Chapter Three

“Who is it?” Akira asked.

“It's Mr. Manuel Hisashi,” he replied.

“Why is he knocking at my door?” Akira asked Daisuke.

 “I believe he is here to assign you to the orphanage project,” Daisuke answered.

The knocks increased in speed, as well as volume. Manuel was apparently a hot-tempered and impatient person. Akira walked out of the room,  through the doorway of the study, which led to a long hallway with two doors on each side.

At the end of the hallway, past the two doors, was a staircase, which led to a small landing. The landing then opened up to the living room with hardwood flooring, where two sofas facing each other. There’s also a small side chair, and to the right was a door that led to the kitchen. A vast window that reached from the floor to the ceiling was in front of a dining table with four chairs facing one another and two facing from the two edges of the table, and directly in front of all this was the door. Overall, the original had good taste.

Akira was dragged out of his thoughts when the sound of knocking came from the door again.

“Host, shouldn't you be answering that?”

“Yes, of course,” Ryden replied.

He rushed up to the door and swung it open. Standing in front of him was a tall and slim man with dark-brown hair, deep blue eyes, a strong jawline, high cheekbones, with smooth muscles of a swimmer, wearing a black suit with a black striped shirt, and a black overcoat with a gray scarf. In short, he looked every bit the main lead that he was supposed to be. 

Ryden had yet to take a full look at his appearance, but just by looking at Manuel's form, he knew that his own body had a lot more lean but hard muscles and an inked tattoo of black flowers surrounding an old-fashioned watch. He was also taller than the male lead by about a few inches. 

“Good evening, Ryden,” Manuel greeted with a grim face.

"Good evening, Mr. Manuel," Akira replied, mimicking Manuel's cold and indifferent intonation. 

He stood there staring at Manuel, waiting for him to say something. Neither said anything, which led to the growing silence to eventually become awkward. Daisuke could only watch on as his host and Manuel continued to have what seemed to be a staring contest. After a moment, he felt the need to interfere before things got even more awkward. 

Daisuke reminded his host of his manners. “Host, should you not invite him in? It's rude to let your guest stand at the door.”

"Why are you asking me, I'm holding the door open for him? He is the one not entering and being rude and standing there like a welcome doormat."

“Welcome mat...?” Daisuke repeated what Akira said. “But host, even though you have the door wide open, you're standing in  front of it.”

"What? Oh, yeah..."

Ryden stepped to the side and invited the male lead inside the office. Manuel tilted his head and walked in. Ryden closed the door behind him and followed Manuel to the living room.

The two men sat on opposite sofas, and Manuel unbuttoned his suit before he sat down. He crossed his legs before placing a file folder on the table. He spoke forwardly.

“Ryden, as you have been aware of, our company does a charity event just before Christmas. If you recall, last year, we held a charity auction for children who have cancer. This year, we are planning to design a safe park for the orphans. We also plan to choose someone to be in charge of this project." He paused for a moment's breath and then continued. "This year, you have been chosen. You will lead the project, oversee it, and have the authority to make the final decisions." 

Ryden nodded to show that he understood what was happening.

“Questions?” Inquired the male lead.

“One,” Ryden said, and asked, “When will we start to work on the project?”

“In one week. If that is all, then I will take my leave.”

“Yes. Thank you, Mr. Manuel. Please have a wonderful weekend and see you next Monday,” said Ryden, while walking Manuel to the front door.

“Thank you, and the same to you.” 

 Ryden closed the door behind Manuel,  walked back into the living room, and sat on a chair.

“Daisuke?” He called out.

“Yes, Host?” Daisuke answered immediately.

“I thought it said in the plot that Manuel and Ryden were friends in high school?”

“Yes, Host. They were, but only before the death of Ryden's mom.”

“I know what happened, but I still find it peculiar that Manuel is treating him as if they were never friends, to begin with. It makes you wonder just how Ryden's mom died.”

“I don't know, Host. It wasn't stated in the plot. Could there be a minor glitch in the plot?”

Ryden looked outside the huge glass window. The full moon illuminated the cloudless, starry sky as the night went on. He thought that there could be more than what the original story had.

“It could be a plot hole, but it also may not be.”

“What do you mean, Host?” Daisuke asked.