Stand for Love Ch. 11

"Where have you been?" Nicholas whispered, smiling brightly. "You knew very well that both of us were supposed to see Mr. Raj together."

"Yeah...that, sorry," George chuckled nervously. "I just left it to you to handle but now I'm here and..."

"You idiot," Nicholas chuckled, lightly punching him. "So you did this on purpose?"

"Kinda," George laughed. He was not trying to attract any attention to himself. "But I came here and just wanted to tell you that the speech was..." George winked. "...it was absolutely perfect."

"Yeah," Nicholas was furious he needed George and the guy deliberately hid from him. How could he do that to him?

"Now I've got to leave you I have..." George looked in the direction of Adrian and he lost his smile. "Hey...who's the guy with Adrian?"

Nicholas slowly looked at Adrian and saw that he was busy laughing with the guy. He couldn't believe that he wanted to release the boy but yet he was feeling jealous. Seeing him with that man, whoever he was was somehow getting to him and he couldn't help but feel angry.

"I don't know," Nicholas didn't know but he absolutely didn't like the man. "And I don't care who he is." Nicholas was bitter. His voice was rising and he could feel it. But he couldn't help it.

"I haven't seen him before and..."

"I'm sure he's Adrian's friend or boyfriend. I don't care..." Nicholas said hoarsely. He knew he was being rude but what he felt was too much to hide in his heart.

"Its fine," George smiled. "It shouldn't bother you. He's probably someone flirting with him. I'll be around if you need me."

The moment he actually heard the word 'flirt' Nicholas lost his cool and felt anger slip through him. He knew he didn't have any right to feel angry at Adrian for just talking with another man but he felt it was what he needed to do. He couldn't just sit and watch while everything happened in his face. He just couldn't.

He stood where George left him, staring at Adrian and the guy he was busy chatting with. They didn't seem like they were strangers at all. It was like they knew each other from long ago and were probably catching up. That got Nicholas wondering. What if Adrian had invited the man and they were catching up right in his face.

"No," Nicholas whispered, slowly trying to calm himself down. "I need to calm down. It's none of my business."

But that was it for him. He quite alright went back to his guests but he wasn't able to concentrate without taking a quick glance at Adrian. He just couldn't wait and see them like that. He felt he needed to take Adrian away from there but he couldn't do it. After all, he no longer considered himself as Adrian's husband. They were gonna divorce anyway.

Talking to his guests was rather proving to be difficult. It was getting hot and he was quivering. He felt he needed to get away from that place no matter what happened. He couldn't allow Adrian to affect him like that.

"Hey," Nicholas heard MR. Raj's voice.

He slowly turned to see the old man looking at him as if he suspected something.

"Are you okay?"

"Yes," Nicholas said with a grin on his face. "I'm fine. In fact I need to talk to you about a few things."

"Alright," Mr. Raj answered with an equally bright smile. "Where shall we talk? Here?"

"Err...let's go sit on the couches first and then..."

"Alright,"

As Nicholas was about to lead Mr. Raj to the couches, he suddenly stopped when he heard George's voice in the microphone. He quickly turned together with other people in the living room and stared at the front where his friend was speaking.

"Okay, ladies and gentlemen," George announced in the microphone, his eyes moving from side to side. "Who wants to make this party interesting?"

Suddenly there were cheers by everyone in the living room and Nicholas wondered what his best friend was trying to do. It was a party but not that kind of party. He had no idea what his friend was thinking.

"Alright," George hollered in the microphone. "Who wants to dance?"

Again there were cheers in the house and many people raised their drinks in the air to encourage the mood.

George knew this party was not some party were people danced but without that his plans would be completely ruined. He needed to see how the party goes when Nicholas sees what he had planned. He apologized to his friend in his heart for doing what he was going to do but it was required for him to finally see that he couldn't live without Adrian even though the evidence hadn't been provided.

"Alright," George said happily. "May I have some soothing music and people on the dance floor?"

The soothing music started playing...slowly slipping into Nicholas' body. It was super cool, perfect to dance with your partner. He watched as some people created a dance floor and then began going on that dance floor. He watched them holding each other, dancing softly, smiling at each other. And that's all he did, just stand and watch as he felt a tightening in his chest.

Memories of Adrian started coming back to him and he could feel tears building in his eyes. It was like the music had a connection with his soul, slowly awakening what he felt for Adrian. His heart started racing...his hands began trembling...his pain came back and he never moved his face away from the people that were dancing on the floor. How he wished he still had Adrian to dance with? But all he had to do was stand and watch.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Mr. Raj muttered, squeezing his shoulder.

"What?" Nicholas said softly. His eyes never moved away from the people on the floor.

"I'm talking about the people," Mr. Raj said softly. "They look so beautiful on the dance floor."

"Yeah," Nicholas was barely audible.

"Makes you wish you were dancing, right?"

Nicholas slowly looked at the man and at the dance floor again. "Yeah, I wish my husband was here."

"I wish my wife was here too." He sighed, slowly rubbing his hands. "Speaking of wife, I gotta go. I have an early flight tomorrow but I'll call you and we'll talk."

Nicholas slowly turned and faced the man. He didn't want him to go but he was not in his right frame of mind so maybe it was for the best.

"Thanks for the party," He laughed. "I really had a good time and it was nice meeting you family. But," He chuckled, softly squeezing Nicholas' shoulder. "I hope next time I come here, I'll have a chance to meet him?"

"Him?" Nicholas sounded confused.

"Your husband," Mr. Raj said. "Didn't you say he's out of town?"

"Yeah," Nicholas exclaimed, softly hitting his head. "I'll make sure you see him."

"Alright," Mr. Raj smiled. "I think I'll have to leave now."

"I'll see you off."

With one final look at the dance floor, Nicholas left with Mr. Raj outside. As he slowly took those steps out, chatting with the wonderful man, Nicholas was hoping when he comes back all his worries would go away. He was hoping he'd forget there was even someone named Adrian in his life. He'd come back to the party, happy, excited and lively. Then he'd smile as bright as ever and show Adrian that he just didn't care anymore.

Nicholas went with the sweet man outside the house. Once he comes back, he'd be refreshed and full of energy.

***

"I must say," Jill laughed, slowly rubbing his hands. "You really are a wonderful guy. I had a good time with you."

Adrian was more than happy he had spoken to Jill. The guy was lively, funny, friendly and cheerful. Adrian really loved people like that. He knew George had probably sent the guy to him just like they'd planned but he never uttered a word about it or ask any questions. They just acted like they've only met but with a guy like Jill, Adrian felt like they'd known each other for long.

They'd talked like friends, got to know each other and the guy was complementing that he was wonderful. Adrian couldn't have loved to hear anything more. He felt special and...he couldn't wait to find out the real truth about what Nicholas felt.

"I had a wonderful time too," Adrian gushed, playing with the glass in his hands.

There was a moment of silence as the music started playing. It was sweet, soothing music and Adrian slowly got into the mood. The song title was 'if loving you is wrong.' It was a really beautiful song and it got straight to his heart. It made him remember the wonderful times he'd shared with Nicholas. Those moments were wonderful and he kept them close to his heart.

He was lost deep in thought when he saw Jill extending his hand. He slowly looked up at Jill and saw the wonderful smile on his face.

Was Jill asking him for a dance, Adrian thought, his heart racing? This was probably George's idea. He'd gone to the front, asked everyone to dance and now Jill was probably asking him for a dance.

"Will you...dance with me?" Jill stuttered, smiling brightly.

Adrian looked at him, grinned and said, "I'd love to."

He extended his hand and put it on Jill's'. Jill cupped his hand softly and then they both walked to the dance floor.

Reaching the dance floor, Adrian wrapped his arms around Jill's neck as the guy did the same by gripping his waist softly. Feeling Jill's arms on his waist, Adrian took a glance down and smiled. Those arms were not giving him any form of emotions. He didn't feel like the way he felt when Nicholas grabbed him. Guess Nicholas was the only guy who could make him feel that way.

Slowly they started moving with the music, moving their hips from side to side, looking in each other's eyes with a smile. Adrian was blushing. He had no idea why he was blushing but he couldn't help it. Feeling another man's touch, he felt nothing. He had no feelings at all but he was sure if it was Nicholas he'd have probably been vibrating.

"I hope I don't get beat up for this." Jill whispered, slowly rubbing Adrian's waist. "I'm gonna kill George if I do get beaten."

"Don't worry," Adrian beamed, tightening his grip on Jill's neck. "I'm sure he'll do nothing."

"How sure are you?" Jill chuckled.

"Hasn't George told you?"

"Of course, he did," Jill chuckled, locking his eyes with Adrian. "But a guy can be overprotective especially when he has someone like you."

"It's complicated," Adrian said, slowly resting his head on Jill's chest as other people on the floor did. The light was becoming dim and the mood was getting cozy. It was time to act and see if Nicholas could bear to let him go.

"Sorry for this," He apologized, slowly moving one hand away from Jill's neck. He also felt Jill's hand leave his waist and then the two hands met and they slowly danced to the soothing music.

"Sorry for what?" Jill asked, enjoying the head on his chest. It felt so beautiful and so warm.

"For putting my..."

"It's nothing," Jill chirped, slowly tightening his grip. "Like I said, I'm fine with it. I just hope your husband will understand my intensions."

Adrian chuckled softly, enjoying the mood he was in. He scanned the room and Nicholas was nowhere to be seen. He had seen him a few moments ago and now he was nowhere to be seen. Adrian hoped Nicholas hadn't stormed out of the room or it was gonna be bad for him. He still hoped for the best though because real acting hadn't even started. Not until he sees Nicholas. That was when he'd put George's plan into action.

****

Nicholas came back into the house after spending over ten minutes taking fresh air. He needed to come back and he felt calm. He was now able to breathe calmly, forgot about Adrian and was ready to enjoy the rest of the evening with his guest, probably drink which he'd not done in a long time. He was ready to party, old Nicholas style.

Nicholas came back inside filled with a lot of energy. Going out had definitely helped him think things through. All he wanted was to just sit, drink and watch people dancing on the floor. He had no partner to dance with so he had no choice but to just watch.

As he neared where most people were, Nicholas grabbed a glass of champagne and went to stand near his best friend, George. He stood beside him, watching the people dancing.

"Wanna dance?" Nicholas joked, giving a soft chuckle.

"Not with you?" George teased.

"But I'm hot, aren't I?"

"Yes," George answered, his eyes directed at Adrian who was dancing with Jill like they were a couple. He was sure his friend was gonna do something since he said he loved him a lot. "But you're not my type."

Hearing that, Nicholas gave a soft chuckle, slightly squeezing his best friend's arm. At least in all this, his best friend was always there for him. He knew he wouldn't leave him alone. They had come a long way and they kinda felt each other's pain so it was understandable seeing George react the way he did with Adrian. Nicholas appreciated him for that.

Nicholas slowly moved his eyes on the dance and spotted his brother and Clara, softly following the music. Clara had her head on Noah's chest, one hand was on Noah's neck and the other was on his hand, holding each other. Noah on the other hand, held her waist and her hand and they both followed together the soothing music.

Seeing them happily together, Nicholas was getting emotional again. Going outside to get some fresh air had not worked at all. The worst of it all was seeing Noah and Clara happily dancing. It rather increased his pain and desire to have Adrian.

Adrian was like a part of him that he couldn't live without even though he knew it'd breed nothing more than hatred, pain and betrayal. What Adrian had done to him was worse than anything he'd ever felt before in his life.

Nicholas had no idea if he'd ever recover from that heartbreak at all. The pain was becoming worse and worse every day. Even while standing there watching his brother and his sister in law dancing romantically the pain was slowly slipping in him. Man if he could only remove his heart out and throw it away.

Nicholas sighed as he came back to reality. He shook his head, took a sip of the champagne and tried to forget everything. His brother and Clara reminded him so much of Adrian and therefore, he couldn't stand to look at them or he'd just start crying in front of all those people.

Moving his eyes away from his brother, Nicholas tried to look at other couples, that were not so romantic. He slowly scanned the people on the floor before...his eyes froze. He closed his eyes shut, opened them again and still saw them. Right there on that floor was Adrian and the guy he had been talking with a few minutes ago.

He wouldn't have been that shocked had it been another dance but Adrian had his head on the guy's chest and his hand on his neck. That didn't make him angry at all. What made him really angry was that hand on Adrian's waist, probably massaging it. Nicholas was suddenly angry. His eyes were only on that hand and the smile that was on both their faces. It was like they were mocking him, laughing at him and insulting him. Feeling the pain get worse he tried to move his eyes away but they found their way back to the sight before him.

On the other hand, George saw the look on his friend's face and he immediately knew that he had spotted Adrian dancing with Jill. He was more than happy with what he saw. From Nicholas' eyes he saw anger and rage. He got closer and took a closer look at him, realizing that his jaws actually shook. His hands were trembling and the champagne in his cup was almost slipping out. His plan might have been working after all.

With a grimace and serious face, George got closer to his friend and asked him a question.

"Are you alright?"

Nicholas was not alright? How could George even ask him such a question? He was angry...his eyes were fixed on Adrian and whoever the guy he was dancing with was.

"I'm fine," Nicholas seethed, furiously clenching on the glass in his hand. He took a quick sip and never had champagne tasted awful like the way it did. He felt like he was having a deadly poison in his mouth. He almost spat it but he swallowed bitterly.

He then felt himself shaking, trembling terribly. There was a powerful vibration that took over his body which made him to warm up. Then there was the urge to tear Adrian from that man's chest and beat the man up for even touching Adrian and talking to him in the first place. He knew what he was thinking of doing wasn't right but he couldn't help it. He was feeling like Adrian was betraying him over and over again.

Adrian on the other hand saw Nicholas from the crowd staring at the both of them dancing. Encouraged by the look he saw in Nicholas' eyes, he gripped Jill's neck tighter and brought his face closer to his neck, pretending as if Jill was about to kiss his neck. Then they both smiled brightly and chuckled. He knew that was surely gonna make Nicholas jealous and make him do something. That was the time to know whether Nicholas still wanted him or had really given up on him.

Nicholas' eyes almost watered when he saw the guy's face close to Adrian. Did that guy just bury his face in Adrian's neck, Nicholas thought, angrily looking at Adrian and the guy. He clenched on the glass cup so hard that it almost broke. His anger just turned into rage. He wanted to control himself but he was slowly losing it.

He could feel the blood rushing through his ears, his heart pounding painfully and his breaths becoming violent. He wanted to control his anger but things got worse when his hormones took over. He felt hot as sweat suddenly began forming on his skin. He had never been that mad before in the last few days. He felt like Adrian was cheating on him with that guy...right in his presence.

"Are you sure you're okay?" George asked. He sounded worried. "You're shaking terribly and..."

"I said I'm fine," Nicholas said hoarsely. His jaws were now shaking terribly.

"Well, you kinda..."

"I'm fine," Nicholas was slowly losing it.

He wanted to get away from that place but he was frozen. The pain was intensifying but no matter what he did he couldn't tear his eyes away from Adrian and the guy. He felt like he needed to monitor every move Adrian made on that dance floor.

"Calm down," George said, trying to touch him. "I want you to..."

"What's there to calm down for?" Nicholas rasped, clenching his left fist. He wanted nothing more than to beat the living daylight out of the guy who was dancing with Adrian. What was worse was that Adrian seemed to enjoy it. That smile could him tell that he was enjoying.

Every passing second was making Nicholas angrier. He felt his anger over flowing as he felt veins pulsing in his head. He wanted to just go on that dance floor and kill the man...

Nicholas closed his eyes painfully, feeling a really sharp pain deeper in his chest. After a few seconds he sighed and took a deep breath, opening them again only to get even angrier. His heart pounded painfully in heart, feeling like it had been pierced. His blood pressure suddenly increased to what he didn't even know. His eyes and mouth gaped when he thought he saw the man kissing Adrian's neck. Oh that was it for him. He couldn't take it anymore. He felt he might go crazy if he didn't stop what was going on.

Without even realizing what was going on with him, Nicholas let go of the glass and it felt to the floor, breaking into pieces. Then driven by rage, he abruptly moved to the dance floor, breathing violently like a wild beast, sweating and clenching his fists hard. He stood behind Adrian, stared angrily at him and then gripped his arm and pulled him away from the guy who was dancing with him. Furiously pulling Adrian behind him, Nicholas adjusted his fist and gave the guy a punch across the cheek sending him to the floor before he even realized what was happening.

"Stay away from him?" Nicholas warned, pointing his finger angrily at the guy on the floor. "He's mine,"

Suddenly everyone stopped dancing and had their eyes on the scene before them.