Daddy, you're blushing!

7

“Yo... Are you for real?”

“Yes, I am! I genuinely thought it was you pranking me. I'd never thought he would ever call me...” there was a few seconds of silence where Aether realizes what is inside Venti's mind right now. “If you're thinking about forgetting our goal, I swear to god Barbatos.”

“But he called me! At that time too?!”

“Yeah because his daughter is literally having nightmares and he doesn't know what the fuck to do. He couldn't call Zoe because she was in a shoot! Can't you understand?! You're just option B!”

Venti stares deeply at Aether as he processes everything he said. He was right... And yet it hurts. It always hurts. He so regrets loving Xiao, taking everything as a hint, going back to zero every time he assumes something could happen between them both. Will everything just be the same? Forever?

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah... I just-”

“No, you're definitely not. I'm sorry. I just didn't want you to keep playing this game. It's just a cycle of you falling in love, hoping, breaking, and at some point, you'd try to move on but questioningly always goes back to zero.”

“It's not like I don't want to move on. There's just something telling me that... There's no point. I'm not a kid anymore, Aether, I wouldn't waste time playing dollhouse with a man who doesn't even know me fully. Loving him isn't a choice.”

“But moving on is. You're the one who makes your decision, babe, it's all up to you.”

“The thing is I really like your goal for me, but I think I have to wait for the day to come... The day when I really can't keep loving him anymore, the day he breaks me so bad that I can't stand it anymore. Don't give me that look smirk Aether that's not what I meant.”

Aether took his time to laugh at the last part of Venti's speech, fully aware that it didn't mean like “that.”

“So you'd wait for a reason first? I like that. Just be ready for the pain.”

“Never been so ready.”

-

“Hello there, Venti! You need help with that?” wait... Isn't that... “Scaramouche?!” Venti certainly has a magnet in his cells that makes rich people stick to him. Like, he has been getting these weird interactions with rich people lately! Weird! What is Scaramouche even doing here?!

“Why are you here?!”

“Just wanted to check up on you.” hello? He wasn't a doctor to check up on Venti, and Venti isn't sick to be checked up on. What is he, a five-year-old kid?! “I'm not a kid.”

“Why are you always angry at me?” he laughed as he took all the things Venti was carrying, since when did he agree into this?! “Do you want me to take you home?”

“No need, I'll take an Uber.”

“Too bad I already have your stuff, unless you'd rather leave them to me?” that playful smirk he always has... So handsome yet so annoying. Can't he take a hint?! Venti's not interested! He always bothers him as if he was an adult baby who needs supervision!

Or, he's just being kind and Venti's overreacting. Yeah.

He had no choice but to get inside Scaramouche's car, and oh, holy shit. Even the smell of his car is good? What do rich people do to have this addictive smell... Venti would pay all his life savings just to be able to scent this smell for all his life.

“Where's your house?”

“Just take me to Bonifacio Global City, I'll go home by myself from there.” Scaramouche was silent for a bit. Almost as if he was confused.