Beautiful Dreamer

56. Holding It In

"Do you think they stopped by some place to make out?"

"Probably. Let's just finish up the food before they get here. It will serve them as a recompense for keeping us waiting this long."

Suddenly, the door opened to a rather gloomy Ari. His expression then changed, surprised to still find anyone awake at this time of the night.

"Where is your boyfriend?" Mun inquired.

Ari could sense mischief from his friend, and did not want to encourage it. "Not today Mun. Where is my brother?"

"Hello Ari." Rey's sister peeped from behind Mun. She was dressed in one of Mun's loungewear and with her small physique, it wore her instead of the other way round.

'These two are too close for comfort. I hope they are being discreet.' Ari wondered. "Hello, Ms. Esy. I'd assumed you left."

"Is that how to greet your elder?" Rey appeared from behind Ari and shut the door behind him. "That is unacceptable, Esy."

"You're back." Rey's sister dismissed her brother's warning and rushed towards him. "What took you so long?"

"I went for a walk." Looking at Ari, who was still startled by him appearing from behind, Rey said, "You are finally home."

"Weird." Mun was the first to notice something was off. "I thought you two came together?"

"No," Ari shifted his gaze towards his friend. "I drove home as fast as I could. Did my brother leave? I do not see him around."

"Yes. You wanted us to kick him out, right?"

Ari appeared exasperated by Mun's remark. "We'll discuss what happened here tomorrow. Right now, I'm to exhausted to even think." Turning to look at Rey's sister, Ari inquired where she will be sleeping and Mun confirmed she will be taking his room.

"I'll rest in the living room. A futon is comfortable enough for me so don't worry my dear. I'm an excellent host."

Ari gave Mun a suspicious look, knowing full well his friend was hiding something from him. While driving home, he had wondered why Mun had come to his office, and hoped he wouldn't tease him about what had transpired, and knowing Rey, he is likely to overreact over the matter when it was just a misunderstanding. Truth be told, dialogue with Rey on the topic wouldn't end well.

"Goodnight everyone." Ari spoke with finality and left, Rey following him from behind.

While in Ari's room, the two maintained an uncomfortable silence, even after Ari was done with freshening up. To Ari, Rey must have still been upset over their little conflict over the phone while to Rey, he was running out of patience, waiting for Ari to explain what he'd witnessed moments ago.

'It's just me and him now, nobody else to interrupt us." Rey thought, his eyes unwavering from Ari. "But why isn't he saying anything? We are still dating aren't we?'

"Coming here without letting you know beforehand was a mistake." Rey had finally given up. He sought some distance between them, lest he lashed out and gave Mun conformation that he was still immature. Even so, it still hurt to witness what he did.

Giving a courtesy bow, Rey thanked Ari for allowing his sister to spend the night and announced his departure.

"It's already late. You can leave tomorrow or the day after since it's a weekend. Besides, I wanted to apologize for castigating you over the phone. You must understand that your involvement with my brother is something I'm trying to come to terms with."

"I'll keep my distance from him if that is what you wish for me to do."

Ari seemed surprised by the sudden cooperativeness coming from Rey. Even so, he still felt the need to bring certain matters to clarity. "Look, Rey, I'm not mad that you are showing commitment to us but I'd appreciate if you'd tell me some things in advance. I'm aware of your good intentions inviting everyone here, but... I'm not comfortable with my brother invading my personal space. This place is my peace, Rey. I come here to run away from the world."

"I'm sorry. It won't happen again, Manager Ari."

"Stop calling me manager already."

"How should I refer to you then?" Rey asked, doing his best to control his hurt from seeping out but it had been too late. "You wouldn't let me call you my boyfriend either."

Seeing the expression Rey wore, Ari felt at a loss with words. It was true he was no longer Rey's manager but still, Rey had jumped into the conclusion that they were dating right after they'd made out. "There is no need to apologize. I thought long and hard about my brother reaching out to me and perhaps no harm was done. He was bound to know where I live even without your help, therefore, you and Mun just speeded up the process. I'm simply apprehensive that he might be spying on me on behalf of my parents."

"I guarantee you that he isn't."

"How sure are you?"

"Well, you'll just have to trust me." Rey said then walked past Ari towards the door that connected Ari's room to the living room. "I'm going to grab a light snack before bed. Do you need something?"

"Rey, can we talk some more. You seem too withdrawn."

"It just feels like..." Rey hesitated. "Everything feels like it's my fault. How could it not? Nothing I do is right and it's not as if I don't already know that. I'm trying hard to adjust...everything... It's scary really, but I chose to walk this path with you anyway."

"W-What are you talking about?" Ari appeared confused. He strode towards Rey and forced him to face him. "Did my brother say something to you?"

"This has nothing to do with him but us."

"Then talk to me in a way I can understand."

Rey showed a rather light smile from relief. It felt good to know that Ari was concerned about what was bothering him but still, why wasn't he saying a word? 'He saw me, didn't he? That's why I drove off.'

"Let's go somewhere nice Manager Ari."

"Somewhere nice?"

"Yes." Pulling Ari towards him for an embrace, Rey sniffed into his hair and was relieved to only perceive the scent he was familiar with. "We'll dress casually, eat something nice then come back before embarking on another week of intense work."

Ari felt comfortable in Rey's arms that he shut his eyes and smiled. He liked the idea, but he wondered what came over Rey to suggest such a plan. "We've never gone on a date before, have we?"

"Not yet, but this will be our first, and I intend to make it very exceptional."

Ari chuckled. "Well, I was working overtime the past one week to create some time for us. Sorry I didn't tell you. The good news is I now have free time for the next four days; hence, we can go to as many dates as you like."

"That's good. I equally have a lot of time to spare as well."