Alter

Take 14!

The party progressed, and as expected, Vee had to split from War, moving into his role as the son of the Wangs, mingling and greeting guests, business partners, and clients. War, now left to fend for himself, wandered awkwardly through the sea of unfamiliar faces. He tried small talk here and there, testing out the hors d'oeuvres, but internally, he was screaming for an escape route. How do I get out of here without seeming rude?

Every now and then, War's eyes drifted toward Vee, who was masterfully handling conversations with an effortless charm. Vee looked pristinely handsome, and it stung a little. War sighed heavily, thinking, Of course, he's a perfect package. Look at him. I might as well start planning for my eternal singlehood because no way could someone like him ever be mine. He groaned to himself, the realization settling in that Vee had unknowingly set the bar too high for anyone else.

How do you even recover from that?

As he mulled over his fate, an old memory resurfaced—that incident. It wasn't just the Prada snatching; no, it was how easily the woman he was with at the time had switched her attention to Vee. War had barely blinked before he found himself discarded, the woman's interest entirely consumed by Vee's commanding presence. Even though the incident was far behind them, the sting of that shift still lingered.

Why am I even surprised? Everyone always gravitates toward him.

Across the room, Vee was also stealing glances at War, watching as the man drifted from one part of the event to the next, always with a hint of awkwardness in his movements. He couldn't help but frown whenever a guest—man or woman—approached War, attempting to spark a conversation.

Yet, to Vee's surprise, none of these exchanges lasted very long.

Why does everyone keep walking away? Vee thought, his brow furrowing. War's breath doesn't reek. I'm sure of that. I've been close enough to know... He shook his head, baffled that people weren't engaging with War more, given how charismatic and attractive he was.

While Vee continued to greet guests, his attention remained divided, his gaze constantly wandering back to War. Is he deliberately driving people off? Or is he just that bad at small talk?

War, on the other hand, was fully aware of his lackluster interactions. Yeah, it's official. I'm going to die alone. He sighed dramatically, scanning the room for an exit but finding none. Instead, he caught Vee looking at him from across the room.

Their eyes met briefly, and for just a moment, War wondered if Vee was thinking the same thing he was—about how much they were avoiding what they both felt.

Or, War thought, he's just wondering why I'm so bad at parties.

Vee, standing in a crowd of people, felt the tension in the room shift as they exchanged that brief glance. He smirked to himself, fully aware of War's discomfort but feeling oddly reassured that no one else was managing to keep the writer's attention for long.

At least they're all failing, Vee thought with a small, satisfied sigh. But why is that so comforting?

As Vee's father dragged him into yet another introduction with investors, his mind kept slipping back to War's awkward, yet endearing, presence. He remembered that day when War's date—who was initially very into him—had abruptly redirected her attention toward Vee.

It hadn't been intentional on Vee's part, but he couldn't deny that seeing War's flustered reaction that day had left an impression. War's always so used to attention... except when I'm around, he mused, a small smirk tugging at his lips.

When Vee was finally free to break away from his father's circle of contacts and start looking for War again, the man was nowhere to be found.

Vee had finally managed to wriggle out of his father's grasp after meeting what felt like every investor in the building. His eyes scanned the room, hoping to spot War somewhere in the crowd, but after several sweeps of the venue, it was clear—War was nowhere to be seen.

Slightly frustrated, Vee sought out his mother, Mrs. Wang, who was always good at keeping tabs on people. He found her chatting animatedly with some guests, but the moment she saw him, her face lit up.

"Oh, Vee!" she chirped, grabbing his arm dramatically. "You missed him! Your little friend, the cutie with the smile? He politely excused himself."

Mrs. Wang pouted as if Vee had single-handedly ruined her chance at something big. "I begged him to stay longer, you know. But he was so firm! Like, what was I supposed to do, drag him back by the collar?"

Vee raised an eyebrow. "You'd try," he muttered.

She waved her hand dismissively, ignoring him. "And, oh, I didn't even get to take pictures of the two of you! I had my camera ready!" Mrs. Wang sighed dramatically, making it clear that this was a serious oversight. "If you hadn't been gallivanting around with your father, I could've at least gotten a nice snapshot for the family album."

"Mom, he's not a photo op," Vee deadpanned, rolling his eyes.

But Mrs. Wang wasn't done. "Oh, but wait!" she said, suddenly beaming as she fished out something from her purse. She shoved a business card right in front of Vee's face like it was a winning lottery ticket. "Look what I got! His number! Aren't I clever?"

Vee leaned back slightly, blinking at the card.

"Mom, you're acting like a fangirl. And besides, he were colleagues remember? I got his contacts so what you did wasn't really an achievement."

"Oh, please," she scoffed. "This is purely strategic. A good hostess knows how to keep the best guests coming back!"

Then, her face lit up with a mischievous glint. "I'm inviting him over for Christmas dinner."

Vee's eyes widened. "What? He has a family, Mom. He's not going to spend Christmas with us."

Mrs. Wang wiggled her eyebrows as if she knew something Vee didn't. "Oh, but that's where you're wrong, my dear son. He told me himself! His parents are gallivanting around Europe, leaving him all alone for the holidays. Poor thing! And since you didn't exactly entertain him tonight, I thought it was only fair to offer him some proper holiday cheer."

Vee groaned, running a hand through his hair. "Mom, you can't just—"

"Oh, I can, and I did," Mrs. Wang cut him off, grinning like a kid who'd just pulled off the ultimate prank. "I'll make sure he gets a warm Christmas dinner. Besides, if you two won't do anything about this," she gestured vaguely between the two of them, "then someone has to."

Vee stared at his mother, half-amused and half-exasperated. "You've officially lost it."

Mrs. Wang leaned in conspiratorially. "You'll thank me later, trust me."

As she waltzed off to mingle with more guests, Vee was left standing there, utterly baffled. Christmas dinner with War?

This was getting ridiculous. But the idea of War spending Christmas alone made his chest tighten.