Devour || AU VegasPete Fanfic

Chapter 02: Loose Ends

"I think Vegas is back in Thailand."

Arm's words kept playing inside Pete's head in a loop. He tried to put his logic into shape. He had left that mansion eight years ago. When Grandma died he had gone back to collect her things and talked to Nop, the person Vegas had put in charge of the house before he left for the USA.

Nop had asked Pete if he wanted to come back. Pete refused and told him he wanted out of that life. Nop smirked and told him, "Once you're in this business, there is no way out."

Pete had wanted to argue that he didn't choose to be in this business but had thought better of it. He had taken his Grandma's belongings, said his goodbyes, and left.

That was four years ago. It was also that day when he had gotten stupid drunk and spilled the beans about his past to his four friends: his parents, his life in the Theerapanyakul household, Vegas.

Vegas. That one man who had singlehandedly ruined Pete's life. He had been the reason why Pete was forced to run away from home eight years ago. He had been the reason why Pete had to live separated from his only living family. He was the reason there was a knife scar on Pete's chest and a hollow where his heart was supposed to be.

Pete smiled ironically at the rather poetic sentence. He should have been a writer instead of a painter. His heart. As if there was such a thing as giving someone one's heart. No, Pete wasn't a romantic. Not anymore. He was a cynic. Vegas made him that way and it was the one thing Pete could thank him for. Being a cynic got him everything he had today. His whole career was based on it. And it was also how he had managed to keep all his friends. He always kept a certain amount of distance from everyone. It always kept him safe.

Pete regretted telling his friends about his deepest darkest secrets. He blamed alcohol and the grief that came from the loss of the only family he had. But his friends had been kind enough to never bring it up again.

Yumi had banned Vegas' name from all conversations. And eventually, everyone forgot about him. Or rather decided to pretend that they had. It was the first time in four years Arm had brought him up. And now Pete was stressed out even more.

It annoyed him because if Vegas was back it wasn't because he wanted to see Pete. He was back because he had taken over his father's business. If that was true then he was probably balls deep into work to even think about Pete.

Pete believed that he was nothing but a small bump in Vegas' carefully paved road. The road his father planned for him probably since the day he was born. He once had made the mistake of thinking that a maniac like Vegas could care for someone and it had cost him his whole life. Not again.

Pete took a deep breath and made a note to himself to go about his day as usual. He will not let Vegas affect his life again. He had other things to worry about. For example, he had to return the six texts and two missed calls Yok had left him asking about his work.

Sighing, Pete let go of the steering wheel of his car and dug into his pockets to find his phone. He dropped Yumi at her apartment and was now parked in front of his, dialing Yok's number. She picked up after the 2nd ring.

"Tell me you're almost done with your painting," her voice sounded urgent.

"Uhm..." Pete gnawed on his lips.

"Pete! You have an exhibition in 12 days!" she yelled.

"I know! I know! Look I'm trying so hard right now! I haven't left my studio in weeks! But you have to understand Yok, I can't! I know I'm risking your job by doing this and I can't begin to explain how sorry I am. Because I am. I am so sorry. But my head is empty right now."