NORTHHOWMUCHISYOURLOVE, Chapter 2 part 2
“You too, Skater, acting like you won’t have any issues.”
(Less than the two of you, I know you’ll apologize, but you don’t have to. Just apologize to Kyu, me and Nao don’t need it. Especially Nao, no need, he seems totally fine, I’m confused.)
“But Kyu doesn’t accept my apology, why? What’s wrong with everyone?”
(It’s creepy, better to treat us to drinks instead.)
“I’ve already said I’ve stopped, I’ve renounced the world.”
(Alright, then I’ll go eat. Oh, and thank the person who broke up the fight for me.)
“Yeah, I will do it.”
(Kyu already told me. But can you tell me what happened?)
“A senior I know.” (You answer like he’s a celebrity, come on, tell me, what’s his name or whatever?)
“Why does it matter? Just someone I know.”
(Okay, your senior is intense, huh? At the time, I was out of it, but I remember when he walked in, the whole bar went silent, like he was there to kill someone.)
“You always exaggerate.”
(Not exaggerating, but I think I’ve seen his face before. Is he a senior from our university?)
“Yes, Phii Joe, second-year medical student.”
(Oh, the famous one, Ter’s boyfriend’s friend.)
“Yeah, you know him?” Skater, being someone who follows gossip, in simple terms, he’s nosy, knows about everyone. It wouldn’t be surprising if he knew Phii Joe as well.
(He’s someone who keeps up with the news.)
“He’s just nosy.”
(Mouthy, but he really is famous. Well, I wish I got carried like that.)
“Carried?”
(Yeah, he carried you out of the pub, princess-style. Well, if not, why would I tease you like this?)
“I hate you for that. And why carry me? He could’ve just dragged me, I wouldn’t have minded.”
(Well, after he placed you on the table, you just sat there and fell asleep, so he had to carry you, I guess.) Why does it feel odd when he says ‘placed you’? Like I’m some object that was set down. Oh right, there’s also the issue of the debt. It’s not really something you’d want to talk about, but I thought it might be good to discuss it, though I wouldn’t ask them to help pay for it. After all, it’s all because of me.
“Yeah, I have something to tell you guys too, but let’s wait until everyone’s here. Nao’s missing.”
(Probably playing soccer.)
“Soccer! I give up. What kind of person is he?”
(The blood of a soccer player runs thick, you’ve got to understand. So let’s meet at the dorm. It’s been a while since I’ve seen Ter too.)
“Miss him?”
(A lot, he is my side chick, pfft! His boyfriend would have my blood for breakfast. Don’t tease me so much, I feel like I’m getting closer to death every day.)
“We’re just joking, but I secretly want you to get caught too.” I like to tease Skater about Ter because, back when we didn’t know each other well, Skater said my roommate, meaning Ter, was quite cute. Not that he liked him, just that he found him cute. When I told him Ter was dating Phii Hill, he turned pale. So I like to tease him about it often.
(Please, North, you’re getting it all wrong. If Phii Hill hears about this, you’re dead.)
“Alright, I’m hanging up now, see you later.”
(Sure, see you.)
“How did it go?” asked Ter.
“Phii Joe came to sort things out, just as expected. As soon as Phii Joe stepped in to calm things down, the fight really did end.” I replied. “That’s good then. I told you, if it wasn’t for Phii Joe, things wouldn’t have been settled so smoothly. And don’t forget to add him on Line and his Facebook, here, Phii Hill sent it.”
“Got it.” I agreed easily, adding him as instructed. As a debtor, I shouldn’t make a fuss, right? T^T
“Phii Joe is kind of strange.” Ter suddenly said.
“Your boyfriend is even stranger.” I teased. From my perspective, Phii Hill really was strange. He seems hard to approach, yet approachable in some way, though I’m not sure how.
“He’s strange, but in a different way.”
“How so?”
“Sometimes Phii Joe seems approachable. I’ve seen him joking around with Phii Hill, but there are moments when he looks scary. Phii Hill says Phii Joe gets angry easily, and he doesn’t want to mess with him when he’s mad. Look, this morning when they were in the room together, they hardly spoke at all.”
“Yeah, he seems to talk little.”
“He was probably angry.”
“But Phii Hill talks little whether he’s angry or not.”
“That’s normal.” Said Ter, slightly furrowing his brows. I made a face at him. How many times do I have to tell you that he only talks to you?
“So, what’s he like then?” I asked.
“Interested?”
“Well, I should know my creditor, right? Might end up in debt for life. Not that I can’t pay him back, bastard.”
“I don’t really know, he’s talkable, he talks normally, just don’t make him angry as Phii Hill says.”
“And how am I supposed to know what not to do to make him angry?” “I don’t know. You ask like I know everything.” Ter exclaimed, “Like I said, he has aspects I don’t understand. Friends like Phii Hill, Phii Fah, Phii Arthit know when to mess with him and when not to. What do they call it again? Having depth, too deep to fathom.”
“I still don’t get it, so basically, he’s someone who gets angry easily, right?”
“Um, probably. I’ll ask Phii Hill for you, and have you added him on LINE yet?”
“I’ve added him, but he hasn’t accepted it.” I said.
“Let me see, wow, that’s cool, the black and white tone really suits Phii Joe.” Ter commented on the black and white profile picture where his face wasn’t too clear, “Send him a message.”
“Shouldn’t we wait for him to accept my friend request first?”
“Will he even accept you? And that profile picture is so childish.” Ter said. Childish? It’s cute. I use a picture of a silly duck as my profile picture because I really love that stuffed animal. It’s now sitting on my headboard.
“You really don’t get the charm of the silly duck.” I said, deciding to wait for him to accept before messaging. Even though I don’t fully understand Phii Joe’s personality from what Ter has told me, I thought it wouldn’t be an issue.
After a while, the notification sound from my phone went off.
Johan has accepted your friend request.
Ah, he accepted it.
Ding!
Johan: Who?
Johan: That profile picture looks like a heel.
I’m so sorry, T^T
North♣: North here, T^T
I quickly replied to the message and went to change my profile picture. Why does he have to be so harsh? No one has ever criticized my duck so harshly, T^T, this is my beloved duck!
North♣: Thank you again, khrap. My friends also asked me to thank you.
Johan: Um
Johan: And here I am, suddenly out of hundreds of thousands.
North♣: Yes. I might be a bit slow in paying you back, khrap. I don’t have much money.
Johan: I’ll charge interest.
North♣: Can it be 2 percent, please?
Johan: …?
North♣: …
Johan: Ha, interest is calculated monthly.
North♣: I don’t even have the means to pay the principal yet.
Johan: That’s your problem.
Oh…please, T^T
North♣: Can it be 3 percent? Otherwise, the interest will be nearly ten thousand.
Johan: That’s high.
North♣: Please.
Phii Joe read the message but didn’t reply. I guess negotiation is out of the question. With a debt of almost two hundred thousand, at 5 percent interest compounded monthly, my debt will increase by ten thousand every month…
Wow, suddenly I feel like crying…T^T
“Ter, comfort me, Phii Joe, he’s squeezing me dry, he’s so harsh, such a ruthless creditor.” I went over to complain to Ter who was playing games at his desk.
“Why?” Ter took off his headphones and turned to me. “He’s charging 5 percent interest.”
“That’s better than 20 percent. I thought he started with 20 percent.”
“Bastard, am I dealing with loan sharks or what?”
“Generally, it’s 6 or 8 percent, 5 percent is good enough.” Ter said, looking completely unbothered.
“I asked for 2 percent at first.”
“You’ve got some nerve.”
“Hey, don’t be too harsh, I’m sensitive right now.”
“Come on, you usually make quite a bit each month from work.”
“It’s not even up to ten thousand, and I can’t afford the interest, let alone food, rent, and other expenses.”
“Right, let’s try talking again later.”
“He seems hard to talk to somehow, he should be kind like Phii Hill.”
“Don’t connect them like that.”
“Ha, you’re really jealous, aren’t you?” I teased a bit and got a sigh from Ter, “I’ll think of some good words to plead with him again later. Let’s go eat, I’ve got to go to work soon.” I said. I’ve been working part-time since high school, and even after getting into university, I’ve continued. Ter works too, at a Japanese restaurant, some evenings to late at night.
Considering my studies, I do study hard, but I think I can manage if I take on more work, especially now with all this debt, T^T.
“Can you really work in this condition?”
“I’m fine, the injuries aren’t that bad.”
“And you’re not dizzy or anything? You drank a lot.”
“Yeah, my head hurts, I’m a bit dizzy, but I don’t want to miss work. Sister Ya would kill me.”
“Okay.” Ter said as he got up from the table to put on his shoes, “Aren’t you taking your phone?” He asked after noticing I left it charging at the bedside.
“Nah, it’s expensive, I’m not used to it yet, don’t want to lose it.”
“Ugh, you’re such a worry. Alright, let’s go.”
“By the way, I meant to tell you but forgot, when Phii Hill came to pick me up at the shop that day, after we talked, I whined about wanting to work, and Phii Hill sighed and called Phii Joe.” Ter shared.
“Why would he do that?” I raised my eyebrows in curiosity.
“Exactly, I was puzzled too. They talked about something for a while, and after that, Phii Hill didn’t really fuss about me working anymore, just said he was worried about this and that.”
“Yeah, and after that, he’s been picking us up and dropping us off. If he could, he’d probably come every day.” I teased with a bit of sarcasm. Since then, Phii Hill often picks us up and drops us off at the shop, and when we finish, he comes to pick us up. I’ve really benefited from this. Some days, if he’s free, he almost stays to watch over us, “It’s good that Phii Hill comes, Sister Ya loves it, him staying over brings in more customers, but she says she feels bad so she doesn’t want to disturb us often.”
“Don’t want that, people stare at Phii Hill a lot.”
“Jealous?”
“Yes.”
“Alright, you used to say you didn’t like him, and now I feel like slapping you around the world.” I teased again, only to get a hard slap on the arm from Ter, “You blush so violently.”
“Shut up, or I’ll wish you to fall down the stairs and break your neck.”
“Look at you, getting all aggressive when embarrassed, what kind of person are you?” After dinner, we headed out for our part-time jobs. We got scolded by our boss, Phii Ya, for the fighting incident, but in the end, I was allowed to work as usual.
21:32 PM
‘Johan: (New Notification (2))’
Johan: I won’t charge interest.
Johan: Will you do everything I say?
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