A young man stands in the middle of a party. People around him are chattering. He is admired for his looks and grace. Surely, he is from a well-off family. Sipping on his wine, he gazed sharply on the group of ladies looking like lovesick fools. He hated the attention. He hated how they looked at him like a piece of jewelry up for a bidding in an auction.
"Disgusting," he whispers.
"It's a nice evening, Fah. Yet, you don't look like you're enjoying it."
He kept a straight face as he glanced at the person who just spoke. Claire, the annoying yet most loyal friend of his looked at him with a grin plastered on her face. Pure sarcasm. He hates it. And he would not deny that he hated the party as well. It's too crowded. Suffocating, even. The clothes people are in cannot hide the filthy personalities most of them have.
"You're really not going to talk to me?"
And here goes the questions from her. The fact that she is the only woman who can be close to him makes people assume that she is his lover. Even their parents pair them up, but they both know, it is pure business talk. Their parents only want to strengthen each other's businesses. Happiness and welfare of them were never considered.
From afar, he could see his parents talking to business partners. It has been 20 years. His birthday always turn into a business gathering. Every year invitations to big companies and families are sent by his parents. The party appears to be theirs and not his. He never got to invite a friend – not like he has any to invite, anyway. This is one of the many frustrations on his list.
ESCAPE – this is what he wants.