MYENGINEER, CHAPTER 59: Teasing…

[Bohn]

“Serves you right for playing games, I’ve been patient for a while now.” If you’re going to look at me like that, Ting, you might as well come punch me. Everyone else too, what’s up…I just wanted my boyfriend to act sweet, where’s the fault in that? Everyone wants their partner to be sweet.

Last night, I didn’t sleep outside the tent like Duen ordered. I tried to make amends from midnight until two in the morning, but he didn’t soften…no, he was asleep long before that. Waking up, he was still angry, but not like before. This time he looked at me, he paid attention, he talked to me. When our friends found out what happened, they all thought I deserved it. Why, though? I’m pitiful enough, why add insult to injury?

“Alright, campers, today we have activities at various stations organized by our kind forestry department friends. There are ten stations. The first station is…” The senior continued explaining. I listened a bit, didn’t listen a bit, remembering roughly that the first station is crossing a rope bridge, and the last one is weaving leaves. I heard Duen really wants to go to that one. Oh, there’s also a station where we have to hike up the mountain to learn survival skills in the forest.

“Hey, you scoundrel, found the sign already?”

“Yeah, an elf brought it.”

“What elf? We’re in Thailand.”

“It was really an elf, man. After we showered, there was a sign on the pillow.”

“An elf or a forest spirit! Damn…that’s scary.”

“Don’t be scared of you, it didn’t mention there was a Post-it on the sign, saying, ‘Looking for you, you savage. If I hadn’t kept it, it would be gone by now’.” please, Tang, don’t mimic my boyfriend’s voice, my boyfriend’s voice is much cooler.

“Oh, ghosts love you.”

“Yeah, heh heh.”

“We have to go to Station Seven first…the ‘Digging Station’.” James said.

We follow the tent groups, 25 people per group, with a total of eight groups.

“Follow me…come on, kids, uh…I’ll personally take you there.” P’Ying waved for us to follow. He’s one of the guides provided by the forestry department, quite young, probably not less than eighty, healthy but…doesn’t have much speaking energy, though he’s quite funny. He won’t let us call him uncle, saying it’s not suitable for his youthful face, sure, P’Ying.

“Where is the station, P’Ying?” Bihn went to ask, quite interested in this guide’s fashion. My little brother said, “I want to study P’Ying’s fashion sense, he’s not ordinary at all! I asked what he studied, P’Ying said he graduated from grade 8 with a GPA of 5.90, damn…how do you get a grade above four? Plus, his fashion sense is so unique, he might have mastered fashion to another level, I need to apprentice under him. P’Ying, please accept me as your disciple.”

Hearing this, you might wonder how P’Ying dresses, ordinary…ordinary people wouldn’t wear this. He has an old man’s purple turtleneck sweater, yellow and green polka-dot boxer shorts, very tight and high-waisted, red flip-flops with pink pompoms in the middle, around twenty amulets hanging from his neck, and a big orange rose hairband on his head…God, which hospital did this guy escape from? Bihn, if you dress like this, I’ll kick you out of the house and make Ben my family third son…

“The station is at, uh, um…let me listen a moment…hmm…uhmm.”

“Listen to what?”

“Mom.”

“River?”

“Mom bought.”

“…”

“P’Ying, where do we need to go? Did they give us a map?” Seeing that we couldn’t rely on P’Ying, King went to ask P’Singh. He’s also one of our group’s guides, each group gets two guides. P’Singh is about the same age as P’Ying, slightly better because he has the energy to speak. He looks strong, but the downside is, his hearing isn’t great…

“Pantene? Heh. I don’t use Pantene, I use natural shampoo, extracted from rotting kaffir lime peel from the suffering, bitter, and sad Doi Pha Oed mountain. It’s good…good my ass, my hair is falling out in clumps, you bastard, just wait, I’ll go slap someone, sold me a fake!” P’…are you serious, just hearing where it’s from, I wouldn’t buy it.

“Uh…the map?” The person asking scratched his head as if he didn’t know what to say. We were all stunned too. So, the guide for our group probably isn’t going to make it…us too.

“Oh, oh, it’s in my bag…here it is.” The same guide pulled out the map to show us; it looked unusually large. The maps of other groups were only the size of a hand.

“…”

“Hmm, what’s wrong, little brother?”

“It’s really a map…but it’s a map of Thailand.” We all crowded around to look. Wow…it really is Thailand, including the whole country. Looking at this, we could study it until our eyes fall out, and we still wouldn’t find the station; there’s just a tiny bit of Uttaradit. I haven’t even seen where Phu picked flowers for Dao yet.

“Oh, what a curse, here it is.” Phii Singh pulled out the real map (sounds very grand).

“Is this the real one, sir?”

“Who’s Napir?”

“Sigh…! Where’s the station, sir?”

“The station…oh, this way.” Finally, we were on our way. The station’s supervisor might have fallen asleep, and I noticed that Thara’s doctor group had already moved to another station. Heh.

“Hey Tang, is this ‘blindfolded groping’ like what we did during the freshmen welcome?”

“Uh-huh.”

“There’s nothing weird or scary, right?” Duen whispered, do other groups do this? I’d like to play too; I’ve only played a couple of times. It’s fun, but watching friends scream is even more entertaining, huh.

“Duen, are you still mad at me?” I walked over to my lover, who gave me a disdainful look. Our friends chuckled at his behavior.

“Still.”

“How should I make it up to you?” I really don’t know what to do. I’ve never really had to apologize much in my life; usually, if someone was mad at me, I’d let them get over it themselves. If you want to be mad, that’s your business, something like that. Duen is the only one I’ve sat down to appease. Well…I don’t want to lose him.

“How should you? Let’s see, you try to act sweet to me.”

“Huh, how?”

“However you want me to act sweet, do that.” How should I do that…like a cat rubbing against someone? Just imagining myself doing that gives me goosebumps, damn. But if it’s hugging, kissing, or touching, that’s doable.

“…No way.” Even though Duen isn’t fragile, when he does it, it’s cute, but when I do it, it’s…kickable.

“Why?” Duen raised his eyebrows, asking. I just noticed we were walking at the back of the group, just the two of us, while the others probably wanted to give us space to talk or were just tired of our lovey-dovey behavior.

“I look ugly doing it. You look cute doing it.”

“Really? Now I want to see even more…beg me, little brother! Or Phii Duen won’t stop being mad at you.”

“Duen…when I do it, it’s sinful. Don’t you understand, wow?”

“That’s your problem. If you don’t do it…I won’t stop being mad.” After finishing his sentence, he walked off to join his friends. My friends turned around to look at me before running over. They weren’t worried about me, they were here to tease. You can tell by their faces…

“Wow, your wife’s mad at you.”

“That’s how it is. Show-offs, pranksters, how does it feel to be played by nong doctor, huh?” My two best friends, Bom and Boss, came over to nudge my shoulder. I hate it when you guys are together, normally, you’re fine when apart, but when you’re in duo mode…I don’t even want to walk near you.

“From my preliminary diagnosis and observation, I think Bohn has a condition.” King, the genius, stroked his chin thoughtfully. Where did you get those glasses from?

“What condition, King?” Tang asked.

“Uxoriphobia.”

“I thought so too, the smell of being scared of your wife reaches the front of the line, you coward.”

“Wow, damn, Bohn, the coward.”

They all joined in the mockery, their voices so loud that the people in front turned around…to laugh. Even though not all of us are engineering students, half from other faculties, you guys still tease, damn it, just wait, I’ll slap you all in line.

“Shut up, you bastards.”

“Are you going to say it’s not true?”

“Because it is true, that’s why I don’t want to hear it…come on.” I made a face and quickly walked forward, but my ears still caught the teasing from behind. Your voices are loud enough to shake the forest. You damn microphone…

“Welcome, juniors, to the Digging Station. Let me introduce myself first, my name is Chai, and over there is…” We soon reached our destination. At this station, there are five seniors, but I only remember Phii Chai, the one holding…

“This station has simple rules. You need to divide into five groups, with five people in each group. Then take turns reaching into the bag, guess what’s inside, and tell your friends. You can feel around for as long as you like, until the song ends. The group that’s the fastest and guesses correctly will get this jar.”

“Hey…that’s…”

“King, calm down.”

“How can I calm down? Look at that, it’s amazing stuff.”

“Some might not know, but in this jar, it’s the tissue of this rare wild orchid…”

“What about the group that’s the slowest and answers incorrectly?”

“Easy. They just have to go out and pole dance on that hill over there.” Phii Chai pointed to a high hill where there was a pole stuck in the ground. Let’s not call it a pole; it’s bamboo…a whole bamboo stalk.

So, each group has five bags, meaning one person per bag, right? This means if one person can’t guess, we lose. Damn, I don’t want to go out there and pole dance. Just imagine a tough guy like me out there doing something like that; it gives me the creeps.

“Phii King, my group is missing one person, want to join us?” Duen and his friends came over to ask. Besides Tang, Duen, and Ting, there aren’t any first-year medical students at this camp. Luckily, they have close friends like Ram and Phu. Otherwise, they’d look pretty pitiful.

“Uh-huh.”

“No.” I interrupted King; he can’t join Duen’s group. If he does, they’re sure to win. If they win, I won’t get to see Duen pole dancing.

“?”

“King is already with us.” I winked at my friends. They nodded, understanding. That’s what comes from being friends for a long time, they really get me.

“Oh, then, does anyone else have an extra?” Nong Tang asked.

“Boss.” Boss is the best choice here.

“Huh, uh-huh, me.” At first, he looked confused, but when we gave him the look, he understood immediately. He nodded with a smile and walked off with his arm around Tang’s shoulder. That’s how it should be, my dear friend…but you understood my look, right?

“Wow, Thai language teacher.”

“Let’s go, my dear student, our team is definitely going to win.” We’ll see, huh.

“You’re confused, the prize is an orchid, and it’s even tissue-cultured. I want it, I want it, I want it. Look, this species is very rare, it only grows in the North! I want, I want, I want.” the forest guy, oh! King shook Tee’s arm back and forth, really wanting it, huh.

So, in my group, there’s King, Bom, Merk, James, and me.

What do you think…I’ve selected only the cream of the crop for this, heh.

 

[Duenhaw]

“Our team will definitely win, my dear juniors, trust me, I’m a master at this, hee hee.” That’s how my Thai language teacher should be!

We’re about to play the jar-digging game, and the prize is quite interesting. Tang wants to give it to his father, saying this plant is very rare, hard to grow, hard to find, and expensive. I want one too, to try growing it. I remember the last time I planted something was in grade 9, when my agriculture teacher made us grow bean sprouts, but they never grew, no matter what I did…

“I don’t want to go out and do pole dancing, bro, it must be so embarrassing.” Tang rubbed his arms. I don’t want to do it either, picturing a muscular guy sliding down a pole…brr!

“We won’t lose, kids…but if we do, it’s no big deal, I’ll lead the dance myself, it’s super easy, there’s even a move to tease your husband…husband, I miss you, we’re apart but our hearts aren’t, quiet one, kiss kiss!” He raised his hand to send kisses towards Phii Merk as part of the choreography, the other just looked up, smiling and even pouting slightly. Even if it’s just a little.

“Let’s plan first, I have a plan.”

“You really want it, huh…usually, you never have a plan.”

“I do want it. If I get it, my dad will definitely give me his inheritance, heh.” “= =“

“So, what’s your plan then, tell us.” We moved closer, just noticing Phii Boss’s name tag reading, ‘Boss, Merk’s wife, late at night, very good, very fast’, the first sentence makes sense, ‘Phii Boss, Merk’s wife’, but the next one, what does that mean…I guess I haven’t mastered Thai language yet, I need to study more.

“Just dig in without fear, there won’t be much in there, grab whatever you find, and we need to keep track of time. Otherwise, we’ll definitely have to go out and slide down the pole…” We nodded in agreement with Tang’s idea, no one wants to slide down the pole, except for Phii Boss, who has a mischievous smile, somehow.

But the one with the worse smile is that leech…

This morning, I gave him back his name tag. I’ve kept it since the first day; he left it at the waterfall. If I hadn’t kept it, it would have been gone long ago. See how good it is to have me as a boyfriend! Honestly, I’m not really mad at him. Just annoyed and a little irritated, he must be crazy, pretending to be mad to make me beg.

I mean…I’m a man, not some delicate girl, but a burly giant who can break a wild boar’s neck with bare hands…!

“Are you all ready? Don’t forget, the fastest gets it. Feeling around for too long wastes time, but if you feel too quickly, you won’t know what it is…Ready! Go!!” As Phii Chai’s voice ended, the music started. What kind of song is this, it’s so suspenseful…

“Go, Ram!” We sent Ram first, followed by Tang, Phii Boss, me, and finally Phu. Ram and Tang are quite detail-oriented. We should win this.

“Damn!!!”

“Aaaaah!! It’s moving, you bastard!!”

“Oh my god!! It’s squirming, scream!!” Hang in there, bro, hang in there! You…uh, whatever, I just know you are a lion.

“Tang, go!” We all shouted in unison when Ram came back; he did good time because besides Phii King and Ram, no one else had returned yet.

“What was it?”

“…I think it was an egg, but I squeezed too hard, and it broke.” I think he’s right…it burst and left yellow goo on his hand. Good thing he walked back smoothly.

“So, the first thing was an egg.”

“Phii Boss!” Wow, Tang, do you want that jar that badly? He came back really fast, even faster than James from Bohn’s team. It’s not like you don’t know this stuff.

“Why did you come back so fast? What was it?”

“It was squishy like jelly, and it smelled sweet. It must have been grass jelly.” We looked at his fingers stained with dark syrup. I think so too…

“Aaaaah!! What the hell!! Your father, what is this, ewww!! It’s the grossest thing ever, Boss, you can’t handle it!!”

Phii Boss sat down on the floor with his legs crossed before crawling back to us. I don’t know what he encountered, but I have to go now! Orchid tissue, wait for Phii Duen!!

“Oh, they came out together…maybe they’re meant to be.” “Nonsense.” Do I have to say who it is?

“Be careful…it’s scary, huh.” Bohn nudged my shoulder. You’re trying hard, aren’t you, even though we’re far apart…no, actually, we’re not that far apart. We’re in adjacent groups; he’s in the third group, and I’m in the fourth. The distance is between the bags.

“Don’t mess with me, Bohn.” I raised my eyebrows teasingly before I started reaching into the bag. Before I even touched anything, the person next to me spoke up, making me pause.

“I’m not messing with you. Since you’re my boyfriend, I’ll tell you. It makes a ‘thud…thud, thud, thud’ sound, my love.”

As soon as he finished the sentence, he blew air into my ear. I was stunned for a while until he ran back to his seat, then I realized, you leech! Are you wasting my time?! So evil, once I composed myself, I quickly reached into the jar, how much could be in there!

“Hey, argh!…Oh, it’s not that much.” I yelped for a moment and then ran back to my seat. I didn’t want to waste more time; that’s all I needed to know, squishy, soft, a bad feel, there’s only one thing like that.

“Phu goes.”

“Oh!”

“…Damn, Bohn, you tricked me.” I punched the shoulder of the person sitting next to me, so annoying.

“I tease you because I love you.” Bohn lifted his hand to pinch my cheek softly, thinking it’s cute, huh…he deserved that if he didn’t use the hand that went into the jar to pinch me, the smell stuck to you.

“Don’t touch me, you liar, you clearly fooled me.” Punched him again, that’s right!

“Come on, it was just a little.” After saying that, he hugged me and rocked left and right. This…are you begging? So, you want me to beg like this? I shook my lover off when Tang waved for us, not knowing if all the items in the jars were the same, so we had to keep it secret in case someone was eavesdropping.

“Yours is what? Mine’s jelly, Ram’s is an egg, Phii Boss’s is lemongrass.” Lemongrass? That’s what made you scream like that. I thought it was a python…Oh, was that to trick the competitors, Teacher? I salute you, Master!

“It’s probably Tae’s tofu, damn, Phu’s here.” Mine from the jar was indeed

Tae’s tofu, I’m pretty sure of it because why? I saw Tae’s white tofu on Bohn’s finger; the smell from earlier made me certain it had to be Tae’s tofu…If Phii Chai put the same items in each group’s jars, we’re lucky, but if not…well, um.

“What’s yours?”

“Eel.”

“Huh?!” We all exclaimed together, the person who answered nodded before continuing to eat his snack, unconcerned. If it really was an eel…you haven’t washed your hands yet, have you, Pinchan?!

“Actually, I caught it with my hand…you run to answer quickly!” Phu nudged Tang to stand up when he saw Phii King walking towards Phii Chai.

“Argh, my inheritance!!” I’ve never seen you run so fast before, Tang…the spirit of a true son, this is what father-son love looks like, I’m really moved.

“Oh, two teams have arrived. Who came first or second…let’s say you both came at the same time, so the fastest two groups are here.” Here we go…

“Let’s review, the group that answers correctly…I’ll give this jar to the whole group, but if you’re wrong, you have to go stand and pole dance there. In the case of these two guys coming out together, if both answer correctly, both groups get the plant. I have plenty, hee hee…but the last group, be careful, you’ll have to pole dance, don’t forget.” Frong’s team sat up straight. Not for any reason, they just took a long time feeling around, and one person didn’t even want to reach in; he was praying, probably scared.

“Yes…sigh.”

“Alright, let’s hear it, guys…King and Tang.” Phii Chai read the name tags before holding the mic to Phii King’s mouth. I noticed they bumped each other; did it hurt? Instead of saying it hurt, he just laughed. Phii King is really strange.

“Who’s going first?”

“Nong King first, come on, go to your group’s bag. What’s in there?”

“Jelly noodles, sticky rice, banana, Tae’s tofu, and a wig.”

“Uh-huh, you’ve answered them all.”

“I won’t reveal the answers yet; let’s wait for Nong Tang’s answers first, then I’ll reveal them together. What’s in the bag, Tang?”

“Egg, grass jelly, lemongrass, Tae’s tofu, eel.” That’s right for sure! Trust me…mine, Tang’s, and Ram’s were correct because they had the stuff on their hands. But the other two, I’m not sure about. It should be fine, though.

“Uh-huh, both groups have answered completely. Which group is the last?” Phii Chai asked while looking at Phii Frong’s group. Oh well, they ended up being the last group after all, Phii Frang, you’re going to pole dance!

“Pole dance, guys; I need two representatives from that group to come up and check if their friends’ answers are correct.” The ones who came out were Frang and Phii Oat. I know Phii Oat because he often comes to Phii Fang’s shop; he’s a nice guy. Even if he seems strict, wow, angels tend to hang out with angels, right? So…why is an angel like my brother friends with that cupcake?

“Why are there only good-looking people at this camp? I feel outshined.” Thanks for the compliment, but we know we’re good-looking, but believe me, I’m the best-looking. I’m not being conceited; Daonuea tells me every day, hee-hee.

“Can you introduce yourselves?”

“Uh, but the name tags already have our names-”

“Come on, consider it service for the ladies.” Phii Chai handed the mic to the newcomers. Honestly, this mic doesn’t even amplify sound; it’s more like you’re just holding it, whispering would be louder.

“Alright, my name is Frang, second year in Management.”

“My name is Oat, same year, Management.”

“Screeeeeeam, Phii Oat, Phii Frang!” That wasn’t a woman’s scream. I told you, this group is all tough guys. The scream just now came from their friends, who are quite dramatic. I would have hooted too if the person next to me wasn’t glaring at me when I raised my hand to cover my mouth. Oh, I won’t do it then…

“Oh, guys this handsome, do you have girlfriends yet?”

“Uh, no, both of us.”

“Really? Are you playing coy, juniors? Anyone you like?” Why are you asking so many questions, Phii Chai? Hurry up and reveal the answers, please, are we right? I want that orchid.

“I used to have someone, but now she has a boyfriend.”

“Someone didn’t want you?”

“Yeah, I guess she doesn’t like cheerful, well-off young men like me.” He said jokingly.

“Really? Is she pretty? What’s her personality like?” She must be pretty. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have hurt my brother that much.

“She’s cute, kind, and…uh.”

“That is my wife, you bastard!”

The person next to me shouted, ‘my wife’, referring to whom? The speaker is my boyfriend, it can’t be me, can it? Wait…

“I know that, damn it. I won’t steal her!”

“Even if you wanted to steal, you couldn’t, she’s mine!”

“Wowwwwwwwwwwwwwww”

“Knowing just one province isn’t enough, you bastard!!”

“What? Who’s your wife? Do you have a secret lover, Bohn?” I asked not seriously, maybe it’s his ex, because when P’Frang was heartbroken, we weren’t even dating yet.

“Pong.”

“And who is the person P’Frang likes?” I raised my eyebrows to ask my conversation partner, definitely his ex, believe me, I heard she’s amazing, friends told me, I’ve never seen her, though.

“You, you bastard.” He flicked my nose lightly, but it still hurt! Wait, just now…what did he say?!

“Huh? Me?” I widened my eyes in shock.

“Yeah. You didn’t know anything and still went to hug and comfort him, do you know how mad I was back then?”

“…Damn.”

“Damn what?”

“Do you want to go check your eyesight? Both you and him, what’s wrong, there are millions of beautiful women out there you don’t like…yet you’re blind to all of them and like me.”

“Haha.”

“Oh…it’s a university-level secret that outsiders can’t know, right? Alright, alright, I won’t ask more; we don’t want any fighting. Just one more question…is he at the camp?” I almost forgot about Phii Chai. Hurry up, sir, I want that orchid already!!

“He’s here.”

“And…where?”

“Right here!” Bohn pointed at me. You bastard, are you afraid others don’t know?

…dot dot, I have no idea what to say, what he meant by women having no standing, now I understand. Let’s get back to the game, guys, so we can move to the next station; otherwise, we won’t complete all ten. Ahem.” The senior should have realized this long ago. I can’t even remember where we left off.

“Alright, I’ll have both of you check if what’s in the bags matches what your friends said. Frang, check King’s group’s bag. Oat, check Tang’s. I’ll repeat, King’s group has jelly noodles, sticky rice with banana, tofu, and a wig. Tang’s has an egg, grass jelly, lemongrass, tofu, and eel in that order. Don’t reach in, just look normally…go ahead.” As Phii Chai finished speaking, both walked over to the glowing bags…what’s with mine? Whatever, they went to inspect the bags.

They mumbled to themselves, things you could barely hear. Ah…Phii Frang furrowed his brows and kept looking into the bag. Once he was sure, he looked up and gave Bohn a wry smile. I think we’ve got this.

“Bohn, you’re definitely pole dancing.” I gave a wicked smile. Not only will I get the orchid, but I’ll also see Bohn pole dancing. I’ll record a video for Ben and Dao to see what their dad did. This time, I’ll be the one to be promoted to dad, hee-hee.

“No way, my group’s all top-notch. You’re the one who’s going to be in trouble.” You’re really confident, aren’t you? Believe me, you’re the one who’s going to be in trouble; my intuition tells me so, huh.

“It’s fine. It’s just pole dancing, I promise to record it in HD for our kids.”

“Record away…because you’ll be the one in the video. It’s okay, you can be the mom, the kids will understand, huh.” Oh, wait and see, you bastard.

“Alright, you’ve looked, let’s go through it one bag at a time. Oat, Frong, the first bag, did King and Bom answer correctly?” Why do you have to make it suspenseful, do you know I’m getting anxious? My pants are all wet from the dew on the grass. If I stand in the damp area a bit longer, mushrooms might sprout.

“They got it right.”

“Yay, what do you say now, I was right!” I looked pleased, as if to say, ‘The first bag was right, the others will always be right too’, who’s the egg-layer? Whatever.

“I’m right, aren’t I, bastard?” I knew it, but I just wanted to mock.

“Bohn, if you answer wrong and have to slide down the pole, I’ll stop being mad at you.”

“Really?”

“Oh, yeah.” I rested my chin, looking at him. Even though it seems like we’ve made up now, why am I so soft? I should have stayed mad at him for a year or two, that would be nice.

“Then…if you answer wrong and have to slide down the pole, I’ll…”

“What?”

“I’ll love you even more than I already do. Ha.”

“Uh, you…” Damn, always with the silly humor, but why do I always react like this? It must be because of his annoying charm, why are you smiling so smugly? Are you on drugs, (cool), or what, you bastard, damn!

“Will they know we’re not alone in the middle of the wilderness?”

“Exactly, and will they know how jealous I am?”

“I want to try eating the grass they’re sitting on to see if it’s as sweet as his humor. Let’s boil the grass to survive, you guys.”

“That’s a good idea, let’s export it instead, you guys, ‘Savage Idiot Sweet Grass’, the slogan could be, ‘Not sweet enough, and the seller will show you his eggs’, that would be good, wouldn’t it?” What are they talking about…is this gossip or what, and they’re even looking at us while saying it.

Better focus on the event, we’ve reached the last jar. Neither team has made a mistake yet, trust me, my team is all correct! The last jar for Bohn’s team is the one Phii Frong is eyeing repeatedly.

“Okay, are we right…?”

“Ha, I’m not mad at you anymore, I love you even more now.” I and Bohn said at the same time, oh, you bastard. Do you think you’ll win? You won’t fool me, bastard.

“And you’ll be heartbroken.”

“We’ll find out soon, Bohn.” I shrugged, gave a wicked smile before turning my attention back to the front. Phii Frong made a throat-slashing gesture, mouthing, “You’re sliding down the pole.” and then made some annoying gestures. You’re definitely in trouble, you leech. Look, Phii Oat hasn’t shown any reaction, which means my group isn’t wrong, right? Let me set up the camera for a moment, heh.

 

MY ENGINEER CHAPTERS HOME

MYENGINEER, CHAPTER 58: Because…

[Duenhaw]

“So, you’ll really sleep next to me?” I turned to ask the person beside me. He had already lain down and covered himself with a blanket. Did you even ask for my opinion? The others really are considerate, moving to give us space at the edge without even being asked.

Thank you…I am very touched.

“Yeah.” Bohn nodded frantically, lifting his phone to press something, definitely not surfing on the internet or checking Facebook since there’s no signal here, whatever.

“Sigh, whatever you want.” I lay down, the bed was a military one, borrowed by the forestry department guys, but some people brought their own blankets and mattresses. As for me, I’m on the “whatever” team because I’m too lazy.

“Apemong Kero Kero, Momo Pimple.”

“What language is that, Boss?” That must be Phii Tang’s voice, and laughter erupted in the tent. I laughed too, the word genius, smarter than Phii Boss, there isn’t anyone. Who could invent words every ten seconds? No one!

“It means, ‘Good night, friends.’“

“You liar, ha ha ha.”

“You.”

“And what do you say for ‘Good night, husband’?” I sat up to look. Not for any reason, just that an ant was biting my heel, itchy as hell, I had to scratch, huh…it’s big, what do they eat here? Why are these ants evolving so fast, are they Pakistani ants?

“Good night, husband…there’s no such thing.”

“Hey, if you do this, Merk will be upset.”

“No sweet dreams for the husband, just this…mumble mumble.”

“What?”

“May I have your number, kind sir?” After saying that, he flopped down to lie on his side, winking at Phii Merk who was watching. The one who was teased smiled and flicked his forehead lightly in jest.

“Urrghhhhhh.”

“Do whatever you want. We’ll watch from a distance, worrying a bit…damn, Tiger, set up the camera!!” As soon as James finished speaking, Tiger rolled from the corner like a tank, jumping up to sit in a prayer-like pose before setting up a large camera at the feet of Merk and Boss. Oh my God…that’s a Cinema EOS, the latest model, right?

“I’ve prepared for this well, my friend, and I have another one specifically for Bohn and Duen. They’re definitely going to do something, trust Tiger, I can sense it.” Tiger with his sixth sense…oh, come on, man.

“Don’t…” The person next to me sat up to speak, yeah, that’s how it should be, act like my boyfriend for once, tell them, ‘Don’t do this, I don’t like it!!’ Make it clear!

“Don’t set up the camera?”

“Don’t forget to send me the files, I want to use them to improve myself.” The speaker gave me a sly look, thinking what I would do if it wasn’t just blushing, oh, come on…I’m tired of you!

“Urrghhhhhh.”

“Time to sleep, students…”

“We’re asleep, sir, that was just sleep-talking.” Seeing that the teacher had entered the tent, everyone immediately lay down without any prior agreement. Those standing fell to the ground as if fainting, and those sitting slammed their heads against the pillows with force. I could hear the sound of wings…whoever hit their head on the ground, tell me, I will give first aid.

“Hmm, the teacher can believe that if he wants to. Don’t make too much noise, we’re in the forest, I’m leaving now.” I remember him. He’s the one who teased me back then, remember the day I went to study with Bohn?

This is the teacher who teased me, I think her name was Professor Pakorn. After she left, no one got up again.

“You guys, I’m turning off the lights.”

“Go ahead, friend, I’m sleepy.”

We need to conserve our energy because tomorrow we have to play games at the stations with the forestry department folks. They’re really nice, teaching me a lot, like how to weave leaves into different shapes. I heard we’re also doing coconut leaf weaving tomorrow. Me and Ting are really looking forward to it, but…I guess we’ll get teased just like today.

“Wow, Duen, how do you like that? I might not be as good with men as you, but in this…I! Win!! Ha, what do you think? Check out my work, see how beautiful it is. I should win an award for excellent craftsmanship. Ah…we’re really good, huh? Have you seen my cricket’s tail? Look, it’s even waving in the wind. I don’t care about men anymore. I’ll sit and sell crickets, my brand is, ‘Tingting, the eternal husbandless monkey, No.1’, I’ll make a collection, export it to sell abroad so the world knows my woven cricket brand, I’ll have money coming out of my ears without needing a husband!” You…

Are you looking down on me, you bastard? Watch me! Tomorrow, I’ll weave cupcakes! I’ll compete with your brand!! Called, ‘Phii Duen, do you have any beans in your jar?’, it’ll be a hit! Phii Duen, the disciple of Daonuea, son of Dad-Direk, can be beaten but not mocked!

“Wow, I missed setting up the camera, what a pity.”

“Damn you.” I made a face; even in the dark, I could see his cunning expression, Phii Duen’s face twitched…my foot twitched wanting to kick him in the face.

“Heh heh.”

“I hate your laugh.”

“Have we kissed goodnight yet?” The other moved closer. I pushed his face away with all my strength…don’t expect to get a taste of me, you rainbow leech.

“I’ll kiss you with my heel, go to sleep. Good night.” After saying that, I turned to the other side. I definitely won’t be able to sleep looking at his face. The sensation from the kiss still lingers, I feel my face heat up every time I think about it, Bohn kissed me…

We kissed.

I understand that couples do this kind of thing normally, but…how should I put it, that was my first kiss, and what’s more special is that it was the first kiss with my first boyfriend at my first volunteer camp. I’ve seen scenes like this in foreign movies. I thought I was embarrassed then…now, I’m a million times more embarrassed.

We kissed. We kissed. We kissed. We kissed. We kissed. We kissed. We kissed, we kissed. We kissed. We kissed. We kissed. We kissed. We kissed. We kissed. We kissed, we kissed. We kissed. We kissed. We kissed. We kissed. We kissed.

Aargh!!! I’m going crazy.

“Ugh.” I groaned in embarrassment, lifting both hands to cover my face and wriggling around. Bohn took my first kiss. No…he didn’t just take one kiss, he took a lot, my heart, my attention…everything, damn it.

“What’s wrong, huh?”

“…Nothing.”

“Can’t you sleep?”

“I’m asleep.”

“…”

“Are you sick? Did I keep you in the water too long?”

“Let go.” Don’t touch my forehead, you bastard! Every time you touch me, I think about when we were at the waterfall, damn it…and why is my face so hot? What’s wrong with your body? After dating for how long, little Duen, you only start showing symptoms now?

“What’s wrong with you?”

“…Ouch! My eyes!” I raised my hand to cover my face when the other person turned on their phone screen. The light was brighter than a spotlight; he must be doing this on purpose to tease me. Otherwise, he wouldn’t shine it right in my face.

“I was shocked, thought something was wrong…huh.”

“What’s so funny?”

“Laughing at how your face turns red when you’re embarrassed.”

“It’s red because I’m hot.”

“Hot? It’s four degrees now, my feet are numb.” Not just your feet, my spleen is cold too.

“I…I’m just hot, turn off the light. Others are trying to sleep.” I grabbed his phone and put it on his head. I don’t know if everyone else is asleep, but right now, I want to sleep to escape from Bohn.

“Perverted fool.”

“I’m not perverted!” My heart beat fast hearing that sentence; the person lying next to me chuckled before moving closer. No way! I’m trying to escape!!

“Don’t lie. You must be thinking dirty thoughts.” He said this and then blew air into my left ear, making my fine hairs stand up. I quickly pulled my neck away from the hot breath.

“Not at all…don’t move closer…” I pushed his chest away and turned my face aside. Strange, this time he let go easily.

“What are you thinking about? Tell me, huh, huh?” The rogue ran his hand across my cheek.

“I’m not thinking about anything, I’m going to sleep!”

Cut it off, arguing won’t win against him. It’s not fair, even though I’ve upgraded my language skills from Phii Boss, why can’t I beat him? Not just in dirty humor, in arguments, and now this…I guess I need to study for a master’s in Thai with a language teacher. A bachelor’s degree isn’t enough to deal with this banter.

“I’m so damn sleepy…” I mumbled, blinking slowly as my eyelids grew heavier and heavier until I finally closed them. It’s insanely cold here, even with a thick blanket…

I heard the sound of fabric rustling, accompanied by a warm touch on my forehead. It felt like I was being pulled into something warm and safe.

“Good night, you fool.” Tap, tap, tap, tap.

Gasp!

Was that the sound of a gecko just now? I’ve told you before, right, that I’m scared of lizards and geckos to the point of being paranoid. The only lizard I can get close to is the cupcake one, but not to the extent of touching…let’s just go to sleep.

Waking up in the middle of the night feels awful…even someone like me who isn’t afraid of ghosts feels scared. Sleep, Duenhaw! Close your eyes, count sheep, pick your nose. Do whatever it takes to fall asleep!

‘There are many reasons for waking up at night…but mostly, it’s because someone is watching.’

Damn you, Tang!! Why did you have to say something like that to me, and why do I have to think about it now? The atmosphere here is just too perfect for it. Before coming here, I just watched a horror movie in the jungle, an old movie about lizards or something, but that was a gecko just now, probably nothing…

Chirp, chirp, chirp, chirp.

You’ve got to be kidding me. If you can tell the time like this, you damn lizard, why not come out and fight me! Ugh, why does my brain have to picture movie scenes like this? And it’s a scene where a lizard falls down.

Sigh.

“Hold me!” I tightened my embrace…hug? Am I hugging Bohn? Wait, you’re taking advantage of me again, you jerk. Forget about that for now, I’ll allow it for one day.

Trust me, that wasn’t a lizard, there’s nothing there, I’m just overthinking it. Have you ever felt like something was falling when you thought about it, even though there was nothing? That’s called hypnagogia, and I’m experiencing it now. Even though I know it’s just my imagination…Phii Duen is scared.

“Sleep, sleep…why not wake up in the morning? Why does it have to be now?” My heart was beating irregularly when I realized no one else was awake except me. What’s worse is…

I need to pee!

Forget it, I’ll get up to pee in the morning…but I can’t hold it anymore, damn it, Duen.

“Uh…Duen, why are you awake in the middle of the night?” Did I hug so tight that I woke Bohn up? But honestly…I’m really glad he woke up.

“Uh…sorry, did I wake you?”

“It’s okay…let’s sleep.” The other person tightened his embrace before planting a kiss on my dark hair. What should I do? I didn’t want to bother him, but I really needed to pee, and I was too scared to go alone.

Tap, tap, tap, thud, thud

You bastard, are you rushing me!?

“Bohn…”

“…Huh, yes?”

“Come with me to the bathroom.” In the end, I disturbed him. I promise I’ll pee with the speed of a NASA rocket. I won’t make you wait long, so…please come with me.

“Now?” He asked sleepily.

“Yeah, I need to pee.”

“Scared of ghosts?”

“I’m not scared of ghosts; I’m scared of lizards and geckos.” Does it sound funny to say that? But Bohn knows I’m really afraid of those cupcake relatives, scared to the point where I don’t even want to get close to them. “Sure.” Yay!!

We walked out of the tent quietly, trying not to make any noise to disturb others. Ram is very sensitive to sounds; he wakes up as easily as I do, but he didn’t seem to move, so he must still be asleep.

“Wait outside.” I nodded in understanding and quickly ran into the bathroom. I could have peed outside, but I didn’t want to do that; after all, I’m going to be a doctor, a clean lover…even if the dormitory is a mess.

Me and Bohn didn’t go to the main bathroom but chose a smaller one not far from the tent; it only had two rooms, divided between men and women. Close your eyes, Duen! Don’t look around, or you might see those relatives.

Chirp, chirp, chirp

Ahhh! I knew you were here, I was quiet, so why make that sound! Do you know the international rule? I don’t greet you, you don’t greet me, fair and square!!!

I closed my eyes and ears with high speed, cleaning up in less than a minute before running out. It gave me goosebumps. I didn’t even want to think about how close that lizard was to me just now, ugh.

“Oh!”

“Done already? Why the face? Was there a gecko inside? Ha ha ha.” the person waiting on the log laughed out loud, damn it!

“Don’t laugh, you bastard.”

“I need to pee, wait a sec…If you’re scared, I can come in with you, Duen, heh heh.”

“No way!” I made a face; the other nodded understandingly before walking into the bathroom. It’s damn cold, even with my thick jacket on, and with the cat-patterned socks borrowed from Daonuea on my feet.

Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap.

Ouch, can I change what I said? I want to go into the bathroom with you! Did you call your friends to scare me, invincible, eternal, honorable!! Bring them on!

Think of something else, think of something else to forget this.

What should I think about…

As I was thinking, I heard a sound, not an animal sound, but the sound of the waterfall, Phu Yod Dao, not far from here. Waterfall…Bohn and ‘him’ also kissed at a waterfall.

I admit, before this, I was really mad at Bohn, mad like I’ve never been at anyone before. Yesterday, I ran after him, but just for a moment, we lost each other. At that time, I felt incredibly guilty. So, I went for a walk, trying to relieve stress, but ended up more stressed. The image of him kissing that pretty-faced guy was still stuck in my mind. I didn’t know who he was, but I heard others say he was forceful…probably was forceful.

I don’t know, it seemed like he knew I was watching from above. Not just my imagination, it hurt so much…honestly, I never thought he would dare to cheat. But if you stood there, watching them kiss…

I really couldn’t control my thoughts.

After running away, I sat to calm myself down behind the waterfall. I didn’t want anyone to see my tear-stained face. When I felt somewhat better, I acted normal, smiling to cover everything up, no one knew…I was amazed at myself for being able to do that. Normally, I’m not good at lying, but when it comes to something heavy, I can lie well instantly.

Another thing I dislike, apart from lizards and geckos, is people who lie.

I asked Bohn where he had been. At that time, I wanted to hear the truth, anything true, ‘went to the waterfall behind the office’, ‘went for a walk’, or even ‘went to kiss someone else’, anything, we could deal with the matter later, just don’t lie…but Bohn lied, my heart squeezed tight, breathing became difficult like there was something stuck in my throat. If I had said anything then, tears would have definitely flowed.

The more he acts like he’s bored with me, the more he seems like he doesn’t want to look at me, the more it makes me think, ‘He’s bored with me.’ I cry in my sleep, feeling so pitiful. I’m always the one comforting friends, telling them it’s okay, not to care about those who make us sad, but every time I look up, my eyes go straight to Bohn. Even if he says he was forced by that handsome guy, why do I still feel bad? Maybe because of how Bohn acted…

Is he bored with me?

“Duen, what’s wrong?”

“Huh? Nothing.” I answered the person coming out of the bathroom. Was he in there long, or did I just imagine it quickly? Duen, the worrywart, haha, sigh.

“Nothing? Why do your eyes look red like you’ve been crying? Are you that scared of lizards?” Red eyes, huh?

“…Yeah, they’re so scary, haha.” It was the most forced laugh I’ve ever made, what can I do when there’s a lump in my throat? Being able to speak at all is impressive…

“…What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, let’s go, it’s cold.” I grabbed his wrist and pulled him to walk with me; I didn’t want him to look at my face right now. Even though it’s all over, why do I keep thinking about it?

“Let’s talk first, what’s wrong?” The person behind resisted, refusing to follow.

“…”

“What’s wrong? Tell me, you good person.”

“Are you bored with me?” I asked softly, blinking rapidly to keep the tears at bay. Please don’t say it, damn it…I beg you.

“…”

“Are you bored because I’m a fool, bored because I don’t have much time for you, bored because I’m not very jealous, bored because you have to think a lot about me, bored with how I am…” Is my personality annoying to him? Someone once told me that people like me are annoying, but I didn’t take it to heart because it was someone else. But Bohn isn’t…he’s my lover. I don’t want to annoy him…

“I’ve never been bored…”

“…” I couldn’t hold back my tears when he said that. He came over to hug and comfort me; it was warm, so warm it made my heart race.

“…”

“I’ve never been bored with you being a fool…I fell for you because of that foolishness. I’ve never been bored with you not having time…I understand you study hard.” Bohn flicked my nose before smiling.

“…Hic.”

“I’ve never been bored of you being you, I love you being you.”

I hugged the person in front of me back, tears flowing uncontrollably. The more I’m with him, the weaker I become. How many times have I cried today?

“Don’t cry, I’ve said I don’t like your tears.”

“Hic…then don’t look.”

“How can I not look when my boyfriend is sad…I have to comfort him.”

We hugged like that for I don’t know how long. I didn’t even know when we sat down on the log, I didn’t know anything…I only knew that every time a tear fell, Bohn would kiss it away until it was gone. He kissed all over my face, from my eyelids, nose, cheeks, chin, and ending at my lips.

“Why do you think I’m bored?” The person beside me asked while pressing my face into his shoulder. There was a faint, pleasant scent coming from him…

“Because yesterday and today, you acted like you were bored, I tried to make up but you wouldn’t stop being mad.” Normally, a little begging would make it go away, but this time was different. I begged, I cooed, I did everything, but he paid no attention.

“Oh, that’s what you’re talking about…”

“Speak, but don’t get mad, okay.” Saying this means what he’s about to say will definitely make me mad…the way he looks and speaks is so suspicious.

“Tell me first, I’ll decide later.” I had to give a neutral response; otherwise, he wouldn’t tell me.

“Duen, don’t do this, I don’t want to see you mad again.” After saying this, he nuzzled me like a kitten, don’t be cute, you liar!

“Then just say it, I’m reasonable enough.”

“The reason I acted like I was mad is because…”

“?”

“Because I wanted to see you appease and coo to me.”

“…”

What did he just say…

You acted like you were mad, not looking at me, not talking to me because you wanted me to beg?! Damn you, Bohn, you devious person, you water dipper, you problematic molar, you cataracted eye, father of Ben!!!!

“Everyone wants their partner to be sweet, and when you do it, you’re so cute that I…I pretend to be mad because I know you’ll eventually act sweet.” He spoke so softly it was almost a whisper, his large hands plucking grass and rolling it around like a child who’s done something wrong and doesn’t know what to do with themselves.

“Should I keep being mad at you? I think I forgive you too easily…”

“I already told you last evening to stay mad for longer, alright…and then we made up, isn’t that enough? Come on.”

“Hah! I’m tired, I’m going to sleep!” I got up abruptly and walked back to the tent in a huff. What the hell, did I spend the whole day worrying over something as trivial as this? Jeez!

“Duen, are you mad at me? I’m sorry. Well, you know, I just wanted to have some cute, cute moments with my boyfriend too.”

“Which means you’re not afraid of me killing you, right?”

“Bohn! Tonight, you sleep outside the tent!!”

 

MY ENGINEER CHAPTERS HOME

MYENGINEER, CHAPTER 57: Switch

[Bohn]

“What’s going on between you and Mai?”

“Just a little issue.” I avoided answering that, the fact that he had everyone wait outside shows he doesn’t want anyone to know. What would I gain by talking about it?

“Really just a little?”

“Whether it’s little or not, let’s just go shower…Today’s the day, you!!! I’ve prepared myself mentally!!! I’m going to jump into the waterfall!!” So, this morning, Boss didn’t jump because the water was too cold, so he chickened out, but King dared to; he was trembling. Instead of getting out quickly, he stood there laughing and playing in the water until we had to call him to get out. “I chased after a water kangaroo and caught up…no, it got washed away by the water, haha.” Help, my friend…

But…despite everything, Duen hasn’t come to apologize to me. No, he hasn’t even spoken to me today, or does he think I’m really mad and doesn’t want to come close because he’s afraid I’ll lash out at him? Damn, how did I come across?

“Bohn…”

A pull from behind made me turn around; the one pulling me was none other than the person I just mentioned…

“Slow…oh, King.”

“Who did you think it was?”

“Who else could it be…” I turned to look at my best friend; King was watching Mai’s retreating figure until he was out of sight, then he turned to me. Our eyes met, his eyebrows slightly furrowed.

“I think Duen is really acting strangely.”

“I think so too, but he’ll probably go back to normal soon.” I shrugged. If he doesn’t want me to be alone or he’s afraid I’ll lash out, maybe he hasn’t figured out how to apologize because he’s never had a girlfriend. Come kiss me then; it would solve everything.

“Maybe…by pretending to be mad, you might have made him think you’re bored with him, especially combined with the Mai situation…”

I didn’t stay to listen to anything else; my legs ran quickly to the waterfall, my heart racing as I thought about what my lover might be thinking. I had never considered this before; I only pretended to be mad to see how he would apologize. I didn’t want it to be like this; deep down, I secretly hoped my best friend was wrong…

Don’t be mad at me, Duen.

“You’re here, Phii Bohn? I thought you weren’t going to shower.” Phu, who was sitting on a rock, said with a laugh. I didn’t bother to respond; my eyes scanned the area for my lover’s slender figure, but there was no trace of him.

“Phew…where did Duen go?”

“The fool? Oh…I think he went to be a model for Ting. What’s up? Oh…you want to play in the water with your ‘wife’?”

“Where?”

“I don’t know, probably up there…Hey, where are you rushing off to?”

Once I got the answer, I immediately ran to where he mentioned. The path wasn’t very high; it was a slope with steps made of earth. I ran up the earthen steps. I didn’t know where Duen and Ting were, but I didn’t want to sit and wait there. I wanted to see him, talk to him, wanted him to smile at me…

“Sit there…ah, hold it. Lift one leg up, yeah, yeah…okay.”

“Is this good? I feel like I’m posing like a dork, haha.”

“Not good…it’s perfect, I love it.”

After running for a while, I heard the voices of the two close friends. The place they were at was on the upper terrace of the waterfall, where there was no one else but Duen and Tingting. I stared at the one I was looking for; on Duen’s head was a crown of skeleton flowers…their petals were as thin as my feelings at that moment, and perhaps as thin as our relationship too.

“Duen.” I walked over and stopped where they were taking photos. The one I called paused for a moment but quickly returned to normal. He didn’t even look at me…King was right after all, wasn’t he?

“Can I talk to Duen for a bit?” The female photographer didn’t look at me either. Right now, even a dragonfly perched on a tree seemed to have more presence than me. Tingting must certainly know about this.

“Keep shooting, why stop? I came all the way here to be your model, you know. My fee is high, man.” The model sitting on the rock said jokingly…I would have laughed before, but not now.

“No matter how high your fee is, I can pay it…lift your hand to hold it between your legs, yeah, yeah…and raise your knees on the rock…”

“Put on a blank expression…you look cool, my friend, go find yourself a beautiful wife.”

“Tingting, please…I want to talk to Duen.” I walked closer. She still acted like she didn’t see or hear me, and so did Duen.

“Duen, put your hands and feet on the rock…yeah, yeah, you can even sleep there, my Nong Duen is the most ‘Yod’ ever.”

“Ting…don’t you feel sorry for me? Duen looks at me like I’m invisible.” I said in a weak voice. Ting bit her dry lips, troubled, and the sweat on her cheeks was evidence that she was starting to soften.

“Duen…I want you to look lively, smile a bit.”

“Tingting…let me talk to Duen, please.” This was the first time I used such a pitiful voice; it wasn’t fake…it came from my heart.

“Nong.”

“Ting, keep shooting, I’m only giving you an hour. Almost half an hour has passed already. I don’t agree to do this often, you know.” Seeing that his friend was about to give in, the model told her to clamp her lips shut tightly. “Uh…”

“Please.”

“Ting.”

“Alright! I won’t interfere anymore, do whatever you want!!”

She took off her slippers and carried them while slinging her camera over her shoulder, walking away in frustration. She probably wanted to help both her best friend and me. I promise that when we get back to Bangkok, I’ll introduce her to some handsome guys.

“If you do anything to my friend, Phii Bohn, I will kill you for sure!! Damn, not only do I not get to enjoy men, but now I have to mediate between fighting couples, God is cruel, this year on my birthday, I’m going to get my breasts and uterus removed, fly to New Zealand to get a sperm transplant, go to France to build some muscles, and get a mustache in London! This time, you’ll see! I’m going after every man in the world!!” She mumbled all the way, I couldn’t hear much but knew it was pitiful.

“Duen…are you mad at me?” I walked into the water to stand between the other’s legs, my hands loosely around his slim waist. The water wasn’t deep, only knee-high, but I felt like I was drowning…it was suffocating like I couldn’t breathe.

“…”

The person I was talking to didn’t turn around. He lifted his wrist to take off his watch and gently rubbed it. I didn’t like it being like this at all. Normally, I would be the one getting angry, but this time it was reversed. He was the one mad at me, and I was truly at fault…

“I’ve come to beg for forgiveness, please stop being mad.” I took his hand and pressed it against my cheek, rubbing it back and forth. How long has he been here for his hand to be this cold? He never cares about his own health, what kind of doctor is he?

“How did you know I was mad? Don’t tell me you just knew, I won’t believe it.” Duen looked up at me with a gaze I didn’t like at all. He was looking at me…but there was no me in his eyes.

“King told me…”

“Huh, nice. Phii King isn’t even my boyfriend, yet he understands my feelings, while my actual boyfriend knows nothing. Who’s supposed to be my boyfriend here?”

Damn…it hurts so much. He’s right about everything; King isn’t Duen’s boyfriend, but he understands and knows Duen is acting differently, while I couldn’t see it. And I was foolishly waiting for him to apologize just to see him being sweet, how stupid of me.

“Should we break up?”

Everything around us slowed down when he said those words, words I never thought I’d hear from him. My heart seemed to stop for a moment. I stared at my lover’s face; it looked just as pained as mine, with clear tears beginning to form at the corners of his eyes.

No way…

“If you’re bored with me, I won’t hold you back. You can go find anyone you want, do whatever you want with whoever…but we need to break up first.”

“Don’t say that…”

“What…hey!”

I pulled Duen’s face close before pressing my lips onto his beautiful ones, using the moment when he was in shock to slip my tongue into his mouth. I crushed his lips with mine, hard…it hurt, but I wanted him to feel how much I was hurting too, hurting from the words he just said.

“Ugh!” Duen tried to turn his face away and push me off, but I wouldn’t let go…

I moved my hand to lock his neck, not letting him escape, my tongue seeking the sweetness inside, while he tried to avoid it. I wasn’t annoyed by his actions…on the contrary, it felt good.

Even the initial harsh, painful contact softened over time. Finally, the person in front of me let out a small moan. I smiled when I saw Duen like that.

“…”

“I don’t want to hear ‘break up’ from your mouth.” I pulled back from the kiss, pressing our foreheads together. His face was flushed, I couldn’t tell if it was from anger or embarrassment.

“Then what should I say! My boyfriend is cheating on me! Should I say, ‘Oh, please, go ahead, do whatever you want, I won’t mind,’ is that it?” He hit my chest with a thud, it hurt, but I didn’t complain or stop him.

“I’m not cheating.” I gently kissed the corner of his mouth; he made a huffing sound, pushing my face away forcefully.

“Anyone can say that.” Seeing that I wasn’t going to let go of Duen, he gave in, sitting still, allowing me to hug him. From initially sitting on the rock, now we were both in the water together. Was I really that harsh?

“I didn’t cheat on you, really, Duen.” I wrapped my arm around his slender waist, lifted him back onto the rock, and immediately squeezed between his legs.

“…”

“I’m sorry.” These words came from my heart. Now, there were no other words in my head except “sorry.” I didn’t like us being like this. I didn’t like him not caring. I didn’t like what he said, his expression, his demeanor, I didn’t like everything he did before.

“Sorry? Do you even know why I’m mad…you probably don’t, even when I’m mad, you still don’t get it. If Phii King hadn’t told you, you would never have known, right?”

“You saw it yesterday, didn’t you?” I rested my head on his shoulder, raised my hand to comb through his hair, not wanting him to be stressed, although I had thought this wouldn’t happen. In the end, it did, damn Mai…it’s all because of you.

“Yeah, I saw…”

“It wasn’t like that, me and him-”

“Are you going to say you didn’t kiss? Probably not, I was standing above, watching clearly.” So, he was watching from above. No wonder I didn’t see anyone when I looked back.

“No…I’m not saying I didn’t kiss.” As soon as I finished my sentence, I moved my other hand to stroke his back. I didn’t want to talk about this at all; it felt heavy on my heart somehow.

“…”

“It was like this…I didn’t want to kiss Mai. It wasn’t even a kiss. Our lips just touched. I didn’t tongue him like I do with you.”

“Yeah.”

“Don’t do this, talk to me, I’m telling the truth. Mai did that when I wasn’t prepared. I was shocked, so I couldn’t resist. Our lips touched for less than four seconds…I kissed you much longer, look.” I leaned down to kiss him again, another time he resisted though he knew he couldn’t match my strength.

“Ugh, damn!” Eventually, I had to pull back because the person in front of me seemed like he was running out of breath. When our lips parted, he was breathing heavily, gulping in air.

“Duen…talk to me, please.” I hugged him tighter, rocking him like soothing a child. Normally, Duen would crack a smile when I did this…but not this time.

“…”

“…Duen, I’m sorry.”

“Sorry for what? You said you weren’t cheating.” Why does he get so sharp-tongued when he’s mad? I leaned down to bite his white cheek playfully; he’s quite fierce when he’s upset, this fool.

“I really wasn’t cheating, sorry for not telling you, sorry for everything.”

“Why apologize if you weren’t going to tell me in the first place!”

“…I didn’t want you to know, to avoid causing problems.” I was taken aback by his yelling. Normally, Duen is the calm one, and I’m the hotheaded one. I’ve never seen him like this before…look at what I’ve done.

“That’s not a good answer, Bohn, it’s just an excuse.”

“It’s not an excuse…how should I put it? I thought you wouldn’t get jealous or angry, so I didn’t tell you.” I said the last sentence softly, scratching the back of my neck, not knowing how to explain.

“Idiot! You’re my boyfriend! How can I not feel anything? Doing this means you don’t care about my feelings at all, Bohn!!” I was shocked by the shout, but even more shocked when I saw clear tears streaming from my lover’s beautiful eyes.

“I do care, I care about your feelings more than anyone else’s, don’t cry, Duen…I’m sorry.” I gently wiped away his tears, afraid of hurting him.

“You’re crazy, sob, stupid as hell…are you a buffalo or what? I’m your boyfriend! How can I not be jealous…”

“Don’t cry, be quiet for a second…”

“Fine…”

“Please stop being mad at me, I only love you, Duen.” I pressed our foreheads together again. We were so close I could feel his warm breath. I wondered what my face looked like now, all I knew was that my cheeks hurt…was I smiling that widely?

“You dumbass, sob. If you do this again, I’ll break up-, ugh!” Not letting him finish his sentence, I bent down to bite his lower lip softly, then let go, making a sound that sent shivers down my spine.

“I told you not to say that word.”

“Let go! I need to change my clothes, damn it…I’ve already showered and gotten dressed.” I only just noticed he had showered and dressed. At first, I was going to let him go, but then I thought…

“You don’t need to go yet, I haven’t showered either, come shower with me.”

“No…you have no respect for nature.”

“The spirits won’t mind, they want to see lovers, not angry people.”

“…”

“Make up.”

“I wanted to be mad at you longer…to match what you did yesterday.”

“Okay, it can be as long as you want, but there must be a day when you forgive me. In the meantime, don’t even think about anyone better than me…okay?”

“…What if I accidentally find someone better than you?”

“…”

“What will you do?”

“I’ll sit here and cry, and see if you choose them or me, who is heartbroken.” I rested my head on his round shoulder, feeling strangely empty…what should I do? I don’t like it, but I feel it’s deserved. At the same time, I feel it shouldn’t be, he should be mine alone, but I’m too much of a mess too…damn it, what can I do other than cry?

“Stay with me. Even though I’m a mess, I love you the most…”

“If there’s a next time, there won’t be an ‘us’ anymore.”

“…”

“Thank you for loving me just as much. I can’t stand seeing you look so down.” After saying this, the other person leaned down to hug me back, as if to make sure he wasn’t thinking of going anywhere, …damn, my eyes are getting hot.

I love you to death.

“Bohn and Duen are back from their honeymoon!!”

“Yayyyyyyyyy!!”

“I bet you’re pregnant for sure, damn, Bohn, your water’s good!”

“Shit, with wildlife and nature as witnesses to love, so romantic!!”

Before Duen and I could even walk into the tent, there was cheering from all directions. Huh, honeymoon…? Oh, I get it now, I guess Phu and Tingting told everyone.

“Oh…you look all wrinkly and pale, go dry off, come on! Where did you guys go to bathe?” Tang came over to tease us. How could we not be wrinkly, we were in the water for nearly an hour. I’ve never bathed for so long before, but this time…I think it made me the happiest.

“Duen my friend, are you okay? Why are your lips so red? Did you eat something spicy?” When Phu, Tang’scode junior, came over to check on the lips of the person next to me. Me. It was spicy, I even hissed…I was the one who got slapped on the shoulder until I hissed.

“Shh, be quiet, Phu, go grab my clothes, I need to change.”

“Oh, oh. Didn’t you already shower once? What did you get dirty with now, huh, huh?”

“That’s my business! Go get them!” You’ll see Duen in his divine form. It’s not ordinary, I’ve seen it before. Scary as hell.

“Alright, alright.”

“Bom, get me some clothes.” I called to my close friend who was reading, not wanting to go in because I might get wet. To tell the truth, no one ever goes in there wet…except for that idiot.

Snap

“Are you going to change with your ‘nong’?”

“Uh-huh.”

“Oh my, showering together and now changing clothes together, is there anything more awesome, Bohn?” Boss smirked; before it was just playful…but now I think you’re really starting to get bold, huh?

“There is…tonight, I’ll sleep with him.”

I gave a sly smile, wrapping my arm around the waist of the person next to me, who was looking bored with the world. I’ve been arguing with him since we were at the waterfall. Duen wouldn’t let me sleep with him, claiming the friends would be upset if they didn’t get to sleep with him. I didn’t pay much attention to his excuses…my heart has been weak since he said we should break up. Now I need some attention.

“Urrghhhhhh.”

“This isn’t a volunteer camp anymore, damn it, this is clearly Bohn and Duen’s wedding.” I’d like it to be like that, waiting for that moment, waiting to share a room. We can’t do it in the tent because others will see. I’m quite shy too…sigh.

“There’s no one in the bathroom…where did everyone go?” Eo looked around the bathroom. There wasn’t a single person there, the atmosphere starting to feel strangely eerie.

“It’s six o’clock now. They must have gone to eat.” All our meals are prepared on the high hill, where there’s a small wooden canteen set up by the forestry department.

“Because of you, damn Bohn, we’re stuck here.” Got scolded again…

“Come on, you wouldn’t be eating dinner anyway, right?”

“I’m not eating, but you should, eating at odd hours will give you a stomachache.” Whose boyfriend is this, so adorable, thinking this, I went to kiss his cheek repeatedly until his face shook, which was funny, he glared at me.

“You!! You’ve gone too far, you leech.”

“Gone too far with what?” I pretended to ask, even though I knew exactly what the person in front of me meant. Seeing that I did this, the other side made a frustrated huff.

“Ugh! Don’t come near me, stay away, don’t come within ten meters of me, don’t look, don’t smile, don’t, don’t, don’t, I forbid everything!” Duen furrowed his brows, one hand holding his cheek where I had kissed it, the other pointing back and forth.

“Haha.” I grabbed his slim waist to hug him, swaying playfully. It’s strange, though he’s not that skinny, his waist is surprisingly narrow, really surprising…actually, it’s quite nice, he’s easy to handle.

“Let go! I need to change clothes.” Oh, damn, Duen, you hit me with your elbow, why do you always resort to violence when you’re embarrassed? If you’re not hurting yourself, you’re hurting me.

“Change together-” “Dream on, you bastard!” Bang!

“Come on, Duen, let me in!” He used the moment I was distracted to push me away and ran into the bathroom at high speed…like a cat, when they want to escape, they run just like that.

“Go die!”

Fine, I give up.

There’s no way he’ll let me in, damn it…I’ll just use another room. Why not save some bathrooms for others, so they have options when they come in?

The bathrooms here are quite clean, but there are a lot of Phii Thara’s spider relatives. I’m not scared because I’m bigger than them anyway. But Duen is scared, really scared…aren’t you afraid to go into the bathroom alone? Let me in with you, I’ll kill every one of them.

Knock, Knock

“Duen. You’ve been in there for a while.” It must have been ten minutes. I got dressed faster than you, or maybe he’s been done for a while but doesn’t want to come out because he’s afraid of me?

“One second…I’m done.”

“…”

“…” 18:10 PM. “Let’s go eat.” He grabbed my hand to walk together, but I resisted, holding back. The person in front turned to look at me with confusion.

“Your shirt’s neckline is too wide…” His white V-neck shirt was deeply cut, really deep. I could clearly see his collarbones; he looks good in it, but I don’t like it.

“I didn’t choose it, Phu did. But it’s fine, I’ll be sleeping soon.” Phu, you’re going to get it from me for choosing this shirt. Why did you bring this one, you have plenty of clothes at home?

“I don’t like it, it’s too revealing.” That damn wide-necked shirt, looking down, you can see everything, I see your chest. I understand you’re tall, people shorter than you might not see, but there are plenty of people taller than you, you jerk.

“Who gives a damn, I’m a guy. Who would look?”

“Me!”

“Then it’s just you.”

“It’s not just me-”

“Forget it.” The other brushed it off before dragging me to the canteen. You never listen to me, do you? I said I don’t like it!

I don’t like others looking at you!!

 

MY ENGINEER CHAPTERS HOME

MYENGINEER, CHAPTER 56: New Friends

[Bohn]

“Where have you been, Bohn?”

“Just went for a walk.” I answered Bom. The senior told us to gather at the hill to prepare for sleep; there were eight large tents, four for women, four for men. The professors slept in a small tent in the middle.

“Are you mad at Duen?” Merk asked, crossing his arms, while others looked on to hear my answer. Can I fool you too, Merk? Seems like my lying skill is pretty good.

“Huh, I was just pretending to be mad.” Duen and his friend aren’t here right now. They were sent by the professor to carry stuff or something. We offered to help, but the professor said that was enough. Instead of taking tough guys like us to carry things, he took Tingting and Tang.

“I was shocked, thought there’d be a knife.” Tee threw dried banana peels at my arm. Can you even eat banana peels, Phattarawin? I bet one day you’ll end up in the hospital because of what you eat.

“Yeah, I was watching from a distance, worrying a bit.”

“You’re really smooth, I would have stepped in if King hadn’t stopped me first.”

“Did you know I was joking, King?” I asked King, who was sitting not far away, hugging his knees. How did you know I was being smooth?

“Uh, your face was calm but your eyes were smiling, how could I not see that?” You’re truly divine as your name suggests, Kantitat.

“How were my eyes smiling, I didn’t see that, damn, Bohn, show that face!”

“Nah, not in the mood.” You need to build up to it, sir. People can’t have multiple emotions at once, at most, you’ll have one or two emotions. If it’s more than that, we should stop talking and see a psychiatrist.

“Whatever, Tanarit, try to do it like Bohn. You’re quiet, it might give a similar vibe.” Seeing that I wasn’t playing along, he turned to his husband. “…Can’t be bothered.”

“Merk, I want to see what eye-smiling looks like.” Thanarit shook his husband’s arm again. Merk might be angry because he pushed him away and ran to a guy who’s better looking…I’m just slightly complimenting myself.

“Look into my eyes.”

“Here, I don’t see you smiling.” Boss looked into his best friend’s eyes. If you’re going to look that intensely, you might as well eat them.

“I didn’t ask you to look for a smile…I asked you to see what’s in my eyes.”

“There’s nothing there, just eye boogers?”

“You moron, it’s you.”

“Ooohhh!” We all burst out teasing. I don’t know who came up with the sound ‘ooohh’, but next thing I knew, everyone in the group was doing it.

“I’m not going out anymore…you’re quite the tease, Merk.” The one being teased looked at the teaser, Merk shrugged and turned to play on his phone instead.

“So, what’s changed?”

“How so? I’ve gotten prettier, haven’t I? Are you falling for me? Your wife loves his husband, right?” After that, it turned into a ridiculous argument. I don’t want to talk about it anymore, let them be.

“Phew, so tired.” Duen and his group are back, let’s get serious for a moment…

“Oh, you guys are here already? How was it? What did they make you carry?” Tee asked, each person looking quite exhausted but not sweating, perhaps because of the cold weather.

“Mics and speakers, bro. Actually, it wouldn’t have been heavy if the wheels hadn’t broken.” the junior with the code name flapped his shirt back and forth.

“Unlucky, huh, ha ha ha.”

“Really bad, all of a sudden, it just broke, totally confusing.” no wonder it took so long, Duen came over and sat beside me. I was the same as always, too scared to leave because I thought he might be upset, just sitting quietly like this.

“Bohnnn.” he shook my arm, so cute like a cat, used to be an annoying cat, now like a clingy cat, I like both kinds, heh.

“…”

“Still not over it? I already apologized, come on.” Apologized but still want to see you keep begging. Otherwise, my efforts would be for nothing.

…

“Where have you been? I was looking for you all the way to your place.”

“Went to get something to eat…” I’ll answer him a bit; otherwise, he won’t have the energy to keep begging, as I mentioned before. I won’t tell him about Mai, telling or not telling makes no difference. Better not to tell. I don’t want any trouble.

“Really?”

“Okay then. Everyone has showered and dressed, right? I’ll let everyone go to bed to prepare for tomorrow’s tree planting, but before we sleep, we must chant and pray. Please, Phii Yod, lead us.”

“Hello, juniors, follow me…” We chanted along with Phii Yod, the forest officer, some kind of prayer, long and sacred. Now, the whole forest was quiet, our collective voices echoing around, the atmosphere was chilly. Am I at a camp or a horror movie?

“Wow, that gave me goosebumps. Phii Yod, anything else to say? If not, I’ll let the juniors go to bed.”

“Just a little more. The forest here is quite lush. Of course, there are lots of big and small animals. At night, I don’t want us to wander far from our tents. If possible, don’t leave the tent at all, but if it’s really necessary, take a lot of friends with you for safety. There’s nothing much to worry about, big animals don’t often come here. Mostly just deer and wild cats…Oh, if anything, you can call me; I’ll be sleeping over there.” Phii Yod pointed to the cabin on the high hill not far from here.

“Can I sleep with you, Phii Yod?”

“It’s cold at night, can I borrow Phii Yod for a cuddle?”

“Uh…women can’t join, it’s not proper.” Phii Yod chuckled at the one who teased. Nowadays, women seem to be divided into two groups: those who consume men like the group earlier, and those who aren’t interested in men but ship them with each other like Phii Kamfah…wait, Phii Kamfah is married, I totally forgot.

“If women can’t join, can men join? It’s cold outside, haha.” said Phii Sun. I think he’s speaking for the second-gender women and the ultra-macho men who wanted to ask but didn’t dare.

“Men can join…but only if I like them.”

“Huh, ‘only if I like them,’ I have no idea who that might be. After observing for so long, I’m sure…there’s no one more unfortunate than me, I am interested in two guys who are about to devour each other…forget it, I am tired of complaining.” Oh, Ting.

“It’s cold as hell, I’m going to sleep, you guys.” said Boss. Is that your pajamas, Boss? Even if they look better than Bihn’s, Boss is wearing a woolen hat shaped like a…bear? Or a buffalo, with a drunk-looking face. Never mind, let’s talk about the green floral long-sleeve shirt, yellow leafpatterned pants…sigh.

The best part is…the fashion guru, Bihn, is sleeping in the same tent with us. I thought he wouldn’t bring anything, but I was wrong…he brought the whole house, as travel outfits. Sometimes, you’re well-prepared, little brother, but did you need to bring rope? Not the kind for rock climbing, but ordinary red straw rope. What do you plan to do with that?

The tent was still not quiet, filled with conversation; they must be excited. I feel the same. Phii Sao told us to divide into groups of twenty-five per tent. In here, we sleep in two rows: Tang, Duen, Ram, Phu, Boss, Merk, me, Bihn, Bom, King, Tee, Tang, James, in that order. The other row is a mix of our friends, including Frang. Phii Thara is sleeping in another tent; the teacher wants him nearby in case of emergencies.

“Hey Bohn, did you see my fancy underwear?” Bihn nudged my shoulder. Earlier, it seemed like he was sitting on something in his pocket. Fancy underwear…?

“Oh…that thing, huh, hehe.” Do you remember the G-string with the pendant? Bihn calls it fancy underwear. He wanted to buy more, but Buhn and I stopped him. Buhn is starting to return to his old self. I suspect he was previously brainwashed by Bihn.

“Yeah, where is it? I thought I brought it.”

“Just let it go, forget it.” I looked at him with annoyance. I’d rather sleep than talk to you and get a headache. I separated from Duen. At first, our friends paired us together, but I changed my spot myself so he wouldn’t think I’ve forgiven him. One needs to keep up appearances.

“I’m going to sleep, friends.”

“Me too, good night, monkeys around the tent,”

“Yeah, good night.” I mumbled softly; the atmosphere here is so sleepinducing, even though this is below themountain. Phii Yod, the forest officer, said that up the mountain, it’s much colder, several times colder than the North, far from the feel of Bangkok where it’s hot enough to fry your liver, but here it’s so cold it’s hard to believe we’re in Thailand.

I hope day three comes quickly so we can go up the mountain. I think I’ll stop being mad at Duen then. I want this camp experience to be memorable for both me and Duen.

Just hold on a bit longer, Duen, I’ll stop being mad at you soon. I promise to double the sweet moments, make everyone else jealous.

…

“Nice, Nong Gift, hee hee, come to big brother Bihn, mwah mwah mwah.” “Hey!!” I shouted in surprise, pushing Bihn’s face away, my heart almost gave out. If I had woken up a moment later, what would’ve happened? Just Mai alone makes me want to vomit. Don’t make me sicker, Bihn.

“Time to wake up, go shower and get ready for breakfast.”

Phii Sun walked in to wake us up. If you’re going to use a loudspeaker like this, and with that innocent smile like you did nothing wrong when you see us jump, are you really innocent or just pretending?

“Uhh, five more minutes, mom.” groans came from all over the tent, some even covering their faces with pillows, but I didn’t do that because I was already awake…thanks to that damn Bihn, my heart dropped into my stomach.

“Bom my dear friend, let’s go jump in the water!” Boss shook Bom, who’s been talking about wanting to try jumping into a waterfall in the morning since yesterday, something about challenging the cold.

“Are you crazy, Boss?! What do you think the temperature is now? Look at this!” Thanarit holds up his phone for his close friend to see, the screen showing the temperature app.

‘Phu Sot Dao sub-district, Uttaradit Province, 3°C’

“No wonder I feel numb.” not kidding, three degrees, my fingers and body were numb, everyone might be frozen solid up the mountain.

“Come on, let’s jump, King, come with me, you like challenges, right?” Seeing that Bom wouldn’t go, he turned to someone who likes this kind of thing, damn King. Don’t fall for his tricks. Look at his face, so cunning… “Let’s go! I like it.”

I’ll be waiting to collect your bodies by the stream…

“Let’s go to the bathroom then.” Tang shook his friend’s arm, Duen was still curled up under the blanket. I wanted to be the one to wake him up, but now I’m playing the part of being mad at him, so I can only glance at him out of the corner of my eye, so sad.

“Ugh…yawning.”

“Oh, my heart…it’s going to float away to your mom every time, isn’t it? Just wait, son; I have to be mad at him for another day. Just because your mom makes those wide eyes, red nose, rubs her eyes, and tears up, why do you have to act all flustered? Hang in there, huff.”

I had to put in a lot of effort to keep myself from being swayed by little Bohn, even though Duen hasn’t done anything yet, but I’m already softening up. Toughen up, Bohn, endure the sour to taste the sweet, you know?

“Yes, we’re ready. We’ll go plant trees soon. The path is quite long, if anyone can’t handle it, please say so, don’t push yourself.”

We each carried one or two trees, following Phii Yod into the forest. There were more than ten officials at the front and back of our group to guide us. Along the way, there were various trees and flowers, some I’ve seen before and some I haven’t. In Phu Sot Dao there aren’t many amenities here; the only human-made structures were the restrooms and the park office. It has both advantages and disadvantages, but it’s definitely not good for tourists, though it’s certainly good for nature.

“Hey, look at that flower, it’s so beautiful.” Duen pointed at a flower. It was on a high rock above our heads, and there was only one. It looked like a lily but thicker and with unusual colors, the petals were golden yellow on the outside and blood-red inside.

“We call it the ‘Doi Lily’, it only grows on the northern hills. It smells fragrant at night but not so much in the morning.” said the forest ranger. Only on the northern hills? No wonder I’ve never seen it before.

“Wow…” Duen seemed to love it; he took out his phone to take several pictures, but it was hard to see because it was too high. Why does it have to be up there? If it were closer, I would have picked it for Duen.

“You can take it home…if you can climb up there, haha.” Sure…saying it like that is as good as saying don’t pick it. It’s so high, falling down might not kill you, but you won’t be able to grow it.

“Who would climb up there, uncle?”

“So, can we really pick it?”

“Yes, this tree is fine, the park doesn’t mind, but don’t take too many until they’re all gone from the hill…Oh, and they’re not sold outside.”

“I want one…but better leave it with nature like this.” After saying that, he followed the others. Tingting took a lot of photos; when she had the camera in her hands, she transformed from a medical student into a cool girl instantly. This might be the charm of people who love photography. They don’t realize how captivating they are when they’re with what they love. Tingting…this is the way to find a husband, go study photography.

It took quite a while for us campers to reach the planting site, which was an open, vast area. There was nothing…nothing but dirt and stumps. Seeing it like this was sad; it was all man-made. Look, the marks from cutting and chopping are still on the trees like scars left behind.

“Phew, we finally reached our destination…Ting, bring me some water, I feel like I’m going to faint, damn it. //girl, don’t speak into the mic, it’s not good, everyone will hear!”

“Too late, Phii…”

“That’s it, forget it, just go get a rope and a stick each, plant wherever you want, I’m going to grab some water, hiccup.”

“Plant, plant, plant trees, whether the path is near or far, it’s all about the heart.”

“I feel like I’ve heard this somewhere before.” no need to doubt, Tee, Boss copied it from somewhere.

“You’ve never heard it anywhere, I wrote it myself.”

“Shut up, you liar.” We all made a face at him; today there’s no other activity besides planting trees…it might seem easy, but there are so many trees, a million, and it’ll take a whole day to plant them all.

Tomorrow, we’ll learn about nature at various stations with the forestry department staff, around ten stations for us to rotate through in groups, using our tent groups. We’re group seven.

“It’s past ten, why is it still so cold?”

“And what’s the point of the sun if it doesn’t warm us up, brrr.”

I like this; it’s comfortable, not too hot to burn your skin, nor too cold to numb you (though I was numb this morning). I wish the weather at home was like this, my little brother would love it.

Speaking of Ben, my younger brother has come to terms with the cockroach thing. He said he won’t keep cockroaches anymore. Now he’s keeping something else instead…Ben told me, ‘I don’t want to see anyone die again, so…I chose to keep Dorton. I found Dorton at an antique shop, he’s so cute! Dorton looked at me and said, ‘Take me home with you, Ben,’ so I took him in. He even has a brown birthmark on his back like Daniel, this must be Daniel reincarnated!! We won’t be apart again, my best friend!!’

Damn, should I be creeped out that my brother hears voices…from a spoon? Yes, Dorton is a spoon, an aluminum spoon that came free with a bag of seasoning, the seller was so evil, giving it away for free and then selling it again. What’s strange is my brother bought it, and what kind of name is ‘Dorton’? It’s the unluckiest name. How can you use it if it gets stuck? The brown “birthmark” my brother meant…is rust, yes, rust, shaped like a map of Europe.

Sigh…but because I love my brother, I stay quiet again. Oh well, it’s better than him keeping weird bugs.

“Bohn” “Huh?”

“Why does Duen seem off today?” Swipe!

“What’s up?” I raised an eyebrow to ask King. We were digging the soil to prepare for planting trees. The soil was quite soft, not too hard, so we didn’t need much strength. There were also earthworms from Duen, indicating it was very fertile. Duen’s group is so strange; the girls chase the boys with earthworms. I think they swapped roles.

“Isn’t that weird?”

“I don’t know…It’s weird, I guess, but it might be because I’m still mad at him.” It’s different, but I don’t know how. It’s not really different from usual, but it’s…I don’t know, all I can say is it’s not the same as before.

“Is that so…Am I overthinking it?” I turned to look at Duen, who was laughing with Tingting’s group. What’s changed about you that I can’t pinpoint?

“Has Duen come to apologize to you yet?” Bom nudged my shoulder; he must have wanted to tease like he always does, but as far as I remember, Duen hasn’t spoken to me today.

“Today…not yet.”

“He’s probably not free yet, even though we’re not free. That’s how it is in camp; it’s romantic but there’s no time to flirt.” He patted my shoulder a few times, as if to comfort me.

“He’ll probably come after we’re done planting the trees.” The subject of our conversation was smiling with his friends. Maybe he hasn’t talked to me because he wants me to be in a good mood first. Every time we fight, he does this, the only difference is…

…before, he would be right beside me.

“I need to pee!”

Tang led us into the restroom. It’s evening now, all the trees have been planted, and looking back at those green trees, I feel Phu is so proud of himself; his heart swells thinking we planted them with our own hands.

“Tired…but happy.” King leaned against the restroom wall. Even the restrooms here are beautifully decorated with plants and flowers. Being here, I’ve never felt stressed for more than ten minutes. The sound of birds and other animals calling to each other sounds like a conversation among the wildlife, and the leaves swaying in the wind are like nature’s lullaby.

I like it…

“I didn’t think it would feel this good. Had I known, I should have joined volunteer camps from my first year, not been so lazy.” I spoke from my heart; before, I wouldn’t have done something like this because I thought it would be tiring and wouldn’t give me anything back…but that’s not true. It might be tiring, but you gain a lot of things. Even though I’ve only been here for a day or two. What will I gain after the camp ends?

“Yeah, and-”

“Bohn”

Tee was about to say something, but someone walked up to us first. I looked at the new person, feeling utterly annoyed by the sight of them, wondering if anyone would care if I punched them right here. Did I not make myself clear enough, or are they just shameless?

“I made it clear yesterday.” I sighed in frustration; the person in front of me is the one who annoys me the most. Who else could it be if not that damn Mai?

“I know…”

“What’s going on…ugh, Mai?” Tang came out of the bathroom, and everyone seemed confused by the situation at hand. I didn’t want to make a scene either. Why do I have to deal with this?

“Nothing. Let’s just go.” I tried to brush it off and walk away from the bathroom, but Mai blocked my path, what’s your problem?

“Wait.”

“If you don’t stop messing with me, I’ll really punch you.” I can’t stand people like her. How many times have I told you since last year to stop bothering me?

“I’m not here for that. I just came to apologize for what happened.” He spoke softly. Tee and the others decided to wait outside since it seemed like Mai didn’t want anyone to know, and I didn’t want anyone to know either.

“…”

I crossed my arms, waiting to hear what he had to say next.

“Sorry. I like you a lot, that’s why I did that without thinking.”

“Yeah, is that it? Can I go now?” I didn’t want to stay long. Even if Tee and the others were outside.

“Yeah…”

“You’re not going to do something like in the movies, right?

Like…ambushing Duen, punching him, throwing acid or something like that?”

“Talk nonsense. Who would do that? It’s ridiculous, you should spend your time finding a handsome guy instead…Also, your boyfriend seems pretty fragile.” He scoffed, looking at me. Well, I’m the protagonist here. I had to say that in case he went crazy like the villains in movies, what would I do then?

“Good, I’m leaving.” I waved him off. It’s true that he did something unforgivable yesterday, and I’m still mad at him, but…I’m willing to give a second chance to someone who admits their mistake. Actually, it’s good that this annoying person stops being annoying.

“Can we still be friends?”

“Yeah, if you only think of it as friendship, I won’t say anything.”

“Then…I won’t call you ‘my love’ anymore. Too lazy, I’m going ahead.” This should be easy, Mai isn’t a bad person if you don’t count this matter; he’s actually quite a good person. What I admire about him is his effort in love; he moves forward without looking back, even knowing there’s no finish line on the path he’s chosen, even though he could change his direction, he chooses to follow his feelings.

…I hope you find someone good, my new friend.

 

MY ENGINEER CHAPTERS HOME

MYENGINEER, CHAPTER 55: Phu Sot Dao

[Bohn]

“Bohn, look at that, the forest is orange too.”

“Bohn! The fields are so wide.”

“Look at that pig, it looks so sleepy, haha.”

“Wow, is that a buffalo or a tank? Why is it so big?”

And many more phrases came out of that little scoundrel’s mouth. He’s the only one excited; everyone else is asleep…it’s now 12:14 AM. We’ve come halfway, from Bangkok to Uttaradit, it’s not that far really, maybe because we slept all the way, we thought it was close. But for Duen, it must feel far because he hasn’t slept since we got on the bus. What did you do before you started this, I mean…

“Duen, you can sleep now.”

I reached over to push him down onto the seat. Sleep, or you won’t have the energy for anything else…but I guess there won’t be much to do anyway; it’ll be dark when we get to the park office.

The driver said if we took the train, it would have been faster, but since we chose the bus, we encountered a bit of traffic, just a little bit really, there aren’t many cars here. Mostly motorcycles, and there are lots of trees, even the median strip is full of them. Bangkok has trees too, but they look dry and withered like they’re about to die. Being here, I feel like I’ve entered another world.

There aren’t many buildings here, though there are some, not many. Since we arrived, I haven’t seen a big mall, just small department stores and a Lotus. Maybe because we didn’t go into the city center, and the route we took was on the outskirts. The driver said this route doesn’t have much because it’s not very populated.

“No way, wow…that woman is so bright.”

“I’ll slap you with the back of my hand, stop looking. Sleep!” I covered his eyes with my hand, but when I looked down, I didn’t see the woman he mentioned. Was it a person or a ghost, why was she running so fast?

“I’m just joking, there’s no woman, haha.” I knew it would be like this; someone like you would praise others in front of me just to tease.

“Whatever, I told you to sleep.”

“No, I want to look outside.”

“Fine, then I’ll sleep.”

“Yeah.” He nodded in understanding. If he doesn’t want to sleep, I won’t force him. Even if I tried to force him, he wouldn’t listen anyway. Let it be; it’s rare for a caveman like him to look at the outside world. I’m also tired of sleeping; I’d rather go read some comments.

Boss Thanarit: When it rains, you have to take in the laundry; when flirting with Nong Duen doesn’t work, Phii Boss must put his heart away…

Wow! Go back to your husband, Merk, you damn Boss!

Tee Phattarawin: Break up with Bohn and come here, Phii Tee’s shoulder is here for you to lean on.

I’ll break your skull, you bastard Tee.

Bom Boomm: I want a cute boyfriend like Duen; if he weren’t my friend’s boyfriend, I would have flirted with him.

Are you playing with him too, Bom? Are you cuter than my boyfriend?

Tang Nakrab: Break up with that bastard and come to Phii Tang, please, good person.

You’re the bastard, damn Tang.

Megha Setthakit: Uh.

What’s your heart made of, Merk? Your friend has a boyfriend, but you just reply with ‘uh’.

TingTing Nj: May I hide this post? I don’t want to see anything anymore.

Poor her…

Phakee Sewapha: Phii Bohn got played by Duen.

If you’re asking who…it’s probably more like the senior playing with him. I’m still confused about how he managed to catch that idiot.

Pinchan: Let them eat each other, I’ll handle the remaining women on earth, don’t worry, heh heh.

You’ll handle them?

I sat reading and replying to their comments one by one. People came to congratulate us, and some yaoi girls asked to post our picture on some couple’s page, which I allowed because I didn’t see any harm in it.

Bihn Whose Body isn’t Black But Has a Huge Mustache: My brother has a husband!!!

Buhn Whose Body isn’t Black But Has a Huge Mustache: My brother-inlaw is so handsome.

“Bohn and Duen, don’t switch places…” I quickly typed back to both of them, I’ve heard this so often I’m close to getting irritated. You don’t respect my BohnDuen hashtag at all, see, my name comes first!

Bon Ss: I am his husband.

“Damn. You’re not my husband.”

“Oh, didn’t you say you wanted to look at the scenery?” I looked up at the person next to me, only to see him making a face at me. How annoying, I’ll make you split your lip.

“I saw you furrowing your brows, so I looked to see what you were doing.”

“Are you worried about me?” I rested my head on his shoulder. Duen didn’t resist, he let me lean on him like that while he picked up some snacks to continue eating…you just stopped eating not long ago.

“Yeah.” Admitting it too, huh?

“Huh, you’re cut-”

“You’ve been furrowing your brows a lot, you’ll get crow’s feet, people will think I’m with an old man when we walk together.” He smirked teasingly.

“You’ve got quite the mouth, Duen. If I didn’t love you…I would have smashed your head against the window by now.” I mean it, try having someone else say that to me. I wouldn’t let them get away with it. I’ve never let anyone get away with nonsense, except for Duen, who’s taken it to the top. Sigh.

“Good that you love me.”

“Yeah, heh.”

“I’m annoyed with Bohn, don’t tell him, Tee.”

“I’m annoyed with him too, should we set him up for a beating?”

“Yeah, set him up for a beating and steal Nong Duen to be ours, heh.”

“Do you like threesomes?”

“I don’t know, but it might be interesting.” What’s with this conversation, it’s full of mixed feelings; at first annoying, then amusing. That’s how single people who are bitter about it act, don’t pay attention to them, let them stay single. It’s funny to hear them tease each other.

“Yawn…”

“Fly’s going to fly in, that’s how wide it is.” Duen covered my mouth with his hand. I’m getting sleepy again…I love sleeping on long trips, not because I’m tired, but because I want to sleep. Duen, on the other hand, is the opposite of me; he’s sleepy but refuses to sleep. His eyes are already half-closed, yet he’s still clinging to the window, looking outside, stubborn… Maybe listening to music will make him fall asleep.

“Want to listen to some music?” Even though it sounds like a question, my hand had already put the earphones in his ear. You can’t refuse. You have to sleep with me; I won’t let you be awake alone.

“Music? That’s good.” You’re playing into my hands, huh, heh.

“Then let’s play some music-” I was about to choose some slow, soothing music to help him sleep easily, but Duen snatched my phone first.

“No cheesy music, I won’t listen, don’t think I don’t know you’re trying to lull me to sleep, play something with a dung dung; heavy beat.” You use the word ‘lull’?

“What’s ‘dung dung’? I told you not to learn Boss’s vocabulary, it’s meaningless.”

“Conversation. If you’re going to talk shit about Thanarit like this.” I apologize to my friend, Boss…

In the end, I had to let Duen play some heavy music, even though my eyes were already closing. Can you please play something that fits the mood, Duenhaw? Your husband is sleepy.

“Finally…my butt hurts so much.”

“What time is it, Bom?”

“18:33 PM, local time, khrap.”

“Slap my butt a little, it’s numb.”

Slap

“Ugh!”

“You asked for it, heh.”

…S&M

I’d say the climb up the mountain was tough but also beautiful. This is just the ascent; if we went outside, it would be freezing, you can feel how cold it is even inside the bus. Not for any reason…they turned on the AC…

“…”

“Juniors, gather here first, I’ll explain again.” Phii Sao spoke through the megaphone.

Senior, we’re not in a hurry, you could fix your hair first. P’Sao’s hair looks like a bird’s nest, one side braided, the other left loose. Was she pranked by friends or something?

“Brrr, what’s the temperature here, Ram?” We walked to gather at the hill’s command post, it’s so cold, my hair’s standing on end.

“Okay, I asked the wrong person, how many degrees is it, Tang?”

“Do I look like a thermometer?”

“You’ve turned into a Z-boy with that look…”

“Don’t fight, fight, I think about ten…hey, isn’t this the frost that everyone was talking about?” Before Boss could finish speaking, he shouted loudly, pointing at the ground. I didn’t look because I was busy holding onto Duen; he keeps running here and there, just now he wanted to chase after a white butterfly, is he a child or what, Kritsada!

“Wow, it’s so beautiful, I need to take a picture to show my mom.”

“Wow, King, take pictures, I’ve never seen this before.” Phu called Ting over to photograph it. Duen once said Tingting is really good at this, she even earns money as a photographer. I think she’s quite skilled…you can tell from the photos she sent. Huh.

“Come on, it’s beautiful, but I think it looks like…”

I looked down; on the green grass, there were drops of ice, shining and very pretty, but I found it strange…why does it only appear on one clump? And in such a small patch. It’s probably not frost, hey, that black, jelly-like thing, isn’t that grass jelly, and the yellow beside it, is that corn?

“It’s not frost, the professor dropped some shaved ice earlier…such a pity.”

“…”

“Professor!!”

“Alright, we’ve arrived at our destination. I’ll introduce you to the person in charge here. Please welcome P’Yod.”

“Scream!!!!”

The scream was loud a top Phu Sot Dao peak when a man walked up the hill where the senior girl and Phii Sun were standing. His name is Yod, he looks kind of goofy but with an international vibe, how old is this brother?

“Oh…my heart is beating so fast, P’Yod, introduce yourself, please.”

“Sure, my name is Yod, I’m in charge here.”

“Okay, does P’Yod have anything else to say to us?”

“Yes. Well…this is Phu Sot Dao, in Uttaradit province, it’s winter now. In the morning, there might be frost, but only on very cold days. You can play at the waterfall over there, it’s called Phu Sot Dao Waterfall.” He pointed to a water basin at the entrance, not very big, but it looks clean, the water is so clear I can see the rocks under it.

“Is that all, brother?”

“Uh…it gets very cold at night, make sure to wrap up warm, or you’ll catch a cold, I’m worried about you.” P’Yod smiled at the young host, who touched the back of his neck, seemingly embarrassed.

“Damn it…I had my eyes on Phii Sun since we were in the auditorium, but when we got here and met P’Yod, I got interested in another one, planning to get both, but then they act like they’re already together, I should become a monk to give up on life and love if this is how it’s going to be, might as well kill all the monkeys in the world, no need for gender or anything anymore. Are you not going to leave any men for me? Hello! There’s still one open woman unit here, you know.”

“Squeal!!”

“Can P’Yod come wrap me up, please!!”

“I want P’Yod to be my husband, aah!!”

And many more came to flirt with P’Yod, the forestry officer, who scratched his head in embarrassment.

“Thank you so much, P’Yod. Alright…it’s almost nine. I think we should go take a shower, there are bathrooms upstairs, feel free to choose, or if you don’t want to shower in the bathroom, you can go to the  Phu Sot

Daowaterfall. P.S. Professor Pakorn whispered that it’s very cold, ha ha ha.”

“Where should we go…waterfall plus one.”

“I’ll go to the waterfall.”

“Plus one.”

“When we get there, it’s the waterfall.”

“Phii Tang will go to the waterfall too.”

“Waterfall.”

“Waterfall, lots of girls, Tee won’t miss it, heh heh.”

“Waterfall…”

“Waterfall, lots of trees, the divine one loves it.”

“Waterfall, I just went to check, the water is so clear.”

“Waterfall too.”

“Canal…oh, why are you looking at me like that?” You’re always like this, Duen, everyone’s going to the waterfall, and you’re the only one talking about the canal.

“Duen…there’s no canal, just the waterfall and the bathroom.” Ram told his friend, his face was calm…but he seemed to be smiling. How do you do that, what’s with this father-son aura, am I imagining things?

“Oh…then the waterfall it is.”

“Ack, the water’s so cold!” Bom squirmed. We let him go in first to see how cold the water was. Judging by his shivering lips, it must be saladtossing cold…

“Is the water very cold, Bom?”

“Are you going to ask again, you bastard! Ugh, I, brr! It’s freezing. I can’t take it anymore!” Bom ran up to stand beside us, his hair standing on end, he must really be cold. So far, besides Bom, no one else has gone into the water.

“Bohn, let’s go play in the water, I want to play, play, play.” The person next to me shook my arm, looking excitedly at the waterfall.

“You…you don’t see that white mist and the spray? Don’t go.” I tried to stop him, go wash up in the bathroom instead, Bom’s balls are shaking, can’t you see?

Wow, Dr. Thara is so brave; he jumped straight into the waterfall. He’s really something, his soul almost left from the cold, but he still popped up to give a bright smile to the girls, even playing around with a scream, huh. When we were gathered earlier, I saw Frang and Bihn too; I had no idea my little brother came along. I didn’t see him packing anything…don’t tell me he’s borrowing from friends, I’m in despair for a moment.

“It’s good, the cold water will refresh you.”

“But I-”

Splash!!

Before I could do anything, I was kicked from behind, and I mean ‘kicked’, probably by three feet. I know for sure it was Boss and Duen, who’s the third one? Don’t let me find out, you guys.

“Damn…you bastards. Damn, what the hell are you playing at?” I rubbed my face several times, I swallowed water, the third person must be you…damn, Tang, you kept your foot up there, wait, I’ll remember this. You won’t get away, no need to run.

“Haha.”

“You’re so annoying, I hate you.”

“Ugh, so annoying, Boss my friend, let’s go play over there where there are lots of girls.”

“Alright, shit, white shirt with black underwear, let’s go, my dear friend.” Seeing something interesting, Boss ran ahead of his friends…

“Phii Tang, Phii Bom, I’m coming with you, whoa, Yod with the pink shirt, is my medicine.”

“Come quick, you junior! One Piece is waiting for us.” I’ll deal with Yod later, right now I need to handle this bastard first.

“Come down here, Duen, come here and let me hit you.” I slapped the water beside me, making waves, the person I called pretended not to care, looking around, don’t make me use force…

“Going down there would be stupid, bastard.”

“…”

Hearing that, I sat down on the rock beside him, didn’t come when called, huh…I’ll make you come down yourself.

“Bohn, are you angry? Just a little.” It didn’t take long for Duen to come into the water towards me, looking quite worried. Good…this is the face I wanted to see. You’ll definitely get pranked by me, heh heh.

“Not just a little, Duen, I choked on the water, I’m cold, the water is freezing.”

“Sorry. Didn’t think you’d get angry.”

“You never consider my feelings.” I deserve an Oscar, I’m keeping such a straight face, maybe because I’m a bit upset with him. The water really is cold, you know, you should try it.

“And…now it’s dramatic, Merk Phattarawin says we shouldn’t be here.” Tee grabbed Merk’s shoulder to back away together, and once they were far enough, they ran to join the Boss group immediately.

“I think we should go take photos over there, King.”

“I was thinking the same.”

“…Let’s go play in the water over there, it’s calm.”

“There are bamboo shoots over there, let’s go pick some for dinner, friend.”

“I’ll go too.” So, now it’s just me and Duen left. There are others playing in the water, but not many and they’re far away, the rest chose to shower in the bathroom.

“Bohn, I am sorry khrap.” This is the voice I wanted to hear, this is the face I wanted to see, but this time, I’m going to grit my teeth and not give in easily, I want to see how he’ll try to make up if I’m really mad.

“…” I kept looking at him silently, just like before. He looks really upset, I feel sorry for him, but my desire to tease him is stronger. You’re going to get it, you little rascal.

“Bohn, sorry, don’t be mad, or you won’t look handsome.” He must be at a loss for what to do, definitely, he never had a boyfriend before me.

“…”

“Bohn, I am sorry, I won’t do it again, please don’t be mad, please, please.” He grabbed my hand and shook it back and forth, is that what you call making up, Duen…why is it so cute, it’s heart-melting, don’t give in yet…

“…”

“Wow, why are you so sulky, I won’t make up with you if you keep being stubborn.” He said that, but he still rubbed my hand against his cheek like a cat, hold on…

“Really…then I won’t beg.” After saying that, I walked away from him. Duen seemed shocked that I did that. It’s not for any reason. If I stayed any longer, I wouldn’t be able to handle it, damn, my heart was beating so fast.

“Where am I?” Because I was walking aimlessly without paying attention to where I was going, I ended up somewhere…it must be another waterfall, but there’s no one here. Damn…did I enter a restricted area or something?

“The waterfall behind the park office.”

I turned to look at the source of the voice, knowing it had to be him. I remember his voice even if I don’t pay much attention to him.

“Hey, Bohn. Don’t you want to talk?”

“Yeah, nice to see you, Mai.”

Do you remember Mai? The one I met at the Phii Diao pub. After that day, I didn’t talk to him again. This time, he probably won’t do what he did before. After all, I have a boyfriend now. Plus, I clearly rejected him last time.

“Excuse me, my friends must be looking for me.” It might be rude, but I

don’t want to make it into an issue later; there are so many people here, if anyone sees, they might think badly of us, or even spread rumors that could harm us.

Thud!

“Wait, Bohn, let’s talk first.”

I knew it would come to this, Mai grabbed my wrist to stop me from leaving. Why be so persistent? I’ve told you no matter how you flirt, I’m not interested, I like someone else!

“What do you want? If it’s the same old thing, I won’t talk.” I twisted my hand free; he let go willingly. If he didn’t, I’d definitely give him a slap.

“Don’t you really care about me, Bohn?” He leaned in, his chest touching mine, his hand about to go around my neck. No way, this isn’t like before.

“Yeah.” I said, pushing him away to keep some distance. Why do I have to deal with this now? I thought I wouldn’t encounter this anymore.

“Why? I’m much prettier than your boyfriend.”

“That’s true…”

“Right, huh?”

“But I love Duen.”

“Enough, it’s impossible. I told you not to waste time with someone like me, I won’t be interested in you anyway, go find someone else.” I waved goodbye before turning around. I shouldn’t have pretended to be upset like a girl, I should have let Duen keep flirting. Now I’ve lost my mood.

“Bohn!”

The person behind me grabbed my shoulder, turning me to face him. I was about to curse but had to stop…no, I should say I was silenced, and in my shock, I froze for a moment.

“You bastard! What the hell are you doing?!” The next moment, after coming to my senses, I pushed him down hard onto the ground. Damn, it’s good that I had the presence of mind not to let him stick his tongue in. Otherwise, I’d be disgusted to death.

“I kiss better than your boyfriend, right? Break up with that one and date me.”

“Mai, you are starting to annoy me, damn it!! I told you I’d never like you!

Stop bothering me, and don’t even think about doing something stupid like picking a fight with Duen. If you do, I’ll kill you, you bastard…spit!” I shouted at her face loudly, raising my hand to wipe my mouth in disgust, feeling so bad.

“Do you love him that much?!”

“Yeah! He’s my wife. If I don’t love him, should I go love a white buffalo somewhere?!”

“…”

“…” I hope this time it’s over, Mai, I’m tired of talking about it. I don’t want any more trouble. If we weren’t at the camp, you’d be dead by now, just saying. I meant it. Normally, I wouldn’t let this slide. If I punched her, it would definitely cause trouble. I don’t want to get into trouble because of someone like her.

“Damn…” I walked back, wiping my mouth and stopped to buy some water to rinse it out…I think I won’t tell Duen about this. Telling him wouldn’t make any difference, it would just make him worry for no reason…no, he’s never worried or jealous about me.

Even if I told him, he probably wouldn’t feel anything…

 

MY ENGINEER CHAPTERS HOME

MYENGINEER, CHAPTER 54: Hand in Hand

[Bohn]

“Tiger, how’s the food preparation going?”

“Already contacted the restaurant. They’ll deliver it tomorrow at 2 AM.”

“And the other…”

I didn’t hear what they talked about after that, James’s friends and Tiger’s work seem harder than the professors’. They have to run around all the time, Su has lost quite a few kilos. I can see your handsome face now, Su, just a bit more, another seventy kilos, and you’ll be slim. Keep it up.

“Tomorrow already? I feel like we just finished exams yesterday.” Tee stood with his hands on his hips, looking at the volunteer camp sign, ‘Follow me, follow the senior, I’ll lead the juniors to…to catch the stars’. I hate that slogan so much. I don’t know what the professor was thinking when he let Boss come up with it.

I feel like Tee, time flies so fast, tomorrow we’ll go to Phu Sot Dao. It’s good that other faculties are helping out, otherwise, we wouldn’t have been able to prepare in time. It should have been done long ago, but there were some issues, so it got delayed.

“Yeah, I still feel like I was just eyed by Phii Kamfah with that scary look…brrr! Even though I was drunk.” Tang said while rubbing his arms. It’s been exactly one week since that night, actually, I wish time hadn’t passed…Duen was clingy all night, making that cute, groggy sound by my ear, and when sleeping, he liked to scratch my chin. When I told him to sleep with King, he protested, saying he wanted to sleep with Bohn.

My heart…the heart of someone who’s in love.

“Can I go visit my grandma after the camp?”

King, the divine one, asked, his hands clasped behind his back, his gaze lost in the pond beside the faculty. His grandma lives in Uttaradit, King was the happiest when he heard we were going to Uttaradit; he said he missed his grandma but hadn’t had time to visit lately. At first, he even said he would skip the camp to see her, thank goodness we managed to persuade him. The path goes up and down to Phu Sot Dao; how would you walk to your grandma’s place first? If you don’t die, you’ll get dragged off to be sold, King my friend.

“I don’t know…try asking James, I’ll go with you.” As soon as Bom finished speaking, he stood up and took his close friend to find James. I don’t know if he’ll allow it. Normally, he wouldn’t let you go because it’s part of the project’s responsibility…but if there’s a parent coming to pick you up, it’s uncertain.

“What color shirt should we wear tomorrow?”

“‘We’ meaning we have to match with you?”

“Yeah, better put Duen’s group in too, so when they walk, they look like the tail of a dancing doctor, heh.”

“Listen to you compare…for us, we should call it a boy brand, come on, with Tingting included, what should we call our group?” Bom looked thoughtful. Don’t spark his creativity, I beg of you. It’s known that Boss loves to invent words…

“Me, I’ll name it myself!” Boss raised his hand as if asking for permission, but it might be too late…you guys should stop him quickly before he comes up with something strange, like our group name!! ‘Loy Lod Ha’ or something like that, I can’t accept it.

“Uh…is that a good idea? I think-”

“The-Mong-Ting!”

Damn, am I too late again?

“…” The whole group fell silent, each looking at Boss with disdain, what kind of name is ‘The-Mong-Ting’, it sounds awful. Since I’ve been with him, not once has his vocabulary been decent, and this time is no exception.

“I like it, I’ll take it. Tang, Tang, from Bohn, Bom, Boss, Merk to Ram, King,

Phu, Duen combined, actually, I have another name in mind, ‘Khing Buen Rabom’. Which one do you guys want? I like the latter, but the former sounds good, like a perfume brand name.” Please, Boss…

“Sigh!”

“Why are you sighing like that?” I don’t see any charm in your words.

I looked up at the sky, which was now turning orange. It’s not surprising it’s this color; it’s nearly nine o’clock after all. Did Duen prepare his stuff yet? This morning, he even forgot that we have to go to camp tomorrow, better call him.

Ring, ring.

(Hmm…)

“Why does your voice sound like that, are you sleeping?” His voice sounds sleepy like he just woke up, what have you done since you woke up, Duen, or are you sleeping to prepare for the camp?

(Yeah…just finished packing, got tired so I’m lying down.)

“You’ve packed? I thought you hadn’t so I called to remind you.”

(What level are we at?)

“Yeah, we’ll sit together tomorrow.” Is nine buses too many for just over two hundred people, the ‘over’ part being the professors. They’re there to supervise our behavior. Even though they say they’re supervising…they’re all kind-hearted, Professor Pakorn, Professor Porntip, sweets, pork, and alcohol are all there.

(Yeah, I’m excited.)

“I’m excited too.”

(I haven’t been to a camp in so long. I’ve never been to Phu Sot Dao either, I just looked it up online, it’s so beautiful. Have you ever been?) The voice on the other end of the line was excited. I bet if he had a tail like a dog, it would be wagging.

“Never been either.”

(I wish tomorrow would come sooner, huh.)

“Me too.”

(Why don’t you seem excited, you bastard?) Hey, why are you scolding me?

“I am excited. You can’t see my face, so you don’t know.”

(Really? What kind of face are you making?)

“Excited.”

(I thought you were dead inside, going somewhere far but not excited.)

“I’m not excited about Phu Sot Dao.”

(Oh, you bastard. You-)

“I’m excited because I get to go with you.” Honestly, even if it’s just to the end of the street, if the person walking beside me is you…I’d still be excited.

“Yawn.”

“Eek! Phu, that is gross, why yawn without covering your mouth!” the star from the medical faculty slapped her best friend’s back. She made a disgusted face and walked over to Tang. Ouch, I feel the pain for you, Phu, go get Tang to apply some ointment.

We were all gathered in the university’s central auditorium…what a pitiful group name. In the end, Boss used his power to force everyone to wear the same color shirt, and from being noticeable because of our looks, we’re even more noticeable now because of the shirt color. While others wear muted tones, we’re the only ones in yellow.

“Everyone’s here now. Mostly first and second years, huh? So, I’ll refer to myself as ‘Phii’ then, my name is Sao, I’m in my fourth year at Engineering. You can call me ‘Most Beautiful Phii Sao’. Feel free to ask anything, I don’t mind.” This senior is from my faculty. She likes to dress in a boyish, tomboy style, often sitting at the four-way junction teasing guys from other faculties who pass by…

“Most Beautiful Phii Sao!”

One guy raised his hand. Oh, that’s my senior, do you remember him? He’s the one who signed my name with a flourish, seems like he’s changed a bit…did you braid dreadlocks!! Damn…from rogue to even more rogue, you! Why are all the seniors in my faculty so wild, it’s exhausting.

“What’s up, Nong Sen?”

“I have a question.” My code senior stood up to face off with the senior girl…oh no, I need to rush to tell the rector that the janitors are about to fight.

“Go ahead and ask.”

“Being this beautiful…”

“Oh, go spend money on some snacks.”

“Being this tall…”

“It’s genetic, junior, this is what they call a model’s figure…but, are you going to ask if I have a boyfriend yet? I haven’t, I’ve been single for centuries.”

“No, that’s not what I was going to ask.”

“Oh, then what?”

“Do you have balls down there?”

“You bastard!!” Thud!!

R.I.P

Rest in peace, Sen…I won’t forget the times we had together.

“Alright, let’s get to the point, I won’t talk much because you juniors probably don’t want to listen. We’ll go to Uttaradit for four days; the first two days we’ll plant trees and do various activities at the park office. The remaining two days we’ll go sightseeing at the top of Phu Sot Dao.” The travel review websites say the hike up is very tough; from the park office to the top of Phu Sot Dao, you have to go over several hills, each one with names like…’Hill of Death’, hearing that gives me motivation.

Phii Sao said we’ll camp on the lawn in front of the park office, we can bathe at the waterfall or in the bathroom, whichever we prefer. The place where we’ll plant the trees is deep in the forest; in the past, there were trees there, but now due to forest fires and illegal logging, only stumps and roots remain.

“Good news. We have an additional host, give a round of applause for Phii

San!”

“Scream!! Phii San is so handsome! Did your parents feed you Ohmo Plus or what, how can you be this white! Are those eyes or rice grains, how can they be so sharp and mysterious, Phii San! Is that a nose or a rhino’s horn, so sharp and beautiful! Are those pants or missiles, why do they look so ready for battle!! Scream!! You’re out of this world, into the galaxy, P’San!!”

It’s not a woman’s voice, it’s Boss’s voice, clapping and cheering loudly. You might wonder why he’s cheering for P’San so enthusiastically without any regard for his husband…P’San is his code 4th year senior in the faculty, you know, it’s all about supporting code line business.

“Oh, such flattery between uncle and nephew, Phii San, please introduce yourself to the juniors.” The female host teased. This senior once flirted with Boss for four days before stopping, giving the reason, ‘Boss is too wild, I like quiet types like my husband.’ Now I understand…

“Yes…uh, my name is Sun…that’s all. Ha ha.” After speaking, Phii Sun scratched the back of his neck out of embarrassment. The whole sentence was nothing but ‘yes’ and…

“Squeal!!”

That was enough to get screams from the shy deer and monkeys. Phii Sun is shy, Boss’s code senior is shy, his junior is shy, everyone in this code line is shy…everyone except Boss, my friend. The seniors in the older years like to tease that Boss is Phii Sun’s child and his line raised, but actually, he get babied by Phii Shin, who is Merk’s code line senior, and that line is all mischievous…all except Merk.

Let’s switch…

“Who is he?” The person next to me asked after being silent for a while. I almost forgot you were sitting here, Duen. If you and your friends are going to eat and be silent like this…

“He’s Boss’s code senior, why are you eating like this?” I used a tissue to wipe the corner of Duen’s mouth, which was stained with MSG, it even got to his ear…I swear, I thought you were bathing in it, not eating.

“I have to compete to eat with them.” Duen pointed at his friends, making me look over. I saw that the others were in a similar state, only Ting was eating leisurely. Not that there’s any reason. She went and took the snacks from them, so the rest had to fight for it, oh my…

“Didn’t you buy stuff this morning too?” This morning, I stopped at the convenience store for him, and there was plenty of food, from snacks to all sorts of things.

“We did, but I didn’t want to open it yet. We have to steal snacks from friends! It’s the pride of a hunter!”

Hunt your dad…

“Okay, okay. Then don’t get too messy.” Duen nodded and went back into what he called the ‘arena’. The main contenders were Phu and Ram, are you also playing with them?

“Alright, ladies, calm down first. Let’s continue, this volunteer camp isn’t just about planting trees and going back home, we want everyone to get to know each other. Seniors, please distribute the name tags.” With the host’s voice ending, we each got a pink name tag to hold. So proud, I made these myself…oh, my group used string.

“Phii Sun wants the juniors to write their names on these, nicknames or real names are fine.” P’Sun said into the microphone before walking down to distribute the markers to those at the front of the line.

“Phii Sun, I want to write my real name, but there’s a small problem.”

One fierce girl raised her hand. I know her; she’s in the group of beautiful, kind-hearted but tough girls, which is the transgender association at our university. I don’t know who founded it, but it’s been around long enough to have a president, vice president, secretary, and treasurer. At first, I was puzzled about why they needed a treasurer because they didn’t seem to have much need for money. They explained, ‘We collect money from those girls who get hit on by girls. We keep collecting, and when we have enough, we give all the money to the person who gets hit on the most by men, so they can go for breast augmentation and beauty treatments,’ do they really have that?

“Yes? Isn’t there enough space?”

“No, I am tired of my old surname. Now I wants to change it, can I borrow

Phii Sun’s?”

“Wow!!”

“Don’t, Jamren! Go find another victim, this one’s taken!” If you’re going to say that through the microphone, sister. What am I even watching, I forgot we’re here to plant trees.

“You girl! I told you not to call my name before my debut!”

“I’ll call it, why? Jamren, Jamren, Jamren!” Let them be…

“And what about you?” I nudged the person next to me. Today, Duen is wearing a sheep-patterned shirt, which is cute; he said his mom bought it for him when they went to a pig farm…huh? The yellow shirt makes him look even whiter than usual. No, I should say it makes all of us look whiter than usual.

“What?”

“Want to change your surname to my surname, huh?”

“Always finding excuses to flirt, huh?” Not only not embarrassed, but he also gives me the middle finger. That’s harsh.

Soon, we were ready to travel. Phii Sao let everyone choose which bus they wanted to board according to their preference. We chose bus number seven. There’s nothing special about it; Boss just likes this number.

“Be careful when you walk…wow, I just noticed, that yellow-shirt group is so handsome, can I hit on them?” The senior girl teased when my group reached the bus, even blowing kisses, making everyone around look at us with one expression. How could they not look, the sister used the loudspeaker…

“Come on, scream!! Father of the child!!”

“I want that one, you know, the one in the yellow shirt.”

“The whole group is in yellow.”

“Yeah. I want the whole group!”

“I envy that woman, having all these men around her, what kind of good deed did she do?”

And there were plenty more teasing remarks. They nudged each other with embarrassment when Tang and Boss smiled, always like this. While in the auditorium, we sat in the corner where they probably didn’t see us. That’s good, I don’t want to stand out, it’s too chaotic…like now.

“Jealous? Yes…I used to think that way. If not, I wouldn’t understand how painful it is to listen to them flirting with each other. I thought I was over it…but you guys keep bringing it up!! Great! You should try being me. You’d know how worthless you feel, I feel like I’m just a speck of dust or lint on someone’s clothes. I’m proof that beauty alone isn’t enough…you need to have something more, Thai guys won’t come flirting otherwise.”

Tingting is the one who makes me feel the most guilty in my life…

“Boss, I feel sorry for Tingting. Do something about it.” Tang nudged the flirtatious wife. At first, Boss looked like he didn’t understand, but then he nodded with a smile. What? What are you guys going to do? What does ‘do something’ mean?

“No need to scream, ladies. Even if we’re handsome…there’s a husband who’s even more handsome.”

“…”

“Shit, it’s dead silent, oh. It’s okay, Tingting, we’ll comfort you ourselves.” After saying that, Boss walked over to pat the shoulder of the only pretty girl in the group. Not very flirtatious, are you?

“Senior…I think I might faint. Can we get on the bus now?”

“What’s wrong? Because of what they said, right?”

“What you said!”

“Oh, karma.”

After the conversation ended, we stopped fooling around and walked up to the bus. Wow…I thought there would be fewer people, but from what I see, it’s almost like standing room only. There are nine buses, two at the back for luggage, so the seventh bus is the last one where people can sit, each bus can seat forty people. We have over two hundred people, so that’s about twenty-eight per bus, but you guys are all squeezed into one bus!! …Can we change buses now?

“Bohn, Bohn.” Duen nudged my shoulder. We chose to sit at the front. No, I should say they reserved spots for us.

“Hmm?”

“Can I sit by the window?”

“Sure, want to look at the scenery?”

“Uh huh.” Duen doesn’t often travel far from home. And this time, going with me, it’s natural to be excited…right?

It didn’t take long for the bus to start moving away from the university. It’s now 4 AM, and there aren’t many cars on the road; it’s not yet work time. Try leaving at 10 AM…you wouldn’t leave the city all day.

“Let me see your name tag.” The person next to me leaned over to look at my pink name tag.

“Sure, but I haven’t written on it yet.”

“Why haven’t you written on it?”

“Otherwise, other people might come to flirt with me.” I raised my eyebrows teasingly a couple of times.

“Ew! You self-absorbed jerk. No one would flirt with you; they’d change direction and run to me as soon as they see my face. Heh.” He said confidently, puffing his chest out and showing his tag which read, “Phii Duen”…even though he’s one of the juniors in the camp.

From the initial chatter and laughter, the bus started to quiet down until all that was left was the sound of the engine and the air conditioning. In front of us, there was Tang and King, behind us were Boss and Tee, and opposite us were Merk and Bom, Phu with Chai, and Ram with King.

I think I should investigate the story of those two in the back.

It’s starting to get strange; the other day, I drove past King’s condo and saw them both coming out together. It’s not just a coincidence that they meet; I’ve seen it several times. Others in the group have seen it too, with Tang and Phu seeing it the most since they live in that area.

“Bohn, want some snacks?” Duen asked, offering me a large bag of Lay’s. If I get a stomach ache, it’s not my fault, Duen, you’ve been eating since we were in the Little Elephant auditorium and haven’t stopped…oh, the central auditorium isn’t called Little Elephant, but there’s an elephant fountain in front of it, so people at the university call it that.

“Huh, eat well, then. Oh, Duen, we haven’t set our relationship status on Facebook yet.”

“Huh? Whatever. Why set it? Everyone at the university already knows. No need to set it, this is so tasty, I can’t stop eating.” Can you please stop eating for a moment, Duen? Even if I want you to gain weight.

“No way, we have to set it.”

“Tee’s friend, what are the people in front of us talking about?”

“Yeah, Boss’s friend, what’s this about setting or not setting?”

“Most annoying, Boss can’t stand it.”

“Tee can’t stand it either.”

Who would pair you guys up like this? Why can’t it be Merk and Boss, Tee and Bom like before? If I had a choice, I’d put Merk and Ram in the back…it would be so quiet, but it would be interesting to find out what they’d talk about.

“So, you’re not setting it?” Duen spoke while wiping his mouth with his sleeve, hey, and then you wiped your face with it too? You’ll definitely get acne, you foolish doctor.

“Set it.” I crossed my arms and spoke firmly.

“Why set it? I already told you everyone in the university knows.”

“I want the whole world to know so no one will mess with you.” After I finished speaking, the listener’s face turned bright red, he turned to look out the window, probably not wanting me to see him blushing…sorry, I can see your face clearly in the reflection.

“Uh.”

“What, are you going to make me suspect you have a lover? No need, I

trust you.” Suddenly, he handed me his phone while still looking out the window, his reflection clear.

“It’s not…”

“Huh…”

“I left my Facebook logged in, do whatever you want with it.” The other party spoke in a muffled voice, covering his face with his hands before repeatedly banging his head against the window. What kind of illness is this, hurting oneself when embarrassed?

Forget it, let’s focus on this instead…

“Duen, can I have your hand?” I nudged the person next to me. When I finished speaking, Duen immediately gave me a glaring look. Hey, what did I do wrong to deserve that look?

“Are you treating me like a dog?!”

“Oh…”

“No. I just want to take a picture of us holding hands.”

“…”

I didn’t wait for an answer. I reached out, grabbed his hand, and lifted it to a height I was satisfied with. Duen turned his face away, but this was fine…

Click

The photo came out so well that I had to smile with satisfaction. My arm was almost half in the frame, our hands were clasped, but I wasn’t focusing on the hands…I was focusing on my love.

Bon Ss: currently dating Krisda Duennhaw

My love isn’t just about holding hands and walking; I hold your heart and follow it. 🙂

 

MY ENGINEER CHAPTERS HOME

MYENGINEER, CHAPTER 53: Just for Bohn

[Duenhaw]

“Hey, Duen, why doesn’t Ting have a boyfriend yet?”

“Ting? I don’t know, I’m confused too.”

The position of faculty star in the faculty isn’t easily obtained. Just being beautiful isn’t enough; you need to be brave and have substance! I genuinely admire him, he’s really good, not just in studies but in other aspects too.

“So pitiful. Look at her sitting there quietly watching his friends flirt.” Where? Oh, I see, she’s watching the famous engineering couple, even biting into a fresh morning glory stem. How envious, friend.

“Oh well,T Ting is a my friend…she’ll probably get approached by guys soon enough.”

It’s impossible for someone like her to go unnoticed by guys, she’s beautiful, rich, and has a bright future. With a profile like that, anyone not interested must be foolish, but if she’s still single, it might be because she hangs out with us. When they see her with good-looking guys (and I’m not just saying that because I’m self-absorbed), they might think she’s already taken or that she gets hit on a lot.

Especially because she likes to play around with me, like punching, slapping, playing fishbone, the monk supporting the bean pod, the giant catching the monkey, and many other Thai boxing moves…I felt pity for you a moment ago, but now on second thought…now I feel sorry for myself.

“Do you want anything else to eat?” Bohn asked while holding a piece of bacon to my mouth. Rogue-kun!! If I eat any more, I’ll be like New, I’m already about to throw up.

“Huh, I’m full.” This time, I’m really full, Bohn is crazy. If I say I want something, he’ll double the amount, like when I said I wanted two pieces of squid, he gave me four, and when I wouldn’t eat them, he forced them into my mouth, damn him.

“Eat a little more.” Bohn hasn’t given up on his intention. This time he’s not using chopsticks; are you using a ladle now, Bohn? I won’t open my mouth for that.

“No more, you bastard, I’m full.” My stomach is stretched tight, it’s screaming at me, ‘Damn, Duen, that’s enough, if you shove anything else in here, I’ll make you vomit for real.’

“Alright, alright, I give up.”

Try not giving up, I will slap you with a tissue until you die…I wouldn’t dare to be this cruel, though.

We were sitting on the floor with a large mat in the garden behind Phii King’s house. When looking around, I thought I was in a forest, shred…there are so many trees, but I like it, the air is so fresh.

When the wind blows, there’s a faint scent of flowers, making you feel calm. The smell of champak flowers is…incredibly fragrant.

“Hello, friends, seniors, juniors, I was afraid you’d get bored, so I brought speakers and audio equipment to have a concert.”

“Did you ask if we wanted to listen?”

“Not necessary, it’s my concert, I only care about my own desires.”

“-, .”

“Ahem…look. You’re a beautiful girl, so I looked at you.”

The voice is good…but I’m laughing. Not at the singer, but at my Thai teacher. Phii Boss walked up to the singer, biting his lip and pretending to scratch like a cat, but it seems Phii Tee couldn’t handle it and threw a bitter gourd peel at Phii Boss…yes, a bitter gourd peel. I felt bitter just looking at it, but he claims it’s delicious and it’s not just any bitter gourd.

“It’s a candied and soaked bitter gourd, stuffed with finely chopped and minced straw, coated with Belgian white chocolate and dark chocolate from Paknam Pho.”

That’s what he said, and it’s…not the small, bird-peck bitter gourd, but it’s a large Thai bitter gourd the size of Phii Merk’s arm. I’m speechless. I got goosebumps just thinking about it; the taste must be indescribable. Why does Phii Tee like to eat such things? That day, I saw him carrying cinnamon water blended with yogurt to eat at the university. He said it had some medicinal properties, but I didn’t catch what, just that I was shocked at the time.

 

[Bohn]

“If you weren’t beautiful, I wouldn’t look

If you weren’t bright, I wouldn’t stare

I wouldn’t look to make my heart beat.”

“Merk, are you going to let this happen! Tee is flirting with your wife, haha.” If you’re going to provoke like that, Bom, the provoked one looked at his wife, who was having her chin held by the singer. There are millions of songs, why choose this one?

“You talk like this, and Tee is the one who gets hurt, Bom. Boss started flirting first, so…are you going to let this slide, Merk? Your wife is flirting with another guy, wrestle him down!! Make him understand and remember who his husband is! The spot behind the bushes has a good view, I’ve scouted it! There might be ants, but it’s fine, it’ll add some spice to your marriage, the itching might be good for you.” Wait, damn Tang, you watched an SM movie this morning, didn’t you?

“Heh.” Even the quiet Merk couldn’t help but laugh, let alone everyone else, all eyes were on the live performance. Only Ram kept a straight face. I thought Merk was quiet, but when he meets you, he becomes talkative.

…He’s quieter than usual, isn’t he? I think something’s off. Since when did

Ram and King become so close? They’re not stuck together like Merk and Boss, but they seem closer than before. When did they find the time to become so close?

‘They’re weird, they’re always together.’

Tang’s words floated into my head. Last time, it wasn’t true, Tang and his code junior were tricked by King’s sister, but it wasn’t really a trick; she imagined it was true and spread it around the world. Let’s get back to the point. I’ve seen them riding bikes to university together often, but at that time, I didn’t think much of it because King was working on a documentary about Ram.

My artist friend loves weird things. Unique. If he encounters something, he’ll pay a lot of attention, will investigate and observe it like gathering data. He does this all the time, the last one was a documentary on dog poop.

“Be quiet…come with me for a bit.” Huh…

A voice came from beside me. Although it was very soft, I heard it, thanks to my naturally good hearing and because he was sitting right next to me. I pretended not to hear and started playing with my phone. Meanwhile, Duen went to sit with Tingting.

I watched as Ram and King walked off together…where to? Let’s just say they went somewhere out of my sight. It seems King’s mom once mentioned he has some kind of secret base…whatever, let it be.

“Bohn!” Hey!

I braced myself on the ground in shock as someone hugged me from behind, rubbing their head against my cheek. I was about to ask what was wrong when I caught a whiff of something from behind…this smell…

“Duen, are you drunk?”

“Yeah…drunk.” Who let him drink? I glanced at where Duen the idiot was sitting and immediately knew who forced him to drink. Let’s not call it ‘gave,’ let’s call it ‘poured,’ that’s better. Damn it…

While lifting her student skirt and sitting cross-legged, she locked her best friend’s neck with her left hand to keep him from moving while her right hand cruelly poured alcohol into her best friend’s mouth. She seemed to mumble something too. Let me read her lips…

“Tang…you must take responsibility for my little heart. I have two best friends in the same faculty, by rights, you and Duen should be protecting me from guys, but why do I end up being the one protecting you from them? I wouldn’t mind if guys showed interest in me, but they don’t! ugh, the other day, a hot guy who looked like he could wrestle came up to me, I flirted but ended up sitting alone because he was chasing you!!…Drink this, you bastard, so you can see what it’s like to be devastated. I just want one day…today, I want to feel pretty! Why do tigers keep their stripes if men have to look after each other!!! Answer me!!

Tingting should become a rapper, her lip movements are so fast. As for me, I deserve an award for outstanding lip-reading.

“Should I laugh or feel sorry for you…” Tang looked very pitiful, struggling like he was in agony. It takes some strength to hold a guy like him still. Even though Tang is small.

“Karaman…tamarind? Want to eat Phii Tee’s? It’s not tasty, really, sour, blech!” Duen said before making a face like he had goosebumps, so cute, his face was trembling too, huh.

“Guys, we’re in trouble, hah.” King ran over to us. Not long after, Tee the code junior followed. What were you guys doing for so long?

“Huh, what’s up, King?” Tee asked into the mic, he’s drunk. To be precise, now only I, Merk, King, Phu, Ram, and King are sober. The rest are out cold, Boss looks the worst, he’s wearing red hibiscus flowers in his ears, his hair in two buns, and his trousers rolled up high above the knees…quite the sight.

“‘She’ is coming here.”

“Who?”

“Phii Kumfah…”

“Hello, boys.”

“Uh, hello.” We all saluted the beautiful girl sitting between Ram and King.

She looks beautiful like this, but she already has two kids. Her name is Phii Kumfah, King’s older sister. My friends and I are a bit scared of her; she likes to ship us in scary ways. Normally, I don’t mind people who like to ship, it’s funny, but not with Phii Kumfah…

She’s too scary.

“I knew Vera had to be here.” She said, hugging the arm of the person next to her. Oh, you know Ram too? How well do you guys know each other? I guess we need to extract some information.

“I just stopped by to pick up something and was about to leave, but after thinking it over…I feel its better to stay a bit longer.” I don’t know what that sweeping gaze and smirk meant, all I know is it made us all get goosebumps, sitting up straight in unison. (It’s called the Yaoi Scan Gaze; a yaoi girl trained enough can receive it like a blessing from God, used for checking out and pairing up guys correctly: Momma.)

“Big sis, try this, my husband made it, it’s super delicious.” Maybe because he was drunk or something, Boss dared to talk to the senior. Normally, he does talk, but not this much.

“Let’s see, oh my…Merk made this? Very house-husband-like, well suited to be your husband, huh.”

“Huh, hubby… Phii Kham even praised me himself.”

“…”

“Embarrassed, huh? Don’t be embarrassed, oh, so cute, come give yourself a kiss.” Is this what they call fan service, what those in the movie industry do to boost ratings…

“Squeal! I’m thrilled, more please, are there other couples…oh, who’s that sweet-faced young man?” Looks like today is Tang’s unlucky day, not only did he get drunk but now he’s also being targeted by Phii Kumfah.

“Oh, that’s Tang. I haven’t introduced them yet, this is Tang, Ting, Phu, Duenhaw, they’re juniors at our university.” King introduced them one by one, but he didn’t mention Ram’s name. Of course, from how they look, they must know each other well, because even now, the senior hasn’t let go of Tee’s arm.

“Wow, all such good-looking guys, does the young man have a boyfriend yet?” She propped her chin, looking at the unfortunate medical student. I suggest you go break the curse, Tang.

“Huh? Me? No, no, girls don’t care for guys cuter than themselves…hic.” I was about to ask Phu to grab a tissue for his friend because I thought he would cry from being drunk, but…

No…

“Buffalo! So damn stupid! What if you have a boyfriend cuter than myself! So what if I have a sweet face! I can still fertilize your eggs! You say, ‘We don’t like Tang like that, Tang is too cute,’ cute your dad! Why didn’t you say that from the start, you jerk! You flirt with me and then reject me, huh, just wait, I’ll line you up and slap you! Bastard!!!!” Uh…

What they say about there being many types of drunks is true, Tang must be the type who speaks his heart when drunk. Bom is like this too, but my friend has an additional option of complaining from past years up to the present.

“Oh oh, Nong Tang, don’t mind those monkeys…get back at them.” King’s sister spoke while sitting cross-legged next to him. If you wear a sarong, why wear a skirt over it, big sis?

“Huh, how?” Once he stopped rapping, he went back to being his usual calm self, I guess he really lost it earlier. I’ve never seen him like this before. Looks like he’s been suppressing a lot, no less than Tingting.

“Steal their men, huh huh.”

I told you Phii Kumfah is scary…

“What, should I punch them?” Tang raised his eyebrows to ask Phii

Kumfah. It looks like he wants revenge too, it must be heartbreaking to be treated like Tang, to be flirted with by a woman only to be rejected later, using looks as an excuse to distance herself.

“No, dear. We don’t use violence…maybe a bit of force, but it won’t hurt much, good person, trust me…I’m a yaoi girl.” What’s that, yaoi girl or Yakult girl?

“Yaoi girl?”

“A yaoi girl is a messenger of the Yaoi religion, with Abe no Seimei as the bundled prophet. Their duty is to keep enemies and heretics of the faith, (women), away from the pure sheep, (men). Then, they pair off suitable matches for the sheep, (ship), and watch over them with warm eyes, (consume).”

“Hmm?”

“You don’t have to understand, let’s get to the point…I won’t let them get away with this, Tang must fight! Go steal their man, I support you!! Men are born to be with men, women should die!!” After saying that, King’s sister raised her hand to the sky like a revolutionary. Sister…you already have kids and a husband, and both your kids and husband are men.

Most importantly…you’re a woman too.

We started talking normally again, Phii Kumfah still continued to ship this person with that one. The person hit hardest was Tang, who was too drunk to understand, followed by Phii Bom, Tang, Boss, and Tee, in that order. You might wonder why Duen isn’t affected at all; it’s because he’s sleeping, leaning against my back. I’m big enough to shield him completely. When King introduced Duen, Phii Kumfah looked confused, wondering why he pointed at me.

Everyone seemed to be having fun, but there was one person who looked sad. If this were a cartoon, we’d see black effects behind her, showing her depression…Tingting, it seems Phii Kumfah’s words only deepened her hurt.

Actually, my friend Tee seemed interested in her, but he was only looking, not wanting to get involved since he’s currently flirting with a literature faculty girl. She’s not particularly beautiful but has a good personality; she helped Tee when he was in trouble. After that, my friend couldn’t get her out of his mind…but can women protect men nowadays? She even defended Tee by punching everyone who ganged up on him…modern women are truly born to protect men.

“Bohnnn.”

“Hmm?” I turned to look at the person behind me and saw that Duen was awake. He was rubbing his eyes, still sleepy as if he didn’t want to wake up. Go back to sleep, we’re staying at King’s house tonight anyway; initially, we weren’t planning to stay, but looking at everyone’s condition, no one was in a state to drive, so we decided to stay here. The same goes for Duen and his friends.

“So sleepy.”

“Then sleep, heh heh.” I smiled before gently pinching his cheek. I didn’t want to hurt Duen, but his soft, white cheek was so inviting, I wanted to nuzzle it, but I was mindful of others.

“I don’t want to sleep like that, I doesn’t want to lean on you, Bohn.” He shook his head vigorously and then turned to face me. His nose was red…cat, cat, cat. You’re a cat, Duen.

“Then how will you sleep, huh?” I reached out to brush his hair gently, the person I asked smiled and did something I didn’t expect.

“Like this, it’s easy.”

“…Be gentle.” Damn. You get drunk and make my heart race all the time…I looked down at his handsome face, I knew he’d be clingy when drunk, but I didn’t expect him to lie on my lap like this.

“Yawn, I’m sleepy.”

“Who taught you to do this, huh?” I leaned down to rub my nose against his playfully, and he laughed before his beautiful eyes met mine.

“Saw it in a movie, and saw the heroine often do this to the hero.”

“Really? Then Duen, you are the heroine, I am the hero.” I smiled jokingly, seeing him pout, his delicate brows furrowed into little knots. I told you not to frown, or you’ll get crow’s feet, look at this, I even poked him.

“Huh. No, I am the hero, I have a younger brother.” The person lying on my lap said with pride, the younger brother he mentioned surely isn’t like Ben or Bihn. You can tell from the tone.

“i has one too, why can’t I be the hero?” Duen’s hand, which was stroking my chin, stopped as soon as I finished speaking. Hey, what kind of reaction is this? Did you forget that I have siblings too?

“That’s true…but mine’s is bigger, hehe.” How can you be so confident? Just how big is it, little Duen?

“How do you know it’s bigger, are you just boasting, let mesee it then.” “Want to see? I’ll show you.” Oh, so you agree.

“Why are you showing it so easily, do you show it to everyone?”

“Huh, only you can see, you is my boyfriend.”

“Duen, you is cute.” I swear I tried to hold back my emotions, but in the end, all my efforts crumbled because of this bastard…look at him, even after getting his cheek pinched, he’s smiling so hard his eyes turn into crescents.

I love moments like this so much, but I’d rather do this when he’s sober so he can remember it.

“Bohn, you is cute too.” He raised his hand to pinch my cheek back and forth, mimicking what I did earlier. Not the same at all…you do it cuter by far.

“Arent I cute, or how am I?” I’m pretty handsome, where did cute come from? Duen is handsome too, but I call him cute because his personality matches that.

“…I am lying, Bohn, you isn’t cute…”

“…”

“Except when yous drunk, haha.” The teasing kid laughed until tears formed at the corner of his eyes. Why would I not know he’s teasing? Look at his smile, who would believe that?

“You’re teasing, huh?”

“Am I good at it? Is I at it?” If I say you’re not good, will you cry? You probably would, it’s cute when you cry, but I prefer when you smile.

“I am sad, I’m about to cry, see?” I pretended to look sad, lowering my head to press my forehead against my lover’s.

“Oh, come here, Phii Duen will kiss and comfort you.” Duen moved up to kiss my forehead, and it was so warm it made me smile.

“This is…a real couple!! Damn! I’ve only seen this on the internet, never in real life, the damage is severe…ugh!! There’s even kissing, oh! Shit, why didn’t Bohn tell me he has a boyfriend? Do you want to be cut out of the inheritance?!” After saying that, Phii Kumfah slapped King’s back so hard that pork flew out of his mouth. Poor…poor Bom, the pork from King’s mouth landed on his lap.

“Just kidding. Do I have to tell you that? Can I have some water?” Ram handed him water immediately. Why not ask Phii Kumfah, she’s right there. You, whatever, the water is flowing too, her hand is really heavy.

“You must tell. If your friend has a boyfriend who’s a guy, like this!” She said, pointing at me and Duen. She argued with her brother for a bit before running over to me.

“Bohn, your boyfriend is so cute, his name is Duen, right?” The beautiful sister of King asked excitedly, her eyes sparkling like there’s a Dao inside…uh.

“Yes.” I nodded. I have to admit, I like to show off my boyfriend a lot, wanting others to know how cute Duen is, but I also don’t want anyone else to see how cute he is. I want to be the only one to see.

“Oh, up close, he’s super handsome.”

“Ugh.” The person being complimented buried his face in my stomach; he’s not annoyed, Duen is just shy, he gets embarrassed like this when people stare at him.

“Oh, so cute, like a cat. Look at these cheeks, they’re red and most pinchable, these red ears, what is this, oh, nirvana. I’m about to reach nirvana.” Phii Kumfah covered her forehead with the back of her hand and collapsed onto the grass.

“Brother, there’s plenty of space on the mat, you can join us inside. No need to be so far away.”

 

MY ENGINEER CHAPTERS HOME

MYENGINEER, CHAPTER 52: Exam Over, Time for Celebration

[Bohn]

Sigh

Today is the last day of exams, in twenty minutes we’ll be in the exam room. Ah…time flies so fast, it feels like just yesterday was Buhn’s birthday. In the blink of an eye, the semester is almost over.

I can say that the exams I’ve been through…wow! Holy shit, they were super hard, extremely difficult. Yesterday was tough enough, but today is even tougher. I can feel the radiation of difficulty even before seeing the exam paper. The professors are just too good at making exams without regard for our brain capacity…

I thought I was worn out, but seeing Duen, I admit defeat. Dark circles under his eyes, red eyes, pale skin. He’s even lost weight, despite promising to take care of his health. But it’s okay, my friends look no different. This is how it is, medical students, when exams are near, they all turn into walking corpses, ha ha. We’ll get through this together.

“They said to wake up early to study before the exam, so your brain would be bright.”

“Did you do it?” I asked Boss who was sitting next to me, slightly surprised that he brought this up. Normally, Boss doesn’t talk about this kind of thing before an exam; he usually says things like ‘I’m definitely going to fail,’ ‘Should I just give up or what?’, stuff like that rather than…

“Yeah, I did it.” We stopped reading and turned our attention to him instead. Merk and Bom even threw their lecture notes aside, King dropped his pencil, Tee had a tamarind in his mouth, and Bom choked on dust. Tang and I looked at him in disbelief.

“…No way. You’re not the Boss I know.” Tee shook his head as if he couldn’t accept it. Sometimes you’re over the top, my friend Tee, and what’s with bringing tamarind? Okay, someone might have brought it…but trust me, they didn’t drag an entire branch like Pathawin did. He said, “My neighbor planted tamarinds, and I saw she never harvested them, I felt sorry that the tamarinds might rot on the tree…so I brought the branch here to eat.” wow, if you’re going to steal, you bring the whole branch, huh? She doesn’t know at all.

“And what’s the Boss that we know like?”

“Mischievous, showy, irritating, dog-like behavior, vulgar language.”

“You bastard, Tee, you’re just insulting me.” The insulted one protested, but not too loudly; if he were louder, he’d definitely get sent to take the exam in the middle of the field.

“So you really did it, how bright are you?” Bom shook the arm of the mischievous wife. I smelled something strange since Boss said he studied at dawn…

“Yeah.”

“Wow, you should have told us before the exam. Why did we only find out on the last day?”

“Bright…bright bye.” I knew it would end like this.

“You bastard, haha.” We all pushed his head playfully; what’s this ‘bright bye’ of yours? I think he just didn’t want his friends to be stressed. He seems unreliable, but when friends are in trouble or distressed, Boss is always the first one to help.

“Help me, King, please, ha.” But in many cases, he needs someone else to help first…

“How can I help?” King yawned, covering his mouth. He’s always like this. Seems useless but reliable, why are the people around me all like this, different on the outside from what they are inside…oh, there’s one person who’s consistent both inside and out, damn Bihn, evil is just evil.

“Anything that helps me pass the exam…can I suck out your brains?” After saying that, he raised a straw to poke at the artist’s head. Where did you get that size of straw from, could easily pass through a boiled egg.

“Damn.”

“Why do you top every subject when you don’t do anything?” Bom asked King, with his chin resting on his hand. It’s true, King never does anything for good luck before exams. No amulets, no offerings to the spirits, no feeding child spirits, nothing beyond sitting and watching birds and trees outside the window.

“By tutoring you guys, I review the lessons again, so I remember them.”

“Damn, one shot, two cat fleas…” If you’re going to change it like that, why not stick with the original proverb, Boss?

“…If you think you can’t do it, you definitely won’t. Think, ‘I can do it, come on.’“ King, the divine one, smiled at us. God, I feel like he has an angelic aura…Oh, it’s just the sunlight, sorry.

“Thinking like that will make it happen?”

“Ugh. Not sure, ha ha ha.”

“Damn you.”

“But at least you tried. Whatever the result, you should be proud, right?”

“Caption by the divine King.” I stopped caring about others. Duen is also about to take his exam. I should send him a message to give some encouragement.

Bon Ss: Susuna!

It didn’t take long for the chat to show “Read”. Are you glued to your phone now, Duen? Don’t let me find out you have a lover, I’ll throw both of you off a cliff…

Duen: You too [sends a picture of himself with a peace sign] Bon Ss: I feel like I’ve gained a mountain of motivation, kisses.

Duen: Crazy.

“Smiling big and small, so annoying…If I had a wife, I’d show her off to you guys morning, noon, night, before bed, after meals.” Tang made a face at me, probably won’t get a wife, heh heh.

“Yeah, me too, I’d stick her with elephant glue on my back and walk around with her, you bastard! I’m so annoyed with Bohn.”

“Oh…what about when going to the bathroom?”

“…Yeah, we’ll figure that out later.”

“We can enter the exam room now…no cheating, okay?” No cheating, professor, we’re all about hard work and dedication.

It didn’t take long for the exam papers to be in front of us. Let me brace myself before opening them. Is there some spell on the exam room door? Every time I walk through, I feel like my memory gets erased…nothing left in my brain at all.

My friends and I exchanged looks before opening our exam papers. We weren’t planning to cheat; it’s just a tradition to open the exam papers together to avoid stress. Have you ever felt your heart drop when you see the person next to you flipping through the exam quickly, worrying why they’re going so fast…or am I too slow? Then you rush to finish before your friends, even if it means making mistakes.

Alright!

I’m ready. Let’s open it, guys!!

Blink!

“Ugh!…”

“Damn…”

“Oh, my…”

“Hold me, I feel faint…”

“Smelling salts…where are the smelling salts?”

“…”

“…I’m discouraged.” I mumbled before wiping my sweat. This is killing me, might as well just die, sigh…Bohn leaving didn’t help, let’s just do it.

“Would the exam paper be sad that I read it but didn’t answer?”

“Oh, what’s this. I don’t understand at all.”

“Forget it, guys, it’s over…” King said, patting his friends on the back. You can say that, you god, when was the last time you scored below eighty percent?

“It’s the holidays now, man!!”

“I’ll just be lazy, rotting at home until I’m mushy, woo!”

“I want to travel, where should we go? I want to go far, how about Laos?

Lao girls are cute, I like them. Or maybe-”

“We have to go to the volunteer camp.” The quiet husband interrupted his friend’s daydreaming. Ugh, with that look on his face, he must have really forgotten. I didn’t forget, I’ve been waiting for this moment for a long time.

“Right, I forgot.”

“When are we going?”

“In one week.”

“Chill! I’ve got a whole week to be lazy.”

“In two days, we need to prepare the food…”

“Yeah…I forgot again.”

“Oh, two days is good! Watch, I won’t do anything stupid when I wake up.” Sure, if you really do that, we might need to prepare an ambulance and a hearse for the bodies.

We talked a bit more before parting ways to go home, leaving me to wait for Duen at the front of his faculty. Tonight, we’re celebrating the end of exams at King’s house. We chose his place because his parents are usually not home, and King invited Duen’s group too, saying Tingting’s last prank was hilarious.

Phii isn’t joking…he’s lamenting his life.

Ping!

Is that Duen?!

Bihn, Whose Body isn’t Black But Has a Huge Mustache: Bohn, I’ve finished my exam!

“Damn, Bihn…” Why do you have to message via Facebook, your name there is pitiful, when will you change it? This requires teamwork with Buhn…

Ping!

Buhn,  Whose Body isn’t Black But Has a Huge Mustache: How’s my new name on FB, Bohn? It matches with Bihn’s, you want one too…but you have to think of it yourself, it took me ages to come up with this one.

Let’s stop talking…

“Bohn!!”

Duen looked like he was about to cry while running down the stairs. Aren’t you embarrassed in front of others? The whole faculty is watching.

“What’s wrong?” I walked over to pat his head. I don’t like seeing him like this; maybe I need to fatten him up. I want him to be as chubby as an ice cream tub so I can hug him properly.

“I’ve finished my exams. I’ve finished my exams…I’m so happy, damn.”

“Yeah…”

“Hey, Ting, hello.” I waved to greet Duen’s close friend. These two look no different from Duen; Ting has lost that Medicine faculty star vibe, but she’ll bounce back to his usual self soon, I believe.

“Sorry, Phii…just kidding.”

“Don’t forget our appointment, at King’s house at nine.”

“I won’t forget, bro, what should I bring?”

“Nothing, we’ll handle it this time.” Last time, we made the juniors cook and even had them wash the dishes, this time we’ll take care of it ourselves, juniors.

“Handle it means…?” Tingting asked in a soft voice. Not sure if she’s too tired to speak or what, she’s actually very pretty, why doesn’t she have guys chasing her?

“We’ll cook ourselves.”

“Ha!”

“Merk and Bom can cook.” You can see they’re worried about something. Last time, Boss cut the vegetables into flying saucer shapes; some pieces were so small they were practically dust, others so big they couldn’t be put in your mouth. Your wife has no sense of moderation, Merk.

“Oh, then we’ll go first, I need to take King to buy books.”

“Okay.”

“In two days, you have to prepare stuff for the camp, right, Bohn?” Duen asked after we got into Buhn’s Mercedes. I haven’t driven the Porsche lately; actually, that’s my favorite, but Dad told me to drive this one sometimes so it doesn’t get dusty. Buhn is crazy, he begged his parents to buy it, but then he just left it to gather dust, I’ll slap him.

“Yeah.” I nodded before driving off. We decided to go straight to the god’s house because Duen and I have nothing to prepare or any errands.

“Do we have to sleep at the faculty like last time?”

“We’ll sleep there…want to sleep together?” I gave a sly smile, if you want to sleep together, just say so, I told you to move in together.

“Ha!”

“…”

Zoom!

“Argh!! Merk, you splashed oil on me again. Did you do that on purpose?!” The mischievous wife rubbed his arm, glaring angrily at the quiet husband. Trust me, Merk is doing it on purpose, I saw you positioning the pork at an angle before placing it, and every time it’s near Boss.

“Not on purpose…just an accident.”

“Oh, an accident…’ it is an accident I wanted to play a prank on you,’ that’s it! Are you going to say the pork oil accidentally splashed on me thirteen times?!”

“Not at all.”

“?”

Hiss

“It was fourteen, actually.”

“Damn, Merk, you think because you’re my favorite, you can do anything?!” Boss pointed an accusing finger while rubbing the fresh, hot burn mark. Seriously, Boss, if you admit it, I’ll call you a buffalo.

“Why are you mad…it hit the right spot so it splashed on the right person.”

“Fine, I surrender.” Okay, let me introduce you, this bastard is named Buffalo, he’s my close friend.

“Phii Bom, this one is really tasty.” Tang said, pointing at the tom yum kung. Right now, we’re eating both hot pot and rice, Merk and Bom cooked so much food we’re sure we won’t be able to finish it all. Look at all the things they made, there’s so much.

“Thank you, I’m flattered to have a cute guy compliment me.” …Before, I might have thought you weren’t suitable for pursuit, but now it seems okay if the other person is a cute young man.

“Ha ha.”

 

[Duenhaw]

“Duen, do you want some shrimp? I’ll peel it for you.” Since we started with the hot pot, I haven’t even touched my chopsticks. It’s the person next to me, he’s been both serving and feeding me until I start to wonder if I’m disabled or something. What’s going on, is he taking care of me too much today…no, it’s more like he wants to fatten me up.

“Bohn, I can eat by myself.” I leaned back when he offered me a perfectly peeled shrimp. It’s not that I’m embarrassed, but I feel awkward in front of others.

“No, I want to feed you, open your mouth.”

“I’m full.”

“Don’t. You’ve lost so much weight, you need to eat more.” See, he really wants to make me fat.

“Just a little…Ugh! You jerk.” (Translation: You bastard, Bohn). I hit his shoulder a couple of times, the shrimp isn’t big, but he shoved five of them in at once, oh my, I almost choked.

“Eat a lot, okay? I’ll feed you, just tell me what else you want.” Why do you have to use such a soft, sweet voice…my heart.

“…” I turned my face away when I felt my face getting hot again. It must be because of Phii King’s charcoal stove.

“Duen, what do you want to eat? I’ll feed you.”

“…I can eat by myself.”

“But I want to feed you.”

“No, I want to eat by myself.” I reached for the chopsticks to grab some pork, but my savage boyfriend blocked me with his chopsticks. Ugh. You might as well confront me directly!

“Are you going to let me feed you properly, or should I force feed you?” “Do I look scared of you?” I asked teasingly.

“No.”

“Then-”

“Just for now…you know I can make you scared, right?”

“…”

Damn, Bohn, you’re so harsh!! In the end, I had to let him feed me like a mother bird feeding her chick. It’s convenient though, I just tell him what I want, and he gives me everything except vegetables and anything healthy, ‘Don’t eat this stuff, it’ll make you skinny, eat pork instead, ah,’ what are you even saying?

“Phii Tang, I want to eat that fish ball over there.” Phu pointed somewhere on the grill. Are you daring to use your senior like that, Phu?

“Where? This one?” Phii Tang pointed with his chopsticks at a fish ball next to a shrimp.

“No, no, the white one.”

“They’re all white. Are you messing with me?” Indeed, all the fish balls are white, there’s no other color. There were egg-colored ones initially, but they’re gone now.

“I’m not messing around.”

“Wait, just take this one, they’re the same.” Phii Tang placed a fish ball into his junior’s bowl, which already had plenty. Why not finish what’s in your bowl first, Phu?

“They’re not the same, bro, the level of preference is different. It’s like with people, if it’s not the right one, it’s not the right one, but if it’s the right person…it’s always right.”

“Wow!!”

“A silly pun in the middle of a hot pot gathering.”

“I’m just sitting here, and they’ve already used all the lines to flirt with girls.”

“Sigh…I don’t know what to say, these guys should be my boyfriends. Not each other’s Phii-Nong…what kind of life is this where I as a girl have to watch handsome guys flirt with each other almost every day, what’s with this pinkish-purple aura and sparkling, cute charm, go ahead, flirt to your heart’s content. You should do the same, Tang, choose from Phii Tee or Phii Bom, there are still some left. Don’t feel sorry for me, I understand…”

“Really good.”

“Really good, my ass!! God never has mercy on a small, dark-eyed monkey named Ting! Sending so many friends my way, all good-looking, but they end up eating each other, leaving me, this little monkey, all alone…it is sad that you all choose penises and leave vaginas in the middle of the road, huh.”

I want to find her a girlfriend…

 

MY ENGINEER CHAPTERS HOME

MYENGINEER, CHAPTER 51: Hot Pot to Strengthen Bonds

[Duenhaw]

“Phii King, hello.” I greeted the homeowner who was in the kitchen, that lazy guy said the kitchen owner caused a kitchen explosion. At first, I didn’t believe it, but seeing the state of the place…oh my, what’s that smell, and what are those stains? This is after Phii King and friends have cleaned up, isn’t it?

“Duen, you bought so much stuff, there’s still plenty in the fridge.”

“Well, the stuff Phii Boss burnt in the picture looked like a lot, so I went to buy more because I thought there wouldn’t be anything left. But there’s still a fridge full…Phii King, how many people live in your house, twenty?”

“Ha ha.”

I should have asked Bohn if there was anything left…but it’s okay, it’s not my money, it’s Ting’s money, she won a lottery. He went from AnnoyingTing to becoming We-Love-You-Tingting overnight.

“Duen, my student.”

The voice of the person who just caused a kitchen explosion yelled from the kitchen door. Awake already? I saw Phii Boss sleeping on the sofa earlier, it’s funny, he has some weird tattoos that I wouldn’t have thought anyone would get, but they must be temporary because I saw him scratch and some of it came off on his hand.

“Wow, so much stuff…the professor wants to eat hot pot, the professor wants to eat hot pot.” Phii Boss came up to shake my arm like a child begging, haha.

“Hot pot, huh…that’s not bad. It’s quick, and there are a lot of us.” Phii King said, thinking it over. True…but that savage wants to eat tom yum kung.

“Bohn, can you eat hot pot instead of tom yum kung?” I went to ask my boyfriend who was sitting on the floor eating a tuna sandwich. There are sofas and chairs, but no one’s sitting on them, leaving them for the ants to walk or what?

“Sure.” Is the tuna sandwich that good? He’s chewing it eagerly, but I’m not that into it; it smells fishy…but whatever, Bohn likes it.

“Are we doing hot pot, little doctor?” The seniors asked in unison…where did they practice that? If they’re going to be this coordinated.

“Y…yes.”

“Yay!!!”

Why are they so excited?

“Can I help?” Tang came to ask me in the kitchen. Before coming here, I went to study at his house with Ting, Phu, and Ram. They were studying together, and when I asked why they didn’t study with their classmates, Phu said, “No one knows this stuff, trust me, even Ram doesn’t understand it much.” Okay, I understand now.

“Yeah, help me cut the squid and pork.” I nodded towards the bag beside me. They bought so much stuff…but trust me, they’ll definitely eat it all. Look at their stomachs.

“Yeah.”

“Duen, I want to help too.” Phii Boss, the same one, came over, all lively, standing beside me. It seems like he really wants to cook, but I think he should stay away from the kitchen…

“Uh…”

“No way, man.” Bohn came over to push his friend’s head. Hey, that’s my Thai teacher.

“What? I’m a master chef, you know…hiccup.” Phii Boss made a sad face before picking up some water spinach, dipping it in water, and flicking it at his face to mimic tears. Ugh, what effort. But…what does ‘tib tib’ mean?

“Haha, what does that mean?”

“It means ‘excellent in cooking’.” Sure…this is my Thai teacher.

“I’m tired of Boss’s one or two words every day. No need, you, go watch that bizarre food show with damn Tee.” Tee turned on some show I don’t know. I saw people eating live scorpions, eek! So scary, everyone else made disgusted faces, but Phii Tee laughed and said, ‘It looks delicious,’ where?!

“Bohn, I want to cook, let Duen let me cook for him.”

“Then…can you help me chop some vegetables?” In the end, I couldn’t resist his pitiful look. Just chopping vegetables should be fine, right?

“Yeah! Trust me!” Phii Boss was excited and started…Bro, that’s a hoe, not a knife, are we going to survive this?

“What are you doing?”

“Making soup.” I answered while slicing the daikon into rounds. Daonuea loves eating daikon; she says it’s sweet. Speaking of Daonuea, she’s been uploading videos to YouTube lately. Want to know what kind of videos? I can tell you.

‘How to eat sticky rice’ You’re stunned, right?

I was stunned too, but I didn’t stop her. She’s a kid, let her be. I think it’s cute, the way Daonuea chews it in small bites and says, ‘Yummy!’ Seeing it makes you feel a strange kind of fluffiness.

“Really? What do you need to put in?” The person behind me asked, he didn’t lean or touch me; he tried that once, and I pulled out a knife to scare him, so Bohn was scared and didn’t dare again. I’m not annoyed, I’m just not very good at multitasking, when I go to grab the seasoning, it feels like I have a protective spirit on my back.

“Chicken bones, daikon, pickled garlic, cilantro roots, sugar.” It’s a recipe my mom found on the internet. It’s good, tastes nice.

“How’s the tutoring going?”

“It’s good, ask the tutor, Tang, I’m really good.” I smiled with pride. How could I not be proud, I got full marks on the old exam papers Tang gave me, it was close…but it came at the cost of studying like crazy until I had dark circles under my eyes and lost two kilos, ha ha.

“Really, Tang?”

“Yes…but he likes to stay up late, doesn’t eat much either.” Damn, Tang, are you confused?

What did you just say?!

“Why do you do that, there should be limits to what you do, Duen.” Bohn said coldly, crossing his arms with furrowed brows…Phii Duen knew it would come to this.

“It’s okay. It’s just for one week.” I said softly, putting daikon into the pot, trying to act casual so I wouldn’t have to look at Bohn’s face.

“Never mind, what the hell, I’ll hit you with a cup.”

“You brute!” I looked up and made a face at him, then saw he was actually holding a cup, shaped like a duck!

“Don’t do this, man. I won’t mind if you’re diligent, but can you take care of your boyfriend’s health? You only have one boyfriend…you should be worried about him.”

I’m not even going there, you bastard.

“Phii Boss…will they realize they’re making us look like we’re the air element?”

“Yeah, should we tell them…hey, we’re still here?” They’ll realize!

“What’s that?” Bohn pointed at what was in my hand. To be honest, I don’t really like this stuff, but Mom said it would make it tastier…and it really does.

“Pickled garlic.”

“Really…why put it in?” Bohn always questions everything when I cook, “What’s that?”, “Why put it in?”, “How does it taste?”, and many other questions. I think it’s cute, he looks so focused. Actually, he can cook, and it comes out quite appetizing…except for the taste part.

“I don’t know either, Mom said it would make it taste better.” I answered with a laugh. Not trying to tease, but it’s true, because when I ask my mom why she puts it in, she always says, “I don’t know either, grandma told me to.” My mom is funny…

“Are you messing with me? I’ll hit you with my tongue.”

“You…bastard, I’ll hit you with a knife.” I raised the cleaver in a threatening manner, and Bohn raised his hands in surrender before backing away to avoid my dark side.

“Tang, I think we’re becoming air elements again.”

“I think so too. I’m going to cut the pork in the bathroom.”

“Okay, I’ll go cut vegetables to keep you company, there’s water in the toilet. We won’t have to waste water washing the vegetables.” Wait, this doesn’t sound right.

“So, we’re going to the camp together, right?”

“Yeah, why ask so many times?” You already signed us up, why ask again?

“I’m afraid you won’t go with me.” Bohn came to hug me from behind, strong like a buffalo but more clingy than a cat; even Mai would have to give in to him.

“Why be afraid, you worrywart, whose boyfriend are you?” After saying that, I gently pinched his cheek…Bohn, do you know that hand just touched raw chicken? I didn’t want to be sweet…I was just wiping my hand, haha.

“Your boyfriend, heh heh.”

“Phii Boss, let’s go outside, they don’t appreciate us anymore.”

“Exactly, how can friends compete with lovers? We can’t win.”

“Say that again, and I’ll hit you with the spatula.”

“…”

“Then I’ll take the stuff outside.” Tang said before taking the prepared items out. We’ll eat in the living room since it’s big enough for all of us. Bohn isn’t in the kitchen anymore; he couldn’t stand the hunger and ran out to eat snacks with friends. As for Phii Boss, I have no idea where he went.

I followed Tang out later because I had to clean up the mess we made; there were shrimp shells everywhere, and lots of squid ink stains too. At first, it wasn’t messy, but Bohn and Phii Boss wanted to try chopping. I was soft-hearted and let them do it, the result…a mess.

Oh my, each one looks pitiful.

When I came out of the kitchen, I saw Phii Bom lying on the floor moaning from hunger, Phii Tang was asleep but still frowning, Bohn and Phii Tee were fighting over the snacks we brought. The sight made me feel like I encountered people on the brink of death in the Sahara desert. If you’re going to look this miserable…

“Uh…Bom…go get Merk and Boss from the backyard…” Phii Tee said weakly before collapsing onto the floor, exhausted. So, they haven’t eaten since when…

“No way, I’m too hungry to move. You go.”

“Stop it, I’m also too hungry to move, Bohn, you go, this isn’t a full meeting, we can’t eat properly.”

“Not going, I’m eating.” Bohn shrugged it off, then took more snacks from the bag, eating ravenously. Damn…I’ve treated you well. I’ve never let you go hungry, Bohn.

“And where did King and Ram go?” Yeah, right.

“An hour ago, I saw them walking to the backyard.” Phii Tee answered while getting up to sit and stare at the squid with shiny eyes. If he could eat it raw, he probably would have by now.

“Backyard again…what are those two doing secretly?” Phii Bom gave a sly smile, what are you planning, you’re really delusional.

“I don’t know, the other day I saw Ram coming out of King’s condo too.” My friends and I immediately paid attention to Phii Tee’s words. Ram is a homebody, he doesn’t like going far from home…but why did he show up at Phii King’s condo? Maybe he was visiting a friend who lives in the same condo as Phii King…or not?

“Really?”

“What’s strange about them being together?” “Huh?” We all exclaimed in surprise.

Phii Tang, who spoke, sounded annoyed before going back to sleep. Hey, why didn’t I know about this? I guess I’m not the only one who didn’t know, since others are surprised too, except for Phu and Phii Tang who aren’t showing any reaction. They must know something.

“Tang, wake up and talk to us first.” Phii Tee, Bohn, and Phii Bom teamed up to shake the senior awake. I wanted to know too, but I wasn’t going to shake him for answers.

“Chill! Phu, lend me your jacket.” Phu nodded and took off his jacket to cover Phii Tang. It’s this hot, and you’re still wearing a jacket?

“So, who’s going to check on that couple…”

“I’m not going.”

“Me neither, in case they’re having sex and I interrupt. Wouldn’t they kill me?”

“I’m not going either.” So even you don’t want to go Bohn? What could be happening? They’re not having sex, you guys are really thinking nonsense.

“I’ll go get Phii King and Ram then.” Phu raised his hand before walking towards what I thought was the backyard. Phii King’s house is big but not too big; it’s a two-story house with vines climbing the walls until they blend with the exterior. It looks fantastical, I like it.

“So, who’s going to get the quiet husband and the mischievous wife?” Phii Tee brought up a new topic.

“Ram and King might not be having sex…but this couple…”

“I’ll go get Phii Merk and Phii Boss myself.”

With a heavy heart and unable to watch the seniors argue any longer, the kind-hearted me volunteered to fetch the other couple. The seniors thanked me and then crawled back to the food. Seniors…that’s raw, it hasn’t been cooked yet. I think I should hurry and fetch Phii Merk and Phii Boss.

I walked along the path, where family photos adorned the walls, seemingly showing the evolution of the children, from the day they first opened their eyes to the world until now. Shit, that’s young Phii King, right? ‘Nong King’, so cute, beautiful since he was a child.

Ah, is that the back door?

“…”

When I opened the door, I had to widen my eyes in shock. I stared in astonishment at the scene in front of me: Phii Boss and Phii Merk were doing something so hot that my face turned red.

“Ah!…Oh, Merk…it hurts.”

The slender figure closed his eyes and let out a moan, his thin lips slightly parted before he clutched the arm of the taller figure tightly, with tears at the corners of his eyes, trembling from the pain in his lower region.

“Just bear it a little longer, just a moment…it’ll be over soon.”

The one on top gently stroked his friend’s head. Phii Merk looked at Phii Boss with pity before deciding to put the coal in all at once, not wanting the one below to endure the pain for long.

“Aaah!…It’s hot.”

“Wow, Phii, the charcoal is really hot, did you pour oil on it?” It’s so hot, my face is completely red now.

I used a towel to cover my nose. In front of me, Phii Merk was standing, adding coal while his best friend was sitting cross-legged, fanning the flames. Why sit so close to the stove? That way, embers would fly everywhere.

“Yeah, I want a strong fire.” “I think it’s too strong…

“And what are you doing here?”

“Bohn and the others sent me to get you.”

“Oh, damn King…there’s an electric stove but he wants to use a charcoal one, making our life hard, huh? My legs are all red, damn, ugh, Merk, I’m hot, the embers are hitting my legs. I shouldn’t have worn shorts.” Phii Boss said while rubbing his legs, which were red with spots, so pitiful.

“I tried to put all the coal in at once so you wouldn’t have to suffer for long.”

“Damn!! Even more embers flew, I thought I was being shot at, damn!” Let them be…

I helped them carry the stoves back into the house; there were three of them. Sometimes I don’t understand Phii King’s thinking; isn’t he worried about the smell in the house…or worse, a fire might start. Now we’re all together, Phu went to get Phii King and Ram. No one asked about them being together; Phii Tang and Phu didn’t mention it either. If they want to talk about it, they probably will themselves.

“Finally, everyone’s here! Come on! Eat!!”

“Oh, damn, King, the pork splattered on me…damn it, besides getting hit by the charcoal fire, I have to deal with pork splattering too?” Phii Boss said while rubbing his arm. I’d nominate him as the unluckiest person of the day.

“Can’t help it. Why would you wear a tank top and shorts if you want to be cool?” Phii King placed pork on the grill. If we eat all of this, I’ll definitely be full to death; three buckets of pork, two bowls of squid, and one big tub of shrimp. Not to mention the vegetables, it’s like they brought an entire farm.

“Can’t I flirt with my husband a bit? What if he looks at someone else, what should I do?” Phii Boss linked arms with the person next to him and acted coquettishly. Phii Merk looked over but didn’t say anything.

“Boss, you’re such a show-off.” Phii Tee made a face in disgust, even throwing a shrimp tail at my Thai teacher. Hey, brother! That’s Ram’s offspring!

“Husband, your wife’s being scolded.” The scolded one blinked, tightening their arms around each other. Sometimes I think they really are a couple. “Well, it’s true what was said.”

“Wow, you bastard.”

“You don’t need to show off in shorts, I only look at you anyway.”

Shit…

“…”

“Why are you blushing? Do you want me to say that to you?” Bohn nudged my shoulder, his eyes full of mischief. I’ll stab you with chopsticks soon.

“Check if it’s red from the pun or from the heat.” I shook my head indifferently and flipped the pork on the grill. Ouch, damn! The oil splattered.

“I only look at you.”

“Yeah, I know. Whatever.” I nodded before taking a piece of pork into my mouth. Ouch! It’s hot. I shouldn’t have been so greedy, damn, my tears are flowing.

“What? Not even blushing.” Bohn looked at me with disappointment while everyone else pretended not to care but believe me, they were listening intently.

“You say that often.”

“I’ve never said that.”

“Your actions.”

“Huh?” Don’t pretend to be confused, you know it well. Just look at your face. Smiling like that, watch out your mouth might split. I don’t want a boyfriend who’s like a cool jester…or is it the Joker, oh.

“You never look at anyone else.”

“That’s true…what about you, have you ever looked at anyone other than someone named Bohn?” So you’re not going to eat anymore, right, Bohn? I shouldn’t have given you the shrimp earlier.

“I have. I’m looking right now.”

“I’ll smack you with the grill pan, who is it?!”

“He’s a guy named ‘The Rogue,’ do you know him? He’s in Civil

Engineering, second year, at the same university as me. What else…Oh, he has kids with ‘The Idiot,’ two of them, named Ben and Dao.”

“Really? Their names sound like our kids, heh heh.”

“Damn…I should be the most enviable woman surrounded by eleven good-looking guys, but why do I end up being the most pitiful because they…don’t care about me, am I out of date? Where’s my era? The era when males were interested in a female like me…Oh, in this era, men look at women like, ‘Go away, little sister, that handsome, exciting guy with the big banana is mine, I claimed him!’ Ugh, I’m heartbroken, why doesn’t God send me one man, why do they have to eat each other! I’m beautiful too…petite and cute, some males could pay attention to me, I’m still single!” It’s sad to hear that.

 

MY ENGINEER CHAPTERS HOME

MYENGINEER, CHAPTER 50: Cram Session

[Bohn]

“Boss. If I eat the book, will I remember it?”

“I don’t think you’ll remember, Tee…but it’s worth a try.”

“Shall we try…”

“Don’t do anything stupid, you guys.”

“Ha. We’re definitely going to die…”

The whining came intermittently from Boss and Tee. Everyone in my group gathered at King’s house for him to tutor us. The exam season has arrived, the university gives students three days off to study, and in two days, we’ll be taking our exams. Time flies so fast, it’s been almost a month since Duen gave me the last rose.

Between me and Duen, nothing has changed. No, that’s not true…I love him more every day.

Today, as usual, Duen went to study at Tang’s house. Supachai is fixed now; turns out it wasn’t broken. Just some insect got stuck in the pipe or something, preventing it from running.

“It won’t kill you, just an exam, you drama queens.” Merk looked at Boss and Tee with disdain. Regarding studies and exams…if those two wanted to do well, they could, but they’re just lazy.

“You don’t understand! You. You don’t understand us. You too, Bohn, ugh.” Boss and Tee shouted at everyone in the circle one by one, in a blaming tone.

“Quiet down and get back to reading.”

“Yes…”

Shit, King Kantithat is so harsh.

I think King could easily be a teacher. His dad is a professor, but not at my university, he teaches at another prestigious one. It’s strange; his parents seem strict, but they raised him to be quite eccentric. Boss is another one, maybe they’re driven to madness by pressure…not good, I should take them all to see a doctor, the whole gang, including Bihn, Buhn, and Tee.

“King, why does this come out like this?” Bom asked while handing the book to the ‘god’ to look at. We didn’t go to King’s condo because there’s no place to sit…actually, the condo isn’t small, but there’s no seating because King uses ninety percent of the space for plants. Imagine, even the sink and bathtub are dedicated to plants.

“Let me see, oh…”

We sat reading and had King tutor us until almost six in the evening when he allowed us a break. The whole house was empty; Phii Kumfah and Phii Kaning got married and moved out with their husbands, while his parents went on business and won’t be back for another three or four days.

I like King’s house; the whole place is decorated with nature, giving the feeling of being in a forest. There’s a secret base in the backyard too. I’ve never seen it, but I’ve heard his mom say that King is very protective of it.

“Hey, god, what’s there to eat? I’m starving…”

“In the fridge, there’s pork, chicken, shrimp, squid, vegetables…we have everything.” The homeowner answered while walking over to sit on the sofa next to me. The TV in front was showing a cooking show, today it’s tom yum kung…interesting, lately, I’ve been learning to cook with Duen, he’s a good teacher…but I always mess up the ingredients. Don’t know why, haha.

“Shit, looks good.” Tang said happily when he opened the fridge and saw a variety of ingredients. From here, I could clearly see what was in the fridge, wait, how many people live in this house…

“But there’s one problem.”

“?”

“I can’t cook.”

“It’s not a big deal…I can’t either.”

It’s not just you; it’s better to ask if anyone in our group can cook. Me, King, Tang, definitely can’t. I can manage to boil an egg, but King is worse…he’s caused several kitchen explosions. Now our hope lies with Bom, Boss, Merk, and Tee. We should put our hope in Bom since his family runs a restaurant and his dad is a famous chef; he must have inherited some cooking genes.

“I can cook.”

We all broke into happy smiles, but the smiles dropped instantly, and we shook our heads when we saw who had spoken that sentence. If it were anyone else, I wouldn’t have reacted like this, but it was Tee who said it. Even if he can really cook, we’re not willing to take the risk.

“No thanks…” Merk said with his arms crossed, his face expressionless, and everyone else nodded in agreement.

I once saw Tee cook during a Boy Scout camp in high school, but we weren’t in the same group, I only knew that the teacher had to call an ambulance for food poisoning, with several victims needing their stomachs pumped, yet the chef himself was happily eating the deadly meal he had prepared…damn, what a killer.

“Really, I was going to let you try my special recipe.”

“Merk and I can cook.”

Bom

He really can cook; we’re saved!!

“Yeah! You’re our savior, Bom!” We went over to shake him in joy, actually wanted to lift him up and praise him like in a cartoon, but he’s too heavy. Just shaking is enough.

“Can cook…but right now I am sick, my taste buds aren’t quite right…”

“Damn it…”

“Should we order food?”

“Which restaurant would deliver here, it’s outside the city.”

“Yeah…”

Now it’s only Boss left. He doesn’t seem to have the aura of someone who can cook, just look at him now. He’s laughing and picking his nose while wiping it on Tee’s back, and the one being wiped on doesn’t even notice, your back is green, you bastard. Not green from being beaten or anything, green from Boss’s nose pickings.

“Really?”

“You can’t cook, can you, Boss…” I turned to ask him.

“I can.” O_O!!! “Really?!” We all asked in surprise. No way, I don’t believe it. Even though I’ve never seen him cook, my intuition was screaming, ‘Don’t let Boss cook…’

“Yeah, what do you want to eat? I’ll make it.”

“Shit, damn, Boss, can you really cook?” Bom went to find Chef Boss in the kitchen; the person being questioned nodded and acted cool.

“Yeah, why not. You guys think I can’t cook?” We all nodded in unison. Look at him, there’s no part of Boss’s appearance that suggests he knows how to cook.

“Wednesday, I’ve lived in a dorm since middle school, Bohn. If I couldn’t cook, how could I have survived until now?” “…” Right, dorm kids must have skills. “So, what do you want to eat?”

“…Anything, whatever you can make.”

“Can we have seafood fried rice?”

“Sure…I need to record this.” Tang held up his phone to set up the camera, interviewing the chef throughout the cooking process. Even though Boss doesn’t look trustworthy, he’s actually pretty decent at it, if we ignore his appearance, that is.

“Merk, come quickly! Your wife is cooking!” Bom shouted to call the person next to me, but Merk didn’t seem too excited about it, probably because he’s had Boss’s cooking before. Oh well, what’s with you guys.

“Uh…sorry.” Merk coughed quietly, he’s been sick for days but refuses to see a doctor. He doesn’t seem to like hospitals much, saying he hates the smell of cleanliness…in my understanding, Merk probably means the smell of alcohol and medicine.

“Who did you catch a cold from?”

“I didn’t catch it from anyone, I’m the one spreading it to others.” It’s not hard to guess who that unfortunate person is; who else but the kid of the food garden owner who got sick along with him? Oh, I told you not to share food with others. The other day, Bom asked to drink from Merk’s water bottle, and he warned him, but Bom wouldn’t listen, serves him right.

“You don’t seem excited about Boss cooking, have you ever eaten his food?” King asked with a mocking look, teasing friends is our job. Even if they’re just a couple, we don’t hold back.

Heh heh.

“No.” Boss’s husband sat cross-legged, watching TV comfortably. You seem too relaxed.

“Oh, then why aren’t you excited?” Tee continued the question.

“It’s not that I haven’t.”

“Are you messing with us, Merk?”

“What are you talking about? Have you or haven’t you?”

“I have.”

“Then why did you say ‘no’ at first? Are you still drunk, Merk?” Yeah, he’s definitely drunk.

“I can’t.”

“What? I’m more confused than before.”

“Boss can’t cook.”

“Huh!”

Flicker!

Upon hearing that, everyone rushed to the kitchen. From the sofa, all we could see was the fridge and the sink, Boss and Tang were out of sight, damn it. It’s not like King has already blown up the kitchen.

Oh my, the smell…

“Just a prank…just a prank…what’s that smell, Boss?” I pinched my nose as a strange smell hit us, the smell was indescribable, like many things clashing together until you couldn’t tell what was what. The smell was like…

“Welcome, welcome. So you guys want to watch the live cooking of Chef Boss’s fried rice?” Boss turned slightly to look at us before going back to stir-frying. That’s why Tang didn’t shout, he’s asleep. How can you sleep through this!

“What did you put in there, Boss? Even though I can smell it, and I’m sick.” Bom walked over to look into the pan while we watched from a safe distance, better safe than sorry, oh God…the smell is awful.

I stared at ‘that thing’ in the Teflon pan, scrutinizing it. It looked like rice grains, dark and brownish. Besides the rice, there were some orange things I thought might be shrimp…we could eat dried shrimp cut into tiny pieces if that’s what you call shrimp, smaller than wet tamarind seeds, damn Tee. Apart from that, there were…some round, green things, small like…Hey!! Damn, Boss. Did you put cherry tomatoes in the seafood fried rice!!! And what’s that, it looks like…mushroom fungus!! You bastard, Boss!!! What are you making us eat?

“Something special.” the chef answered with the pride. What special dish from which cookbook of yours!! Oh, I’m dying here…I get headaches from the people around me. I should move to Papua New Guinea to escape these folks…

“What’s this…”

“Lots of things.” I leaned forward to look into the pan again, and I saw something new in there, rough-skinned, round…damn, Boss, you put kaffir lime in there too!! And that next to it, is that cinnamon?

“!”

“What did you put in there?!”

“Well, there’s shrimp, squid, tomatoes, Chinese broccoli, eggplant, straw mushrooms, kaffir lime, lemon, cinnamon, onions, eggs, rice…” I looked for the ingredients in the pan as the chef described them. Yeah, those are there, but that’s not all. I think there’s more than he mentioned, ‘a lot.’

“And the seasonings…”

“Why so many questions? Just the usual, fish sauce, sugar, MSG, seasoning powder…”

“…”

“Oyster sauce, light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, black pepper, white pepper, chili flakes, palm sugar…” Wait, this is starting to sound wrong. Did you put everything in there, or what? But it doesn’t smell that bad, though.

“…”

“What else…oh, shrimp paste, fermented fish, Chinese’s fermented tofu, that’s it.”

“…”

“What did you put in there! You threw in the whole kitchen, didn’t you?” I yelled. From what he listed…I saw everything in King’s kitchen, damn. Never thought there’d be someone worse than me.

“Yeah, I wanted it to be diverse, so you can taste multiple flavors with one bite! You guys are about to enter a new dimension of taste!!” Boss made a proud face before turning to look at me. It might have many flavors…but none of them are delicious!!!

“You…what’s that smell, hey! Boss, the pan!!”

“Hey!!!”

“Damn!!”

“Mom!!!!”

You can probably guess what happened next, right? Because we were all talking, Boss didn’t pay attention to the pan, the result was…burnt, inedible.

“Even if I’m sick, I can boil eggs.” Bom offered, so we lost our ingredients for nothing. But Merk’s wife, the homeowner, didn’t mind; she was laughing happily. King, the host, said, ‘Boss, you made my house colorful and gave it a new, interesting smell, ha ha ha.’ I bow to you, King, this is not color, it’s smoke and chaos…

“Good…anything will do, I can eat anything.” Ping!

Duen: Have you had dinner yet?

I smiled when I finished reading the message. Duen is always so cute like this, always asking me, ‘Are you hungry?’, ‘Have you eaten?’, ‘Are you sleepy?’, it doesn’t annoy me, quite the opposite, every word, every message, every action from Duen makes me happy and smile.

Bon Ss: Not yet. Look at your Thai teacher’s masterpiece, attaches a picture of what Boss made

I took the photo when King was about to wash the pan.

Duen: Shit, your teacher is awesome, don’t tell me…none of your group can cook?

Bon Ss: Ye…yeah, that’s right, Bom and Merk can cook but they’re sick, their taste buds aren’t good.

Duen: So what are you going to eat?

Bon Ss: Bom will boil some eggs.

Duen: Poor you, lol, you’re at Phii King’s house, right?

Bon Ss: Yeah.

Duen: I’ll come make something for you to eat.

Bon Ss: You’re coming to King’s house?

Duen: Yup, I’ll bring some friends too, will Phii King mind?

Bon Ss: Do you know him?

Duen: Ram knows him, tell Phii King, okay?

Why does Ram know King’s house? Never mind.

“King, Duen and his friends are coming here.” I went to tell the homeowner who was in the kitchen. They were all cleaning up the mess left by Boss. I can’t believe Tang could fall asleep; he said he didn’t sleep much last night, so he dozed off while filming Boss.

“Huh? What for?” the homeowner asked, surprised.

“To make something to eat.”

“Wow…”

“Wow, a personal chef, huh.”

“Is your little brother coming to my house?” the god asked again, wiping his hands and coming over to talk to me properly. Boss made such a mess from the entrance all the way to the kitchen counter, damn.

“Yes, with friends. Will you mind?”

“I don’t mind, we’re saved then!!”

“Yeah!!!”

It turns out these guys are happy that the younger ones are coming. Normally, it should be the seniors cooking for the juniors, right? Why does everything seem to be turned upside down like this…

Bon Ss: Who’s coming?

Duen: Me, Ting, Tang, Phu, Ram, we’ll be there in ten minutes.

After finishing the chat with Duen, I went to help King and the gang clean the house. Boss was already asleep; Merk said he was tired, and the friends didn’t really mind, they even found it funny because Boss’s sleeping position was so ridiculous.

Merk’s wife was sleeping on the sofa, one leg over the backrest, the other properly on the sofa, his right hand lifting his shirt up to reveal his belly.

Damn, Boss…you’re so ugly I don’t even know what to curse you with. Yesterday, he bought a tattoo to stick on his right waist. At first, I didn’t say anything because I thought it was a cool design, like an eagle or something…but it wasn’t…it was a unique baby eagle. Behind that baby, there was a tattoo that said, ‘Chuk Kru,’ damn!

I’m exhausted…

Not long after, Duen and his friends arrived, carrying lots of stuff, mostly snacks and fresh ingredients for cooking. Oh, I forgot to tell Duen that King’s house has plenty of stuff.

“Hello, seniors.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Did you bring any snacks?” I walked over to peek into the bag in Duen’s hand; it was all fresh produce. I’m so hungry my stomach is growling, I want anything to snack on, I’m hungry!

“Are you hungry?” Duen looked up to ask me. He’s lost a couple of kilos recently because he’s been studying for exams, staying up late, waking up early, and not eating at regular times. I’m really worried about his health.

“Yeah, really hungry, I want to eat tom yum kung.”

“Really? I’ll make it for you, go eat some snacks first, I brought some, I bought tuna bread for you too.”

“Cute, heh heh.” I poked my lover’s cheek playfully, he knows my heart so well, believe me, no one is luckier than me.

“My love…he bought me bread with a miang kham flavor too.” Phu, with his shirt rolled up to show his belly, walked over to cling to his code senior arm in a flirtatious manner.

“So cute…Yod KhunKam’s ultimate love.” When they’re together, it’s always like this…

 

MY ENGINEER CHAPTERS HOME