Chapter 23

Since Sky's class is cancelled today, Nani thought that it would be great to take Sky to eat out. Nani had originally planned to take Sky to an upscale luxury restaurant, where the dishes were more art than food. But at the last minute, as he glanced at Sky happily humming to himself in the passenger seat, he changed his mind. Instead of pulling up to the extravagant venue, he turned the car towards a cozy dessert café tucked away in the quieter streets of the city.

"Wait, this isn't where you said we were going." Sky pointed out, looking at the brightly lit café with curiosity.

Nani smirked, unbuckling his seatbelt. "I figured you'd enjoy something casual. Besides, I have a feeling you'd rather eat cake than some overpriced tiny portions."

Sky blinked, surprised by the unexpected but thoughtful change. A small smile crept onto his lips as he unbuckled his seatbelt. "You're not wrong."

As they stepped inside, the warm scent of freshly baked pastries filled the air. The place was cozy, decorated with soft pastel colors and fairy lights. Sky's eyes sparkled as he scanned the menu, filled with an overwhelming number of sweet options.

"I think I want... everything." Sky joked, making Nani chuckle.

While waiting for their desserts, Nani casually scrolled through his phone. That's when he saw it—his sister Prim's Instagram story. She was on another date and, as always, had proudly posted it with a cute caption. Nani scoffed, shaking his head. His sister loved broadcasting her love life.

Then, a thought crossed his mind. Maybe he should post something too?

He glanced at Sky, who was busy poking at the display case, trying to decide between strawberry shortcake or a chocolate tart. Nani rarely shared personal moments on social media. If he posted something, it meant telling the whole world that he was taken. That he was no longer available.

"Are you taking a picture? " Sky nudged closer into the shot, his face half-visible in the reflection of the dessert case.

Nani saw Sky's excited expression and, without overthinking, he tapped "Post."

--

Meanwhile, back in the company, Win and Dew were on the hunt for Nani. They had dropped by his office only to find it completely empty.

"Where the hell is he? He disappears more often these days." Win grumbled, plopping onto Nani's chair as if claiming it as his own.

"Didn't he say he was busy today?" Dew asked, scrolling through his own phone.

Just then, Win's phone buzzed. It was a message from Prim. She had sent a screenshot of Nani's Instagram story.

Win stared at it for a moment before his eyes widened. "Oh, you've gotta be kidding me."

Dew leaned in to look. "What?"

Win turned his phone to show him. "Look at this. That reflection... that's definitely Sky."

Dew's brows shot up. "Wait, Nani actually posted that? He's basically announcing they're dating!"

Win grinned mischievously. "Oh, he's done for."

--

Sky took a bite of the strawberry shortcake, expecting sweetness, but the slightly sour taste caught him off guard. His nose scrunched up, and he swallowed quickly before pushing his plate toward Nani.

"You eat this. I don't like it." Sky declared without hesitation.

Nani raised an eyebrow. "You were so excited about it two minutes ago."

Sky didn't even bother defending himself, already reaching for Nani's chocolate. "This one looks better."

Nani huffed but didn't argue, easily swapping their plates. Sky grinned, satisfied, as he took a bite, his shoulders visibly relaxing at the taste.

As they ate, Nani leaned back in his chair, casually swirling his spoon in his dessert. "Where do you want to go after this?"

Sky hummed in thought, but before he could answer, his phone buzzed. He glanced down at the screen, his face shifting from relaxed to wide-eyed in an instant.

(Uni Group Chat): "Sky, why does someone in Khun Nani's story look exactly like you? 👀"

Sky's grip on his phone tightened as his head slowly lifted to meet Nani's gaze, his eyes slightly widened in shock.

"You..." Sky's voice trailed off.

Nani blinked innocently. "What?"

"You posted me?!" Sky hissed, his heart racing.

Nani, completely unfazed, simply took another bite of cake. "Yeah. So?"

Sky stared at Nani, still processing what just happened. His mouth opened, then closed, then opened again before he finally found his voice.

"You told everyone at the university that you're single, didn't you?" Sky accused, narrowing his eyes.

Nani didn't even flinch. He simply took another bite of cake, chewing slowly before replying with an infuriating level of calm.

"Yep" he admitted shamelessly. "That's why I posted it, to change the direction of the information."

Before Sky could fully recover from his shock, the café door suddenly burst open. "FOUND YOU!" Win's voice rang through the air as he stomped toward them, Dew following right behind dragging a very unamused Prim along.

Nani sighed, already regretting posting that story. Sky, meanwhile, looked like he wanted to disappear under the table.

As soon as Win sat down, he wasted no time, turning his mischievous grin toward Nani. "You really went and posted that story, huh? Bold move. Almost like you wanted to start a scandal."

Nani, unbothered as always, took a slow sip of his drink before replying. "And?"

Win leaned in, smirking. "And I think you're enjoying the attention a little too much. Sky, what do you think? Maybe our Nani has a secret love for drama?"

Sky, caught mid-bite of his cake, nearly choked. He quickly swallowed and shot Win a look. "Don't drag me into this."

But Win was relentless. "Oh, come on! You're the one stuck dealing with this guy the most. Surely you've noticed his little habit of stirring things up just for fun?"

Nani simply raised an eyebrow, completely unaffected. "If I wanted to stir things up, I'd do something far worse than just a little Instagram story."

Win smirked, leaning back in his chair like he had just uncovered the greatest secret of all time. "You just wanted to show Sky off."

Sky blinked in confusion. "Huh?"

Dew chuckled, catching on immediately. "Oh, that does make sense. Nani never posts anything about his personal life, but suddenly, he's out here posting about Sky?" He grinned knowingly. "Interesting."

Prim just shakes her head."It's almost like he's claiming him."

Nani rolled his eyes, finally setting down his fork. "You're all reading too much into it."

Win gasped dramatically. "Denial! A classic sign of someone caught in the act." Sky, still slightly lost, glanced between them.

Win turned to him with a pitying look. "Oh, sweet, innocent Sky. He just wanted to tell the world, 'Look at this adorable human I spend all my time with. Aren't you all jealous?'"

Dew nodded. "And to redirect attention from whatever nonsense people were saying about him."

Sky's face turned pink. "Nani, is that true?"

Nani, looking far too calm for someone being accused of such things, took another sip of his coffee before answering. "Believe what you want."

Before Sky could press further, the door swung open again. This time, the entrance was much more composed, but it still managed to steal everyone's attention.

Bright walked in, exuding his usual effortless confidence. But what caught Win off guard wasn't just his presence, it was the woman walking beside him.

Bright placed a gentle hand on the small of her back as they approached the counter, leaning in to say something that made her laugh softly.

Win, who had been mid-sip of his drink, froze. Dew, Sky, and Prim all noticed instantly.

"Uh-oh" Dew muttered under his breath.

Sky, however, was still clueless. He leaned toward Nani, whispering, "Who's that?" Nani setting his fork down, again. "Win's ex."

"Awkward" Dew muttered under his breath, barely holding back a smirk.

Bright greeted everyone normally when he saw them, exchanging pleasantries as if nothing was out of the ordinary. Win, however, barely responded, focusing way too hard on his cake.

After a few more moments of casual conversation, Bright finally excused himself. "I'll see you guys around" he said, giving Win a lingering glance before heading out.

As soon as the door shut behind him, a heavy silence settled over the table. And then—

"Pfft—" Dew was the first to break, laughing as he nudged Win's shoulder. "Dude, you looked so uncomfortable."

Prim grinned, joining in. "P Win, you were chewing like your life depended on it. I thought you said you were over him?"

Win scowled, finally swallowing his bite of cake. "I am over him."

Nani raised an eyebrow. "Uh-huh. That's why you looked like you were about to sink into your chair?"

"I was just enjoying my cake!" Win shot back, stabbing his fork into the dessert a little too aggressively. The teasing he had just been giving Nani? Yeah, it was definitely coming back to bite him now.



Why do I have to work today? On SkyNaniFancon D2 😭😭?