Undeniable Attraction

Chapter 7: The Phone Call

"Hey mom," James said as soon as his mom picked up the phone.

"Hey, sweetie, is something wrong?" The lady on the other line greeted him back.

"No, I just called to let you know that I'll be gone for a couple days," he clarified.

"Oh, Net landed already?" His mom asked, which made him frown.

"No, mom, he'll be gone for a week, remember? It's only been 3 days since he left," James reminded. "Its Tutor, he called and asked if I wanted to come with him back to the province. I said yes, and we'll be spending a few days there," he added.

"Uhm, sweetie, don't you have plans with Net? Why don't you wait for him first?" His mom asked, somewhat worried.

"He's busy," James responded, his voice laced with bitterness. That guy hasn't even contacted him since yesterday, only for him to find out on the internet that he was out spending time with some "co-actors".

"James, dear, he'll be—" his mother tried to explain but was cut off by him upon hearing a car pull up their driveway.

"I'm sorry, mom, but Tor's here; I gotta go. I love you," James chimes in.

The woman in the other line couldn't help but sigh in resignation and drop the subject. "Okay, I love you too, honey. Take care always," said James's mom before hanging up the phone after hearing her son's hum in response.

James tucked his phone in his front pocket, and taking one last glance at the figurine sitting on his bedside table, he scrunched his nose in annoyance before grabbing the bag he had packed beforehand. The idol left his room, heading straight to the main door to greet the friend he hadn't met for so long. However, what greeted him was not the one he was expecting; instead, a pair of surprised eyes, before being replaced by confusion, looked at him and then at the bag he was carrying.

"Where are you going?" The bronze-skinned man asked, confused.

"P'Net," James whispered as he slowly put his hand carrying his things behind him, trying to hide the travel bag that caught the other's attention. "I—What are you—" he stuttered, trying to ask the older man what he's doing there when another car pulled up and honked a couple times.

"Hey, are you ready to go?" Tutor, who got off the driver's seat, asked his friend but stopped when he saw Net.

James looked at his friend before shifting his attention to the man standing near him, meeting the actor's gaze as he awkwardly stood there contemplating what to do when the other moved. He hesitatingly looked at Net, who came up to him, taking the travel bag he was holding before walking straight to the car. The idol slowly walked in the direction of his friend's vehicle upon seeing the older man open the backseat door and put his stuff inside.

"Hey," Tor greeted Net, who just nodded his head in return.

"There might be a lot of traffic today, so if you guys have somewhere to go, you should hurry." Net looked at the younger idol and said softly after opening the door to the passenger seat.