There’s a group of car fanatics who love to hang out here. Jun, their leader, constantly tries to form a friendship with me, but for everyone’s safety, I keep them at a distance, being polite but not too friendly.
A server comes and Sho orders aged sake for us to drink. With my head bowed and my eyes on my phone, I scrunch my nose. I hate it. It’s too strong for my taste. I’d much rather have a sweet cocktail, but that won’t fit with the image I have to uphold.
I hear a burst of laughter close to my section. It’s such a happy sound, and glancing up, I see a western couple taking a seat in the section across from mine.
The woman is so beautiful that my lips part as I stare at her pale skin and long, dark brown hair. She looks the same age as me, and I can’t stop myself from admiring the sparkling gold cocktail dress, high heels, and jewelry she’s wearing.
When the man beside her leans in to press a tender kiss to her lips, my heart constricts with a longing that will never be fulfilled.
The man is attractive, and together they make a stunning couple.
“Are you still happy, Mr. Vitale?” the woman asks, a loving smile around her red painted lips.
I wonder what it would feel like to wear makeup and pretty clothes. Would a man look at me the same way he’s looking at her?
“Yes, Mrs. Vitale,” he replies before chuckling. “I’ve never been happier.”
Mr. and Mrs. Vitale. Their accents sound American.
Everything around me is forgotten as I watch the happy couple interact. For a brief moment, I drop the act I have to maintain, and my lips curve into a smile.
“Hey, Ryo,” I hear someone say in my native language, “I haven’t seen you here in a while. Where have you been?”
Before I can glance at Jun, Mr. Vitale catches me staring at them. His brown eyes narrow on me, and I quickly turn my gaze to Jun and give him a generic reply, “I was away for business.”
“The whole group is here.” Jun jabs his thumb over his shoulder to where they’re all sitting, giving me hopeful looks. “Want to join us?”
Being seen with me would boost their status.
I shake my head. “Not tonight.”
Reaching for the drink that arrived while I was lost in the couple across from me, I take a small sip before leaning casually back against the couch again.
“Okay,” Jun says, a disappointed expression on his face. “See you around.”
When he leaves to join his friends, my gaze returns to the couple. Mrs. Vitale tucks some of her long hair behind her ear, the movement feminine and hypnotizing.
The urge to copy her movements surges through me, and it makes me feel even more miserable than when I arrived at the club.
Her eyes meet mine for a second, and her features tighten. She shifts closer to her husband and says something to him I can’t hear. The next second, he snaps at me, “Stop staring at my wife.”
My eyes flick to his annoyed ones, then I shift uncomfortably in my seat while my gaze drops down to the phone in my hand.
“Don’t ever submit,” Kentaro growls at me in our language. “The idiot insulted you. Stand your ground and stare him down.”
If I don’t carry out orders, I face punishment, so against my will, I look at Mr. Vitale, but luckily, his attention is on his wife.
To my dismay, Kentaro aggressively shouts at Mr. Vitale in broken English, “You disrespected my friend,Baka. Say sorry.”
Friend, my left butt cheek.
“Don’t cause trouble,” I mumble to Kentaro.
I don’t like Masaki one bit, but I wish he was here. He’s the only one who can keep Kentaro in line, but he never accompanies us to the clubs.
“Your friend better keep his eyes off my wife,” the foreigner growls.
Oh dear.
