At No Time || Bruno Mars

33

" . . . We were discussing the scheduling for the gala, and I suggested sometime soon, around March or April. Our spring and summer lines always sell the highest, and if word gets out then, people will be ready to buy clothes for that time and for our fall and winter collections . . ." Kimioko rattled off the details of a meeting Peter had supposedly missed as they readied themselves for bed. While the lunch with her parents had gone rather smoothly, Peter was still unsure whether or not to accept the sincerity of it.

"You know, your parents didn't have to do that—talk to all those people. Me and the guys are fine where we are. Did they even run this by Lance? He's the one they should be talking to, not me," Peter noted as he pulled on a clean T-shirt, the scent of tangerines unfortunately run away by detergent.

"I know, but when they presented the idea to me, I couldn't tell them no. They were only looking out for you, Petey," Kimioko responded as she tugged a pair of night shorts onto her small hips. A tinge of annoyance draped her voice as she put her glasses on her nightstand. "If it was gonna be a problem I would've told them not to bother."

Peter gave her a look, feeling she had little need to become upset. "I'm not trying to sound unappreciative—it was a nice gesture. But I just think it's a little weird that after eight years of us being together they finally wanna show me some decency." He had not done anything differently to acquire it. Their sudden change of heart was enough for anyone to turn a suspicious eye.

"Well—," she tugged her hand into a ponytail and climbed onto the bed, "—we all have to start somewhere. And I already told you—we're gonna be married soon which means you'll be their son-in-law. They can't treat how they've been treating you forever, can they?"

"Honestly, that's what I was expecting," Peter replied and lied into bed, too. It would've made it that much easier to cut off the engagement, he thought mockingly.

"Well, expect it no longer," she smiled and leaned over to kiss his cheek. He did not return it with one on hers, but she did not seem to notice the repression as she perked up excitedly.

"And speaking of marriages," she began with a clandestine smirk, and Peter was uncertain whether or not he wanted to hear what she had to say. His silence beckoned her continuance, and she spilled, "My parents convinced me to set our wedding in June. It'll be perfect timing—the word of our company will already be out and since they're designing my wedding dress, there'll be great photo-ops and we could expand the company with a matrimony collection–,"

"You did what?" Peter sat stock-still, having stopped listening after the revelation of what she had done rang in his ears.

"Peter, it's not that big of a deal." Kimioko rested her hand on his arm and he had to fight hard not to yank away.

"Yes, it is a big deal," he disagreed firmly, his brow tight and frown even tighter. "I told you that I wanted to push the date forward for a reason, Kimioko."

She withdrew her hand and eyed him as if he had grown another head. "Why are you acting like this? We were gonna get married anyway so why does it matter when we do it? It's not like I'm saying let's do it tomorrow. June is still months away."

"And that's two months before the original date! I already told you; I wanted to push it past that so I can get what I need to get done first–,"

Peter's cell phone buzzed against his nightstand, and he groaned, not up for any separate conversation than the one that currently had him heated. He was ready to simply cut his phone off when he recognized the caller.