The Big Pretense

Chapter 26

A/N: The images above do not belong to me. They belong to the persons who uploaded them on the internet.

AJ's POV

I was slowly drifting off to sleep despite the aching feeling in my chest when my phone sounded off.

Art...  The ringtone was the one that I had I assigned to my Art. What is he doing calling me when he is with his lover Mew.

I decided to ignore the call and closed my eyes.

"Young master," I heard Prasert walking close to my bed. "That might be an important call. The ringtone is not generic so it's someone you know."

"Yes, Prasert," I said tiredly. "It's someone I know. It's that player Art. I don't know why he's calling me when he is with his lover Mew right now. I'm going to sleep now, Prasert. Good night."

Thankfully whatever the nurse had injected into the port of my IV bag was now making me very sleepy. 

I drifted back to sleep only to feel my arm being gently shaken.

"Young master," it was Prasert again. "Please, please take my phone. Please take this call. Art is begging me to give my phone to you so that he can talk to you!"

I sighed. Why talk to Art when he's just going to break my heart again.

"Prasert, please," I begged, "please let me sleep now."

"Young master!" how dare Prasert raise his voice at me. "Art loves you! He loves you very much!"

My drowsiness flew out the hospital window.  I grabbed the phone from Prasert.

"Hello... " I said tentatively on the phone, my heart rate spiking dangerously.

"AJ! What is this I hear about you thinking that Mew is my lover?"

"Well, isn't he?" I asked, starting to feel tired and sleepy once more.

"He is not, you dumbass!"

Suddenly the door got flung open and my eyes almost popped out of their sockets when I saw Art walk in, his phone still being held to his ear.

"Art! What in bloody hell!"

"I escaped from the building," Art said, tapping on his phone to end the call, and putting it in his pocket.

Then he rushed up to me.

I endured the pain that his weight was putting on my injured chest because it felt good being hugged tightly by him.

We did not hear the soft brief knock on the door.

"You can't do that to my patient!" the nurse exclaimed as she walked into the room, her face full of concern for me.

I sighed as Art quickly let go of me and he straightened up from my bed.

"His injured chest is still healing from the car crash!" she was lecturing Art.

"And you, young man,"  it was my turn to get glared at, "you know that your chest was the part of your body that got the hardest hit, why did you allow this visitor to hug you too tight. I saw your face grimacing in pain. You were suffering silently!"

"They are in love with each other. They are lovers," Prasert's words effectively silenced the nurse's lecture, but only for a little while.

The nurse walked up to the IV pole.

"I am adjusting the flow rate of your IV hydration," she announced, "and that's because starting right now you can eat regular texture food."

"Let me go and find him something to eat," Art said to the nurse.

I grabbed Art's wrist.

"No, let Prasert do it," I said. "You can stay with me while Prasert goes back to the restaurant and fix something for me, for us, in case you're hungry too."

"I'm hungry for you, my love," I heard Art say before clapping his hand over his mouth when he noticed the nurse turn her head from the IV pole to look at him wide eyed.

I placed both hands on either side of my waist because they were starting to hurt from suppressed laughter, but then I still needed to clarify the issue of Mew and Art.

I waited for the nurse to finish adjusting the flow rate of my IV hydration and to walk out of the room before I turned my attention to Art.

"So what really is the situation between you and Mew?" I asked, squeezing his wrist tightly while I waited for his answer.

"Stop talking about Mew!" he scolded me. "We are nothing to each other now. Yes, he used to be my boyfriend but we have moved on to find  happiness somewhere else. He has found Gulf who is a great guy and will love him better than I ever have."

"And you?" I asked, my voice quivering a little.

"And me? I have found you, my love."

I could actually hear and feel my heart pounding hard and fast against my chest as I waited expectantly while he slowly lowered his face to mine.

"Young master!"

Shit, Prasert was still in the room.

"Young master, did you want me to go back to the restaurant and bring you and Art some food?" Prasert asked, looking a little flustered.

"No, no, no," Art said quickly.

"You don't want Prasert to leave the room?" I interrupted him wide eyed.

"No, no, what I meant to say was, there's no need for Prasert to bring me some food. I have already eaten the dinner that he gave me earlier," Art clarified what I had misunderstood.

"But if you're staying overnight, you might get hungry later," Prasert explained.

I stared at Prasert. Was Prasert hinting to Art to stay overnight with me? Omg, Prasert I love you so much, I silently sent him the message as he winked at me when Art was not looking.

Art looked undecided.

"You can always place the food in the fridge right there and maybe later you can ask the nurses to warm it for you in the staff lounge microwave," Prasert was now seriously pitching his cause.

I tightened my hold on Art's wrist.

"Art, please stay," I begged.

I could tell that Prasert was also waiting for Art's answer, as Prasert stood expectantly by the door, getting ready to leave the room.

Art took a deep breath before saying "Yes, I will."

"Yaaasss!" I heard Prasert exclaim before leaving the room to head for our restaurant.

"Art, I love you so much. Please don't ever, ever leave me again," I said to Art, hoping that all the love and longing that I felt for him came through in my voice.

"I love you too, AJ. I promise never to leave you again," I heard Art saying before he bent and our lips finally met.

T H E   E N D