Chapter 3

The office was too bright, too quiet, and far too formal for Ryan's taste. He slouched into the glass-walled meeting room like a cat dragged in against its will, iced coffee in hand and sunglasses still on indoors.

Across the room, Theo was already seated—laptop open, back straight, shirt tucked in, every button in place like he was on a magazine cover for “Men Who Actually Have Their Life Together.”

Ryan made a face.

“You're early,” he muttered, pulling out a chair like it had wronged him.

“You're late,” Theo replied without looking up. “By nine minutes.”

“I brought coffee. That buys me ten extra.”

“For yourself?” Theo asked dryly.

Ryan sipped. Loudly. “Obviously.”

The assistant who’d been prepping the presentation looked like she wanted to vanish. She quietly slipped out the door before the Ryan-Theo war could escalate into an HR issue.

“Why are you even here?” Ryan asked, spinning in his chair. “You’re not officially in the company yet.”

Theo didn’t look up. “Neither are you. But I thought we were supposed to start taking things seriously.”

Ryan scoffed. “So now you're my babysitter too?”

“No. Just the person trying to keep you from crashing your own family business into the ground.”

Ryan turned, mouth open, but Theo beat him to it.

“You’re welcome.”

There was a beat of silence.

Then Ryan stood up suddenly, walked over to Theo’s side of the table, and leaned down just enough to be in his space.

“You know what your problem is?” he asked, tone almost too sweet.

“Other than you? No.”

“You act like none of this matters to you. The company. The meetings. Me. Like you’re just here for the free wi-fi.”

Theo met his gaze, finally. Calm, unreadable.

“That’s because I don’t waste my energy on theatrics,” he said coolly. “Unlike you.”

Ryan’s fake smile faltered just a little.

“You’re unbelievable,” he muttered, stepping back.

“And you’re loud,” Theo said, returning to his laptop. “Still.”

Ryan glared at him, then dropped dramatically into his seat again, legs stretched, tie loose, muttering under his breath.

“You're lucky you’re hot.”

“What?”

“Nothing!”

For the rest of the meeting, Ryan kept interrupting, correcting things Theo didn’t say, and sighing way too loudly every time Theo spoke.

Theo didn’t react once.

And that only made Ryan more annoyed.

By the end of it, the room was silent again—tension thick but unsaid. Ryan was halfway out the door when Theo finally spoke.

“We have outfit fitting tommorow for our wedding, be on time"

Ryan paused.

“…Yeah,” he grumbled, and walked out.

Theo didn’t smile.

But he did close his laptop a little softer than usual.

_________

The tailor’s studio was pristine, lined with rows of elegant fabrics and full-length mirrors that made Ryan feel like he’d wandered into a boutique designed to punish people like him.

He was already halfway through unbuttoning his shirt when Theo walked in.

“You’re early,” Ryan said, glancing at him through the mirror.

Theo raised an eyebrow. “You’re half-naked.”

“Wow. Already distracted? This is supposed to be a professional fitting, Mr. Rachanon.”

Theo walked past him with a sigh, ignoring the teasing as he began sorting through fabric swatches the tailor had laid out. “Try not to wrinkle everything this time.”

Ryan scoffed. “Try not to act like you’re interviewing for CEO of a funeral home.”

“Try not to wear sneakers to a luxury tailor,” Theo countered, not even looking at him.

The tailor chuckled nervously as he approached Ryan with a jacket. “You two seem... familiar.”

“Oh, we go way back,” Ryan said, slipping his arms into the sleeves. “High school classmates. Mortal enemies. You know, the usual.”

Theo corrected, “You were loud. I was patient.”

“You were cold. I was charming.”

“You were irritating.”

“You were obsessed with me.”

That made Theo pause.

Just for a second.

Ryan caught it.

The moment passed quickly, but the air shifted. Theo looked away, straightening a cuff. “The suit fits fine.”

The tailor stepped back to assess. “Very good cut on both of you. We’ll take some measurements for minor adjustments.”

While the tailor bustled around them, Ryan muttered under his breath, “Remember that time you reported me to the teacher for falling asleep in class?”

“You were snoring. Loudly,” Theo replied. “During an exam.”

Ryan grinned. “You were always so serious.”

Theo remained silent

The tailor announced the fitting was complete. Ryan tugged off the jacket and tossed it (gently, but still rebelliously) onto a chair. “So. One more step closer to the doom ceremony.”

Theo smoothed out a crease on his cuff. “You mean our wedding?”

“Same thing.”

“You’re terrible with labels,” Theo said.

Ryan shrugged. “Except the ones in my clothes. And, you know… maybe you.”

Theo rolled his eyes, but his lips twitched like he was holding back a smile.

As they stepped outside, the late afternoon sun hit them, and Ryan glanced sideways.

“It really is like high school again, huh?”

Theo didn’t look at him, but his voice was quieter than usual. “Some things never change.”

_____

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