Chips looked at the pillow that was now lying on the floor.

Walking up to it, he crouched down and smelled it.

He smirked inwardly, then looked up at his boss and said, “I smell nothing.”

King was confused, “But I…”

Chips threw it back at him saying, “Smell it for yourself then and just so you know, my nose is cleaner than yours. I didn’t sleep in this room.”

King raised the pillow to his nose and smelled it again. He looked at Chips, who was staring at him, and said nothing. He didn’t want to look like a fool any longer.

“What time is it?” He asked as he got up from the bed.

“Almost nine,” he answered listlessly as he made himself comfortable.

“What time are we meeting him?” He asked.

Chips looked at his watch mumbling, “I don’t know. Delta said something about lunch, so twelve or one.”

“And my other appointments?” He asked.

“I don’t know,” he answered.

“What do you know?” King spat at him as he made his way to the bathroom.

“I know you beat Troy up and now you can’t live without him,” he said.

*

Turning to the door that opened, King stared at Gun, who walked in wearing a black crop top under a white dungaree paired with white sneakers and black hoop earrings.

Gun’s eyes met King’s, and he immediately beamed, “Hia Kai~” He squealed and rushed up to him.

Jumping on his lap, he wrapped his arms around King’s neck, greeting, “Good morning or should I say good afternoon.”

King was taken aback by that intimate greeting as he looked at him then said sounding angry, “Get off of me.”

*

Before the conversation could move on, the door opened again, and a man walked in shouting, “King! How dare you reschedule our appointment? Is my business not useful to you anymore?”

Gun turned to look at who had just entered and it wasn’t only one person but five dangerous looking men. His eyes widened and his hold around King tightened and he started trembling.

King looked at the man and instantly knew that with him seeing them like this, everyone of his partners would hear about this.

“What do you want?” King asked the leader of the group, who had on a silk shirt. 

The man had his eyes trained on the hand resting against the small of Gun’s back. When King spoke, his eyes shot up to meet his, and he asked, “Am I disturbing something?”

Gun lowered his head, turning to face Kai, who had a blank expression.

“Sh, should I leave?” He mumbled.

King shook his head and held him tighter.

“Sit, since you are already here,” he said to the man.

After he sat down, he fixed his shirt and asked, “Who might this be?”

“Is that any of your business?” King asked, sounding hostile.

“Don’t be like that. We’re business partners and all I want to do is get to know you better. Everyone knows you are Mr Kai when the sun is out and Mr King when the night is here,” he said with a smirk.

A server came in bring the lunch that Gun ordered on his way up. King looked at the server with a death glare. Things were already tense in the room, so why was he bringing food when no one asked?

“What are you doing here? Did I call you?” King growled frightening Gun.

“I told them,” Gun said. Why did it seem like things were just getting worse by the second with this man’s temper?

King’s anger was rising by the second. He knew very well what would happen after today. He never liked being disturbed, and this asshole did just that.

He nodded his head for them to place the food down.

“Oh wow, a meeting with food. This is rare,” the man said.

King slapped his hand down on the table as he was reaching for the chopsticks and asked, “Did I invite you here to eat? State your business before I lose my temper.”

He held his hands up and rested them on the armrest. Looking at them, he said, “Who is this? You cancelled all of our meetings for him? He isn’t the type you go for.”

“Well, look at you, being all concerned about me,” King said.

Taking in a deep breath, he said, “Fine, let’s get down to business but do you want him here?”

“He isn’t going anywhere,” King answered.

‘Well fuck, if I’m not going anywhere, I might as well eat,’ Gun thought and picked up the chopsticks.

He ordered Singaporean cuisine. He pulled the Hainanese chicken with rice towards him and started eating.

King looked at him then turned his gaze to the man and said, “Get on with it, Adrian. I cancelled our meeting for a reason.”

“The harbour is being monitored by the police,” he said.

King’s brows furrowed. “Why? What did you do?”

He shook his head, “Not us. A politician was hiding his prostitutes in one of the storage units. One girl was from a family that was amendment on finding her and the investigation lead to the harbour. All the units are going to be checked soon. That’s why you are here, remember? I need you to solve this problem.”

King nodded his head. “Is that all?”

He shook his head, “No. There has been an increase in the smaller gangs around the country and they are messing around in your territory. We need you to give us the thumbs up to get rid of them.”

King thought about it and nodded his head slowly. “Arrange for all the heads to meet me tonight. I want to hear how you are going to deal with this without violence,” he said.

Gun chocked on rice and reached for a glass with water in it.

King’s hand snaked up his spine and rubbed his back. “Eat slowly.”

As he drank the water, he nodded his head, clearing his throat.

Gun sat up straight and rubbed his chest that was burning. He looked at Adrian and saw that he was looking at them curiously.

Getting up, he said, “I’m going to the toilet quickly.”

King nodded his head. “Chips will go with you.”

Gun looked at Chips, who bowed. He nervously looked at Adrian and smiled. “I’ll be back.”

Adrian nodded his head.

Standing up, he bowed to him, confusing the heck out of Gun. 

Gun’s knees buckled under him after reaching the toilet.

Chips caught him just before he hit the ground.

“Are you okay?” He asked.

Gun nodded his head and pushed Chips away.

Looking at him, he asked, “What the fuck is going on? Why is there more to this than what I signed up for?”

Chips checked to see if the restroom was empty, then looked at him apologetically and said, “I think Troy warned you already that the boss is dangerous?”

“He did, but what is this about politicians, prostitutes, police, and gangs?” He asked.

Chips shook his head, “It’s best that you keep your nose out of it. The boss lives a dangerous life, being President Kai. That is why Troy wanted someone for him, someone who he could trust and protect him.”

“Did y’all forget? I’m only a student. How will I do that for someone who can kill a puppy?” He asked.

Chips shook his head, “Just take it one step at a time. I will wait outside for you.”

Gun washed his face to cool off and smacked his cheeks twice. Looking in the mirror, he convinced himself, “You can do this.”

He wasn’t very convinced.

He squealed for a moment, then collected himself and walked out.

Chips looked at him worried and asked, “Are you sick? Why are your cheeks pink?”