Mano glanced away. “Yeah… You don’t look very happy about it.”
“No! It’s beautiful. How could I not like it?” His attention returned to the watch. “And thank you for thinking of me. But… you really didn’t have to spend so much. Even a cologne would’ve been more than enough.”
“Alright,” Mano said indifferently. “Next time I’ll get you the one I wear.”
“How much does that cost?”
“About five hundred. Depends on the bottle.”
“What?!”
“Five hundred,” Mano repeated. “Not a thousand.”
“Obviously!” Ody said, still in shock. “But five hundred euros for a cologne is still insane.”
“Relax. It would’ve been a gift.”
Ody stared at him. “Mano… I don’t know if I should accept something this expensive.”
“Why not?” Mano asked, his expression tightening.
“Because it’s insanely expensive. And besides… people will ask where I got it from. What am I supposed to say? That my boyfriend gave it to me?”
Mano went completely still.
Ody’s eyes widened the moment the word left his mouth. He scratched the back of his neck, clearing his throat. “What am I supposed to tell Anna?”
“The truth,” Mano said.
“That I got it as a gift from—”
“Mano,” he interrupted. “You’ll say you got it as a gift from Mano.”
“Why?”
“What?”
“She’s going to ask why you bought me something like this.”
Mano’s jaw clenched. “I bought it with honest money, if that makes you feel any better.” He turned and walked to his room, shutting the door behind him.
Ody remained on the couch, staring at the watch on his wrist. He was almost afraid to move his arm, worried it might get scratched.
But Mano… Where had he gotten that kind of money? The apartment was bigger than most students’, but it didn’t exactly scream wealth. Neither did the clothes he wore. Most of them were branded, sure, but nothing outrageously expensive.
Then it hit him. The motorcycle. He had always thought of it as Mano being obsessed with bikes, but that thing had cost a fortune too. And after Kash and his friends slashed the tires, Mano had replaced them the very next day without even hesitating.
Ody’s parents had helped him get his car. Mano had bought that motorcycle himself.
How the hell…?
He stood and walked to Mano’s room. He knocked before opening the door. Mano was sitting against the wall with his knees bent, scrolling on his phone. “Mano…” He sat beside him and touched his shoulder. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to sound ungrateful. I was just surprised.” His voice softened. “The fact that you even thought about getting me a gift makes me really happy. Thank you.”
Mano stayed turned away.
“But I feel bad,” Ody admitted, and Mano finally turned to look at him. “Because I want to get you a gift too… but I don’t think I could afford something like this.”
Mano frowned. “You think I want an expensive gift from you?”
