Chapter 27


    Bought him?!


    “Angel Three, sold for $4,200 to the madam in the ck dress! Congrattions!” The hostess cheered.


    After three rounds, I’d finally figured out the auction process. Every man was numbered and given the


    base price of $1,000. He wouldn’te on stage at all during the bidding process. All the audience had


    to go off of was the man’s code name and a set of three photographs. Only those present in the room


    could bid. The photos were revealed one at a time, and if you bid based on the first photo, you’re given


    a $500 “discount” at the end of the round. Once the bidding was over, the man woulde out from


    backstage.


    Then, in front of the entire audience, he would walk up to the winner, whether they were a man or a


    woman.


    That was the funniest part. Everyone waited with bated breaths like gamblers waiting for the river to be


    dealt.


    The audience’s reaction to the Bulgarian Rose’s reveal was unforgettable: a chorus of Wow! over and


    over again. The Rose looked about seventy years old. He was dressed in a suit with leather shoes to


    match, and his silver hair was tied up. He was fashionable, definitely, but he looked like Santa us in


    a fancy tux. It was almost funny.


    The photos showed his physical features, but not his age. Maybe they were taken when he was


    younger.


    A petitedy had paid à fortune for the old geezer, and from where I was in the crowd, I saw the corner


    of her mouth twitch as he walked over to her.


    “Oh my god!” She shouted. Sheughed while she shook her head and waved her hands in front of


    her. “No!”


    I’d probably feel the same way. If I paid $4,200 for someone’s grandpa, I’d be devastated too. What


    would he do with me? Read me a bedtime story?! What a tragic waste of my single auction opportunity.


    Everyone only had one chance to bid for the sake of fairness.


    Thedy took a few breaths to regain herposure, put on a smile, and held her hand out to him. It


    was as graceful as it was reluctant, but she was still a good sport about it. Amid the apuse and


    shouted blessings of the crowd, the two of them took a photo together.


    Yes. The event had set up a booth and hired a professional photographer just for that. These damn


    people really pull out all the stops…


    But I had to be cautious.


    I had only one chance to pick Aaron and I literally couldn’t afford to choose someone else. I paid extra


    close attention to the next sets of pictures, examining each one to find some connection to Aaron.


    The next set showed a pair of blue eyes. Aaron had blue eyes, but something about the pupils


    seemed… off. Besides, I knew hisshes were much thicker. I remembered being jealous of his


    eyshes the first time I woke up next to him. They were long and thick, and they shaded his eyes as if


    he was the heroic elf in a fantasy movie. Ethereal. Regal.


    I shook my head. Those weren’t Aaron’s eyes.


    Next, the hostess showed a photo of a corbone, but it was too thin and pale to be Aaron’s. I figured


    he was the type to


    be involved in some kind of outdoor sport, so I expected some kind of tan line around his neck and


    cor. Maybe less of a tan line and more of a tan gradient. I remembered Vincent saying Aaron was


    tanned from golfing, but I also knew he injured his wrist about six months ago. He probably didn’t go as


    often after that, so that might’ve been why I never noticed a tan on him before.


    Anyway. This wasn’t Aaron either.


    “Are you confident you’ll find him?” Jane nudged me with a yful wink.


    I shook my head and answered truthfully. “I’m not sure. I don’t actually know him all that well.”


    “What you don’t know if yourself,” she smiled. “You’ll recognize him, I’m sure. Aaron certainly is.”


    Next up were pictures of eyebrows, bangs, hands, and one after another, I knew they weren’t his.


    Every rinse–and–repeat moment of the “Angel” meeting his bidder left me dazed.


    By now, seven people had already been auctioned and none of them were Aaron. I was a bit satisfied


    to see that I knew him better than I thought I did.


    Every new photo on the screen made me carefully recall his looks, our messages to each other, and


    the moments I spent with him. I even started imagining what would happen if I did end up winning him.


    What would he look like when he walks up to me from behind the curtain?


    The hostess‘ voice cut my fantasy short.


    “Moving on to Angel Eight: The Cemetery Reader.”


    Cemetery?


    I suddenly remembered what I’d read about Aaron online. As a child, he liked to skip sses and go to


    the cemetery to read alone. This had to be him.


    The photos that followed made all thedies in the room scream. It was of his chest. On the left side


    was a small burn scar, about the size of a cigarette butt.


    The moment I saw the photo, I understood why Aaron was so confident. Only someone who’s slept


    with him could


    recognize his chest at a nce.


    I raised my hand to bid before the rest of the photos were even revealed.


    My speed must’ve surprised everyone. Immediately after my hand went up, more than a dozen people


    raised theirs to bid. The $500 discount for first–photo bids was a trap. It drove everyone to rush in and


    raise the price even higher so early in


    the round.


    Even more people raised their hands once the photos of his abs and toes were presented. I don’t think


    I’ve spent enough time with Aaron to recognize him by his feet, but the scar was enough for me to be


    sure of my decision.


    In the end, the final two bidders were me and ady across the room wearing a blue dress.


    “Going three times? Number Eight is sold to the woman in red for eighteen thousand dors!” The


    hostess gleefully knocked


    her gavel on the podium.


    That was insane… Eighteen grand was the highest price of the night! My face was flushed and my


    throat was dry. Never in my life would I have imagined that I’d buy a man one day.


    The spotlight flickered and moved in small circles until it spiraled over to the side of the stage and he


    stepped out from behind the curtain.


    He breathed a sigh of relief and wore a graceful smile on his face. His eyes swam with too many


    emotions to identify, but his gazended directly on me.


    The people around me murmured to each other, and I heard the woman I won against m her wine


    N?velDrama.Org ? content.


    ss harshly on her table. I watched him walk toward me amid the apuse, whistles, and cheers of


    the audience, and the spotlight followed him until he reached me.


    With the lighting down on us, our shadows vanished underneath our feet, and it was just the two of


    us in our white


    halo.


    He bowed his head ever so slightly, grateful, and held his hand out to me.


    “Thank you, Olive,”


    And I stood still, speechless. My blood cooled in my veins and


    my heart felt as though it’d been frozen over.


    He was wearing a silver–gray suit.


    He wasn’t Aaron.