Chapter 23

(Chan POV)

Saturday Evening - the Dinner.

"I can't believe you made me do that," wailed Tankhun, as soon as the waiter left the table after taking their orders. "They even replayed it on the big screen in the stadium over and over."

Chan just chuckled a little while looking at Tankhun fondly. He looked so damn cute when he ranted like that.

"I scored a hat-trick for you, Doctor, the least that you can do is blow me a kiss," teased Chan, who was still chuckling in amusement. "I should have asked for three kisses, you know, for every goal that I scored."

"In your dream, mister! Just once is embarrassing enough, thank you very much," said Tankhun firmly. "It's so fucking corny, Chan. We're not in a teen movie, and for God's sake, stop laughing!"

Chan laughed even louder.

"Chan! Stop it!" hissed Tankhun. "People are looking at us, and I've had enough of the limelight today."

Tankhun looked so agitated, and Chan didn't have the heart to keep teasing him, so he stopped.

"I'm so sorry, baby, I didn't expect you to be this bothered," Chan said apologetically. "I thought we were having fun."

Tankhun let out a very long sigh.

"I know it looks like I enjoy being the center of attention, and that's probably the result of my own doing, for intentionally posing for those assholes," said Tankhun viciously. "And I admit that I enjoy making fun of those paparazzi. However, I did all of that because I know for sure they have malicious intentions towards me, at you-know-who's behest. But, the people in the stadium, including my Pa and Kim, the boys, and the people at home who are watching the game... that's a totally different matter."

Suddenly Chan felt his back freezing. He had lost someone very important to him once - his ex-fiance, because she couldn't stand the constant feeling of being under scrutiny due to her relationship with him. This was not exactly the same case, but close enough.

"I think, being in the stadium, watching and hearing thousands of people chanting your name with my own eyes and ears... I just realized how famous you really are, Chan," added Tankhun. "Frankly, it's overwhelming."

No, no, no... God, not again…

The thing that got them involved in this fake date scheme was that Chan didn't want to lose to Anna. But, if he had to choose between losing his pride and being made fun of by Anna, again, or losing Tankhun, Chan would definitely choose to lose his pride without any second thought.

"Should we call it off?" offered Chan to Tankhun, "If this troubles you this much, or makes you feel so down, I would rather we stop here. Moreover, this is not your problem in the first place. I shouldn't have involved you."

"No, Chan, NO," replied Tankhun decisively. "There's no turning back now, too many people involved already, and I don't want to hurt Pa. I'm pretty sure you don't want to hurt the boys too. Can you see how happy they were at the stadium? We have to end this charade according to plan, after the award ceremony."

Well, if it depends on me, baby, it won't end... ever.

"I was too impulsive back then, and now you're affected like this. I'm really sorry," apologized Chan to Tankhun again.

"Hey, it's not entirely your fault. I agreed to do this at that time too, didn't I?" retorted Tankhun. "I even asked for your help to trick Kinn. We're in this together."

"But, still,-"

"Shh... listen to me. I think what I need is time to overcome the guilt," Tankhun cut in. "Right now, I'm still in shock and just fully realized the scale of this thing. I thought this was just a small project where I just had to trick Anna and Kinn and have fun with it. Piece of cake, I was so sure I could do it easily. I forgot you weren't an ordinary person."

"I'm sorry."

"Would you stop saying sorry already? If anyone overheard this conversation, they'd think I was a mean boyfriend," jested Tankhun cheekily.

Did he just crack a joke?

Chan was so relieved that he blurted out, "That's my sassy baby. How I missed you."

"O~h? Is that also the reason why you hugged me so tight in the dressing room?" asked Tankhun casually.

"It was," answered Chan firmly. "... and for the kiss too."

Tankhun froze. It was the most suitable word to describe Tankhun's expression at that time. He didn't look angry or objected or afraid. He just looked a bit stiff and hm... awkward?

Are you sure you're not putting too much pressure on him, Chan Knight!?

Chan suddenly remembered Porsche's warning the last time they met.

'P' has a habit, which Kinn and I believe he did subconsciously, of running away when things got too serious.'

Fuck me!

Chan panicked and started to get unsettled.

Say something to neutralize the situation!

"And of course, it's also a good opportunity to convince everyone that we're 'dating', I couldn't possibly miss that chance, could I?" asked Chan as he wink at Tankhun.

xxxxxxxxxxxx

(Tankhun POV)

Ah yes... of course…

Tankhun only wished his facial expression - at that moment - didn't change much, or even if it did, at least not to show his disappointment, like at all. For a moment there, his hopes soared high. Fake dating or not, Chan's hug at that time felt so damn good and right. Not to mention that kiss...

Too soon, Tankhun, remember? Please keep that in your head so you don't forget…

"A~h, I think that was also the reason why you asked David to give me your anthem jacket, correct?" asked Tankhun, as calmly as possible.

Hmm, Chan's facial expression changed a bit, were his words too sharp? Why didn't he answer?

"Kim told me that the jacket you gave me is not sold at any BSFC stores because it's an official jacket that's only meant for players," added Tankhun. "I guess, there's nothing more insinuating than this if you want to truly convince everyone that we're 'dating', huh?"

It seemed that Tankhun's voice wasn't as calm as he wanted it to be, since Chan seemed to be getting more and more alert.

Or was his facial expression more inclined to confusion?

Chan was about to open his mouth, but Tankhun didn't give him a chance. He had not done talking.

"It has your name, your number, even that letter C on the chest. Fuck, Captain, now that I think about it, this is so~ high-school. I remembered all the cheerleaders back then, who was dating the jock, wearing their boyfriend's letterman jacket."

"Tankhun, did I say something wrong? Did I somehow upset you?" Chan asked, in a worried tone. "I gave you the jacket because I wanted you to have it. That's all."

"Not because Anna was also in the VIP box?"

Chan was so flabbergasted by his question.

"No! I didn't even know she was watching today's match."

Tankhun's feelings were slightly better after hearing Chan's words just now, though he didn't know exactly why he felt that way. To tell the truth, even Tankhun himself didn't know why he was suddenly acting like this. All he knew was he was feeling a little hurt, and he wanted Chan to feel the same as him.

"At first I thought, it was because you wanted her to see me wearing your jacket. That's why you gave me the jacket, you know, on purpose," said Tankhun.

Was his tone too accusatory just now? Chan looks so offended.

"And how did I know she was coming? I've never been in contact with her again," Chan replied. "The last time I saw her was at the penthouse, and you were with me then, remember?"

Of course, Tankhun remembered! How could he forget about that damn day? It was the cause of all the chaos in his life now. Tankhun Theerapanyakul never acted borderline crazy like this before (over a fake boyfriend!), especially because he felt hurt for some unknown reason. Fuck, he absolutely hated shit like this. But he needed to know. He might not have understood 100% of the reason yet, but he wasn't a fool. He had an idea of where this was leading.

"She's not alone there. According to Kim, she's with someone from the Football Federation, I forgot his name."

"You mean Peter!?" inquired Chan, sounding so furious all of the sudden, his jaw tensed.

Tankhun once again froze, and the hurt stung so bad this time. He did his little experiment and his hypothesis was proven correct. Chan still hadn't moved on from Anna.

Pride was the only thing that kept Tankhun from leaving the fancy restaurant, for he would not give that satisfaction to anyone. Tankhun would make damn sure that Chan would never know what he was feeling at the moment, maybe for the first time in his life.

Jealousy was a bitch.

TBC