A Rose Amongst Thorns

Chapter Eight

Rome was preparing the showroom for their next appointment while Arthit was in his office. He was doing his best to concentrate on the picture books he needed for the appointment, but his mind was clouded. He had been thinking about Kongpob since Saturday night. He wasn't sure how he should feel about what happened. He had no right to be angry, did he? It was irrational, but he felt betrayed. They had such a wonderful time at the expo. They had held hands, laughed and smiled at each other all day. His lips curved upwards just thinking about it. He had been unsure and nervous at first, but as the day went on, his anxiety had melted away. He was at ease. He was happy.

Arthit had never experienced such pure happiness in all his life. Before Saturday, he wasn't sure he deserved it. Kongpob made him feel that happiness may be within his grasp, but he was brought crashing back to earth rather harshly when Auntie mentioned Kongpob's fiancé. They had been together all day and he never mentioned her. Was he deliberately hiding the truth from him? Kongpob didn't seem like a deceitful person. But then Mike didn't seem like a sadistic, abusive bastard when he met him either. His father didn't seem like a psychopath to other people, but he was. Arthit felt maybe he was destined to be alone. Someone as damaged as him wasn't relationship material.

Either way, Kongpob was not a possibility so he should put him out of his mind...forever. He was taken from his thoughts when Rome entered to let him know their appointment had arrived.

"Oh. Okay. Give me a couple of minutes. Take these books and place them on the conference table. I'll be right in."

"Alright. I'll show take them around the showroom and let them see the different selections. We should be ready for you by then. Sound good?"

"Yep. Sounds like a plan. Thanks Rome.

"Sure thing Arthit."

Arthit left his office to make his way to the showroom. He could see the bride. She was an attractive woman, not beautiful, but pleasant. Her smile was warm, and she seemed excited to see all the flowers.

"Honey look at these. These are orchids, right? These look like the ones in your office. I would love to have them in my wedding bouquet. What do you think?"

Arthit approached the bride, joining her.

"These are called Lady of the Night. They are my favorite.  If you smell them, you'll see they smell like citrus. The scent is heavenly. Depending on your wedding colors, they would be an excellent selection for your bouquet."

"Really? My fiancé loves these too.  I think they're his favorite. He has them all over the house and in the garden behind our home. You also have them in your office too, right honey?" She turned and called to her fiancé. "Kongpob! Come here sweetie."

Arthit turned to see the object of his reverie walking his way. Rome joined him and introduced the couple to Arthit.

"This is Kongpob and Achara. And this is Arthit Rojnapat, the master behind these beautiful creations."

"Um, nice to meet you. Congratulations on your upcoming wedding. When's the big day?"

Achara put her arm through Kongpob's arm and intertwined their hands. She smiled at Arthit.

"We'll be getting married in about six months. Arthit? Wait. Are you the same Arthit that Kong met at the Orchid Expo? Wow! What a coincidence. Well, at least I know that you two already get along." Achara smiled at both men and kept talking.

Kongpob was trying his best to speak to Arthit with his eyes, but Arthit refused to make eye contact with him. Rome, realizing what was happening, turned his attention to Achara.

"Achara, why don't I show you some of the other arrangements in our portfolio. Come with me." Rome tugged at her and she walked with Rome to the other side of the showroom, leaving Arthit alone with Kongpob. Rome looked over his shoulder and mouthed "talk to him" to Arthit. Arthit rolled his eyes in response.

Kongpob stepped closer to Arthit and reached for his arm. Arthit moved his arm and stepped back.

"Arthit...I don't know what to say."

"There's nothing to say. You don't owe me an explanation. I assumed something I shouldn't have. You were just being nice. I'm sorry for misunderstanding." Arthit bowed his head, willing the tears to not fall.

"No, you didn't. I wanted to spend time with you. My time with you that day was wonderful. I wanted to tell you about Achara, but I didn't know when to bring it up. Can we please go somewhere and talk about this? I know you don't owe my anymore of your time, but I really want to explain."

"Kongpob, you're getting married. What is there to explain? I don't want to make your fiancé uncomfortable and I don't want to be inappropriate. I...I th-think you should concentrate on your fiancé."

"What if she wasn't my fiancé anymore?"

Arthit's head snapped up and he glared at Kongpob.

"Kongpob, what are you saying? How can you say that? She is standing right over there. What kind of person are you?"

Arthit turned to walk away but Kongpob stopped him from leaving by grabbing his arm a little too roughly. Arthit froze and began to tremble. His knees buckled and he fell to the floor. He started to cry and scooted away from Kongpob until his back hit the wall. He gathered his knees against his chest and hid head behind his hands.

"P-please d-don't hurt me! I'm sorry. I'm sorry. No!" His breathing was uneven, and he was holding out his hand in a defensive manner.

Rome heard Arthit screaming and ran to him. He placed his arms around Arthit's shoulder and rubbed his back. Arthit's breathing was becoming shallow and he was starting to hyperventilate.

"Kongpob!  What did you do to him?!" Rome yelled at Kongpob.  He was doing his best to calm Arthit, but Arthit was declining quickly.

Kongpob was frozen. He couldn't believe what he did. As his former therapist, he knows about Arthit's abusive past and how sensitive he would be to any type of aggressive movements. He was beating himself up for grabbing his arm. Achara was crying next to him, while Kongpob took out his phone and called the hospital.

"Yes. This is Dr. Kongpob Suthiluck. I need an ambulance at A Bouquet for You Florist Shop." He walked away from Rome and Arthit to provide the address and wait out front for them to arrive. He thought Arthit would be better if he was out of his sight.

"KONGPOB!!! Help!" Rome called out to Kongpob, but he was out front. Achara ran out front and grabbed Kongpob.

"Kong, Rome is calling for you. Something has happened to Arthit."

Kongpob pushed past Achara and ran to Arthit.

"Rome, what happened?"

"I don't know. He was hyperventilating and then he passed out. What's wrong with him?"

"He's having a panic attack, but those don't usually cause a person to pass out.  Something else might be happening to him.  Achara, go out front and wait for the ambulance. It should be here any minute. Rome help me unbutton his collar. In case he wakes up, he'll need to be unrestricted so he can breathe."

Minutes later the paramedics entered and assessed the situation. Kongpob informed them about what happened. They placed an oxygen mask over Arthit's face and gently lifted him onto the gurney. Rome held his hand and rode with him. Kongpob jumped in, but the paramedics tried to stop him.

"Sir, we have it from here."

"I'm his doctor. I need to be with him."

Rome glared at him, but he said nothing and allowed Kongpob to go with them. Achara called out to Kongpob, but he ignored her as the paramedics closed the ambulance doors and sped away.

Achara slumped to the floor and cried into her hands.

"He truly doesn't love me."