Chapter Text
Thee sat behind a desk of papers and documents that were piled almost comically high.
He was completely swamped by a mass of work that was foreign to the usual ARSENI file reviewing- professional, structured, all business related.
But now, he was the company CEO of GMM Thee V, and that came with a new responsibility that his years in the arms and perfumes industry hadn't taught him.
Entertainment.
And what was worse was the absence of his now ex-bodyguard. Mok had been practically snatched away by his brother the moment his wedding had concluded. Thee knew Rome was always more than eager to do so, and it seemed that he'd taken the momentous occasion as an escape to accomplish his own dreams.
Hence, now Thee was left alone in his office, fingers massaging at his temples, to deal with a new problem: script reading. P'X had offered him yet another draft from countless options that seemed to stream in at the mass more and more. And the couples at the company? Impossibly hard to coordinate with.
The lot were such an energetic bunch with schedules so packed that any kind of arrangement meant Thee was accommodating himself more and more for the company's sake. Not to mention, the actual scripts were completely out of his interest range.
Thee had grown up with his mother's Lakorns, only those, nothing else. Though he may have had an impression of being someone knowledgeable of series from the amount of time he'd spent in front of the TV- this was a different domain for him. One that would take some adapting.
After many sighs, and many page flips later, Thee finally put the latest script he was reviewing to one side. It was an absurdly odd telling of the story of some kind of rich heir whom fell in love with one of the workers in house- ridiculous if you asked Thee, but apparently a great seller of a plot.
With a sigh, he opened up the digital copies on his computer and hit print- thankful that was another thing off of his never ending to do list. He just had to get this and another meeting done before he could finally get home to his LookPeach, that was if everything went smoothly-
BZZZT
Thee's eyebrow furrowed into a wearily confused expression as he eyed the uncooperative printer. Instead of the usual whir it seemed to be refusing the printer job even after trying the release a second time, and the computer was being equally frustrating.
>ERROR FILE YET TO BE COMPLETED<
The screen that was now flashing red with the odd message dyed Thee's face in a crimson that reflected his own wavering temper. Great, yet another issue to have to fix, and- where was the x button?
Bold and unmoving like a sort of scam ad the words stayed in place, with no way to get rid off.
"What the hell", Thee muttered to himself reaching out to turn the device off.
Nothing. The computer insistently stayed on, mockingly like it was proving a point. And the sign, it was as though it was getting brighter by the second, accompanied by an odd buzzing noise that Thee hadn't even realised had started.
Before the mafia was compelled to make an unwanted call, his phone rang as if on cue. The name that lighted up the screen had to be a blessing in disguise with the way Thee's features morphed from anger to delight in milliseconds.
"P'Kiannn what you up to"
"Working as usual", Thee replied with a faint smile.
"Ohooo how's the new CEO finding it?"
"It's definitely different, not the same as my father's business"
"I'd hope it wasn't", Peach's voice sounded from the line with a slight laugh, "By the way are you coming home tonight or-"
But the rest of the sentence didn't come.
Thee pulled the phone away from his ear, puzzled by the abrupt cut off. It wasn't declined, nor muted but there was just no sound coming through.
"Peach? Are you still there I can't hear you-"
It was then Thee realised, it wasn't his phone malfunctioning- he couldn't hear anything. Alarmed, he brought his hand up to his ears that were harbouring a slow ache now due to the low buzz of the computer that had gone unnoticed. Now however, it had transformed into a sharp ringing that took over Thee's hearing completely. The noise assaulting his head grew louder and more unbearable by the second, accompanied by a sharp ached that had travelled its way down to his chest.
The phone in Thee's hand clattered to the floor as his grip shifted to his suit that was growing increasingly tight. His breath felt constricted, ragged and short as Thee's mind raced for but failed to find answers to what was going on.
What the hell was happening?
The pain didn't ease in the slightest, reaching an intolerable level that had Thee's eyes going out of focus with struggle. He had to let Peach know- say something, but the weak hand that tired but failed to reach his phone was futile as darkness completely took over his sense...
"...P'Kian? P'Kian, are you still there"
-
The pressing ache that had been assaulting Thee's brain for an uncountable time slowly dissipated, replaced with another odd feeling. It was like a weird weightlessness, accompanied by a discomfort and- change in temperature? Thee's cool office environment seemed to have transformed into a burning heat that rivalled being directly under the sun. Additionally, the comfort of his office chair was replaced by the stiff imbalance of something else. But the weirdest of all- the hands on his shoulder shaking him in place?
Who dared to lay their hand on him? let alone think of shaking him?
But the thoughts were cut short by the sight that greeted Thee's squinting eyes. He really was outside now, and the blazing sun which only allowed for his eyes to adjust to the shadowed silhouette of the culprit, revealed someone who calmed his nerves immediately.
But as the view came into focus, he realised something was wrong. Not the sudden pains, not the unexplainable change in setting, not the fact that Peach who was meant to be still at home was somehow with him- but the appearance of who he thought he was looking at.
It was Peach, had to be- but not? The face, the hair, the mannerism, even the clothes worn, it all screamed someone different even though Thee knew that face better than anyone. And then came a different kind of recognition, a name Thee uttered- tested that he wasn't even aware he'd ever heard of before-
"Neung...-diao?"
The name that had come out like a question shocked both himself and the other as the shaking stopped for a fraction of a second. Thee had to clear his throat, as though something was wrong with his words- like they weren't his in that moment.
"Thee what are you saying? We have to go we'll get caught!"
That confirmed it, the person in front of him had to be Peach, that was the only obvious answer, but why was he in such a rush? And since when did he stop calling him P'Kian...?
"LookPeach, calm down whose going to catch us-"
"Stop calling me weird name, first it's the one and only, and now peach? Are you hungry- get up??!"
There was no chance to retort back as a grip practically latched onto his arm, dragging Thee through what looked like his own back garden. He didn't spend much time there, but he could still tell what was his- which made it all the more weirder as he was hastily guided into the cramped crevice between the fences and the back wall of his mansion.
"What are you-"
But before Thee could speak, a hand clamped over his mouth causing his back whole body to be pushed back against the wall behind. To say he was surprised was the least. Peach was never this- demanding. Being in control, sure, but not like this, never with him, never with anyone.
It was making less sense by the second, and now that Thee had a better chance to look at his face, what faced him was definitely Peach- but not the one he'd ever met. The features were all the same, all undeniably him, all down to the smallest mole that mapped Peach's face. But the those eyes- they were rounder, younger, sharper in a way that told a different story from the one Thee had spent hours looking into. The same was true for every other detail, uncannily similar but too evidently different like they had been worn by another life, not developed yet.
"Quiet.", the other mouthed, a whisper of a command yet absolute in the compliance Thee found in himself to respond with.
It was only moment later that a distant voice announced itself a few metres from their 'hiding spot'. It wasn't anyone Thee could recognise from the sound alone, hence the curiosity overtook him as he peeked his head out of the slight gap. The glimpse was short lived as Thee's head was stiffly yanked back into place by the frustrated Peach-look-alike whom shot Thee a glare. But that fleeting moment had been enough.
The resemblance was uncanny, one Thee could pick up on from just the remnants of family photos Peach had shown of his childhood, talked about with that sadness in his tone Thee pained to hear,
"I hated how much we looked alike"
Peach had once said.
"I hated carrying the face of a man who ruined mine and Plub's life"
And Thee had sworn to never let Peach feel that same hopelessness, wished he never had to come across that person or else he feared the things to follow would've upset Peach whose heart was still barren of any actual hate, of any bad that would have met that man with what he deserved. His father.
But it was a name amidst the conversation that hit Thee even harder, with a realisation that dissolved all his existing questions and replaced them with the double the amount he initially had.
"...arrange for Pearachon's next appearance at the firm, his training for the company should be more frequent from now on..."
Pearachon.
It was a name Thee wouldn't have heard usually, given any notice to- if not for the last few hours he'd spent staring at exactly that.
This wasn't 'his house' it was the on in the script he'd just reviewed, the very same one that had sabotaged his afternoon. And worse, if Peach was Pearachon, the Thee Thee was had to be their... gardener?
The situation couldn't have been worse, couldn't have put Thee in any less of a powerless state than he was realising himself to be in. Thee had no influence here, no name for himself and now was someone being dragged along quite literally.
If it had been anyone other than 'Peach' in place of Pearachon who dared to shake, drag and push him around- Thee wasn't sure his 'role' would've had a nice end.
It was a lot to process, so much in such a short period of time. Yet, amidst the muddle of half truths, Thee was becoming aware of a different problem that seemed to be a side effect of his new body. The temperature was rising, not just because of the cramped space but his literal body seemed to be on full alert from being plastered against Peac- no Pearachon. Worse, he made the mistake of meeting the other pair of eyes that were already on his. Hand still against his mouth, body so close to one another, all while looking into those eyes that stared back like a sin- he could feel his heart beat spike in a way that was unfamiliar.
Sure, Thee still felt the thrill of being with Peach, always had- but not in the giddy way unrealised and brewing feelings did. Now, he could practically feel the way his ears burned, blood rushing to the tips in a way that made him fear the thump of his heart was loud enough to be heard. His body seemed to have a mind of its own, reacting before he could and this 'character' was too obviously plagued by the anxiety of being so close to what- a crush?
That was ridiculous, especially for Thee who just acted on instinct. But what was worse was the way he couldn't control any of it like he was forced to feel, think and act on auto pilot mode.
And Pearachon, he was no different. Equally embarrassed, he was tense with the slight difference of anger and feigned seriousness that tried but failed to flick across his face. His complexion, that carried a deep rosy tint, completely betrayed any emotion that was intentionally trying to be conveyed, instead painting out a flushed and flustered image.
Thee had never seen that expression on Peach. Someone so calm, so composed, always the balance to his chaotic life.
Yet, a pang of familiarity washed over him once again, just as it had the moment he'd uttered that first name.
'Neung-diao'
'The one and only'
Those eyes were deeper, darker in a way that held the youth of someone who had only just tasted the professions of life, while simultaneously telling the story of one that had experienced so much more. They held Thee's gaze as an equal, perhaps even higher than that- both metaphorically and physically, as he came to realise the height difference had vanished.
And Thee simply couldn't tell why he felt this familiar pull, like he'd searched into those eyes a million times over. Not Peach's, and that's what confused him even more. It was this unexplainable feeling, one that was always persistently hovering over his mind, looking back- waiting for it to be realised but never coming close enough to be understood.
It was something, he felt when at sea- a rare occasion to his hectic life, but he'd always make sure to visit a dock, the ocean, anything whenever he could spare time. Thee never questioned that connection he felt, the one that dragged him to memories he never remembered having, was never meant to have.
The only other time he'd felt that, was the day he'd laid eyes on Peach for the first time. Thee didn't make connections, he didn't feel a 'want'. Until he'd set his eyes on that person, that one who had flipped his life around for no particular reason. After that first meeting however, that buzz of a feeling had disappeared, even when he returned to the sea, it was like something else was clouding that familiar sense he had been harbouring for so long.
Rome had once joked about Peach being his lover in a past life.
Thee had taken that as a light joke, but now, now as that feeling was closer than ever, Thee wasn't so sure it was just aimless words.
Caught up in the whir of thoughts, Thee didn't realise the footsteps and conversations had concluded until he was pulled out of place.
"Planning to stay there all day?", Pearachon snorted, readjusting his collar with the demeanour of someone hadn't just been blushing all over.
"Oh. Sorry Khun Pearachon", Thee muttered back- mentally confused at the obedient whisper of a voice his words came out as.
Thee never sounded like that, he was sure of that, right? His voice never really 'fell', maybe softened but never into an unconfident mutter. And calling Pearachon Khun- he had no intention of doing so in the first place, so what was that?
"How many times have I told you, just call me Pearachon when we're alone", the voice responded, a huff of annoyance sounding through those words.
"But my fath-"
Thee had to stop himself once again.
That feeling again- that his words weren't his.
He was the one meant to be dismissing titles, had been doing so for the months of knowing Peach. Now the roles were reverse- and that as much as I confused Thee made sense according to the script.
But his response? No resemblance to anything required of his 'lines' . His father? Who was meant to be his father in this story?
Pearachon however didn't react to those words with any hint of confusion which made everything all the more puzzling, "You're father isn't here either, I'm not telling you to call me that when we're at school - just here, alone."
School? There wasn't meant to be a school in the script- the gardener had no father in this timeline either-
Something was wrong, terribly wrong with the logic Thee had initially landed on.
Because the 'script', it was going completely off the lines.