MYENGINEER, CHAPTER 34: Date
[Bohn]
Bon Ss: I’m outside your house.
Duen: Are you kidding me? I’m already outside.
Bon Ss: This conversation feels familiar, Duen. If you pull the same trick again, I’ll wrestle you…
As soon as it showed ‘Read’, the slender figure popped up from beside my car, with Daonuea laughing beside him. You’re not messing with me, you idiot.
“You bastard, Bohn!”
“Hehe.” I laughed at his behavior. Duen, that bastard, is a medical student who doesn’t act like one. Is he crazy to use the same old tricks on me? The other day, I might have been a bit dazed, but today I’m cautious. Just now, I saw his sneaky head through the car window; he was silently laughing. Oh…he wants me to shout “flower” again, huh?
No way.
Bon Ss: I will count to three. If you don’t get in the car, I’m coming down to drag you in.
The other guy looked down, read the message, made a surprised face, and glanced at me through the tinted glass, but showed no sign of approaching until…I raised three fingers and slowly lowered them one by one as if counting down. Then his eyes widened, and he quickly got Daonuea into the car. Today, I brought the Mercedes, which actually belongs to my brother, Buhn, but he’s not home, so I borrowed it.
I’ve never told you about Buhn. Buhn is the oldest brother at home, studying Management in his third year at this university. He’s rarely at home because he likes to stay over at friends’ places. Sometimes I feel sorry for his close friend, Tae.
If Buhn were a girl, you could say her heart falls for that guy.
If I had to describe his personality…it’s hard, it’s like fusing me with Bihn. He’s kind of funny with a straight face, always saying something serious, but the content is nonsense. And his humor is always flat…
“Hello, mom, hello, honey.” the brat greeted the person who just got in the car.
He’s now over the Daniel issue; he’s got a pet cockroach, saying, ‘Oh my God, Daniel…you left me this precious thing, my hard friend, huh,’ and then he cried…I’m glad to see my little brother happy. If it weren’t for the fact that Ben’s friend left too many offspring for us to deal with…my brother was making a fuss about bringing the babies into his room, saying, ‘I will bring the babies into my room, Diana, Dylan, and David need my warmth, Bohn.’
I was speechless, afraid he’d be upset…
But don’t worry, today I brought Ben along because I plan to use this opportunity to secretly exterminate Ben’s babies with the new Baygon cockroach killer spray I just bought for this purpose…die, you pests, hehe.
“What are you thinking, your face looks so evil…”
“Daonuea, you look so beautiful today, my dear.” I didn’t respond to the other person but chose to compliment the little girl to divert the topic. Today, Daonuea is wearing a military-patterned dress like the tough girls. As for Duen, he’s wearing a light brown T-shirt covered by a dark green long-sleeved shirt and regular jeans, but he looks insanely handsome in it.
“I chose my own outfit, hee hee.” Daonuea proudly said, chest out, who says she inherited a lot from her mother, who was a former model, no wonder both kids are good-looking.
“Very clever, whose daughter is this? Come give daddy a kiss.” I reached out to scoop Daonuea onto my lap, but the one holding her slapped my hand hard. Ouch, that hurt!
“That’s enough.”
“Why? I was just kissing the baby…or does Mom want one too, huh?” I smirked mischievously, moving my face close to the white cheek, about to press my lips down when a white hand blocked my cheek.
“I’ll really slap you, Bohn.”
“I don’t have the right with the baby, I don’t have the right with you, what rights do I have other than the rights to pay for things at Seven Eleven?” I lamented, pretending to look sad. Yesterday, I watched a Burmese series; the hero used this tactic with the heroine, and that was it…they ended up doing it in the car. You’re doomed, Duen.
“The right to win a condo with Tan Ichitan, that’s it.” Wait a minute.
“Duen, according to the script, if I lament like this, you’re supposed to be downcast and then come to coax me.” I protested, but the little brat wasn’t paying me much attention because he was busy styling his sister’s hair. Hey, you’re here to date me today, remember?
“Really? You want me to coax you?”
“Yeah, will you do it?” I asked with a fake sad face. Oh well, with kids around, let’s just think of it as a close-up theoretical sex education class.
“No.”
…I knew you’d say that. I shouldn’t have hoped so high. Sigh, watch me, I’ll pour liquor down your throat.
“…” I heard you, Bohn.
After that, I shut up. Not angry…just scared he might hit me.
I drove along the way. I used to go to the Ayutthaya floating market often, probably during my senior high school years if I remember correctly. Boss was after Taipla, the daughter of the shop owner who sold fruit jelly. He bought it every day until he was almost diabetic, and because it was far from school, I had to be his personal driver. Do you believe that Taipla was flirting with my friend even though she already had a boyfriend? My dear friend was always lamenting to me about it, saying, ‘Is it because I’m too good-looking or does she have bad taste? Her boyfriend looks worse than a sick dog with an ingrown toenail…but she chose him to breed with!!!’
…I didn’t know whether to comfort him first or pity the poor guy who got bullied.
“Hey, Ben, have you done the homework for Teacher Kevin?” Daonuea turned to ask my brother who was sitting behind Duen. Duen wouldn’t let Daonuea sit on the back of the car. I don’t know what he’s so afraid of.
“Kevin? Not yet, but I can do it.” The Kevin the kids were talking about was the foreign teacher at school. He’s an old, chubby Western guy who seems to know
Thai but can only say, ‘Delicious, huh?’
“Really? Teach me then, I can’t do it.” The little girl made a pleading face. Oh, my little brother’s heart must be trembling by now.
“Sure, do you want to come to our house?”
Bah, this kid is evil!
When I was little, I never had friends teach me like this. In the morning, I copied from friends at school. In the afternoon, I sent…or maybe other kids did this too, whatever.
“Daonuea, I can teach you.” Seeing his little sister in a risky situation where she could be lured, the ever kind brother, Duenhaw, immediately came to her defense.
“Let the kid learn by herself.” and of course, as the brother of the one trying to lure his little sister, Duen, I had to assist my brother to the best of my ability, huh.
“You’re insane. You want my sister to go to a guy’s house from such a young age? And alone at that?”
“Who said she’d go alone? You’ll come too.”
“Crazy, I have homework to do.”
“Then do your homework there.”
“No way…I won’t be able to work if I’m with you.” He said quietly at the end of the sentence, but my ears caught it clearly.
“And if you don’t work, what will you do? Huh?”
“Shut up.”
I grinned mockingly before turning back to drive. We had to prepare what we needed for the camp, which we managed to do before today. Now, all that’s left is the food, which we’ll prepare on the day we go. Oh, to sum up, we’re going to a place in Uttaradit to Phu Soi Dao. King is very excited because his grandma lives there. When he heard the news, he jumped really high.
I’ve never been to this place in Uttaradit, but after searching the internet, it seems interesting. At first, I was surprised because it’s an open area full of flowers. So, I asked James where we would plant the forest, and he said we’d plant below the mountain where there’s a park.
“Ben, have you ever been to the floating market?”
“Never.”
The half-Thai kid shook his head, pitiful for having to sit alone in the back. He was looking at Honey with droopy eyes…I just found out how much my brother is into Dao when I secretly read his diary; all it talks about is Dao.
“I will show you around myself.” the little figure turned to say to the other person. Being with Daonuea, I realized she’s a very cute kid, brave but also quite shy, and for sure, she’ll have a lot of guys flirting with her when she grows up, just a bit of intuition = =
“Duen, let the kid sit at the back.” I said while still watching the road. Today there aren’t many cars because it’s a holiday and it’s extremely hot. So, no one wants to go out.
Except for me and Duen, who chose today to go on a date.
“But…”
“There’s plenty of room at the back, why make her squeeze with you?”
“Sigh.” The slender figure sighed in defeat before nodding for his sister to move to the back. Dao smiled happily and quickly moved to sit with Ben…does she secretly have a crush on my brother, huh?
“Do you go there often?” I heard Daonuea mention taking us on a tour, which means she must go there quite often.
“Quite often, my mom likes to take me.”
“Oh.”
“How was the book you bought the other day?” Do you remember the day I dropped you off at the university? In the evening, I ended up picking you up and we even went book shopping. At first, I thought you were joking.
“That book? It’s amazing.”
Duen answered with a face full of happiness. Do you want to know what book it was? Initially, I thought it was a textbook or something, but no, it was a gore-filled murder mystery that’s quite…
“Do you like that genre?”
I asked, surprised. In my head, I couldn’t imagine Duen reading that type of book. If it were Ram, that would be different; he always has a poker face. I met him for the first time during the freshman welcome, long before Duen. No matter what the senior ordered him to do, his face stayed expressionless, which was super scary but also cool enough to impress many girls.
“Yeah, it’s thrilling to read. This one is really good, I’ve been waiting for it for several months. It just hit the shelves a few days ago.”
“You read something that doesn’t match your looks at all.” I said as I continued driving. Earlier, I saw an accident, but the police must have handled everything because I saw police cars, ambulances, and rescue vehicles all over the place, so I didn’t stop to help.
Speaking of rescue, Tang was once a volunteer rescuer. He said, “I want to do something for society.” Which was super cool…but it would have been cooler if he hadn’t quit after just two hours because he was afraid of blood…
“So, what would match?” I thought about his question. With a face like Duen’s, he should…
“Home economics books.”
“Bohn! Just wait!”
“It’s true, though.”
“I’m not talking to you anymore.” The other party grumbled before grabbing some snacks to eat, sometimes offering me some, and of course, he had to feed me because I was driving. When he did this, I felt like taking him somewhere far away, the service was just too good.
We chatted as we drove until we arrived at my and Duen’s date spot today. Can we even call it a date when we brought kids along…whatever, with kids around, everything might be easier than it should be.
“It’s hot.” Duen, or Bohn, mumbled as he led Daonuea to walk with us. The mischievous one didn’t need anyone to hold his hand or carry him; he didn’t like it much. So, I let him walk on his own but stayed close.
“Want to buy an umbrella?” I asked. Not far from here, there’s an umbrella shop, selling what I think are traditional northern umbrellas. I don’t know what they’re called, but you see them everywhere.
“It’s fine, we’ll be inside the market soon.” Duen answered. I didn’t argue.
We entered the market, and I’ll tell you, it was packed. Mostly with foreigners. I don’t know if I’m the only one who thinks this or if others do too, but I find every good-looking foreigner to look the same, no matter how fat or dark they are. I remember in elementary school, I called every foreigner Steve.
“There are so many foreigners.” my date said quietly, looking towards a group of foreign teenagers at the Som Tum stall. Just typical guy behavior, looking at pretty girls is normal.
Wait a minute. Are you checking out guys, Duen!
“Don’t look at other people.” I said, sounding slightly annoyed, covering his eyes with both hands so he couldn’t see anything. Looking at girls is one thing, but you’re looking at guys, I won’t accept that.
“Why, I have eyes, don’t I?” He removed my hands and stuck out his tongue. Daonuea and Ben looked at each other confused…or rather, only Daonuea was confused. The mischievous one was just pretending.
“Today, we are on a date, Duen…in your eyes, I should be the only one.”
“…Whatever.”
Duen blushed, then ran off, not forgetting to hold his sister’s hand. Ever since he confessed his feelings to me, I’ve noticed he blushes more often and more intensely than at first.
I smiled. Finally, my efforts are paying off.
“Why bring kids on a date?” The mischievous one called Ben came back, yawning to ask me, because he was probably sleeping in the car earlier…or was he really asleep? I saw him smiling while looking at Dao the whole way.
“I wanted to bring the kids to have fun.”
“Liar, mom wouldn’t come along, huh, huh.” This kid…knows too much.
“Why ask when you already know?”
I lightly flicked my brother’s forehead before pulling him along to follow Dao and Duen. We walked around the market, stopping occasionally to buy food. Apart from food, there were also souvenirs and household items. Most of the buying was done by Dao and Duen’s siblings because Ben and I eat on schedule, like a clock. If it’s not time, we’re not hungry.
“Do you want to eat anything else?” I asked Duen. It’s strange, we’ve been walking for so long in this heat, but this fool isn’t sweating a drop. When he walks, he attracts people’s attention like a celebrity, especially when he’s carrying Daonuea; it’s even more spectacular, with both foreigners and Thais turning to look. Not sure if they’re looking at the one being carried or the one carrying.
“I want something sour.” He mumbled softly, his eyes glancing at a blonde, blue-eyed girl. Even though she’s with her husband, he’s still looking…well, she’s looking back at him too.
Got you.
“Darling, are you pregnant again?” I clearly spoke the English sentence before pretending to support the slender figure as if he couldn’t walk on his own. When I glanced at the woman, I saw her eyes widen in shock. Don’t interfere, this fool is my wife.
“You crazy Bohn!” Duen lightly hit my shoulder. Now, both foreigners and Thais who understood English started looking at us with smiles.
“Am I going to have another sibling, Dad?” Ben, my diligent son, spoke up with an innocent face while holding onto my shirt, his smile mischievous.
“Yes, my dear son.” I replied, still supporting Duen.
“Argh, go walk by yourselves, you crazies!”
“Oh come on, don’t sulk, you good person.” I suppressed my laughter and went to comfort the other one who was making a stern face in front of the Khanom Jeen shop, haha.
“Mom, I want some fresh rolled wafers.” Daonuea doesn’t call Duen “Duenhaw” anymore. She must have gotten used to it, and so has Duen. It’s not just Daonuea who got used to it; me and that rascal too.
“Really, where?” Duen crouched down, asking the little girl. She pointed to a small canoe where two kind-looking elderly women were selling goods.
“Ben, do you want any? I’ll buy some extra.” The medical student turned to ask my brother, who hadn’t spoken to anyone since we arrived, probably excited about the floating market, constantly looking around and asking me, ‘What’s that called?’ “Tong…Muan? What is that?”
Pfft.
“Not Tong Muan, it’s Thong Muan, haha.” We all laughed together. It wasn’t mocking laughter, it was cute when a foreigner or half-Thai kid says Thai words for the first time; their pronunciation is off. I even like teaching him strange words.
“Ah…um.” the half-Thai kid rubbed the back of his neck, embarrassed. He wasn’t embarrassed because of us; he was probably more embarrassed in front of Honey.
“Come on, let’s go watch them make it.” Duen said, then took Daonuea and my brother to sit cross-legged in front of the old lady’s boat. The elderly folks were thrilled, having been watching the kids for a while. Old people are like this, they love small children.
“You didn’t invite me along.” I went to sit behind Duen, tilting my head to ask with a pouty expression. I was on a date with him, but he wasn’t paying attention to me. How could I not feel left out?
“You followed anyway.” He shrugged before lightly bumping his back against my chest, as if to say, ‘Get lost, people are looking.’ …Who cares?
“What? Are you here on a date with me or with Ben?”
“Even with the kids, you’re not excluded, Bohn.”
“I see.” I lowered my head to rub against his shoulder, rubbing back and forth. I wasn’t trying to be sweet for the world to see…I was just pretending to wipe off sweat.
“What’s this?” The mischievous one pointed at the clay pot with cloudy green water.
“That’s flour.”
“And this?” This time he pointed at the jar with black seeds.
“Black sesame.”
“Is it tasty?”
“It’s delicious, dear, haha.”
“Ah, can I try it?” Duen asked while picking up a piece of fresh blue Thong Muan to give to the mischievous one. My brother nodded and took a big bite, chewing with big eyes…what could be that delicious, young man?
“Yum!”
I’m starting to get really jealous of you, Ben…
“Feed me some too.” I hugged his slender waist, tilting my face so we could make eye contact, Duen turned and stuck out his tongue, then picked up a piece of blue Thong Muan and…ate it himself, what the hell, I was being all cute and you ignored me, damn.
“Don’t you have hands? Be quiet.”
“No, I’m holding coconut water.” I finished speaking and raised the glass of coconut water for him to see.
“What about the other hand?”
“I am left-handed. Not good at it.”
“Then you don’t have to eat.”
“Duen, feed me a bit.” I made a whining sound, rubbing my chin on his round shoulder until passersby started taking out their smartphones to take pictures. The one I was whining at gave a stern look as if to say, ‘Let go of me if you don’t want to die,’ but I just looked at him with a pleading gaze, implying, ‘Feed me and I’ll let go.’
“You…open your mouth!”
“Hehe.”
And then he stuffed the fresh rolled wafer into my mouth…really stuffed it.
“Delicious!” I chewed while still leaning on his shoulder. I don’t know what it is, but today I feel like being clingy.
“You’re so annoying.” Annoying means cute, right?
After buying the fresh rolled wafers, we continued walking until we reached the souvenir area. Most of what I saw were shirts and pants, the rest were accessories like necklaces, earrings, and the like.
“Dad, what does that shirt say?” Ben tugged at my shirt, pointing at a shirt shop. Which one? There are hundreds.
“Which one?”
“The yellow one.” I looked where my brother was pointing and saw a yellow children’s t-shirt, which is quite common around here.
“Ayutthaya Floating Market.”
“I want it.”
“Are you going to buy it?” He probably wants it as a souvenir or maybe…for Honey.
“Yeah, take me there.” I nodded and then looked at Duen, who was eating something with Daonuea on a bridge with seating, the railings were quite low, one could easily fall if not careful.
“Duen, I’m going to take this rascal to buy a shirt for a bit.”
When Duenhaw nodded, I was about to step forward, but suddenly I remembered something and turned back. The other raised an eyebrow as if to ask what was up. I looked past the slender figure to see a group of foreign girls, probably Korean or Japanese. They nudged each other and were pointing at Duen, who was wiping Daonuea’s mouth.
“Just stay put, don’t be too cute and let anyone flirt with you, okay?”
“Oh, you’re crazy! Go away, go!”
Duen shouted instinctively, then coughed and sat back down as if nothing had happened…not very smooth. Everyone in the market was looking at us.
I walked over to my brother with a smirk, oh, he was really happy today, how many times has this fool blushed by now?
“Just stay still, don’t be cute so people don’t come to flirt with you…huh.”
“Are you looking for trouble with me, son?” I crossed my arms, looking at him challengingly, just pretending, though. Deep down, I love it when others tease me.
“No.”
Ben pretended to sound sad, clasping his hands behind his back like he felt guilty. I think Uncle Sam must have been something special. He might have been a tiger before meeting Aunt Pen; Ben shouldn’t be the only cunning one because I only see him during the summer, the rest of the time he’s raised by…his dad.
“Which one should I get?”
The only woman in the store spoke up; the shop had shirts in various colors and sizes, besides shirts, there were pants, cloth bags, and other items. Should I buy a cloth bag for Duen? I can’t stand seeing him use that ‘Cool the Earth’ bag anymore, really. I once asked why he didn’t buy a new one, and he said, ‘This one’s good, I’ve been using it since fourth year at uni, I want to keep it as a memento for my descendants to see what a “bag” looks like. As for the item of Mom Luang
Krisadi’s item, hehe…’
“What does this one say, Bohn?”
“Let me see…Ayutthaya Floating Market.”
“And this one?”
“Ayutthaya Floating Market.”
“And…”
“Listen, Ben, every shirt in this store is printed with ‘Ayutthaya Floating
Market’.” I brushed it off. No matter how many shirts there are in the store, they all have the same design, just different in color and size.
“Really? Hehe.”
“You knew that already, didn’t you?” I stuck out my tongue; he must have known. Look at his face, smiling and winking annoyingly, hah, he knew and still asked.
“No.”
“You-”
Thud
“Hey! Daonuea!!!”
“Screech! A child fell into the water, help!”
Duen’s voice…
My legs moved on their own; upon hearing the slender figure’s shout, I ran out of the store as fast as I could. From here, I could only see water splashing in the canal like something had fallen in. With Duen still here, it must mean that Daonuea was the one who fell in.
“I’ll go in to help.” I blocked Duen from jumping into the water. If I hadn’t, he would definitely have jumped.
“But…” Splash!
Before the other could protest, I dove into the water. I didn’t have to search long for Daonuea because the water was shallow, but deep enough for a small child to struggle. She was flailing to keep from sinking; I grabbed her and quickly pulled her back to the shore. In high school, my PE teacher taught us how to rescue someone from water. I never thought I’d actually use it.
“Duen, take the kid!” I shouted while handing the child over to him and then pulled myself out of the canal. I didn’t care how wet I was. My heart was pounding like crazy.
“Cough…cough, buy.”
“Daonuea!”
“Huk…scared.”
“There, there, it’s okay, brave girl, I’m here now.” The medical student went to hug and comfort his little sister. Dao wasn’t breathless or coughing up water, so we didn’t need to do CPR, but she was quite shaken by the incident. You could see it from her trembling body.
“Is she okay?” One of the vendors came over to ask. If I remember correctly, she was the one who shouted that a child had fallen into the water.
“She’s fine, thank you.” I replied with a smile. It wasn’t just her; almost all the vendors nearby came to ask. I had to answer each one. I wasn’t annoyed; on the contrary, I was glad because their faces showed genuine concern for the child.
“Is Honey okay?” Ben came over, looking shocked. When we were kids, even a small fall was a big deal. How much worse for falling into water; it must have left a scar in his heart.
“Huh…” Daonuea shook her head, still hiding her face against her brother’s chest.
“It’s okay now.” My brother tried to comfort her by rubbing her back and speaking soothingly. Daonuea nodded and responded with sounds.
“Don’t cry, my brave girl, let daddy see your face.”
I walked over to sit close to the little one. When she realized it was me, she raised both her hands to her front, as if asking to be picked up. I nodded before gently lifting her to my chest.
“Huh…daddy.”
“You’re all wet, shall daddy take you to buy some nice clothes to change into?” I said softly, patting her back lightly. I’ve seen my mother do this often when the mischievous one cries; it seems to work because Daonuea quieted down.
Then…
“Uh-huh…” She nodded against my shoulder. When those around us saw we were okay, they dispersed back to their shops. They were very kind, bringing snacks and treats to comfort Daonuea until she couldn’t carry them all.
“Duen, we’ll go find some clothes to change into first.”
“Okay, is everything alright?” The slender figure asked with concern, and I felt glad that he was worried.
“Hmm. It’s fine, it’s just shallow water, but how did she fall in?”
“I was careless, saw her leaning on the fence, didn’t stop her, it’s my fault…”
“Don’t blame yourself, it was an accident.” I comforted him by patting his head. Duen seemed just as shaken as his sister, “But next time, be more careful, understand?”
“Okay…”
After that, we went looking for clothes. It didn’t take long to find a shop we liked. Well, not exactly liked, we chose the one closest because we didn’t want to walk far. I’m okay with being wet, but for Daonuea, if she stays wet for too long, she might catch a cold.
“I’ll pay for the clothes.” Duen came up to tell me, his white hand reaching to keep the shirt away from his sister’s skin. At first, he wanted to carry Daonuea himself, but I wouldn’t let him. Duen was only slightly wet, while both Dao and I were soaked through. Let it just be the two of us getting wet.
“No need.”
“Why? You helped my sister.” the future doctor asked with consideration, his eyebrows furrowed into a knot until I had to poke him to relax, why so stressed?
“She’s our child.” I smiled.
“Damn, Bohn…you’re crazy.”
“I don’t want anything…but I want to ask for something.”
“I knew it, what is it?”
“Today, don’t say ‘you’ and ‘me,’ call me Phii Bohn and refer to yourself as
Duen.”
“Man, can’t we do something else?” Duen made a face like he didn’t want to do it. I understand, once you’ve called someone by one name, it’s hard to switch to another. I’ve been there; I used to call a friend named Sakdisit. Now he’s changed his name to Susi, but I still call him Sakdisit.
“Can’t do it? Even Tee calls you ‘Phii’.”
“Shh, fine.” The conversationalist crossed his arms and looked away, with Bohn’s mouth mumbling, “Ha, acting all hurt.” Well, it’s true though.
“Come on, try calling me that.” Wait.
“…”
“Quickly.”
“Phii Bohn!”
“Cute, hehe.”
I happily carried Daonuea to look at clothes in the store. This fool called me Phii Bohn too, hey…the clothes in this shop are incredibly beautiful. I don’t know what to call this style, let’s just say it’s sophisticated.
“I think this dress is cute, right, Daonuea?” I picked up a dark blue dress. At the same time, Duen was also carrying my brother, probably because he saw that my brother was still frightened and didn’t want to let him go.
“Huh…which one?”
“This one, do you want it? Dad will buy it for you.” I smiled while holding the dress up against her small frame. I didn’t press it down hard because I was afraid it would get wet. When she saw the dress, Daonuea nodded with a smile before snuggling back into my shoulder as usual.
“Hey. It’s okay, I’ll buy-”
“What did you tell me to say?”
“I’ll…Duen will buy it for Daonuea himself.”
Oh, that’s some serious damage!!
I need blood, stat…
“But I want to buy this for the child, let’s go with this one.” I didn’t listen to the other’s objections before walking off to pay. Seeing this, Duen muttered quietly while looking at a large T-shirt that was clearly not his size. Was he buying it to give to his father?
“Who are you buying it for?”
I carried Daonuea over to him. Ben, who was in the slender figure’s arms, turned to look at Dao with a somber expression, worried that she might get sick. I reached out to ruffle his golden-brown hair until it was messy; the one whose head was being ruffled rolled his eyes in annoyance and even gave me the middle finger.
Good one, that’s how you get out of being gloomy.
“What…what?”
“Huh?” I raised an eyebrow to ask him. Just now, he was busy teasing the mischievous one and didn’t catch what my date said. So, we really came here on a date today, huh?
“For you!”
…Okay, now it feels a bit like we’re on a date.
“Oh…is that so, huh?”
“Is it too big?” The conversation partner held the shirt up in front of me as if measuring it and then looked up to ask.
“Don’t say anything.”
“Don’t act like that, I just want to know about the size.”
“Shh. Alright.”
“White would be better, black absorbs heat and you’ll get hot.” He mumbled to himself, holding a white and a black shirt in his white hands. Of course, both shirts had the same design. Are you not thinking of getting something different?
“Hey, won’t it stick to you when you sweat? If that happens, the girls will look.” I said that, but really, I just wanted to see if he would get jealous.
“That’s my problem, Duen wants you to wear this one, any issues?”
“No problem…you’re not jealous at all?” I spoke softly, making a pouting face, secretly seeing Ben stick out his tongue from the corner of my eye. I changed my mind, I want the gloomy Ben from earlier back.
“Not jealous, take this one.” He handed the shirt to the shopkeeper without a care.
“What?”
“Ben, do you want one? You haven’t bought anything yet.” Duen didn’t pay attention to me but turned to the mischievous one he was carrying. The little one was good, tightly wrapping his arms around his neck…that’s my future wife, man!
“It’s okay. I’ll save money to buy snacks.”
The rascal said this while patting his wallet in his pants, acting like he didn’t have much money, but in reality, this guy is filthy rich. His parents sent him tens of thousands, and just the other day, he bought a dollhouse the size of a knee for several thousand. If you ask why he bought it, I can tell you…he bought it for Diana, Dylan, David.
He said, ‘My nongs wanted to sleep on a bed, but the beds are too big. So, I had to find a bed that fits…I should buy a jacuzzi too,’ please succeed in your massacre mission, Bihn…
“I’ll buy it for you.” Lately, this fool doesn’t seem to be radiating much annoyance towards the rascal, probably because in front of the future brother-inlaw, the rascal doesn’t do much…My brother is smart; he doesn’t act now, but he flirts with Daonuea at school when Duen isn’t around.
“Will Mom buy it?” Crazy, if you have money, buy it yourself!!
“Yeah, which one do you want?”
“Hmm…the green one.”
Duen nodded before handing the shirt Ben chose to the shopkeeper.
“What? Why can Ben choose?” I protested. By now, Daonuea had fallen asleep on my shoulder. She probably cried herself out, her eyes and nose are all red.
“Come on, he’s a kid.” That excuse doesn’t make any sense, damn it!
“Bias, I want the green one too.” I looked towards the green shirt, a color similar to Duen’s shirt, so we could match.
“Phii…can we switch that to the green one?”
“Yes.”
See how cute he is, he said with his mouth but his hands are picking up what I chose…Ah, this is definitely my golden era.
“What a lovely family.” the vendor said while handing over the bag of clothes and the change.
“Uh…”
“Thank you, let’s go.”
Without waiting for anyone to object, I quickly dragged him out of the store. After that, Daonuea and I went to change clothes in the bathroom. I never imagined they would sell underwear here; the floating market really has everything from pestle to battleship, haha.
“Where should we go next?” Duen asked. We let the kids walk by themselves, but I still held their hands to make sure they wouldn’t get lost. It’s crowded here, and with all the people walking around, it’s easy to lose a small child, which is even more worrying.
“There’s a boat tour around the market, want to go for a ride?”
“Up to you.” the conversation partner said, glancing at the boat I mentioned, which had only a few Thai people, the rest being foreigners.
“Hmm, today it’s up to us.” on a date, you should indulge your date, right?
…In the end, we agreed to take a boat tour around the floating market, the Chad, a super classic boat. I remember when Boss started flirting with Taipla, he would take her on a boat every day, teasing her at every grass jelly stall. Not bragging, but when Boss bought grass jelly, he would post photos on his Facebook with the caption, ‘Though the grass jelly is black, the heart of the maker is pink…just like someone wanting some,’ oh…profound.
“Mom, what’s that?” The half-Thai kid pointed to the other side while pulling out his phone to take pictures.
“What? Oh, a historical drama.” it’s a drama that performs…at some point, I don’t know when, but I always see it whenever I come here, they act for real, fall into the water for real, admirable.
“What’s the story?” The curious kid asked again, switching his phone to video mode.
“Um…I don’t know, haha.”
“Excuse me.”
A young woman tapped Duen’s shoulder. She came with two girlfriends who…clearly showed interest in Duen.
“Yes?” The one tapped raised his eyebrows, pointing at himself as if to ask, ‘Me?’ I think it’s time we need to educate Duen about his cluelessness.
“Can you take a photo for us, please?” She asked with a flushed face. Her friends were constantly teasing. I think this time Duen was aware because he looked slightly troubled but agreed to avoid being rude.
“Oh, sure.”
“From this angle, please.” the young lady directed Duen’s pose. I noticed she sneakily brushed his hand…very smooth, madam.
Click
Click
“All done.” Duen said, quickly handing the camera back to them, then looking left and right as if unsure what to do next, because you’re this cute, that’s why everyone likes you!
“Thank you, uh…”
Such an old trick. If you want to flirt with guys these days, you need to be bold, ladies. Otherwise, they’ll all be flirting with each other or get picked up by ladyboys; modern trans women are fierce, but I like hanging out with those guys, it’s fun.
“Uh, my name is Duen.” He answered hesitantly, trying to look away. Oh, come on! He really knows, huh. And he’s even acting like he’s going to refuse, is this what you call development?
“Are you from around here, Duen?”
“No, but today we brought our kids here for a visit.”
That lady didn’t ask me…but I wanted to answer. I looked at her with a steady gaze, chin on my hand, until she gave a faint smile. After that, the girls didn’t bother us anymore. Good. I don’t want anyone to disturb my date partner.
“Phii Bohn.”
“What?” I asked while watching Daonuea and Ben, who were engrossed in a historical drama. If they were just watching normally, I wouldn’t mind, but they’re leaning over the edge of the boat. Daonuea could fall into the water any second.
“How could you say that?”
“Why not? I was just telling the truth.”
“Jealous?”
“Yes, I told you not to be so cute that someone comes to flirt with you.”
“She did come to flirt…but did I flirt back?”
“…”
“Ha, you said it yourself that today I should only look at you, and that’s what I’m doing, see?” My heart just melted.
“Sorry…you’re cute, let me kiss your cheek.” I leaned in, hoping to steal a kiss on the white cheek, but Duen was too quick, covering my mouth with his hand.
Why do you always know what I’m going to do lately?
“No!”
“Oh come on, what did you tell us to call each other before? Weren’t you saying
‘you’ and ‘me’? Now you deserve a slap.” I raised my hand in a threatening gesture, but instead of being scared, he grinned back at me with a teasing look that said, ‘You wouldn’t dare, you wimp.’
“Will you slap me?”
“Yeah, but with my lips.”
“Pfft! No, don’t mess around.”
“I’m not messing around, I’m serious.”
“Phii Bohn!”
We were stuck in this tug-of-war, neither of us giving in. I just wanted to kiss his cheek. Normally, when we’re on a date, these things should happen…Ha, what? Aren’t you embarrassed in front of others? …Not embarrassed, why would I be?
“Honey, there are so many ants here, the fresh Thong Muan might have fallen.”
“Really? Then we need to pick it up quickly. Where did it spill?” Daonuea, so innocent, looked left and right as if searching for the spilled Thong Muan, but there was none, dear…
“Close by, maybe it’s mom and dad, I feel like the ants are coming out from there.”
“Come on, dad, mom, the ants might bite, Ben says the Thong Muan fell around there.” the little girl moved closer to us, bending down to look in every nook and cranny.
“There’s nothing there, haha.” I smiled, affectionately patting her head.
“Oh, really?”
“Perhaps the witch and wizard have stopped making babies.”
“Oh, so that’s how it is.”
So similar, both the older and the younger…
“Your brother…is so annoying.” Duen said, resting his chin on his hand while looking at my brother. Now, the one being talked about has switched to adventure mode, saying he wants to go down to swing a sword or go for a swim, always wanting this and that…
“I told you not to call him brother, call him son.” I poked his soft white cheek. What cream do you use, Duen?
“No way.”
“Why not, it’s kind of cute.”
“If you call him that, which girl would look at Duen?”
“Then they don’t have to look, Duen only needs me.”
“Phii Bohn…what a flirt.” I shrugged, uninterested, and turned to watch the drama with the kids. They’re good actors. I like the voice of the guy playing Naresuan, his voice is so cool.
It took quite some time for the boat to complete its tour around the floating market. After getting off the boat, we continued to look for food. Initially, I and the mischievous one said we weren’t hungry, but now we were getting hungry seeing how Dao and Duen ate like a storm since we entered the market. Where do they keep all that food with such small bodies?
“What’s that?” The curious kid pointed at a small shop along the walkway where an old man was sitting. Hey, I saw that the old man was secretly asleep in his shop, watch out for your wife’s scolding, uncle…
“Traditional ice cream, do you want some?”
“Uh-huh.” Hearing the response, we immediately went to the shop. The old man was startled awake, wiping his drool. Oh no…if he’s selling something that needs to be handled with his hands, I definitely won’t buy it.
Last year, Bihn, Buhn, and I were in an artistic mood and wanted to eat fried mussels at midnight. We drove out of the house looking for a mussel shop but couldn’t find one. We were about to give up when Bihn spotted Uncle Pa’s mussel shop. We were excited and quickly ordered three portions of fried mussels. The seller, Pa, looked sleepy and confused, nodding off. Concerned, we stood watching him in case he might fall asleep and hit his head on the frying pan. He kept cooking, but when a mosquito bit his leg, he smacked it with the spatula for the mussels – making a loud smack! – and then continued cooking as if nothing had happened.
Buhn and I didn’t touch that plate, but that crazy Bihn ate it even though he knew, all while Bohn was saying, ‘Ugh, that Pa, that bastard…using the spatula to kill a mosquito and then still cooking mussels with it, tsk tsk, watch, I’m going to…ugh, burn your shop down,’ yeah…
“Let’s get…two coconut milks, what will Ben have? Coconut milk or pandan?” I almost forgot we were standing in front of the old man’s traditional ice cream shop, thinking we were at Pa’s.
“Hmm, can I have both?” My brother asked, trying to look over the edge of the container, probably too short to see. Oh well, he’ll grow.
“Sure, sure.” The old man answered and prepared what we ordered.
“What are you going to eat?” Duen turned to ask me. Oh my, that question just now was so good for my heart. I smiled and shook my head in refusal. I don’t really like these sticky foods.
“I won’t eat, you and the kids enjoy.”
“Don’t try to steal.”
“Yeah, hehe.”
The kids, now with ice cream, ate messily and in a cute, chaotic way. I reached out to wipe their mouths before looking at Duen, who was also eating. Earlier on the boat, he made my heart beat like it was about to jump out. What he said…was it true?
“That girl is super pretty.” I looked over at the fruit salad shop, thinking he wouldn’t turn to look, but I was wrong because Duen turned the moment I finished speaking.
“…She’s super hot.” the slender figure licked his lips, staring at the woman’s figure with shining eyes.
“Didn’t you say you wouldn’t look at others?” I crossed my arms, noticing Ben giving a mocking look, but sorry, this dad needs to talk to this mom first, then I’ll play with you, son.
“You pointed her out, so Duen looked.” He shrugged.
“Shh, Duen, you’ve got ice cream on your mouth.” I whispered. As I was about to wipe his mouth, I stopped when I took a good look at his face. His handsome face was flushed from the heat, beads of sweat trickling down to his cheeks, and the corner of his mouth was smeared with coconut ice cream…creamy white.
“I won’t let you eat anymore.” I said, taking the cup of traditional ice cream away from him. No wonder everyone was looking at us while we were walking.
“Why?” The fool stuck out his tongue, trying to take the ice cream cup back.
“You’re messy when you eat.” even if I tell you the truth, you wouldn’t understand anyway.
“Hey, come on, I want to eat.”
“I won’t let you.” To resolve the issue, I scooped up the rest of the ice cream and ate it all, then threw the cup into the trash with precision.
“Phii Bohn, you have a bad habit.”
Time passed until it was two in the afternoon, which is nap time for the kids, even Ben was sleepy. Now, both little ones were staggering, so Duen and I had to carry one each.
“Are you sleepy?” Duen asked his sister, who was now barely keeping her eyes open, looking like she wanted to sleep badly but was trying to keep her eyes open to talk to Duen. Such effort, oh, little lady (please say this in a voice like Phii Note Udom).
“Yes, I am.”
“Ben, are you sleepy too?” I turned to ask my brother. Looking at his condition, there was no need to ask because his eyes were already closed. Heh.
“Hmmm…”
We carried the kids to the back of the car, arranging them comfortably before setting off. Duen got some plants to take home while my mischievous brother and I only had a couple of bags each.
“Sorry we have to head back early, do you want anything else?” The slender figure tilted his head to ask, handing me a neatly rolled cotton candy roti, damn…honestly, today was worth living.
“Hmm.”
“What?”
“I want you, Duen.”
“You’re crazy.”
I glanced at the car behind through the mirror before deciding to pull over to the side of the road. The medical student beside me looked puzzled but didn’t say anything.
“Duen.”
“Huh?”
“Should I force you, and you become my wife, or should I ask nicely to be your boyfriend?”
“Phii Bohn! You!”
“Be my boyfriend, Duen.”
“…”
“I’m not a good person, but I’m confident I can be a good boyfriend.”
“…”
“I’m not good at studying, but for our future, I’ll study hard.” “…”
“Duen might be a doctor who takes care of patients all over the world…but can I be the only one in the world who takes care of Duen?”
“…”
“Answer me, I’m embarrassed.” I used the back of my other hand to cover my face…I’ve never asked anyone to be my boyfriend before, and I’ve never been this embarrassed.
“Isn’t it clear enough that we’re on a date?” I couldn’t help but smile when I heard that, feeling like my heart was swelling in my chest.
“Not yet, I want to hear your answer. Not just these sentences.”
“Phii Bohn! If you already know, why ask?”
“Answer quickly.”
“Yes!”
“Duen is now Phii’s boyfriend.”
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