'Knock. Knock.'
There was a knock on the door, breaking the silence and tensed atmosphere in the room.
"Sir Grand, the flight will be in ten minutes. It is time to board the plane."
"Alright." William turned to Jang Shin. "Think carefully about what I said..."
William halted.
Jang Shin's expression was fierce and complex. There was blood on the corner of his lips. It seems like this man was holding himself for speaking out things he knew he could not promise to do.
William felt irritated again. He irritably turned and left the room, leaving the man rooted inside.
Xiong Zhi and Tang Xinyang was already standing at the entrance of the accommodation ladder.
They began to say their goodbyes.
"I hope I will not see you soon, ladies."
"Linfeng wanted to send you off but he is too busy and cannot extricate himself from the company. Serves you right for not giving a heads-up at all that you're leaving today. He said he will visit after the busy period passes. We will see you soon. Have a safe trip."
"I will surely meet you again, senior! Keep up with the training, I will catch up soon."
William smiled. He took Tang Xinyang's hand, squeezed it gently, and kissed the slender fingers.
"Xinyang, I really like you."
The soulful blue eyes held a solemn light.
Tang Xinyang grinned. "I really like you, too, senior. Since senior likes me, let's meet again soon. In Boston's arena, I'll try to--Wua!"
William pinched her cheeks. "That's not what I meant, this silly girl. If Jang Shin makes you cry and you want to move on from him, look for me, okay? I will definitely make you happy. You have my contact number, so feel free to call or chat me up."
A playful smile was on his lips. His expression was light but his blue eyes were deep.
Tang Xinyang laughed ruthlessly. "That won't happen. I'll make sure that he'll marry me!"
William ruffled Tang Xinyang's hair. He hid the feelings of disappointment and loss in his heart.
"Alright, I get it. You two are such a pain. Goodbye now."
After bidding farewell, William walked away with the staff without looking back.
Tang Xinyang waved at William's disappearing figure.
Xiong Zhi stared at his back in deep thoughts.
At this time, Jang Shin just arrived at the entrance. His expression was unreadable as he watched quietly.
***
After long thirteen hours of flight, William finally arrived in his long-missed country.
Because he was feeling down, he planned to go to his suite directly and have a drink instead of sleeping to fix his jetlag.
Of course, he took selfies on his way.
He sent all his handsome pictures in the dead group chat. Those cold-hearted sworn brothers of his just 'seen' it.
The sound of his door opening after unlocking with password echoed in the floor.
As soon as he opened the door, he commanded his home's AI.
"Angela, turn on the night lights and select the song, 'Never thought that I could love'."
He was in the mood for something sentimental.
The warm dim lights lit up and the mechanical female voice sounded. "Welcome, William. Good afternoon. Turning on night lights. The song will be played in a few seconds."
Soon, the slow and melancholic musical intro of the song sounded in his suite.
William took off his coat and tie and threw them on the sofa. He directly went to the bar, when four men sitting on his bar stool greeted him.
William almost shriek in shock.
"The heck?! What are you four doing here! How did you enter!"
The three pointed their fingers at Johan.
Johan shrugged. "Your password is easy to remember, and Angela knows me."
Johan is the one who created Angela.
William was speechless.
Caleb handed him a glass of vintage wine. "We have been waiting for you for a long time already. As expected, you will coop up in this room. Tsk. Tsk. How sad are you to send that many selfies?"
Euginie shook his head. "How broken is your heart to play this song?"
Johan nudged Eugine. "It is the first time our oldest has his heart broken. First love, first heartbreak."
Caleb and Eugine: "Owww~"
William: "..."
These bastards!
Caleb: "Don't worry, we are here to cheer you up! We will drink all afternoon until night and dawn."
Erich who was silent all this time raised his wineglass. "Congratulations to our oldest experiencing his first love. You have now passed your puberty."
The four men cheered.
William: ....These guys!
William had a dark face, but his heart was not that gloomy anymore.
Caleb hooked an arm around his neck. "Come on! Tell us the story of 'I fell in love with the wrong person.' We're all ears!"
William shook his head with a helpless smile. "Nah~ I already moved on~"
The men kept urging William. It was a story that kept them gathered here right after lunch and waited for almost an hour despite their busy schedule.
However, William still did not tell them and just kept laughing at how ridiculous his brothers were.
"Thank you, brothers. As a reward, you can kiss my smooth and handsome cheeks today."
"Eww!"
"Gross!"
"We can manage, thank you."
William laughed. He was really touched. "And also, brothers..."
The four men: "Yeah?"
William smiled at them with a bit of a menacing air. "Don't ever surprise me like this again. It's creepy. And I will change my password from now on and reformat Angela."
The men complained.
William's depressing afternoon turned into a warm one.
***
A/N: I did not include the full details of the four days date in this arc even if I love to since William's feelings will only be briefly introduced and will exit quickly on the stage. But I am planning to put those four days date in William's arc in Volume Three. It was not part of the main stories, just side stories. So you'll know how William experienced his first heartache.
I would like to know your thoughts about it. ^^