NORTHHOWMUCHISYOURLOVE, Chapter 23 part 2
“Phii Prang.” Phii Joe called out as he walked back into the kitchen, “Are you free?”
“I have something to do next, why?”
“Could you stay with the kid for a bit? I’m going out.”
“Business?”
“Uh, at the faculty.”
“Are you going to the faculty?” I asked when I heard Phii Joe was going out. He nodded slightly, “Why are you going there, sir?”
“To help Hill with the Sport Day meeting, and also about Arthit not wanting to come back.”
Phii Arthit still hasn’t come back…
“Can I go too? If Phii Hill is going, Ter will have to go too, right?” I asked.
“Ter is going, but you stay here. You can’t go.”
“I can go.” I said. Phii Prang mentioned she had work to do. I didn’t want to bother her to stay with me, and I didn’t want to be alone either. It would be better to go with Ter, “Can I go too?”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“Alright then.”
Before leaving, we thanked Phii Prang for the food and clothes she bought, and then Phii Joe and I went to the medical faculty. I wore a hoodie zipped up to my neck and a face mask as usual. My hip pain was gradually improving, and I could walk normally now, though it still hurt a bit.
The luxury car pulled up at the medical school parking lot. Earlier, when we left the condo, I noticed an Audi and a Jaguar belonging to Phii Johan parked nearby. How many cars does that guy own?
Upon arrival, there were a few people around, and importantly, eyes were on us. I didn’t quite understand it, but I felt slightly uncomfortable with the attention. We took the elevator up to the medical building, where there was a coffee shop on the fifth floor. Once inside, we found a private room where Phii Hill and Ter were sitting.
“What’s up?” Phii Joe asked right away.
“You’ll be meeting with me about Sports Day, then wait for Far to come, and go talk to the dean about Arthit. Otherwise, he’s definitely getting suspended.” Phii Hill said.
“Damn.”
Phii Hill stood up, causing Phii Johan to follow suit, and then both of them left, telling me and Ter to wait in this room. I still wondered why there’s a shop like this in the medical building. It’s too luxurious, and the sofa is incredibly comfortable.
“Wow, North.” Ter said softly, looking a bit uneasy, “So…you guys became a couple yesterday?”
“Ter, stop teasing, please.” I said. Just being teased by Phii Prang earlier made me want to crawl into the ground out of embarrassment. Or just vanish completely, T^T. “And you, how did you manage to get my rubber duck dirty while you were with Phii Hill?”
“I just stopped by the dorm to get some stuff, was holding cocoa too, and then I spilled it.” Ter said. “Oh my god, you messed up my nong rubber duck, and did you finish washing it?”
“It’s done. It’s dried too, just waiting for it to dry completely, your nong dries easily.”
“You calling it ‘nong’ is so cute.” I said, letting out a small laugh at his words, “And hasn’t Phii Arthit come back yet?”
“Not yet.” Ter shook his head, “He’s been gone longer than Phii Joe, who almost died filling out leave forms. Phii Arthit didn’t even apply for leave or anything, just said he was going with Phii Joe. The dean called them back, all three of them, since as friends, they should know what’s going on.”
“Wow…”
“About the Medical Faculty’s Sports Day, there’s been some trouble.”
“What kind of trouble?”
“Money used for the activities was embezzled, and almost half of it was under Phii Joe’s name. Since Phii Hill is the class president, he had to call Phii Joe for a meeting.” Ter explained. I had heard some rumors about the Sports Day in the medical faculty; they have a huge budget for these activities, I heard there’s nearly a million baht in there. Every year, the stands, the parade, everything is just spectacular.
And now, half of that money had something to do with Phii Joe…
Cut to my engineering faculty, T^T
The medical faculty has a very high budget, so everything is luxurious. From the buildings, the educational equipment, to the shops around the faculty, they have everything in abundance. The medical side seems like it’s already developed. One thing that bothers me is the medical school building, which has four elevators per building, but our engineering faculty doesn’t have a single elevator. We have to walk up the stairs every day to get to class, no matter which floor. The students’ knees are all worn out.
Engineers are the ones who build elevators…
So why doesn’t our faculty have any elevators? I’m confused.
“From what they were discussing earlier, I heard Phii Joe say, ‘I’m too lazy for meetings, just let it go, let them embezzle it.’“
“Hold on, you can’t just ignore half a million baht.” I said, making a face of disbelief. How could bro just brush off half a million like that?
“He said he wanted to spend time with you more than going out today.”
“…Really?” I just said that. Oh my, why is he always like this? T^T After a while, someone walked in. I turned to see it was Phii Tonfa. We all greeted him with a wai, and he returned the gesture with a smile.
“Are Hill and Joe in a meeting for Sport Day?” Phii Fah asked.
“Yes.”
“Then it should be over soon, right?” Phii Fah said, “And Nong North, so you’ve decided to date Joe now?”
“Uh…yes.” I answered, nodding to him.
“Congratulations, may you both have a long relationship. If you need any help, just tell me, since you’re dating my friend.” Phii Fah said with a warm smile.
Phii Fah…T^T
What’s with this aura of kindness? It’s hurting my eyes.
“Fah.” Phii Hill called out, and then both seniors sat back down in their original spots.
“How did it go?”
“Joe, man.”
“What happened, are you pissed again?” Phii Fah turned to ask Phii Joe, who seemed to be in a less than good mood judging by his expression. “Yeah, that idiot is annoying. I’ve said not to talk to fools. It’s just a few hundred thousand, what’s there to cheat about? It’s easier to just ask me for money.”
“It’s not about the money being cheated, but having to come to this meeting because of it, damn it.” Phii Hill said, looking resigned as he placed some documents on the table, “The issue isn’t the amount of money. I know you’re not serious about it, but the faculty is. If you keep letting it slide, it’ll become a bigger deal.”
“I know. That’s why I’m here at the meeting, isn’t it?” Phii Johan said before letting out a small sigh.
“Getting over anger easily means you’re in a good mood today, huh?” Phii Fah commented. Phii Joe shrugged indifferently before pulling me closer to sit between his legs and hugging my waist, letting me lean against him in a way he usually liked.
But this is…
We’re not alone here…
!!!
“U…uh, Phii.”
I widened my eyes in shock when suddenly he pressed his nose and lips against my cheek, then turned my face away slightly, which made the other person somewhat displeased.
“Stay still.”
“Sigh, I want to take back what you said to me.” Phii Hill spoke up, “Joe, can you see us?” Phii Hill’s words made Phii Johan burst into laughter.
“Smitten with the junior, and now even more so since you’ve become a couple.” Phii Fah teased lightly, causing my face to flush even more before I tried to squirm away and return to my original seat.
“Come sit here.” Phii Joe ordered. “No. I’m good.” I said softly.
“Poor junior, he’s all bruised up now, Joe.” Phii Fah said, “Take it easy on him, it’s only your first day as a couple.”
“He’s not just a boyfriend anymore.” Phii Johan said, raising one eyebrow and giving a slight smirk.
“Wow. Look at you smiling, are you trying to annoy us?” Phii Fah said with an exaggerated annoyed expression, “What about Arthit’s situation? My dad said he’s free in half an hour, we’re going to get it hard.”
Phii Fah’s words made Phii Hill and Phii Joe look at each other and sigh in resignation.
“Have you transferred the money to him, Joe?” Phii Hill asked as if he just remembered.
“I’ve transferred it. Right after you called.”
“How much? Enough for the ticket?”
“I transferred millions. It should be enough for him to know, I even added for his travel expenses and food.” Phii Joe said with a bit of irritation, “Why hasn’t he come back? What is he doing with my money?”
“I think it’s like when he went to Mongolia.” Phii Hill said.
“Oh…” Phii Johan nodded, then laughed again, “Is he getting into the local lifestyle again? Why does he always get into it so easily?” His words made me laugh as well.
What does it mean to get into the local lifestyle? Has Phii Arthit gotten so into it that he doesn’t want to return to Thailand?
“Has this happened before?” Ter turned to ask Phii Hill.
“Yes, Arthit is the type who gets bored easily, loves to try new things. Once he goes, it’s hard to get him back, especially when he goes with Joe. He won’t come back. No one can stop him.” “Why stop him? If he’s happy doing it, let him. The problem is it’s my money.” Phii Joe complained, “Probably used my money to marry someone there, and in another year, he’ll send a picture of the kid back to show off.”
“That can’t be, but when it comes to Arthit, yeah, I think it might actually happen.” Phii Fah said, still laughing at what Phii Joe had just said, suggesting that in a year, Arthit would send a picture of his kid saying the money transferred that day was spent on marrying someone in Brazil. He’s not coming back to Thailand. Is that how it is?
“Have you tried calling him?” Phii Joe asked.
“I called, but it didn’t connect. Try it, maybe he’s waiting for your call to get more money.”
“Oh please.” Phii Joe said, shaking his head slightly in disgust before pulling out his phone to make the call. After a while, Phii Arthit picked up, and the speaker was turned on for everyone to hear. As usual, there was only background noise.
“Arthit.” Phii Joe called out.
(Yeah, Joe, what’s up?)
“Where are you?”
(Manáus)
“Still not leaving Brazil, huh?”
(Not yet)
“What are you doing in Manáus?”
(Fishing for piranha) The voice from the other end made everyone at the table laugh again. Why is this so entertaining? Why can’t he just let go of piranha fishing?
“Manáus? Fishing in the Amazon?”
(Yes)
“How’s it going?” (Pretty good)
“Good then, come back with my money now. We’re in trouble because the dean called us about you.”
(Really, why’d they call?)
“Because you won’t come back, do you want to get suspended?”
(Yeah yeah, I’ll come back today…maybe. Don’t know if they’d let me go back.)
“Who?”
(Hold on, I’ll put it down. It’s my turn now.)
“What turn?”
(The nurse is calling.)
“Are you at the hospital? Arthit?” Phii Johan asked seriously.
(Yeah, I’m at the hospital.)
“What happened? Why do you need to go to the hospital?”
(Piranha bit me.)
Everyone at the table burst out laughing at the words from the other end of the line. What is it with this guy, with Phii Arthit, how many times do I have to say “What’s with you?” He got bitten by a piranha, presumably while fishing in the Amazon alone.
“What’s with you, man? How many stitches do you need?”
(Probably seven stitches, my hand is covered in blood now.)
“Okay, okay, just hurry back then.”
(Yeah, I’ll go get stitched up first.)
And then Phii Johan hung up amidst the laughter at the table. What kind of person is Phii Arthit really? It’s like he lives life without any plan, just doing whatever he feels like. Phii Hill said he gets bored easily, but how bored does one have to be to go get bitten by piranhas in the Amazon? Then the conversation at the table shifted as we waited another half hour for the Dean, as Phii Fah had mentioned. Once the half hour was up, everyone left, leaving just me and Ter in the room.
“North, do you want some brownies?” Ter asked, pushing the brownie tray towards me. Ter really loves sweets. As for me, I’m indifferent; I can eat them, or not, but being around Ter makes me feel like my blood sugar is going up just from looking at them.
“It’s okay.” I shook my head in refusal. Not that I didn’t want to eat, but my mouth hurt, so I couldn’t, T^T.
“Is your mouth cracked again?”
“Yeah.” I nodded, because right now I had a bandage over my mouth, but Ter could probably guess.
“That’s intense, I was so excited when you guys became a couple yesterday.” Ter said excitedly, “Did you ask to be his boyfriend at the viewpoint on the hill?”
“Yes, because I once said I wanted to go there.”
“Fantastic, and your caption was super sweet, both of you. Didn’t you update your relationship status on Facebook or take a couple photos or something?”
“I don’t know, but should I update my relationship status on Facebook again? I already get a lot of friend requests just from this. It’s like when you first started dating Phii Hill, everyone got famous, right?” I asked, although I already knew the answer. Indeed, everyone did get famous.
“Well, yeah, and have you figured out why Phii Joe likes you?”
“I don’t know.” I shook my head, “He won’t tell me.”
“Oh, that’s frustrating.” It’s not that he won’t tell me, but the conditions for asking questions are so unfair. After talking with Ter for a while, the seniors came back and then we all parted ways.
The strange thing was Phii Joe was taking me back to my dorm. “Are we going back to the dorm?” I asked the person in the driver’s seat. This route clearly leads back to my dorm. Usually, Phii Joe would have me stay with him.
“Yes.” Phii Joe simply replied before looking ahead at the road. I noticed Phii Hill’s car following behind, so Ter was probably heading back to the dorm too. I, who had nearly had heart attacks multiple times being with Phii Joe, desperately needed some time to breathe, T^T.
“Oh, why are you parking here?” I asked, surprised. Normally, Phii Joe drops me off at the front of the dorm and drives off, but now he had parked inside the parking lot under the dorm. He then got out of the car, which meant what exactly? Was Phii Joe coming up to my room?
“Is Phii Hill coming too?” I heard Ter ask, turning to see Ter looking confused at Phii Hill, and then he looked at me with the same expression.
The four of us went up to the dorm, still puzzled about why Phii Hill and Phii Joe were here, and then we were surprised to find my room door open.
!!
Wait…
Why are my and Ter’s things moved outside?
“What’s going on here?” I immediately turned to ask Phii Joe.
“You’re moving in with me.”
“Ha! How is that possible!”
“I told you already.” Phii Joe said before walking into the room. I followed him inside, finding the room noticeably emptier. There were about three movers packing our stuff into boxes. “Why is this room so small?”
“I told you.” Phii Hill said as he entered the room, “You’ve been here before.”
“I didn’t notice at that time.” Phii Joe said before slumping down into the chair at the computer desk. “Ter, what’s going on? Did Phii Hill tell you?” I moved closer to whisper to Ter, who turned to shake his head at me, looking equally confused. He probably didn’t know either.
“Phii Hill, but me and North can’t move out yet. Otherwise, we won’t get our dorm deposit back.” Ter spoke up, doing well. We have to argue back sometimes; we can’t let ourselves be pushed around like this in every situation, T^T.
“How much is it?” Phii Hill asked back.
“Five thousand each.” Ter replied.
“Hill and I can give ten thousand each.” Phii Johan offered.
“Phii, but you can’t just force North to move out like this.” I said, making a sour face. The janitor glanced at us briefly before continuing to pack things away.
“Why not?”
“Because this is my room.”
“Oh, but now it’s a dorm room.”
!!
Why does this always happen, T^T
“Excuse me, do you want to pack your personal belongings yourself, or should we do it?” one of the janitors asked.
“Uh, we’ll pack it ourselves.” I and Ter said almost simultaneously, then started packing our things out of necessity. I packed my personal items and clothes into boxes. So, this is the extent of my packing, what else can I do?
So, they really bought the dorm and are kicking me out…
It’s quite disheartening, TT
“North, what about this table?” Ter asked me about the desk we had bought together. Now that we’re going to live separately, what should we do with it?
“Yeah.” “Do you want it, Hill? The stuff on it.” Phii Joe asked the person sitting next to him.
“I don’t.”
“Then just throw it away, just take your personal stuff.” Phii Joe said. It’s easy for him to say. At first, I didn’t think I’d have to move, and now I can’t even imagine what it would be like to move in with him.
Once everything was packed, the movers started taking things downstairs, separating Ter’s and my belongings. Even the bed sheets had to be discarded, those beloved pig-beds of ours, T^T.
“North, the duck toy is still outside, it should be dry by now.”
“Right, right.” I said. How could I forget the duck toy? It’s really important. I had to place it at the head of the bed. I went out to the balcony to pick up the duck toy that had been left there; it was a small plushie, not even big enough to hug.
“Short-legged duck.” Phii Joe remarked when he saw me walking back into the room with the duck, the same way he criticized it when he first saw my profile picture, T^T. “Just throw it away. No need to bring it into my room.”
“No way, it’s important to me, it’s cute too, give it a chance.” I said, waving the duck in front of Phii Joe.
“Important?” Phii Joe raised an eyebrow slightly.
“Yes.”
“How so?”
“Well…it was a graduation gift.”
“And then?”
“Uh…well…how should I put it, it kind of saved my life.” I looked at the plushie in my hand, reminiscing about that day, the day of the high school graduation when my ex-girlfriend broke up with me. I remember how that day felt like the world was falling apart. Instead of celebrating with friends, I spent half the day in a daze until someone gave me this duck, saying it was sent by someone else.
It was a duck with a cheeky face, accompanied by a note that read:
‘Smile a bit, :)’
Seeing that message, I smiled without realizing it, as if someone was waiting for my smile. Looking at the duck made me feel comforted. I don’t really understand why. I tried to find out who gave me this duck, but no matter how much I searched, I couldn’t find them. I really wanted to tell them, thank you so much for turning what was a really sad day into a better one.
“Can I keep it with me?” I asked him with a pleading tone.
“You like it that much?” Phii Johan asked back.
“Yes.”
“Please?”
“Sigh.”
“…”
“All right then.”
“I bought you so many things, why do you have to like that stupid duck too?”
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