The moment he left, Frank immediately turned toward both of them in disbelief.

"What is wrong with the two of you?" Frank complained. "It’s not like you and Matteo are married. You’re just dating, so what’s the big deal?"

Charles looked at him like he was insane.

"That’s exactly the point," he replied calmly. "They’re dating."

Frank rolled his eyes dramatically.

"So?"

"So?" Charles repeated. "Not everyone likes accepting drinks from random people while they’re already in a relationship."

Frank immediately pointed toward Kelly’s table.

"He’s not random. That’s Kelly Laurent."

Adrian let out a tired sigh.

"I genuinely do not care who he is."

Frank looked personally offended again.

"Unbelievable."

Charles shook his head before taking another sip of his drink.

"And besides," he added, "if Matteo walks in here and finds out Adrian accepted a drink from another man, I’m not getting involved in whatever happens next."

Frank immediately burst into laughter.

"At least we can run away before Matteo gets here and leave Adrian alone to explain himself to his terrifying boyfriend."

Adrian rolled his eyes but couldn’t stop the smile that appeared on his face.

"That’s exactly why you’re single," he muttered.

Frank gasped dramatically as he had just been personally attacked.

Adrian pointed toward him accusingly.

"You were literally trying to get me into trouble just because you’re acting like a crazy fanboy," he said. "And then you planned to run away and leave me alone to face Matteo afterward."

He shook his head dramatically.

"Honestly, Frank, I don’t know what I did in my past life to deserve a friend like you."

Frank immediately slammed a hand against the table.

"Are you saying I’m a bad friend?"

Adrian looked at him calmly.

"No," he replied. "I’m saying you’re the worst friend anyone could ask for."

Charles burst into laughter instantly.

Frank clutched his chest dramatically.

"That hurts," he complained. "But unfortunately for you, you’re stuck with me forever."

Adrian immediately pointed toward himself.

"No, I’m stuck with my boyfriend. Not you."

"Yes, you are," Frank argued shamelessly. "And you have no choice but to stay attached to me too."

Charles shook his head slowly.

"Frank, you seriously need to change," he said. "At this rate, you’re going to end up alone forever."

Frank immediately pointed toward him.

"Don’t you dare say that," he warned dramatically. "Adrian can abandon me if he wants—"

"I absolutely will," Adrian cut in instantly.

"But you, Charles?" Frank said without shame. "You’re stuck with me forever."

Charles looked disgusted.

"Never."

"Ew," Adrian added immediately. "Never."

The three of them burst into laughter, the atmosphere around the table becoming lighter and warmer than before.

"Meanwhile, across the lounge, the waiter returned to Kelly’s table and quietly informed him that Adrian rejected the drink."

Julian let out a low whistle immediately.

"Wow," he muttered. "That’s interesting."

He leaned back slightly before smirking toward Kelly. "Someone rejecting a drink from you? Yeah... that means he genuinely doesn’t give a fuck who you are."

Instead of looking offended, Kelly smiled slowly.

"I already like him," he admitted casually.

Julian laughed.

"Then go for it, my friend."

Kelly didn’t hesitate.

He stood up from his seat immediately.

The moment people inside the lounge noticed him moving toward Adrian’s section, several fans instantly started pulling out their phones again.

Some were recording videos.

Others whispered excitedly while secretly taking pictures.

Meanwhile, Adrian remained completely unaware of the attention gathering around their table.

He was still laughing softly with Frank and Charles when suddenly.

A voice cut through their conversation.

"Hello."

All three of them immediately looked up.

And standing beside their table...

Was Kelly.

For a brief second, the entire table went quiet.

Frank’s eyes widened instantly. He quickly covered his mouth before whispering dramatically to Charles beside him. "Oh my God... he’s even more fucking handsome up close."

Charles blinked once in surprise.

Meanwhile, Adrian simply looked up calmly at the man standing beside them.

Up close, Kelly somehow looked even more attractive than he did from across the lounge.

Tall. Sharp features. Relaxed confidence.

The kind of face people would stare at without realizing it.

And judging from the number of phones secretly pointed in their direction, everyone inside the lounge was clearly paying attention now.

Kelly smiled faintly.

"Hope I’m not interrupting anything."

Frank immediately sat up straighter.

"No!" he answered too quickly.

Charles kicked him under the table instantly.

Kelly let out a quiet laugh before his eyes shifted toward Adrian.

He glanced around the table before asking casually. "Mind if I sit with you guys for a minute?"

Before Adrian could even open his mouth to reject the idea.

Frank immediately answered. "Yes. Please, have a seat."

Adrian slowly turned toward Frank in complete disbelief.

Frank immediately leaned closer to Adrian and whispered. "Please smile and behave yourself."

Kelly smiled at the interaction before pulling out a chair.

"Thank you," he said casually as he sat down beside them.

Adrian didn’t even look in his direction afterward. Instead, he calmly reached for his drink.

But a few seconds later, Kelly’s voice cut through the silence beside him.

"You rejected my drink."

That was the moment Adrian finally turned toward him and held his gaze calmly.

"Yes, I did."

Instead of looking offended, Kelly smiled even wider.

"That’s actually the first time that’s ever happened to me."

Frank looked like he was seconds away from fainting.

Adrian leaned back against his seat. "Well," he replied, "there’s a first time for everything."

Kelly stared at him for a second before a slow smile appeared on his face. "Interesting," he murmured.

Most people became nervous around him. Some tried too hard to impress him. Others practically threw themselves at him the moment they recognized who he was.

But Adrian?

Adrian genuinely looked unaffected. And somehow, that only pulled Kelly’s attention even more.

Kelly slipped one hand casually into his pocket.

"I wasn’t trying to disrespect your relationship, by the way," he said. "I only wanted to say hello."

Adrian nodded once. "Hello accepted."

Frank immediately turned away and covered his mouth with his hand, trying to stop himself from laughing.

Charles looked entertained by the situation.

Kelly rested his arm against the table before pulling a sleek black card from his pocket.

"So," he said as he held the card out toward Adrian, "would you mind being friends? I’d honestly like to get to know you."

Adrian didn’t even look at the card.

"I already have enough friends," he replied calmly. "I don’t think I need another one."

Kelly chuckled. "There’s no such thing as too many friends."

He tilted his head. "You never know what could happen when you get closer to someone."

Adrian looked at him. "I don’t really want to find out."

The answer came cold and direct.

Frank nearly covered his face from secondhand embarrassment.

Meanwhile, Kelly somehow looked even more amused.

The more Kelly tried to casually keep the conversation going, the more Adrian quietly created distance between them.

He never accepted the card.

Never leaned closer.

Never encouraged the conversation.

Eventually, Kelly leaned back with a slow smile.

"Alright," he said. "Maybe today we’re only meant to say hello."

His eyes stayed on Adrian. "Maybe next time we’ll get a little closer than this."

Adrian didn’t respond.

Kelly slowly stood up from his chair.

"See you around, Adrian."

Adrian frowned slightly. "I never told you my name."

Kelly smiled faintly.

"I heard your friends calling you earlier."

Then he casually waved toward Frank and Charles.

"Goodnight, gentlemen."

And just like that, he turned and headed back toward his table.

The moment Kelly walked away, Frank immediately turned toward Adrian dramatically.

"Oh my God, Adrian," he whispered. "Why were you giving him such a cold shoulder?"

Adrian looked unbothered. "He was only trying to talk to you," Frank said. "Being friendly won’t kill you."

Charles immediately looked at Frank.

"You seriously can’t pretend you don’t understand what he was trying to do." 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

Frank blinked.

Charles stared at him. "That man wasn’t trying to ’just be friends,’" he said. "He was clearly interested."

Frank pointed toward Adrian immediately.

"Okay, fine, maybe that’s true," he admitted. "But Adrian still didn’t have to act like Kelly personally offended him."

Adrian took another sip from his drink without replying.

Meanwhile, across the lounge, Kelly had just returned to his table when the large entrance doors suddenly opened again.

And instantly...

The atmosphere inside the lounge changed.

Several conversations died immediately.

People subtly looked away.

Even the excitement inside the room lowered almost instantly.

Frank happened to glance toward the entrance first.

And the moment he saw who walked in.

His eyes widened.

Matteo had arrived.

And behind him, several bodyguards stepped into the lounge alongside him.

Frank immediately whistled dramatically.

"Oh my God," he muttered dramatically. "That was way too close."