirayu, he'll push him to choose one side. This whole playing-both-sides thing won't work. Teeradon needs to love someone for real, seriously for once. He felt incredibly sorry for his boss, and this approach would benefit both parties—Teeradon would be happy, and he'd get to end up with Sarayoot...
But wait, what about Pirayu...
Baramee—that's right, Baramee. If he could secretly love a friend like Wittawin, then maybe he could secretly love Pirayu, who might be in the same friend group. Actually, Baramee didn't seem to be making much progress with Wittawin anyway. Why was that? Because Wittawin didn't have feelings for him either...
Perfect. Everything works out. Time to get some sleep...
Toey smiled after sitting in contemplation for so long. The young man stood up, pulled down Teeradon's zipper, and tugged his boss's black pants off completely. The drunk man shifted around and tried to spread his legs, but Toey quickly grabbed Teeradon's ankles, holding them steady until he'd finished removing the pants. He couldn't help but glance upward beyond his boss's muscular thighs.
Oh, Khun Don, you're the one who made everything such a chaotic mess. As usual, I'm the one stuck cleaning up after you. Stay the playboy you've always been—don't bother falling in love with anyone. Wouldn't that be easier?
***