The Way to a Man's Heart

Chapter 7

A/N: The image above does not belong to me. It belongs to the person who uploaded it on the internet.

Tae's POV

"How can you expect me to do that, Pa?" I said in a whiny tone to my dad, hoping that he would change his mind.

"I need your help to save our business, son," my father replied firmly. "A merger would save our business. We can't let that newly opened company threaten the survival of our business just because it is bigger than ours. However, if we merge our business with that of Mr. Ratthanaphast we have a chance for survival. Think carefully about it, son. Our very own survival is on the line here."

The mere mention of the Ratthanaphast name made my pulse race faster than a horse eager to win the derby trophy. I did not want to have to face Mr. Ratthanaphast and especially not his son Dome. We did not have the most pleasant parting. Having to see Dome again would open all the old wounds. He had judged me badly and I was hurt enough not to even try to correct his judgment. He had tried me by circumstantial evidence and pronounced me guilty without proper proof. Now whenever we happened to encounter each other in any place, we would both avoid each other's gaze and leave as quickly as we could.

Mr. Ratthanaphast and my father were good friends even though they were in the same business, so it just made sense for them to band together against a common enemy, the newly opened land development company owned by one of the biggest real estate corporation of the country.

Because my father and Mr. Ratthanaphast were good friends they would get together from time to time either at our house or theirs and it was in such an occasion that I got to meet Dome. It turned out that Dome went to the same school where I went except I was a year ahead of him.

Since we had become fast friends after that first meeting, I would offer to take him home from school in my car.

Our close friendship eventually developed into something more.

I still clearly remember as if it happened only yesterday...... but it has already been a year and a half ago ......

"That was the scariest Halloween movie I have ever seen," Dome had said as we walked out of the movie house after the last screening which ended just half an hour before midnight.

I remember laughing because every now and then he would grip my arm during the suspenseful parts of the movie. At one point he had buried his face into my chest and that was the moment when I realized that I had wanted him to be more than just my friend.

"It's too late to eat in any of the restaurants around here," I had remarked. "Do you wanna come to my house and I will look around the kitchen for something to eat?"

He had agreed to the idea without hesitation and we had slipped quietly into the house to avoid waking up Ma and Pa who had already been sleeping at that time.

I had found leftover shrimp fettuccine alfredo and warmed the whole large bowl in the microwave oven. Between the two of us there was nothing left of the fettuccine dish.

I glanced at my watch before passing on a glass of orange juice to Dome.

"It's half past midnight," I said. "Do you want to make a ruckus at your house and wake your parents up or do you want to spend the night with me."

He wrinkled his nose. That was a habit he had whenever he was thinking something over very carefully.

"No," he said.

My heart sank. I had been looking forward to having him sleep in my bed with my arms wrapped around him throughout the night.

"No???" I repeated his reply but in a questioning tone.

"Yes, no," he replied.

"What the hell, Dome," I lost my patience. "Is it a yes or a no?"

"I meant, no, I don't wanna wake my parents up, so yes, I wanna spend the night with you," he clarified his answer.

On impulse I hugged him close and before both of us knew it, we were kissing each other wildly right there by the kitchen counter.

"Oh my gahd!" my  mother squeaked behind us. She had quietly come down to the kitchen to get herself a drink of water.