Where Is The Party Tonight?- Part 1 [Aarav]

Ru acted like nothing was wrong at the birthday party, even swinging his ass like a total tease. But he did not lock eyes with Aarav for the rest of the evening. Next day, it was all silent treatment. Ru had already left by the time Aarav was ready to head out for work. When he arrived at the office, Ru was not at his desk. There was a prominent client Aarav was working with, and he had to meet the deadline for a building plan by the end of that day. But he could barely focus. How could he if the guy he was living and working with acted like a complete child, only to get back at him?! He had already texted Ru 'sorry' last night. How many times did he have to repeat it? Annoying sh-t.

Aarav was displeased by himself, too, for letting Ru mess up his head. All this time, he wished that this spoiled brat would just leave him alone, and now that he did, it felt like a slap across his face. He took a deep breath, staring absently at the pencil sketch of a building on a white paper, and then decided to crush his ego and talk to Ru, maybe over lunch.

He was looking up nearby places open for lunch when his phone chimed.

[Are we confirmed for the evening?]

It was Maria, his Russian Bollywood-novice girlfriend. The girl still hadn't played any lead role in a movie yet, but she was actually getting successful doing item dance numbers in a bunch of high-profile movies. Aarav did not have a lot of interest in Bollywood, but he did come across a music of hers on TV the other day, and she was not bad at all.

[I have to let Ritu know. KJo was asking.] She sent a second one.

Aarav almost forgot about the party. He sighed loudly and began to type Yes, but then deleted it and instead typed [Can we bring a plus one?]

[Huh?]

[A friend]

[I guess….] Aarav had never been with a girl that accommodating. She was always calm and unfazed.

[Okay, I will pick you up. Let me know the time.]

[K] She did not even ask who the plus one was, but she should be okay with Ru, Aarav guessed.

Aarav then opened up his chat with Ru.

[Wanna get lunch? I found this place u might like.]

He had to wait for fifteen minutes before he got a reply.

[I already made plans.]

The reply stung Aarav, he wouldn't lie. But he decided to give one more try.

[R u busy this evening? I managed to get a 3rd invite to a KJo party. Wanna tag along?]

As soon as he hit send, Aarav began to get a little anxious. A lot anxious, actually. And nauseous too. Then, the phone pinged. Aarav took a couple of calming breaths and managed to open the message, ignoring the pounding in his chest.

[Yes]

Aarav felt like a sixteen-year-old teenage girl, with that stupid flutter in his chest reading that Yes. He wanted to kick himself for feeling that way, but at least, now, he could relax and focus on that damn building plan.

The entire office had a meeting in the conference room that afternoon. Ru passed by Aarav and sat beside his new friends, Sonia and whatever the other girl's name was. Aarav tried to catch Ru's eyes but had to look away when he saw one of the girls staring daggers at him. Ru was sitting with a leg folded on the other, looking very interested in the announcements, as if the speaker was giving away free lessons on latest fashion trends or environment or some sh-t. In fact, it was a meeting to inform the staff about their upcoming staff retreat plans.

Every year the company provided for an annual retreat for the staff in their Mumbai branch office. Last year, Aarav skipped since he had no interest in socializing with his annoying coworkers more than he needed to. This year, the girl, an HR manager, announced that they were planning a weekend trip to Goa, in two weeks. Everyone looked excited about the trip, even Ru, who wouldn't stop clapping and cheering at the end.

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Aarav did not know how good a see-through red ruffle shirt could look on a guy until he saw Ru wrapped in it, like a perfect little Christmas gift. Ru must have caught him staring, so he sashayed around the living room, grabbing his Gucci man purse and fixing his lipstick on his hand mirror.

"Is it okay?" Ru turned to Aarav and asked, pressing his lips together.

"Hmm?"

"My lipstick, okay? It didn't spread, did it?" Ru asked again, pouting his lips this time.

"No, it is cool," Aarav replied as dryly as he could manage, with all his blood rushing to his cock.

Ru came over and sat beside him on the dark brown sofa, stretching out his long legs, covered in shiny black leather pants.

"How long do we have to stay there?" Ru wondered, putting on his thigh-high black boots that had way too many chains than it needed. Aarav's head filled with images of how Ru would look sprawled on his bed in just those boots.

Aarav tore his eyes away from the boots and stared a hole into the far wall. "As long as you want."

"Thanks for inviting me along," Ru said happily and Aarav had to return his gaze to Ru.

The pleasant smile was back. Aarav had not seen the guy smile in so long; one hint of it and his chest squeezed. When Aarav first saw the guy in make-up, he thought it looked loud and fake, just like Ru. Just another stuck-up, petulant snob, that's what he thought of Ru and planned to never see him again. But now, he couldn't imagine not hearing from the guy. Ru was actually interesting, although he still did not shut the fuck up. But Aarav liked listening to his high-pitched voice and his crazy ideas. It did not annoy him much now, and the guy was actually smart, Aarav thought.

"Ugh, I wish I meet a heavy-weight music producer there. I want to be a singer so bad!" Ru groaned loudly.

He, then, stood up and gave a twirl. "I look okay, right?" He sounded nervous, not his usual confident self.

Aarav gave him a once over. "Yeah, you look nice,"…..more like you look absolutely fuckable, but Aarav could not say that since both of them decided there would be no more fucking each other or even a mention of fucking each other.

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They picked up Maria on the way.

"Hey, I love your perfume," Ru complimented her from the back seat.

Maria turned and thanked him and complimented him back for his shirt. They chit chatted a little about work, and the rest of the ride was quiet. Aarav was happy for that. He did not need Ru to keep babbling and let the cat out of the bag. No one in Aarav's friend circle knew about him hooking up with guys, and he liked to keep it that way. Fucking Ru was a huge risk, looking back, but it was over now, and he was relieved Ru kept his mouth shut and didn't go around squealing like a bitter ex.

The party was in this huge sea-facing villa on Madh island. As soon as they drove up the long street, they heard the roar of the waves of the Arabian sea. The celebrities were arriving in droves, and their cars lined up the entire street. Luckily, Aarav found an empty spot to park. There were paparazzi, too, with cameras flashing as soon as they stepped out.

"Madam, please," the paps were requesting. "Madam, one more, sir, please."

Aarav despised it, all that posing and fake smiling, and ignored them, but then Maria pulled him, and he had to pose with her for a few pictures.

"Thank god I have my make-up on," Ru whispered and happily jumped in front of the cameras and posed in all the poses one could think of, and even made that stupid duck face trying to look sexy. Him and Maria hugged for a few shots like they were childhood friends when he barely knew her.

The photographers were upon Ru like hounds, thinking he was a celeb. Aarav wouldn't deny Ru wasn't since Ru's dad was a well-known real estate business tycoon, and it was likely he made into the entertainment pages of some newspapers and film magazines from time to time.

"Oh, this is pretty," was all Ru said, but Aarav could tell from his shrill voice how excited he was.

The sprawling three-storied villa was lit up like it was Christmas, surrounded by a vast garden. The party was scattered all over, the grassy lawn, the pavement leading up to the house. Some faces were familiar; most Aarav did not know. As soon as they stepped inside the gates, they were offered orange mimosas. Strangely Ru declined.

"Don't want to sabotage my performance," he mumbled, but Aarav did not ask. Maria picked up a glass. Aarav was not a Mimosa guy; so he refused too.