One fateful dawn, Pete promised himself that he would never set foot in this place again. This big city was once his dream.Moving out of his hometown with his father after his mother passed away, Pete started from the bottom.He went to school with difficulty, his father had no money and did not want to pay his school fees so Pete studied hard to get a scholarship.
It was then that he met Porsche.
Porsche was his "partner in crime" since high school. He was more or less similar to him. His parents died in an accident when he was young, leaving him with his younger brother. Porsche didn't have money to pay both of their school fees so they studied together for a scholarship. Until finally they entered the same university and the same major as well.
It was all like story in the drama except Pete decided to leave.
For good.
The city that had been his entire life, had taken everything away from him. He lost his home, lost his family, lost his friends, lost his scholarship, and lost his lover. He might as well have lost his life, if it wasn't for the owner of the small hand holding his left hand tightly.
"Pa, are we there yet?" the owner of the small hand looked left and right curiously. His eyes marveled as he was not used to seeing so many people at the train station and the place must be bigger than he had imagined.
Pete crouched down to the boy's height and fixed his jacket, "Yes, we're here. It's a very long journey, you must be tired, Venice."
Venice nodded as sign of agreement but then he shook his head in hurry, "No, I'm okay. I'm a big boy!"
Pete chuckled, "Should the big boy remember that he has to cover his mouth when he yawns?"
Venice took his hand off Pete and used both hands to cover his mouth, his eyes twinkling and then giggling to himself.
Pete looked at the boy with affection in his eyes, "It's getting late. Let's go to the hotel and rest."
Venice nodded repeatedly and hook his hand on Pete's left hand again. Pushing a medium-sized suitcase in his right hand, Pete led the boy to the back exit of the train station. The road behind the station was the road to small hotels and small restaurants which were more affordable for Pete.
It was cold autumn night and Pete tried to speed up his steps. So, he stopped in middle way then carried Venice on his hip without saying anything.
"Is this our hotel?" Venice asked, thinking Pete was picking him up because they had already arrived.
"No, honey, we haven't—" Pete stopped in his tracks. He just realized the familiar hotel where they were standing.
The Memory Lane Hotel.
After five years, the hotel had been renovated. It was bigger and grander than Pete remembered, he barely realized it was the same hotel name. It no longer worn out, almost crumbling hotel he knew.
Pete smiled to himself. Even the hotel had moved on.
"Pa..." Venice called him softly.
"Sorry, baby. Our hotel is next door." Pete replied while fixing Venice in his arms, "Let's go."
When Pete was looking for a hotel to book, he only chose the hotels near the train stations that he could afford. He didn't know that his chosen hotel was next door to the hotel he had stayed in before he left the capital before.
It wasn't good memory, in fact, Pete tried to forget about it.
As soon as they entered the room, Pete helped Venice clean himself and put on warm animal pajamas. He watched Venice yawn repeatedly while they were still on the train. This was the first time Pete actually took Venice out of town and he had to get him to the capital which took 4.5 hours by train. Venice was restless on the train and hardly ever rested so it was no wonder he fell asleep right after Pete covered him with the blanket.
It was his turn to prepare himself for bed after making sure Venice was comfortable. He put on warmer clothes and opened his luggage while turning on television. He wanted to know tomorrow's weather forecast so he could pick the right clothes for Venice to wear.
He stopped on the news channel and waited for the weather forecast to come out with his hands busy packing up his luggage.
"—It's certainly the wedding of the century!"
The announcer's words caught Pete's interest. His hands stopped from whatever he was doing and he lifted his head to look at the tv.
"This is a Cinderella Story! A commoner caught the prince's attention and now it's time for their grand wedding!" said the announcer excitedly. The screen then showed two handsome men facing each other with smiles on their faces.
Pete snorted, "The announcer better not to meet Porsche after calling him Cinderella." he muttered while chuckling.
He decided to stop messing his luggage and turned his full attention to the television.
"The grand wedding will be held at The Highrise Hotel, a six-star hotel that just opened last month. Of course the hotel is owned by one of the grooms, Kinn Theerapanyakun." The announcer continued as the screen showed the layout of the grand ballroom, "The ballroom can accommodate up to 3000 people and it is rumored that the groom-to-be has ordered over two thousand flowers to decorate the venue—"
Pete sighed as he supported his head with one hand. The announcer rambled on and on about the cost of the wedding, the food, and any important guests that might be arriving, but none of that mattered to Pete. The only thing on his mind these past few days was how to get into the wedding venue unannounced and uninvited.
Yes, Pete promised not to return to the capital until he found out that Porsche was getting married.
He had not seen Porsche in almost five years, but even then, he still considered him his closest friend.They had a promise when they were still stupid that he had to fulfill.The problem was that he didn't have an invitation and the hotel seemed very secure.
Damn P'Kinn and his infinite money!
"Emm..." Venice suddenly groaned in his sleep.
Pete hastily turned off the tv and checked on the small boy, caressing his hair to calm him down.
"Papa... Papa..." Venice mumbled in his sleep.
Pete chuckled and climbed into the bed next to the boy. He looked at the boy fondly then kissed his forehead gently, "Good night, Venice." he said then closed his eyes, leaving his troubles for tomorrow.
It was another cold day in the capital. Pete almost cursed Porsche for having a wedding at the end of autumn season.
Could they hold wedding when the weather was warm?
The cold weather forced Pete to dress Venice in extra clothing, thick sweaters, thick winter jackets, soft scarves and furry animal hats.It was almost comedic to see Venice walking around with so many clothes on his body, he walked like a penguin.
But Venice was such a happy child. He never let anything dampened his mood. Instead of complaining about his clothes, Venice used the chance to jump around cutely and act like a real penguin. It got him so much attention and aww from the people waiting with them at the bus stop.
The bus ride was a bit long. It took 50 minutes from the bus stop at the train station to the bus stop in a certain residential area. Only Pete and Venice got off the bus stop which looked deserted.
Pete looked around with nostalgia in his eyes "Not much has changed..." he muttered to himself.
He took Venice's hand and they walked side by side to an old two-story apartment not far from the bus stop.Pete called it an apartment but to be honest it was just a small building holding only 6 small rooms.
Pete stopped for a moment right in front of the building. His eyes looked ahead at the room on the left side of the second floor before smiling to himself and continuing to walk towards a certain room on the first floor.
There was a paper stuck at the door.
"Only knock if you have money to pay the rent, parasites!"
Pete laughed a little before knocking the door with a loud bang.
"Who's this?!?" a woman's voice came from behind the door. From the sound of her voice, she seemed to be annoyed by the way Pete knocked on the door.
Pete didn't answer and instead knocked the same way again with a mischievous smile on his face.
"Go away, bastard!" the woman inside barked.
Pete chuckled "It's me, Miss Gem. Former tenant 206 who is always late with payments."
There was dead silence from behind the door before quick footsteps could be heard and the door was opened. A middle-aged woman, perhaps 50 years old, opened the door with suspicion in her eyes. When their eyes met, Pete smiled warmly at her.
"Miss Gem." Pete called out to her, clearly pleased to see her.
The woman opened her mouth in shock, her finger pointing at Pete in disbelief, "Pete?" he asked which Pete nodded in response. Then his eyes fell on the little boy beside Pete who was looking at her curiously, "Ahh... You really are Pete."
.
.
.
"Here, drink this while it's hot." Miss Gem put a warm chocolate drink in plastic mug in front of Venice.
Venice smiled happily and thanked her before excitedly reaching for the cup to take a slow sip.
"Careful, it's hot." Pete said gently, making sure to help Venice hold the cup.
After sipping enough, Venice placed his cup on the table and Pete wiped the remaining chocolate off his mouth with a tissue. Miss Gem watched their interaction with small smile.
"You never gave me chocolate drink." Pete said jokingly.
Miss Gem huffed, "You're the reason why I put the paper on the door."
Pete laughed at that then sipping on his own drink. Miss Gem gave him hot tea.
Miss Gem looked at Pete with narrowed eyes "So how are you, Pete?"
Pete smiled. He expected to get this question from her, "I'm fine. Venice is fine as well."
Miss Gem glanced at Venice briefly then turned back to Pete, "I wasn't lying when I said I would be thinking about you and your child."
"It... wasn't easy at first, to be honest. It was hard, very hard." Pete said looking forward then he finally looked back at Miss Gems "but it's getting better."
Miss Gem heaved a sigh of relief, "That's good to hear."
"I have a little bakery, me and my friend." Pete said with a smile, "The business is starting to do well and I was able to manage my schedule so that Venice doesn't have to be in daycare until late."
Miss Gem suddenly snorted. She lowered his head as if she was hiding the fact that he almost cried, "I'm happy. I'm really happy, Pete."
Pete reached over to take Miss Gem's hand and squeezed it lightly. Without saying anything, Pete just smiled at her again.
Miss Gem snorted and released her hand from Pete's grip and waved it around "Then what brought you back to the capital?" she asked, "Porsche's wedding?"
Pete checked Venice who wanted another sip of chocolate before nodding at Miss Gem confirming her statement.
Miss Gem sighed, "Porsche, that kid. He came here almost every day for three months after you left." she said, earning a guilty look from Pete, "he didn't believe me when I said I didn't know where you were going."
"Sorry, I seem to still be bothering you even after I left." Pete replied.
Miss Gem shook his head, "Tankhun also came and with two guys from your group assignments."
"Arm and Pol." Pete chimed in.
"Yes, them. They came asking for you." Miss Gem quickly answered then glanced at Venice again, "but he didn't..."
Pete smiled sadly, "There's no reason for him to ask about me." Those words left a bitter taste in his mouth.
"I planned to hit him with something if he ever came by." Miss Gem muttered under his breath.
Pete just chuckled, "That's all in the past. I just want to think about Venice and his future." said Pete, stroking Venice's hair. Venice just stared at him wide-eyed as Pete gave him a big grin.
Miss Gem nodded in approval, "So did you tell Porsche that you're here?"
"No. I didn't tell anyone, except you." Pete quickly replied, "I did come here for Porsche's wedding but I honestly still don't know how to get into the venue. I might have the gift sent to his old house instead."
"It will be hard." Miss Gem confirmed Pete's suspicions, "Each invitation has a specific barcode that can only be used once and by one person. Well, that's what Porsche told me."
Pete surprised, "Porsche told you?"
Miss Gem got off from his seat and went into her bedroom. After a while, she came out holding fancy looking envelope and handed it over to Pete.
Pete took it and read Porsche and Kinn name on the envelope. He quickly opened the envelope and took out a card with Miss Gem written on it and a thick invitation paper.
Pete read carefully what was on the invitation paper. It basically confirmed what he had heard from the media about the wedding except for one major detail.
"The party is at The Phoenix Hotel, not The Highrise?" Pete asked.
"No, Porsche said The Highrise is just a decoy for the media." Miss Gem answered, "The actual event will be held in Phoenix."
Pete chuckled, "Oh my, that's so lame."
"What?"
Pete looked at Miss Gem with an amused face, "The Phoenix is where Porsche and P'Kinn first met."
Miss Gem furrowed his eyebrows, not impressed with the fact, "They are cheesy, that's old news."
"Yes, you are right." Pete said, putting the invitation paper and card back to the envelope. He then gave it back to Miss Gem but Miss Gem shook her head.
"You can use my invitation to get inside the venue."
Pete widened his eyes, "No, I can't!"
"Why? I'm sure Porsche would be more than happy to see you at his wedding." Miss Gem said indifferently.
"I don't know." He looked doubtful, "If Porsche invites you too, he might invite the whole class."
"So?"
Pete sighed, "I don't want to be found out. I just wanted to drop the present and maybe see Porsche for a bit from afar, I don't want to linger. I'm afraid—" Pete looked at Venice, "I just want to stay like this, just me and Venice."
"I understand." Miss Gem answered, the look in her eyes showing she really cared about whatever was on Pete's mind, "the wedding is still a few days away. You think about it. If you want to go, I will gladly watch Venice for you."
"Miss Gem..." Pete muttered in shock.
"You are less likely to be caught without Venice." Miss Gem explained, "If the only reason you came back was because of Porsche's wedding then maybe you don't have any reason to come back anymore. Go see him while you can."
Suddenly Venice tugging at Pete's jacket, "Pa, I'm hungry."
"Ah, I only have instant noodles at my house." Miss Gem interrupted, somewhat frantic.
"It's okay, Miss Gem. I plan to take Venice to eat ramen." Pete replied, starting to collect Venice's belongings and stuffing them into his backpack, "Sorry to come in suddenly without notice."
Miss Gem shook her head, "Just call me if you want the invitation."
Pete looked at Miss Gem gratefully, "I'll think about it."