Chapter 5 THE MAFIA WORLD

"You sure, you are not slipping, Jack father asked?"

Jack forced a smile. "Positive."

Mr. Charlie stepped in close - too close. "I've built this empire on discipline. Not feelings. Not mercy. And certainly not... confusion."

Jack didn't move. Didn't blink. But something inside him was breaking.

"Understood?"

"Yes, sir."

Mr. Charlie stepped back. "Good. Because the day you start hesitating... is the day I end you myself."

Jack sat in the back garden, moonlight casting silver shadows across the stones. Rin stood nearby, tossing a knife between his fingers.

"You lied to him."

Jack didn't answer.

"You covered for Jay."

Still no answer.

"Why?" Rin pressed.

Jack looked up, eyes haunted. "Because I don't want him dead."

"That's not loyalty, Jack. That's something else."

"I know," he said quietly.

Rin stepped closer. "You're playing a dangerous game. If your father finds out-"

"He'll kill me," Jack finished. "Yeah. I know."

Rin crouched in front of him. "Then what's the plan?"

Jack looked away. "I don't have one."

Rin stood. "Then get one. Fast. Because this world? It eats love for breakfast."

Jack chuckled bitterly. "Good thing I haven't called it love yet."

Rin gave him a long look. "Maybe not out loud. But your eyes have."

Jack didn't deny it.

Vavaporn's private study - dark wood, heavy silence, a single glass of whiskey untouched.

Jay stood still, his arm bandaged beneath his shirt. The dull pain from the bullet wound was nothing compared to the ache in his chest.

Across from him, his father stared, the room filled with smoke from a slowly burning cigar.

"What really happened that night?" Vavaporn asked

Jay's throat dried up. He blinked slowly.

"What night?"

"Don't insult my intelligence." jay's father fired

He tapped his fingers on the desk. "The night Jack Charlie dragged you into that car. You thought I wouldn't hear about that?"

Jay looked away. "We ran into trouble. That's all."

"Trouble?" He scoffed. "You came home covered in blood. Your shoulder was nearly torn open. And you-"

He leaned forward. "-you disappeared for almost twelve hours. Where did you sleep?"

Jay remained silent.

"You think I won't find out? You think I haven't already tried?"

His voice dropped. "You took a bullet. But not for yourself, I assume."

Jay's chest tightened.

"Why were you careless, Jay? Why would you let anyone close enough to shoot you? Unless... you were too busy protecting someone else."

Jay's hands balled into fists behind his back. He knew what this was. A test. A trap. One wrong word and Jack was dead.

Jay (quietly):

"It was an ambush. I handled it. That's all you need to know."

Vavaporn stood, circling the desk slowly. His shadow stretched across the floor, looming.

Vavaporn (low):

"I built this empire with blood and instinct. I feel when someone is lying to me. You came back different. Quiet. Distant. You're hiding something."

He paused behind Jay.

"Is it Jack?"

Jay's heart slammed in his chest. He held still.

"Why would I protect a Charlie?"

Vavaporn:

"That's exactly what I'm trying to find out."

Jay was having an internal monologue , he felt and Jay could still feel Jack's lips on his. The warmth of that night. The confusion. The surrender. But none of that mattered now. If he admitted the truth, he'd be signing Jack's death warrant. And maybe his own.

Jay turned. Finally faced his father. His voice steady, his mask in place.

Jay:

"Dad... you know I hate Jack Charlie."

Vavaporn narrowed his eyes.

Jay (firmer):

"I've hated him since we were kids. I've hated the way he talks, the way he thinks he's smarter than everyone else. The way he walks around like he owns this city."

He took a slow breath.

"You raised me to remember who we are. To never forget what the Charlies did to us. What Jack's father did to our blood. You think I'd ever forget that?"

Vavaporn didn't respond. He just studied him-like a man watching a wild animal pretending to be tame.

Jay (stepping forward):

"We are rivals. Till death do us part. That's the truth. Jack Charlie is nothing to me. Just a target."

A long silence. Vavaporn tilted his head slightly.

Vavaporn:

"And yet... you took a bullet that night."

Jay froze-just for half a second-but it was enough.

Jay (coldly):

"A bullet that should've hit me. I was careless, not because I was saving anyone. I was too busy chasing him down. It won't happen again."

He met his father's eyes, holding them.

Jay:

"If I ever get the chance, I'll kill Jack Charlie myself. You have my word."

It felt like swallowing glass. Every word tore through his throat, shredding pieces of the boy who kissed Jack in a quiet room and felt like he'd finally been seen. But that boy had no place here.

Not in this house. Not in front of this man.

Jay stepped out of his father's study, the heavy door closing behind him with a click that sounded like a prison cell locking shut.

His face was blank, expression cold. But inside, his pulse raced.

He walked through the quiet hallway, tension still clinging to his skin like sweat. He had just sworn loyalty. Sworn hatred. Sworn death.

He reached into his pocket, pulled out his phone.

1 New Message.

From a name he wasn't supposed to see. A name he should've deleted long ago.

Jack.