Chapter 4 Unwelcome Realizations

Jason's eyes widened to an almost comical degree as his champagne went down the wrong pipe. He bent forward, coughing violently, nearly knocking over his glass. His face turned red, and he pounded his chest, struggling for air.

Ryan stopped in front of him, watching this tragic display of human suffering with mild amusement.

Ryan exhaled. "Dramatic."

Jason continued wheezing.

Rachael, who had just caught up to Ryan, sighed dramatically and thumped Jason on the back. "For God's sake, Jason, breathe."

Jason wheezed. "Y...you" he swallowed hard, blinking rapidly. Then, in a hoarse voice, "What are you doing here?!"

Ryan arched a brow and gave him a blank stare. "I was invited."

Jason straightened, smoothing out the lapels of his suit, though his face was still slightly red from his near-death experience. "Yeah, but you never come. You hate these things. I nearly died just now, and you don't even look remotely concerned."

Ryan smirked. "I'm sure you'd have been fine."

"Well, well," Jason drawled, setting his drink down. I must be dreaming. Ryan Winthrop? In a social gathering? I never thought I'd see the day."

Ryan exhaled sharply, dropping into the seat across from him. "Shut up."

Jason smirked. "Ah, still the same. Cold, antisocial, borderline terrifying. I love it." He leaned forward. "Seriously, though. What the hell are you doing here? Don't tell me you're finally realizing that human interaction isn't that bad."

Before Ryan could reply, a familiar, infuriatingly amused voice cut in.

"Oh, Jason," Rachael purred as she draped an arm over Ryan's shoulder. "He's here because he's experiencing something new."

Jason quirked an eyebrow. "Oh? And what's that?"

Rachael's smirk widened. "Love."

Jason blinked.

Then he blinked again.

Then he threw his head back and laughed.

Ryan sighed.

"Good one, Rachael," Jason chuckled, shaking his head. "You almost got me there. Ryan? In love? The man who calls emotions a waste of time? The guy who once compared romance to a....bad investment?" He clapped Ryan on the back. "You're hilarious."

Ryan remained silent.

Jason's laughter slowed.

Then it stopped.

His face twisted into suspicion as his gaze flickered between Rachael's smug expression and Ryan's unreadable one.

"Wait. Wait. You're serious?"

Ryan took a sip of his drink.

Rachael smirked. "Dead serious."

"Ryan? In love?!" He looked as if someone had just told him the sky was red and pigs could fly.

Ryan rolled his shoulders, already regretting coming back inside.

Jason, still struggling with this revelation, grabbed his drink and took a deep gulp probably to calm himself down. "Okay. Alright. I need a second. This is...wow. Who is she? No, wait, let me guess." He squinted, scanning Ryan's face. "It must be someone insanely special if she managed to catch your interest."

Ryan shot Rachael a warning glance.

She ignored it entirely, smirking. "That's right, she's insanely special."

Rachael didn't let him ask again. "Irene Lancaster."

The effect was instantaneous.

Jason's hand jerked.

His glass nearly flew out of his grasp.

His entire face turned a dangerous shade of red.

And then...

He violently choked.

This time, really choked.

A violent cough erupted from him as he bent over, gasping for air, his coughs loud enough to turn heads.

Ryan exhaled slowly as he tilted his head slightly, watching the drama unfold before him.

Jason, still choking, looked up in shock. "I...Irene?" he croaked.

Rachael grinned nodding her head, looking far too entertained. "Yep."

Jason staggered upright, breathless. "No way. No way." He pointed at Ryan again, his voice nearly hysterical. "You...you are interested in Irene Lancaster?!"

Ryan's expression remained unreadable.

Jason turned to Rachael, desperate for confirmation.

She nodded again.

Jason blinked. Then again. Then, in a dazed whisper, "I think I need to sit down."

And then just as if he remembers something important he turned to Rachael. "wait if you met her here that means she came to my party right?."

Rachael who's really enjoying this quickly nodded again, smirking.

Jason's brain seemed to short-circuit.

Then....

He screamed again.

Not loudly. But enough to make Rachael cackle.

Ryan, meanwhile, was starting to lose patience.

Jason clutched his chest as if he had been stabbed. His eyes darted wildly between Ryan and Rachael, his expression a mixture of pure shock, disbelief, and something suspiciously close to horrific surprise.

Ryan frowned. "Why are you reacting like this?"

Jason didn't answer.

Because he was still processing.

Ryan narrowed his eyes. "Jason."

Jason squeaked.

A full-grown man. A billionaire. A CEO.

And he squeaked.

Ryan, who had been silent this whole time, finally spoke. "You seem a little too excited."

Jason looked at him like he was the dumbest person alive.

"Excited? Excited?!" Jason grabbed his hair like a man on the verge of a breakdown. "Ryan, do you not understand what this means? Irene Lancaster was at my party?!"

Ryan's brows furrowed slightly. "And?"

Jason gasped again.

"AND?! AND?!" He grabbed Ryan's shoulders, shaking him slightly. "That girl...no, that breathtaking goddess...doesn't go to parties, Ryan. She doesn't go anywhere. She doesn't socialize she's just like you." His voice dropped to a reverent whisper. "Yet she came here."

"AND?,That girl...no, that breathtaking goddess..has been my crush since high school."

A slow, unmistakable blush crept up his neck.

His ears turned pink.

His face burned.

Rachael nearly cackled. "Oh my God." She turned to Ryan. "He's still in love with her."

Ryan stilled.

His gaze sharpened, but he said nothing.

Jason whipped around. "I am NOT."

Rachael arched a brow. "Really? Because your face is saying otherwise"

Jason covered his mouth with his hand as if that would hide the redness creeping up to his temples. "Shut up, Rachael."

Rachael, ever the instigator, looked delighted as she turned to Ryan with a smirk. "Jason was obsessed with her back then."

Jason whirled to face her. "I wasn't obsessed"

"You wrote a poem about her."

Jason paled. "That never happened."

"You made it into a song and performed it at prom."

Jason slapped a hand over her mouth. "THAT NEVER HAPPENED."

Rachael peeled his fingers away. "Oh, it definitely happened."

Ryan, silent this entire time, turned to Rachael. "Was it mutual?"

"Nope." Rachael cut in, popping the "p" with emphasis.

Jason groaned, running a hand through his hair. "Man, I still remember the first time I saw her." His voice dropped into something dangerously close to fondness. "I was the it guy. The most popular senior, the most handsome, the smartest. Every girl wanted me."

He let out a small, wistful chuckle. "But Irene? She looked at me like I was nothing. Like I didn't exist. And that made me love her even more."

Ryan clenched his jaw.

Hard.

Jason, oblivious to the storm brewing next to him, continued, "She wasn't just beautiful. She was unreal. Even girls felt insecure around her. But what made her different what made her dangerous was that she didn't care. She never cared about attention, about status. She treated everyone the same."

He turned to Rachael for confirmation, and she sighed, nodding. "He's telling the truth. Jason had the biggest crush on Irene back then."

"The biggest," Jason emphasized. His face was still slightly pink. "Do you know what it was like? Being the most handsome, most popular senior in school and having every girl fall at your feet except Irene?" He let out a dramatic sigh. "It was the ultimate rejection."

Ryan's grip on his whiskey glass tightened slightly.

"She never showed interest?" he asked, his tone unreadable.

Jason scoffed. "Not even a little. I mean, I was Jason Kingsley. Girls used to fake faint just to get my attention."

Rachael rolled her eyes. "Delusional."

"I'm serious" Jason continued. "Irene Lancaster was the only girl who treated me like I was nothing. Do you know how frustrating that was?"

Rachael smirked. "Sounds like you were in love."

Jason sighed dramatically. "I was. Hopelessly."

Ryan's eyes darkened slightly.

Jason, still caught up in nostalgia, leaned back against the staircase railing. "She even got into the same college I was in. But then, she disappeared, Out of nowhere during her first year. One day she was in school, and the next...gone. No one knew what happened." He exhaled. "And now, after all these years, she just shows up? At my party?"

He suddenly straightened, his eyes lighting up with realization. "Wait." He turned to Rachael. "Did she come because of me?"

Silence.

Then...

Ryan and Rachael both stared at him like he had grown three heads.

Jason's hopeful smile slowly faded.

"No?" he guessed.

Rachael sighed, shaking her head. "Jason, please."

Jason groaned, rubbing a hand over his face. "Yeah, yeah, I know. That was wishful thinking."

Ryan remained quiet, his expression unreadable. But inside, something simmered.

Irene Lancaster had never looked at Jason the way she looked at him tonight.

And that was the only thing that mattered.

Ryan, who had been quietly swirling the whiskey in his glass, suddenly lifted his gaze and smirked. His piercing eyes locked onto Rachael, who was casually sipping her own drink.

Then, with the smoothness of a man who knew exactly what he was doing, he said, "Speaking of crushing, Jason, you said Irene was the only one immune to your charm, right?"

Jason raised a brow. "Yeah?"

Ryan leaned back slightly, his smirk deepening. "Does that mean Rachael was also crushing on you?"