The next morning, I woke up and headed to the kitchen to prepare breakfast. Chak was already up, but he looked exhausted.
"Good morning," I greeted him, continuing, "Would you like a cup of coffee?"
"Please," he answered quietly.
I set the cup of coffee on the counter and asked him once again, "What would you like for breakfast?"
"Maybe a smoothie," he said, holding back his words.
"Alright," I nodded.
I took the blender and prepared a fruit smoothie. I poured it into glasses and handed one to him. He just nodded and returned to his work. After we finished, I cleaned up the kitchen and changed. I gave some affection to Leo, Sun, and Lon, then headed out to the car. Chak was already waiting. In pleasant silence, we drove toward the company.
But I could already feel the tension as soon as I walked through the door. Something was in the air.
I sat at my desk and immersed myself in work.
One hour later...
I heard shouting. I turned around and saw the man from yesterday. The security guards were following him. He stopped and measured us with his gaze. His eyes lingered on me for a moment.
"You," he said, pointing at me. "Come here."
I stood up and walked toward him. "Follow me," he said commandingly, turning around.
I followed him into the meeting room. When I closed the door, he turned to me, stepped closer, and spoke in a sharp tone.
"If Chak doesn't sell his shares to me, I'll buy you."
I froze. I had already opened my mouth to respond, but at that moment, the door burst open. Chak and Kit entered.
Chak looked visibly upset.
"Niran is not your property to speak to like that," he hissed.
Rangsan smirked coldly.
"Not yet, but soon enough, he will be, if you don't sell me the shares, Chak."
"I'm not selling them, Rangsan," Chak said sharply. "And Niran is staying here."
Rangsan shrugged. "I could take someone else from your employees."
Chak stepped closer to him, raising his voice.
"No one from my company is going to be your toy. This is between us, don't drag others into it."
Rangsan narrowed his eyes and slowly raised an eyebrow.
"Interesting... So, you do care about him."
---
For a moment, there was silence. Tense. The air was charged with electricity.
Rangsan slowly smiled. That smile that creeps under your skin and freezes you to the bone.
"So, you really do care about him," he repeated, this time with more contempt in his voice. "Interesting. I didn't expect that from you, Chak."
He then looked at me.
"Well, now I at least know where you stand in this game. This will be useful," he said and turned toward the door.
"Rangsan!" Chak almost shouted.
Rangsan didn't stop. He simply raised his hand in a casual wave, as if saying goodbye. When the door slammed shut behind him, a heavy silence fell over the room.
Kit looked at Chak, then at me.
"This is getting dangerous. You shouldn't have involved Niran," he said quietly.
I was still standing by the wall. I couldn't move a muscle. My heart was pounding like crazy. All I could hear was:
"I will buy you." "your property." "toy.
It was as though someone had ripped my voice away. My mind was far away.
"Niran?"
Chak's voice snapped me out of it. I looked at him, but I couldn't hide how confused I was.
"I'm sorry," he said, taking a step toward me. His tone was softer now, completely different from before.
"I never should have allowed him to drag you into this. I didn't expect him to go this far."
"Why me?" I whispered.
Chak fell silent. His eyes clouded for a moment. It seemed like an inner battle was raging inside him.
"Because he sees you as a weak point. And because he's a toxic person who takes what he wants," Kit said.
"But I'm not... I'm not special," I said quietly, almost to myself.
Chak flinched. He took a step closer to me.
"To me, you are," he said simply. No beating around the bush.
My heart stopped for a moment. We locked eyes. It was that look – the one that says more than words ever could.
Kit stepped toward the door.
"I'll leave you two. But Chak... make sure Rangsan doesn't have access here anymore, alright?"
Chak nodded, not taking his eyes off me.
When we were alone, I finally spoke.
"Are you really ready to go that far for me?"
"Niran... for things that matter to me, I always go all the way."
---
At that moment, I hugged him tightly. I didn't want to let go. In his embrace, I felt safe.
Chak lowered his gaze, as if he was weighing whether he should say something more. But then his phone rang. He looked at the screen and immediately answered.
"Talk," he said briefly. His face darkened more and more as he listened. He clenched his jaw.
"I understand. I'll be there right away."
He hung up.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
"One of our projects crashed on the stock market overnight. And..." His gaze briefly stopped on me. "Some information has come out that could damage your reputation."
I froze. "Mine? What kind of information?"
"Private matters. Photos. Comments. It all looks like you tried to interfere with the company's project strategy without permission. It could come off like you're manipulating the data."
I shook my head. "But that's not true. I have nothing to do with it!"
"I know. But Rangsan has connections. And he knows people in the media."
"Why is he doing this to me? I just... I just draw. I help. I don't want anything bad."
Chak stepped closer. He looked deep into my eyes.
"Rangsan doesn't want you because he cares about you. He wants you because he knows you mean something to me. And because he knows he could destroy me with this."
My hands began to shake. I was in shock. Just yesterday, I was an ordinary guy who draws and drinks too much coffee. Now... I was a tool in the hands of a psychopath.
Chak continued:
"Kit and I will handle it. But... if it goes too far, I'll have to send you somewhere safe."
"No," I said firmly. "I'm not running away. If you don't run, I won't either."
For a moment, pride flickered in his eyes. But also fear.
"Alright," he said slowly. "But then you have to trust me. And never go anywhere alone. Rangsan plays dirty. He could follow you, intercept your mail, your messages, anything."
At that moment, Kit burst into the room.
"You need to see this, now!" he said breathlessly, holding a tablet in his hands.
On the screen was a news website. The headline read:
"New employee involved in internal nanipulations at Chak Phanprasit's company – New scandal rocks the leadership."
Below it was my photo. One of those photos from my personal profile. And right next to it – another one, where I was in the office with Chak. It looked like I was showing him something on his computer.
"How... how did they get this photo?" I whispered.
Chak walked quietly toward the door.
"Because someone in here is working with Rangsan," he said coldly. "And we'll find them."
He turned to me.
"I'm taking you home. I can't risk something happening to you. You'll work from home."