[ON HOLD] CIGARETTES

Chapter 1

The moment Max stepped into the bar, all eyes instantly darted to him. He was tall, with the high nose bridge and full lips. His jawline could even cut an apple. He had sharp eyes framed with thick brows.

He strode his long legs to the bar stool. It was the first time he visited this bar. He wore the nicest suit he had. Today was supposed to be his best day. It never crossed his mind that tonight would be the worst he ever had.

He was supposed to feel butterflies in his stomach, but he felt like he just got splashed by cold water and all that was left was the ache. First he felt it in his heart, but soon it crawled and spread out to his whole body.

He was broken. His mind was cloudy when he drove back home.

Home. Max scoffed and swallowed the whiskey he ordered in one shot. He wondered if he still had a home after tonight.

In his mind home was where Mild was. She was everything he wanted, everything he needed. The love of his life.

So, when they were celebrating their 5th anniversary, Max was going to propose her. But his dream was shattered into pieces when Mild suggested them to go separate ways.

Max was ready to compromise if Mild didn't like his traits, attitude, or whatever. He was willing to change for her. But she put off that idea immediately. She really was determined to end all of this.

She went away, without explanation, leaving him on the table that had been reserved for them two with a breathtaking view of city lights.

Max sat there alone for hours, contemplating anything he had ever done to Mild that made her regret being with him. He was guessing what went wrong.

When he realized, he had been driving his wheels. Since, he didn't want to go home, where he had been staying with Mild, he pulled over to the random bar he found.

"Rough night?" Someone asked him while serving another shots of whiskey on the bar.

Max tilted up his head. He was welcomed by the tanned guy wearing white t-shirt and black apron behind the bar. Max could guess he worked here as a bartender.

The guy's smile soothed the ache on his chest a bit. Max smiled back at the bartender. "Thanks." He lifted up the glass and took one more shot. The alcohol slowly warmed his throat, he wished it would cast away the cold in his heart too.

The bartender excused himself to serve another customer. Max's eyes followed his move.

He watched how he gracefully move while pouring down the alcohol to the glasses. The bartender showing his perfect teeth to the other customers

Blink.
Max didn't know someone could be that stunning. He instantly forgot the pain he had been bearing.

Soon, the bartender was back to his original post, standing tall before Max.

"Anything on my face?" He asked to Max since he caught Max watching him for awhile now.

"You look stunning." Max had blurted out that line before he could stop himself.

"... Thank you?" The bartender felt awkward from Max's candidness.

"Oh, I'm sorry I didn't mean it like that." Max scratched his non-itchy head. He was shocked himself when he suddenly spoke that words without thinking. Maybe his head had some screws loose because of the heartbreak.

The bartender only smiled as he was confused what to say to the customer in front of him.

As soon as this guy walked into the bar, everyone set their eyes on him, including himself.

He had milky white skin, unlike his tanned skin. This guy seemed to be a have-it-all kind of guy. He was handsome and basking with money. He could spot right away the luxurious watch he was wearing.

It was such a surprise, for a living god like him chose the barstool instead of having an opened table. Normally, a man like him would enjoy being pampered by the girls.

But this man in front of his eyes ordered a classic whiskey and drank shot after shot alone. He ignored or even was oblivious by the girls that were batting their lashes, sending out invitation to him.

Instead of flirting back to the girls, he had his eyes on... him, somehow.

He approached him to ask whether he had something on his face, but to his surprise, the guy said something weirder. It made him blushed.

After the long awkward silence, Max finally broke it by asking, "What's your name?"

"It's Tul. What's yours?" Tul asked back as he showed dazzling smile again.

Max loved that smile, so, he smiled back at him and outstretched his hand to Tul, "I'm Max."

It was the first time Tul got to see his smile since the first time Max stepped into the bar. He was not wrong when he said Max was handsome.

They shook hands and Max asked for more shots. Tul poured them all to Max without complaining. He was only doing his job.

After gulping down almost half of the bottle by himself, Max's mind started going hazy. Tul could even see how wasted he was.

The bar was almost closed, and Max was the only customer left and wasted. Tul had done cleaning up, he tried to shake Max's shoulder but Max had dozed off. He had his head leaning on the table.

Tul sighed as he rummaged Max's pocket. He found his wallet and picked Max's ID card to get his address. He put Max's arm on his shoulder and dragged him out of the bar.

Tul could easily spot Max's car since it was the only luxurious brand parked at the side of the road. He turned off the alarm and put the wasted man on the passanger seat.

Tul drove off to the address that was written on Max's ID card.

Soon, the car arrived at the luxurious condominium. Max was really living in upper class society. He didn't know where Max's room was, but luckily, the receptionist at the lobby recognized Max and told Tul the floor and room he was living in.

It was quite a work to drag Max, since he got a tall and big build. He had the same build as Tul but Tul was slightly shorter.

When he unlocked the door with the key he managed to get from Max's pocket, the door swung open and he could see the room was messy. It was like someone had just rummaged through the whole unit.

Tul felt shivered down to his spine. Maybe, Max was robbed? He carefully put Max on the couch, and he went to check all the rooms, see if the burglar was still lurking around.

When he found no one other than Max and him in this apartment, he finally relieved a sigh.

He helped Max to pull off his shoes and put him onto the bed. After that, his eyes caught a photo frame on the night stand. It was Max and beautiful girl laughing happily. And Max's smile reached his eyes.

Anyone would know they were lovers striking a pose to the camera. They looked really happy and content together.

Tul smiled thinly. Max looked dashingly handsome... and full of love.

He got up from his knees, walked to the door and left the sleeping Max alone.

The door would automatically lock itself. After ensuring that the door had been locked, he went downstairs and caught a cab to go home.

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To be continued
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