"You should be arrested for trespassing." Jaran cat-walked into the room, his scornful gaze traveling across the littered room. It was shameful to have been caught red-handed by him—of all people. Thankful nonetheless; it was better than being found out by security.
"What are you doing here? Don't you have people to bore with your magnificence?" I argued. He rolled his eyes, stretching his hand towards me. "What do you want now?"
"My coat. Hand it over." He flicked a finger.
"Do I look like your designated maid? Find it yourself!" I pointed towards the coats scattered across the floor. He reached for my collar and I smacked his hand away. "Are you crazy? Don't ever touch me again!"
"You're wearing my coat," he clarified.
I glanced over the coat I was wearing, then him. I had always known he came from money, but was certain it wasn't that much. There was no way he could afford anything that expensive, especially something as unimportant as a coat.
"This isn't your coat."
"It is. Now hand it over."
"No. What is your problem? Why are you lying?"
"Kit!"
"What? Eh what? Who do you think you are? Your royal majesty?" I curtsied.
He grabbed the coat in an attempt to yank it off me, but I was quick to catch his hand in time. He pulled, I pulled it back; a tussle erupted.
"Give it to me!" he demanded.
"No!"
Our little tussle soon escalated into a chaotic struggle, with both of us nagging and shouting until we fell to the ground. He wouldn't let go and losing to Jaran never came easy to me. We continued our brawl, rolling around in all the coats and knocking more coat stands over, our hands on each other's collars, trying hard to overpower one another.
We didn't realize how far gone we were. The expensive coats wrapped around us like a cocoon, keeping away the oxygen as our sweats dripped all over our intertwined bodies, leaving zero space between us. We were both struggling to breathe and Jaran had turned a rosy pink.
"Mmh Mmh," someone cleared their throat and we froze, widening our eyes in fear.
Slowly, we poked our heads out from under the heap of coats, looking towards the door. An elderly woman stood with a walking stick in hand and a big grin on her face stood, looking down at us.
"Khun Sampatisiri?" Jaran muttered.
I gasped at the mention of her name and shoved him off me. He recovered from my push quickly and joined me in struggling out of the heap of coats we were wrapped in. She remained still, watching us stumble and fall over ourselves numerous times, trying to stand.
"Move your leg!"
"Get your hands off my shoulder!" I screamed back.
It took us over a minute to fight our way up. Petrified, we bowed multiple times, apologizing and issuing explanations in the form of ramblings, blaming each other for the incident. I was embarrassed, for both of us.
"You both are part of the competing companies?" she asked.
"Yes!" we replied in unison.
"Kittisat Trachang, Clear Sky Industries," I introduced myself with a wai.
I waited for Jaran to do the same, but he stood there, smiling at her like she was an artwork hanging for spectacle. I bumped him with my shoulder, nudging him to speak with my head.
"Ah! Jaran Traikityanuhun, Ocean Star Industries."
Her smile stretched further as she continued to stand in silence, turning me into a nervous wreck.
"How long have you two been together?" Khun Sampatistri asked.
"With whom?" Jaran replied, glancing around the disorganized coat room.
I joined him in search too, looking in the opposite direction. Khun Sampatistri slammed her walking stick against the ground, startling us and dragging our attention back to her grinning face.
"There are only three of us in the room. Are you both trying to make a fool of me?"
"No!" Jaran and I said in unison.
"We're not—" I began to explain.
"He's a little problem I try to ignore," Jaran cut in.
"Says the man that followed me around for a week to steal my contract."
"He was wearing my coat—"Jaran pointed.
"I was not!" I cut in.
"He's obsessed with me."
"Ah yes! I'm obsessed with your big head and massive ears, very attractive."
"I assure you, Khun Sampatistri," Jaran continued, "it's not what you think it is."
"I could never stoop so low," I drove my final point.
Jaran sighed, eyeing me. "You little—"
"Oyi! That is enough," Khun Sampatistri scolded. "You all must have gotten sick of waiting for me, let's go." She turned around to leave.
"I'll fix the coats, Khun. I'm sorry for causing trouble," I apologized.
"Not to worry, I'll send someone to fix it. Our guests will never know." She chuckled. I forced a smile, wondering if I should keep insisting on fixing it myself.
"Let's go," she instructed.
Jaran and I followed behind, whispering arguments as we returned to the dinner party. The whole table got up to bow and welcome Khun Sampatistri as we walked in. She walked over to her seat and so did we.
"Where have you been?" Nat asked in a whisper, visibly upset.
"Sorry, got rolled up—literally." I picked up my wine glass and took a long sip.
"What happened?"
"Jaran." I sighed. "Just forget it."
He continued to grill me for more answers, but I was reluctant to dive into details. Nothing made Nat come alive like gossip. I could've indulged him, given him all the embarrassing details of my tussle with Jaran, but I already made our company and myself look like a complete joke those few minutes in the coat room, in front of the woman who was going to decide which one of the ten companies got the deal. That was not the right time.
I glanced over at Jaran, and he was already knee deep in flirtatious conversation with the young man from earlier, not an ounce of care in the world for the consequences of his behavior. I rolled my eyes before gulping down the remainder of my wine. With the chairwoman now seated, we could finally eat.
Without trying, Khun Sampatistri commanded deep respect from everyone in the room. Her businesses spread far across Asia, into several industries. Her name held a lot of power. They all watched her every move, nodding in agreement when she made a point, laughing when she laughed, which was all the time. They showered her with compliments and praise.
The mood was light and cheerful, but I was uneasy, worrying about the impression I left on Khun Sampatistri and how it could affect my chances in the competition. I didn't have the confidence to face her, let alone laugh at her jokes. Nat and Varawut, unaware of my carelessness, carried on enjoying the night.
Khun Sampatistri got up from her seat with the help of her walking stick and everyone's eyes followed her as she walked down the hall. I wondered if maybe she was leaving after having her fill of pretentious praises and pleasantries, but she hadn't given her speech yet, we were all looking forward to it.
The closer she got to me, the more nervous I became, turning away and picking my wine glass.
"Nong Kittisat," she called, and I choked on my drink, springing up from my seat.
"Khun?"
"Come." She slid her hand under my elbow, leading me away.
Everyone's eyes followed, surprised and curious. So was I.