24. Chapter Twenty-Four Park

Chapter Twenty-Four: Park

I 'm an idiot. I acted like a crazy man last night when I saw Daeng with his arms around Spin. But all I could think of was him saying he'd gotten hard on the float with Spin and I just went berserk. I started to tell Spin that—what Daeng said—but I couldn't. It was just so crass, and somehow saying the words to Spin didn't seem right.

Fortunately, Spin forgave me, and today everything is back to normal. Just for good measure, I swallow my pride and apologize to Daeng at the breakfast table. Cameras on, he can do nothing but graciously accept. The bright smile Spin directs at me makes the battering to my pride worth it.

The producers were quick to cut the scene where I confronted Daeng in the bedroom from the live feed, but not before people saw it. Social media is full of gossip on the subject, but since I just looked like the jealous idiot I am, fans are mostly eating it up.

We do chores after breakfast. Spin and I go outside to pick up floats, straighten chairs, collect towels, and skim the pool. By the time we're finished and have the towels in the laundry, Max and Fluke are making lunch. As Spin and I pass one of the bathrooms, the door opens and Prince slips out, closing the door behind him. He walks toward the kitchen, not noticing us.

Spin turns to me. "Was that—" Before he can finish, Gift appears, asking if we've seen Prince.

I point toward the kitchen, and when he disappears around the corner, I lean down to whisper in Spin's ear so the mics can't pick it up. "Pretty sure that was Book in there with him."

"Oh," Spin says, looking confused. "Okay."

There aren't any cameras in the bathrooms, of course. They are the only rooms, other than the master bedroom, which guarantee privacy, as long as no one has his microphone on. It's the perfect place for a tryst. Spin seems to have worked that out and looks shocked. In a way, so am I. If anyone at SPPT is a real couple, I would have put my money on Prince and Gift, not Prince and Book. Of course, there could be some other explanation for it—some reason Prince might want a private word with Book or vice versa.

Spin's tapping on his phone. "I asked Bass to keep an eye on Nok while I'm here, and I'm checking in," he tells me when he's finished.

"Is she doing okay?"

"Yeah. He says she is."

"Why are you frowning?"

"I feel like something might be going on between Nok and Bass."

Huh. Spin's friend and his younger sister. "You're not okay with that?"

"I don't know. It's difficult to imagine my little sister with anyone. And Bass has said some dirty things in our past conversations, you know? When I think about that, I don't want him anywhere near Nok. "

"Yet you asked him to keep an eye on her," I point out. "You trust him."

"Yeah. I know deep down he wouldn't hurt her, but the whole thing still seems weird."

"Maybe it's all in your imagination and nothing's really going on," I say. "Things can look one way and be quite the opposite."

Spin smiles. "You sound like you know this from experience. Are you saying you've jumped to conclusions?"

We both laugh. And then our eyes snag, and we stare at each other for several drawn-out moments. Suddenly, I wish we weren't being filmed because I badly want to kiss Spin.

Face flushed, Spin looks away first. We're called to lunch, and midway through the meal, Gift suddenly gets up from the table without a word and goes upstairs. Prince calls to him, but Gift doesn't stop, so Prince follows. A few seconds later, we hear knocking on a door upstairs. And more knocking. Ten minutes go by with intermittent knocks, and while we're clearing the table, Prince comes back downstairs and walks past us without a glance, going outside. When we walk into the living room a few moments later, Book's sitting on the couch, looking at his phone with a frown on his face.

"Something's happened," I whisper to Spin. I get out my phone, and, motioning him to join me, drop onto a large red bean bag in the corner. "Fuck," I whisper when I see the message board. Spin leans over my arm to look.

Maxxx0125: The drama! Are you guys seeing this? First, Park and Spin, and now Prince and Gift!

PrinceGiftizreal: Why did Gift run upstairs like that? What's happening?

PrinceluvsGift: I dunno, but Prince went after him. Then he came back downstairs.

MyWinter: Are they arguing???

Babykornies: OMG, are they in a fight?

Maxxx0125: Did you guys not see what happened earlier? Prince coming out of the bathroom? Go back and listen to it wearing your ear buds.

MyManMax11: What? What happened? (dismayed face)

TitleKornsmex: What???

MyManMax11: I can't understand it. Prince says something, right? I went back to look, but all I see is him walking out of the bathroom.

PrinceluvsGift: OMG! Someone was in there with him! Watching the footage. They close the door after Prince leaves!

Maxxx0125@MyManMax11: Prince was in the bathroom, hooking up with someone!

MyWinter@Maxxx0125: Was it Gift?

PrinceGiftizreal: It couldn't have been Gift because another camera shows him taking out the trash on the other side of the house. Then he comes around the corner and asks Park and Spin where Prince is. But whoever is in the bathroom with Prince IS STILL IN THERE! NOOOOOOOO! (six sobbing faces, six broken hearts)

KaiSuholuv3rs: Wait. Wait. Who came out of the bathroom later?

MyManMax11: Oh, no!

Darkriverjournee221025: Looks like Prince is cheating on his ship.

Gayboy06: Shut up.

MyManMax11: Max and Fluke are in the kitchen. Park and Spin are standing outside the bathroom. Aod's watching TV, and Title, Korn, and Ban are in the pool. Daeng's in the upstairs br, and Gift is taking out the trash.

Babykornies@MyManMax11: Book! IT WAS BOOK IN THE BATHROOM WITH PRINCE! (Three shocked-faces) Everyone else is accounted for! OMG!

BanBookhearts@Babykornies: No, not Book. NOT BOOK! Why would Book be in the bathroom with Prince?

Darkriverjournee221025: Why do you think? (Eyeroll-face)

Jimineffect2023: You guys, calm down. It could be totally innocent.

Maxxx0125: I'm telling you, listen with your earbuds on!

KPopdrop@Jimineffect2023: That reaction from Gift tells us all we need to know. (Hiding-eyes face, tongue, pickle)

Straykids21711@Kpopdrop: Banging in the bathroom. (Okay sign with fingers, pointing finger, pregnant woman)

BLFanx1000@Kpopdrop: Love in the loo. (Eggplant, peach)

MrsFelix4eva: Packing it in the potty. (Carrot)

Straykids21711@MrsFeiux4eva: LMAO! Eww (Four laughing/crying faces)

PrinceGiftizreal: How can anyone joke at a time like this?! My ship is sinking!!!

Uh oh.

Spin and I share a look.

Not long after that, the production team relays instructions through the camera crew to act natural and start a game of picture charades using the portable whiteboard and markers. And to stay off our phones.

We do our best, but Ban and Book keep bickering under their breath. I overhear Ban say, "How could you be so careless? I manage to keep my end of the ship, and I have a girlfriend! "

Pretty soon both Ban and Book's phones are simultaneously pinging, probably with texts from their agent, who, judging by the rate her messages are coming in, must be having a fit. Title and Korn retreat into the kitchen to prepare dinner, and the remainder of us who aren't embroiled in drama head out to the pool. Someone gets the idea that if we make enough noise hollering and splashing around, we can get a few words in on the situation undetected, and, since our mics had to be taken off to get in the pool, this works pretty well. I inwardly laugh thinking about the production team putting together subs for this part of the feed later. They'll have to make up entire conversations.

"So, that was Book in the toilet with Prince?" Fluke asks as soon as we're making enough cover noise.

"According to the fan detectives on the message board, yes. They must have hunted for the footage where Book came out of the bathroom," I say, avoiding a splash from someone.

"What were they doing in there?" Aod asks.

"What do you think?" Daeng says with a huff.

Spin frowns. "We don't know that. "

Edging over to us, Max says, "I just checked my phone while pretending to get water out of my eyes with my towel. One of them had their mic on in the bathroom. They were definitely doing something in there. Shit's hitting the fan."

We're too worried after that bit of news to discuss it anymore, instead sullenly floating around the pool for the rest of the afternoon.

After dinner, we make a show of watching a movie that night, but Gift is noticeably absent from the group and Prince and Book are sitting as far away from each other as possible. As Max passes Prince on his way to his seat on the couch, I hear him murmur, "Your discretion is coming a little late, don't you think?"

Prince ignores him.

Later, when we go upstairs to get ready for bed, Gift walks into the shared room, grabs Book's bag and pillow, and takes them into the single room, then brings his own things into the shared room and takes Book's spot in the bed.

Book looks like he doesn't know what to do. Finally, he heads downstairs to sleep on the couch.

Soon after that, all the lights on the cameras blink off. Looking at my mic under my shirt, I see that it's turned off, too. Before I can comment, I hear the front door open and someone calls us all downstairs.