✦Kissed By The Baddest Bidder✦{Discontinued}

The Millionaire and The Photographer - Chapter 4

The I.V.C or - as Eisuke puts it in simple words - the rich people party, was filled with men and women dressed in luxurious clothes. I feel like I stand out among all the rich and famous people here...
"Stop looking around like that." Eisuke scolded me. I was acting a little but like a kid in a candy store... It's not my fault that I'm the only not-so-rich-and-famous person here - scratch that - I'm the only one PRETENDING to be rich and famous.
I couldn't help but continue to look around when Eisuke wasn't looking. The place itself was exquisite. There was a out 200 guests in the ballroom and all of them were here for the same reason, to talk about money. Or at least that's what I thought. Damn, I wish I had my camera right now... This would be an amazing shot.
"I'll be right back." Eisuke walked off in the direction of a few men in the middle of the hall. I stood there wondering what to do when I was suddenly approached by a woman.
"Hello, could you take my coat?" She held her fur coat out to me.
"O-oh... I'm sorry. I don't work here..." She looked surprised for a moment before speaking up.
"Oh really? Sorry, it's just you look so plain." Wow, harsh...
"I-It's fine..." She walked away and I looked around to find Eisuke. I turned my head and saw him over near the back of the hall surrounded by women. I guess the girls flock to him wherever he goes. One of the women tried to touch Eisuke but he smacked her hand away and started to walk over to me. That woman does not look happy... She could be someone important but Eisuke goes and does that...?
"Hey." The sudden voice snapped me from my thoughts and I noticed Eisuke was standing in front of me, holding a glass of champagne out to me.
"O-oh... thank you..." I took the champagne from him and took a sip. It was sweet but not too overpowering. It slid down my throat easily.
"What were you thinking about?" I didn't expect him to ask that question and I almost spat out the champagne I had in my mouth.
"W-What do you mean...?" I didn't want him to know I was watching him with all those women surrounding him.
"You know what I mean. Don't make me repeat myself." He sounded a bit irritated and I knew I had no choice but to tell the truth.
"I-It was nothing... I was just thinking that women really do flock to you no matter where you go." And yet, he didn't seem interested in any of those women or the ones in the lobby. He could have any girl he wants... so why is he single...?
"Heh... you were really thinking about that? Foolish woman." He seemed to be mocking me but I kept my mouth shut and took another sip of champagne as I remembered how rude he was.
"Come on. There's somewhere else we need to go." He placed his hand around on my back. I tensed up at the sudden touch but I walked with him, heading towards the back of the hall.
"Where are we going?" I was curious. I thought when he said we were going somewhere else that he meant somewhere outside of the hotel.
"Just keep quiet and follow me." He didn't look at me and continued to escort me through the crowds of the I.V.C. We weaved through and I looked to find that we were at the bar.
"What are we doing here?" Is he trying to get me drunk...?
"Shh." He turned his head to shush me and with it, gave me a glare filled with animosity. I decided to keep my mouth shut and follow his rule don't-speak-unless-spoken-to.
"Rabbit." Huh? Rabbit...? He was speaking to the bartender.
"Good evening sir. What can I get you?" The bartender replied to Eisuke's word.
"Bol's Rhapsody." What? Is he ordering a cocktail...? I think that has carrot juice in it though...
"Very good sir. Please, this way." The bartender gestured for us to follow him as he opened the door behind him.
"Welcome to the Mad Hatter's Tea Party." The Mad Hatter...? I didn't understand what the bartender meant when he said that but when Eisuke and I walked through the door, the room was covered in mirrors. Woah... this IS like something out of Wonderland... This hotel seems to have a lot of secrets...
"Get in." I then realised that Eisuke was standing in an elevator and was waiting for me. Where did that elevator come from? I get in, he pushes a button and we start to descend.
"Uhh... where are we going?" My curiosity for the better of me and I blurted out that question.
"This elevator leads to the basement. Down to The Rabbit's Hole." The Rabbit's Hole...? They really like their Alice In Wonderland references don't they...?
The ding that entered my ears indicated that we had arrived.
"Come on." Eisuke got out first and I followed closely behind, making sure not to get lost.
I heard some Japanese being yelled throughout the room. The minute the curtain opened I noticed we were at the black market auction that I was sold at. We were in private balcony seats where everything in the room could be seen. Everyone in the hall below had on masks of some kind.
"Hey! Olivia, come on in, sit down." I looked to see Baba and everyone else there.
"Oh... Hi." Eisuke sat down on a chair near the balcony edge and I tried to sit as far away from the front as possible but he dragged me over to sit next to him. "Uh... why am I here...?" I didn't think I would ever enter this room again.
"We're here to watch the auctions, of course." Ota, who was sitting sitting to my right, replied.
"No, I figured that part out but... why do I need to be here...?" Apparently he didn't understand my question.
"Because you're my girlfriend, and my girlfriend should know about these things." Still not your real girlfriend...
I looked to the stage and saw a... very interesting looking man. He was wearing, what looked like a top hat and he had on a face full of make-up. Probably more than me... I see items come and go from the stage, some of them are jewels or paintings, some of them even looked like maps to hidden treasures. The next thing I see is a diamond, sat upon a pedestal. Wow... that looks expensive...
"Ah-ha! Here's my item...!" Baba exclaims excitedly.
"What do you mean?" I ask him as I have no idea what he meant.
"He stole that diamond." Soryu butted into our conversation. WHAT?! He stole it?! I couldn't hide the shock on my face after hearing those words. "Ever heard of The Great Lupin?" He added.
"Sor, you're gonna scare her..." Baba said as he covered his mouth with a forlorn look on his face. Soryu obviously didn't care about my reaction as he turned his head back to the stage. "It must've been even scarier being up on that stage though huh?" He asked, changing the subject.
"Yeah..." I tried not to think about it and looked away from the stage.
"But you were so cute! You were like an adorable baby bird in that cage." Baba quickly noticed my change in mood and spoke excitedly. Is that supposed to be a compliment...?
"You better watch and learn because you're going to be coming here a whole lot more." Eisuke interrupted the conversation. "If you're going to be my woman, you need to know about the basics."
"Okay..." I hesitantly replied, waiting for him to continue.
"The only people allowed to attend are those who have been personally invited by one of us or by an approved referral from another member." I listened quietly as I knew I would have to remember it. "A three-day admission is about 100 thousand US Dollars." WHAT?!
"One-hundred thousand?! Seriously...?!" I couldn't believe my ears for a second.
"Well, these items are worth millions." Baba cut in to explain. This is how these people spend their time...?
"Does anyone in the hotel know about it...?" I figured since it's in the hotel, most of the staff would know about it.
"Only the manager, who you met earlier, Kenzaki." Guess this is a pretty big secret... then... why am I allowed to know all of this...?
"Who are all those people in masks though? The ones who work here...?" There were about 30 men in masks guarding all of the entrances to the auction hall.
"Their part of the Mafia. Specifically, part of the Ice Dragons, along with Soryu."
"Oh... Wait a minute... did you just say that Soryu's part of the Mafia...?" I didn't quite process his answer when I first heard it and had to ask again to make sure my mind wasn't playing tricks on me.
"Yes. And I told you not to make me repeat myself." He sounded annoyed by all of my questions and I hurriedly apologised.
"S-sorry..." My head automatically hung down so I was looking at the floor and not at his intense scowl. I felt intimidated knowing I was surrounded by mafia members. I couldn't stop my hands from shaking.
"What's up next?" I heard Soryu ask but I kept my head down as I tried to steady my hands.
"Ten donors." Donors... does he mean transplant donors. There's ten?! Eisuke or anybody didn't notice my little panic attack as they kept going on with their conversation.

It was a little bit later in the evening, the auctions were over and so was the I.V.C, which was just a cover up for the auctions all along. Everyone left a little earlier so it was just me and Eisuke walking up to the penthouse. The lobby was filled with people coming out of both the I.V.C party and the auctions.
"Come." Eisuke said and began walking through the crowd towards the stairs that led to the elevator. I tried my best to keep up with him but I go pushed and fell onto my knees. When I was able to stand back up I had already lost Eisuke. Oh no... I pushed through the crowd when I suddenly felt someone grab my hand.
"Ah...!" I screamed without thinking.
"Shut up. It's me." Eisuke came over to me, still holding onto my hand. "You should've stayed close to me." He scoffed and before I could say anything, he pulled me by the hand, leading me through the sea of people.
We reached the staircase but before we could climb it, a group of girls soon surrounded Eisuke, causing our hands to drift apart. Some of the girls pushed me out of the way and sent me dirty looks.
"Eisuke! Can I accompany you to your suite?" One the girls yelled out and the rest followed swiftly after.
"No." His stern voice could be heard through all the squeals the girls were making. They all had shocked expressions on their faces and he reached for me and pulled me by the waist.
"Who is that girl Eisuke?! Surely, I'm far better." She flipped her hair and the others joined in saying 'no me' or 'no, I am.' They were all speaking English unlike last time I saw them. They were probably doing it just to spite me.
"This is my girlfriend." It seems everyone in the lobby heard him say it because everyone's heads turned to us on the staircase and I could feel the sweat dripping down the back of my neck. Whispers could be heard through the crowd like 'Eisuke has a girlfriend?!' Everybody was in shock by the sudden announcement, but Eisuke didn't pay it any mind.
"Come on Olivia." He pulled me along, keeping his arm around my waist. I could feel all of the stares as we walked up the stairs.
We got into the elevator and he released his arm from my waist.
"Um... what was that all about...?" I was still in shock at what has happened. He just did that... in front of all those people...
"What do you mean? I was only telling the truth." The truth? He does realise this who thing is a lie right? We reached the penthouse floor and both of us went straight to Eisuke's suite. Surprisingly, no one was sitting in the lounge. I was thinking about what he said in the elevator and couldn't get it off my mind. He was telling the truth...? He's the biggest liar I've ever met. He's not honest with his feelings. I was feeling a little brave and decided to speak up.
"Eisuke, you should learn to be more honest with your feelings." I could feel the attitude come out in my voice. He was sitting on the couch after loosening his tie and I was standing near the window.
"Oh-ho, really?" He seemed amused by my statement and I could see a smirk playing on his lips. I have a low alcohol tolerance and the one glass of champagne must've gotten to me because I fought back.
"Yeah, you're going to end up alone if you never share what you're thinking." I got closer to him, trying to get up all in his face.
"I'm not alone. I have you." I glared at him because that was an obvious lie.
"Ohh no. Let's make this clear, I am not your girlfriend, nor will I-" I was cut off by Eisuke pushing me down onto the sofa and getting on top of me. I couldn't say anything as I looked up at him. Our lips were only an in he apart and I could feel his breath on my face. I don't know how long we stayed like that but eventually he broke the silence.
"Are you done?" Eisuke took my silence as a yes and got off of me. He went to his room and closed the door. All the events that just happened swirled around in my head. What was that just now? I sat up on the sofa and looked in the direction Eisuke walked off in. That was... weird.

To be continued...
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Helloo! Finally finished this! I made it EXTRA long because, why not? 😜 It may take a while for the next chapter because I have homework and exams... yeah... 🙈 And thank you guys for 100 views! 😝

Bye for now! 👋