WESTTHESUNFROMANOTHERSTAR, Chapter 32: Willing

   Daotok

   The familiar ringtone woke me up in the middle of the night. I found myself being hugged from behind by someone, his arm under my head as a substitute for a pillow, the other arm firmly around my waist. The warm breath on my neck, the body heat close to mine, and the faint pleasant scent were all lulling me back to sleep at any moment.

I tried to lift the arm around my waist but was unsuccessful.

My attempt to move his arm only made him hold me tighter and let out a displeased sound from his throat. At first, I thought he was awake, but then I figured he wasn’t because if he were, he wouldn’t stay so still, plus his breathing was steady. I was sure he was asleep.

Reaching for my phone that wasn’t far away, the screen lit up with an incoming call. When I picked it up, I saw it was North calling. It was now half past three in the morning. I groggily answered the call.

“He’s asleep, goodnight.”

I said that before hanging up, overcome by sleepiness, but North called again.

(Don’t hang up!)

   “Hmm, what’s up? Calling so late.”

(You, Daotok, why are you sleeping? Normally, you don’t sleep.)

   “I’m human too, and why call my name?”

(Late at night, wide awake. Who talks about ghosts at this hour? I won’t call you ‘Phipungto’) North grumbled quietly, as if he was trying not to make too much noise himself, (I swear, earlier when I was showering, I heard kids laughing, it was so damn creepy, I’ve never experienced anything like this before. Why are they haunting me when it’s you and Phii Arthit who ate the sweets? Shit.)

   That panicked tone made me chuckle a little, waking me up a bit from my drowsiness.

“What about your boyfriend?”

(Why are you asking about my boyfriend?)

   “Go stay with him, you won’t be scared then.”

(No way, Phii Jo is working, I’m losing my mind, should I go bother him?

No thanks.)

   “But you are scared, let him comfort you.”

(Who’s scared? Me and fear are on opposite sides) the voice on the line said firmly.

“Then I’ll hang up, good night.”

(Damn, no, don’t, don’t hang up. No, please, I’m scared, really scared, I’m about to cry, you bastard, I hate this, I didn’t eat the sweets, why are they haunting me?)

   “Are you really about to cry?”

(Yes, my eyes are welling up.)

   “A man’s tears come so easily, huh?” I teased because I knew North wasn’t serious, but the fear part was real, “I think there’s nothing, you probably imagined it. What are you doing now?”

(Covered under the blanket with the pillow, if Phii Jo sees this, he’ll be confused, what am I doing covering myself with a pillow? I’m scared, okay!)

   “Uncover the blanket and listen carefully, is there really laughter?”

(No way! Are you crazy?)

   “North. I told you there’s nothing in your room because your boyfriend’s luck is strong, ghosts are too scared to approach. Even if you look between his legs now, you’ll see there’s nothing, believe me.”

(Really?)

   “Hmm. I promise. I ate those snacks and nothing happened, your friend probably just pranked North.”

(Really? Are you saying I’m just hallucinating?)

   “Maybe you’re so scared that your mind is playing tricks on you. Have you been watching a lot of horror movies lately?”

(A lot, I guess, sigh, my nerves are shot, I’ve lifted the blanket now.)

   “Hmm.”

Then I heard some rustling for a while before silence fell on the other end.

(Nothing at all, you were right.)

   “See, I told you, stop being scared and go to sleep now.”

(What if it comes after I hang up?)

   “If it really comes, tell it to come find me instead.”

(Would that be good?)

   “It’s better than you bothering me until I can’t sleep. If it’s a ghost, I might sleep better.”

(I’m more annoying than a ghost then) North said, laughing loudly (Okay then. If you assure me there’s nothing, I feel a bit more at ease. Hey, are you free tomorrow?)

   “Should be free, why?”

(Do you want to do some merit-making together?)

   “you are inviting me to do merit?”

(Yeah, I feel like my luck’s been terrible lately, doing some merit might help.)

   “What about Ter and Cat?”

(They have a date with their partners, yeah, bring Phii Arthit along, come with Phii Jo because those two probably won’t join in for merit-making.)

   “Oh, alright.”

(Which temple has good lottery numbers? Yeah, there’s one not far, let’s go ask for thirty million.)

   “Hmm, okay, then I’ll go to sleep, see you tomorrow.”

(Okay, good night.)

   Before North hung up, I placed my phone back in its place and returned to silence once more. Now, my eyes adjusted to the darkness around me, the person beside me still holding me as before, and I thought it would be like this until morning. Even though I lay still, I couldn’t sleep, so I decided to turn to face him.    His sharp, handsome face looked even more captivating at this close distance, making me feel a bit nervous, but the nervousness was more because it was him. Normally, when he talks, smiles, or laughs, he seems lively and natural, but when he sleeps, he’s strangely enchanting. I don’t quite understand why one person can make me think so much about him.

If I asked him to say he loves me, he would probably smile broadly and say it without hesitation. He might even be glad to say it and ask why I wanted him to say it. Like, have you fallen in love already?

Just thinking about these scenarios made me chuckle a little.

“Crazy person.”

I whispered softly, reaching out to poke his nose and cheek. He really is like a crazy person, isn’t he? Quite mad but cute, as I’ve said before. And if I were to compliment him, I’d have to be careful because he’s always ready to take his clothes off at any moment.

“Good night.”

I wished him good night, the one who was already asleep, before slowly closing my eyes and drifting off to sleep again.

I woke up to the sunlight streaming through the window, checking the time to find it was already nine o’clock. Not too early or too late, there was a message from Phii Arthit telling me to eat the soy milk and Chinese doughnuts he left on the table and not to forget to take my medicine; he would be back around the afternoon. I replied with a thumbs-up emoji.

I got out of bed and went to take a shower, then walked over to pour the soy milk from the table into a glass and ate the Chinese doughnuts with it. I checked my phone and emails for any new work, finding there was new work coming in.

Normally, I wouldn’t hesitate to agree and start working immediately, but with Phii Arthit’s painting work, I had to reply that I would be available next week. If the client agrees, I’ll take the job; if not, that’s fine too.

Hmm, come to think of it, Phii Arthit’s father, Uncle Direk, once said he wanted acrylic paintings on canvas. Maybe I should contact him back?

While I was thinking, Mr. Jeon walked in, rubbing against my leg in an attempt to be cuddled, but I couldn’t lift him up right then as I was eating. Looking at his food bowl, I saw there was just a little left; he hadn’t forgotten to feed Mr. Jeon today either.

He also changed the bandage on my ankle, I can’t deny that he really takes good care of me. These small, consistent acts are what would break down even the thickest walls one day. My walls had already been broken down by him since the day I decided to open up to him, so I’m even happier now that he’s by my side.

Saying that he would like me more tomorrow was not an exaggeration at all.

Because today, I already like you more than yesterday.

After eating the Chinese doughnut with soy milk, I cleared the cups and threw away the trash, then returned to my spot at the desk to continue painting.    Until around one in the afternoon, I heard the door open. The room’s owner looked at me before walking over to place a lunch box on the table. He leaned one hand on the table’s edge, the other on the back of my chair, watching the painting I was working on.

“It’s beautiful.”

“Thank you.”

I turned to say, and he leaned down to kiss my forehead without asking for permission. I was momentarily stunned, but he did it as if it were the most normal thing.

“Yeah, I just went to see Khram. Can I talk about him?” He said while heading towards the wardrobe, taking off his lab coat.

“You can, why did you go?”

“To warn him not to mess with my man again.”

“Oh, hmm.”

“Aren’t you going to ask for details, like, what he said?”    “I don’t want to know.” I answered honestly.

“It’s good that you don’t care.” He said, “Otherwise, I’d be annoyed.” He took off the shirt he wore under the lab coat and changed into a new one. When he started to take off his pants, I turned my attention back to my work.

“…”

“Hey, you can look, I’m wearing boxers.”

“Why say that I can look? Normally, you should say not to look.”

“Hey, you can look, I want you to look, I like you looking.”

“I feel like you’re a bit of a pervert.” I said, making him laugh out loud before he sat down in the chair next to me.

“Take a break and come eat first.”

“Hmm.”

I put down the brush, tidied up the tools a bit to make space for the food box. I started eating the food with the person next to me watching.

“Hmm, North invited me to do some merit-making.”

“Hmm?” He raised his eyebrows, “Invited you?”

“Yeah, and to invite you too, Phii.”

“Oh, back to calling me ‘Phii’ now?”

“Hmm, just for now.”

“What do you mean by ‘just for now’?” He asked. I didn’t reply because I was chewing, so he changed the question, “Is Jo going?”    I nodded.

“The lottery is about to be drawn, North is definitely going to ask for lottery numbers again.”

“How do you know?”

“Jo complains about it often.” He said, annoyed, “And do you want to go?”

“It might be good to go. It’s been a while since I did merit-making.”

“Okay, but I probably won’t go in to pay respects.” He said. I nodded to show I understood. After finishing the food in the box, he took the empty container to throw it away, “What time are we going?”

“Not sure, North might call.”

“I’ll ask him.” He picked up his phone, made the call, talked to North for a while, then hung up and turned to me, “We’ll go now, have you showered?”

“Hmm, I’ll change clothes, can I go back to my room?”

“Sure.”

…

Arthit

   I carried the cat, the black cat I call ‘John’, to play in the next room. No matter how good its real name is, I will call it John. I waited for the shorty to change in the bathroom to get ready for merit-making, or more accurately, to take North to ask for lottery numbers. And with today’s hot sun, Jo, who doesn’t get along with hot weather, has to endure it to escort his ‘wife’ to ask for numbers even though he’s loaded.

Luckily, I prefer hot weather over cold, like that time I went to Boston with Jo and it was freezing, I planned to go to Brazil next, the cold was so intense it made my balls shrink, we went without any plan, no idea where we were going or how much money we had, ended up getting my hand bitten by piranhas needing several stitches, but that was a good experience, and you guys should stop teasing me about it, bastards.

Because I got bitten by piranhas, I had Fah write my work for me, and if you ask why I could play the drums with an injured hand, I was faking it. I was too lazy to write, don’t tell Fah, but he probably already knows. Even so, he still agreed to do the work because he couldn’t bear to see me pretending to be in pain.

It’s good to take the short one out into the sun sometimes; his skin is as pale as if paint had spilled on him. I’m joking, not that bad, but he’s really white, like he’s been bleached, so white it’s blinding.

“Why are you acting like this?” I asked the kitten trying to climb up on me, lifting it with both hands and looking into one yellow eye, “You like me a lot, huh? Go tell your master to like me too. Oh, but he already said he likes me, so go tell your master to give in to me already.”

“Meow.”

“I don’t need your love.” I said after it waved its paw in the air, “I’m jealous, your master loves you more than me. In this case, I need to eliminate the competition.”

With a mix of affection and mischief, I put its little head in my mouth, just as I was about to bite down, I heard the bathroom door open. The person who came out looked shocked to see me trying to eat Cat’s head and rushed over to take it back immediately.

“What are you doing?”

“Biting its head.”

“Are you crazy? Why would you bite Mr. Jeon’s head?”

“I’m jealous, why? Can’t I just bite its head?” I asked, “Greedy.”

“Greedy for what? And who bites a cat’s head?” He said, gently stroking the kitten’s head, holding it close to comfort it. Why comfort it, it didn’t even look scared, “It’s dirty.”

“Are you worried about me?” I raised my eyebrows to ask, he didn’t answer, just brushed off some cat hair from around my shirt collar.

“Full of cat’s fur.”

“…”

I sat still, letting him brush off the cat’s fur, feeling a sudden warmth inside, and I couldn’t help but smile broadly at the action. The short one kept looking for more fur on my shirt and picking it off.

“Thank you.” I said, feeling an indescribable happiness, wanting to pull him into a hug right then but seeing he was focused, I refrained, “I like it.”

“Hmm?”

“You’re good to me.”

“Same.”

“What’s the same?”

“You’re good to me.”

“Because I love you.” I said. He took his hand away, then looked up into my eyes and nodded slightly, as if acknowledging it. He didn’t reply, “Do you like me more than yesterday?”

“Hmm.” He nodded again. I couldn’t help but smile widely, my heart swelling a bit more, “Don’t take it off.”

“Take off what? What kind of person do you think I am?”

“Someone who’s always ready to take off his shirt.”

“…Damn.” I sighed slightly. Even if I said that, but…”Yeah, true, I’m always ready to take it off when I’m with you, I can take it off now if you want.”

“Sigh.” This time, it was him who sighed, standing up with Joon in his arms. Ah, I’ve never gotten a hug back from him, damn Cat, I’ll pinch its balls, heh, someone like me jealous of a cat? No way, one day I’ll be number one and kick you out of your position, Cat John.

While I put Joon back in my room since everything was already prepared for him, my phone in my pocket vibrates with incoming messages.    J.Han: Arrived.

   J.Han: Hurry up and come down.

   J.Han: I’m downstairs.

   ☀︎: Not yet.

   ☀︎: Wait another half hour, okay?    J.Han: Doing what?

   ☀︎: Idiot.

   J.Han: Alright, then I’ll wait.

   ☀︎: See, getting impatient.

   ☀︎: Is there air conditioning downstairs?

   J.Han: And what’s the problem? Can’t you hurry up and come down?

   ☀︎: Joking

   ☀︎: You’re so harsh with me.

   ☀︎: I’ll go down soon.

   “Okay, let’s go.” I said, putting my phone back in my pants pocket, only then noticing he was wearing a large light blue t-shirt with jeans, and I thought it suited him well. Yeah. I’m just smitten with him, damn, my eyes have turned into a pink filter now.

“You’re staring too much.”

“Why, you look cute.”

“…”

“Embarrassed?”

“No.”

“Not even a little? I’ve never complimented anyone on being cute.” I said as we were in the elevator. I kept staring at the short one standing beside me. When you want to look, you look, no need to sneak glances.

“Fine, I’ll blush a little.”

“Great.”

We walked down to the ground floor to find the other couple already waiting.

When we arrived, they stood up and immediately headed towards the parking lot.

“Whose car are we taking?” I asked.

“Do you want to drive?” Jo asked back. I shook my head in response; for some reason, I was too lazy to drive today. Better let Jo, who has traded his racing skills for driving his wife around, take the wheel.

We stopped in front of a familiar, sleek black car. I opened the back door and got in, with the short one sitting next to me.

“We’re going to the temple to ask for lottery numbers, right?” I confirmed, Jo nodded, looking slightly bored, while North chuckled.

“I said I could go by myself.”

“It’s fine, I can drop you off, wait outside with Arthit.”

“Aren’t we all going in?”

“Do you want to go in?” Jo, from the driver’s seat, started the car and turned to ask.

“The view is beautiful, the breeze is cool, at the back of the temple.”    “Then let’s go wait there.” Said the driver, shifting gears, and the black car moved away from the parking lot on the ground floor.

“Got it, can I sleep?”

“Yeah, do whatever.”

“Then I need to pee, can I pee?”

“Go for it, then get me a new car.”

“It can be washed.”

“Damn it, the person who peed on your tire hasn’t even driven yet.” After Jo’s words, I didn’t reply, just leaned back to lie on the backseat, resting my head on the soft lap of the person next to me, without asking for permission. The other seemed a little surprised before returning to normal.

I looked up at him from the lower angle, reached out to hold his hand, and pressed a gentle kiss on it.

“Ah, I see.” North, sitting in the passenger seat, turned to look and tease. I raised an eyebrow at him. The person whose hand I just kissed tried to pull it back, but I didn’t let go. He let out a big sigh, “Oh, it’s sweet, it’s gentle.”    “Idiot.” I said.

“What are you doing, get out of my car.”

“Oh, North has a bodyguard today.” I teased cheerfully, feeling even better because of the sweet scent from the person whose lap I was resting on, smelling so good I wanted to bury my face in his stomach…

And of course, I did it. His stomach was so damn soft. If it weren’t for being in Jo’s car, I would have pulled off this annoying shirt already.

He jumped in shock but didn’t make a sound, tried to push me away but to no avail, so he gave up and stayed as still as possible, probably not wanting North to look back and tease again.

Feeling encouraged, I buried my face deeper, inhaling the pleasant scent until I was satisfied, then pulled back, looking up to see the shorty looking out the window. Though I couldn’t see much of his face, his small ears were entirely red.

I couldn’t resist pinching his cheek mischievously.

“There you go.”

“Huh?”

“Do you play the lottery like North?”

“No.”

“Then what are you going to ask for?”

“To get rid of all the bad things from my life.”

“Don’t, what if I disappear?” I said seriously. If this temple is really sacred and his wish comes true, and suddenly I disappear, it would be a disaster, “Ask for something else. Why are you laughing?” I asked, turning to the couple who burst into loud laughter.

“Oh, Phii, what would Phipungto ask for, to have only good things come into his life? He’d still get a new boyfriend anyway.” North said, still laughing.    “Exactly, why? Isn’t having me enough? You want another husband?” I furrowed my brows, displeased. He looked down at me, sighed, and then asked.

“So what should I ask for?”    “Ask to be with me for a long time.”

“Damn.” Jo muttered under his breath.

“Put up with it, my partner is this sweet.”

“I think you’re the only one who thinks that.”

“No way, right, babe?” I turned to ask the person leaning on my lap, who just shook his head slightly, looking tired, “Why do you make that face like you’re so annoyed by me? This means I’m not cute anymore, I’m hurt, I’d even be a dog or a cat for you, I’d bark and wag my tail, and you still wouldn’t love me.”    “Stop being sarcastic, it’s annoying, I’m annoyed, how does he put up with you?”

“I’m just joking with you.”

“But I’m really annoyed.”

“Damn.” I muttered softly, “You’re still young, Jo. Look at my shorty first, he’s already resigned to being annoyed by me.” I said.

“If my friend is happy, I’m okay with it.”

“Can’t it be more than just friends?”

“Sigh.” North let out a big sigh, “Think carefully if you really want someone like this as a boyfriend, Phipungto, are you interested in my friend? My friend might not be as handsome or rich as him, but he’s definitely a better person.”    “Hey, North, you traitor.” I kicked his seat, and North immediately turned to complain.

“Why kick, what the hell, you scared me, Phipungto, hit him instead, he’s hurting me.”

“Don’t do that to North.” the shorty said quietly, lightly tapping my forehead, so light it felt like he just placed his hand there.

“Ouch, that hurt like hell, I’m in pain just watching.” North said sarcastically, “When someone opens up their heart, but I demand justice, I’ve been your friend for three years, how can that bastard who just came have more rights than me?”

“Oh, then let’s deduct points.”

“Damn. No way.” Now it was my turn to protest.

“Oh, deducting behavior points?” North asked, “Then deduct a lot, minus twenty.”

“Minus twenty, what the hell, North, I only have three, you bastard.” I said, annoyed, “Don’t deduct, or I’ll wrestle you.”

“You’re so damn cheeky, you still threaten him with only three points.” Jo chimed in.

“Actually, it’s just one.”

“Damn pitiful.”

“Damn, why one?”

“Because it was deducted.”

“Deducted from where? It wasn’t, it’s three, three.” I started to insist, “Okay, three.”

“If you want three, then fine.”

“What do you mean?” I quickly asked, but he remained silent, “Damn, don’t go silent on me, what does it mean? Did I get more? When and why didn’t you tell me? How much do I have now?”

“We’re here, Arthit, stop complaining.”

“How can I not complain? It’s a big deal.”

The shorty opened the car door and moved his legs out, so I had to get up unwillingly, ending up walking alongside Jo while the shorty and the bastard North walked ahead.

“So damn annoyed.” I couldn’t help but complain.

“What about your points?”

“Yeah, I’m still stuck in the senior zone.”

“Oh, and what’s the full score?”

“I don’t know.”

“A million percent.”

“Damn, I guess I’ll be courting him for life then.”

“Can you handle that?”

“I can handle it well, no problem.” I shrugged casually, looking ahead at the two of them chatting about something I didn’t know. Today there were quite a lot of people because it was a holiday and the weather was rather hot, which was fine for me, but not so much for the person next to me.

“It’s damn hot.” Here we go, he’s starting to complain, “Where’s the cool breeze you mentioned?”

“We have to go inside first, then there will be a viewpoint.”

“Oh, okay.”

“You’ve never been here before?”

“I’ve been once, more like I was dragged here, my mom brought me to make merit, and I just dropped her off. I didn’t go inside. I’m not really into temples, why do you come?”

“To take a walk, nothing else to do.”

“What kind of asshole comes to a temple just to walk around?” Jo grumbled, looking somewhat annoyed. We walked up the hill to find the large Buddha statue at the very front, “We will wait down here.” Jo said. North nodded slightly before the two of them went up to pay respects. We waited at the bottom.    “Do you date your mom often, yeah, no need to ask, it’s frequent.” I said, referring to Jo’s beautiful mother.

“Don’t call it dating, call it being a servant instead, carrying things, driving, and paying for stuff too. Tomorrow, she wants to go see the new clothing collection again, it’s good I have North with me, otherwise, my life would be in shambles.”

“Ha, having a wife is nice.”

“But you don’t have one.”

“Damn.” I grumbled in disappointment, “Can I swear in a temple?”

“Probably not anymore.”

“Yeah, that’s right. He said he’s opened up to me, but he still won’t agree to be my boyfriend. I ask every day, Hill said it takes time, and I understand. I’m not getting anything, but I’m impatient.”

“Wait a minute.” Jo interjected, “Hill said that?”

“Yeah, why?”

“Does Hill know?”

“Of course. Otherwise, how could he give me advice? He even said he’s proud of me. Now, Hill, my best friend, has become my buddy for life.”

“Wait a sec, you bastard, proud of you?” Jo looked surprised, “And why did he scold me when I was flirting with North? Wait, there must be something wrong here. No way, you bastard, are you lying to me?”

“I’m not lying, you bastard, I’m telling the truth.”

“Shit, why? Hill, you bastard, why praise Arthit but scold me? Does he think you’re better than me, why?”

“Well, I am better than you.” I said proudly while Jo furrowed his brows as if he couldn’t understand, “He said I’m not like you because I’ve never fooled around with anyone or played around like you.”

“But you went to the bathhouse.”

“I didn’t go, it was just a joke, do you understand?”

“And what about dealing at the bar?”

“It was just temporary, I used to be a tiger, now I’m a dog.”

“What? You’re not any better than me, Hill is biased against me because he’s afraid I’ll make him my wife.” and Jo came to his own conclusion.

“He’s paranoid as hell, poor bastard.”

“Really, he said he’s paranoid?” Jo chuckled a little, “I was just messing around.”

“You mess around all the time, sometimes I can’t tell if you’re serious or joking.

Seeing your face makes his hair stand on end, I think.”

“Oh. He’s just mean to me, damn it.” Jo sighed softly, “But his face when he gets teased is really funny, Hill is so serious.”

“Just say what you really think.”

“Damn it.”

“But saying you want him to be your wife is true, right?” I said.

“…”

“Yeah, I understand why you like to tease Hill, your face when you get goosebumps is really funny.” I said, laughing, “Are you done praying?” I turned to ask the person who had just walked down, went to get his shoes for him, and sat down.

“…”

“Come on, put on your shoes, are you going barefoot into the temple?”

“I’ll wear them, but why do you have to help me?”

“Don’t ask so many questions, hurry up.”

“…”

He didn’t respond, just made a slightly troubled face, slipped his feet into the sneakers, and I retied the laces because they were loose.

“With this knot, they’ll come undone soon.”

“Oh, hmm.”

I then tied the other shoe, and after I was done, I stood up, looking over at the couple waiting.

“I’m so proud of you, Phii.” North said, pretending to be on the verge of tears.

“Why? Doesn’t Jo ever tie them for you?”

“He does, but I prefer wearing Phii Jo’s flip-flops, so he doesn’t have to tie them often.” North said, “If you don’t want to bother him, you can wear flip-flops too.”    “Oh, I see.”

“It’s just tying shoes, what’s the big deal?” Jo muttered.

“I won’t let you bow your head lower than me!”

“Sigh, stubborn.” Jo said before giving North a gentle push on the head. I stopped paying attention to the couple and turned to the person standing next to me.

“Is it too tight?”

“It’s just right, but next time, you don’t have to do it.”

“Why? Are you going to wear flip-flops like North?”

“I don’t really like flip-flops, they hurt my feet.”

“You need to buy good ones, then they’ll be comfortable to walk in, but you can wear sneakers, I’ll always tie them for you, don’t act like North, understand?”

“…Thank you.”

“Yeah, and what’s the conclusion about the score?”

“Just now, I added…hmm, let’s say three more points.”

“And how much is the total now?”

“I won’t tell.”

“Come on, that’s cheating.” I grumbled, but since it seemed like the shorty wouldn’t reveal it, I had to let it go for now. We then walked into the temple area. While North and Dao went to pray and do their things, Jo and I went to wait at the viewpoint.

“It looks more pitiful than romantic, standing here watching the view with you.” Jo said, gazing out at the city view below. Though the sun was quite strong, the breeze helped cool us down.

“We’re not here to watch the view, we’re here to wait for our wives.”

“Say it confidently, be a boyfriend first.”

“Your mouth works well, doesn’t it?”

He didn’t reply, just shrugged slightly.

“Yeah, I’ve got a car race next month too.”

“Serious racing?” He asked, because if it were just any race, there would be no need to tell him, “With who?”

“The son of the company that Direk bets with.”

“How much?”

“Thousands.”

“That’s something.”

“Hmm.”

“Why? Feeling pressured?”

“No. Just want a sparring partner. I haven’t raced in a while.”

“Want me as a sparring partner? Want to lose again?”

“Johan, you haven’t raced in longer than I have, you must be all rusted up.” I teased because since he started flirting with North, no, even before that, he hardly touched racing anymore.

“I can knock off the rust, I’ve got some time now, I can be your sparring partner.” He said, “Which track are you racing at?”

“Their field.”

“Ha, watch your car too.”

“I know, if you’re free, come watch too.”

“Sure. If I’m free, North also said he wanted to see.”

“One sec, who’s calling?” I said after feeling my phone vibrate in my pocket. I pulled it out to see it was a friend calling; they were inviting me to play football tonight, “Tim’s inviting us to play football tonight, are you going?”

“Not free, got work.”

“Hmm.”

“Are you going?”

“I think I’ll go. Haven’t played football in a while.” I said before seeing the two of them walk out, scanning around before their gaze settled on us and then they approached, “How was it?” I asked.

“It was good, North took a long time asking for blessings.”

“Come on, let’s go buy lottery tickets.”    “There’s that too?” I asked.

“There’s a lottery stall right out front, bro, your eyesight isn’t good.” North said before pulling Jo along to rush out, “Hurry up, buy while the merit is still warm.” “Huh? Does merit have a temperature?”

“Yeah, you don’t follow Buddhism, how would you know?”

“Yeah, your business.” I said before following them with the person beside me.

“What did you ask for in your blessing?”

“Not telling.”

“Why not?”

“If I tell, it won’t come true.”

“You should have asked to be with me for a long time.”

“If I don’t ask, will you not stay?”

“Crazy. I’ll stay even if you don’t ask, I said I’d stay with you for life.”

“Hmm. That’s why I didn’t ask for anything from you.”

“Nothing at all?”

“Nothing.”

“Why?”

“If I were to ask, it would have to be for something I don’t have yet.”

“Yeah, right. I’ve given you everything, only you haven’t accepted it yet.”    “I might not be able to accept everything just yet.”

“…”

“But everything you’ve given, I’ve never unwillingly accepted.”

 

WESTTHESUNFROMANOTHERSTAR CHAPTERS HOME

   WESTTHESUNFROMANOTHERSTAR, Chapter 31: Tomorrow

   Daotok

   I looked at myself in the oversized black shirt that reached down to my knees in the bathroom mirror. After taking a shower, I felt refreshed, especially after concentrating on work for so long. While rolling up my sleeves, I heard a knock on the bathroom door followed by the voice of the room’s owner.

“Are you okay? Does your foot hurt?”

“I’m fine.” I replied. My ankle still hurt as before, and it got a bit worse from standing in the shower for too long, but it was bearable. I chose to shower under the showerhead because I was too lazy to soak in the tub, and fortunately, the bathroom floor wasn’t slippery, so there was no issue.

I slowly stepped out to find the room owner waiting, one hand holding a phone to his ear, speaking in English to someone. I furrowed my brows in surprise when I noticed that the phone was mine.

“Oh, I’m talking to your dad, Ah, yes. You’re right, we are the winner of…H,

Hey!”

Before he could finish speaking, I snatched the phone back.

“Dad, what are you doing? Why are you talking with him?”

I quickly asked the person on the phone, puzzled. It was one thing for him to answer the call, but Dad was enjoying the conversation so much. They seemed to be having a good time talking.

(Oh, I like this guy. He said he loves you, and I think…Wow, he’s a big fan of

Manchester United, just like me.)

   “Why are you talking to Dad?”

I turned to ask Phii Arthit instead since I didn’t get a clear answer from Dad, asking why talking to him resulted in Dad just saying they were fans of the same football team, and Dad seemed very pleased, his voice full of cheer.

“My Dad called, so you answered?”

“Yes.”

“And you said you love me ?”

“Emm…yes, I said I love you so much. And I want you to be my wife. I mean it.”    “Wait, a minute.” I held up my hand for a timeout, “You told Dad you want me to be…uh, your wife?”

“Uh-huh, your Dad is okay with it.”

“Really?”

“Absolutely.” He said with a slight raise of his eyebrows.

“You’re so crazy…” I whispered before letting out a big sigh, walking away to talk to Dad.

“Michael, are you done with your shower?”

“Uh…Dad. I had some reason to be with him, he answered the phone because I was in the shower.”

“It’s okay. No need to explain to me . You know I isn’t upset or anything, I like him, he’s like…the most straightforward guy I’ve ever met.”

“I see, because he supports the same football team?”

“Oh, that’s part of it, coincidentally good, he even invites me to play football with him if I’m free, I haven’t played football with the young guys in a long time.”    “Dad…sigh”

“Why the sigh, haven’t you accepted his love yet?”

“No, uh, Dad, what did he say?”

“He asked for you to be his wife.”

“And?”

“I am okay with it!”

“No…no.”

“How can I not be okay with someone showing this much sincerity?”

“Sigh. I don’t want to talk anymore, where’s papa?”

“He’s asleep, worked hard today.”

“Are you tired too?”

“A little. What about you? Tired from studying?”

“I didn’t go to school today, sprained my ankle, but it’ll get better soon.”    “Get better soon, don’t overwork, you know? Dylan probably told you since he studies medicine. Even if he says he doesn’t want to work as a doctor after graduation, it’s kind of like you .”

“What did you talk about?”

“Enough to get to know each other, he talks a lot, just right for someone who doesn’t talk much like us.”

“Dad you are on his team, right?”

“Yes.”

“Everyone is on his team. Even Mr. Jeon.”

“Wow, great, I will hang up now. Oh yes, he wants you to open your hearts to him, you know, I support that.” Dad said with a cheerful yet serious tone because deep down, he still hopes I find someone after all this time, “He’s not like Khram, I can feel it from the conversation, oh, almost twenty minutes, he really loves you.”

“How can you know from a phone conversation?”

“I just know.”

“How?”

“…Just a feeling, um, forget it, Good night, sweetheart.”

“I’m not your sweetheart, the one sleeping next to you is.)”

“Ah. You’re right, and I thinks your sweetheart is waiting for you too.)”

And then Dad hung up, confused. I turned to see Phii Arthit standing with his arms crossed, leaning against the wall, watching me. I didn’t even realize when I had walked out to the balcony to talk on the phone.

   “Your dad is right.” He smiled sweetly, “I’m waiting for you.”

“…Did you hear everything?”

“All of it.”

“Sigh” I sighed before walking back into the room, sitting down on the sofa, and he sat down next to me.

“Why is your face so red?”

“I don’t know.” I turned my face away deliberately, why after taking a shower do I have to deal with something so bizarre, talking to Dad wasn’t enough, now he’s declaring his love and asking me to be his wife, and to top it off, Dad is okay with it.

“Cute?”

“…”

“But your dad is easy to talk to.”

“Hmm, Dad’s like that.” I said, letting out a big sigh to adjust my chaotic feelings, before turning to look at him again, “Was it like this the first time you talked to Dad?”

“Of course, I slowly talked to him so he could catch on.”

“…” I didn’t reply. I was just wondering what ‘catching on’ meant.

“I really mean it.” He emphasized, “But I’m not rushing you. Just stating my own desires.”

“Oh…hmm.”

“I invited him to play football together too.”

“Dad mentioned that.”

“Does your dad play sports?”

“Hmm, football.”

“Not bad.” He said, “Perfect for being a father-in-law, but it’s a pity I didn’t meet your papa, right? You call him ‘Papa’, right?”    “Hmm.” I nodded.

“Your Papa was already asleep. Otherwise, I might have told him everything too, a bit more and I would’ve told your grandma as well.”

“Just Dad is fine, Papa would be shocked.”

“What kind of person is your Papa?”

“Just…a normal person.” I said, “But Dad…kind of like you a bit.” I mentioned my thoughts, and the other nodded in agreement.

“At least we support the same football team, I was still thinking what to do if we supported different teams.” He said, “Good that he’s English.”

“…”

“You look like you’re thinking about something.”

“No. Just thinking about that.” I paused for a moment, “You’re really straightforward. What would you do if Dad wasn’t okay with it?”

“Oh. Who cares?”

“…What do you care about then?”

“Only you.”

“Flirting again.”

“I’m telling the truth.” He said with his usual expression and demeanor, “I don’t care about anything in the world except myself. Now, there’s you.”

“Hmm…okay, I understand.”

“Are you going to continue working?”

“Take a break, I was thinking of watching a movie.”

“Yeah, good, you like horror movies, right?” He asked before getting up to grab the laptop and place it on the coffee table in front of us, connecting it to the TV screen, and opening Netflix to scroll through the movies.

“Do you like watching them?”

“I’m fine with anything.”

“It’s okay if you don’t like them. We can watch something else.”

“Yeah, I can watch. I just want to watch it with you, so you choose the movie you want to see.”

“…Hmm.” I nodded slightly before feeling my heart flutter again, at this rate, should I tell Dad to open up even more?

Just this much, and I’m already struggling to handle my heart beating so hard because of him.

   I caught myself staring at him from behind until he turned around, and I realized.

   “Aren’t you going to get up and watch?”

“Getting up.”

I got up from the sofa, sat down on the floor next to him to scroll through movies.

“Is this one good?”

“Why ask, if you want to watch it, just press play.”

“We’re going to watch it together, right?”

Hearing me say that, he smirked. I looked at him, not understanding.

“What?”

“Nothing. I just like the word ‘together’.”

I didn’t respond, just selected the movie I intended to watch, but then realized it was a series.

“Choosing a series means you want to watch it with me for a long time, huh?”

“No. I just didn’t notice it was a series.” I said honestly before returning to my spot on the sofa. He got up and sat next to me.

“Witches?”

“Hmm, it has good reviews.”

“Oh.” He answered briefly before getting up from the sofa, “I’ll take a quick shower, you start watching.”

“Hmm.”

He went into the bathroom for a while, then came out wearing only long pants. Out of the corner of my eye, I glanced over, turning to look without realizing it, admiring his well-defined muscles, tanned skin, and tattoos on his chest and shoulders.

“Why are you staring so hard?”

“Am I staring?”

“Yeah.”

“Oh, sorry.”

“It’s okay, I know my body’s worth looking at.”

“…”

I didn’t respond, but thought to myself that he was probably right, because if I had to say it, he really was very attractive, both in physique and appearance.

“Why aren’t you wearing a shirt?”

“Your hair is wet.”

“Hmm.”

He went to rummage through the closet for a t-shirt, draping it over his shoulder, grabbed a small towel to roughly dry his wet hair, then went to fetch a hairdryer. I stopped paying attention to him and turned back to the witch series playing in front of me, but he came and sat on the floor in front of me, holding out the hairdryer.

“Blow-dry it for me.”

“Why not do it yourself?”

“Too lazy.”

“…”

I turned on the hairdryer, letting out hot air, gently running my fingers through his soft black hair while drying it.

“You.”

“Hmm?”

“Dao.”

“Huh?”

“Daotok.”

“What?”

“Nothing. Just wanted to call you.”

“…”

“I like your name.”

“Oh?”

“And Michael too, is that your name as well?”

“Yes.”

“Why Michael? Like Michael Jackson?”

“Michael Jordan.”

“Got it.” He said, “Why are you drying it so gently?”

“Do you like it rough?”

“Yeah.”

“…” I didn’t say anything, just turned up the hairdryer to a higher setting. Soon his hair was dry, so he got up to sit on the sofa and put on the shirt he had draped over his shoulder earlier, “Why do you like my name?”

“Why?”

“No one likes it, it sounds like a girl’s name.”

“It does, but I like you, so I like your name too.” He said, “Because others don’t like you, they can’t appreciate your name the way I do.”    “Appreciate?” I furrowed my brows in question.

“Your dad and mom named you, your Dad told me.”

“Oh…hmm. Do you really intend to say you like me every half hour?”

“I could, you can set an alarm for every half hour if you want.” He smirked.

“It’s okay.”

“I’ll say it when I feel like it, so how’s the movie going?”

I briefly summarized the plot of what I had watched so far, since he was only in the shower for a short time and the series hadn’t progressed much.

“Is the heroine a writer?” He asked. I nodded in response, “Have you ever thought about writing a book?”

“I’ve thought about it, but I like drawing more.”

“Oh, can I have a hug?”

“Hmm.”

“Damn, does this mean you’ve fallen for me?”

“…If I say no, it’s not like you’d listen anyway.” I said softly before he pulled me into a hug.

“Correct.” He said, tightening his embrace. I sat stiffly in his warm embrace.

“Here.”    “Huh?”

“Arthit.”    “What?”

“Try calling me.”

“Imitating, and no more ‘Phii’ then?”    “Don’t want to call you ‘Phii’ anymore.”

“Want to upgrade to being a boyfriend?”

“No. Just don’t feel the respect.”

“…Got it.” He said before laughing out loud, “Okay, Daotok, not calling me is fine, it would hurt my feelings too much.”

“I won’t call you that anyway.”

“Damn, sigh. What would happen if I didn’t meet you?”

“Don’t start a conversation. Watch the movie.”

“Oh. Okay then.”

…

Arthit

   I rested my chin on his slender shoulder, lowering my face to kiss and sniff the sweet scent at the base of his neck from the person in front of me. The person in my embrace didn’t speak or show any reaction because he was focused on watching the movie, though he was slightly tense.

I didn’t look up but could imagine what was happening in the movie just from the sounds, holding his waist loosely with one hand while holding his soft hand with the other.    “Annoyed?”

“A little.”

“Got it.”

“But it would be nice if you could stop snuggling me.”

“Stop being so tense then.”

“Stop snuggling then.”

“Dogs like to snuggle with their owners like this.”

“…Hmm.”

“Tomorrow I have a morning ward round.” I said, remembering because Hill had just sent a Line message to remind me, “I won’t be with you in the morning, by the afternoon I’ll be back, don’t cry because you miss me.”

“No.”

“Damn. It’s not good, don’t cry for me.”

“It’s not that, I mean, I don’t miss…I can’t.”

“…” I was silent for a moment before I pressed my lips to his cheek, sinking into the soft flesh. He let out a soft groan in his throat, displeased by the too-forceful kiss, holding it there longer than necessary before pulling away, “Say it.”

“Is it true, or are you just teasing?”

I said before leaning in close again.

   “No, don’t, enough.” He pushed my face away with his hand, looking slightly annoyed.

“Okay, okay. I won’t.” I said, and he slowly lowered his hand, though his expression still showed distrust, “I just wanted to kiss your cheek again.”

“Not anymore.”

“And you said it for real?”

“About missing you?”

“Yeah.”

“Yes, but not that much.”

“That’s good enough, missing me a little bit each day.” I said with a satisfied smile, taking the chance when he was distracted to kiss his cheek once more. This time, he sighed instead of reacting, but it didn’t affect me, “One day you’ll miss me so much you won’t be able to stand it.”

“No way.”

“Why not?”

“It would be too much trouble.”

“Not at all. If you miss me, I’ll come to you.”

“Really?”

“Of course.”

“What if we’re on opposite sides of the world and you can’t come?”

“Then I can’t go, because if I could, I would have gone already.”

“…”

“If it gets to the point where I can’t come to you, I want you to know that I miss you a lot too.”

“Oh…um, you flirt well.” He said before slowly leaning back against my chest, looking more relaxed, “Let’s rest for a bit.”

“Rest what?”

“My heart is about to explode.”

“Haha, you’re pretty straightforward too.”

“Hmm.”

“You like me a lot, and tomorrow…”

“Hmm, and I’ll probably like you even more tomorrow.”

“…Damn.”

It’s not just your heart that’s about to explode, mine feels the same.

After that, we hardly spoke anymore; he watched the movie while I did the same, just holding him, until the person in my arms fell asleep as the movie was nearing its end.

I carefully lifted him up and placed him on the bed, went to get some ointment to apply to his ankle and rewrap it. Once done, I sat beside him, the one sleeping, brushing the hair from his face, then gently kissed his forehead.

“Good night, I love you, you’ll like me even more tomorrow.”

I spent almost the whole night reading as I usually do, because I had napped in the evening, which allowed me to read late into the night. I slept during the early morning and woke up to go to the ward in the morning. Today, I didn’t go jogging because I was too lazy to wake up; I stopped by to buy some soy milk and Chinese doughnuts for the one still sleeping.

Before leaving the room, I changed the bandage and reapplied the ointment on his ankle, left the bag of soy milk on the table with a note not to forget to eat and take the medicine, that I would be back in the afternoon.

Doing these things for him felt good too.

I arrived at the hospital right on time. Currently, I get to work in the ward with Hill, which I consider a blessing because although being with Jo is chill, it’s not worth anything, it’s just a complete mess.

“Is the professor here yet?” I asked immediately upon approaching Hill, who had arrived before me.

“Not yet, you came early.”

“Of course.”

“Be a bit more human since you like my wife’s friend.”

“…” I turned to look at him, stunned. Even though I had guessed that Hill probably knew, facing it like this caught me off guard, “Who told you?”

“Sigh, why would you hide it from me? I don’t understand.”

“Wait.” I held up my hand to stop him, “Go ahead, I’m ready for the impact.” I said after I had braced myself for a scolding. No matter what language you use to curse me or make me cry like a dog with tears streaming down to my feet, go ahead! Curse me! I’m ready! But I definitely won’t stop messing with your wife’s friend!

“Idiot.”

“…Oh. You’re not going to cuss me?”

“Why should I?”

“Oh. Even when Jo was hitting on North, you nearly killed him with cussing.”

“How are you and Jo the same?” Hill said, leaning back in his chair casually,

“You’ve never said out loud that you like or love anyone, which means you really like them, right? And he’s opened up to you too, which means you must have tried your best.”

“…Oh, Hill, my dear friend, I knew you were the only one who would understand me, you’re my best friend for life.”

“I’m not dying with you.”

“Oh well, okay, aren’t you going to ask how it’s going?”

“If you want to tell me, go ahead.”

“He said he likes me more now. He doesn’t call me ‘Hia’ anymore either, you don’t have that.” I said with a teasing smile, making Hill look disgusted.

“Why, doesn’t he respect you anymore?”

“Damn, how did you know?”

“Does anyone respect you, really?”

“No one, even George, the dog at the faculty, won’t play with me.”

“Sad, huh?”

“Yeah, it’s sad, but at least I have you who loves me.” I shook my head lightly, letting out a relieved sigh. Even if that George, the annoying dog, runs away at the sight of me, forget about it, he doesn’t have Dao telling him he likes him every day like I do, “He said I’m like a dog too, like a Doberman.”

“Would you even be a dog?”

“Yeah. Not being one would be the end of me, doc. If he says I’m a dog, I’m ready to howl.”

“How can you be so infatuated with someone?”

“I wonder why he won’t be my boyfriend. He said he likes me, didn’t he?”

“You should be patient.”

“Patience is the hardest thing. Who can do that? He smells nice, that crazy guy, right?”

“Yeah, that’s true, but you’re not his boyfriend yet, so it doesn’t help.” Hill said,

“Arthit.”

“What?”

“Nothing, I just…well. I didn’t think it would be you, so I’m a bit surprised. If I say I’m proud of you, would that sound too exaggerated? It’s even more than I am of Jo, honestly.”

“Wow…you’re proud of me? Wow, Hill, be my dad instead of Direk, why are you so warm and gentle, I’m so touched.” I said, feeling genuinely impressed. Why is Hill so nice like this? Just from these words, I’m so moved I’ve forgotten about

Direk. Ah, no, who is Direk anyway? Why did I suddenly say his name? Whatever, because Hill, the kind one, is also rich, right?

“I don’t want a kid like you.”

“Oh, Dad, I haven’t even called Direk ‘Dad’ yet.” I said, feigning a serious expression, “But I don’t know who Direk is anyway, you’re my real dad.”

“…”

“Give me some money to fix my car.”

“Sigh, go far away, you.” Hill said with a look of disgust, like he often does with Jo.

“Why do you get goosebumps so easily?”

“Just look at how Jo likes to mess with me. How can I not be wary?”

“You’re special to death, he doesn’t play with anyone like he does with you.” I said my thoughts because Jo loves to tease Hill, sometimes it’s hard to tell if he’s teasing or if he actually wants Hill to be his wife.

“Let him play with you then.” Hill said with disdain.

“Oh, I think you’ve been husband and wife since the first semester.”

“Who’s the husband?”

“Whoever falls asleep first is the wife.”

“I’ll keep my eyes open all night, you bastard.” Hill said, making me chuckle a bit.

“Yeah. Do we have anything to do in the afternoon?”

“No, we are free, why, in a rush to get back to your boy?”

“No, I’m going to visit someone who’s sick.”

“Who?”

“Khram.”

“Your boy’s ex whom you beat up?”

“Yeah.”

“And you’re going to visit someone you put in the hospital?”

“Hey. That’s what you do, you visit people when they’re in the hospital, right?”

“…But you’re the one who put him in the hospital.”

After finishing the morning ward rounds and a small lecture, I headed straight to another patient building to visit Khram as planned. If you ask why I had to come, it was necessary, you know, when someone you know is sick, you should visit them to check on their condition, right?

   I stopped in front of his room, quickly opened the door to find the bastard in a not-so-good state, wearing a hospital gown and lying in bed. As soon as he heard the door open and saw me walk in, he immediately sat up.

   “Are you here to beat me up again?”

“Damn right.”

“Why are you wearing a gown?”

“I’m a doctor.”

“Oh, and you’re here to treat me? No, you’re here to inject me with something to kill me, right?”

“You’re too paranoid.” I sat down on the chair beside the bed and picked up some grapes from the basket to eat. When I found they weren’t tasty, I tossed them into the trash.

“Hey, you’re throwing away my grapes again.”

“They taste like dog food, and how are you doing?”

“Feeling good, huh, still coming to mock me, you’ve got some guts, almost beat me to death, you bastard.” He grumbled, letting out a sigh, “But your dad is nice, paying for the expenses, compensating for getting beaten up. Can you call that nice when it’s his son who made me like this? I want to take off my shirt to show how bruised I am, you bastard.”

“I’m not mocking, I’m visiting.”

“Oh, thank you, so glad.” He said sarcastically with a bored look.

“When are you getting out of the hospital?”

“Another two weeks. I was supposed to get out quickly, but now I have to stay in the hospital. Why is the one who beat me wearing a gown, what kind of doctor is that?”

“Idiot, what do you think doctors are like? I’ll beat you again in a minute.” I said with annoyance.

“You cheated on the exam.”

“Cheated my ass, I study well, not stupid like you.”

“Oh, and this is the right way to scold?”

“Damn. No, I said I came to mock, but not about beating you, I came to mock you about your ex.”

“Why, Dao, why?”

“He’s mine now.”

“Huh? What do you mean?” Khram looked utterly surprised, moving in shock and wincing in pain from his wound, clutching his stomach before looking up to ask, “You’re dating?”

“Not dating, but I love him.”

“What? You said at first you didn’t like him.”

“At first, I didn’t like him, can’t I like him later, you buffalo?” I scolded, annoyed, “He said he likes me too.”

“Really?” He asked, looking surprised again, “Shit, really? Are you joking?”

“Joking, my ass, we’ll probably be dating soon.” I shrugged, “Depends on him.”

“Damn, shit, you’re not lying, are you?”

“Not lying.”

“Damn, where did you guys fall for each other?”

“Idiot.”

“Damn, damn, so you really love Dao, right?”

“Yeah, I won’t make him hurt like you did, you bastard, do you know how bad what you did was? At first, I just thought you were an asshole, but now I want to kill you.”

“Calm down, Phii.” Khram cautioned. I looked at him with some displeasure but tried to control my emotions and not think about the past when he hurt the short one.

“I’m not going to do anything. Just annoyed, the past is the past, and you are the past. The present and future are mine, remember that.”

“Good.”

“…”

“I mean, Dao is one of the few people in my life who were genuinely good to me. When I realized this, I wanted to pray that Dao wouldn’t get hurt because of what I did, that he could move on and find someone who truly loves him. So, please take care of Dao for me.”

“I can take care of my own future wife, no need to ask.” I responded because I had already decided that no matter what happens, no one or anything would hurt him again.

“…”

“I just came to say this. I’m going back to my room to hug him. Also, I want to warn you not to meddle in my future wife’s life again.”    “Got it, I understand. I’ll wish you both well then.”

“Shut up, exes shouldn’t bark loudly, you bastard.”

“…Oh, sorry.”

 

      WESTTHESUNFROMANOTHERSTAR CHAPTERS HOME

   WESTTHESUNFROMANOTHERSTAR, Chapter 30: Something To Tell

   Daotok

   “…Damn, why didn’t I record that?” North looked stunned in a way I’d never seen before, fidgeting before pulling out his phone, “Say that again, I’ll sell it to Phii Arthit.”

“No need.”

“Damn, you can’t just let such a line go blurry, I want him to hear it. Just complimenting him as cute would make him take off his shirt for you, hearing this sentence, he wouldn’t rush to propose at your place?”

“I’ll tell him myself…when the timing is right.” I said honestly because that sentence just now came from the heart. I felt that before this, I was indifferent to everything, my heart hadn’t beaten this strongly in a long time, it was truly him who made me realize I’m just an ordinary person with feelings too.

“Say what?”

“This is the right moment, I think.” North said after we both looked towards the door, the room owner in a T-shirt with a gown draped over his shoulder, looking exhausted, probably from a hard day of studying, “Just say it.”

“Say what? What were you guys talking about?” He asked while closing the door firmly, shooing North to move elsewhere before sitting in a chair close to me instead. North chose to sit on the bed.

“Wait. I’ll say it when the time’s right.” I said according to how I felt. Saying it now wouldn’t be right. He nodded and shrugged. Normally he might press, but today he seemed too tired. He glanced at the medicine on the table as if to check if I had taken it all, “I have.” I answered him.

“You didn’t flush them down the toilet?”

“Not like that.”

“And do you feel better?”

“Uh-huh. If I stay still, I don’t feel any pain.”

“Good.” He said, gently ruffling my hair. North, watching, widened his eyes and bit his lip tight. Honestly, North’s face looked quite funny right now, “What’s with that grumpy face?”

“Come on, I’m being a good-love’s witness without making any noise. What’s with the gentle side of this bastard? I really want to know.”

“Asshole, and what’s this?” He asked, referring to the bag of cursed snacks by North’s side.

“Cursed snacks.” I answered, “North brought them over.”

“Cursed?”

“North’s friend stole them from the child spirit at his house and stuffed them in

North’s bag. North was scared of being haunted, so he brought them here.”    “Oh, so you got them here so Dao can be haunted instead.” He raised his eyebrows before turning to curse, “You’re an asshole, North.”

“Hey, Phii, listen to me, my friend said that the child ghost at his house is really fond of sweets. I’m scared, but the ghost isn’t afraid of the sweets, and they’re delicious, fair enough.”

“Fair enough?” He repeated the word before grabbing the snack, tearing open the bag, standing up to walk over to North, and using his other hand to pinch his mouth open, stuffing the snack inside. North protested and tried to resist.    “Ugh, you bastard, ee, ee, urgh.” North cursed with a mouthful and ultimately had no choice but to swallow the piece of snack, his face immediately turning sour,

“I’ve eaten cursed snacks now…”

“Serves you right, you asshole, got haunted instead of others.”

“See, I was just worried about him, Arthit.”

“He’s my fiancée, why?”

“Shameless, you don’t need to go for the ghost, would you open your heart to someone who stuffs snacks in your friend’s mouth, someone who uses violence like this?” North complained, grimacing in displeasure. I couldn’t help but smile a little at the act.

“It’s nothing, North. Just snacks.” I said before unwrapping another pack and offering it to the room’s owner, “It’s tasty.”

Instead of taking it, he leaned in and grabbed it with his mouth instead.

“Yeah, tasty.” He said while chewing, “Feed me another one.”

“I’m not going to feed you. Just offering.”

“Even a dog wouldn’t know if you’re feeding or offering.” North said, the one being criticized immediately looked over, “Why the hard stare, scared now, are you ?”

“Uh, seems like it.”

“Ah, there you go.”

“Me?”

“Doberman.” I said.

Because honestly, sometimes I secretly think he’s like a big dog, a Doberman is a big dog that likes to exercise and can be quite aggressive if not properly trained, so I think he’s similar.

   “Doberman? Why?” He furrowed his brows in question.

“You’re better than me being a Golden.” North said.

“Damn, but you really are like a Golden, that’s for sure, but why Doberman, isn’t it a guard dog?”

“Phipungto, you  mean I’m loyal, huh?”    He turned to ask.

“You mean I’m loyal?”

“Are you?”

“It’s obvious, don’t you think this dog wants some love from you?”

“It already got some…”

“Good, very good.” He said with a broad smile. I turned to see North sitting there, looking grumpy.

“It’s quite fitting for us to be together, why not just become lovers?”

“Isn’t that what your friend said too?”

“You said there was no rush.”

“Oh, I see. No rush, being with you like this is good.” He said before looking towards the bed, “Aren’t you going back, North?”

“Phii Jo isn’t done  with rounds yet, and how is it being with Phii Hill?”

“It’s more meaningful than being with Jo.”

“Phii Jo says the same when he’s with Phii Fah.” North said, making the person next to me burst into laughter.

“We shouldn’t be doing rounds together except when going out.”

“And you’re not going out these days?”

“Where am I supposed to get the time, you bastard? Don’t let it end, I’ll travel around the world, you bastard.” He said, “Are you interested in traveling around the world, climbing mountains, sailing, stuff like that?”

“Don’t take my friend to get bitten by piranhas.”

“Why not, it’s an experience.” He said, raising one hand to point at the scar between his index and middle finger, “How many people in the world do you think have been bitten by piranhas?”

“How many people in the world drag their bodies from Thailand to get bitten by piranhas in Brazil, skipping school too, you scoundrel?”    “Are you going to catch piranhas?” I asked.

“Yeah, are you interested?”

“Why did you fall?”

“I wanted to fall, saw the villagers falling so I went to join them.”

“Oh, was it fun?”

“It was good. If I go again, I’ll definitely go for a boat ride to see the anaconda.”

“Uh. Look first.”

“Why look? Better to book the ticket right away.”

“Wait a minute, Phii, calm down.” North cautioned.

“Joking, but if he really takes you , can you handle it?”

“Yeah.”

“Are you sure?” North furrowed his brows and asked.

“I’m quite capable, you know.”

“Good, I like people who can go anywhere with me.” He said, patting my shoulder lightly. We talked. Well, it’s more like he and North were joking around and playing games together while I worked. After a while, North excused himself to leave and asked us to walk him back because he was scared to go alone.

“How was it when you got here?”

“I ran so fast my feet nearly fell off, Phii, it was so haunting, I banged on the door like crazy when I got here.”

“Completely scary.”

“Scary or not, at least I managed to get here.” North grumbled a bit before hopping on his motorcycle, saying a quick goodbye, and riding off.

“What are your plans for tomorrow, it’s Saturday?”

“Looking for a job.”

“Oh, yeah, I was thinking about reading a book too.”

“Can I go back to my room?”

“Sure, but I’ll stay with you.”

“…I just need to get some paper to color in your mom’s drawing.”

“Oh.”

“Yes. Last time you said you’d let Arthit have what face?”

“Okay.” He said before we took the elevator back to the seventh floor, walked into the room, sat at the desk, and turned on Ter’s computer. “What you said about getting a little bit, is that true?”

“Umm.”

“I’m glad.”

“Here.”

“Hmm?”

“You really won’t change, huh?”

“Yeah. You don’t have to give me your heart until you’re sure. Just keep an open mind, being like this, I’m okay with it.” He said, which made me feel unexpectedly relieved, like there was no need to rush anything. “If you want to be lovers, just admit what you want to do with me, more than this.”

“…”

“Haha, you look stunned, but I’m not lying, it’s not strange to want to do things with someone you love, right?”

“Ugh…”

“Or do you not like this kind of thing?”

“No…it’s not that.”

“But I can’t help thinking about it, with you.”

“…Pervert.”

“Yeah, I admit it.”

“Let’s change the subject.”

“Okay, what do you want to talk about?”

“Don’t you read?” I asked, because actually, this desk is quite long, he could sit and read here too.

“I’m tired from being in the ward all day, I’ll read tomorrow. Or another day.” He said, looking a bit down, “Tomorrow is Saturday, I would like to take you out but my feet hurt.”

“Hmm.”

“Next time then. If I have time.”

“If you graduate, will you work as a doctor?”

“Definitely not.”

“Why not?”

“I promised I’d be a doctor, but once I graduate, that doesn’t mean I can handle the work. I’d probably end up fighting with patients until they die. Just being in the ward now is a total pain, sometimes you meet really annoying patients, you know?

I want to curse them out loud, but I can only say ‘sir’.”

“You’re doing well.” I turned to say. I knew that studying medicine wasn’t easy and the job ahead would bring a lot of responsibility; doctors are just ordinary people too. No matter how crude he might be, he couldn’t act like that at work. “Really?”

“Yeah, you’re doing great.”

“Like praising a dog.”

“Well, I’ve acknowledged it.”

“Yeah. Not even giving me a head pat.”    You have to endure and differentiate.

   He said that. So, I slowly raised my hand to gently pat his head.

   “You did very well today.”

He was silent for a moment before a wide smile broke out on his face.

“Yeah, thanks, that made me feel less tired.”

…

Arthit

   He slowly lowered his hand, returning his attention to his computer screen. I sat watching his profile from the side without saying anything.

That gentle touch lingered strangely; in my entire life, no one has been allowed to do that except my mother, and even Direk wouldn’t do it, not that I would let him if he tried. Just thinking about it gave me goosebumps.

And the feeling from before seemed to come back.

“Could you do it again?”

“Hmm?”

“Can you pat my head again?” I asked, and he slowly raised his hand to pat my head once more before withdrawing it.

…really similar.

   Warm and comforting, like before when my mother was still here, waiting for me to come home.

   “You’re going to be too miraculous, are you my mother reincarnated or something?”

“Huh?”

“I don’t know, it feels…similar, strange.”

“Oh, like when mom strokes your head?”

“Yeah, you know it well.”

“Hmm…maybe because it’s the same kind of love, isn’t it?” He said with a soft voice, slightly pursing its lips, and the pale cheeks turned a bit pink as if embarrassed to say such words. That made me smile again before pinching its cheek playfully.

“Yeah, but it’s a different kind of love, I definitely don’t want you to be my

mom.”

“Hmm.”

At first, when I said  to stroke my head, that was just playful sarcasm; I didn’t think he would actually do it. So I was a bit shocked. If it were anyone else, I would have punched them for real. When he first stroked my head, it felt oddly strange but not bad, even good, and those words just made all the exhaustion from the day fade away unbelievably. That’s why I said he was going to be too miraculous.

“What are you doing?”

“Just chilling.” He said. I looked at the screen to see him scrolling through movies.

“Not working?”

“Taking a break, and I want some paper and colors too.”

“Oh, from my mom’s stuff?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay, wait a sec, where are they?”

“In the desk drawer.”

“Got it.” I agreed before heading to his  room to grab the paper and colors, seeing my own light yellow snake that the shorty named…uh, uh, what the fuck, what was it again, forgot, whatever, I just went back to my room with the paper, handed it over, and then came back again.

Cleaned its cage and changed the water bowl as usual, then left it as it was. No one can say I’m not a good snake owner, you asshole.

Returning to my room, I saw a short one mixing watercolors, so I went to take a shower while waiting. When I finished my shower, he was just starting to paint.

“How’s it going?”

“Hmm. It’s alright.”

“What drawing is this?”

“A gondola.”

“Let me see.” I sat back down in the same chair and started looking at the drawing by his mother, a sketch of a gondola in Venice. “Oh, I miss it, do you want to go there?”

“Yes.”

“Let’s go.”

“When?”

“How about right now, I’ll book the tickets.”

“No way.”

“When we’re free then, you promised to go with me.”

“Did I promise?” He turned to ask, slightly tilting his head.

“Yeah.”

“Oh.” He said, turning back around, looking totally resigned. That’s how it is then, because no matter how he tries to refuse, I’ll force him to go anyway.    I haven’t been to Italy in years because I’m the type who prefers to travel to places I’ve never been before, doing things I’ve never done. With so little time, revisiting isn’t appealing, but seeing this drawing by his mother makes me miss it and want to go back.

And I want the short one to come with me.

Ever since you came into my life, everything in me has been a mess, damn it.

“I love you, you know.”

“Huh?”

Suddenly, without any regard for the atmosphere, I blurted it out, leaving the person I confessed my love to slightly stunned. I couldn’t help but find this expression and demeanor endearing.

“I love you. That’s why I said it.”

“Isn’t it just liking?”

“No, I think it’s love.”

“Oh, um.”

“Won’t you get tired if I say it every half hour or every time I feel it?”

“Is that love or painkillers?”

“Painkillers aren’t taken every half hour for sure, so, will you get tired?”

“If I say I’m tired?”

“Then it’s your problem, endure it until you get used to it.”

“Oh. I won’t get tired.”

“That’s good, and don’t think I’m just saying it, when I say it, I really mean it.” I said because what I said certainly wasn’t just words; it meant exactly what I just said, that I would say it every time I feel that love for you.

“I know.”

“Yeah, you know everything, can you read my mind or something?”

“No.” He answered without looking at me, pressing the tip of the brush onto the white paper to check the color and repeating the motion.

“Why not read it, so we would know each other completely?”

He turned to look at me with a smile.

“Can’t you prove it?”

“I can.” I answered without thinking. I wasn’t trying to prove anything, because what I do is already clear as day. Come to think of it, this kid is quite something, managing to tease me like Jo, “Aren’t you going to take a shower?”

“Waiting until I finish coloring this picture.”

“It’ll be late by then.”

“Hmm.”

“Tell me something about your family.”

“I’ve told you already.”

“Give me more details, any photos? You’ve seen my photos from my mom’s drawings.” I said, because all of my mom’s sketches were of places we had visited together, “Let’s exchange photos.”

“I’m not free.”

“Then give me your phone.”

“Hmm.”

“Damn, letting me see your phone isn’t something you do every day.”    “…” He didn’t respond to my teasing, not sure why I was teasing, but he had already picked up his phone from the table. Since I had secretly scanned my fingerprint into it before, I easily unlocked it. I went to the photos and scrolled to find an album named ‘Family.’

“Is this your dad and papa?”

“Hmm.”

“Sweet.” I teased again upon seeing the photo of his dad with his dad’s partner. His dad seemed like a very nice person. And his dad’s partner was just as I had seen before, “What does your dad do for work?”    “My dad is a legal consultant for business.”

“And your other dad?”

“Software company.”

“Your family is pretty rich, huh? And what about when you said you had that money problem when Khram stole your money?”

“Back then, we didn’t have much money, things weren’t settled yet.”

“Oh, who else is in your house?”

“Grandma.”

“What does she do?”

“She takes care of cats.”

“Oh, I feel like I’m interviewing you for a news piece, aren’t you going to ask anything back?”

“You can just tell me what you want me to know.”

“I want you to know everything about me.”

“Then tell me.”

“I don’t know what to tell you, really.” I said when I tried to think of what to say; mostly, you already know everything, right? “You know my dad’s profession by now, don’t you?”

“Company owner.”

“Did I tell you that?”

“Not sure, but I guessed.”

“Yeah, correct, that’s why Direk is so rich.”

“As rich as North’s boyfriend’s dad?”

“Direk is almost as rich as Jo’s father, but overall, Jo has both his father and grandfather. For me, only Direk is rich, oh, and my grandfather too. But not me.”

“Where’s your grandfather?”

“He’s in Switzerland, retired, living with grandma. He doesn’t work anymore, just leaves the inheritance for me, his only grandson. I’m waiting to inherit.” I said in jest. If Grandpa Dilok heard this, he’d definitely hit me with his cane, he’s still strong as hell despite his age.

“Oh, then tell me about your high school life.”

“Middle school in San Francisco was normal; I was a bit of a troublemaker, didn’t get better as I grew up either, but when I came to high school in Thailand, that was the peak, I had trouble almost all the time. I don’t understand why Thai schools are so wild, or maybe it’s just me being a troublemaker.”

“Oh, probably the latter.”

“Yeah. It was fun though, I was fluent in Thai from the first year, really cool. In high school, I had the nickname Arthit the Horse, I can show you if you can’t picture it.”

“…”

“And how was your high school time?”

“It was normal.”

“Oh, there’s the story about Khram too.”

“Yes.”

“Can I ask about it?”

“About Khram?”

“Yeah, have you moved on from him yet? You should have by now because if not, I’ll ride my bike to the hospital and beat him up again right now.”

“I have.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

“So, you’re ready to be mine then.”

“…” He was silent, not answering, his eyes focused on painting. So, I didn’t dare touch him, afraid I’d mess up his painting.

“Do you get hit on a lot?”

“No.”

“Bullshit, North said his friends like you a lot, almost to death.” I said, and those assholes better stop trying to hit on my future wife. Otherwise, I’ll deal with them one by one.

“If they’re not allowed to hit on me, they don’t. So, no one does.”

“Oh, but I get to hit on you.”

“Can’t stop you, can I?”

“Even if I wasn’t this brash, you wouldn’t have escaped, huh? Ah, I won’t ask about Khram.”

“Why not?”

“Uh, do I have to ask? But I don’t want to know.”

“Usually, you’d want to know about exes, I mean.”

“I don’t want to know, even though I love to gossip about people, but I don’t care about your past love life. No matter what you’ve been through, I don’t care.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, I should ask you if you can accept me instead.”

“Why?”

“I used to be a gigolo.”

“…”

“I had to sell my dignity for survival when Direk wouldn’t give me money.”    “Oh…it’s okay, but…if you’re that hard up for money, you can talk to me about it.” it said with its usual calm voice, but the worried look on its face made me burst out laughing.

“Just kidding, you idiot, I’ve never been.”

“Oh, um.”

“Why do you look so worried?”

“It’s…pitiful.” He said, frowning.

“I’m joking, damn it, what would the rich do with me, mow the lawn in front of their house or something? But if it’s Johan, I’m interested, his wallet is thick enough to make me willing to sacrifice myself.” I said jokingly, “Yeah, but I’m not as rich as those guys. I mean, my dad is rich, but not me, I’m rich to the extent that my dad shows mercy.”

“Hmm. It’s okay.”

“Can you support me? I’m too lazy to work.”

“…Are you flirting to get me to support you?”

“Yes.”

“Then go ahead and leave.”

“Oh, you’re just kicking me out, the dog you just petted, I’m even willing to bark, please support me, seriously, as the owner, you should support your dog, right?” I said playfully, laughing.

“Can you eat dog food?”

“Yes, just give me one bag of Pedigree Sunday and that’s enough.”

“Then I guess that’s acceptable.”

“Excellent.”

“Then bark a bit.”

“Are you crazy? I was just joking!”

“I know. I was joking too, but if you really want to bark, it’s fine.”

“You’re quite the tease.” I said, “Hey, next month I have an important car race, can you come cheer for me?”

“Car race?”

“Yeah, at the big track.”

“Oh. If you’re free.”

“It’s really important, like betting billions. If you come to cheer me on, I might win.”

“Oh…it probably depends more on skill.”

“I  have skill, but I lack morale.”

“Hmm. Let’s see.” He said, “Who are you racing against?”

“The son of that company, probably not Johan, it’s Jon, and he’s not even funny, damn it.” I sighed, imagining Jo stepping onto the track, both of us would be laughing dryly, it’s a mess.

“If North’s boyfriend doesn’t win, will he lose?”

“Half and half, that bastard is hard to beat, the only one who gives me a headache every time I race against him.”

“Hmm, interesting.”

“Me?”

“Car racing.”

“Oh. No way, even when you’re focused on painting, you can still divide your attention.” I said, disappointed, watching him carefully paint. It’s good in its own way, but too bad he’s not easily distracted, “I’m sleepy.”

“Then sleep.”

“No, I want to watch you paint.”

“Why?”

“In case you make a mistake with the colors, I can warn you.” I said, and suddenly Jeon came and sat on my lap, “Oh, Mr. Jeon.”

“Mr. Jeon.” He called out his name, putting down the brush immediately, reaching out to pick him up, but Mr. Jeon had already settled on my lap,

“Oh…feeling left out now.”

“Meow.” not Mr. Jeon’s voice but mine. The one sitting next to me looked up.    “What’s up, could be a dog, could bea cat, Mr. Jeon doesn’t care about you, but I do.”

“…Hmm.” He turned back to his work, leaving me to sit still so as not to wake Mr. Jeon, secretly touching his balls too, but Mr. Jeon didn’t react at all, Cat is so easygoing. Anyone can play with your balls like that, huh?

“Why do you like cats?”

“We already raised one at home.”

“Oh, yeah, speaking of home, your fortune-telling ability comes from your grandmother, right? Like North said if I remember correctly.”

“Right.”

“Can you take a break from painting and read my fortune for a bit?”

“Hmm…okay.” He put the brush down again, “What’s your birth date?”

“Tenth of July.”

“What time?”

“Afternoon, I think.”

“Oh, um.” He took a pencil to write something on a blank sheet of paper for a while, then asked for more information before giving the fortune reading, “It’s good, you have a very strong fate, everything you do turns out well, lots of people love and support you.”

“Lots of people love? Including you?”

“No.”

“Not yet?”

I asked, but since it didn’t answer, I continued with another question, “How about love?”

“…Good.”

“What does ‘good’ mean?”

“The love graph is on the rise.” He said quietly after putting down the pen and reaching for the brush again. I noticed his ears seemed to turn redder. I thought there must be more to this fortune reading.

“No other results?”

“Hmm, but I won’t say.”

“What, that’s cheating.”

“Yes.”

“Oh well, then I’ll take a nap, I’m exhausted.”

“Hmm.”

Before I collapsed face down on the table, Mr. Jeon jumped off my lap, probably because he couldn’t sleep comfortably anymore.

“Why not go sleep on the sofa or the bed?”

“I’ve already said I want to stay with you, how many times do I have to say it?” I said without looking up, slowly closing my eyes due to the exhaustion from a day in the chaotic ward, “Or do you want me to say it clearly?”

“…It would be good if you said it.”

“Yeah, I want to stay with you, I want to hold your hand but your hands are busy, so frustrating.”

“…” He didn’t respond until I gradually fell asleep, still slumped over the table next to him.

I woke up to an unfamiliar phone ringtone. The person who was sitting next to me was nowhere to be seen, but I heard sounds from the bathroom, which meant he must be taking a shower. Checking the time, it was past 9 PM, and the painting was about half done.

   The phone making the noise belonged to the short one. I took the liberty of picking it up and saw that the caller had been saved as “Dad”. I figured it must be either his dad or his other dad. Since I was already holding it, I answered the call.    “Michael, what are you doing now?”

   “Who is Michael?” I asked, since the caller was asking what Michael was doing, I needed to know who Michael was first.

“Who are you?”

   “Dylan.”

“How do you get this phone?”

   “Ah…I’ll ask you again, who is Michael?”

“My son, Did he drop the phone?”

   “No. Are you Gavin? I’m in the next room of your son’s room.”

“I met you once, right?”

   “Yep.”

“And why do you have my son’s phone?”

   “He is in my room, and he is taking a bath now. Gavin, I have something to tell you.”

“What?”

   “I love your son.”

“What!? wait, wait, You love my son?”

   “Yes.”

“Okay, why tell me?”

   “Because I want something.”

“What?”

   “I want your son to be my wife.”

 

WESTTHESUNFROMANOTHERSTAR CHAPTERS HOME

   WESTTHESUNFROMANOTHERSTAR, Chapter 29: I Know That

   Daotok

   He insisted on sleeping on the floor next to the sofa with the reason that he wanted to be close to me, even though there was a king-size bed in the room.

He went to fetch a lamp and a book, placing them on the table.

“You’re going to read?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay.”

I answered before lying down on the sofa at the same time he leaned back against it, pulling the table closer, opening the book and turning on the small, soft yellow lamp to shine on the pages. Now, I was lying on the sofa with him sitting, leaning back against it, reading.

“Are you going to sleep? So I can turn off the light.”

“Hmm.”

And with that, he got up to turn off the room lights, leaving only the dim glow from the lamp on the table in front. I turned onto my side, back to the light, and closed my eyes.

Even though I wasn’t sleepy, there was nothing to do but lie there and let my mind wander.

“Are you asleep yet?” He asked, breaking the silence that had lasted almost ten minutes in the room.

“Not yet.”

“Talk to me for a bit, I’m bored.”

“You won’t be able to concentrate on reading then.”

“We can talk, I want to talk.”

“Oh…uh-huh.” I stayed quiet, thinking of something to talk about so he wouldn’t get too bored. My arm was tired, so I turned to the other side, looking at the person reading from the side, “Why are you called Arthit?”

“Born on sunday.”

“You must have an English name, right? When you were abroad.”

“Dylan.”

“Oh, nice name.”

“Wow, are you complimenting me?” He turned, resting his arm on the sofa, our eyes met for a moment before I instinctively looked away.

“Complimenting the name.”

“Why did you look away?”

“…”

“It’s cute when you’re embarrassed.”

“Uh-huh.”

“Damn, really?” He said with a tone that sounded more excited, but I kept looking elsewhere, “Come on, look at me.”

“No.”

“You…damn, why does the thought of wanting to wrestle with you keep popping up?”

“If you think about it, it’s one hit.”

“Dare to hit me?”

“Uh-huh, as punishment.”

“Why punish for just thinking?”

“Just thinking about it is bad enough.”

“Can’t help it, your future husband is like this.” His words made me turn to look at him immediately, his cheerful expression making me feel slightly annoyed,

“Let’s not talk about this, change the subject.”

“Who brought it up first?”

“Maybe you just think you’re talking more.”

‘Tell him he’s not just imagining it,’ Emma’s voice rang out. I saw her sitting across from Phii Arthit, her chin resting on her hand as she watched us.    “I won’t tell him.”

“Ha?”

“…Oh.”

“Won’t tell what?”

‘Tell him,’ Emma insisted. I sighed without realizing it. I didn’t know if it was necessary to share this, “It’s necessary. I’m part of your life, Michael.”    “Oh…it’s just…”

“What?”

“Do you remember…when I said I talked to an imaginary friend?” Suddenly, I brought this up, causing me to frown in confusion slightly, “Her name is Emma.”

“If it weren’t you, I’d think you were mocking my mom’s name.”

“No, it’s really Emma. From the start.”

“Oh, and then what?”

He seemed more interested in this topic now; his left hand, which had been writing, stopped, and he turned his attention to me.

“I still have an imaginary friend that hasn’t gone away.”

“Oh, I see, some kids do, but not me, not Meen.”

“Oh, and she’s here now, Emma is watching you.” I said. He raised his eyebrows before looking in the direction I was looking. When he turned, Emma smiled brightly at him.

“I don’t see anything.”

“She’s smiling at you.”

“Oh, I see, can I talk to her?”

‘Yes, definitely. I want to talk too.’

   “Emma says you can.”

“Am I looking in the right direction?” He asked, pointing towards Emma. The person pointed at nodded, though the one pointing couldn’t see. I confirmed before he asked, “How much do you think your friend likes me?”

‘A little now, keep going, I’m cheering for you.’

   “What did she say?”

“…” I stayed silent because I didn’t want to answer much.

‘Why are you quiet, Michael? Tell him you like him a little now.’

   “What did your friend say?” He turned to ask, both of them making me feel more exhausted.

“A little.”

“You like me a little now?”

“Uh-huh, Emma said so.”

“Emma is your subconscious, right?”

“Oh…uh-huh. Yes.”

“Wow, that’s great.” He smiled broadly before turning back to look at Emma, who smiled brightly, seemingly excited about what he would say next.

‘Why are you so excited?’ I asked Emma in my mind.

‘Not many people talk to us.’

   “In your friend’s eyes, what do you think I’m like?”

‘You look very good, with beautiful eyes that I want to draw and keep, you could say you’re very handsome. Even if your looks aren’t what made Michael open up, your character, though you speak roughly and are somewhat harsh, is actually very cute.’

   “What did she say?”

“…It’s long, forget it.” I cut him off. Telling him everything Emma said might be a bit too much…

“Damn cheater, avoiding the answer because you’re embarrassed?”    “Hmm.” I turned over, facing away from both of them.

“Then I’ll ask you instead. What do you see in me?”

“…”

“If you don’t answer, I’ll kiss you.”

“Threatening again.”

“Just answer, you can’t lie either.”

“Why do you think I can’t lie?”

“You’re not a liar, I know that.”

“Well…you’re crude, rough, but…cute.” I said the last word so softly it was almost inaudible, burying my face in the sofa and the blanket.

“Me?”

“Yeah.”

“I’ve never been called cute in my life.”

“Really?”

“Usually, I get ‘handsome,’ ‘cool,’ that kind of thing.”

“Hmm, good to hear.”

“Why is it good to hear?”

“Because I’m the first one to see your cute side.”

“Agreed.”

“…?”

I was startled when he suddenly got up and sat on the still-vacant end of the sofa, making me sit up in surprise, and I was even more shocked when he seemed like he was about to take off his shirt, lifting his tank top to reveal a bit of his lower abdomen.

“Wha…what are you doing?”

“I’m ready to be yours tonight.”

“Wa…wait, stop, don’t undress.”

“Why, are you going to do it with clothes on? Sure, but with you, I’d rather take them off, or do you want to take them off for me?” He lowered his hand.    “No. Just complimenting, why do you have to take off clothes?” I immediately admonished. The person in front of me lowered his hand and let his shirt fall back into place, furrowing his brows and giving me an annoyed look.

“Oh. So, you’re ready to be my wife?”

“What?”

“Aren’t I cute?”

“Well…yes, but, uh, what is this?” I was starting to get a headache. I couldn’t understand how all these situations were connected, he smiled and burst out laughing while I was still looking confused.

“What do you expect from complimenting me?”

“Nothing.”

“Oh, really? Expecting me to be embarrassed?”

“No.”

“Damn, but I am embarrassed.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, when you say it.”

“Oh, uh-huh.”

“Can I get a hug?”

“Why?”

“Don’t know, just want a hug.”

“Oh. If I say no?”

“Then no.”

I, sitting on the sofa, was quickly pulled into a hug, he spun me around so my back was against his chest, and then he leaned back against the sofa, his large hands reaching for the blanket to cover us.

“The atmosphere is right. Want to watch a movie?”

“Uh-huh.”

“What kind of movie do you like?”

“Horror movie.”

“Sure, but it’s troublesome; we’d have to get the laptop, connect it to the TV, let’s do it another day.” He said, “But not tomorrow or the day after.”

“Oh, I figured.”

“What did you figure?”

“You wouldn’t force me to stay with you for just a couple of days.”

“Move in with me then?”

“No.”

“You should think about it carefully. We could split the rent, and you wouldn’t have to deal with ghosts.”

“I like living alone.”

“I told you I’d let you live alone.”

“No.” I said, letting out a sigh. Here, living alone means I like my own room and having some personal space more than anything.

“Okay, okay, rooms next to each other is fine, I can just force you to stay with me often.”

“…”

“Comfortable?”

“…Comfortable.”

“This year it’s colder than last year, so having me to hug you is the best.”

“It’ll get hot soon.”

“Then turn up the AC.”

“…”

I didn’t respond, just let him hold me like that. No one had ever hugged me like this before, so it felt a bit strange. It took about three minutes to get used to being hugged from behind without panicking.

“Hand me the book.”

“Oh.” I complied, reaching for his book that was stacked on the table and handing it to him. He took it and placed it in front of me, “What?”

“I’m going to read like this.”

“Oh…uh-huh.”

“Can you sleep like this?”

“If I say no?”

“Then no.”

“Uh-huh.”

And then he started to focus on the book in front of him, turning it into a situation where I was reading along with him, which, of course, I didn’t understand. Even though I could translate English, I didn’t understand the content.    The book was full of content I didn’t understand, the embrace from strong arms, the warmth from his body, all of it made me feel safe and comfortable in an indescribable way.

“Are you sleepy?”

“Uh-huh.”

“Sweet dreams. You don’t have to dream about me because I’ll be holding you all night.”

“…”

I slowly stretched my legs and shifted slightly for comfort, my eyes drooping as I easily drifted off to sleep in his embrace.

…

I opened my eyes to the dim light. It seemed like the person holding me had fallen asleep with the book still open. I took the book and placed it on the table, then tried to free myself from the loose embrace of his arms.

Once out of his arms, I got up from the sofa to head to the bathroom. Due to my grogginess and unfamiliarity with the room’s layout, my left foot hit something.

!!!

“What’s that!” The room’s owner woke up after hearing the noise, looking startled to see me on the floor, quickly getting up to check on me.

“…Uh-huh.”

“Are you okay?”

“My ankle hurts.”

“Damn.”

He swore in frustration before picking me up and placing me on the bed, turning on the lights in the room and sitting down next to the bed to check my ankle immediately.

“Damn, is it sprained?”

“Maybe a little.”

He gently examined it.

“Does it hurt a lot?”

“Not too much.”

“I don’t think it’s too serious, but don’t walk. If you walk, it’ll get worse.”

“Oh, okay.”

He got up from the floor, walked to get some ointment, and started applying it.

“I’ll buy you some medicine to take tomorrow, it’ll heal faster.”

“Oh, thank you.”

“You’re not going to class.”

“I have to.”

“I’ll get you an excuse note later.”

“It’s just unnecessary trouble.”

“I’ll go get the excuse note myself.”

“It’s fine.”

“Don’t be stubborn! Listen to the doctor.”

“…”

“What’s the point of being stubborn? Just stay still for a couple of days, or do you want to never walk again because I’ll chain you up? Choose.”

“I’ll stay still for a couple of days.”

“Good.”

He gently massaged the ointment into my ankle. It felt a bit strange to have someone else applying ointment for me.

“Your pants are in the way, pull them up.”

“Oh.”

Because his pants were so long that they covered my ankle, making it inconvenient to apply the ointment. I pulled up my pants as he instructed, and he slowly looked up to watch.    “Your leg is pretty nice.”

“Oh…really?”

“It’s worth putting over a shoulder.” [1] If you know you know

“What does that mean…”

“Not telling.”

“Uh-huh.”

“Not going to ask?”

“If you don’t tell, then you don’t tell.”

“Cool.” He shrugged, not too bothered. After applying the ointment, he wrapped my ankle and then got up to put away the ointment tube, “Why did you get up?”

“I needed to go to the bathroom.”

“Oh, come, I’ll carry you in.”

“No.”

“Then what will you do?”

“I can walk.”

“I told you not to be stubborn.” He said, somewhat annoyed, before picking me up and carrying me into the bathroom, gently setting me down in front of the toilet.

“Don’t look.”

“Why be shy? I’m just helping you stand.”

I didn’t respond, just furrowed my brows at him in displeasure. He chuckled a little before turning his back.

“If you look, I’ll be mad.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know, hurry up or your foot will hurt more. Good thing the bathroom floor isn’t slippery.”

“Hmm.”

I quickly took care of my business.

“Done?”

“Hmm.”

And then he turned back to lift me up again, placing me gently on the bed.    “Stay on the bed then, I’ll continue reading.” He said. I looked at the clock and saw it was past four in the morning, “Sleep, I won’t come to the bed.”

“Will you go running?”

“Me? Sure, you watch the room then, what do you want for breakfast? I’ll bring something back.” He asked, “Soy milk, it’s close by.”

“Hmm.”

“Okay, if you’re in pain or anything, call me.”

“Hmm.”

And then he walked back to sit on the sofa, lying down to continue reading as he had mentioned. I thought around five-thirty, almost six, he would go out jogging like last time, and with sleepiness taking over, I drifted off again with a warm feeling at my ankle from the ointment he had applied.

I woke up to the morning sunlight coming through the window. I looked around the room but couldn’t see the room’s owner anywhere. Checking the time, it was past eight, so I guessed he must have gone to his ward early in the morning.    I noticed the ankle bandage had been changed to a new one, with the smell of fresh ointment indicating he had reapplied it and changed the bandage before leaving.

I checked my phone as I do every morning and found messages from Phii Arthit sent around seven-thirty.

☀︎: The soy milk place wasn’t open.

   ☀︎: There’s rice in the fridge, warm it up, and take your medicine too.

   ☀︎: Yellow one, take 1, white one, take 2, after you eat.

   ☀︎:. I’ll bring lunch.

   ☀︎: Don’t walk around too much, just sit or lie down.

   ☀︎: Reply when you wake up.

   SS: Understood.

   I replied with just that and left the chat; he hadn’t read it yet, probably because he was busy. I put my phone down and slowly lowered my feet from the bed, putting weight on them to stand up, finding that it wasn’t so painful that I couldn’t stand.

However, when I tried to walk just a few steps, a sharp pain shot up, so I leaned against the wall to rest before heading to the bathroom. I just washed my face, brushed my teeth, and came out, warmed some rice in the microwave, ate, and took my medicine as he instructed.

I saw Mr. Jeon playing in the corner of the room, and noticed there was a tray with leftover food next to his bed, indicating that he had been given breakfast. Though I wanted to play with him, my ankle wasn’t cooperating, and calling him over would be difficult. Plus, it would disturb his nap. So, I could only watch.    Today, I have class with North. If North knew I tripped and sprained my ankle, I’d definitely get scolded.

I looked around to see what I had tripped on last night, but there was nothing at the spot where I fell.

I stopped caring and turned my attention back to my computer screen. Since I had some free time, I’d end up working. I kept working until I heard the door open, and it was the owner of the room coming in, wearing a white gown.

“How are you?”

“A bit better.”

“Good. You didn’t walk much, right?”

“Uh-huh.”

“Oh, lunch, eat your lunch and don’t forget to take your medicine.” He said before placing the food bag on the table and quickly turned to leave, closing and locking the door. I was left confused, not having had the chance to ask anything; he really just dropped off the food. He didn’t have more time than that.

I opened the bag to find it was just regular takeout food. I ate about half of it before I was full, then took all my medicine and continued working.

Staying in the room all day was never a problem for me; I even enjoyed it because I could work, or if there was no work, I could watch movies or play games.

I continued working until I heard a knock at the door, so I had to go open it, finding North standing there with his hair styled up as if he’d just ridden a motorcycle, holding a bag of something in his hand.

“Hey, you, Phii Arthit said you sprained your ankle?”

“Uh-huh.”

Then North walked into the room, placing the bag, which seemed to contain snacks, on the table next to my computer.

“First things first, I want to say I didn’t want to come to this spooky place at all, but Arthit said I was being a coward. Honestly, I’m not a coward, that’s why I came.”

“Oh, I see.”

“I came to visit you, brought some snacks too, eat up.” North said, pulling out many small bags of snacks from his bag.

“Aren’t you going to eat, North?”

“Nah, all for you.”

“…” I remained silent without responding, looking at him with suspicion. It’s impossible for North to share snacks without eating any himself like this, “Tell me straight.”

“What?”

“Is there something in these snacks?”

“No way, why? Do I look suspicious? I’m just being kind, bringing snacks for the sick, you sprained your ankle, right? Eat this, and it’ll flip back, heal.”

“Heal the pain?”

“Heal you out of this world, spit, why make such a big deal? Here, I’ll leave it here, you eat it.”

“You’re not good at lying, huh?” I said before picking up one bag, opening it, and trying a piece. Of course, it was just regular snacks, but what wasn’t regular was North’s behavior right now.

“Okay, honestly, it’s cursed snacks.”

“What?”

“Sigh, damn.” North sighed in annoyance and flopped onto the bed, “Can I sleep here? Is this the bed where you two hug each other?”    “No.” I answered truthfully.

“He doesn’t hug you? Wow, unbelievable, for that clingy senior.”

“So how is it cursed?” I asked while finishing off one bag, sitting on the desk chair and swiveling to face North, who was lying on the bed, taking off his shirt jacket in irritation, now just in a t-shirt. I remember North complaining that his boyfriend told him to wear it, and it was very hot.

“Hot as hell, huh, what did you ask again?”

“How it’s cursed.”

“Did you eat it?”

“Yes.”

“Yes!” He said with a delighted expression, “I’m safe tonight.”

“…”

“Here’s the thing…you know. No, you don’t know, forget it. One of my friends, named Tee, he’s got fleas too. That dog-faced guy, he secretly put this bag of snacks in my bag, and by the time I noticed, it was too late to return it. I messaged him asking why he put snacks in my bag, if it was some new way of pranking, and he said yes.”

“Yes, how?”

“The snacks he stole from the child spirit at his house.”

“So he gave them to me ?”

“You’re not afraid of ghosts, right? Help me out here, I don’t want the little ones chasing me for their snacks.”

“Why would he prank you North?”

“Right, I’m quite delicate. I just poured some oil on his shirt and lit it on fire, what’s there to be so angry about?”

“Oh…oh, right. He shouldn’t be so mad as to give cursed snacks.”

“I just got him back, see, my shirt is all black now, we had to light each other up in the whole department that day, it was chaos, but it went out with just a few pats.”

“Oh, I can imagine, what a cute prank.”

“Yeah, don’t let bastards live together.” North said casually, “Ha, that flea-ridden Tee, he can’t do anything to me. Just a child spirit, ha, even the ghost of a toilet can do shit to me, hey, you know, I’ll call to mock Tee first.”

And then North really called to mock him. If I were Tee, I’d be pretty annoyed at North. After North hung up, I called out to him.

“North.”

“Huh? What?”

“When you opened your heart to his partner, how was it?”

“Why ask…oh, oh, oh, damn, this story needs elaboration.” North said excitedly, moving to sit beside me instead, pulling a chair over, “What’s going on with you and Arthit?”

“I’ve opened my heart to him.”

“Damn, what made you so dizzy?”

“…He’s sincere.”

“Yeah, I know, he’s foolish, he can’t deceive anyone, just like me.”

“You’re insulting yourself.”

“Yeah, whatever, so what, go on, tell me.”

And then I gave a brief rundown of what had happened since I decided to open up to him. In fact, it all happened just yesterday evening.

   “And how was his reaction? Did my brother die from the shock?”

“He…looked strange.” I said, furrowing my brows, trying to find the right words, while North laughed cheerfully, “When I complimented him by saying he was cute, he said he was ready to be mine, and then he was going to take off his shirt.”    “Damn, what a vulgar face.” North laughed, holding his head, “Why so eager? Just because of a compliment? Can’t you just compliment him a little without him stripping? Crazy, so easy to please, what else happened?”

“Hmm…and then I sprained my ankle. Oh, North, he complimented my legs, saying they’re beautiful and that he’d like them over his shoulders. What does that mean?”

“Over his shoulders?” North furrowed his brows, pondering, “Oh, oh, damn, what a mess. It’s like that moment when you need to put your legs over his shoulders, try imagining it.”

“That moment? …Oh, oh, that’s bad, why is he like that?” Once I understood the implication, I let out a big sigh, but I wasn’t surprised at his kind of humor.

“He’s so damn eager, he’s got the heart for it.” North said with a pleased laugh,

“Oh, I heard he came to see you at noon.”

“How did you know?”

“Ter told me, Phii Arthit was doing rounds with Phii Hill these days. Phii Hill said today there was hardly time to breathe, but Phii Arthit made a quick trip to deliver food to you and then dashed back, like a speed demon.”

“Riding a motorcycle?”

“Maybe twisting ears or something, why so fast, I can’t even think.” North said. I couldn’t help but smile at his confused look, “Did you eat and take your medicine?”

“Yeah, and how was class today?”

“We had a pair project, just right. I’ll send you the details later, let Arthit take notes.” North said since we had one class together today, “I’ve told the professor you’re excused, don’t forget to submit the excuse note later.”

“Hmm, got it.”

“Your  leg’s been bad for several days now.”

“I can walk, it should be fine in a few days.”

“Yeah, but why are you staying in his room?”

“He didn’t tell you?”

“No, he called this morning, said to come keep you company after class, told me you sprained your ankle in his room and gave me a brief rundown on you two.”

“Oh. He just took my key card.”

“Forced you to stay with him?”

“Yes.”

“Oh, my senior, he forces what he can’t have, and you still opened your heart to this damn devil, for God’s sake.”

“Would you not do the same?”

“Not if it was Phii Arthit.” North said, “Do you think we’re alike?”

“Alike. He’s just more vulgar.”

“Like siblings crawling after each other. No way, I don’t want to be with someone like me.” North waved his hand dismissively, “What about the snake?”

“It’s in my room now.”    “Oh, switched rooms?”

“Yes.”

“Uh-huh…he’s got guts, but what did you trip on?”

“I don’t know, it was dark at the time, and I forgot to look. When I checked in the morning, it was gone.” I said, pointing to where I fell last night, and North looked over.

“He probably threw it away.”

“Oh, really?”

“And you’re wearing his shirt and pants? They’re so loose.”

“Uh-huh. I didn’t have a change of clothes.”

“Want my shirt? I’ll take it off for you.”

“North, you’re always quick to strip too.” I teased.

“Kidding, then should I climb up to get you a shirt? And bring some other stuff of yours too.”

“No need, it’s dangerous, this is the seventh floor.”

“I’m good at climbing, I used to have a job that involved a lot of climbing.”    “Jo?”

“Coconut seller.”

“Hmm.”

“You’re good at cracking jokes, but they’re not funny.”

“I was laughing inside, loudly too.”

“Okay, got it.” North nodded, “So what are you doing?”

“Working.”

“Then I’ll just disturb you.”

“Right.”

“Out of kindness, you don’t have to keep it.” North pretended to complain, “Can you sense anything from these snacks, or is the little brother just messing with me?”

“I don’t know. It’s fine, I’ll keep them for us.”

“You’re too kind, willing to be deceived for me, true friend, die with me, man.”

“No.”

“You’ll die with Phii Arthit, huh?” North squinted, teasing me. I kept a straight face until he looked bored, “Have you ever been embarrassed by teasing? Have you ever felt embarrassed in your life? Did you come with emotions attached?! Do you have a heart at all?”

“It’s colored.”

“Huh?”

“He’s the one who made me realize I have a heart too.”

 

WESTTHESUNFROMANOTHERSTAR CHAPTERS HOME

   WESTTHESUNFROMANOTHERSTAR, Chapter 28: Crazy You

   Daotok

   I was working with one of my hands being held warmly. After my words seemed to give him permission to do whatever he wanted, he looked as excited as a child who got candy after being praised by a teacher.

“You’re giving me hope here.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, you’re giving me courage, and now, it feels like I can do anything.”

“No, you can’t.”

“You let me kiss you just now.”

“Is that called letting?” I countered, before when he suddenly leaned in to kiss my cheek without warning, I was genuinely surprised, and by the time I composed myself, he had already withdrawn his lips. Complaining would only make me more frustrated.

“See what happens when you play with fire?”

“…” I didn’t respond while my other hand was still sketching on the tablet. It wouldn’t be long before today’s work was done.

I still couldn’t believe I had to stay over at his place. I didn’t feel safe at all. I planned to wait for him to fall asleep before sneaking out to a nearby hotel.

“Almost done, huh?”

“Uh-huh.”

“Quick, huh? Must have gotten a lot of encouragement from me.”

“Then it’ll take even longer to finish, it feels like something’s holding me back.”

“You’ve got a sharp tongue.”

“Kidding.”

“So, you felt encouraged by me?”

“Oh…this is encouragement?”

“Yes, but I’m also taking some bonus.” He said, looking at our clasped hands. He started pulling my hand closer and kissed the back of it, moving to the fingertips, then gently biting my knuckle. I watched these actions without understanding.

“Why bite?”

“It’s itchy.”

“Like a newborn puppy or something?”

“Why does it have to be a puppy?”

“Puppies get itchy teeth and like to bite everything.”

“Who told you that?”

“Grandma.”

“Oh, yeah, but I do have itchy teeth.”

“It hurts.”

“Hurts?”

“I mean from last time when you bit my neck.”

“I told you I wouldn’t do that anymore.”

“Hmm.”

“Until you’re okay with it, that is, but you’ve opened up to me already.” He said, laughing in a good mood, still messing with my cheek and hand. Even though it was annoying, I didn’t complain for the same reason as before; complaining would just be a waste of energy. I’ve resigned myself to the situation.

Besides…it doesn’t feel bad.

It doesn’t feel disgusting or give me goosebumps. It’s just a bit annoying.    I didn’t respond further, focusing on the work in front of me until I lost track of time, and I had gotten so used to his touch that I didn’t mind the hand that still hadn’t let go, until the work was done and sent to the client.

I only realized that the person next to me had been quiet for a while. I turned to look and found him dozing off, with one arm supporting his head and the other hand holding mine.

It’s like he came to watch me work…no, that’s exactly what he did, he sat here watching me work until he fell asleep.

‘You first smile’

   A familiar sweet voice that I hadn’t heard in a while rang out. I turned to see a little girl in a white dress holding a teddy bear, Emma standing beside me with her usual wide, cheerful smile.

During my time abroad, I didn’t take Emma with me, so we hadn’t seen each other for a while.

As Emma said…I found myself smiling at him without realizing it.

‘He looks so tired, doesn’t he?’

   ‘Yeah, must have been studying hard. Plus, he woke up early.’

   I thought to myself before slowly pulling my hand away. I didn’t think it would wake him up. His beautiful eyes opened slowly, looking displeased at being woken up so suddenly; he furrowed his brows at me.

“Is your work done?”

“Uh-huh, go back to sleep.”

“No, I was just napping, I’ll read some more.”

“Oh.”

“You should go take a shower, I’ll lend you a shirt.”

“…It’s fine, I can sleep in my old clothes.”

“What’s wrong with just borrowing my shirt?”

“It won’t fit.”

“Yeah, you’re right.” He replied before letting go of my hand and getting up to go to the wardrobe. The hand he had just released felt cold immediately. The room owner brought me a T-shirt and long pants. I looked at them and immediately knew I’d have to roll up the pants several times.

“I’ll wash them and return them later.”

“No worries, I’ll keep them to sniff.”

“…”

“What? I like your smell.” He said, laughing when he saw my surprised expression, “It’s normal, even North does it. If I had to choose between sniffing your shirt or hugging you, which would you prefer?”

“Neither.”

“You’re so stingy.”

“Uh-huh.” I responded before heading to the bathroom, closing the door hurriedly. I don’t know why, but I felt I needed to close it quickly. I heard laughter from the other side.

“Afraid I’ll come in and see you showering or what?”

“Uh-huh.”

“I won’t do it, even if I want to see.”

“…”

“Actually, I’ve installed a camera inside, you take off your shirt and I can see it on my phone.”

His words made me pause because I was indeed about to take off my shirt.

“Will…you really?”

“Just kidding, why? were you about to take off your shirt just now?”

“Hmm.”

“Hahaha. Okay, I won’t tease you, I feel sorry for you.”

“You didn’t install a camera, right?”

“Why would I install a camera in my own bathroom? To watch myself shower?

Go shower, you’re too suspicious of me.”

“But it’s you.”

“So what if it’s me?”

“Whatever.”

I cut him off before really taking off my clothes, getting into the bathtub, turning on the warm water, and waiting for the tub to fill up. I leaned back, scooping water to splash on my face to relax, and after a while, Emma walked through the door, sitting down on the floor, holding onto the edge of the tub.

‘Michael.’

   “Hmm.”

I answered softly, certain that no one else could hear.

‘I’m glad that you opened your heart to someone.’

   “Why?”

‘Even though he’s rough and seems harsh, his love is like that of a very innocent child.’

   “Really?”

‘Hmm,’ Emma responded, dipping her finger into the water and swirling it around, ‘He’s never had love, he’s sincere and doesn’t lie. There’s nothing hidden, he’s natural, he’s everything you like.’

   “But I only opened up a bit. Just thinking that it might be safe with this person.”

‘That’s right, it should be safe, huh?’

   “Yes.”

It should be safe…

With everything he’s done for me…as I was about to leave his house, I suddenly thought:

‘If it’s this person…then it should be okay.’

   I feel like it would be safe. If I placed my heart in his hands, he wouldn’t break it again because he makes me feel that way…so I want to try opening my heart to him.

‘Michael, you might not like him that much yet, but I think that no matter how long it takes, he’ll stay.’

   “If he really stays, then…”

‘Doesn’t you want it to be him, the one who will stay until the day you dares to give your whole heart?’

   “But I don’t know how long it will take, it seems like I am selfish to make him wait without a goal.”

‘Michael, you warned him about this when he confessed…and he said he would stay, didn’t he?’

   Emma’s words made me remember the first day he confessed his love. I both rejected and warned him that it might be a waste of time, but it was him who insisted he wanted to stay. I don’t know how serious his words were, but I want to try trusting him once.

“If one day he gets tired of waiting because we never like him back…”

‘He said you don’t have to like him, he just wants to be with you. If one day he really leaves, it means he’s like everyone else who just lies, but we’re confident he’s not like that.’

   “Well, you never know, people can change.”

‘Michael is hoping…that he won’t change.’

   “Yeah…probably.”

‘Believe me, he doesn’t lie; he might be the most honest being on this earth.’

Emma’s words made me inadvertently smile, ‘Why not read his heart then?’

   “No.”

‘Why?’

   “It seems dishonest, using that ability. Besides…if he doesn’t lie, he should prove it himself, why should we be the ones to prove it?”

‘Michael you talk a lot more now.’

   “Really?”

‘Hmm. You talk more when you’re with him, you even ask questions back. It’s different from before.’

   “And is that good?”

‘It’s good, of course, you’re a bit stronger now. Good love will make a person grow,’ Emma said, her eyes on the teddy bear floating in the warm water of the tub. ‘Do you remember the first day you created me?’

   “Hmm.”

‘Back then, Michael had no one, so you created me. I was the only one you could talk to about everything. I hope he can become that person instead of me.

Then I can retire.’

   “You don’t want to talk to me anymore?”

‘Not at all, but having someone you can truly trust and rely on is better, isn’t it?’

   “Hmm.”

‘But if you’re lonely, you can still call me to talk anytime.’

   “Understood.”

‘And…you like it when he’s jealous, right?’

   “Hmm, it feels good…in a way.”

‘Ha ha, that’s strange, even though he can be scary.’

   “When someone gives you attention, you’re bound to feel good…I think.”

‘But you are starting to get used to his touch, aren’t you ?’

   “A little, like if he holds my hand for a long time and then suddenly lets go, it feels…empty, I can’t quite describe it.”

‘He’s slowly infiltrating, and before you know it, you are already used to it.’

   “Like a worm burrowing into our life.”

‘…Yeah, I guess so.’

   After talking with Emma for a while, I let myself relax in the hot water with the short-haired, brown-haired girl humming a tune from where she sat. Emma’s face has never changed since I can remember, she’s just grown taller. Her face resembles that of an American girl from a movie I liked when I was young, wearing a white dress and holding a teddy bear. I created her based on my own likes.

‘Michael’

   “What?”

‘Do you want me to talk to him?’

   “…”

‘You’ve accidentally told him about us, haven’t you? Deep down, you’re happy that he treated it like it was normal.’

   “He just didn’t say anything.”

I said, and my smiling expression didn’t change at all. Emma is an imaginary friend that sometimes I think of as real because I’ve never once changed her character or appearance to suit my whims. Emma remains Emma, a part of my subconscious that can’t lie or deceive me.

If he showed any sign of thinking it’s strange or not accepting it, Michael would never open his heart to him.

“…”

‘What’s important is that someone who truly accepts our real self without wanting to change it, sees our true self as the best.’

   “Which is rare.”

‘But you’ve found him.’

   “…Oh, uh. I think I …”

‘Are you embarrassed?’

   “Yes. I think it’s too much. If everything he says is true…”

‘You’re saying this again, whether it’s true or not, you’ve already talked. And what’s too much?’

   “His sincerity, his feelings…it’s too much.” I said softly, my eyes gazing absentmindedly at the light yellow wall, sinking further into the warm water until only my eyes were visible. I wasn’t sure if my flushed face was due to the hot water or embarrassment.

But my heart was beating fast again…

‘Not used to it?’

   “Yes.” I answered in my mind before sinking my head completely into the hot water, staying there until I couldn’t hold my breath any longer, then I surfaced.

‘You like doing this when you can’t think of anything, huh?’

   “Hmm.”

‘Did you think of anything new?’

   “Not at all.”

I answered, soaking in the bath for a while longer before getting out, drying off, and getting dressed. I had to fold the sleeves several times and roll up the pants to make them fit properly. Imagine a shirt and pants that are way too big, with sleeves and pant legs folded several times; it probably doesn’t look great, and I definitely don’t like it much.

I pulled the drawstring of my pants as tight as I could to keep them from falling, checked myself in the mirror to make sure everything was okay, and then left the bathroom.

As soon as I stepped out, I saw the owner of the room lying on the sofa. He heard the door open and sat up, turning to look at me.

“Wow.” He said, looking somewhat astonished by something. I didn’t care and immediately asked something else.

“Where should I put the towel?”

“Hang it anywhere.”

“Hmm.” I walked to hang the towel on the balcony.

“And you’re going to sleep now?” He asked. It was almost nine at night, so I nodded in response. Since I’d finished my work, there was nothing left to do. He got up from the sofa and approached me. I instinctively backed away until I hit the wall. Seeing this, he smiled, “You’re so suspicious of me.”

“What are you going to do?”

“What I want to do.” He said before leaning down and pressing his nose against my neck, making me tense up without realizing it. I tried to push him away but failed; he moved up to nuzzle around my ear, making me feel ticklish all over.

“Get off.”

“When you’re wet, you’re damn sexy.”

He whispered in a hoarse voice, and suddenly my heart started beating faster. His warm breath and soft lips pressed against my neck and shoulder, kissing and nibbling gently.

“No…no.” I tried to push him away with all my strength, but the person in front of me only snuggled closer, making my face flush with heat. Those kisses indicated how skilled he was before he started sucking and biting, causing pain.    “No, get off, you said you wouldn’t do this anymore.” I said firmly and pushed him away with all my might.

And he finally backed off willingly, looking somewhat displeased.

“You make me lose my mind.”

“What?”

“Why did you put on my shirt like that?” He furrowed his brows, pulling my collar into place. I looked down. When I checked in the mirror, I thought the collar was fine, but because the shirt was too large, the neckline was too wide. “Do something so I don’t see it, damn, it’s so white.”

“…”

“Dry your hair too, quick.”

“Understood.” I said before quickly adjusting my collar to cover myself properly, breathing a little heavily because my heart was beating so fast. Saying I wasn’t scared at all wouldn’t be possible, but it seemed like he was trying to control himself too.

“Damn…can I endure this for three nights?” He muttered to himself, gently rubbing his face and running his hand through his hair.

“You can let me go back, you know.”

“No way.”

“You promised not to do anything.”

“I know, but who told you to be so white. Not good. It’s not about being white, I’m crazy about you, understand?”

“…”

“I’m almost going crazy for you.”

“I understand.”

“Then answer.”

“Just…uh, I can’t speak. I didn’t think it would be that much.” I said honestly, feeling my heart flutter inside. Whether it was his actions or his words, they all made me feel shaky, though I didn’t show it.

It’s not that I don’t want to. It’s just that normally, no matter how I feel, I always show a calm demeanor; it’s become part of me. No matter how chaotic it is inside, I stay calm on the outside, and it’s been a long time since my heart was this turbulent.

   “It’s like that, damn, aren’t you overdoing it? Just finished showering, just showing a bit of shoulder and chest, and my hair’s wet, I’m just…you’re even better than a porn star, I’m telling you.”

“…” I was taken aback because I didn’t expect him to compare like that. I can say I’m just an ordinary guy who isn’t sexy or appealing in any way, but he seemed to be struggling so much that he was upset at himself for reacting this way, “Uh…”    “What, I’m trying to keep my composure here!” He exclaimed loudly.

“…”

“Calm down.” I said, “Take deep breaths.”

“Why does the one who made me lose my mind have to help me regain it? How come you’re more composed than me when I’m the one messing with you?”

“Try thinking about your dad’s face. Did you enjoy the meal with Direk today?”    “…” He fell silent upon hearing what I said, looking stunned for almost half a minute before he spoke, “Uh, it was…okay, what’s this about?”

…

“It’s to change what you’re thinking about, so you stop thinking about what just happened.”

“While you’re standing there in my clothes, and you want me to think about

Direk? Oh, shit, now I’ve got a headache.”

“Did it help?”

“A little, let me call Direk for a moment.”

“Okay, try it. Let him help you regain your composure.”

“Yeah, okay, wait here.”

“Hmm.”

…

Arthit

   “Direk.”

(What now?)

   “What should I do?”

(Huh? What’s with you?)

   “It’s like…I got aroused, you know, because the short guy just took a shower. With my imagination going wild, I was picturing things, and then he walks out, all damp, wearing my shirt that’s way too big, you can see his chest and shoulders a bit, he’s so white, not that the whiteness matters, it’s just him. I went crazy, like something snapped and I lost my mind. He smells so good, so soft, I wanted to…I wanted it so bad.”

(You got aroused, that’s what you’re saying.)

   “Yeah, that’s it, damn, I was aroused, really bad.”

(Did you do anything to him?)

   “Use his neck. Suck on his neck too, so damn fragrant, is it pheromones? I’m dizzy, damn it.”

(He has parents, Arthit.)

   “I know, damn it. Who grows out of mold, anyway?”

(You like him. It’s not strange, especially when you’re infatuated with him.)    “Really? But I’ve never felt like this before.”

(You like him, that’s why he’s different from others. You’re head over heels without even realizing it, you fool.)

   “And survive for three nights, will we make it?”

(Hey?)

   “Hmm.”

(Just keep your composure, Arthit. If you can do that, he’ll definitely like you.)

   “Damn, but he said he’s opened his heart.”

(Yeah, he’s made the effort to open up, and you go drooling over him, you bastard.)

   “A little more and it would be drool hanging from a kite.”

(Oh, damn, I can’t take it, don’t say things like that to him, you bastard.)

   “Just kidding, I wouldn’t say that to him.”

(Really?)

   “Really, at most just general vulgarity. I’m not that kind of person. I don’t talk dirty in bed.”

(Good, feeling better now?)

   “Yeah, feeling better, Direk, you’re a lifesaver, thanks a lot.”

(Sigh, why, why do I have to have a son like you?) Direk let out a big sigh, (He’s cute, so take good care of him. He’s just tiny, don’t be too rough or he’ll get bruised all over.)

   “Yeah, he’s really small. I’m not that big either, but my shirt is so loose on him.”

(You’re not big, my ass, your muscles are as big as my head.)

   “Head of what?”

(Shoulder, that’s what.)

   “Ke, he told me to think about your face while I was trying to stay composed.”

(Shit) Direk burst out laughing loudly, (Really?)

   “Really. I was thinking, uh…what does my dad’s face look like?”    (Damn, want to put my picture on your bedpost, you bastard, such a pervert.)

   “Kidding. But thinking about you did help, it was him who told me to calm down, it’s just so damn confusing.” I said, laughing along now that everything was back to normal, the one who was affected is more composed than me, the one who caused it, damn, “Direk.”

(What?)

   “Direk.”

(What’s with you?)

   “Direk.”

(What the hell are you calling for?)

   “I like him, I really do.”

(Then go tell him, why are you telling me?)

   “I’ve told him morning, noon, and night, I think. I like him, I like him a lot, I like him so much I don’t know what to do about it, damn.”

(Can’t you just keep it in your pants?)

   “Keep what in my pants, if I keep it in, I can’t even hug him.”

(Yeah, you’re right about that.)

   “I’m hanging up now, going back to him.”

(Is everything back to normal?)

   “Yes, all good, tonight will definitely pass smoothly.”

And then I hung up from Direk after acting crazy for a while. I don’t know what it was, but just seeing him walk out of the bathroom made me feel exactly as I described to Direk. I lost my mind for a moment until he helped me regain it and pushed me away. Truth is, that push wasn’t strong enough to really move me, but I backed off willingly.

After that, I was irritated and didn’t even understand myself. I was irritated because I had to feel this way about this short guy. I knew he still couldn’t handle all my feelings, but damn, I couldn’t control myself.

But it really is that much, you know, just seeing him makes me almost crazy, like I’m so damn in love I don’t even know if he’ll accept it.

I opened the door and found that little guy seemingly searching for something in the wardrobe.

“What are you doing?”

“Looking for a small blanket.”

“Up top.”

“Oh.”

I reached up to grab the blanket from the top shelf, but before I could pull it out, I found myself close to him, so instead, I hugged him from behind. He stiffened and seemed unsure of what to do.

“Sorry.”

“…”

“I don’t understand it myself, I just told you a moment ago. Didn’t mean to.”

“Oh…it’s okay.”

“Does it hurt?”

“It doesn’t hurt.”

“I don’t know what’s happening to me.” I lowered my head to rest on his small, fragile shoulder, “But I like you.”

“Uh-huh.”

“I really do, I like you so much I don’t know what to do anymore.”

…

Daotok

   The embrace from behind didn’t make me feel too uncomfortable. Right now, I feel like he doesn’t dare to hold me tightly, laying his face gently on my shoulder. I could sense his voice sounding almost like a plea.

What I thought a few minutes ago about it being too much must be true. His feelings for me are overwhelming, so much so that I, who have just started, can’t keep up.

He’s said he likes me countless times. It’s not that he doesn’t value those words, but he truly means it, like he likes me so much he doesn’t know where to put it, so it spills out in words.

“Uh-huh, I understand.”

“Understand what?”

“When you said you like me …”

“Oh, hmm.” and he hugged me a bit tighter, “How much do you like me?”

“Not as much as you like me, for sure.”

“I’m not expecting that.”

“Oh…”    No.

Because if one day I start liking him, it won’t be any less than how much he likes me.

“I don’t like you…that much yet, but I’ve…opened up a lot. So, can you not scare me again?”

“I’ll try.” He said in a softer voice than usual, “What’s my score now?”

“Minus one, for scaring me.”

“No, I’ve realized my mistake, let’s call it even at zero.”

“Oh…you want zero?”

“…”

“I saw that you realized your mistake, so I’ll give you two…minus one leaves one, but if you want zero, that’s okay.”

“One, give me one.”

“Okay.” I secretly smiled, thinking he wouldn’t know that I’m slowly opening up and gradually liking him more and more. I’m aware of it. Just look at everything he does. It’s just that I haven’t liked him that much yet because it’s just the beginning. “Sigh, you must have put something in that omelet in San Francisco, are you into witchcraft or something?” He asked playfully, then released me from the hug and reached for a blanket.

“Yes, witchcraft.”

“What kind?”

“Archery buffalo curse.”

“Trying to kill me, huh?”

“Yes.”

“And here I thought I got one point.” He said with a good-natured laugh, no longer seeming as troubled as before. While he was out talking on the phone, I dried my hair and used a safety pin to keep my shirt from being too loose. Luckily, I found one in the closet; it must have fallen from one of the shirts in there, “Come on, be my boyfriend already, you do like me.”

“Just a little.” I said, taking the blanket and hugging it as I walked to the sofa with him following behind, “Aren’t you going to shower?”

“I’ll shower if you stand guard.”

“No.”

“Oh, I’ll shower first then.”

“Uh-huh.”

And then he went into the bathroom with a towel and a change of clothes. I sat down on the sofa and plugged my phone into the charger on the table. The thought of sneaking out when he’s asleep was still there, but thinking about it, would he even sleep? He just took a nap, and he probably stays up late like me.

“Why take the blanket if you’re going to sleep on the sofa?” He walked out of the bathroom and remarked immediately. He was in a black tank top and long pants, the black tank top looking good on him, especially with the tattoo peeking out from his shoulder, along with his muscular arms that showed he worked out a lot. I averted my eyes before he teased me for staring.

“Uh-huh.”

“Go sleep in the bed, it’s better.”

“No.”

“Hey.”

“No.”

“Want me to carry you?”

“Want me to deduct points?” I threatened. I didn’t want to do this, but I wouldn’t let him take advantage or be pushy anymore.

“Damn, you’re negotiating.”

“Yes.”

“Think I’m scared or something?”

“…Aren’t you scared?”

“No, minus is minus, the score is secondary, the main thing is I want to be with you.” He said with a relaxed tone. I let out a small sigh, that’s right…this is Phii Arthit after all, “So, you’ll sleep on the sofa?”

“Yes.”

“Okay, I’ll spare you tonight, considering I did something wrong to you.” He said before laying out a blanket on the floor next to the sofa.

“What are you doing?”

“I want to be close, that’s why.”

“Oh…why not go sleep in the nice bed?”

“Will you go to bed?”

“No.”

“Then I’ll stay here.”

“…”

 

WESTTHESUNFROMANOTHERSTAR CHAPTERS HOME

   WESTTHESUNFROMANOTHERSTAR, Chapter 27: Bro Zoned

   Arthit

   Shit, shit, shit.

I was so shocked I slammed on the brakes with all my might.

Since the car wasn’t going fast and we hadn’t left the house, there was no danger, but the main issue was what the short guy had just said.

“…Are you serious?”

“Yeah.”

“Fuck… damn, damn. No lies, I’ll knock you out if you’re lying.”

“…Not lying.”

“Damn…so we start from zero now?”

“Hmm.”

“How much is full, zero?”

“Is there such a thing as full zero?” He asked in a flat tone, contrasting with my excited, impatient happiness that left me unable to do anything properly at the moment.

“There is, so does that mean you’re my boyfriend now?”

“Not yet. I just said we’re starting.”

“We can date in the meantime, right?”

“No.”

“And how do we count the points? What’s the full score, is it five?”

“I don’t know, there might not be a fixed score like that.”

“So it depends on the feeling then.” I asked before slowly releasing the brake and stepping on the accelerator to move the car away from the house.

“Uh-huh.”

“Damn, for real, I’m so damn happy.” I said according to my true feelings, this is awesome, starting to count points means opening your heart, right? Wow, he’s so handsome, I really don’t know what to say. If it’s not me, who else could make a robot open its heart? This is the best, right, Hia? Damn, I’m so happy, I’m so happy I can’t even go on anymore, “You’re so damn cute.”

I said with a grin, lightly pushing his head. He didn’t react at all, even though he should have shown some reaction more than me, but whatever, he’s just a lowbattery robot.

   He said because I was sincere and trusted him, that’s why he opened up. Well, of course, who else would dare to give as much as I do, huh? Ha, in this whole universe, who could give as much as I do? Damn! Damn! It’s me, I’m the one who gives this much!!

   “And how long do you think it’ll take before you date me?”

“Don’t know.”

“Depends on what I do?”

“Yes.”

“I’m giving my all for you.”

“Oh…uh-huh.”

“And will I get any special rights, like being able to kiss after six in the evening until five in the morning?” I asked because since it’s progressed to the next level, I should get some rights, right?

“No.”

“What? Then can I at least hold your hand willingly?”

“Haven’t we been holding hands already?”

“I want it to be willing, like you reach out to hold my hand yourself.”

“Can’t do that.”

“Why?”

“Because I’m not fully willing.”

“You’re so difficult.” I grumbled in frustration, “Fine, I’ll force you like before.”

“Hmm.”

“Yeah, you know everything about me, can I get to know you a bit?”

“No.”

“You answered without even thinking, think about it.”

“No.”

“Come on.”

“I don’t like others knowing my business.”

“I’m not ‘others’ anymore, am I? So, what am I to you?”

“A senior I know.”

“Damn, senior zoned.”

“…”

“Yeah, so you know me as a senior, then you should be able to talk about yourself, right? You know everything about me. It’s not fair, where can I sue? Do I need to call a lawyer, or will we meet in court?”

“…I’ll tell you.”

“Good, I like it when you play along. Let’s ask when we get back to the room.”

“Hmm.”

And then I drove until we stopped under my condo, at the very end of the parking lot where I have my spot reserved. Of course, no one else is allowed to park here except for my cars, and this was now the fourth car parked here. I really want to know why a person like me drives four cars, it’s so wasteful, but if you ask if I like it, I do. I could change cars every day if I wanted to; there are plenty at home, but I only drive a few regularly, so I keep some here at the condo, just like Jo does. Hill and Fah, who aren’t into cars, only have two, with one as a spare.

I parked next to my beloved black McLaren, which is now falling out of favor because of this Bugatti I’m driving. Even though Direk said not to drive it casually, after the race, it’ll be mine anyway.

“Do you like this car?”

“Huh?”

“Do you like it, the new car?”

“Mmm, good.”

“Compared to the old one, which do you like more?”

“Why?”

“To be used for picking you up and dropping you off.”

“Oh, either one is fine.”

“Pick the one you think is more comfortable.”

“They’re the same.”

“So whichever one then?”

“Uh-huh.”

“What about the motorcycle?”

“Isn’t it the same with the big bikes?” it said, which was true; I only have two big bikes, one as a spare. If you ask why I must have big bikes, it’s because they look good, and they match my height. Everyone in our group rides big bikes, even Fah, because if it’s not a big bike, our legs would be too long, so it has to be a large motorcycle to fit right.

“They’re different, different models, different brands.”

“Either one is fine, but I’d rather drive myself.” it said, and right now, I was thinking that one day, I would definitely puncture the tires of that motorcycle, that obstacle in my path of love, that damn bike.

I didn’t say anything, just got out of the car and took out Cat’s soft-boiled egg ghost’s belongings.

Speaking of which, what should I do with my snake? Cat and the snake probably shouldn’t live together…or should I try to let them meet first, maybe they could be friends, it’s better than nothing, my snake is expensive, damn.

We took the elevator up to my room and unlocked the door.

“Oh, what about the snake?” it asked first, “It’s pretty, but Mr. Jeon probably won’t like it.”

“Yeah, that’s true.” I agreed, putting down the things in my hand and walking over to pick up the snake’s box. Mr. Jeon immediately looked scared.

“Then should I go back to my room? So both the snake and a cat can be safe.”    “Do you think you can lure me with that?” I narrowed my eyes, “It’s not you who has to go back to your room, it’s my snake that has to stay in your room.”

“…”

I picked up some dinner for the snake and put it in a box before leaving my room with the snake box in hand, the other holding the key card to the room next door. I unlocked the door, placed the snake box on the table, and then returned to my room. I saw the short guy playing with Cat on the floor.

“Why not sit on the sofa?”

“No.”

“Why?” I asked as I sat down on the floor opposite him.

“Why don’t you sit on the sofa?” He countered with the same question.

“I’ve got my snake here, why would I go anywhere else?”

“…”

“Where did you get Mr. Jeon from?” I asked, reaching over to play with Mr.

Jeon, who didn’t seem to mind my touch, confirming that Mr. Jeon really likes me.

“I picked him up from my old dorm, but they wouldn’t let me keep him.”

“Oh, so you moved because of him?”

“Yes.”

“Are you Cupid or something?” I said playfully, teasing him. Then Mr. Jeon left the short guy’s lap to come lie on mine, which made him furrowed his brows in confusion, “He likes me more than you.”

“Mr. Jeon. No, come back to me.”

“…”

“Mr. Jeon…do you like him more than me?”

“Now, Mr. Jeon, he’s being dramatic, what should we do?” I spoke to the black lump lying on my lap, completely unconcerned.

“Phii…”

He called me in a soft voice, his brows slightly furrowed. I didn’t know what it meant, but for sure, I was completely lost, my mind in a mess.

“…”

“Mr. Jeon, go back.” I said, but it still didn’t pay attention. Ha, you like me, I’m fine with it, but your owner, Cat, will be jealous.

“It’s okay, Mr. Jeon might be sleepy. Please put him on the bed.” He said before trying to stand up. So, I took the black ball and placed it on its bed as instructed by its owner.

“What are you going to do?”

“Well…work.”

“What work?”

“Designing a poster for a clothing store.”

“Oh, can I see?”

“Is there nothing else for you to do?”

“There is, but I want to stay with you first.”

“Oh…uh-huh, can I use the desk?”

“Sure, go ahead.” I was allowed before he opened his computer, which was already on the desk. I dragged a chair over to sit beside him, watching him work like I had nothing else to do, but in reality, I had heaps of study sheets to read until my butt was practically on fire.

I saw him open a file with a poster.

“Did you design this yourself?”

“He gave a brief.”

“Oh.”

“How is it?”

“Are you asking for my opinion?”

“No, I am asking Mr. Jeon.”

“Oh, then go ahead.”

“…I asked you, how can Mr. Jeon answer, are you crazy?”

“Oh. Normally, I see you talk to him.” I furrowed my brows, “If you’re asking me, I’d say it’s okay, but it’s not attractive enough, and what does the store need?”

“They need a poster”

“Sorry, damn, I mean what kind of work do they want?”

“The shop has a promotion next month, they want a poster that makes people turn into the store when they see it.”

“Have one employee stand at the front and hit customers over the head to drag them in, it would be much easier. How could a poster make everyone who passes by turn in?”

“…Not attractive enough?” He said as if talking to himself, already ignoring my words, before starting to work on the poster. I sat there, chin on my knee, watching him from the side.

Why isn’t he losing focus, if it were me with someone staring like this, I’d have kicked them away by now, looking at him so intently, why not look at me instead, bastard?

“Can we talk?”

“Hmm.”

“You’re not losing focus?”

“I can manage. Just need to adjust a bit.”

“Oh, why did you dye your hair blue?”

“I wanted to.”

“I’ll dye mine too, to match you.”

“Up to you.”

“Do you have any tattoos?” I asked, noticing a small part of a tattoo peeking out from under his sleeve.

“A little.”

“What do you have tattooed?”

“Things that represent my parents’ names, my grandma, stuff like that.”

“Oh…Can I ask about your family?”

“Hmm, sure. I know everything about yours, consider it an exchange.”    “Damn, who was the tall English guy in your room that day?” I asked, my voice unintentionally showing some annoyance. He paused slightly before slowly turning to look at me.

“In the room?”

“The tall Englishman you called ‘Daddy’.”

“It’s ‘dad’ then.”

“…Your father?”

“No. Not him, my father is someone else.”

“…”

I inadvertently clenched my fist upon hearing that answer.

“Break up with him.”

“Huh?”

“Stop messing with him.”

I spoke with a firm tone and a serious expression without realizing it, and then anger started to surge within me, so much so that the person sitting next to me looked confused and moved away slightly.

“Don’t run away.”

“…”

“Don’t go away from me.”

I sighed to calm myself down.

“Sorry, why call him ‘dad’ if he’s not your father?”

I asked after cooling myself down a bit, trying not to show my anger. The person I asked furrowed his brows before looking like he remembered something.

“Oh, there’s a misunderstanding.”

“What?”

“He’s my papa’s husband.”

“…Oh.”

“So I call him ‘Dad’. Not in the way you thought.”

“Oh, uh, okay.”

I sighed again, and now the anger was quickly fading away. Why did I get so mad before even getting an answer? I know I have a temper, but I didn’t think it was this bad, to the point where I didn’t even wait to hear him out.

   “Are you scared?”

I asked while gently patting his head.

He nodded.

“But you know I won’t do anything to you.”

“Won’t go that far.”

“What if it’s like what you think?”

“Are you trying to test my heart?”

“Yes.”

“That’s not the answer you want to hear.”

“Are you going to kill Daddy?”

“Why do you think I’d kill him, that’s too much.” I furrowed my brows, a small laugh escaping because of how serious he looked.

“You’d definitely do it, tie him up, burn him, or cement his feet and throw him into the water, or feed him to sharks or crocodiles.”

“I’m not a mafia, damn it.”

“So you can’t do it?”

“I can.” I answered truthfully, “I can have someone else do it, even erase his record.”

“Oh…I see.”

“But if it really happened, I wouldn’t know what to do. I’d be angry first, but then I’d figure out what to do next.”

“If I was dating someone else from the start, I would have told you already. I wouldn’t let you hover around like this.”

“What if it was a secret that someone else was there already?”

“Oh…hmm, then what would you do?”

“I don’t know, just forget it.” I said to close the topic. Because if the short guy really did have someone from the start and kept it a secret, I wouldn’t know what to do either. “But I’d want you to choose me.”

“Like, break up with him and then date you?”

“Yes.”

“It’s wrong, you know.”

“Who cares? I have to fight even if it was the other man.”

“Oh…uh-huh.”

“Papa is really your dad, and that person is your dad’s new partner, which means your parents are divorced?”

“Yes.”

“Why did they break up? Can I ask?”

“Uh-huh. They just didn’t love each other anymore, that’s all.”

“Are you okay with it?”

“I’m okay, they’re just ordinary people. They had love, but that love hit a dead end like anyone else.”

“Yeah, good, so you live with your Papa and your Dad now?”

“Yes.”

“What are your Papa and Dad’s names? So I can get to know them.”

“Papa’s name is Pai, Dad’s name is Gavin.”

“Oh, uh-huh, I’ll have Direk arrange the dowry in advance then.” I said, and of course, I wasn’t joking, there will come a day when Direk has to make contact.

“No, thanks.”

“Why not? You could get a billion if you want.”

“Your money?”

“My dad’s money, where would I get a billion from?”

“…” He didn’t answer and turned back to his work. I took advantage of him being focused on work to gently pinch his cheek with a grin, “What are you doing?” He asked while letting me play with his cheek like that.

“It’s soft, can I kiss it?”

“No.”

“Really?” I answered that before leaning in and pressing my lips to his soft cheek, ignoring the previous refusal. He was slightly startled before moving his chair away. This time, I caught the chair immediately, “I told you not to move away from me.”

“Why?”

“Don’t like it.”

“Sigh.”

“You look tired being with me.”

“Yeah.”

“That’s bad, just a little tired, keep fighting.”

“…Hmm.”

“And what about your future dream?”

“Oh…to make Mr. Jeon happy.”

“Damn, say something you want to do, like a career or something.”

“I want to open my own gallery.”

“Oh…that’s fitting, where would you open it?”

“I don’t know yet.”

“Wait…what are you studying again?”

“Biology.”

“What, why not study art?”

“I like biology.”

“Oh, I see.”

“You can study art outside of school, but not biology. Many things are only taught in specific departments.”

“Oh…yeah. What will you do with the biology you’ve studied once you graduate?”

“I might…draw microorganisms more accurately.”

“…” His answer left me speechless. Draw microorganisms…what is that,

“Seriously?”

“I might do something related to biology, after all, I’ve studied it for years, and I’ll have to do an internship too.”

“Then would you be interested in forming a band with me? You play guitar.”

“No, thanks, I only play a little.”

“And what about drums, are you still interested?”

“Oh, I am. If I have free time, I’ll go learn.”

“I’ll teach you for free.”

“Really?”

“I don’t want to brag, but I’m really good at drums, you know, you’d be my first student.” I bragged while raising my eyebrows, “When you have time, I’ll take you to the practice room.”

“Oh…uh-huh. We’ll see.”

“Cool.” I shrugged, still sitting with my chin propped on my hand, watching from the side. While we were talking, I kept touching him, pinching his cheek, grabbing his arm; I don’t know why, but I had to look closely, had to touch. I didn’t understand myself either. And he didn’t say anything; he must have given up on me because resisting was pointless, and he couldn’t overpower me. Sigh, it’s pitiful.

“I just realized how jealous I am of you.” I said, thinking back to a few minutes ago when I suddenly got so angry I couldn’t control my tone or my expression. Normally, I don’t bother to control it, but this time, my emotions flared up so quickly.

“Actually…you can’t be jealous.”

“Yes, I can.”

“No, you can’t.”

“I must be.”

“You can’t.”

“I said I can, so I can. Why can’t I?”

“We’re not dating.”

“Then let’s date.”

“You’re so self-centered.”

“Only for you.”

“…”

“Oh, can’t speak, huh? You’re embarrassed.”

“No. Not embarrassed, just genuinely shocked.” He said with a sigh.

“How many points for that kiss earlier?”

“Zero.”

“What, at least one.”

“No.”

“Zero point five, I tried to flirt with you, damn it.”

“No.”

“You’re so complicated.” I grumbled in frustration before reaching out to play with his hair, the blue strands that were quite standout compared to others’ hair color and importantly, they were soft, “This is just how I am. That’s why I said you’ve got a lot of karma, but don’t worry, you can extend your compassion to me.”

“Will you leave after I do?”

“No.” I answered, “Then let me give you one piece of advice.”

“What?”

“Don’t mess with anyone, and don’t let any bastard mess with you. You wouldn’t want anyone to get hurt, right?”

“Are you threatening me?”

“Yeah, let’s say it’s a threat at this point.”

“Hmm.”

“Hmm means?”

“I understand.”

“You’re not objecting at all, I’ll get full of myself, you know.”

“Then get full of yourself.”

“…Damn.”

 

WESTTHESUNFROMANOTHERSTAR CHAPTERS HOME

   WESTTHESUNFROMANOTHERSTAR, Chapter 26: Zero, point

   Daotok

   (Present)

   From a distance, I could see the sleek black car parked, standing out against all the others around it, both in shape and shade. Of course, that includes the price. No need to ask why, but I was sure the owner of that car was the one currently holding my shoulder.

In the few minutes it took me to walk from here to where the car was parked, three people had already stopped to take pictures of it. Once I stood in front of this beautiful black car, I immediately felt more eyes on me than usual.

The warm hand on my shoulder relaxed as he moved away, taking the warmth of his body with him. He returned my phone and earphones before walking over to the driver’s side, and at that moment, I decided to say what I had been thinking since I first saw the car.

“Uh, could I ask for a favor, please?”

“What?”

“Could you go pick up Mr. Jeon for me?”

“You mean this?” He said, opening the door. I walked over, confused, and saw a mysterious black round object on the passenger seat; Mr. Jeon was curled up, then he lifted his yellow eyes to look at me. I rushed to pick him up without even thinking.

“You’ve already picked him up?” I asked, happy even though my face didn’t show it, starting to hug Mr. Jeon tightly and nuzzle him until the familiar scent filled my nose.

“Surprised, huh?”

“Hmm.” I nodded, turning to look at the person standing behind, only then noticing that the car window was slightly down, probably so Mr. Jeon could wait in the car.

“How much?”

“Hmm?”

“Points, I mean. If I successfully woo you, I get 101, right? How many for this?”

“Uh…um. Not possible.”

“Oh.”

“Why should I put up with traffic to pick him up from Fah’s room? If I knew this, I would have waited for Fah to be free on Sunday and let you wait for Fah to bring him.” He grumbled while reaching into his pants pocket, looking very annoyed.

“I feel grateful.”

“And where’s the thank you?”

“Thank you.”

“Thank who?”

“Thank you, Phii Arthit.”

“Smile.”

“Do I have to smile too?”

“Yeah.”

I slowly gave a slight smile to the person in front of me.

“Yeah, that’s a bit more pleasing. And about the score, can’t you even give me one point?”

“None.” I shook my head gently. He shrugged as if to say, ‘then whatever,’ before walking around to open the driver’s door and getting into the car. I followed, still holding Mr. Jeon in my arms. He started the engine, and the beautiful black car slowly moved away from the water reservoir.

This car must have been newly bought, probably very expensive, and of course, with the high price comes a powerful engine that can accelerate quickly. However, it’s a pity that this car, capable of reaching speeds up to 400 kilometers per hour, couldn’t be driven out of the parking area due to the traffic. The driver also looked very annoyed.

“My dad invited us to eat at home.”

“…”

“You can’t refuse, don’t even think about it.”

“Oh…why invite?”

“I told him I like you, so he invited me.”

“Oh.”

Although he said I couldn’t refuse, if an elder makes such an invitation, I wouldn’t refuse anyway.

Even with the road ahead packed with cars, having Mr. Jeon in my embrace made everything feel more relaxed, along with the sound of my playlist playing.    Since the car couldn’t move and it looked like it would take a while, the driver handed me his phone. I took it, puzzled.

“Hand.”

“?”

“Give me your hand.”

He spoke as if he was commanding. I hesitated but extended my hand; I didn’t like or was used to it at first, but as he held my hand more often, I got used to it, and this time I didn’t feel bad about it anymore.

It’s quite scary to let yourself get used to someone’s touch, but what can you do when you can’t refuse? Even if I didn’t let him hold my hand now, he would keep at it anyway.

And I didn’t feel strange about holding hands with him anymore; this is something I need to think about.

“Traffic like this is stressful, you know.” He said while gently playing with my hand, playing here meaning changing how he held it, interlocking fingers, moving them around, “I damn hate traffic, but I think now it’s okay.”

“You’re flirting a lot.”

“Well, of course, I’m trying to woo you.” He said, “Use my phone to take a picture.”

“Picture of what?”

“Our hands holding each other.”

“No.”

“Take it.”

“…Hmm.”

I let go of Mr. Jeon to let him lie on my lap, his phone wasn’t locked, and the wallpaper was solid black. I went into the camera app and took a picture of our hands together. Of course, it captured the car’s gear area in the background.

“Let’s see how it looks.” He said. So I showed him the picture, “Super couple.”

“We’re not.”

“Come on, post it on Instagram too.”

“Sigh.” I inadvertently let out a sigh, “Everyone will misunderstand.”

“Why?”

“You are not my boyfriend.”

“They don’t even know who you are, but if you want them to know, just tag yourself.”

“Do you have Instagram?”

“Isn’t it the one where you post your drawings?”

“Uh-huh.”

“I just followed you. Didn’t see it.”

“I didn’t check that.”

“Follow me back.”

“Do I have to?”

“Yeah, follow, come on, I’m this good-looking.”

“…”

“Have you posted the picture yet?”

“Not yet.”

“Post it then.” He said. I was still stuck on his Instagram page, which had nearly a hundred thousand followers. My drawing Instagram account had around thirty thousand. I think I have some recognition in the drawing community, but he’s very famous, just like North used to brag about.

Can’t help it, his pictures are really good, his looks, physique, and the places he visits, all of it.

   Even if I don’t post, he probably would anyway, unless I delete the picture.

   “If you don’t post, I can’t guarantee your safety for the next three nights.”

“What should the caption be?”

“Green light.” He burst out laughing, “Just one heart icon, red, is enough.”    “Hmm.” and then I posted the picture of our hands holding each other that I had just taken on Instagram with a red heart caption as he instructed. Likes started coming in almost immediately. I locked the phone and handed it back to him, but the light turned green, so I kept it with me for now.

He let go of my hand to shift gears. I then placed my hand back on Mr. Jeon.

“What, as soon as I let go, you grab Cat’s hand, is it a male?”

“Yeah.”

“Jealous, I’ll eat him up later.”

“Don’t do that to Mr. Jeon.”

“He won’t survive, I’ve already grabbed his balls once.”

“Mean.”

“But he seems to like me.”

“Mr. Jeon can tell who loves him.”

“It’s me, I love him, I love you too, love you lots, yeah?”

“…”

“You’re quiet, are you embarrassed?”

“It’s weird to hear ‘I love you’.”

“It’s good, keep it. You won’t hear it from anyone else for sure.”

He turned into the garage at the front of the house instead of going around to the back because he was too lazy to drive around. As soon as we got out, the maid came to take Cat, the short guy’s cat, to look after it, since bringing Cat inside might not be a good idea. The owner handed Cat over willingly, as if knowing what to do.

This Cat is almost exactly like its owner. Not stubborn, not mischievous, doesn’t scratch, stays calm. Anyone can pick him up, and when I playfully poked at his balls, he just looked at me with a bored expression.

After a while, Direk came in with a warm, friendly smile. In the eyes of most people, Direk would be seen as a nice, warm, good-hearted uncle. He looks dignified and trustworthy, just like how a CEO should be. But when with me, he has another side. It wouldn’t be right to call it his true self because one should know how to behave depending on who they’re with, something Direk says.    The person beside me raised my hand in a respectful gesture, and Direk returned the gesture.

“Surprised that I suddenly invited you, huh?”

“Yes, sir.”

“I was just surprised that Arthit told me about it. I’ve been with him for over twenty years and that was the first time I heard him say something like this. I guess

I was a bit excited, understand?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Come on in.”

And then Direk led us into the house. The dining table was set with all sorts of dishes, just like every time I come back to eat at home. Normally, if Direk is alone, he’d eat with the house staff in the kitchen, being a very chill employer, which is great. And of course, I’ve inherited this laid-back nature from him; no need to say where I got it from, but let’s just say I got everything from Direk.

If you ask why I decided to bring this little guy here without any objections, even though Direk invited him because he was excited, the answer is that I wanted him to meet Direk. Direk is my only family, and my friends all know him. The one thing about me he hasn’t met yet is my family. I just want him to see everything in my life, without hiding anything, to know that this is all there is to me, nothing more.

Direk might have thought the same since, after over twenty years together, he knows me best. He probably knew that if I told him I liked someone, that person must be the last one in my life, so Direk took it seriously too.    When we sat down at the dining table, Direk immediately started the conversation.

“I can’t ask how you got together because you’re not together yet. Arthit is courting you, right?”

“…He said so, yes.”

“Are you okay with it? This one isn’t like normal people, it’s quite troublesome. I apologize on behalf of my son, he’s quite selfish and has a bad temper, with a foul mouth too.”

“Oh, why the sudden criticism?” I interjected.

“Why? I’m telling the truth.” Direk said before turning to ask the person sitting next to me, “Does Arthit speak rudely to you?”

“He speaks well.” I answered him.

“How rude is he?”

“Just normal.”

“Wow…and how does he put up with you? Friends are one thing, but you’re courting him, and you’re rude to him.” Direk looked stunned.

“I’m not asking you, I’m asking him, are you tired of having Arthit following you around?”

“Not tired, but annoyed, sir.”

“Wow, so straightforward.” Direk looked slightly taken aback, “Tears are falling.”

“It’s nothing, I’ve dealt with worse, but there’s nothing I can do about it. Use your time for something else, why don’t you like someone else? Give up, get over it. I don’t like you, brother.”

“Oh, my poor son, you’ve been beaten like a dog.”

“Not a dog, really being a dog would be against our agreement.”

“What agreement?”

“That he wont be with anyone for life. So I’ll stay with him since that was his own decision to never have a boyfriend for life.”

“Oh. So that works in your favor?”

“Yes.”

“Oh, and why don’t you want anyone for life?”

“I just don’t want anyone, sir.”

“You don’t want this bastard either, right?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Arthit…You’re still so shameless.”

“Well, I want to be with him, why?”

“You’re so damn selfish.” Direk laughed again, “Okay, okay, it’s good. If it’s not too much trouble, I’d like you to open your heart. He’s my son, after all, I have to support him. He might be rough, but he doesn’t deceive people. He’s straightforwardly honest, in a foolish way.”

“Oh, I see, sir. I know he doesn’t deceive people.” the person next to me said in a calm tone.

“Knowing me this well, why not be my boyfriend?”    “Damn, really?” Direk asked.

“Absolutely, I ask him to be my boyfriend ten times a day, there’s got to be one time he nods without thinking.” I said, genuinely thinking that, like it’s a play on his inattention. I noticed the short guy starting to frown, deep in thought, “You must be thinking you need to be careful now, right?”

“Hmm. I’ll be careful not to nod or respond to anything.”

“We agreed that since he would be alone for life, I would stay with him. It’s his own intention to never have a partner for life.”

“Oh. So it plays into your hands?”

“Yes.”

“Oh, why don’t you want anyone for life then?”

“I just don’t want anyone.”

“You don’t want this bastard too, right?”

“Yes.”

“You’re still so shameless.”

“Come on, I just want to be with him, why?”

“You’re so damn selfish.” Direk burst out laughing again, “Good, good. If it’s not too troublesome, I’d like you to open your heart. He’s my son, you know, I have to support him. He might be rude, but he doesn’t deceive people. He’s straightforwardly honest, like a fool.”

“I understand he doesn’t deceive people.” Said the person next to me with a calm tone.

“Since you know me so well, just be my partner.”    “Damn, can you?” Direk asked.

“You can be my partner ten times a day; there must be one time when you nod in agreement by mistake.” I said according to my thoughts, I genuinely think this way, like playing a trick. I noticed the little guy starting to furrow his brows, looking thoughtful, “You must be thinking you need to be careful, right?”

“Uh-huh. I’ll be careful not to nod or answer anything.”

“Hahaha, yeah, be very careful.”

“You two are quite strange.” Direk said, shaking his head slightly, then he asked the little guy about his studies or work. I listened while playing with my phone, not inserting myself into the mundane conversation.

I opened Instagram to check if the little guy had posted the picture with the caption I told him to use, and indeed he had. That made me smile with satisfaction. I knew he was a real fan, too bad no one knows who he is yet, but whatever, I’ll wait a bit longer and take a sneaky photo of him to post later, claiming him in the process.

I’ve said his hands are very small, but they’re not that soft because they’re his dominant hand for drawing, and they fit perfectly in mine.

“You did well in school, huh? Arthit in high school was nothing like that, he was quite the troublemaker.”

“What are you gossiping about?”

“Look up from your screen for once, I’m telling him how much of a delinquent you were in high school. And you haven’t changed much, have you?”    “Normal.” I shrugged, unconcerned.

“Have you told him about your band?”

“Not yet, forget about it, I’ll tell him later.”

“Okay, okay. So, is your major tough? What subject are you studying again?”

“Biology, sir. It’s okay for me, not too hard.”

“You still have time for work, but if you overdo it, as you get older, you’ll really feel how your body isn’t up to it.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Do you have any of your work to show? If I like something, I’ll buy a piece or two to hang at home.”

“What kind of work do you like, sir?”

“I like acrylic on canvas. If the colors are vibrant, I like it even more.”

“I’ve done that before.” the short guy said before showing him a picture. I leaned in to look too; it was a canvas with bold, full colors.

“Wow, I like this one, is this piece still available?”

“It’s sold, actually, this was a commissioned piece.”

“Then I’ll commission one too.”

“Yes, sir, but it’ll be next month before I can start painting.”

“Oh, that’s fine, I can wait. Let me see some other pieces.”

“Yes, sir.” and then he handed his phone to Direk to look at the other pictures. I felt a bit proud for some reason that Direk liked the short guy’s work. At first, Direk had said he wasn’t that into art, but since his mother loved it, he grew to like it too, which is why he has quite a collection of art pieces.

And since the short guy’s canvas work was exactly the style Direk likes, it’s even better.

“Oh, you still have my work?”

“What work?” Direk asked, his eyes still focused on the screen.

“The painting that mom didn’t finish coloring, I asked him to color it.” I said. Upon hearing this, Direk immediately looked up, “To make it complete as she intended.”

“Really?” He turned to ask the little guy instead.

“Yes. I’m trying my best to make it as close to what your mother did.”

“Oh…uh, I see, since you’ve decided, I won’t say anything. Thank you, and when it’s done, show it to me.”

“Yes, sir.”

Direk smiled warmly. I could tell that the person sitting across from me was happy about what I had just said; the painting my mother created would be completed with someone’s full effort.

   I turned to look at Dao, who was watching Direk look at his own work, before he realized I was watching him and turned to look back in confusion.

   It’s another time I felt grateful to him; having you in my life has brought only good things.

   After looking at the picture and being satisfied, Direk handed the phone back.

   “I like it.”

“What?” I asked when Direk suddenly said he liked something.

“I really like this daughter-in-law, you’ve chosen well, Arthit.”

“…” Dao looked like he wanted to argue but didn’t say anything. I smiled secretly at that reaction.

“Right? So, how about it? Should I propose right away?”

“Alright, do it. I’ll tell someone to find an auspicious date, and I’ll go to Italy to get my suit tailored.”

“Does it have to be that far? But can I choose the venue?”

“Where do you want it?”

“I want it at Suvarnabhumi Airport, where people coming in and out of the country have to stop because of me alone. It’ll be a huge hassle for everyone, I want to try it, have a wedding where people throw bottles of water and shout.”    “Damn, why would you do something like that there? And what about your groom’s outfit, what fabric do you want? How about dog leather?”

“Let’s write your name on it.”

“And your outfits, do you want any particular theme? Where do you want to hold the event, when will you be ready, when will our parents be ready to talk about this, we can set a date if you want, I’ll make time, I don’t care about the dowry as long as you take my son as another burden in your life.”

“…”

“Look, my dad said all this and you still don’t say anything?”    “…No.”

Its soft refusal made both me and Direk burst out laughing.

   “Let’s be family, I really like you.”

“…Thank you, sir.”

Well, now you’ve even got my dad to like you, huh? You’ve done well to make this house like you.

   “I’m just kidding, don’t think too much about it, but I’m serious about the artwork. I’ll have my secretary contact you, I won’t be very free next month.”

“Thank you, sir.”

And the playful conversation at the table continued for a while until we finished eating. We planned to leave, and Direk walked us to the front of the house.

“See you again.”

“Yes, sir, take care of your health, please.”

“Hmm. Good luck.”

“See you later, Direk.”

“Yeah, drive carefully, take care of him so he doesn’t faint.” “Got it.”

I answered dismissively before we walked back to the car. The maid brought Cat back, and he took the black Cat into his arms before opening the car door.    Even though Direk said not to use this car casually, right now Cat and his stuff were in the back seat, so we’d change it when we had the time. As for the motorcycle, I left it here since I have another spare parked at the condo.

   “How was it?” I asked immediately after we started driving.

“It was good.”

“Not uncomfortable?”

“Not at all.”

“My dad is like this when he’s with me. Are you okay with it?”

“Uh-huh.”

“Really? That’s good then.”

“Why did you bring me there?”

“Huh?”

“Why bring me there when…”

“Oh, why ask now?” I said, “You didn’t ask before we went there.”

“I forgot.”

“Oh, yeah. Here’s why, I want you to see everything about me as it truly is. This is my dad, my family, that’s all there is. I haven’t hidden anything from you, if anyone says I’m not serious about you, I’ll kick them in the face.”

“Oh…uh, but…”

“But what?”

“About the band.”

“Oh. That was the high school band.” I said, “I don’t usually tell people about this, but I said I wouldn’t keep any secrets from you. You know I play drums, right?”

“Uh-huh.”

“I want to do music.”

“…”

“I mean, that’s my real dream. If we don’t count studying medicine because of my mom, I have loved playing drums, playing guitar since I was little. Then, in high school, I came to Thailand, but during the holidays, I’d go back to San Francisco and make music with friends, which got quite popular in the city. But then I had to come back to Thailand often.”

“Oh, that’s too bad.”

“Yeah.”

“Why did you choose to study medicine?”

“As a kid, I promised my mom I’d be a doctor to take care of her, it’s kind of stuck with me.”

“If you can fulfill what you promised, would you go back to making music?”

“I don’t know. It’s been a while since I did that.”

“Oh.”

“What about you? If I make music, would you be interested in being the guitarist?”

“I don’t know.”

“If you were the guitarist, I’d be tempted to give it another go.” I said, turning to raise an eyebrow at him. He looked back with the same indifferent expression,

“The others probably won’t come back to it, we’ve all gone our separate ways.”

“Oh, I see.”

“You, huh? You’re asking me, but you don’t seem interested at all.”

“I want to try listening.”

“To what?”

“To the music you’ve made.”

“Look for it on my phone, it’s named ‘My Songs’.” I said. My phone was already in the car because I had used it to play music. The old songs I had made started to play, and it felt weird, indescribable. Not right, like I was being pulled back into the past.

“You play drums?”

“Yeah, I do.”

“I like it.”

“You like me?”

“The drum rhythm.”

“It’s never off-beat.”

“Hmm.”

“Who made this song?”

“Mostly me.”

“Ah…you’re really good.”

“Just complimenting me, but yeah, thanks.” I said before going quiet to listen to the song until it ended, then I switched to the next one, going through all three songs, “Now, give me your comment.”

“It’s really beautiful, I want to hear more songs. If you were some artist, I’d probably tell you to go back to making music.”

“Ha, you…” I shook my head slightly, smiling involuntarily, feeling my heart swell for no reason, “Be my guitarist.”

“You want me to be your guitarist?”

“Yeah. I just said so.”

“Thank you.”

“Why thank me?”

“It’s a great honor.”

“Damn, why suddenly…what’s it called, formal? And why the honor?”

“Great musicians have to choose, right?”

“No, I just like you, so I chose you.”

“…Then no.”

“Kidding, I really like your guitar playing. If I ever go back to making music, I’d want you to be my guitarist.”

“Uh-huh.” He nodded slowly, petting Cat’s ghost at the same time, “Thank you.”

“What else? Are you the national thank-you champion or something?”

“For being serious.”

“Huh?”

“Thank you for being serious with me.”

“…”

“Not everyone would trust someone this much, bringing them to your home and saying you want them to see everything about you means you trust and are serious about me, right? There’s nothing you’re hiding from me anymore, not even stories from your past you didn’t want to tell or dreams you never shared with anyone.”

“Really, you sound like you’re about to open your heart to me.”

“…Really?”

“Yeah, sure.”

“…Then I will give you zero points.”

“What?”

“Zero from nothing in the beginning.”

“What does that mean?”

“From now on, we’ll start counting points.”

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WESTTHESUNFROMANOTHERSTAR CHAPTERS HOME

   WESTTHESUNFROMANOTHERSTAR, Chapter 25: Low Battery

   Daotok

   “See, there might be a lot of people sending you songs, but no one does it like I do according to the song.” He said with a tone of pride in himself.

“You mean climbing mountains and crossing oceans?”

“Yes.”

He answered while still not letting go of my hand, tracing his fingers along my fingertips, palm, and the back of my hand. I instinctively pulled my hand back when I felt something strange, but like before, he didn’t let go.

“I can hear your heart beating like crazy.”

“Really?”

“And it is, right?”

“…uh-huh.”

I answered softly because, as everyone knows, I’m not one to lie, and since my heart was indeed beating fast, I couldn’t say it wasn’t.

“Really?” He jumped up immediately upon hearing that, looking both surprised and openly happy. I turned to look at the person sitting next to me; his hand still held mine, and in the dim light, his sharp features became even more pronounced, making me realize once again:

He really has beautiful eyes…

“Uh-huh.” I pressed my lips together slightly to force out a response, so quiet that even I could barely hear it.

“Does that mean I’m getting closer?”

“I don’t know.” I answered according to my thoughts. I genuinely didn’t know what this fast heartbeat meant, whether it was from being moved or just not used to someone doing this to me.

“Oh, well then.” He said, “Whatever the reason for the heartbeat, I have some influence on your heart.”

Before he slowly pulled me up to stand, our earphones were still playing the same song on repeat for the second time. My phone was on his other hand, so I couldn’t change the song. He gently pulled my hand, leading me to walk with him.

   On the way, many people watched us. I thought it was probably because the person walking beside me was too conspicuous, and another reason was that he was holding my hand.

   I wanted to let go but couldn’t, so I just went with it, not surprised if some people were displeased. From what North often bragged about, he has a lot of fans.    I didn’t pay attention to those looks, just glancing at the water reservoir with the sunset view.

   “Your friends know, right?”

“About what?”

“That I like you.”

“Hmm.”

“What did they say, let’s see. Who’s on my team?”

“North.”

“Of course. Anyone else, like Hill’s wife and Fah?”

“Doesn’t seem like it.”

“Why?”

“Don’t know.”

“And did they say anything?”

“They said if you don’t do well, they’ll tell on you to your partner.”

“Oh~” He drew out the sound, “You fit right in, huh? All my wife’s friends are just right, why is it so coincidental or are you guys playing around? Did you hear from North that you’re a fortune teller too?”

“Just reading fortunes.”

“Normally, I don’t believe in fortunes, but if you can read them, it’s interesting.

Come on, read mine.”

“No.”

“Why not?”

“Lazy.”

“Then how about tonight?”

“…”

Once again, and I was sure it wouldn’t be the last time, my voice didn’t reach him.

   He let go of my hand and instead wrapped his arm around my shoulder, pulling me closer. I was slightly surprised by the sudden pull.

   Out of the corner of my eye, I saw something; turning, I noticed a group of about two or three women hurriedly putting away their phones. It wasn’t hard to guess what had just happened. They must have been taking photos of us before getting caught and quickly hiding their phones. I didn’t show any particular expression, just turned back to look forward as if I hadn’t seen anything at all.

   “It’s a bit troublesome, being famous.”

“Will I get ambushed?” I asked out of curiosity, like when I was dating my ex, North had complained about being picked on. If I got the same treatment, it would mean the guy next door was bringing trouble to me…not good at all, as if he was bringing bad luck when I was living peacefully on my own.

“Ambushed to fight?”

“Uh-huh.”

“No, but you might get ambushed in bed.”

“…”

“Kidding. There won’t be anything like that, but aren’t you a taekwondo brown belt? What are you afraid of?”

“Why should I risk getting hurt because of you?”

“There’s nothing, except maybe a little gossip, but you don’t care about others, right?”

“Uh-huh.”

“Yeah, I like that about you too.”

“Is there anything you don’t like?” I asked.

“Why? Are you going to change it?”

“I might do it more.”

I said, which made the person next to me laugh. Walking while being held by the shoulder made it less comfortable to walk, and frankly, walking like this with someone’s arm around you would draw attention, but those many gazes didn’t make me feel uncomfortable.

And being this close, I could smell a faint scent. I didn’t want to admit it, but since I’ve been spending a lot of time with him, I’ve started to get used to his scent.

“Nothing.” He answered.

“That’s impossible.”

“Why?”

“There must be something you don’t like about a person.”

“Really? Then tell me your flaws.”

“There’s nothing worse than what you see.”

“Damn.” He laughed again, “just like the person I like, you bastard.”    He didn’t stop laughing for a while, what I said was the truth. I don’t keep anything hidden; all the pros and cons are visible to anyone I’m with. Everything I express is genuine; I’ve never tried to change it, it’s all my true nature.

   He stopped laughing and said,

“That’s what makes me like you. You’re not fake, you don’t embellish, you’re so natural, you are who you are without trying, you speak little and don’t lie, sometimes you’re snarky, you act indifferent or whatever.”

“Oh.”

“And will you try to do it more? Don’t you want me to stop liking you? Try talking more or acting differently.”

“Can’t do it.”

“See, that’s what I mean, but I won’t ask what you don’t like about me.”

“Why?”

“You’d definitely say everything.”

“No, I won’t.”

“Really? So, what do you like?”

“You’re natural, too.”

“You’re clearly copying me.”

“No, I mean it.” I said before looking at the person who seemed not quite ready to believe me, “I don’t lie, I can feel your sincerity.”

“…Oh.”

“Even if I don’t really want to be around you much, when I am, I feel at ease.”

“Wait, I wasn’t prepared for this, is this a confession of love?”

“No, it’s like my mind feels at ease, similar to when I’m with North, but you’re much more annoying…a lot more.”

“You’re harsh. If it weren’t me, someone would be crying like a dog with each word you say, but it’s good that it’s me, the one who can withstand any weather.

Even if you say you hate me, it won’t hurt.”

“I hate you.”

I tried saying what he had challenged, but he went silent for a moment.

“Really?” He asked with a serious expression.

“No. I don’t hate you that much.”

“…”

“Then let’s skip this word, I think it’s fine.” the person next to me seemed somewhat displeased, “That really stings, bastard, it’s the first time I’ve felt this, wow, it’s impressive as hell even though it’s just words.”

“…”

“Try it again.”

“…I hate you.”

“Ow, that hurts. Don’t say that, don’t ever say that. If you say it, I’ll…uh, I’ll break your pencil.”

“Mean.”

“That one doesn’t hurt. So, let’s agree not to say it. This is another rule of our agreement: you’re not allowed to say you hate me, even if you truly do. Keep it in your heart, don’t show it, okay?”

“…Alright.”

…

Arthit

   ABOUT TWO HOURS EARLIER

   After finishing the evening ward rounds, I walked down from the building with Jo. We were complaining about the ward rounds we just did when I got a call on my phone. I picked it up to see it was Direk, which was quite surprising since Direk doesn’t usually call at this time.

“What’s up?” I answered the call with my usual greeting.

(Come to my house.)

   “Huh?”

(Come to my house first.)

   “Why?”

(Heh, there’s a surprise.)

   “I think I have a bigger surprise.”

(What’s that?)

   “I’ll tell you when I get there.”

(Yeah, yeah, hurry up.)

   “Ke.”

And then I hung up the call. What Direk called a surprise, I had somewhat guessed, but what would surprise Direk, he definitely wouldn’t guess.

I planned to tell him about how I was flirting with that short guy. I hadn’t told Direk from the start because I was afraid it might give him a heart attack, especially at his age. But now, it seemed like the right time to tell him.

Me and Jo reached the motorcycle parking spot before we parted ways. I headed towards Direk’s house, which didn’t take long since I finished work early and there was little traffic. I parked my bike inside the house before Direk came out.

“Why are you off work so early?” I asked as I took off my helmet.

“I’m taking a break today.” Direk said, “I think a lab coat and a big bike look oddly good together.”

“Really? But it’s uncomfortable.”

“You must have gained weight.”

“Damn, seriously?” I asked with a serious face, the idea of gaining weight was something I couldn’t accept. Direk chuckled a bit, so I made a face showing my frustration.

“You’re really serious about this, come on, let’s look at my surprise first.” Direk said before walking into the house. I took off my shoes and followed, walking through the garden to the garage on the side of the house, which had multiple parking spots because there are many cars. Just mine alone, I think I have five or six, not to mention the ones I keep buying.

I was stunned when I saw a sleek black car parked quietly in the garage.

“Damn, are you serious?”

“You knew I had to buy you a new car, but I knew you’d be stunned seeing this one.” Direk smiled like a winner and gently patted the car’s hood.

“Shit.” I was still in shock, moving closer to look, “Can I ask about the price?”

“Over a hundred.”

“Damn, you bought it for me?”

“Not for you to drive around casually, it’s for you to race next month.” He said, sitting down on a chair with a relaxed posture, “The one you just crashed is still good, but I want to make sure you win, so I bought this as a prize in advance.”    “Wow, are you trying to kill me with a car this fast?” I said, grinning so wide it almost split my face. It’s like he’s trying to kill me because this thing is incredibly fast, if you drive it badly, you’re not surviving, but it’s me we’re talking about,

“Victory is in my hands.”

“Then you better practice, the race is next month. This time, it’s serious.”    “Who are we racing against?” I asked. If this was serious, it meant company shares were involved.

It could be likened to gambling, not too much of a stretch. Someone once said that business people like to bet on what they can control. Racing another person’s shares against your own through some competition is quite common, and car racing is quite popular. What we can control is the car, the driver. Of course, there are rules; cheating is strictly forbidden.

“The son from that company, we’ll race on their track. Try out the track first.”    “Uh-huh, sure.” I agreed. Direk is quite fond of these things, but he usually doesn’t let me race because he worries, but if he’s buying a new car for me and letting me race, it means this race isn’t ordinary. Just the car alone is an investment of over a hundred million, indicating that if we win, the amount of money must be staggering.

Back in the day, Jo was in the same boat, racing to let his dad bet, but lately, with his studies and work piling up, he hasn’t had time to race, so he lets others race in his place. Once he got married, he disappeared from the tracks, only showing up to watch occasionally. Did Jo and I ever talk about this? Probably not, because it wasn’t that important, and for the last year or so, there haven’t been any big bets between Jo’s dad and Direk. This is the first time in over a year for Direk.

   If it’s not a big betting match, it’s just small bets among the spectators, which means if many people come to watch, the track earns a lot. It all depends on who’s racing; the rating needs to be good. Of course, if I race, the place is packed every time, so Direk is torn between worry and the promise of good money.

   “Can you handle it? I’m starting to get nervous.”

“It’s just a car race. It’s not like I’m going to die, Direk.” I said the same line I always do. It’s just a car race, not a matter of life or death; at worst, we lose.    “The car’s been thoroughly checked by the manufacturer, and I’ll have people check it in stages until the race day. In the meantime, you should practice.”

“I’m not sure if I’ll have time to practice.”

“Why not? After the evening ward rounds, you’re free, right?”

“You’re not even letting me study.”

“Quit, I’m tired of this.”

“Oh, didn’t you say to stick that degree on the wall so you can stare at it?” I said, laughing at the memory of Direk’s words when I complained about wanting to quit. Stick your degree on my wall, so when I wake up, I’ll have the motivation to work, to know that my son isn’t a fool.

“I just said that, I’m frustrated. Seeing you stressed, but you chose this path, your mom would be proud.”

“So proud, Dylan got another F, did he, son?” I teased with words I thought my mother might say, making Direk laugh.

“Dylan. It’s been a long time since I called you that.”

“Don’t call me that here.” I said, “Oh, and about my surprise. I think it’s more surprising than what Direk has.”

“Did you get a woman pregnant?”

“That would be bad. No.”

“What is it then?” Direk rubbed his chin, pondering, “Are you surprising me by going out and killing or raping someone?”

“Why does that sound so vulgar? No!” Why does Direk always think of such vulgar things when it comes to me? “It’s something softer.”

“You must have had sex with a dog.”

“Wow, that’s even more vulgar, why would you  think I’d do sex with a dog?” I started to pinch the bridge of my nose, sitting down next to Direk.

“What is it then, or just some petty crime, like stealing? Why steal when you have everything, why didn’t you tell me?”

“I didn’t steal, man, we’re talking about something big.”

“Not stealing either, softer than that, huh?” Direk still had his brows furrowed,

“Snatch and run. That’s no good, that’s still stealing.”

“Think, think, tick-tock.”

“Alright, Arthit, what illegal thing have you done, tell me.”

“Will you help?”

“I’ll kick your ass until you’re dead, you devil with a hairy head. What did I teach you? I taught you not to cause trouble for others, didn’t I?”

“Why do you sound so proud when you say you’ve taught me nothing?” I said, laughing out loud, “Okay, I’ll reveal it, don’t die of shock, especially now that you’re old.”

“Old and ready for anything.” Direk placed his hands on his knees, leaning back, his face serious as he waited to listen.

“I have someone I like, and I’m currently flirting with them.”

“…”

“…”

Direk was silent. I stayed quiet too, waiting for him to say something first, but the look of absolute shock on his face was hilariously funny, just as I had anticipated it would be.

“You killing someone would’ve shocked me less than this.”

“Cheeky.” I said out loud with a loud kick, “It’s already bad.”

“Are you serious?”

“Serious.”

“You, Arthit-Dylan, damn, you. No, no.” Direk held his forehead, rubbing his face hard, “You are Arthit, my damn son.”

“Oh, huh.”

“Damn, fuck…Emma! Come look at your son!! Damn it. Not true, damn, are you dating? Who is she, whose child is she, where is she from, is she studying or working, what’s her personality like, can she accept you, does she really like someone like you, can you live with her, won’t her parents be devastated if she sues us, and how did you court her, when and how did you start liking her, why am

I just finding out now?!”

“Calm down first, Direk, don’t lose your cool.” I said, still unable to stop laughing, knowing Direk’s reaction would be hilarious like this.

“I can’t take it anymore, it’s too much for today, I can’t handle it. Let’s talk another day.”

“Come on, let’s talk today. He’s the one I brought home, the one who came to see Emma’s spirit.”

“Oh, oh, it’s a he…the one with blue hair.”

“Yeah.”

“That person? Arthit, and he’ll take you?”

“What do you mean he will take me…Am I something bad?”

“What good do you have? Sigh, let’s say you fell for each other in San

Francisco.”

“Yes, it was natural. Not fake.”

“Oh, huh.” Direk still had his hand on his forehead, his elbow on the table, looking like he was about to faint at any moment, “Just courting, right? What did he say?”

“He rejected me, but I don’t mind.”

“I figured as much.”

“So I forced to stay with him.”

“Pity, damn, there are millions of good people in the world, why does that son have to meet you?”

“See, pitiful. I was thinking of taking him to do some merit.” my words made Direk turn to look at me sharply before letting out a sigh.

“That’s you, taking someone to do merit to cleanse yourself.”

“Merit can’t do anything to me.”

“Sigh, so, is this serious? I mean, are you serious about him?”

“Very serious, as serious as it gets. I’ve never been like this before, you know that, Direk.”

“Yeah, I understand…you’ve grown up, but this kind of growth is something a father like me worries about a lot. You won’t do anything to him that would make his parents come crying to me, right?”

“Right now, it would probably be Direk who’d have to go cry.”

“Why?”

“To beg him to love me.”

“Arthit, I beg you. Think about my reputation in society, I’m the president of the biggest auto parts manufacturing company in the country with a great international reputation, many famous car brands come to me for partnerships, and you want me to go cry in front of his parents to make him love my son?”

“Yes.”

“Arthit, you, damn it, I’m so fed up with you.”

“Direk you haven’t done enough good deeds either, huh?”

“Why?”

“Because you got me as a son.”

“True.”

“Damn.” I suddenly thought of something, “Did you just say parents?”

“Yeah, why?”

“He also has a ‘daddy’ that doesn’t mean father, damn. I just remembered.” I widened my eyes unintentionally as I recalled the ‘daddy’ who wasn’t a father, that well-mannered man from England in the short guy’s room, oh crap.

“What the hell is a ‘daddy’ that doesn’t mean father, are you crazy? Daddy is father, how did you grow up in San Francisco?”

“No, it’s like a new slang, normally you’d call your dad ‘dad’, but ‘daddy’ has a more…like, a patron or sugar daddy feel.”

“A sugar daddy?” Direk asked, raising an eyebrow in confusion.

“I can’t explain it well, it’s like an older guy, call him ‘daddy’.” I tried to explain, but my vocabulary was limited, “Let’s say he might already have a husband. And he’s English, and as handsome as me.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Oh.”

“Even if he got another man, you’ve got to fight for it.”

“What kind of father teaches his son like this?” I said with disgust, “But I agree.

I’ll fight until I become the main husband, then I’ll send that gentleman back to

England.”

“How sure are you that he’s really a husband?”

“I heard him call him ‘daddy’.”

“It might just mean ‘dad’ in English, you bastard.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, why do I have only one child and he’s so stupid? I think he’s really his father. Is he half-English or something, but he doesn’t look like it at all.”

“He’s a pure Thai, according to what North told me.”

“Then he might be his mother’s new husband.”

“Oh…yeah, that’s right, that makes sense. Direk, why are you so smart?”

“Yeah, I was wondering why my son is so stupid.”

“What’s wrong with being stupid? Even if I’m stupid, I’m not bad, am I?”

“But you, you’re both bad and stupid, you fool.”

“How can I escape from your genes? Got it from my dad, this bad and stupid trait, cursing me is like cursing yourself.” I said jokingly.

“Ah, so you’re still courting him. Okay, I don’t know if I should support you, but I have to side with my own son. So, if you need anything, just tell me, like, if you need someone to help with a kidnapping.”

“Got it, I know exactly who I got my nature from.” I said, “And how did you court Emma? Any generational secrets to pass down?”

“I was normal, just kept at it, bought her things, paid for stuff.”

“Do I have to pay?”

“Yeah, dude, how else would he know you can take care of him?”

“Oh. I’m out of money, can I have some?”

“Damn, you need money to pay for him and you’re asking me? I might as well make him my boyfriend.”

“Wow, Direk, are you going to be a sugar daddy to him?” I teased, “My savings are gone, these days I’m still letting Jo buy me meals.”

“Sell your snake or your car then.”

“No way.”

“Sigh. Alright, alright, then if you win the race, I’ll give you ten percent.”

“How much is that?”

“Almost a hundred.”

“Damn, Direk, why are you betting so much? So if you lose, you lose a thousand then?”

“Yes, but if you win, you also get a thousand, but don’t feel too pressured because a thousand won’t make your leg hair fall out.”

“But it’ll make tears fall.”

“Yeah, whatever.”

“Don’t feel pressured, but if I lose the race, I lose a billion, that’s what you are saying, right?”

“Yes. Don’t feel pressured.” Direk reached out to pat my shoulder, “Losing money isn’t that big of a deal, but it’s about losing face. This opponent doesn’t like us much, so they’re coming at us full force, but they don’t know that this amount of money isn’t much compared to the profits from the new model we just released, we’re comfortable.”

“You like to show off how rich you are, it’s annoying.”

“You like to show off to me too.”

“Yeah, true.” While others might like to boast about their own wealth (like that bastard Jo) I like to boast about my dad because he’s rich. Even if people tease that I’m rich because of my parents’ money, I’d retort, so what? Your dad isn’t as rich as mine, bastard, something like that, “Just focus on your work, Direk. Once I graduate, I’ll be set.”

“You don’t plan to work at all, how will you support your future wife?”

“With your money.”

“Spit…and what about your drum set?”

“Direk, can I still get that?”

“If you ask me, I’ll support you all the way, do whatever you want. If you want to do something, just do it.”

“Touching. I said let’s wait until I finish school first. Once I’m done taking care of my mom’s health, I’ll be free, then I can go back to playing drums.”

“I’m waiting to hear your new songs.”

“Old ones.”

“I deleted all the files, got tired of them.”

“Oh.”

“Kidding. It’s nice to listen to them; it makes me feel proud. Even if it was just a high school band not taking it seriously, back then, you were super famous in San

Francisco.”

“Thinking about the past makes me nostalgic. I’ll go see those guys again next time I’m back.” I said, thinking of friends I still keep in touch with. It was a music club that formed a pretty amateur band, but our songs became quite popular in the city for a while. Playing music and drums has always been my dream, which I won’t go into detail about now; maybe when the mood strikes. Let’s just say what my true dream is.

“Yeah, yeah, good. Want to eat dinner together? The housekeeper has prepared it already.”

“You don’t even need to ask, but I have to go back to my future wife, she’s at my place.”

“She’s at your place? So she’s opened her heart to you now?”

“Yeah, I think so.”

“Damn, there’s hope then. Are you preparing the engagement gifts or what? The dowry is ready, I’ll tell you that.” Direk’s words made me burst out laughing,

“Invite him to dinner with us.”

“Can I?”

“Of course, damn it, come eat at home so he’ll know you’re serious, and he’ll be impressed that we’re a warm family.”

“Wow, Direk, you’re the best. I’ll bring him. Hey, can I take the new car out first?”

“To pick him up?”

“That too, but I also want to pick up Cat from Fah’s place where he left his stuff.

His motorcycle isn’t convenient.”

“Yeah, take it, drive safely.”    “You don’t need to tell me.”

I responded like that before taking the keys from Direk, opening the door of the new car, and looking around, checking everything until I was satisfied, then slowly drove out of the house. I wanted to say this car feels damn good in my hands.    I stopped by Fah’s room to get Mr. Jeon, planning to surprise that short guy, but then I saw a message from North saying he had walked to class and was now walking back. Seeing that message, I frowned and called him in irritation. Why the hell does he have to walk? It’s exhausting, I’ve already let him choose any car he wants, normal people would be thrilled to death with each of my cars, they’re not ordinary at all.

   Sigh, I forgot. No matter what, it’s that low-battery robot.

  

WESTTHESUNFROMANOTHERSTAR CHAPTERS HOME

   WESTTHESUNFROMANOTHERSTAR, Chapter 24: Highest or Million

   I put Warali back into its original enclosure. After checking the time and realizing I had to leave for class, I allowed some time to grab a meal and walk to university. Even though he said I could use his car, I wouldn’t. I can’t drive a big bike, and I don’t want to drive his car either; the reason being I’m not fond of using other people’s vehicles.

I quickly took a shower and changed clothes. Even though I’ve resigned myself to being forced to stay in this room, I’m not used to using someone else’s bathroom; it’s just not familiar, so I’m not keen on using it.

I grabbed my backpack from beside the sofa, checked to make sure everything was there, then took the key card and left the room, locking the door behind me.

After almost all my professors uploaded the class sheets to the group on the university’s social media, it became much more convenient. All I needed was a tablet, so I had no issues with textbooks. Even for the subjects that used books or sheets, I never took them out of my bag, which was lucky because the neighbor only brought my backpack, ensuring I didn’t lack the materials for today’s classes.    I walked from my condo, passing by the medical faculty where I was dragged for a morning run. If I were forced to run every day, there would be two scenarios: one, I would start to enjoy running and my body would get used to it, or two, I would hate running, hate mornings, and hate the medical faculty because it would be the place that made me exhausted.

And I hope I’ll like it more. If I have to run every morning, because either way, running is inevitable. Liking it would be better for my mental health.

I stopped at a small roadside eatery before walking into the university towards my lecture building. Even without a motorcycle, it wasn’t much of a hassle since there were campus shuttle services available. I attended my classes as usual until it was time for the evening art club session.

I had to prepare myself a bit because I was sure to be bombarded with questions about my neighbor. Even though I was too lazy to explain, it was unavoidable.    I walked into the art club area and was slightly surprised to see that all three were already there, which was unusual since I was always the first to arrive.    “You’re late today.” Ter was the first to greet me cheerfully, while North was asleep on the table. Cat was drawing for fun but looked up at me as soon as Ter spoke.

“Hmm, you guys are early.”

“It’s normal for us, Dao you  are the one who’s late.”

“Oh.”

“Why were you late? Did the professor let you go late?”

“No. I didn’t bring my motorcycle.”

“Oh, why?”

“So…” I fell silent, thinking about where to start the story. I wasn’t sure what

North had already told Ter and Cat. So, I reached out to shake North awake,

“North, wake up.”

“What the hell.” North swore in annoyance, brushing my hand away without even opening his eyes, looking very groggy. That made me understand; North probably didn’t know who was shaking him. Of course, except for his partner, who would be a special case.

“He just keeps sleeping, even when we were coming here, he made me carry him to the club. I don’t know what’s making him so sleepy.” Ter said. I nodded in understanding, guessing it was from when they went running. I was still sleepy too.

“North, wake up!” Ter stood up from the table and shook him vigorously.

“Ow, damn it, let people sleep.”

“Yeah, wake up!”

“I won’t!” He retorted without opening his eyes. “If I’m sleepy, I’m sleepy, you bastard.”

“I’m going to call Phii Jo and tell him you were sleeping during class.”

“Go ahead, Phii Jo was sleeping too.”

“Sigh, what’s this about, wake up first.” Ter started to frown in annoyance before poking North’s ribs until the drowsy one jumped up.

“Damn, Ter, you asshole, what are you doing, I almost fell off the chair.”

“See, you’re awake now.”

“Yeah, yeah, why wake me up, the teacher isn’t here yet, is he?”

“Dao called for you.”

“Just because he called means you had to poke me, my butt burst, damn it.” North grumbled, looking irritated.

“Ew.” Cat, who had been silent for a while, made a disgusted face at North, which earned him a flick on the forehead from North. Cat frowned, clutching his forehead, which was starting to turn red.

“What’s with that ew? Never seen a butt burst before?”

“Never, you liar, always using force, I don’t want to play with you anymore.”

“You liar. We all did it when we were kids.”

“Never. When I was a kid, I wasn’t even in diapers, I crawled out of the womb and went straight to the toilet.”

“Cat’s bragging.”

“Not Cat. Not bragging.” Cat stuck his tongue out at North again.

“Please, your tongue. Anyone got scissors, damn it?”

“Enough.” Ter tried to put an end to the nonsense that showed no signs of stopping easily. Whenever we were together, this was almost always the case. Someone would always lead us into silly topics, and someone else would have to steer the conversation back, otherwise, we could go on all day, “Now, what’s going on? I forgot.”

“Oh, I was going to read your fortune, waiting for you, you referee ghost.”

“Dao is here, and you just brush him off, you scoundrel.”

“Oh. Next time, use a stick if you don’t want to hurt your hand.” North said,

“Come on. Let’s read the fortunes, it’s been a while since we’ve updated.”    “Hmm.” I said before turning to North.

“Where are the cards?”

“No cards, today we’re doing it by birth date.”

“Oh, cool.” Then North told me his birth date. I wrote it down on paper and started reading his fortune by comparing it with the notes I had.

“These days, your studies or work might not go smoothly, but your love life is fine, North, you’re doing really well in love, have you done any good deeds? But wait, doesn’t North’s boyfriend not practice Buddhism, I seem to remember you mentioning that.”

“Yes. He doesn’t practice Buddhism, but when I chant or pray, I wish for good things for him, for our relationship to be smooth.”

“Phii Jo doesn’t practice Buddhism?” Ter asked, North nodded in response,

“Then what does he practice?”

“Not just Phii Jo, Phii Arthit too doesn’t practice Buddhism. Guess what they practice.”

“Definitely Christian.” Said Ter, but North shook his head.

“Islam, maybe not?” Cat asked.

“No.”

“The Cult of Bacon?” Cat asked again.

“Yeah, that’s possible, but no.”

“Then what?”

“They practice themselves.”

“Excuse me, but what kind of crazy person worships themselves?” Ter said, raising a hand to his forehead. I wasn’t too surprised since my neighbor had already said he didn’t practice Buddhism. He might be Christian, but for someone like him, it was unlikely he’d respect anyone other than himself, being so selfabsorbed.

“Hmm, but not surprising, right, Dao?” Cat said. I nodded in agreement, “And what about Phii Hill?” I turned to ask Ter.

“He’s just a regular Buddhist, Phii Fah.”

“Buddhist, but he studies other religions too. He once took me to a church, saying he wanted to study something like that.”

“That’s very much like Phii Fah. He’s like a cup that’s never full, ready to absorb all the knowledge in the world.” North said, “So, what about my luck?”

“Your luck is usually bad anyway. Didn’t you wear the bracelet I gave you?”    “Bracelet? Haha, I lost it. Can I have another one, please?” North beamed a wry smile. I shook my head in response.

“No, there’s only one. Your luck might get even worse this month, be careful with people close to you; they might bring bad things.”

“Oh, you guys!”

“Not anyone here or your lover.” I clarified, North usually has bad luck but compensates by being a good person, “Just be careful, don’t pick up anything strange.”

“Can’t I even pick up money if I find it?”    “Return it to the owner.” I said.

“Oh, yeah, right, return it to the owner!” North nodded, “Anything else?”

“That’s all. Ter, want to check your fortune?”

“Uh, sure.” and then Ter gave his birth date for me to read his fortune again.    “Ter you will have the chance to meet new people who will bring good things, but as friends. Your love life is still great, even better because there won’t be any arguments during this period. As for studying or work, it’ll go smoothly; teachers might be lenient and not criticize much.”

“Exactly, I submitted my work the other day, and the teacher barely criticized it even though he’s known for being strict. My friends were nearly crying from the criticism, but I passed through fine. Dao, your fortune reading is really accurate.

Cat, you should try it.”

“No thanks.”

“Here we go again.” North said, Cat doesn’t really like reading fortunes because he once said he prefers not knowing, “But why does Ter have such good luck? My work isn’t going smoothly, and I have a presentation tomorrow, it’s definitely going to be a mess.”

“It might not be related, so don’t lose heart. Go back and prepare well; there’s no reason for the teacher to criticize if you do that. It all depends on us, don’t believe in fortune too much.”

“Why does someone like you who reads fortunes say something like that? It’s so weird.” North said, “I’ve never seen you read your own fortune, does your love graph shoot up?”

“I don’t read fortunes for myself.” I said, “I don’t want to know what will happen to me. It’s more exciting to wait and see.”

“Yeah, that’s interesting. So, what about the professor, isn’t he coming?”    “He’s coming, but he’s always late.” I replied.

“What were we talking about before this fortune reading? Oh, oh, this is it, the matter of Phii Arthit and Dao, isn’t this the main topic for us today?” Cat said, appearing to be the first one to bring everyone back to the main subject. I found myself unintentionally sighing.

“Oh, right, North just mentioned that Phii Arthit likes Dao, then he fell asleep. What’s the deal?” Ter asked, showing great interest, “Let me say upfront that I can hardly believe it. Like, Hia, damn. When I first heard it, I thought I heard wrong, I was shocked for like ten seconds.”

“True, I can confirm that. When North told, Ter was completely speechless.”    “And what about Cat?” I asked.

“How could I not be shocked? That’s Phii Arthit, and this is Dao, they both might be up in the sky, but they’re like day and night.”

“You compare well.” North said, stroking his chin, “But Dao in daylight is like Meen. Just not visible because the sun is too bright, and hot too, damn it, with that shameless face, it’s winter now, man.”

“Yeah, their names clash perfectly, dear lord.” I said.

“It might be fitting though, Phii Arthit is hot, and you’re cool, a perfect contrast.” “Really? I don’t think it’s that perfect, someone with no limits and a life worth millions.” Ter said with a look of sympathy, “First of all, how could he even like you? Phii Hill once said that Phii Arthit is very far from the concept of love.”    “Yeah, I’ll sue, he even went for a massage with you.” North squinted as he spoke.

“He went with Phii Jo.” Ter said.

“With me too.” North added, “Three hundred, it was so relaxing, Thai massage.”

“Really? Thai massage?”

“Yeah, but there are some downsides too, you know, right?” North turned to ask.

“Hmm.”

“Can you handle it, or is this why you don’t like him?”

“No, this isn’t related.”

“Then what is it related to?”

“It’s about the fact that I don’t like him.”

“And why would you go out of your way to make Dao say you don’t like your brother?” Ter snapped back at me.

“But he went out of his way.”

“Huh?”

“The day he confessed his love to me, he held my hand and wouldn’t let go. He asked if I didn’t like him holding my hand. I told him I didn’t like him.”    “Why would he go out of his way for that?” North furrowed his brows and scratched his head, “What the hell, going out of his way to make someone say they don’t like him, you’re crazy.”

“So, you’ve already rejected him?” Cat asked. I nodded, “He didn’t seem upset?”

“There was no sign or face that looked like someone who was upset.”

“Oh, come on, a rejection won’t do anything to that bastard.” North said, “If you want to do something to him, you’d have to burn him with rubber or cement his feet and drop him in water.”

“Do you really have to go that far?” I asked.

“Ha, you hitting him won’t hurt him with your size, cursing won’t hurt him either, getting people to beat him up isn’t guaranteed because Phii Arthit is known for fighting, he often gets into fights because he’s hot-blooded, I heard when they draw his blood, the needle burns, he’s that hot-blooded.”

“Damn, is he some kind of modified human?” Ter burst out laughing, “So what happened after that? What did you do after rejecting him? Come on, I want to hear from the moment he confessed, how he did it.”

When Ter said that, I had to recount all the details from the day before when he threatened to break down the door, hugged me, held my hand without letting go, and confessed. I rejected him, but he didn’t care about my rejection; he harassed me by kissing my forehead and then forced me to stay in his room.

   “…”

Everyone was silent, no one said anything, as if they were stunned into stillness. North was the first to laugh heartily, while Cat and Ter furrowed their brows, looking both confused and tense.

“Damn, damn, he’s really the worst in our class, what kind of person likes someone and then forces them to stay with him, not even a little lie, oh, I took your key card, there’s no spare because the concierge is closed for three days, everything is prepared, damn.”

“Yeah. I don’t want to scold, but seriously.” Ter said before letting out another laugh. Meanwhile, Cat just let out a big sigh, “But this is good. No, it’s fitting for

Dao, adept at ignoring, great at ignoring.”

“It’s true, just think about how ordinary people would flirt, like sending messages, chatting, or setting up a date. All my friends are like that.” North said.    “So, should I accept the way Phii Arthit flirts with my friend?” Ter raised an eyebrow to ask.

“Yes.”

“You’re fully on board with this.” Cat teased.

“Correct, I have a reputation for boarding any ship where the captain dies.”

North said proudly. I made a puzzled face at that statement, wondering if by ‘captain’ he meant me.

“Then go ahead and jump on.” Ter said, sounding unamused.

“And who would be left? You? You’d be good, Ter, the one known for reaching the shore with any ship he boards.” the person said, sounding excited.

“Me?”

“Yeah, and will you cheer for him, Ter?” Cat turned to ask. The person being asked still looked confused before turning to look at me.

“Well, if my friend is okay with it, I’ll support him fully, but look at our friend’s face.” and then all three turned to look at me, “I don’t even know if he’s at peace with the world yet.”

“…Uh, this is my normal face.” I said. I didn’t think my expression had changed much from usual, but North burst out laughing again.

“See this. It’s normal, man. Come on, let’s all cheer for my senior. We, the sea people, will row the boat together.”    “I like that saying.” Cat said.

“You too, Cat?” Ter asked, “If you ask if I’ll cheer, honestly…I don’t know. It’s because Dao is someone you can’t easily sway, you know what I mean?”    “Why are you talking like he’s not sitting right here?” North said, “Or are you implying he’s here but might as well not be?”

“No, no.” Ter quickly denied, “I’m just saying it all depends on Phii Arthit. Ask if all the buildup you’ve done has any effect, North.”

“None at all.”

“See, I think it’s more like a raft than a ship, where one person is paddling their heart out, and the other just lies there, doing whatever they want, maybe even dipping their feet in the water.”

“Am I the one dipping my feet in the water?”    “Exactly, dude.” North said.

“Oh.”

“You’re so slow, man.”

“Uh.”

“Sigh, but Ter, are you saying what I did is worthless?” North started to dramatize by making a pouty face and hugging his legs like a child with problems, “What I did is worthless, right, Daotok? Boo-hoo, I’ve been thinking about what to do all this time.”

“Use my name.” Cat teased, “Don’t act pitiful. It doesn’t suit you.”

“Shh.” North clicked his tongue in annoyance before putting his legs down from the chair, “I didn’t get anything anyway, honestly, that ghost’s face when teased is funny.”

“Is it funny when I make a disgusted face?”

“Yeah, I bet Phii Arthit likes your disgusted face too. Otherwise, he wouldn’t act like that, even calling you cute.”

“He called you cute too, huh? Wow, that’s nice, like he’s complimenting my kid.” Ter said with a proud look that I didn’t understand, “So, you’ve scanned and it’s okay, right?” He turned to ask North, who nodded firmly to confirm.

“Then that’s fine. Let’s change the question to what Dao will do next.”

“Me?”

“Yeah.”

“And what can I do?” I said, and everyone laughed together.

“Poor you.” Cat said, still laughing, “If he promised not to do anything Dao doesn’t like, then it should be fine. If he does, call me, I’ll tell the other seniors.”    “I can feel a certain husband bragging in there, I don’t know why.” North teased, slightly sticking out his tongue, and Cat immediately flicked North’s lips, “Ow, that hurt! You guys see I won’t do anything, and you hurt me big time. Swap me for Thaw, and I’d rub my foot on his face.”

And then we just kept chatting casually, talking about me and other things until the club advisor came in, and we started our club activities together. The club ended around five, and everyone went their separate ways, each on their own motorcycle except for me. I, who had to walk back to my room, was offered a ride by everyone.

   “It’s okay. I can walk.”

“Really?” Ter asked, with a slight look of concern.

“Really. I want to take a walk.”

“Okay, be careful.”

“Yeah, everyone drive safely, North, drive well, okay?”

“Why are you singling me out?”

“North rides his motorcycle pretty badly, he likes to go fast.”

“Whatever.” North said, twisting the handlebars, but one hand was on the brake, so the bike didn’t move. I couldn’t help but smile at his funny pose before everyone really started to disperse, leaving me standing alone.

I wasn’t lying when I said I wanted to take a walk; today, I felt like spending my evening free time just wandering around the university after not doing so for a while. Another reason was that I wasn’t too keen on going back to the condo because it wasn’t my room. I didn’t mind it, I just felt somewhat out of place.

I put in my earphones, played my usual playlist, and started walking until I reached the university’s reservoir. If I thought about a place to rest or take a walk in the university, this was the only place that came to mind.

There were many people running for exercise, some playing guitar, and others taking photos. I quite like this place, even though it’s crowded, it has a really nice atmosphere, especially in this winter season when the evening air feels refreshing on the skin, and when the sky darkens with the sunset, it becomes especially beautiful.

Cat once told me that his boyfriend had asked him out at that bridge, and I couldn’t help but smile listening to that story. Even though it wasn’t the most luxurious spot, it was the most romantic place in the university, and this university would become the most memorable place for both of them.

I walked slowly along the curved path designed not to obstruct those running, taking breaks when my legs got tired, looking up at the clear sky and the water in front of me, taking deep breaths to savor the atmosphere.

Sitting here watching people run or walk by isn’t bad at all. It’s a chance to relax and let my mind wander after a tiring day of work. Even if I don’t have any new ideas at this moment, returning to work will definitely be easier.

I got up from the bench and continued my walk, not far from the bridge where the lights were on. I sat down by the path, placing my feet on the grass that bordered the water. This section of the walkway is where most people sit, so I sat here too, but the spot I chose was somewhat secluded and darker, seeking some peace.

Not long after sitting down comfortably, listening to music, I received an incoming call. I immediately pressed the answer button on my earphones without checking who it was.

(Where the hell are you?) The deep voice from the other end of the line mixed with irritation made it clear to me who it was, and I was sure he wasn’t in a good mood right now.

“I’m at the university.”

(North said you walked back, why didn’t you take your bike?)

   “Out of courtesy.”

(Damn, and you walked to class?)

   “I took the university shuttle.”

(Well, that’s good then. Where in the university are you?)

   “By the pond, the water reservoir.”

(There are two of those.)

   “The one that was built first.”

(And why are you there?) his voice had cooled down a bit but still carried some displeasure, (Don’t be stubborn, I’ll come to pick you up.)

   “It’s fine, I’ll stay a bit longer.”

(Then I’ll stay with you.)

   “It’s fine, I want to be alone.”

(Oh, I’ll be alone too then) he said that before hanging up. I couldn’t help but let out a sigh while thinking he was on his way, and I tried to soak in as much peace as possible before it would vanish.

Not long after, a person quite distinctive due to his height and appearance appeared. I saw him from a distance, and almost all eyes were directed towards him. He walked along the path, increasing his pace when he saw me sitting here.    “Don’t the mosquitoes bite you?” That was his first greeting before he sat down beside me.

“They don’t bite.”

“What time did you come here?”

“Around five or so.”

“You could have been comfortable with a bike.”

“I don’t want to.”

“Sigh, you’re stubborn.”

“…”

“What are you doing, enjoying the atmosphere?”

“Yeah.”

“And the snake…Warali, it didn’t bite you, right?”

“No.”

“Good, so how long do you plan on staying?”

“A little while longer.”

“Move over a bit.”

“Why?”

“I want to lie on your lap.” He said before brushing his hand slightly to signal me to move over, then he lay down with his head on my lap without asking for permission, as if asking my permission was no longer necessary.

“Your shirt will get dirty.” I said because, as I mentioned, this wasn’t a bench but the edge of a walkway.

“Will be washed.”

“…” I didn’t respond when he said that. I’d never had anyone rest their head on my lap before, which made me unaccustomed to the heavy feeling on my legs. I looked down slightly at the person lying there, and he was looking back at me even though it was quite dark around.

“Nice angle.” He said, “What song are you listening to?”

“Same playlist.”

“Let me listen too.” He requested, and of course, even if I said no, it wouldn’t matter, so I took out one earphone and handed it to him to wear.

“Why do you have to lie down, it’s dirty here.”

“I want to rest on your lap.” the person lying down said, “Hey.”

“Hmm?”

“I like it, you smell good.”

“Oh.”

“How was class today?”

“Just normal.”

“Really? I had a presentation this morning, it was a mess, ward rounds were exhausting as hell, and you didn’t reply to my messages, why?”

“Too lazy to reply.”

“Reply once in a while, I’m waiting, man.”

“…”

“Winter here, otherwise, you’d be swarmed by mosquitoes. Do you know why there aren’t many mosquitoes in winter?”

“Don’t know.” I replied softly, “Here.”

“What?”

“Why do you like me?”

“It’s a question I can’t answer either. I’ve told you, it has to be you.”

“If it were someone else, you’d have won them over by now.”

“Yeah, probably.”

“It’s all pointless effort.”

“How many times have you said that now? I’m not tired, understand?”

“I don’t understand.”

“It’s your issue.”

“It’ll be even more tiring than this.”

“Oh really? How tiring? Like climbing Everest or swimming across the ocean?”

“It might be that tiring.”

“Great, conquering Everest or swimming the Atlantic is one of my life goals too.

Don’t say it’s pointless effort because it’s definitely not.”

“…”

“Sigh, give me your phone.” He said before extending his hand. I had no choice but to hand over my phone. He took it, typed something, and then the song changed.

And when the music of the song started playing, I felt that it was a song I had never heard before.

If I got down on my knees, And I pledged it with you. If I cross a million oceans just to be with you. Would you ever let me down?

   If I climb the highest mountain just hold you tight. If I said that I would love you every single night. Would you ever let me down?

   Well, I’m sorry. If it’s some kind to bear Because I love you…

   “This is the first time I’ve ever given a love song to someone.”

The person lying on my lap reached out and took my hand, gently kissing it by the edge of my lips, and both the song and his actions made my heart start to beat stronger.

   I don’t know how long it’s been since my heart hasn’t beat this strongly…

   “And I really mean what the song says.”

“Hmm, it’s a nice love song.”

 

WESTTHESUNFROMANOTHERSTAR CHAPTERS HOME

   WESTTHESUNFROMANOTHERSTAR, Chapter 23: Light Yellow

   Arthit

   I set the bottle down, my gaze still fixed on the same spot. Even though his face looked tired and sleepy, he was forcing himself not to doze off, and his expression was somewhat grumpy, which I found quite cute.

Cute?

I’ve never thought anything was cute in my whole life; it’s another unexpected thing that has happened again. With this short guy, no matter what feelings arise, I’m no longer surprised. It’s becoming the first time for many things, really.    “Hmmph.” He made a sound in his throat like he was slightly displeased when I ruffled his hair again, his face looking drowsy, which made me want to pinch his cheeks right then and there. Every little action of his made me smile uncontrollably.

“You’re so damn cute.”

“…”

The person I complimented was slightly taken aback, but the one more shocked was North sitting beside us. His eyes were now wide open to the point of almost popping out. Even Jo, who was standing there, froze.

“What’s with you guys, why are you so shocked?”

“No, no, Phii, I just need some time, just a bit of time to adjust to the fact that you’re not the same person anymore.” Said North while gently touching his own face. “The ones who react to your words are me and Phii Jo, but look at my friend

first.”

“But just now he was stunned, even if just a little, right?” I said to North before turning back to look at him, “Right, are you stunned? Are you embarrassed?”    “Uh…”

“Uh means what?”

“Stunned.”

“Embarrassed?”

“Uh…” He furrowed his brows in thought.

“Do you have to think about whether you’re embarrassed or not?” North asked.

“I don’t really remember what being embarrassed feels like.”

“Sigh.” I inadvertently let out a sigh. It’s good that he said he doesn’t remember because that could mean he might be embarrassed but doesn’t know it. Flirting with a robot like this, in a while, I’ll get used to it more, “Teach your friend how to feel embarrassed, okay? Jo, let’s continue, I need to score five points before we leave.”

“Five points? One is enough to reach.”

“Don’t underestimate me. Even if basketball isn’t my main sport.”

“Then let’s play football in the evening if you’re going to claim it’s your forte.”

“Okay. If you lose in basketball, Jo, you’re a dog.”

“Sure, if you lose in football tonight, you’re a dog too.”

“Okay.”

And so our silly banter ended. Not for any reason other than Jo’s main sport being basketball. Seriously, without boasting, we can play almost anything, but since Jo is in the basketball club, he gets a lot of practice. As for me, I play football and am the team captain. If we compete one-on-one and lose, we might as well howl in defeat.

Speaking of football, I’m still annoyed, even though it’s been a year. No matter how good I am, it’s a team game, and my teammates are just average, while the other team had two, three, four, five million people marking me alone, following me relentlessly like they’ve admired me for over ten years. Even if I managed to shake them off, there was more waiting. That day was exhausting as hell, and we lost; not only was I tired all day, but then I had to drown my sorrows with alcohol, feeling totally frustrated.

Do we have to talk about Hill and Fah’s sports? Well, I’ll say a bit since you guys won’t read this part again after this, haha. Hill has been playing basketball since high school, and he played football too. He’s into typical boyish sports, and here he became the basketball team captain, and because of Hill, Jo followed suit, like in that movie, “Ghost Rider” or something.

Hill is very disciplined, an exemplary student and active in extracurriculars. I don’t know where he gets his energy from, he’s good at everything he does. He practices basketball intensely before competitions; besides his natural talent, he works hard on himself.

The same goes for Fah. Initially, Fah joined tennis because they were short on players, and he was kind enough to help. Eventually, the girls fought over him, causing too much trouble, so Fah switched from the tennis club to the football club with me. Fah, who had played football before, didn’t have any issues; he got good with just a little practice, but it was unfortunate he changed clubs late because after that, there were no more matches, just studying.

Because these three have to carry a lot on their shoulders, business, hospital, hopes, dreams, all sorts of shit, but I carry stuff too, you know, like eggs, big eggs.

Why does everything I say end up sounding so crass?

While I was thinking aimlessly, Jo scored, and we kept trading points back and forth, until we lost count of how many.

“North.” Jo shouted a bit loudly because of the distance, and the person called turned around immediately, “Did you count the score?”

“Oh, three each.”

“Really? I have three, Jo has two, or what? Are you siding with your husband?”

“Damn, you won’t admit it, will you?”

“It’s true, ask the ghost of the referee. Why would I count the score wrongly?”

North said before turning to ask the person sitting next to him, “Right?”

“We didn’t watch.”

I didn’t hear what the short guy said, but I could read his lips.

“Whatever, three-three then, let’s make it to five.”

“Come on, we have to present the case soon.”

“I have to present too, I was up all night preparing, my eyes are all bloodshot.” I grumbled with annoyance. Presenting a case in the morning is extremely frightening. Especially if it’s your own turn, damn, just thinking about it gives me chills.

“Ready yet?”

“As ready as I can be, any better than this and your dad should do it.”    “You won’t let Uncle Direk do it, huh?” Jo furrowed his brows while we were struggling over the ball.

“Direk would probably curse at me, ‘You little shit, I work my ass off and still have to work for you, go resign and sell your face like you do, your grades are shit, you bastard.’“

My words made Jo burst out laughing.

“Your dad, man, I really like him.”

“Want to trade dads?”

“Sure, I’m so sick of my dad these days.” Jo grumbled with a sigh. I don’t really get it, but it seems like this father and son duo have quite the bite. Given Jo’s personality and his sharp tongue, it makes sense.

“I’d rather trade moms. Your mom is beautiful, I want her as my new mom.”    “Sure, take her. I’m tired of helping her choose lipstick, man, one mouth but three or four hundred lipsticks, I’m serious, how can red be different, red is just red.” I laughed out loud. Jo can be quite a complainer if you notice, and this lipstick color thing, let’s just pass on that because there have been many times when Jo called us to help carry and choose stuff for his mom. Once she starts asking about makeup colors, imagine four guys, hands full of stuff, looking clueless.

“It’s like you have many pairs of shoes.” I said.

“I don’t have three hundred pairs of shoes, you bastard, and I don’t buy the same model in the same color.”

“Your mom says they’re different colors.”

“Different shit, they’re the same color, she put them on my arm in stripes, asked which one is prettier, they’re all the same damn color.”

I burst out laughing, Jo can really rant with feeling, especially since his dad is rarely free, he ends up being his mom’s date every time. Though lately, North has been tagging along too.

   We chatted aimlessly, and in no time, the score was 4-4, with the next point deciding who wins this playful competition, but we were taking it quite seriously.    “I win, dude.” Jo said with a mocking smile. I sighed in frustration, wiping the sweat from my face with my shirt. Jo went to put the basketball away while I walked back to our seats to find the two who were waiting had already fallen asleep, leaning on each other.

I sat down on my knees to look up at the one who had drifted off, probably too sleepy to stay awake any longer.

“Asleep again.”

“Does he always fall asleep when you take him for a run?”

“Often, it’s too early for him.”

“Oh, he’s not used to staying up late like us.” I said. Even though this short guy often overworks, going for a run in the early morning isn’t something he’s accustomed to, especially since he hasn’t exercised in a while. His body probably can’t take it.

It’s good that the one he’s leaning on is North. If it were anyone else, I’d be annoyed just thinking about it.

“Jo.”

“What?”

“Help me get him on my back.” I said before turning the other way. Jo helped him onto my back without waking him up. If he woke up, he wouldn’t have agreed to be carried by me. I slowly stood up, adjusting my arms to secure him better.    Jo nudged North awake, and North, half-asleep, climbed onto Jo’s back with practiced ease before falling asleep again.

“It’s like work.” I said.

“You’ll be like this soon enough.”

“You said that well.”

Me and Jo walked out of the gym with someone on each of our backs. People looked at me, probably surprised as hell, because I’ve never done anything like this before. On the other hand, everyone was getting used to Jo doing this.

Warm breath tickled the back of my neck, and I could feel the relaxed breathing rhythm, indicating he was sleeping soundly.

“Are you going to walk back, or do you want to hitch a ride with me?”

“That sounds good, feel sorry for him, want him to get to bed quickly.”

“Wow.” Jo made a disgusted face at me, “Seriously, I’ve got goosebumps.”

“Damn.”

“You’ve never done anything like this before, man. It’s too much, give me some time to adjust. No, give me a lot of time, damn it. That bastard is changing. Even if it’s just for one person, it’s still good.”

“Well said, here’s ten baht for you.”

“Keep it to suck on.”

“Damn.”

We walked to Jo’s parking spot. I opened the back door and gently laid down the person I was carrying onto the seat. Turning around, I saw that Jo had already placed North on the front passenger seat. I went to sit on the other side of the back seat but found there wasn’t enough space, so I had to let him rest with his head on my lap.

“Looks like you’ve got yourself a big job.” Jo teased.

“Damn it, is this all the space this car has? Why didn’t you buy a bigger one?”

“That’s funny, bastard, the seating space is just like this, isn’t it good?”

“How could it not be good?” I said before looking down at the face of the person who was asleep and unaware, gently stroking his head, and inadvertently smiling.

“You seem quite fond of him.”

“Stop staring at me, you creep.”

“Look in the mirror, you can see your own face.”

“And what do you mean by ‘fond of’?”

“Fond of, like what you’re doing. When you pet his head, it’s like you love him, want to protect him, I can’t quite explain it.”

“Oh, I see, I get it now, this is fondness, right?”

“Yes.” the driver replied before the car started moving out of the parking lot.

“You’ve gotten much smoother at driving. Not so rough anymore.”

“What’s that supposed to mean? My wife would wake up and nag me if I drove like before.”

“So you said, how did you go from driving like crap to driving this well?”

“Try having a wife, you’ll understand.”

“But this little guy isn’t scared even when I drive.”

“Oh really? Well, that’s good then, you guys get along in a strange way, that’s nice.”

“Yeah, that’s true.” I agreed while still gently running my hand through his soft blue hair. He shifted slightly, turning to face me.

Cheeky…

   Why are you trying to burrow into me!

   I grumbled to myself as he nestled his face near my stomach. Seriously, burrowing in won’t help because my stomach isn’t soft like a pillow; it’s just hard abs.

   I tried to nudge his head away a bit, but he just burrowed back in.

   Damn it! I can’t breathe properly here, can I just pinch him right now?    Calm down, self, he’s asleep, he doesn’t know what he’s doing, he’s asleep, he doesn’t know what he’s doing, he’s asleep, he doesn’t know what he’s doing!!!    While I was chanting to calm myself down, the car arrived at the condo. I gently moved his head to the seat and quickly got out, walked around to the other side, and lifted him up.    “See you.”

“Yeah, see you.”

Then the black car drove off. I walked into the condo building, still carrying the small guy in my arms. He’s really small, light as if he’s been fasting since birth, and too skinny for my liking.

Into the elevator, I pressed for the seventh floor. While thinking about finding his key card, a very sneaky plan came to mind. I opened my own door and laid him on my bed, rummaged through his pants pocket for the key card, and took a look at it.

I’ll hold onto this for now 😉

I left my room, used the key card to open his door, and took the liberty of grabbing his student uniform, laptop, and the pen and mouse he uses for work, bringing them back to my room. I placed everything on my desk. Even though there were some of my things on the desk, it was spacious enough to fit his stuff too.

I hung the student uniform on a shelf beside the bed. That seemed to be all for now. I passed by the condo management earlier and saw a notice saying they’d be closed for about three days, so he wouldn’t have a spare key card either.

I took out his phone, unlocked it with his finger, wondering if adding my fingerprint would be noticed. No one would check whose fingerprints are on their phone, generally thinking only of those they’ve registered. But even if he found out, so what? I added my fingerprint to his phone.

I opened it up without any manners – yeah, manners are out the window right now. Normally, I have some manners with people who deserve them, but not with this short guy. If it were any wife, it wouldn’t matter if she had her favorite’s phone lying around; anyone would want to take a peek, humans can’t resist their inner curiosity. I looked through the photos, curious about what he had captured. There were no pictures of people at all, just photos of cats, landscapes, various drawings, cartoons, and portraits.

I checked his social media and chat apps; he didn’t talk to anyone except clients for work. It was probably true what North said, that he blocks everyone who tries to flirt with him. But he hasn’t blocked me, huh? Here’s a chance.

After roughly scanning through his phone, I checked his alarm. It was set for noon, meaning he might have afternoon classes and set an alarm to wake up for lunch.

I placed his phone on the shelf beside the bed, on top of his school uniform. Thankfully, the uniform was already folded in the wardrobe, otherwise, it would have been a mess when I grabbed it. I went to take a shower, changed my clothes, and prepared for school. Before leaving the room, I looked at the person sleeping peacefully on the bed, completely unaware.

I left my spare key card there in case he came back first before I got back from class.

I sat on the bed, leaned in, and gently kissed his forehead before slowly pulling away.

I smiled happily, feeling like just this act made today a good day for me.

…

Daotok

   I slowly opened my eyes, still half-asleep, and was met with an unfamiliar smell from the blanket and pillow. I found myself in an unfamiliar room. Startled, I sat up quickly, clutching the blanket without realizing it.

What…what is this, where am I, why am I here…

I quickly looked around, trying to understand the situation, spotting my phone and uniform nearby. I grabbed the phone first. I put my feet down from the bed and walked around cautiously.

I saw my computer and equipment on the desk, next to which were books and sheets of paper. After a moment, I began to understand that I was in the room next door, and it wasn’t surprising if the neighbor took me there. It’s not strange for someone like him, who does what he wants with people he likes, to do this.    I opened my phone and saw a message from the neighbor, so I opened it immediately:

☀︎: If you’re reading this, you must know you’re in my room.

   ☀︎: And I’ll be honest here, I’ve taken your key card.

   ☀︎: The concierge at the ground floor is off for three days. So no spares for you.

   ☀︎: You probably know the reason. Feel free to use the room.

   ☀︎: Your school uniform is on the shelf next to the bed, your laptop is on the desk.

   ☀︎: The car keys are hanging, take your pick, drive your 40.

   ☀︎: There’s food in the fridge, you can use the microwave.

   ☀︎: If you think the room is a mess, help tidy it up a bit.

☀︎: Yeah, there’s a snake in the clear container next to the wardrobe, be careful.

   ☀︎: My spare room key card is on the table, take it in case I’m late coming back.

   I read the long message he left before inadvertently raising my hand to rub my cheek. If you ask whether I’m angry about this, how should I put it? I think I’ve started to come to terms with it because I consider myself quite adaptable. Arguing or resisting wouldn’t achieve anything; it would just be exhausting, and that feeling of being tired and wanting to do whatever comes back again.

He said he wouldn’t do anything I dislike. If he isn’t lying, I can probably forget about any serious concerns. If it’s not too bad being here, I’ll just bear with it.    Sigh. Even though I say that, it doesn’t mean I’m not mentally exhausted. Why does it have to be me, for heaven’s sake? Sigh, well…sigh.

I tripped over the words “be careful with the snake.” I immediately walked over to the side of the closet and saw a snake in a clear glass enclosure, a beautiful light yellow ball python, very beautiful.

I knelt down, getting close to look at its pattern, it was incredibly beautiful. No need to ask how expensive it might be.

“So beautiful, why is it so beautiful?” I spoke to the snake lying still in its enclosure. It was clear how well the owner took care of it. I immediately took out my phone to take a photo and then opened the chat with my neighbor.

SS: This snake is so beautiful, can I handle it?

   ☀︎: Sure, but be careful, it might not be used to your scent.

   ☀︎: But it’s not aggressive.

   SS: What’s its name?

   ☀︎: Doesn’t have one.

☀︎: You name it.

   SS: Is it male or female?

   ☀︎: Female.

   SS: Warali.

   SS: It means bright like the moon.

   SS: The light yellow one.

   ☀︎: Okay, good.

   ☀︎: Be careful not to get bitten, I don’t want to kill it.

   SS: It’s fine, this type of snake doesn’t hurt when it bites, right?

   ☀︎: You might not feel it, but I would.

   SS: Can I ask how much it cost?

    ☀︎: A couple hundred thousand.

   SS: Oh

   ☀︎: What are you doing?

   SS: Just woke up.

   ☀︎: Not going to ask about me bringing you to my room?

   SS: What are you going to do to me?

   ☀︎: Nothing. Just wanted to be with you.

   SS: Uh-huh.

   SS: So it’s fine then.

   SS: I’m tired of arguing.

   ☀︎: 5555555555555555, that’s so you.

   ☀︎: I went through your phone too.

   SS: Are you going to steal my work?

   ☀︎: 555555, I just wanted to see who you were talking to.

SS: Oh, uh-huh.

   ☀︎: What time do you have class?

   SS: In the afternoon.

   ☀︎: Grab something to eat.

   SS:    

   ☀︎:    

   I set my phone down and opened the glass cabinet, gently taking out the beautiful boa constrictor and placing it in my hand. I’ve never kept snakes or handled them often, but I know one thing: you must never let it fall to the floor. This snake is worth a few hundred thousand, yet he lets me play with it. Even though I said getting bitten would be fine, he insisted it wasn’t okay for him and reminded me several times to be careful.

   Does this mean he cares about me?

   Hmm…it’s nice when someone cares like this.

  

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