EASTTAGYOUREMINE, Chapter 14: The Only Thing You Care
“Hill!!!” Phii Johan’s voice boomed across the parking lot calling for Phii Hill. Fortunately, there was no one else around, so we didn’t become the center of attention again. Honestly, I think Phii Johan looks even more handsome in person than in photos. I’m not sure if his messy hair and untucked shirt were because he was in a rush or if that’s just his style.
He looks handsome in a different way from Phii Hill.
Phii Johan, along with the other two, hurried over here. I guess the other two might be Tonfa and Arthit that were mentioned.
“Man, Jo was driving so fast, almost ran a few red lights.” one of them said.
“But we didn’t actually run any.”
“So, where’s this person you were talking about?”
“That’s why I had to ask Hill. When they called, I could hardly believe it. Did you really announce on stage that he’s yours? That’s an angle I never thought you’d take.” Johan said excitedly, causing Phii Hill to chuckle slightly, “Who is it?
Introduce your friend.”
Uh…I’m starting to feel out of place here.
While I was watching to see if Phii Hill would reveal it or not, he glanced over here, implying that it was me.
Oh gosh, he’s just going to say it outright again? Doesn’t Phii Hill feel embarrassed at all?
“Really!?” Phii Johan exclaimed, his voice stretched long with a shocked expression. Tonfa and Arthit looked just as stunned.
Gasp, is it really okay to tell your friends?
And what if they don’t accept it like Phii Tun…?
“He’s cute.” ?
Huh…!?
“Initially, I was really wondering what kind of person you were wooing. I even discussed with Fah and Arthit that if the person wasn’t up to par, we’d have to hold you back. But you’ve got good taste.” Phii Johan lightly patted Phii Hill on the shoulder.
This is another time I’ve received compliments from the older guys…
So, all I could do was give a shy smile, raising my hand to scratch my cheek out of awkwardness.
“But isn’t Hill supposed to be wooing a freshman? Why are you guys here together?”
“Oh…I was waiting for my friends.” I replied.
“So Hill just smoothly stayed with him, I thought it was weird, why would he come to wait for us. Ah, now I get it.”
“Then, why don’t you introduce yourself? I still don’t know you, I’m Johan, by the way, is this the one who complimented me over the phone that day?” Johan asked about that day when I was with Phii Hill at the restaurant and ended up praising Johan.
Phii Hill nodded in affirmation.
“I thought it was someone else, wow, so you’re only wooing this one, then.” The teasing from the friends started again. Oh man, can we take a break from this teasing? I’ve just been through a lot of it already!
“My name is Tonfa, nice to meet you.” Tonfa smiled politely. This one seems more like Phii Hill in demeanor. He looks kind and gentle, but somehow, you can just tell he’s suited to be a doctor. If I had to guess, he’d fit perfectly into studying medicine, unlike Phii Hill who…tends to look more stern and sharp.
“My name is Arthit.” Arthit is slightly taller than Phii Hill, with an athletic build, the kind they call ruggedly handsome. “And you, freshman?”
“Uh, I’m Easter, but you can just call me Ter.” I introduced myself, but for some reason, they didn’t respond right away, making me wonder if I missed something,
“I study in the Veterinary Faculty, first year.”
“Veterinary is close to our faculty. We’ll see each other often then, especially since first-years have labs in the medical building.” Phii Tonfa said. Do I have to go to the medical building for classes too? T^T “Are you all…studying medicine?”
“Yes. Though Jo and Arthit here aren’t exactly the typical medical student type.” Tonfa said with a chuckle.
Then the voice of Phii Napdao called for everyone to regroup, why so soon? She said it would be fifteen minutes, right? Foam and Phoon still hadn’t shown up, probably lost, no doubt about it. When those two go anywhere together, they argue about directions all the time; Foam drives without paying attention, looking at girls or dogs, while Phoon gives confusing directions.
Yeah…they probably took a detour around the mountain once or twice before arriving here.
“Every time I hear Phii Napdao’s voice, I get goosebumps.”
“Why? Oh, because Tonfa is the vice moon, right? Then why aren’t you in the fashion show?”
“They only wanted the moon stars to participate and not runner up. That’s fine, I’m too lazy anyway.”
“Nong Ter, are you waiting for your friends? I can wait with you.” Phii Hill asked me.
“Uh…no, it’s fine, you guys can go ahead.” I said, feeling hesitant, making them wait for Foam and Phoon might take another year.
“Such polite language, unbelievable, our friend Hill has changed, I can’t handle it.” Phii Johan made a face like he was about to cry and covered his mouth turning to Phii Arthit.
“When he used to flirt with girls, we couldn’t handle it either.” Phii Arthit said.
“So what should we do? We can wait with you, you know.” Phii Tonfa offered.
“No, I’ll wait alone. You guys go ahead.” Phii Hill said.
“Wow, Hill, your friends came looking for you, and now I had to leave little Nené behind, just to pick up Tonfa and Arthit to find you.”
“Why the rush, I was reading and you threw the book away, buy me a round tonight. By tomorrow, if Hill really declared it on stage, it’ll be all over social media.” Phii Tonfa complained slightly while letting out a soft sigh.
“I’ll buy you a whole crate.”
“What the heck would I do with a whole crate? So, what’s the plan, Hill? You’re from the medical faculty, aren’t you supposed to lead the way? If not, Phii Napdao might have another outburst.”
“It’s fine, I’ll wait with Nong Ter first.” Phii Hill said. Why is he so insistent on staying with me? He could have gone ahead.
“Uh…then I guess we don’t need to wait anymore, it might take a while.” I said. Otherwise, this might never end. Foam and Phoon wouldn’t show up easily, and if Phii Hill is late, Phii Napdao would be even more upset about the fight earlier.
“Alright then, let’s go.” Phii Johan said, and we, four to five of us, started walking back to the star and moon group. I just listened quietly to the seniors talking while Phii Hill walked beside me, even when I walked slowly and the others went ahead. Phii Hill slowed down to keep pace with me.
Oh my, why does it feel so warm like this? My heart…T^T
“But Hill is still wooing Nong Ter, why do we tease like they’re already a couple?” Phii Johan asked.
“We just tease, it’s a blessing to see Hill woo someone, but we don’t mean to make you uncomfortable, Nong Ter.” Phii Tonfa turned to tell me. I just smiled back, indicating it was okay. I’m not uncomfortable, really…
“I’m leaving my friend’s heart in your consideration, Nong Ter. Even if you don’t like him, at least pity him. It doesn’t look like he’s someone who falls in love easily.” Arthit said. That sentence made me inadvertently glance at the person beside me.
“Five years.”
“The answer to the previous question…it’s been five years now.” When they said Phii Hill doesn’t fall in love easily…
Well…he’s liked me…for five years now.
Gasp!
Thump! Thump!
Every time I think about it, my heart races!
And when he looks back, once again, I find myself avoiding those eyes.
But thinking about it, it’s still strange. Yes…I told him that I actually met Phii Hill when I was in high school, about two years ago, which means I’ve only liked him for two years, but Phii Hill said it’s been five years. That means…Phii Hill has liked me since I was in middle school, huh? That’s really young, what could make a third-year high school student like a second-year middle school student for so long that he keeps liking them even as he progresses to his second year of university? And the important thing is, in my second year of middle school, what could I remember? Even after thinking about it over and over, I can’t remember ever meeting him.
When we returned to the activity courtyard, Phii Napdao announced for everyone to line up again. Phii Meili looked a bit worried but relaxed when she saw me, which made me smile involuntarily.
Phii Meili must really care about me.
I truly appreciated it.
“How are you, Nong Ter? You okay?”
“I’m fine, thank you.” I gave a broad smile to the person who rushed over to check on me. I’ve never expected anyone to look after me, because I’ve always thought I could handle everything on my own, but when someone does look after you,
It’s a feeling of happiness that’s hard to describe.
And it makes you want to look after them in return.
Not just Phii Meili.
Everyone.
Yes.
Including Phii Hill…
“Is Phii Meili okay? About…um, Phii Tun.” I paused for a moment, referring to when Phii Meili had slapped Phii Tun. I was worried that Phii Napdao might say something about it. Phii Hill had already been warned.
“I got scolded a little, but it’s fine. Actually, he’s not a bad person, really. He probably just said those things out of anger without thinking. Don’t take it too seriously, I think he didn’t really mean what he said.” Phii Meili said to reassure me. I nodded and smiled in acknowledgment. Even if Phii Tun meant what he said, it’s okay.
People have a million different thoughts.
And we can’t care about everyone’s opinions.
I will try not to clutter my mind with it anymore.
“Then I’ll go first.” Phii Hill said after Phii Napdao announced it again because everyone seemed tired and unwilling to go to rehearsal. I nodded in acknowledgment, and Phii Hill left without another word.
“Permission granted, I guess.” Phii Johan teased, and Phii Hill gave a slight smirk before heading towards the stage.
“So, what’s up with you guys, Meili?” Phii Tonfa asked, probably referring to the conversation I had with Phii Meili earlier.
“It’s about Tun, remember?” Everyone nodded, indicating they remembered, “He said some things that were quite off-putting. After Hill declared he was interested in Nong Ter, Tun just kept on with his not-so-nice comments about gays.” Phii Meili explained briefly, avoiding the more offensive words.
“Oh, that guy has never really thought before he speaks.” Arthit said as if this was typical for Phii Tun.
“That’s bad, huh? So, what happened?”
“Hill gave him a punch. I can’t believe it, Hill’s got a heavy hand too, Tun might have had his jaw broken, oh, that’s an exaggeration, haha.” “Wow, Hill’s really been doing some shocking things lately.”
“I can’t imagine it, him being so calm usually.”
If I hadn’t seen it myself, I probably wouldn’t believe it either.
“Don’t daydream, stay focused.” a voice from the stage called out, snapping me back to focusing on the photo shoot. Phii Meili didn’t forget to remind me when to take the photos, and I felt like we were going to take a lot of pictures today. From the individual shots since morning, we’ve taken countless, not to mention if any turned out good.
Rrrrrrrr
My phone vibrated in my pocket, but I was busy taking photos, my hands weren’t free.
“Phii Meili, could you please answer my phone?” I asked her for help, suspecting it was those two guys, probably done with their detour.
“My hands are dirty with sweets, ugh. It wouldn’t be appropriate, let’s ask Dr. Jo for help.” Phii Meili then asked Johan instead.
“No way, Hill would kill me. We just sorted things out last time.”
So, it turned into a game of hot potato, with no one wanting to answer my phone. “Ton, can you help?” Johan then passed the request to Tonfa. Hmm, why are they passing it around like this?
“Don’t want to. What’s wrong with you guys?” Tonfa sighed slightly before reaching into my pocket for the phone, “You guys better behave, Hill’s watching, he might scold me for being too touchy with the junior.” Wait, what the heck is this, –
“He’s probably gone backstage.” Johan said.
“He might have seen, Hill might have put a tiny camera on the freshman.”
“Not that crazy like you, Tit, excuse me, Nong Ter.” said Phii Tonfah as he took my phone from my pocket and accepted the call.
Sigh, everyone talks as if Phii Hill is some kind of criminal mastermind.
Well…he might actually be.
“Hello.” Phii Tonfah spoke into the phone. I turned back to focusing on my photography to not miss anything, but eavesdropping seems to be a skill I was born with, even though my eyes were on the camera, my ears were tuned into their phone conversation.
“You can put it on speaker, Fah, I’ll talk.” I said before Phii Tonfah pressed the speaker button. All I could hear was the sound of the wind, probably because they were still riding, “Phoon, where are you now?”
“Ter, help, we’re lost. Foam has gone past the university entrance, he said he’d take a detour, but we ended up in some random alleyway.” Phoon’s voice was somewhat muffled by the wind, but I could catch the gist.
“Come on, you idiot, which alley are you in?” I asked. I’m not really familiar with the area myself.
“What alley? Hey, Foam, should we stop the bike and turn on the GPS?”
“No. Just trust me, Phoon.”
And there it goes…they’re arguing again.
“Nong Ter, take the shot now, you’re missing the moment.” Phii Meili reminded me, because I had lowered my camera to talk to Phoon. Oh, how chaotic, they haven’t even arrived yet and they’re already causing trouble. “Alright, I can’t turn on the GPS, your internet is out, Foam.”
“My phone isn’t ringing.”
“Oh, great.” I said, exasperated, what’s with these two?
“Give me directions, I’ll go pick you up.” Tonfa offered, which made me pause for a second, such a kind soul, really. I guessed right.
“Uh…who’s this?” Phoon asked through the phone, sounding confused, since it was my phone, he must be puzzled about who’s speaking.
“This is Tonfa.”
“…” The line went silent, leaving us to listen to the sound of the wind for a moment before Phoon spoke again, “Are you Ter’s senior?”
“We just know each other.”
“And where’s Ter?”
“Nong Ter is busy right now. Should I come pick you up? You can tell me how to get there.” Phii Tonfa said, contemplating the distance for a while before responding.
“Yes, I’ll come to pick you up then.”
“Thank you, Phii Fah.” I said in appreciation, even though we’d just met, Phii Tonfa was very kind. He agreed to pick up my two friends. Indeed, picking them up would be better than just giving directions since they don’t know the way. It’s easier to guide them with turns on the way there and then follow back.
“Okay, Jo, lend me your car.”
“Should I go instead?”
“It’s fine.”
“Why?”
“You probably don’t have that much kindness in you. Don’t go if you’re just going to complain when you get back.” Phii Tonfa retorted, causing Phii Arthit and Phii Meili to burst into laughter.
“Haha, true, let our kind-hearted Dr. Fah go. Drive safely.” Phii Arthit said, and then Tonfa walked off, borrowing my phone as well.
“He’s really kind, isn’t he?” I said to Phii Meili while photographing the stars and moons on stage.
“Yeah, well, Hill seems kind too, but, you know, appearances can be deceiving.”
Phii Meili remarked, though I didn’t quite understand what she meant. Isn’t Phii Hill genuinely kind?
I didn’t respond, as the stage music kept looping along with Phii Dao’s voice, both criticizing and praising, quite harshly, I might add. Phii Napdao was tough; it made me not want to volunteer for the moon position. If anyone was off-beat or not to her liking, she’d make them start over.
And importantly, I still felt a bit flustered as a photographer when Phii Hill walked out to the front of the stage.
Oh…I’ve said it before,
No matter what, I always fall for that look in his eyes, T^T
“You’re squeezing the camera too hard, the lens is going to break, doctor.” Phii Meili teased after seeing the photos I took of Phii Hill, “Last time, he didn’t even look at the camera with another photographer.”
“Nong Ter, can I ask secretly how you met each other?” Phiii Johan asked me. “We’re waiting for the page’s interview tomorrow, then you’ll know. We don’t disclose information to outsiders.”
“It might be too late for that, but wait for what the page says then.” Rrrrrrrrrrr
The sound of a phone?
Phii Johan picked it up and answered.
“Hello?”
(Jo, it’s Pim.)
“Pim…Oh, uh, what’s up?” Johan’s voice hesitated a little, as if he couldn’t quite remember her.
(You don’t remember, do you? Never mind, where are you?)
“At the star club event, in the activity courtyard.”
(Are you with Hill?)
“No, Hill is at rehearsal.”
(Oh, can I talk to Hill then? Could you go ask the stars?)
“Why don’t you call Hill yourself?”
(I don’t have Hill’s number.)
“Probably won’t happen, so what’s up? I’ll tell him when he takes a break.” (It’s about Mild. She’s been crying since she got back to the dorm. I’m her friend. I heard there was some drama at the pageant. I guessed it might be related to Hill. Could you help? Mild hasn’t stopped crying.)
“And what does that have to do with Hill?” Phii Johan started to sound slightly irritated.
(I saw the clip, where Hill said there’s someone else he cares about more.) “There you go. That’s why I asked what it has to do with Hill.” The voice on the other end became even more annoyed, and Phii Johan, who seems playful, sometimes gets easily irritated too.
(Hill made Mild cry, at least he should apologize. Mild almost hurt herself, thank goodness there were many friends to stop her) Huh? Am I hearing this correctly?
Phii Thanmild tried to harm herself!?
“Sigh. I really don’t like women who are always seeking attention.” Oh my, Phii Johan is being too straightforward. Phii Hill is direct, but this is blunt.
(Huh? What’s that?)
“I’ll tell him later.”
(Thanks, and Lin says the person Hill likes is a photographer there, right?) Hmm? He means me? Uh…I’ve got a bad feeling about this. This Lin must be someone here. Otherwise, they wouldn’t know about this.
“Uh…” Phii Johan hesitated, glancing at me for a moment. I made a confused face in return, deciding to take a break from taking photos, “Ah, yes, why do you ask?”
(Hey, I am not saying anything against the freshman, but…if that freshman wants to talk to Hill, it’s fine, just let Mild come to terms with it first, okay?
She’s in a bad state.)
Wait, what does that mean?
I have to wait for Phii Thanmild to come to terms with what?
(But…hic, sob, it’s better not to talk to Hill at all, hic, sob, can you let Hill go, please? It took him so long to get better, I tried so hard, why come back now!!
Why come back!! Sob)
This voice…it’s Phii Thanmild.
The sound of sobbing mixed with shouting indicated she had lost control. Me and Phii Meili exchanged bewildered looks. What Phii Thanmild said made no sense to me.
Why come back…?
(Mild, Mild, calm down first. It’s alright. We’re here for you, Mild. Sorry,
Jo, we’ll hang up now. Don’t forget to tell Hill to check on Mild, okay?) And with that, the call ended amidst everyone’s surprise, except for Phii Arthit, who seemed completely uninterested, shaking his head in disgust after listening.
“What’s her deal? I didn’t think Mild could be this bad.” Phii Meili said, “Many from the faculty’s stars are on her side. Look, Lin is already spreading the news. Just by crying, she earns sympathy points?”
“Then Nong Ter, you should cry a little.” said Phii Meili teasingly. “I’d need some time for that, Phii Meili, how can I just start crying out of nowhere?” I replied with a chuckle.
“If you cry, it would really shake things up, Dr. Hill would definitely be overwhelmed.”
“People are strange, really, I don’t like it at all, Arthit. When girls demand attention, cry or even threaten self-harm, what’s worse is that their friends always take their side without question.” PhiiJohan said with exasperation.
“You’ve experienced that, Jo.” Phii Arthit mentioned, “Remember that time at the club?”
“Yeah, it was so embarrassing, she was yelling at me loudly, the whole club was watching, and it wasn’t just her yelling, she brought her friends along to join in, even though we had agreed that I wasn’t exclusive.” “Ha ha ha, serve you right, so what happened in the end?”
“She scratched my face with her nails, I went home and told my aunt it was a cat scratch, damn, but when I gave her ten thousand, she went completely silent.” Hmm…Phii Johan isn’t to be underestimated. I can’t help but laugh imagining him getting his face scratched.
“So, in the case of Thanmild, if we give her money, do you think she’ll quiet down?” Phii Meili asked.
“We could try, tell Hill, this one might need a hundred thousand.”
“I doubt it, she doesn’t seem like she’s after money. I really don’t understand her.” Phii Meili sighed. We turned our attention back to the stage where the rehearsal was ongoing. Phii Meili said there was no need to take photos now, nothing much was happening at this time, and she asked me to rest and wait for the final shot, which would conclude my work as a photographer for the day.
But I might have to become the unofficial photographer again, as Phii Meili said she would nominate me for more gigs, considering it as extra work.
Just a moment ago, Phoon called to say they were almost here. That’s a small relief. Not long after, Phii Napdao announced a break, complimenting that the rehearsal walk had improved significantly, and it wouldn’t take as long as initially thought.
Phii Hill walked over with other star club members, sitting down in the rest area where Johan and Arthit were seated, so others naturally followed suit. Phii Hill sat down next to me, which naturally drew teasing comments from the senior stars. “Wow, he won’t let anybody sit next to the junior, looks like Meili will have to move.” one of the seniors remarked, since Phii Meili was sitting on the other side of me.
“Except for me, I suppose.” Phii Meili said with a laugh.
I secretly glanced at the person sitting next to me, who returned a smile as always. Sigh, why does everyone have to sit here? When there’s too much teasing, it’s hard to know how to react.
And then I found myself moving closer to Phii Meili without realizing it.
It’s just…embarrassing…somehow.
“Is it hot? I told you not to stay in the sun too long.” Phii Hill asked while gently patting my head. I had to dodge slightly because I was afraid of more teasing.
“It’s not hot.” I replied, and as expected, the fear of being teased…well, it was too late again.
“Aww, so sweet. We were walking in the sun too, Hill.”
“Our friend actually cares about others, huh?”
“He only cares about one person, I bet.”
I gave a dry smile to the seniors who were teasing, but Phii Hill seemed uninterested.
“Hey, Hill, there’s trouble. Just now, someone named Pim, I think, called and said Mild was crying a lot.” Johan informed, causing the others to turn their attention, “She even threatened to harm herself.”
“Ugh…that’s over the top.”
“But it’s concerning, you know. If something happens, you’ll be in trouble, Hill.” “Wait, but I think Hill isn’t at fault here. He can’t be responsible for everyone who likes him, right?”
“I know, but it might escalate into a big issue.”
“I’ve been there, man. My ex once threatened to kill herself, it was quite stressful.”
“And what did you do?”
“You have to talk things out slowly. Some women are quite sensitive.”
“Yeah, and now she says the freshie should not talk to Hill yet, wait for Mild to come to terms with it.” Johan added.
“Can people who cry demand whatever they want?”
“That’s what they call unfair, think about others a bit.”
“Your friend, calm down, you’re getting too heated on behalf of Hill.” one of the seniors tried to calm another who seemed very involved, “So, what will you do, Hill? Ah…but we already know the answer without asking.”
“…”
“Whatever.”
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