Billionaire Biker Boy

Chapter 24. I Want to Be Your Hero

 

The shift in how Samut addressed him was nothing compared to the impossibly difficult question that followed. Sirichok could only look at the smaller figure with discomfort. He didn't want to answer this question at all, especially since he still harboured hopes of courting this close friend of his. However, outright denial wasn't an option either, not with the person still clinging to his arm.

 

"Uh... yeah, we're dating," Sirichok finally answered. After all, Mathukorn remained a steady source of income for him. He couldn't afford to lose Honey.

 

... I'll just clear things up with Samut later.

...But wait, what's this about a date? Is he dating Mr Vice President now?

 

Since Sirichok didn't bother introducing the person he was dating, Samut didn't ask. This created an awkward silence in the middle of the shoe store, which Wonchana eventually broke.

 

"Do you work at Sardina?"

 

"Y-yes, sir, I do. I'm Sirichok, from the accounting department. I'm... 'a close friend' of O's from university," Sirichok replied to his boss.

 

Wonchana's lips curved into a cold smile. "Nice to meet you, 'a close friend' of O. Funny, O never mentioned you before, so I didn't know he had a 'close friend' like you."

 

The vice president of many companies said, then raised the arm Samut was holding and wrapped it around the smaller man's shoulders. With a tone laced with smugness, he addressed the 'close friend. 

 

"By the way, I'll take my future boyfriend to grab some food now. See you back at the office." As Wonchana led his 'future boyfriend', who remained silent, out of the store, the atmosphere inside the sports shoe shop seemed to grow significantly gloomier. The enthusiasm for shopping between the other two dwindled by more than half.

 

"What's wrong, Honey?" Sirichok finally broke the awkward silence.

 

The slender man let out a quiet sigh. He wasn't clueless. Just from the way that kid looked at him, the so-called close friend status, and the hesitant answers from the man beside him, he could already piece things together. But with the other party having a tall 'future boyfriend' in tow, along with those sharp words, it was clear that man had caught on to something. Mathukorn knew better than to ask anything that would make him seem unreasonable, but he couldn't help himself.

 

"Oat, do you like that kid?"

 

Sirichok answered immediately, as if he'd prepared the response in advance. "No, I don't. But I know he likes me. I don't feel anything for him, but I haven't been clear with him because I owe him a debt of gratitude. Besides, he's about to have a boyfriend now, isn't he? Are you jealous, Honey?"

 

"A little."

 

Though Sirichok regretted not buying the shoes he wanted, his top priority was to appease his golden goose.

 

"Don't be jealous. There's really nothing going on. But if you don't feel like shopping anymore, let's head back to the room. I'll give you a waist massage."

 

Mathukorn began to smile again. "You haven't gotten your shoes yet, Oat. Let's finish shopping first."

 

And just like that, the two resumed picking out shoes as if nothing had happened moments ago.

...But no one realised that once the heart felt uneasy, it never truly recovered.

════[changbins_delulu_wife]════

Meanwhile, the vice president, who had led his future boyfriend out without waiting for the other party to introduce their partner, headed to the parking lot to store their shopping bags before finding something to eat. After placing the bags in the back seat and closing the car door, Wonchana turned around...

...to see Little Chihuahua standing there, looking dejected, his eyes red as he stared off into the distance.

 

Wonchana locked the car and let out a quiet sigh. Leaning against the car door, he reached out to take the smaller, icy-cold hand in his, pulling him closer before asking, "Do you like him that much?"

 

The smaller man shook his head, and the tears he'd been holding back finally spilt over.

 

"I don't like him that much anymore... but I still feel disappointed. He's not the person I knew for four years. I always saw him as a hero... At the restaurant, the photo I asked P'Ong about-he's the one P'Ong said was the future son-in-law of that politician. But he's still seeing someone else. If he just had a boyfriend, I wouldn't feel this disappointed. I never thought he'd turn out like this... hic.

 

And then Samut broke into sobs. Wonchana pulled the fragrant, smaller figure into his arms, letting him cry against his chest without offering any words of comfort. He thought that comforting him would only make him cry harder, so he simply rubbed his back gently. In the end, the warmth he offered made Samut's tears flow even more freely.

 

When the sobbing finally subsided, Wonchana handed him a handkerchief. "Wipe your face a bit, and then we'll go wash up. After that, I'll take you for some sashimi."

 

Samut nodded, sniffling. He removed his mask and used the soft handkerchief to wipe away his tears and snot. The scent of the fabric and the man's embrace wrapped around his small heart, warming it.

 

"P'Win, you're so good to me," he murmured.

 

"Because I like you, of course. I want you to see me as your hero, too. But this hero is loyal, not a flirt. I can drive you around, make sure you're never short on money, and take you out for cocoa or sashimi every day. I can cook rice and meals, command a robot vacuum, and do laundry perfectly. But ironing... I'm not so good at that. Still looking for a personal ironer..."

 

Samut’s pale cheeks flushed a soft pink, making him even more endearing. Before he could finish listening to the promotion, Samut looked up and met the other man's gaze, giving him a sweet smile. "P'Win, you're already my hero. But... please give me a little more time. I don't want to use you as a way to move on. I want to like you with my whole heart."

 

"Of course, absolutely. I'll wait until the day you're ready," Wonchana said, gently brushing his fingers against Samut’s soft cheek.

 

'...Let's wash up first, and then I'll drive us to a nice restaurant. An army marches on its stomach, right?"

...At least I won't starve with him around.

════[changbins_delulu_wife]════

For dinner that evening, Wonchana took Samut to an omakase restaurant in Thonglor. Despite the high prices, the place was still quite full, as it also offered an à la carte menu. However, there were still seats available for the omakase course, which Wonchana had already reserved by phone.

 

"Don't they give you a menu?" Samut whispered curiously, his eyes still slightly red and his nose pink.

 

After being seated at the counter for a while without receiving a menu, the taller man smiled and whispered back,

 

"This is called 'omakase.' It's a course meal where the chef serves each dish one by one, and we don't get to choose. Omakase means 'trust the chef.' The only thing we can tell them is if we're allergic to anything... Oh, by the way, you aren't allergic to anything, right?"

 

"No, I'm not," Samut replied, his eyes lighting up as he looked at the two chefs behind the counter. Though he loved eating sashimi, it was usually from affordable chain restaurants with branches nationwide. He'd never been to a place like this before.

 

While waiting, the smaller man took out his phone to snap pictures of the surroundings. But when he noticed the gaze on him, Samut felt shy and spoke up. Want a selfie? A bonus service from the five-thousand-baht promotion earlier." 

 

Back when Arthit took that photo, Wonchana had immediately transferred the money, leaving the model feeling a bit flustered at his own impulsiveness. How could Wonchana refuse? He leaned in close to the smaller man's face right away. After taking enough photos, the taller man asked to see the pictures taken that day. He'd only seen Samut post shots of the factory, the river view, and a big prawn alongside his own arm.

 

When Samut opened his photo album, Wonchana spotted a video of himself being interviewed and immediately asked, "Send me this video and the selfies, please. You can use AirDrop-it's faster than LINE."

 

"What's AirDrop?" the low-tech man asked, genuinely clueless.

 

Wonchana paused for a moment before explaining and guiding him through the process. The smaller man listened attentively, nodding along. "Then you tap on my name like this. But if multiple names pop up, make sure to select the right one, or it will send it to someone else instead."

 

"Wow, that's really convenient. It's much faster," Samut remarked, clearly impressed.

 

"Why do you use an iPhone? Do you have other devices too?"

 

"I have an iPad for studying, but I don't really know how to use it much, except for studying, reading e-books, and watching YouTube. My phone's mostly for calls, photos, Facebook, LINE, and TikTok. But this one was bought by P'Sea because my old phone got a virus. Heh, I didn't know any better, so I clicked a link I thought a friend had sent me. Luckily, the money in my account didn't disappear. After that, P'Sea replaced my phone and set up my banking app to only have one account for monthly allowances. He also told me to transfer any amount over thirty thousand to another non-online account."

 

Wonchana could only smile, holding back laughter. He ruffled the smaller man's head affectionately. Now he understood why P’Sea was reluctant to let Samut move to Bangkok.

...This Little Chihuahua was practically a sweet, juicy prey for scammers.

 

No wonder, when they first met, he acted all tough and defensive, keeping his guard up high. He must've been afraid that he was a scammer trying to deceive him.

...Well, it's fine. From now on, I'll protect this Little Chihuahua from all the scammers.

 

Just then, the chef announced that the first dish was ready to be served. Samut turned his attention to the chef frying small tempura fish with great interest, his mouth watering. off questions as usual.

 

"P'Win, why isn't there any sashimi yet?"

 

"The chef serves the dishes in order," Wonchana explained. "They start with appetisers and gradually move to dishes with stronger flavours. The sequence is carefully planned to bring out the best taste of each dish."

 

"Oh, I see," Samut nodded enthusiastically. Seeing this, Wonchana continued, "Eating like this is kind of like appreciating art. Plus, the food is of very high quality. Since there's no fixed menu, the chef can choose the best seasonal ingredients for us."

 

Wonchana then suggested that Samut take pictures of the chef plating the dishes. When the chef served the food, he explained what each dish was, the order in which it should be eaten, and whether to use a spoon or hands.

 

The first dish consisted of two types of Okinawan seaweed salad, topped with ikura (tiny, crispy crabs that could be eaten whole), tempura shishamo fish, and a small cup of jelly with bright-orange salmon roe floating inside.

 

"Yum!" Samut exclaimed in delight after savouring the jelly made from fish milt and ponzu sauce, along with the plump salmon roe, as his final bite.

 

As the chef prepared the second dish, the still-hungry Samut leaned in, whispering another question. "P'Win, do we have to sit and watch the chef make each dish like this?"

 

Wonchana chuckled softly. "That's right. This is the charm of omakase. This course has eighteen dishes in total."

 

"Wow, by the time we get to the last dish, the first one will already be digested!"

 

"Haha, but I guarantee you'll be full."

 

"And if I'm not?" The ever-curious foodie pressed on.

 

"You can order more, but it'll cost extra outside of the course," Wonchana replied.

 

Samut thoroughly enjoyed the meal, taking plenty of photos and videos to document the experience.

...This is going to blow up on TikTok!

 

When they reached the final dish, dessert, the chef served a slice of sponge cake with fruit mousse, accompanied by large, juicy fresh fruits and a glass of umeshu.

 

"Why is this so tasty?" the non-drinker asked in surprise.

 

"Want another glass?" the host offered.

 

"Can I?" The newly tempted Samut turned to him with pleading eyes.

 

"Of course," Wonchana laughed at the adorable tactic of the little charmer.

 

And so, Samut happily indulged in a second glass of the delicious plum wine. When the meal, which lasted an hour and a half, finally ended, Samut’s eyes nearly popped out of his head at the sight of the check on the credit card slip.

...Oh my god. I've never eaten a meal that cost sixteen thousand baht before!

 

...That's my entire salary for a month.

...Do rich people in Bangkok really spend money like this?!

 

When Wonchana finished signing the receipt and leaving a tip, he turned to see Samut’s wide-eyed expression and laughed. "Today's a special day. It's okay to be a little more luxurious. We're celebrating our first date."

 

The generous spender didn't dare mention that there were restaurants where the price per head exceeded 10,000 baht, but those required advance reservations. Seeing the smaller man still blinking in shock, Wonchana asked, "So, did you enjoy this meal?"

 

When Samut nodded, Wonchana wrapped an arm around his small shoulders to guide him out of the restaurant.

...For me, that makes it all worth it."

 

But the perfect meal was soon ruined when Samut whined at a red light, "P'Win... My whole body is itchy."