EASTTAGYOUREMINE, Chapter 18: I’m Here
Two days have passed…
I stood dazed on the balcony, gazing at the sky and the forest landscape. The distant mountain peaks almost touched the sky, feeling the cool breeze against my face. I liked the saying, “At least we’re still under the same sky.” It means that no matter how far apart we are, just by looking up, we can still see the same sky, suggesting that we might circle back to meet each other again.
Just like meeting him, when I never thought I would see him again.
And now he’s disappeared again…
I clasped my hands together, thinking of the warmth from someone who always made my heart feel warm, no matter how long it’s been. His gentle smile and serious eyes always healed me, even when he himself was just as wounded. That day when Phii Hill was called back, we had to leave the cafe. Phii Hill insisted on seeing me back to my dormitory first, but they didn’t let him drive because they feared he might run away, so they had us sit in the back while someone else drove.
I didn’t dare ask anything to the person sitting next to me then, and he didn’t speak either, as if there was an unspoken warning not to say anything. The driver kept glancing at us through the rearview mirror almost all the time, but he said nothing when Phii Hill’s hand reached out to gently squeeze mine in comfort, the way he always did, including that gentle smile…which always had an effect on my heart.
The car came to a complete stop in front of the dormitory. Phii Hill gently kissed my hand, promising to return. I could tell his eyes weren’t lying.
But then, I couldn’t contact him at all…
I messaged Phii Johan on social media to ask for Phii Hill’s number, but calls wouldn’t go through. Phii Johan checked at his condo, but he wasn’t there, and when he asked the security guard, they said Phii Hill had a private parking spot, which had been empty for days.
It was as if that day took everything away, leaving a heavy heart. He wouldn’t have gone somewhere else, right?
“Why are you standing out there like a lost soul, you’ll catch a cold.” North’s voice boomed from inside the room, making me startle a little. I was deeply lost in thought by myself, so I just made a face at him, “Why’s it suddenly so cold? Is it because we’re near the mountain?”
“Maybe, there are so many people around here, I don’t know why.”
“My house isn’t on a mountain.” I thought it might be best to stop thinking about this for a while. For the past two days, I’ve been trying to call, trying to think of what to do, but to no avail. I agree with what Phii Johan said, that Phii Hill is at his grandfather’s house and might have his phone confiscated. That’s crazy…is he a prisoner or what?
And nobody knows where Grandpa’s house is. At first, I wanted to go with him, but…uh, what do you call them, bodyguards? Grandpa’s bodyguards strictly forbade it. They even added pressure by driving me back, as if to warn that if I said anything, they would tell Grandpa, and things could get worse. So, I thought it was better to stay silent.
Since I can’t call him and can’t go looking for him, how are we supposed to communicate…The more I think about it, the more my head hurts. Should I send a letter? But I don’t know where he is, and who would know Grandpa’s address? Even close friends like Phii Johan, Phii Tonfa, and Phii Arthit don’t know. Could sending smoke signals work, maybe?
“Ter…close the window, I’m cold.” I had to go back inside the room and close the window properly. I thought the weather was nice, with a gentle breeze and the afternoon sun not too strong.
“What are you doing?” I asked North, who seemed busy earlier. He was rearranging things even though everything was already neat, right?
“Cleaning the room.”
“It’s already clean.”
“It can be cleaner.”
Sigh, whatever makes him comfortable then. North is such a housemaid, I must say. If he wears his cleaning gloves and an apron, it’d be perfect. North is very diligent…often too diligent for me, whenever I’m about to clean, he’s always one step ahead. Plus, he has a part-time job, which is quite admirable.
“Aren’t you going to work at the club?” North asked.
“I’ve already done the photoshoot. The boss said the job is done, so I don’t need to go back.” I said with a bit of disappointment. Although I didn’t get to shoot the last shot, Phii Pim said it was fine and didn’t want to bother me anymore, so she asked me to send the photos, and my wages would be discussed with the chairman later. Speaking of which, the chairman has disappeared, causing delays at the club. Speaking of Phii Pim, it reminds me of the other day…Phii Bua, Phii Pim, and Phii Dew, these three ganged up to tease me, saying they knew from the start that I was the one who was the watch owner in Phii Hill’s post. They went out for Japanese food with me, how could they not know? But it was just to tease me, they said my red face was cute or something, damn it…remember that, you guys who find joy in others’ misery, T^T
As for the sophomore medical student interview for the Cute Boy page, it had to be postponed because no one from the Star Moon department could contact Phii Hill either. Phii Meili messaged me asking about it. Of course, my answer was that I had no idea where Phii Hill had gone. Phii Meili then said it was okay, because he’d have to come back when the term starts. And tomorrow is the first day of the term…
I’m not ready for school at all…sigh, T^T
“You don’t look okay.” North commented.
“Yeah, I’m really not okay.”
“No news from the med student?”
“Yeah, he’s gone. It’s been two days.” I furrowed my brows so much they almost knotted, which made North secretly chuckle. What’s so funny, huh? I see you!
“Just two days, I’ve been away from my boyfriend for months.”
“Ha!?” He just said ‘boyfriend’, right? “Do you have a boyfriend too? Why didn’t
I know about it?”
“I didn’t tell you, didn’t I? Plus, we’re not living together; he studies at a different university.”
“Then you must be quite lonely.” I commented.
“Yeah, lonely to the point where he’s found someone else now.” North said with a sigh, then forcefully threw his cleaning gloves into the trash, “Today he even updated his status with his new boyfriend, sigh.”
“Ahhh. So that’s why you’ve been all over the place since this morning, huh?” “Yeah, and it’s not even worth anything. I thought I’d moved on, you know, but seeing him with someone new feels like someone’s hammering a nail that’s already there, if you can imagine that. When he broke up with me, it was like he hammered a nail into my heart, and now that he has a new boyfriend, it feels like he’s hammering that nail again.”
“I understand, but you look dazed, you’re barely making sense. Take a break.” I suggested.
“Well, since things are like this, shall we drink?”
“Drink?”
“I mean, let’s drink alcohol. How about it? You’ve been stressed out lately too.”
“But classes start tomorrow, man.” I protested. Drinking on the night before the first day of university wasn’t a good idea, and I hadn’t drunk in a while because I learned that when I get drunk, everything goes to hell.
“Yeah, that’s a bummer. How about doing it on Saturday?”
“But I’m not going.”
“Okay, okay, no problem. If anything, come collect my body, in case I pass out at the bar. I don’t want to sleep with my head on the sidewalk like last time.” “Sigh, you’re going to make me worry again. Just drink moderately, or you might end up in big trouble.” I warned him. Picking up his body isn’t much of an issue, but I’m worried about what trouble he might get into. Alcohol is the root of all chaos, believe me.
North just shrugged, unconcerned.
“But tomorrow is the start of term, he’ll have classes too, so you’ll probably see him soon. No need to look like a sad puppy anymore.”
“Who’s looking like a sad puppy, not me.”
“You, definitely, like you’ve been abandoned by your owner.”
“You’re one to talk, North.” And so our pointless argument began again, until we both realized it was a waste of energy, and we stopped there.
I slumped into the chair, doing something while lost in thought. If Grandpa really wants Phii Hill to be a doctor and even wants him to be the top of his class, it means Grandpa must care a lot about Phii Hill’s education. He probably wouldn’t let Phii Hill miss classes.
I’ll see him tomorrow…
But I don’t want to wait until tomorrow.
I want to see him now…
It’s kind of funny when I think about it. At first, I was trying so hard to avoid Phii Hill, almost to the point of exhaustion, but now that he’s gone, I find myself wanting to see him. But it’s different now because we’ve started to understand each other. Maybe…we do understand each other, but we haven’t had a chance to clear things up completely before Grandpa took Phii Hill away again.
How should I deal with Grandpa’s issues? I guess I’ll have to muster up the courage to talk to him once. Please give me the courage when the time comes, T^T Finally, unable to stand my own stickiness, even though it wasn’t hot, the cool air made me feel damp somehow, so I decided to take a shower to feel refreshed. And why does North have to interrupt my shower like this?
Knock knock knock “Ter”
“What! I’m almost done.” I shouted while washing my face, damn it, the soap got into my eyes.
“Better hurry, someone’s here to see you.”
“Who is it?”
“Don’t know.” The voice on the other side whispered as if afraid the person they just mentioned would hear. Who could it be? Foam or Phoon? It can’t be them, North knows those two.
“Who came?” I asked after changing clothes and stepping out of the bathroom to see only North alone. There was no one else around.
“They’re waiting outside, they wouldn’t come in when I invited them.” I nodded to show I understood. I hung up my towel and went outside to meet the person waiting. I saw the tall figure of someone leaning against the wall in front of the room. He had one hand covering his mouth, but I could see he was smiling.
Yes…his eyes were smiling with evident joy.
“Phii Johan.” I called out. Phii Johan turned towards my voice, “What are you smiling about?” Instead of asking what he wanted first, I asked about his smile.
Damn, my curiosity is really something.
“Nothing.” Phii Johan said as he straightened up from the wall, “Just saw something good lately.”
“Oh…okay.” I wanted to ask what those good things were, but I’ll leave it for now. “So, is there something you need? You came all the way here. By the way, how did you know my room number?”
“Well, I was sent here. They said if I came, I’d meet someone. Lucky me.” Phii Johan muttered the last part as if he didn’t intend for me to hear it, “Come on, let’s go.”
“Huh?” I looked confused. He hadn’t even told me why he was here, and what did he mean by ‘let’s go’? But Phii Johan didn’t respond and just started walking away.
“Uh, wait a moment, please.” I called out, “North, could you watch my room? I’m going outside for a bit.” I told North who was in the room, and he looked just as confused.
“Ha, where are we going?”
“I don’t know.” I said, and then rushed to put on my shoes to follow Phii Johan. Going out in just a t-shirt, shorts, and flip-flops should be fine, right? He was in a hurry. I didn’t have time to change. T^T
“So, where are we going?” I asked when I caught up with Phii Johan.
“Just a while ago, I got a call out of the blue.”
“From the number I’ve been trying to call repeatedly without any answer, and suddenly it calls and works just fine. It’s really annoying.”
It didn’t take me long to process what he said, and my heart started pounding even though I hadn’t seen him yet. Ohhh, that’s great, it’s great that he’s back, I hope nothing’s wrong.
“He sounded tired. He must have gone through a lot these past couple of days. Instead of explaining anything, not at all. The first thing he said was so annoying.” “Annoying, you say?” I repeated his words.
“He said.”
“Jo…I want to see him.” Seriously…
My heart fluttered…
Thinking that I’m about to meet Phii Hill, in his room…
Let’s go to his room, come on!!
And I don’t even know what condition he’ll be in, if he was beaten or not, or if he was tortured. Is this really his grandfather or some Yakuza?
And most importantly, I wasn’t sure if I would survive the ride to Phii Hill’s condo. Phii Johan drives scarier than I ever thought, especially when you’re in the car with him. I prayed that this seatbelt would save my life and that the airbags would work normally.
The luxury car made a sharp turn into the condo’s underground parking, almost making me lose my grip. Phew, finally here…
Thank you to whatever got us here safely.
Amen…
I let out a sigh of relief as the luxury car came to a complete stop in the underground parking of the tall condo building. Let me get out of here quickly, I need to breathe some fresh air. I looked around the parking area, which was spacious and packed with cars. Lucky for Phii Johan, he had a reserved spot.
“It’s good I bought a parking space.” Phii Johan said as he got out and locked the car.
“You bought it?”
“Yeah, for when I come to see Hill. I hate looking for parking, so I just bought one. Even though I don’t visit much anymore.”
Wow, who buys a parking spot in a friend’s condo just because they hate looking for parking? I admire his wealth.
“He’s really back.” Phii Johan pointed to another luxury car parked in the VIP section.
Phii Hill’s car…
It’s nice to see that the parking spot isn’t empty anymore.
I couldn’t help but smile slightly, which made Phii Johan look at me with a bit of annoyance. Am I getting on someone’s nerves again? He was the one smiling earlier at my place, and I didn’t say anything about that.
“Can I ask you something?” I asked as we walked towards the elevator.
“What?”
“About that good thing you mentioned earlier.”
“Oh.” Phii Johan went silent as if he was pondering something. “I won’t tell.”
…Then why bother thinking about it?
“Hey, young man, here to visit your friend?” One of the security guards greeted us as we were heading inside.
“Yes.”
“He just got back a little while ago, looked like a zombie, just finished exams or what?”
“The semester hasn’t started yet, uncle. It starts tomorrow.”
“Oh, is that so? Good luck, young man.”
“Goodbye.” Phii Johan and I waved to the security guard before we had to take the elevator up.
“Why did the security uncle ask if we finished our exams?” I asked Phii Johan. Now, it was just the two of us in the elevator. I didn’t know why it felt so quiet, even though this condo is quite large. Maybe it’s because of the cold weather, so everyone would rather stay wrapped up in their warm blankets.
“Well, the guys, during exam season, they’re like this. Even Hill gets all ragged.” “Really? I’ve never seen that.” I really haven’t seen it. Maybe because his university studies are much more intense than high school. In high school, he seemed so laid back, too laid back, to the point where he still had time to tutor me even when exams were near.
“You’d want to see it, though. When he doesn’t get enough sleep, he gets really irritable.”
I just smiled at him, imagining what it would be like during our medical exams. From what I’ve heard, it’s not an ordinary experience. I’d like to see what Phii Hill looks like as a zombie.
The elevator stopped right on time, on the 9th floor, huh? We walked along the corridor until we reached the end. When I peeked outside, the view was pretty good, better than from my own dorm, probably because it’s higher up and has a better angle.
“This is the room. Knock on it.” Phii Johan told me as we stopped in front of the room at the end of the hallway. Ohhh, am I really going to see him? How should I look, and what should I say first? Hello, how are you, or how have you been? What should I do, ohhh, and if he’s covered in blood from injuries, I’d need to tend to his wounds, right?
Ohhh, don’t overthink it, Ter, just knock!
Knock knock knock.
Silence…
I turned to look at Phii Johan, wondering why there was no response from inside.
And just as I was about to ask Phii Johan,
“Hey!!” I exclaimed in surprise when suddenly there was a force pulling from inside the door, which had been ajar since who knows when, and before I knew it, I was pulled into a tight embrace.
Phii Hill!!?
The next thing I knew, I was already being held by the taller guy. I hadn’t even had a chance to look up at his face before a firm hand pulled me close to a solid chest, leaving me barely able to move.
Huuuuuh, let me go, you can’t just do this out of nowhere! T^T
Thump!
Thump!
And then…uh…don’t tell me, he’s not wearing a shirt!!!
Heyyyyy!!!!
I could feel the small droplets of water on his skin, indicating he had just showered. Ohhh, I can’t take it anymore, help me, Phii Johan, help me, my heart can’t handle this!!
“Too much, too much.” Phii Johan’s elongated voice made Phii Hill’s grip on me loosen slightly, though he didn’t let go, “The kid’s heart might give out.” It might be embarrassing…but Phii Johan is right, T^T. I might die of a heart attack.
Phii Hill didn’t say anything, just moved me a bit to look at him more clearly. It was still the same Phii Hill, just looking more tired and worn out than usual, his hair slightly slicked back from being wet. As for everything else… Before I could think further, his handsome face leaned down, pressing his prominent nose gently against my neck, his warm breath coming in and out steadily like someone exhausted seeking comfort, but the difference was that Phii Hill was intentionally rubbing his nose along my neck.
Wait a minute, do people hug like this?
“You smell good.” Phii Hill said as he took a deep breath. I was at a loss, letting my heart race wildly, then when I came to my senses, I gently pushed Phii Hill away with my trembling hands, because I heard Phii Johan coughing several times, but it seemed like Phii Hill wasn’t very willing to let go. “Show some consideration, hello, Hill, can you see me?”
“Jo.” Phii Hill turned to look at the one calling, releasing me from his embrace, “Thanks.” His words of thanks made Phii Hill look a bit more pleased.
“Hmm. No problem. You’re okay now, right? Fah and Arthit were worried about you.”
“I’m okay. I’ll tell them myself.” Phii Hill said, finally letting go of my arm but still holding my hand.
He won’t let go, huh? Huuuuh, T^T
“I should’ve taken a picture. I didn’t think you’d dare to do something like this.
Look, the kid’s about to explode.” Phii Johan pointed at me, making Phii Hill turn to observe. I was very aware that my face must be very red because it was burning hot now. Phii Hill smiled indulgently at me. I couldn’t help but glare back at him.
My neck still feels warm…
“Did you see him?” Phii Hill asked.
“Saw him.” Phii Johan replied, revealing a sly smile. Oh, I believe this is part of
Phii Johan’s charm, “Saw him fully.”
“How was it?”
“Well…probably fine.” Phii Johan shrugged, then feigned disinterest, “I’ve got things to do, so I’ll go first. Bye.”
“Bye.” Phii Hill responded.
“Wait, Phii Jo, you’re leaving already?” No way, you can’t leave me here with Phii Hill. Look, even just now…sigh. I’m definitely not going to survive this, don’t leave me here, brother, T^T, “And how am I supposed to get back?”
“You can stay over if you want.” Phii Hill suddenly interjected.
“No…no way.” Absolutely not. It’s like choosing between dying by suicide or having a heart attack from him not wearing a shirt!
“Alright then, I’m off.” Phii Johan said, waving goodbye one last time before walking away. How did it end up like this?
“Come in first.” Phii Hill said, leaving me no choice but to step into his room. Phii Hill slowly let go of my hand and picked up a small towel to lightly dry his hair, “You can sit on the sofa, I’ll get you some water.”
I nodded in acknowledgment and sat down on the large sofa with ease. This room is incredibly spacious, like four or five of my rooms combined. As you enter, you see the sofa and TV, and there’s a kitchen counter over there. I can’t really see the inside from here, but it’s beautifully decorated and very tidy.
Waai
It’s my first time here, so I couldn’t help but look around. The shoe rack over there is full of shoes – student shoes, sports shoes, canvas shoes, and the most daunting is the enormous bookshelf that could make one faint just looking at it. Now I understand why they say he turns into a zombie during exam season.
“Here’s your water.” Phii Hill called out. I, who had been distractedly looking around, turned towards the sound. Since I was sitting and Phii Hill was standing, I ended up seeing something I had initially decided not to look at.
His skin is so fair…and those muscles, even though we’re both guys, there’s a vast difference. His slightly wet hair and well-maintained physique showed how well Phii Hill takes care of himself. It’s good that he’s still wearing long pants.
Otherwise, I might have just fainted.
But I must say…he’s in really good shape.
And not to mention,
Six pack
What kind of doctor has a six-pack?
Where do they find the time to work out?
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