Hateful Love ( Vegaspete )

Chapter 2

As the wedding day kept drawing closer, I could barely contain my excitement to see Vegas. Even though his sharp words had pierced through my skin, they weren't enough to injure my scarred heart.
When I was given a photo of him and every information about him, I couldn't refrain myself from being delusional and thinking about being given atleast a single chance by him.

For the first time in my life, my new cage did not feel too repulsive.
Even though he had threatened me to not accept the marriage proposal, I did not have any real say in a business union-ship between the two families disguised in the name of 'marriage' and neither did he. I was a mere puppet in the whole scenario not a 'prince' that he must have thought of me as.

As I was looking through the information about every member of the family that I was commanded to remember, my father barged in through the door.

"Sawasdee khrap phaw" I greeted him and he simply nodded in reply.

"Have you finished remembering everything I told you to?" Phaw's dominating voice echoed through the room.

Even after all these years, I had failed to keep myself calm infront of him. I could feel my hands shivering slightly but not enough to be visible to the naked eye.

"Almost" I answered in a single word. I had been strictly instructed ever since my childhood to keep my conversations with him as compact as possible.

"What do you mean almost?" His eyebrow furrowed as he stepped closer to me.

"I give you one job and you are incapable of doing that as well..!" He grabbed my jaw tightly and berated me for not completing the job given within the stipulated time.

His grasp was crushing my jaw but I had to hold myself back from wincing even in the slightest to avoid being 'disciplined' unnecessarily.

"I apologize" I bowed my head as much as I could in his grasp and expressed regret to tone his anger down by a bit. It worked fortunately and he left the room after warning me for one last time, not before landing a hit on my face as a punishment for my inadequacy though.

"Apply some cream or something on your face, I don't want them to get upset after seeing it. You have no other qualities anyway, atleast use the good face that you've got well" He commanded before finally leaving the room.

I did exactly as I was told and after spending almost the whole day in preparing for the 'big day' collapsed on my bed from all the exhaustion.

A few days later:

"Phi ready for your wedding?" Macau hopped into my room and sat down beside me. He was the only cousin with whom I had always been pretty close. He knew about most of my secrets and tried to always lift my mood up everytime I looked gloomy because of any reason.

"Yes" I smiled at him but as expected couldn't lie to him.

"You know that you don't need to act tough infront of me right?" His eyes softened as he said.

"Oh? When did you grow up so much to console your elder brother like that?" I ruffled his hair and he tried to escape from my grasp to save his hairstyle but got a bit too late. He pouted playfully at me for messing with his hair and I laughed seeing him acting like a child. He was my only source of joy in the house and in the Teerapanyakul residence where I barely knew anyone, where a part of me was scared to go to, I had no idea if I was ever going to get even a moment of warmth like this.

Just as we were enjoying the moment together and I was absorbing every bit of happiness and hope that was radiating from Macau, father entered the room with a smile that looked so genuine that one would think I was the apple of his eye, thankfully however, I was the only one who could see the cold and unaffected expressions hidden behind the deceitful mask.
Macau looked at me in uncertainty and I nodded at him, allowing him to leave the room.

"My my, look at you, all grown up now, it feels just like yesterday when you were still a baby." He said in a sweet, mocking voice. He was looking like he was about to burst out laughing from all the words that he had just uttered but somehow managed to hold it in.

He took a step forward and hugged me tightly. His embrace had no parental warmth in it, it felt as if I was hugging a wall, which maybe I was. Just as I had expected, he had an ulterior motive behind hugging me out of the blue, he fisted my hair while hugging me and tugged it painfully.

"Do not dare to mess up! I've undertaken great pains to have this marriage arranged, protect it at all costs, protect it because...your life depends on it." He threatened me in a low voice to make sure no one else would be able to hear it if they were eavesdropping and once he was done, he broke the hug and gave me the same fake smile.

Before leaving he caressed the back of my head at the same spot that he had clenched earlier to remind me about the warning silently. I forced myself to smile back at him and finally after a torturous period of 10 minutes, he was out of the room to carry on with his business.

About half an hour or so later, I was called out to the main hall for the commencement of the rituals. The surroundings seemed to be in a blur. I could not bring myself to show even a tiny bit of enthusiasm, I was feeling completely burnt out and was feeling like running out of the room and leaving the city to settle down in some far away place, but the moment I laid my eyes on vegas, every tension, every despair, every bit of pain I was suffering internally dissipated from my body as if it had never existed.

My heart was beating so loudly that even the loud music felt like mere whispers. His sharp eyes, slicked and well-set hair were looking perfect and even the Suea Phraratchathan ( wedding suit ) was complimenting his body well making him look ethereal.

A certain overwhelming desire took roots inside me, making my fingers flutter as I craved to run them through his hair and caress his face. Maybe he noticed the hunger in my eyes, for, the very next moment he glared at me and looked away as if he wanted to ignore my existence.

I was led to my seat and the rituals started as planned. Throughout the wedding he did not spare me even a single glance. Occassionally, he smiled at his family members, especially Porsche and even though I wasn't the reason behind those smiles, I felt content seeing him look happy even if it was for a single moment.

"Will he ever smile at me like that?" I muttered to myself ever so silently but mysteriously enough, he heard that, taking me aback for a second.

"Quit dreaming" was what he said in a harsh tone yet the tone had no effect on me. I said nothing, to avoid any argument and without anymore conversation between us, the wedding came to an end.

Everyone except Vegas rejoiced. From the corner of my eye, I could see how disappointed he looked. He was looking as if he was ready to run rampant, as if he wanted me out of the picture...

Finally after the remaining fairly smaller post-wedding rituals, we were all set to leave the premises of the wretched place that I had to refer to as 'my house'.

"Don't expect any good treatment from me simply because we are married now. I have warned you before already, I don't have even the least bit of interest in you" He said with straight face with hatred spilling out of his eyes. It was almost comical how nearly everyone in my life seemed to hate me.

Looks like my only purpose in life is to be sold like a rag doll and endure everyone's hate.
I laughed inwardly at my miserable situation and looked over towards Vegas.

"Don't worry, I know where I stand. I won't cause you any trouble." A part of me did not want to say it.

I couldn't deny that I was already in love with the side of vegas that wasn't aimed at me, the side which knew how to smile, the side which knew how to love...