KHEMJIRA, Chapter 28:

  Pharan continued his meditation even after Khem had left on the bicycle. However, not long after, the dog lying under the bamboo bed suddenly got up, howling and looking up towards the second floor of the house, sensing that something was about to happen, before it ran away in fear.

It’s back.

  Pharan called back the consciousness he had sent to follow Khem. After seeing the unfolding events, his black eyes suddenly widened, and he coughed up a mouthful of black blood.

Disaster.

  This word echoed in Pharan’s mind like a broken record. A pain as if a thousand needles were piercing his fingers and toes, combined with a burning sensation in his chest, made it hard for him to breathe. The clear images before his eyes were now growing dim, and his once clear eyes were now leaking blood in a disturbing manner.

What he saw in his consciousness indicated something deeply disturbing to Pharan, but the immediate concern was to find a way to reverse the dark magic curse.

It had entered Pharan’s body through ingestion.

The vision reflected memories from yesterday when he had eaten Grandma-Si’s steamed coconut-rice cake without much caution. That cake might have been mixed with saliva or perhaps passed over by something impure multiple times. Moreover, Grandma-Si herself possessed some magical knowledge, making it not difficult for her to cast a curse…

Now, both of Pharan’s eyes, still leaking blood, had gone blind. With one hand, he groped around for the silver basin containing holy water. Despite the excruciating headache that felt like his head might explode, he couldn’t afford to lie down.

Upon finding it, he placed the basin in front of him, reached out to take a candle and a lighter from a stainless steel tray, and lit it. Unable to see, he couldn’t focus his meditation on any particular point, so he couldn’t use his usual fire magic.

Feeling the warmth of the flame, he slowly dripped candle wax into the holy water, while moving his lips, still stained with dark blood, to chant the three Namo three times, followed by a chant to counteract the curse, both for spirits and humans that he had learned.

“Itipija Sukkhato Lokanatho Arahaṃ Patto Nānibbānasaññā…”

Meanwhile, Jett and Chan, who had to stay overnight at a temple in the province due to necessity, felt restless and couldn’t sleep because they were worried about the master and Khem. By 5 AM, they got up, washed their faces, brushed their teeth, and left the empty monk’s quarters to bid farewell to the abbot before heading back, even though it was still drizzling.

Jett drove back to the village using a shortcut he remembered from a past volunteer club trip, opting for this route because it was shorter than the usual path and to avoid the city’s congested traffic. His heart was uneasy since morning, which only intensified his driving.

The more he thought, the harder he pressed the accelerator, causing the speedometer to climb, though to Jett, everything around seemed to be moving too slowly, contrasting with Chan’s feelings in the passenger seat.

“Khun Jett, you’re driving too fast.” Chan said tensely, sweat trickling down his temple, something in his mind screaming that a disaster was imminent.

At that very moment, Jett saw a black dog dash out from the roadside, too close to stop in time. Both men’s eyes widened in shock, and Jett made the split-second decision to swerve off the road, crashing into a large tree.

BAM!!

Back with Khem, his large eyes were wide open in terror, his heart pounding with fear more intense than ever before. The sensation of dread gripped his throat, making it hard to breathe, as if the whole world had stopped spinning in an instant.

Khem recognized this voice; it was the same one he’d heard in his dreams, the one he woke up to when he was about to jump off the balcony.

And those entirely black eyes, the nearly black-purple lips, that face he’d seen in the sketches.

Before him was the vengeful spirit that cursed his mother’s family, the owner of the ancient Thai house dimension Khem had been dreaming about.

“…”

Tears streamed down Khem’s cheeks as he responded in a voice trembling with both fear and anger, because even though the face was someone else’s, the body belonged to Grandma-Si.

“Why use Grandma-Si’s body, what did Grandma-Si do to you?” The question made Madam Ramphueng’s smile slowly fade, her neck twisted back to an angle, her eyes that were squinted now wide open, and she replied in a chilling voice that echoed across the area,

“Now. Shouldn’t you be more worried about yourself?”

  At that very moment, the boat rocked violently, flipping over, and Khem fell into the cold water. Although he could swim, at this moment, his arms and legs wouldn’t move as he wanted them to, his eyes wide in shock.

He saw the figure of a woman in ancient Thai servant attire, with the same face as before, floating closer.

Her skin was pale like paper, revealing dark veins across her body, her eyes now mostly white with the pupils shrunken, and her dark lips still smiling.

As the face came within inches of him, the same voice whispered into his ear,

“I’m going to show you the vile things you and your family did to me.”

  Khem was pulled back into the dimension of an ancient Thai house once more. The scene was still in sepia tones, like an old drama being replayed. It was the same perspective he had seen multiple times in his dreams, but this time, it seemed different because Khem could clearly hear the voices of people in the house.

Memories of someone flooded into his mind, tracing back to about four hundred years ago when this Thai house was bestowed by the king to “Phraya Worasingh.” a high-ranking official who had been appointed as the governor of a secondary city in Siam at that time.

Phraya Worasingh was the son of “Lord Phakdiwijitra” and “Lady Anantawadi” who had risen from a minor noble rank due to the influence of “Lord Phraya

Chalermsak.” whose daughter “MaeYing Kesakaew” was his fiancée, and who was also a friend of the king, helping him to secure a position in the royal court.

At seventeen years old, Phraya Worasingh was a man of striking features and a tall, robust build, unmatched in this region by birth, and known for his sweet and charming speech with women. Anyone who came close to him would inevitably fall for his charm.

His reputation spread throughout the Kanchanaburi region, known as the most desirable man for young women to marry. This reputation reached the ears of MaeYing Kesakaew, the eighteen-year-old daughter of Ookya Chalermsak, a highranking official about to be promoted even further. Out of curiosity, as a young woman about to be married, she went to secretly observe Phraya Worasingh’s face.

From the very first glance, there was an immediate infatuation and admiration for each other. MaeYing Kesakaew was determined in her heart that she would marry Phraya Worasingh at any cost.

Originally, MaeYing Kesakaew was the youngest daughter of Ookya Chalermsak, raised with indulgence, which made her quite self-willed. She used her father’s rank and title to coerce Phraya Worasingh into proposing marriage to her.

At that time, Phraya Worasingh held a third-tier noble rank, his full name being

“Lord Singharat”. He was someone who cared deeply about his image and sought ways to advance to a higher noble rank to honor his family’s prestige. Hence, he agreed to marry MaeYing Kesakaew not out of love but out of necessity, fearing gossip from the villagers. They were engaged for two years before setting a date for the wedding.

Being eloquent and skilled in negotiation, after working in the palace and becoming close to the king, Phraya Worasingh used his cunning and quick wit to climb the ranks. Just three years after marrying MaeYing Kesakaew, he was promoted to the ninth-tier noble rank and was granted the new title, “Phraya Worasingh”.

Phraya Worasingh was set on having one or two sons to continue the family’s noble status and virtues, hoping they would achieve success as he had at the age of twenty, becoming a high-ranking noble and bringing honor to the family.

However, after three years of marriage, MaeYing Kesakaew had not given birth, whether to a daughter or a son. No matter what methods were tried, she simply did not conceive.

Unable to wait any longer, Phraya Worasingh married a second wife named

“MaeYing Radamani”, the daughter of the left minister, with the king’s support. Even Phraya Chalermsak, who was known for his rebellious spirit against the monarchy, could not object or do anything.

MaeYing Radamani was much loved by PhrayaWorasingh for her decorum, composure, youth, and flattery. She soon became pregnant and gave birth to two daughters in quick succession, but tragically, after giving birth, she could not have another child due to a mysterious accident where she fell from a balcony and died only a year after childbirth.

MaeYing Kesakaew, the primary wife, showed no interest in raising the children in place of their deceased mother, so Phraya Worasingh decided to send the girls to live with their grandparents in another nearby city.

Not long after, Phraya Worasingh took a third wife, “MaeYing Koknang”, daughter of “Ong Luang Surachet”. This marriage was one of obligation on her part, as she could not defy her parents’ orders. Within a year of their marriage, she gave birth to a daughter named “KrongKwan”.

MaeYing Koknang was known for her reserved nature and modesty. Even though Phraya Worasingh felt disappointed for not having a son as he hoped, he never dared to show his irritation or displeasure towards her. He only named the child and returned to his duties at the palace as usual.

Two years later, a new group of servants was sent to Phraya Worasingh’s residence, among whom Phraya Worasingh noticed a woman with radiant skin and beauty beyond the ordinary. Upon inquiring, he learned her name was:

‘Ramphueng’

  PhrayaWorasingh was greatly enamored with Madam-Ramphueng, his heart almost bursting with desire to make her his wife. He even had severe arguments with his primary wife, MaeYing Kesakaew, because he had promised not to take another wife.

Ultimately, Phraya Worasingh managed to elevate Madam-Ramphueng to be his fourth wife, as his heart desired. Not long after, Madam-Ramphueng conceived another child for him.

However, during this same time, MaeYing Kesakaew also became pregnant. This coincided with Phraya Worasingh being away for a long time due to his official duties.

MaeYing Kesakaew began to intentionally harass the servant wife, MadamRamphueng, in various ways. MaeYing Koknang, being in a lower position, could not intervene, as the primary wife held greater power, and she didn’t want to cause trouble for her parents if the conflict reached Lord Phraya Chalermsak’s ears.

Nevertheless, MaeYing Koknang often secretly sent necessary items to MadamRamphueng out of compassion, hoping both Madam-Ramphueng and MaeYing Kesakaew would give birth to sons for Phraya Worasingh.

When the delivery day came, both MaeYing Kesakaew and Madam-Ramphueng went into labor simultaneously. However, a terrible event unfolded: MaeYing Kesakaew gave birth to a son but the son died before seeing him, while MadamRamphueng delivered a healthy son safely.

MaeYing Kesakaew screamed and cried uncontrollably before fainting from the shock.

That very night, after MaeYing Kesakaew regained consciousness, she led several servants to Madam-Ramphueng’s room, ordering them to hold MadamRamphueng while they took her child away.

Madam Ramphueng’s heart sank to the pit of her stomach; she quickly shook herself free from the grasp of several servants who were holding her back and ran after MaeYing Kesakaew, fearing that what would happen next might shatter her heart.

Upon reaching the riverbank, MaeYing Kesakaew stood at the end of the pier, holding Madam Ramphueng’s child. Madam Ramphueng cried out silently in sheer terror, her arms reaching out in desperate hope of reclaiming her son.

‘Madam, please don’t do this, return my child to me, I beg you.’ pleaded Madam Ramphueng. However, MaeYing Kesakaew shook her head, rejecting the plea.

If the child of a servant in her household were to grow up and take everything that should have belonged to her own son, not to mention the gossip and accusations that would come, her life was already miserable enough. She could not let that happen.

‘If my child was not to be born, neither will yours.’

With that, the baby, who was crying, was mercilessly thrown into the river right before the mother’s eyes.

Madam Ramphueng’s scream pierced the air, but it was soon muffled as the servants of MaeYing Kesakaew caught up to her, holding her back and covering her mouth to prevent any sound, leaving only her wide eyes filled with disbelief and tears streaming down.

This harrowing scene by the water’s edge was witnessed entirely by

Krongkwan, the daughter of MaeYing Koknang, who in this life, is none other than Khem and his now-deceased mother.

 

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KHEMJIRA, Chapter 27:

  Khem felt his heart lighten, as if a great weight had been lifted from his chest. Though there were still heavier burdens to bear, it helped him breathe easier. The act of making merits further soothed his mind, giving him the strength to carry on with life.

Khem followed the abbot out of the pavilion, pausing to look up at the clear sky. The cool breeze carried the sweet fragrance of frangipani flowers, and a gentle smile spread across Khem’s face.

Khem prayed that both his mother and Chayot might live happily in their next lives, free from the worry of watching over him.

Feeling unburdened, Khem momentarily forgot he wasn’t alone here. Realizing this, he started slightly, but when he looked ahead, he saw the broad back of the abbot not far off, his long legs stepping slowly as if waiting for Khem to catch up. This sight made the slight figure of Khem unable to suppress a joyful smile, and he quickly stepped to follow.

Jett and Chan were sent to look for information about a famous monk, a close friend of their grandfather, who Pharan also respected as a master. The monk’s name was “Luang Por Kasem.” He hadn’t been heard from for many years since he went on a forest retreat. Since the village was quite remote with poor cell phone reception, making contact was difficult, so Jett and Chan were to ask around among the other disciples in the city for any leads.

They wanted to ask him about something specific, believing he still carried it with him.

That evening, while sitting at the dining table reading a book and waiting for Khem to finish preparing dinner, the rain suddenly started pouring heavily, lasting for over an hour.

“Reverend, Jett texted to say there’s heavy rain in the city, so they won’t be able to return tonight. They’ll stay at the city temple and come back tomorrow morning.” Khem said, as he placed a plate of the finished dish he had prepared in front of the abbot. It seemed the intermittent phone signal was just enough to communicate with their friends.

“Um.” Pharan replied softly, closing his book and placing it aside before quietly starting to eat.

“Master, Grandma-Si had the village chief bring some pandan pudding for you.

Would you like some?” Khem asked while he was clearing away the dishes. Pharan, still seated and reading, nodded.

“Bring it over.”

Memories from when he was a child surfaced; pandan pudding was the first dessert Grandma-Si made for him. It was made to replace his eleventh birthday cake. That year, Grandfather couldn’t return from his business in another province in time, and his real father was busy at a celebration for a high-ranking official.

Whether they were busy or not, they never paid much attention to him anyway.

  On his birthday, Grandfather left him with Grandma-Si, promising to pick him up in the evening for a treat, but he had an accident and couldn’t make it back. So, he had to stay overnight at Grandma-Si’s house.

  Grandma-Si knew it was his birthday, and seeing the little boy waiting at the door, she felt a pang of sympathy. She got up to make pandan pudding, topped with young coconut, and placed a single candle in the center. She brought it out to him, singing a traditional Isan birthday blessing, as she didn’t know the English birthday song.

  At that moment, his face broke into a rare, full smile, warmth spreading in his chest, a memory etched permanently in his heart.

  The pandan pudding was placed in front of him. He picked it up quietly and ate it until it was gone.

  Once Khem had finished cleaning up the kitchen, Pharan finally stopped reading, stood up from his chair, walked up the stairs to the house, and listened for the footsteps following him.

“Can you sleep alone?” He asked before Khem headed to his own room. Khem quickly nodded.

“Yes.”

His onyx eyes looked at the person with his head bowed, his voice lacking any confidence. Pharan guessed that Khem was used to having bodyguards sleep nearby, and without his friends, he looked unusually subdued and spoke less than normal.

But if he says he can do it, then he’ll definitely do it. If he can’t do it, he’ll still find a way. He certainly wouldn’t want to waste time lingering like last time.

“Hmm, take a quick shower and go to bed.” Khem said, nodding once more with a firm expression.

“Yes, Master.”

Today, Khem showered faster than usual and went straight to bed, intending to fall asleep quickly, hoping to wake up to find Jett and Chan the next morning.

It took Khem a while to feel sleepy, but just before he drifted off, he heard the small voices of two boys.

“Phii Khem has fallen asleep.”

“Yeah. Should we stand guard, or should we leave?”

“The Master said to keep watch, but he didn’t say until when.”

“Let’s stay for now. Phii Khem might have another nightmare.”

“That’s true.”

At that moment, the hair on Khem’s arms stood up, and his eyes, unwilling to stay closed, opened to see who was standing there talking by his ear.

Khem saw two boys in blue school uniforms with their hair in buns, both no older than twelve, with pale, nearly identical faces.

Even as their eyes rolled in unison back to the center and stared directly at Khem, the synchronization was eerie…

Khem gasped sharply with fear, grabbed his pillow and blanket, and ran out of the room crying without looking back.

Thong and Ek turned to look at each other in that instant.

“Oh no.”

“We’re in trouble now.”

Fortunately, the Master had left the lights on in the house tonight, so Khem didn’t need to waste time lighting a lantern to guide his way. He ran straight to the door of the master’s room. However, he didn’t dare to knock or call out, even holding back his sobs so as not to disturb.

The two child ghosts he had seen didn’t follow as he had feared, so Khem decided to sleep in front of the master’s door. But just as he was about to lay down his pillow, the door opened.

Pharan looked at Khem with a stern expression and asked abruptly,

“What are you doing?”

Khem quickly wiped his tears, stuttering as he spoke, glancing around cautiously.

“It’s just…Can I sleep in front of your door, please? I promise I’ll be quiet and won’t disturb you, Master.” Khem didn’t dare to say he was frightened by a ghost, as it sounded too ridiculous to bother someone late at night for such a reason.

Pharan stared at Khem in silence, his sharp eyes then darting to the two culprits standing guiltily in the corner of the room. He waved his hand dismissively, sending them off to play elsewhere.

“Come in.” He said, moving aside, but Khem just blinked, seemingly not understanding.

“Huh?”

“If you think sleeping in front of my door will save you, then do as you please.”

As he was about to close the door, Khem’s survival instincts kicked in, and he jumped inside.

Pharan sighed softly before closing the door, nodding towards a cabinet.

“The bedding is in there. Go get it and make your bed.” Khem nodded, though he still seemed unsure.

“Where would you like me to sleep?”

“Wherever you want.” Pharan replied, then walked back to sit leaning against the headboard to continue reading his book, no longer paying attention to Khem.

Khem quietly placed down the pillow and blanket, then went to retrieve the picnic mattress from the cabinet, closing it neatly afterward. He laid the mattress beside the monk’s bed, not forgetting to softly ask for permission before doing so.

After that, no one spoke. Khem didn’t want to disturb the monk’s concentration while reading. Once the bed was made, he placed the pillow, unfolded the blanket, paid respects to the Buddha, and lay down.

Suddenly, Khem felt extremely sleepy. His clear round eyes fluttered as he tried to take one last look at the monk, whispering a thank you before drifting off to sleep.

Pharan slowly closed his book and placed it on the headboard, gazing at the child lying on his side, cheek pressed against the pillow, for a long moment before extinguishing the light from the lamp to prepare for sleep.

Outside, the sound of thunder rumbled in waves. At this time, everyone in the village had already closed their doors and gone to sleep.

…

Grandma-Si walked out of her house into the rain, making her way to a banyan tree at a three-way junction. She sat down in front of a small banana leaf packet filled with food, which was now soaked with rainwater.

Grandma-Si smiled, revealing teeth stained dark from betel nut chewing, and began to ravenously eat the food from the packet.

…

Khem, thinking he had woken up early, was still later than the Reverend. After waking, he quickly put away his bedding, took his things back to his room, and went downstairs to prepare breakfast.

Since Grandma-Si had made some steamed coconut-rice cakes the previous day, the master instructed Khem to cook extra food for Grandma-Si as well, asking anyone passing by to take it to her.

Regarding the two young boy ghosts Khem saw, when he asked the master while serving him coffee, he learned that they were spirits the Reverend had taken under his care, named Ek and Thong. They had watched over Khem last night because Chan and Jett were not around. They didn’t intend to scare him; they just didn’t expect him to wake up.

Hearing this, Khem felt relieved and a bit guilty. If he were to take food to Grandma-Si, he planned to buy some red drink to offer as well.

By about 9 a.m., Jett and Chan still hadn’t returned. Seeing no one was coming by, Khem borrowed the master’s bicycle to take the food to Grandma-Si, worried that it would become cold and less tasty.

Before reaching Grandma-Si’s house, Khem saw her standing by the temple wall as if she knew he was coming. Grandma-Si waved him over. As Khem approached, he stopped the bike and smiled,

“Grandma-Si. I brought you some food. Where are you heading to?”

“I’m going to pick lotus stems from the pond behind the temple. Can you come and keep me company? I’m scared of falling in the water.”

Khem nodded upon hearing her request, thinking he could swim well enough.

There shouldn’t be any problems.

“Okay, let’s go then.”

“Ah, thank you so much.”

Khem led Grandma-Si to the pond behind the temple. There was a small dock with a rowboat for two people tied up, indicating that villagers often came here to gather lotus.

“Can you row, child?” Grandma-Si asked without looking back.

“Yes, I can. Grandma-Si can stay here, I’ll gather them.” Khem replied, remembering that Grandma-Si had said she was afraid of falling into the water, and he was also worried she might actually fall in.

“No, I’ll gather them myself.” Grandma-Si said firmly, making Khem blink in surprise. But when he saw Grandma-Si walk down and sit in the boat on her own, he quickly followed, sitting behind her.

Khem untied the rope securing the boat to a stump, pushed off from the dock with the oar, and started rowing with determination.

Suddenly, Khem felt the atmosphere around him grow eerily quiet, the sky unnaturally dark and still. There were no bird calls or insect sounds, and the temperature dropped, sending chills all over his body.

Khem gradually stopped rowing because Grandma-Si was still sitting motionless, not reaching out to pick the lotus stems. Feeling increasingly uneasy, he asked, his heart starting to beat faster,

“Grandma-Si, aren’t you going to pick the lotus stems?” But Grandma-Si didn’t reply with words; instead, she began to sway gently, making the boat rock side to side, causing the wood to creak.

Khem’s heart sank to the bottom of the boat, fear flooding his chest, a familiar dread. He called out, hoping what he feared wasn’t true.

“Uh, Grandma-Si…”

And then, Khem’s plea went unanswered. Grandma-Si slowly turned her head towards him, her body not following, still swaying.

Her eyes were entirely black, no whites, her lips a dark purple, and her face, once familiar, now belonged to someone else.

The dark lips slowly smiled, the entirely black eyes curved, and in a chilling voice, she said,

“This time, don’t expect to escape.”

 

KHEMJIRA CHAPTERS HOME

KHEMJIRA, Chapter 26:

  Phawat was like a giant wave eroding the shore, gradually expanding and infiltrating the space in Khemika’s heart.

  The place that should have belonged to Chayot.

  But reality was harsh, and Chayot couldn’t deny that he couldn’t match his brother in any aspect – be it looks, education, or career. Thus, all he could do was watch as their love grew beautifully and steadily.

Finally, the opportunity he never thought he’d get came about when the two were forced to part ways.

  Chayot seized that opportunity to get close to Khemika again, doing everything he could, directly or indirectly, for better or worse. He didn’t care what others thought of him, whether they labeled him as vile or despicable, as long as he could stand by Khemika as her lover, it was enough.

  However, tragically, things didn’t go as Chayot had hoped. Not only was he unable to replace her brother, Phawat, but he also ended up destroying the person he loved the most, Khemika, bringing her to a sorrowful end.

  Khemika died holding a forged letter created by Chayot to deceive her, and that image haunted Chayot like a nightmare, leading to his depression. Every breath he took was filled with pain and suffering, eating away at his will to continue living in this world until he was worn down.

  Five years after Khemika’s departure, on the calendar date of October 12th of that year, Chayot decided to end his life by jumping off a building.

  That day was marked by heavy rain, the same weather as when Chayot first met Khemika at the playground, and the last time he saw her at her cremation.

  Khem opened his eyes, tears streaming down his face after witnessing those scenes, now understanding why Chayot chose to linger and wouldn’t leave.

  Chayot loved Khemika deeply, more than anyone else in the world, more than himself.

But because Chayot had never received proper love and upbringing from his family, he didn’t know how to be a good lover, leading to this tragic end.

Pharan slowly opened his eyes. The scenes Khem had just seen were possible because Pharan had previously communicated with Chayot’s spirit, which was trapped in a jar, and had once delved into Chayot’s memories. What happened was a transfer through Pharan’s memories, acting as a medium.

Of course, there were scenes too terrifying for Khem to handle, so he slightly adjusted his own memories, making what he saw less unbearable.

“Once you’ve come to terms with it, light the incense.” Pharan continued.

Khem quickly wiped away his tears and took one incense stick from the stainless steel tray prepared by the monk, lighting it. He then clasped his hands together with the incense and began his invitation, as the monk went to unveil the red yantra cloth from the pot.

“Chayot…it’s me, Khem.”

Suddenly, a cold breeze swept through Khem’s body and distorted the smoke from the incense, even though the room was sealed without windows, making it impossible for outside air to enter.

Khem thought that Chayot must have heard his voice but was too afraid to show himself.

“Chayot, I’ve never been angry at you. I understand you didn’t mean it, so don’t be scared, okay?”

“…”

“Come out and have another meal cooked by me.” He finished saying, then placed the incense into a small pot in front of him.

Looking up, he saw the figure of a young man in a khaki civil servant uniform once again through the incense smoke, and gradually everything became clearer.

Chayot looked quite normal, not as terrifying as in the dream, just pale and lifeless. He was kneeling, his head bowed, gripping his pants tightly with both hands, filled with fear, sorrow, and pressure.

Khem took a deep breath and slowly crawled closer to Chayot, sitting down beside him.

“Chayot.” Khem called out again, reaching out to place his hand on Chayot’s, which was cold and pale.

Chayot looked up with a start, surprised that Khem would dare to touch him like this, especially after he had created such terrible memories for Khem.

And then there was the matter of their past life, for which he felt he shouldn’t be forgiven.

Khem met Chayot’s eyes and smiled, his large round eyes curving into crescents, before tears began to stream down his face.

“Chayot, thank you for everything you’ve done for me.”

“…”

“I was so stubborn in our past life, and in this one, I’ve been weak. You must have been exhausted, always protecting me.” Khem said, his lips tightening before he slowly bowed his head.

“…”

“I’m sorry for all the trouble I’ve caused you, Chayot.”

“…”

“Even though, hic, I really wanted you to live a happy life, just like I did, hic, I’m so sorry, Chayot.” Khem’s words were like a warm stream soothing Chayot’s heart, and the small hands now holding Chayot’s were free of fear, filled instead with goodwill and a guilt that no one had ever shown him before.

Khem had never harbored resentment against Chayot and was always ready to forgive him, yet Chayot had committed numerous vile acts against someone who deserved the utmost care.

Chayot wept silently, his sobs nearly breaking his heart as he recalled the nightmarish events, slowly lifting his fragile hands to his forehead, resting it against that warmth, and tears flowed incessantly.

“I’m sorry, Khem, I’m sorry for making you suffer waiting for your brother’s letter, sorry for causing your death when you didn’t deserve it, sorry for not letting you be with the one you loved as you always hoped. I’m sorry.”

  Chayot’s voice echoed in Khem’s mind, conveying his deep regret and sorrow for what he had done.

Khem’s heart gradually lightened as he let go of everything. With his free hand, Khem reached out to touch Chayot’s shoulder, gently comforting him before accepting Chayot’s apology.

“It’s okay. I forgive you. From now on, Chayot, you don’t have to feel guilty or be bound by anything to do with me anymore.”

That’s right. The reason Chayot lingered and never left wasn’t because he wanted to possess Khem, but because he felt guilty for causing Khemika’s death and wanted to protect and watch over Khem, ensuring he was safe from all dangers in this life.

Chayot just wanted Khem to live as long as possible, that’s all.

Chayot nodded in acknowledgment, even though his tears wouldn’t stop flowing, before the scene before him changed from Khem to his brother, who had been reborn.

“P…Phii.” Chayot swallowed hard, trembling, then lowered his head to avoid his brother’s sharp gaze once more. His brother in this life was not as kind or gentle as in his past life.

But no matter how different they were, Khem’s heart belonged to this person once again as if it were predestined.

In any lifetime, he could never outmatch this man…

It was at that moment that Chayot felt a gentle hand reaching to stroke his head lightly.

Chayot opened his eyes wide at the tender touch, reminiscing about his childhood when he constantly followed his older brother around, clinging to his legs wherever he went.

This was the love and attachment Chayot had for his brother, without any conditions.

Then came the day when his brother won a scholarship to study abroad at the age of thirteen. Slowly, they began to drift apart.

Before he realized it, Chayot found that he could no longer keep up with his brother. The pressure and comparisons from family and relatives made him feel inferior, which transformed their once close relationship into one of distance and coldness.

When Phawat returned after finishing his studies, everything had changed. The younger brother who used to run and cling to him every time they met now just smiled, paid his respects, and went off to spend time with friends outside the home. When he returned, he would lock himself in his room instead of watching TV together like they used to.

Phawat withdrew his hand and spoke softly,

“I’m sorry I wasn’t a good brother to you back then.”

In their past life, Phawat was so consumed with chasing his dream of becoming a doctor that he neglected his younger brother, leaving Chayot to face pain he had never known before.

Even when Chayot died and news was sent, Phawat was still treating patients on the battlefield, never looking back.

“If I had known how our parents treated you, I would have taken you with me.”

“…”

“If I had just asked you what was happening, if I had cared more about you, things wouldn’t have turned out like this.”

“…”

“Everything that happened is my fault for failing you.”

“…”

Chayot stared into Pharan’s eyes with disbelief, but those black, calm eyes were filled with sincerity and steadiness, every word uttered from true heart without embellishment.

“But I won’t ask for your forgiveness. Just tell me what you want. If I can do it for you, I will do everything.”

Chayot’s eyes grew hot once more because he had been waiting for these words from his brother for so long. He had wanted protection, he had wanted care from his real brother just like other children.

At the very least, if his parents didn’t love him, having his brother’s love would have been enough.

But just as water cannot flow backward, time cannot be turned back.

Now, Chayot, receiving an apology from his brother, felt as if all the suffering in his heart had been released. He no longer needed love or care.

Chayot lifted his arm to wipe away his tears and nodded, his voice still trembling with soft sobs. With his pale hands clasped together, he bowed at his brother’s feet in place of asking for forgiveness.

“Thank you. I thank you, and I apologize for everything I have done.”

  “…”

“I ask for your forgiveness, hic, and please take care of Khem for me, can you do that? I promise I’ll go to where I should be and not disturb you or

Khem anymore.” Chayot said through his tears, still sniffling. His only remaining concern now was Khem; that vengeful spirit wouldn’t relent until it got Khem’s soul.

Pharan placed a bowl of rice in front of Chayot, followed by two dishes, and spoke softly, “I forgive you. As for what you’ve asked, I promise to do what I can.

You don’t need to worry.”

Khem bit his lip gently, unsure if what the master said was to encourage Chayot to let go and depart peacefully or if there was some truth in it, but he couldn’t help but feel a bit of joy deep down.

Chayot wiped his tears once more before nodding, then picked up the chopsticks and took a bite of the food Khem had prepared. With just one mouthful, he felt the warmth of the food spread through his chest.

Chayot hadn’t had such a good meal in a very long time.

Tears flowed down Chayot’s cheeks again before he turned to compliment Khem with a smile.

“It’s so delicious, your cooking still tastes the same, Khem.” Khem smiled back and nodded.

“Uh, eat a lot then. After this, we’ll make merit together often, so don’t worry,

Chayot.” Chayot beamed with joy upon hearing this, despite the sadness in his heart at the thought of parting.

But this was for the best.

After finishing the meal, it was time for their final farewell before Chayot would return to the pot, so they could take it to the temple for the monks to perform the spirit-sending ceremony the next day.

Chayot reached out and gently stroked Khem’s head.

“From now on, take good care of yourself.”   Khem nodded in understanding.

“I understand. You too, Chayot.”

Chayot smiled gently. His face seemed more radiant after the meal, then he turned to his brother to say, “I’ll go now.”

Pharan nodded, replying simply,

“Good luck.”

With that, Chayot stood up and stepped into the same clay pot, and Pharan then covered it with the red yantra cloth, placing it back in its spot before returning to

Khem, who was standing with a lamp, saying in a calm yet gentle tone,

“When you wake up early tomorrow, I’ll take you to make merit at the temple.”

The next morning, Pharan and Khem arrived at the village temple together. Pharan wore a long-sleeved black shirt, well-fitted grey trousers, black leather shoes, and the same sunglasses. Khem was in a traditional white cotton outfit that he had bought with Jett and Chan a few days earlier.

Today, neither of Khem’s friends came along as they were sent by the monk to run errands outside the village.

On the way, they stopped to offer alms with Uncle-Lah’s family. Upon arriving at the temple, they handed over the pot to the abbot, as they had done before, and together they offered a large container of monastic requisites, dedicating the merit to Chayot. Then both of them slowly poured water from the brass water-pouring vessel, reciting the water-pouring chants in unison as instructed by the abbot.

“May all this merit lead to forgiveness for those who have been wronged. May all those who have been wronged find happiness.”

As the words were concluded, a gentle breeze softly blew through the two figures, as if in acknowledgment.

Khem sat listening to the abbot and Pharan talk for a short while longer. Then, both of them bowed in respect and took their leave.

KHEMJIRA CHAPTERS HOME

KHEMJIRA, Chapter 25:

  Jett had noticed the white smoke, about waist-high, swirling around the master since earlier. These were the twin servant spirits, Ekk and Thong, that the master had taken care of.

In truth, Ekk and Thong were originally servant spirits of Pharan’s grandfather, a powerful sorcerer. When the grandfather passed away, Pharan took over their care instead of releasing their spirits as one might expect.

When Jett was younger, he could see spirits more clearly than he does now, so he remembered what Ekk and Thong looked like. The first time he met them, he ended up talking and playing with them for a long time, only realizing they were ghosts when the master made them disappear right in front of him.

Back then, Jett was very attached to Ekk and Thong. Even knowing they were spirits, not humans, he would often call out to them and play with them. This behavior seemed strange to others who saw him talking or playing alone, showing no interest in other children. This was because Ekk and Thong always warned him about who was good or bad, and most people were envious of his wealth or saw him as a stepping stone to climb higher.

Eventually, Jett became a quiet child who didn’t socialize much. His parents, fearing this behavior would cause issues in the future, asked the master to help adjust Jett’s behavior, as they were too busy to handle it themselves.

Jett was put through a ritual by Pharan to close his third eye, preventing him from seeing spirits anymore. This meant Jett could no longer see Ek and Thong. At twelve years old, Jett went through the ritual crying, overwhelmed by sadness.

In the end, out of pity, the master softened and changed his approach, so that Jett could still see ghosts or spirits, but they appeared rather indistinct, and he couldn’t communicate with them.

Nowadays, Jett could still sense that Ekk and Thong often lingered nearby to protect him and his friends. Even though they no longer spoke as they used to, this was enough for him.

While he was lost in thought, the master suddenly put on his sunglasses that were tucked in his shirt collar and stood up.

Jett thought the master wanted to go home, so he stood up to follow. This also prompted Chan, who was watching the boxing, to stand up, but the master gestured for Jett and Chan to sit back down.

“Where are you going, Master?” Jett blinked and asked. The master replied without looking back,

“I’m going to get some iced tea.”

“Are you going by yourself, Master? It’s very hot outside. Wouldn’t it be better if

I went to buy it?” Jett offered with good intentions, but the master shook his head briefly in refusal.

“I’ll go myself.” With that, he turned and walked away, not giving Jett a chance to object further, which left Jett puzzled, furrowing his brows and tilting his head in confusion.

In truth, when the master was alone, he usually did things by himself. But when his disciples were around to serve him, he never turned down their kindness. The disciples were always allowed to do things for him, making it rare for him to insist on doing something alone like this.

Or could it be…

“Hey, Chan.”

“I’m not going. Just sit here quietly and let the master go.

Jett was about to suggest they follow the master, but Chan guessed his intention.

Upon hearing this, Jett was momentarily annoyed.

Luckily, before sitting down, Chan had bought some grilled bananas that Jett liked, which helped him calm down and sit quietly, eating the bananas.

Indeed, it was as hot outside as Jett had mentioned.

Pharan walked past several old coffee shops until he stopped in front of a juice bar…

It seemed that with each passing day, his resolve was slipping more and more.

“Have you finished buying things?” Pharan’s voice came from above Khem’s head, causing Khem to jump and look up. Pong was equally startled, not having noticed when the master had arrived.

“Uh, master.” Pharan responded with a frown.

“I asked.”

“Y-Yes, I am done, here…Phii Pong.”

Pong looked at the master and then at Khem, feeling a twinge in his heart, but there was little he could do except accept the watermelon smoothie from Khem’s hand, especially since the real deal was now here. It was time for someone like him to step back.

“Thank you, Nong Khem. We’ll talk later then.” But something prompted Pong to gently ruffle Khem’s hair and smile before respectfully bowing to the master.

“I’ll be going now, master. My father and I will come to visit when we have time.”

After Pong left, Khem looked up at the master and asked,

“Shall we go now, master?” Pharan looked at Khem’s slightly disheveled hair, which had been ruffled by Pong, with an unreadable expression hidden behind his dark sunglasses. His emotions were turbulent within him, yet he had no outlet for them.

There was no scripture to recite, and he couldn’t meditate right there.

In the end, he reached up to fix Khem’s natural brown hair back into place, seemingly ignoring Khem’s wide-eyed, almost frightened look, and said,

“I want some iced tea.” Khem’s face immediately flushed, and he quickly nodded in agreement, following behind the master to buy iced tea, his hand secretly touching where he had been touched, his heart beating fast, before letting out a small sigh.

The master always made him think too much, and Khem was tired of constantly having to control his feelings.

Jett and Chan, who had not been waiting for long, saw the master return with a bag of oliang for the tea and their best friend following with cold milk. This sight made Jett bite his lip to contain his laughter, almost ready to slap his knee in triumph because his guess was spot on.

But he didn’t dare…

There were also two more bags of iced tea that Khem brought, because Pharan had offered to buy him a drink, so Khem decided to get some for Jett and Chan as well.

After watching the boxing for a while longer, chief Chang came to discuss business as he had arranged with the master. It was about installing a mobile phone signal tower, which would improve communication for the villagers and those in nearby areas.

Once their discussion was over, they headed back home. Not long after Jett parked the car, Uncle Chai and Auntie Kaew came to take it back and also brought some of Grandma Si’s steamed custard cakes.

For dinner that evening, Khem had bought fresh shrimp pad Thai from the boxing match event because it looked clean and appetizing, and it was plentiful, so they didn’t cook anything else.

After finishing both the savory and sweet dishes, everyone dispersed. Today, Jett and Chan were given a break from their usual meditation practice, so they planned to watch movies with Khem. They bought some snacks on the way back to prepare for their movie night.

Meanwhile, Pharan, after parting ways with the kids, went to meditate in the shrine room, reflecting on the events of the past few days.

Why had all this started, and when did it begin?

  Why, the more he tried to run away, the more he was drawn closer?

  Why, the more he pushed away, the less he could bear it when the other person tried to distance himself.

  Was it because of the lingering memories from the past, or was it out of pity for that child?

  Maybe both, or maybe neither.

  His furrowed brows relaxed slightly.

  Time would be the ultimate test.

  But before reaching that point, he should resolve the issues carried over from their past life.

  Late that night, after finishing two movies, Jett and Chan moved from Khem’s bed to their own.

The wooden door of the bedroom was pushed open once more, this time with Pharan using magic to ensure Jett and Chan slept soundly as before, albeit it took longer than usual because their spirits had grown much stronger through daily training.

His efforts in teaching them hadn’t been in vain.

With his long legs, he approached the person sleeping with fluttering eyelids, sat down beside the bed, placed his hand on Khem’s forehead, silently recited a spell, and then gently blew on Khem’s head.

After only a few moments of waiting, Khem, who had dreamt of the master, woke up. Once his eyes adjusted to the darkness of the room, they widened as he saw the master sitting beside him.

“Master…”

“Come with me.” The master said softly, almost like an order, before standing up and leaving the room, leaving Khem to follow in a daze.

The master led Khem to the kitchen, instructing him to prepare two simple dishes: fish cake soup and fried salted fish, along with hot steamed rice. Then they carried the tray of food up to the house.

At this time, only the light from the lantern in the master’s hand guided them. Khem followed the master to a door on the right wing of the Thai house, an area Jett had warned Khem never to enter.

The atmosphere here was eerily cold and unwelcoming. Above the door was a red talisman written by hand. Just looking at this door made Khem’s heart beat with unexplained fear, wondering why the master had brought him here.

Pharan seemed to sense Khem’s feelings, turned around, and looked at the trembling figure behind him.

“Look up.” He commanded, but Khem stubbornly refused to comply. In the end, Pharan had to gently lift Khem’s chin with his fingertips. The light from the lantern clearly revealed Khem’s face.

Before he knew it, Khem was already crying.

Seeing Khem’s tears softened Pharan’s demeanor. He spoke in a soothing, deep voice,

“I’m here. What are you afraid of?”

“…”

“Take deep breaths and focus your mind.” Khem blinked away his tears, slowly inhaled, and tried to compose himself as instructed by the master.

Pharan approved with a hum when he saw Khem’s obedient demeanor, as if praising him for doing well, while gently wiping the tears from Khem’s cheeks with his finger. Khem was so startled his eyes widened, then he quickly looked down again.

“I’m sorry.” Khem said, feeling both guilty for acting without considering the situation and embarrassed, unsure which emotion was stronger.

“Come in.” Khem swallowed hard before stepping into the room behind the master.

The master placed the oil lamp on the floor, instructed Khem to set the food tray on the opposite side, and then sat down with the lamp between him and the tray.

The master had disappeared somewhere within the room. Khem looked around to survey the surroundings. Although he couldn’t see clearly, he guessed this must be a storage room.

Not long after, the master returned with a clay pot inscribed with symbols, its opening covered with a red yantra cloth, which he placed near the food tray before sitting down beside Khem.

However, upon seeing the pot on the other side of the oil lamp, Khem’s fear intensified, making him want to retreat, but the master’s arm barred his movement.   Khem immediately sensed who was trapped inside that pot.

The deeply buried, terrible memories were dredged up again, and the horror of it made Khem want to cry out loudly.

“Ugh…”

But in reality, Khem couldn’t cry out; he could only stare at the clay pot with wide, unblinking eyes, his breath shaky and uneven, enough to make anyone’s heart sink.

Unsure of when it happened, the master had moved to sit close enough for their shoulders to touch. His warm hand gently stroked from Khem’s head down to his back in a soothing rhythm, his deep voice seeming to sweep away the fear.

“Stay calm.”

“I’m here.”

“Ugh.” Khem hiccupped before slowly nodding through his tears, his cold hand reaching out to tightly grasp the master’s rough one, seeking the warmth to calm his mind, only to find himself being held in return…

This action entirely shifted Khem’s attention back to himself.

“Listen carefully. This is what you need to do.”

“…”

“The karma from this life is too heavy for anyone to help you escape, whether it’s Jett, Chan, or even me.”

“…”

“The matter of the karmic debts related to your family, even though I can’t help much, but as for Chayot’s case, I have a responsibility to share with you.”

“…”

“At least, if we can release him, it will lighten the burden.”

“…”

“Do you understand what I’m saying?”

Khem slowly nodded his head, his heart swelling then suddenly deflating when he realized that all these actions were taken by the master merely out of a sense of past responsibility, not out of any other feelings towards him.

But at least, the other party was acting out of goodwill towards him, even though he was just someone seeking refuge. Not a student that needed protection and care, yet the master still extended his compassion.

Khem took a deep breath before softly asking,

“What should I do, sir?”

Pharan could read Khem’s eyes and thought he might have misunderstood something, but he didn’t intend to explain now. The important thing was releasing his brother from the past.

“Meditate, control your breathing, think of something that calms your mind, and let go of your worries.” The master’s touch gradually withdrew as Khem placed his right hand over his left and closed his eyes.

Khem thought of painting amidst nature, surrounded by green trees, with a light mist and gentle breeze.

Once his mind was calm, Khem’s demeanor relaxed. Pharan continued,

“The reason Chayot has followed you across lifetimes like this must be because there was a promise between you in the past. Try to remember what you did or promised, take your time to recall it. Don’t rush.”

Khem inhaled deeply again and followed the instructions, delving deep into his fading memories, swimming through the pain, farewells, smiles, and laughter of every age, up to the first time he met Chayot.

That day, it was drizzling. Khemika, at nine years old, was riding in the car her father was driving back home. However, as they were passing by a playground, she noticed a boy sitting alone on a swing, even though the rain was about to pour heavily.

  Khemika recognized the boy; he had recently transferred to her school and was even in her class.

  She quickly asked her father to stop the car, grabbed an umbrella, and ran through the rain to reach the boy.

  Chayot, who was hoping to get sick from sitting in the rain to avoid going to school, slowly lifted his head when he saw the hemline of someone’s skirt and realized the rain had suddenly stopped.

  He then realized the rain hadn’t stopped; instead, the girl in front of him had extended her umbrella to shield him from the rain.

  “Who are you?” Chayot raised his eyebrows in question. Khemika smiled and replied,

  “I’m Khemika.”

  “…”

  “And you?” Chayot looked at Khemika’s face for a while before softly replying amidst the increasingly heavy rain,

  “I’m Chayot.”

  “Oh, I actually knew your name already.” Khemika said with a laugh.

  Strange person…Even though she was getting wet because she shared her umbrella with him, she laughed with a clear, untroubled voice.

Chayot thought to himself and looked away, not saying anything.

  “Where’s your house? Can I walk you home?” Khemika blinked and asked. Chayot bit his lip, looked down, and shook his head.

  He didn’t want to go home right now because he had just had a fight with his parents.

  Khemika understood his body language but persisted, “If so, why don’t you come to my house? We have lots of snacks and toys.”

  Chayot frowned, feeling a bit insulted at the implication that he could be easily lured with snacks and toys.

  But just seeing the pleading look in her eyes, mixed with a slight shiver from the cold, was enough for him to easily agree and follow her to the car.

  Khemika’s family was kinder to strangers than he had anticipated; simply stating that Chayot was a schoolmate was enough for them to warmly welcome him.

  Khemika grew up in a well-rounded family, quite different from Chayot, who was often compared by the adults in his family to his brother, who was smarter, more composed, and always did better academically, not to mention in other aspects of life.

  However, Khemika was different from those people; she never compared Chayot to anyone else. She never forced him to be something he didn’t want to be, and she never praised Chayot’s brother in front of him.

This was why Chayot opened his heart to Khemika, eventually becoming very attached and ultimately becoming best friends.

  “Khem, when we grow up, shall we get married?” Chayot asked while they were playing house, taking on the role of a customer.

  Hearing this, Khemika smiled in response, envisioning a future where she had someone to protect and care for her. Someone who would always go along with her wishes and would stand up for her if she ever did something wrong didn’t seem like a bad idea, so she nodded in agreement.

  “Yes, if by then I haven’t found someone better than you, I’ll marry you.” Chayot laughed, pleased with her statement.

  “Then start preparing to be my bride, because there’s no one better than me in this world.”

  Chayot was confident about this until the day Khemika met his brother, Phawat, and all his dreams began to crumble.

 

KHEMJIRA CHAPTERS HOME

KHEMJIRA, Chapter 24:

  But before he could even start running, a slender finger grabbed his collar from behind, pulling him back into the room and shutting the door immediately!

Khem wanted to cry but didn’t dare. He could only steel himself, close his eyes, and slowly turn around to face the master.

“Ma-, Master, it’s me…” Pharan didn’t wait for Khem to finish speaking, and with a steady voice, still unable to open his eyes, he said, “Go get a damp cloth to wipe my face.”

Khem bit his lip and nodded, feeling immediate shame because instead of accepting responsibility, he had thought about running away.

“Ye-, Yes, sorry, Master. Please sit and wait for me.” Khem quickly supported the master to sit on the edge of the large bed, then walked around the room looking for a clean cloth.

The master’s bedroom was spacious, with few pieces of furniture, and it looked very clean. Once he found a clean cloth, he rushed into the bathroom inside the room.

So that’s why he had never seen the master use the downstairs bathroom.

Khem dampened the clean cloth, wrung it out, and walked back to the master. He quickly knelt down and shuffled over to where the master was sitting with his eyes closed, waiting. He stopped at a respectful distance, still hesitating to take action.

“Um…Ma-, master, would you like to wipe your own face?”

Pharan furrowed his brows before shaking his head slightly, speaking with a slightly irritated tone.

“You wipe it, come closer.”

Khem swallowed hard, then slowly shuffled forward on his knees.

  As he got closer than usual, Khem’s heart started beating faster, overwhelmed by the mysterious, cool scent emanating from the priest, the undone buttons of the priest’s long-sleeved nightshirt revealing a clear tattoo of a pair of magpies with lotuses, and his well-proportioned, handsome features…

  Khem took a deep breath, softly asked for the priest’s permission, then cautiously reached out his trembling hand to wipe the powder from the priest’s face.

  Pharan leaned his head down, allowing Khem to sit and wipe comfortably without having to stand and strain his knees. The cool damp cloth worked well with the cooling powder, numbing his face.

  “What were you mumbling outside my door just now?”

Still shocked from the priest leaning so close earlier, Khem’s face quickly changed from red to pale.

Khem closed his eyes tightly, thinking his end was near. He didn’t want to tell the truth, but at this moment, he couldn’t lie because he was not good at it…

His clear round eyes flickered hesitantly for a moment before answering,

“Well, uh, just a regular Buddhist chant, master.” Pharan slowly opened his deep onyx eyes, looking into Khem’s light brown, large eyes for a moment before asking in a whisper that was loud enough for both to hear,

“What was it?”

As if time had stopped, Khem felt frozen in place. The master’s sharp eyes, now glazed with a clear, sweet look, were so beautiful that Khem felt he could stare at them all day and night.

Now he understood why Jett had warned him not to make eye contact with the priest, and why the priest often wore sunglasses to hide his eyes when out and about.

Because the master’s eyes were this beautiful…

“What did Grandma-Si teach you?”

Khem bit his lip gently, his cheeks turning red as if teased, knowing that the priest was fully aware of the truth…

But since he was already caught, what harm would there be in reciting it aloud?

“Metta, Karuna, Buddha Pranee, Thayindee, Yen-doo, with Namo Buddhaya.”

Pharan looked at the small lips that had just recited a spell directed at him, his eyes, though not full of affection, surveyed the sweet face that still bore the resemblance of their past life down to every detail. Yet, in the likeness, there were differences.

It was an endearing difference.

“Um.” Pharan inadvertently responded, realizing only after he had already been enchanted by Khem’s lips that he had thought something inappropriate. He then lowered his gaze and nodded.

“You may go and rest now.”

Khem, still blushing, nodded awkwardly, slowly stood up, and walked out of the room in a daze, closing the door behind him for the master. But he couldn’t help but stand there, confused, with furrowed brows.

Did the master just say, “Um”?

However, because there were more pressing matters at hand, his anger surged from his toes to the top of his head when he remembered, quickly dismissing the master’s suspicious response from his mind.

“Jett, you’re dead!”

Jett and Chan hadn’t actually run away; they had just retreated to a strategic distance. They were confident that even if caught, Khem would be safe, but they knew they wouldn’t be!

…

Pong had recovered after receiving treatment at the hospital. Not even two days had passed before he was back to his robust self. After the doctor allowed him to go home, he changed into new clothes his mother had sent with his father, and then went out to wait for his medication.

“Dad, I’m going to pick up the armband from the master’s house. It should be ready by now.” Pong said after leaving the hospital, since they were driving back in separate cars anyway. He planned to go there directly.

Chief Chang nodded.

“Yeah. It’s good that you’re going to get it yourself, saves the master from having to send it by mail. We’ve already troubled him enough.” Instead of feeling scolded, Pong grinned, quickly bowed in respect, and got into his car.

Picking up the armband was just part of it; in reality, Pong just wanted to see Khem.

During the two days in the hospital, whether eating, walking, sitting, or sleeping, Pong couldn’t stop thinking about Khem’s face. His confession of love had yet to receive an answer, leaving everything hanging in his heart to the point where he could barely eat or sleep.

Pong didn’t know if Khem would reciprocate his feelings, but he just wanted to try something. If it didn’t work out, he would just go home and cry to his mother for comfort.

At that time, Khem was sitting on a bamboo bench under a mango tree, folding coins for the alms-giving ceremony for the master. The bench had been moved there by Jett and Chan to provide shade. After setting it up, they went inside to practice their skills. These coins that Khem was folding were meant for meritmaking during ordination ceremonies in the village.

After sitting there for a while, a familiar four-door car pulled up and parked nearby. Phii Pong stepped out of the car.

“Hello, Phii Pong.” Khem greeted with a wai, making Pong’s heart beat faster with longing, though he tried not to show it too much. He smiled and walked over, stopping at a respectful distance.

“Hello, Nong Khem, what are you doing?” Khem smiled, showing Pong the coin he had folded into the shape of a rose with a ribbon, his cute demeanor nearly making Pong unsteady on his feet.

“I’m folding coins for the master’s alms-giving ceremony. Phii Pong, did you come to see the master?”

In his heart, Pong wanted to say he had come to see Khem, but he restrained himself and nodded with a smile.

“Yes, I came to pick up the armband that the master promised to make for me. So, I’ll go up to see the master first.” Khem nodded slightly, quickly got up from the bench, put on his shoes, and turned to Pong with a smile, “Alright, Phii Pong, go ahead. I’ll bring some water up.” Hearing this, Pong felt his heart swell, and he nodded quickly, not realizing that Khem just wanted an excuse to go up to the master…

Khem brought two glasses of cold pandan water; one he gave to Phii Pong, and the other he carried over to the master.

“Here you go.” When the master didn’t acknowledge him but instead scolded,

“You left the money on the bench like that. Aren’t you afraid someone will steal it?” Khem looked a little embarrassed, quickly apologized to the master, and hurried past Pong down the stairs, not noticing Pong’s concerned look.

Pharan cleared his throat lightly to get Pong’s attention, then handed him a wooden box containing the magically enhanced armband.

“Master, my father said he’d like you to come to the boxing match with us. He’s worried that Klaa’s uncle might be there. Uh…but if you’re not available, it’s okay.” When he saw Pharan thinking for a while, Pong quickly added, not expecting that the master would nod in agreement.

“If there’s no urgent business, I’ll be on my way.” Pong smiled, his spirits lifted a bit. Not only did he have the master’s support if the other side played any tricks, but he also had Khem nearby.

With all this encouragement, Pong felt certain he wouldn’t lose to the likes of Klaa and his dirty tricks.

Pong chatted with the master for a few more sentences before bowing in farewell and heading downstairs to find Khem. Seeing Pong approach, Khem, who had been sitting idly, quickly smiled and greeted him with politeness.

“Phii Pong, you are leaving already?” Pong took a soft breath in, though he didn’t want to leave, he had to. But before going, he wanted to mention something important, something he had intended to say from the start.

“Nong Khem, I’m fighting in two days. I’d really like for you to come watch.

Would you?” Khem looked into Phii Pong’s eyes, swallowing lightly because he thought he could read the other’s intentions.

Previously, Khem hadn’t responded to Phii Pong’s advances, but to outright reject him now didn’t feel right.

Though it was difficult, Khem didn’t want to discourage Phii Pong, so he smiled and nodded.

“Of course, I’ll come.”

Pong’s smile widened, showing both dimples, nodding with joy.

“Thank you. I’ll be going then, see you there.”

“Goodbye, drive safely, Phii Pong.”

“I will, I’ll drive very carefully.” Khem smiled, chuckling softly at Phii Pong’s earnest demeanor, waiting until he drove away before sitting back down, sighing with his thoughts in a muddle.

How does one reject someone without hurting them…

At that moment, Khem didn’t realize he was being watched from a window above.

…

Two days later, Jett, Khem, and Chan got up early to clean, making a racket as usual, which woke Pharan earlier than he would have liked (again).

Over those two days, Khem and Pharan had barely seen each other. This was partly because Pharan was rushing to teach the remaining lessons to Chan and Jett. Despite their strong spirits, their training time hadn’t been sufficient to easily handle a ghost like Madam Ramphueng.

Secondly, Pharan felt he was losing his focus because of Khem, so he tried to avoid him to fully concentrate on teaching his two students. Meanwhile, Khem was still preoccupied with thoughts about Pong, which resulted in them both inadvertently keeping their distance from each other.

After they had showered, dressed, and eaten, Uncle-Chai brought the car for the master, with Auntie-Kaew following behind on her sidecar motorcycle to take them back.

The car for today was a black sedan, driven by Jett, with the master sitting beside him, while Chan and Khem sat in the back.

They soon arrived at the venue hosting the boxing match. The boxing ring was outdoors, surrounded by numerous stalls, mostly food vendors. This event was also being broadcast live on television.

Today, the master was dressed in a long-sleeved white silk shirt, black slacks, and his usual sunglasses. Jett, Khem, and Chan trailed behind the master until they reached the boxing ring area, where the village chief, upon noticing them, immediately invited the group to sit in the front row.

Upon sitting down, Pharan spotted the sorcerer, “Krailert, the one with mystical powers from the southern district.” and as soon as the other saw him, he began to silently chant spells. Of course, Pharan did the same, but only with protective spells…

So, they started their confrontation right upon arrival, indicating that the other party knew he would be attending this event.

Soon it was time for the fight. The armband that Pharan had made was now wrapped around Pong’s right bicep. First, there was the traditional Thai dance to pay respects to the master, and then, as the bell rang, the fight began.

Throughout the match, Pharan silently chanted spells to counteract any magical tricks or mental manipulation from the opposing sorcerer aimed at Pong. Any venomous creatures conjured up were instantly reduced to ashes, though no one noticed this anomaly because everyone was focused on the fight.

Ding!

After a prolonged exchange of blows, the bell signaling the end of the round rang. Pong knocked out Klaa, his opponent, despite both being in rough shape, eliciting a roar from the crowd because this year, the district led by the village chief had won.

Once Klaa, Pong’s opponent, was helped off the ring, the sorcerer, who was Klaa’s uncle, Krailert, stood up from his chair and sent a smile Pharan’s way, seemingly enjoying the magical confrontation. He had no intention of causing real harm or taking lives, knowing well that someone like Pharan wouldn’t stoop to black magic, especially since it was his nephew who started the trouble last time.

It was good that Pharan hadn’t turned to dark magic as well; otherwise, it would have been tough for everyone.

After receiving his award, Pong quickly left the stage to change clothes and then walked over to Khem, who was sitting beside the master.

“Nong Khem, can I have a moment of your time?” Khem glanced at the master, Jett, and Chan briefly. The master was still watching the new fighters on the stage without turning his attention to Khem, but seeing his friends nod, Khem stood up and walked away with Pong.

Pong led Khem to sit on a bench under a tree, then pulled out a small velvet box the size of a fist. Opening it, he revealed a luxurious rose gold bracelet, and then spoke directly to Khem.

“Nong Khem, I stand by what I said before. I like you. Would you give me a chance?” Khem pressed his lips together, took a deep breath in, and slowly reached out to close the velvet box.

“Phii Pong, thank you for your kind feelings, but I…I already like someone else.” He said almost in a whisper, lowering his gaze, unable to look at Pong.

Pong pressed his lips with disappointment but nodded in understanding. He had an inkling of who that person might be, but he had been trying to fool himself.

“I’m sorry, Phii Pong, please don’t be angry, and don’t hate me.” Khem said with a trembling voice, seeing Pong’s prolonged silence.

Pong sighed, disappointed, but then gave a small smile, not wanting Khem to overthink.

“I understand. Don’t worry about it, I’m not angry. I don’t hate you, Nong Khem.” Hearing this, Khem felt relieved and quickly smiled back.

“Thank you, Phii Pong.” Seeing Khem’s expression, Pong couldn’t help but feel a twinge of pain, playfully tilting his head as he teased,

“Then…would it be okay if I asked for something else?” Khem blinked, nodding once more.

“We can be Phii-Nong then.” Pong laughed, not quite crying, feeling cornered into this option by Khem, who left him no other choice.

“But it’s better than having no choice at all.”

“Alright, Phii-Niong then. Oh well, such a pity. Could you come and walk with me to get some food?” Khem nodded eagerly, wanting to buy something for the master and his two friends to eat too, so he replied evasively,

“Hold on, I will treat you to some blended drinks to soothe your spirits.”

Cut back to the scene at the front of the stage, where Pharan was still watching the boxing match, albeit with less concentration.

“Master, Phii Khem and Phii Pong are walking together to buy food. They look so happy and close, don’t they, Thong?”

“Yes, yes, Phii Pong even wiped Phii Khem’s sweat for him, master. Isn’t that enviable, Ekk?”

Pharan regretted not bringing a switch with him today.

 

KHEMJIRA CHAPTERS HOME

KHEMJIRA, Chapter 23:

  After applying the ointment, the master closed the tin, put it back in his pocket, and left, leaving Khem in a state of confusion, his face still flushed and his lips tightly pressed together.

The master was kind to him again…

Khem shook his head, pinching his own thigh to prevent himself from feeling more than he should, because soon the master would likely revert to his cold, indifferent self as usual.

Yes, absolutely no self-indulgent thoughts.

After slapping his cheeks to regain his composure, he stood up and walked towards the stairs on the left side, intending to take another shower before bed.

Unbeknownst to him, Jett was hiding behind a jar, biting his fist to stop the tears, while Chan sat beside him, patting his shoulder in comfort.

The two had intended to tell Khem that they wouldn’t be returning to their room to sleep tonight, and that he should lock the door properly. But seeing that Khem wasn’t in the room, they came looking for him and witnessed the whole scene, choosing to hide behind the jar out of fear of being noticed.

“The master has feelings but doesn’t say so. If he finds out later that I encouraged Khem to move on with Phii Pong, I’m sure I’ll be put in a pot and thrown into the water.” Jett lamented. Chan shook his head.

Not denying the thought that the master might have feelings for Khem, which anyone could see, but shaking his head at Jett’s unfounded fear. How could Chan be the one to get dunked in a pot? Besides, the master wasn’t that irrational.

“Crazy.” Chan seemed to mutter to himself more than anything, causing Jett to turn towards him because he didn’t hear clearly.

“What did you say?” Chan adjusted his glasses and gently swatted a mosquito off Jett’s knee.

“Can you get up now? I’ve been swatting mosquitoes for you until I’m tired. Why do you wear shorts anyway?” Jett glared.

“Let’s get up then, you’re getting more and more annoying by the day!”

By morning, the village chief, who had heard the news from the master the night before, came to the master’s house to take his son to the hospital for further treatment. Father and son paid their respects to the master before leaving.

“I’ve had someone investigate. It seems Klaa knew that Jett and Pong were going to the temple fair together, so he set up an ambush, hoping to harm Pong to prevent him from boxing against him. Unfortunately, we couldn’t catch him due to lack of evidence. Plus, the people at the scene couldn’t even remember what happened last night.” The village chief said, frustrated.

Pharan listened quietly without responding, as it seemed the village chief just wanted to vent his frustration. Without evidence, they had to let it go.

The reason the people involved couldn’t remember wasn’t because they forgot; it was more likely that they had been under some form of magical influence from the beginning.

“…”

“I warned him not to go far from home, to listen to the master’s advice, but he was stubborn and had to go out. I apologize for him disturbing you at this hour.” The village chief continued, giving his son a stern look. However, Pong’s eyes seemed to be constantly searching for someone.

Pharan looked at Pong, then set down his coffee cup and nodded, replying calmly, “Don’t worry too much, Subdistrict Head. It’s just a common illness now. Take him to the doctor quickly.”

The village chief thanked the master for his help before leaving with his son to the hospital.

Pong wanted to say goodbye to Khem and get his phone number before leaving, but it appeared Khem wasn’t around. He didn’t dare ask Pharan for it. In the end, he had to bow to the master and leave without fulfilling his wish.

After they left, Jett, Khem, and Chan returned from the forest behind Pharan’s house, carrying a large bag of oyster mushrooms.

At first, Jett didn’t understand why, out of nowhere, the master wanted chicken tom yum soup with oyster mushrooms that morning, sending them into the woods to fetch some. Fortunately, they didn’t encounter any wild boars or spirits of the forest, as they didn’t have to go deep to fill the bag.

Upon returning, they saw that Phii Pong’s car and the village chief’s car had just left, missing each other by mere minutes, and suddenly everything made sense. Jett was left with his mouth agape at the master’s genius…

But Khem, who was unaware of the situation, upon seeing that Pong had already left, expressed his regret. He remembered how Pong had held his hand to run away from the trouble last night, realizing he hadn’t even thanked him yet.

“Phii Pong has already left. I went through all the trouble of cooking rice thinking I could make some congee for him to eat.”

Jett, who was washing mushrooms in a basin beside him, made a face of disappointment. He wasn’t sure if the master, who was reading the newspaper at the dining table behind them, had heard, so he quickly changed the subject with his close friend.

But there was no way the master didn’t hear.

After finishing their meal, the master called Jett, Khem, and Chan into the storage room to help sort through the old toys in the large glass display cabinet that were still in good condition. They placed these toys into plastic crates to be donated to representatives from the orphanage who were due to visit the village that morning.

These toys in the cabinet were bought by Pharan’s grandfather, but young Pharan didn’t much enjoy playing with typical children’s toys, preferring to collect them instead of playing with them, which meant many items were still in excellent condition.

He had been contemplating what to do with these items for years, whether to donate them, feeling they were a keepsake from his grandfather, and he felt an attachment to them after keeping them for so long, but he also didn’t want to be overly attached to material possessions.

And finally, he decided it was time to donate them.

“Do you guys want to donate anything as well?” The master asked. Chan remembered he had some blank notebooks and a new stationery set he hadn’t used yet. He decided to donate these too, since he had forgotten his old notebooks and pens at home and bought new ones for emergencies, but now he had no need for them.

Jett had several old phones he used for gaming, but brought only two with him.

Lately, he hadn’t been playing much, so he followed Chan out to get them.

As for Khem, he had eight round toy figures he won the previous night; he planned to donate seven and keep one for himself. Decided, he ran after Jett.

Soon, all three returned, placing their items into the crate with the master’s toys.

Pharan looked at Khem’s seven chubby toys with a blank expression before closing the crate and having a disciple take it downstairs.

At that moment, the village chief’s pickup truck pulled up in front of the house, as the master had called ahead to arrange for someone to pick up the donations. The master sat in the passenger seat, while the three kids, after loading the crate, agilely hopped into the back.

When they arrived at the village community hall, the master, in a dark gray long-sleeved collared shirt with the sleeves rolled up, revealing the five-line yantra tattoo on his left arm and the diamond-shaped yantra on his right, wore a black stone bracelet on his left wrist and a tiger skin scroll amulet left by his grandfather.

And something that couldn’t be missed were the sunglasses. Many might wonder why the master always wore them when leaving the house. There were two main reasons: one, the master’s eyes were sensitive to light, possibly due to his irregular sleep schedule; the other, he didn’t want women to look into his eyes because it often led to trouble.

There was even an instance where someone tried to climb into his house, Jett swore this wasn’t made up.

Upon entering the pavilion, the master handed over donations to the representative from the orphanage, along with a sum of money, just like many times before. The orphanage representative only came to collect donations from the villagers here once every two or three months.

Then, they took a photograph, with the photographer being someone from the orphanage. Even though they had asked the master to pose for photos every time they came, they wanted to take another one, seemingly to add to their gallery.

Jett, Khem, and Chan were called to join in the photo. Jett, seeing the master standing still, pushed Khem into place next to the master. Khem, caught off guard, accidentally bumped his nose lightly against the master’s arm.

“Sorry.” Khem closed his eyes, expecting a scolding, but the master merely glanced at him and told him to stand properly. Khem then shot Jett a glare and stepped on his foot, causing Jett to nearly yell from the pain, but Chan, standing beside him, quickly covered Jett’s mouth, just as the photographer snapped the picture…

After that, the four of them walked to visit Grandma-Si at her house. Upon arrival, they saw Grandma-Si baking sweets in the kitchen, the sweet aroma and white smoke of palm sugar sweets wafting out to the front of the house.

The master, Khem, and Chan waited outside while Jett went to call Grandma-Si. Not long after, Grandma-Si came out, with Jett carrying a tray of freshly made palm sugar sweets.

“Come in, come in, sit in the house, let’s cool off with the fan and have some sweets.” Grandma-Si said in the Isan dialect, gesturing for them to enter. With her permission, Khem and Chan took off their shoes and followed the master inside.

Pharan sat on a plastic chair that Jett had brought over, next to Grandma-Si. The others sat around a low wooden table on the floor, with a tray of appetizing palm sugar sweets in front of them, their aroma filling the air.

“Grandma made these sweets just in time, thinking of sending them through the village chief for you all to eat at your place. What brings you here?”

The master, who had taken off his sunglasses and tucked them into his shirt collar, responded in the same dialect with a gentle, deep voice.

“I’ve brought some donations for the children, and heard you weren’t feeling well. So I brought these folks to visit.”

Grandma-Si nodded, her cloudy eyes seeming to sparkle with delight. As an elderly woman without children or grandchildren to look after her, a visit showing concern was something to be happy about.

“I’m much better now. No need to worry, old people are like this, Master. Come, eat.” Grandma-Si said, reaching into the tray to hand the master a plate of palm sugar sweets she had set aside for him, so the children could eat after him.

Once the master had taken a piece, Khem and Jett, who were waiting, smiled and took some for themselves. Chan, however, ate his food more reservedly.

Then Grandma-Si started talking to the master about other things. Khem couldn’t keep up with Jett’s pace and only managed a few pieces before they were all gone. Pharan glanced at Khem for a split second before turning back to answer GrandmaSi, then quietly moved his own plate, still with many pieces left, in front of Khem without looking.

Khem pressed his lips together, glanced at the master, and quickly looked down, mentally steeling himself. Jett, seeing this, tried to grab a piece but was met with Khem slapping his hand away and moving the plate out of reach, warning him like a hissing kitten,

“This is for you!” Grandma-Si laughed fondly, telling everyone to wait a bit longer, that another batch was almost ready and she would pack some for them to take home.

Khem’s warning had done little; they ended up sharing anyway. Khem chewed on the sweets until his cheeks puffed out, thinking he had never tasted sweets as delicious as Grandma-Si’s.

Pharan, catching sight of Khem’s cheek bulging like a rabbit, felt a strange tickle in his chest and decided to look away. When he met Grandma-Si’s gaze, he quickly put his sunglasses back on, saying he would help finish weaving the basket she had left outside before they left, and then he stood up to sit on the bamboo bench in front of the house.

Meanwhile, the others intended to help sweep and mop the house, refill the fridge with water for Grandma-Si, and then head back.

Once they were done, Grandma-Si called Khem into the kitchen, handed him a bag of sweets, peeked outside, and then turned back to Khem to say,

“Listen to me, my dear, it will surely do you good…”

Khem’s face flushed red and hot with embarrassment as he listened.

After returning home, Jett noticed that Khem was acting unusually quiet. He was also frequently sneaking glances at the master, and once they were in the bedroom, it seemed like he was constantly thinking about something.

Finally, Jett couldn’t contain his curiosity any longer and asked,

“What’s wrong with you, Khem? You’ve been acting strange since we got back.” Khem looked at Jett and eventually decided to tell him about everything from last night to what Grandma-Si had said.

Khem couldn’t bring himself to give up on the master, whether it was in the past or the present.

“Jett, don’t judge me.” He said, looking glum, prompting Jett to get up from his bed and sit next to Khem on the bed, gently patting his head to comfort him.

“I won’t judge you, you can’t clap with just one hand. Last night, I saw that the master made the first move!”

Khem’s eyes widened, and he playfully punched his friend’s leg, his face turning red.

“Peeping, huh? That’s not a good trait, Jett!” Chan, who was chanting and paying respects, wanted to kick Jett out of the room, feeling like he had been insulted too.

“Forget about last night, let’s talk about what Grandma-Si said. I was a bit surprised that Grandma-Si understood this kind of thing.” Jett referred to the love between two men.

Grandma-Si had asked Khem if he loved the master romantically, then advised him to do this:

Jett knew that Grandma-Si loved the master like a real grandson and was worried about him because even now he hadn’t married. Perhaps she didn’t want the master’s later life to be like hers, so she encouraged Khem to do what he wanted to do, say what he wanted to say, so he wouldn’t regret it later like she did when she lost her beloved when she was young.

If the master had someone to look after him, Grandma-Si could die in peace.

“Should we go for it? I’ll keep watch nearby, don’t worry.”

Khem’s eyes welled up with tears, grateful that Jett understood and didn’t judge him for not being able to let go of his feelings for the master. He nodded, determined to follow Grandma-Si’s advice.

Chan felt uneasy, wanting to advise Khem against it, but he didn’t want to go against anyone’s belief. In the end, he just went along and stood behind the same pillar as Jett.

It was quite late now. Khem thought the master must be asleep, so he walked to stand in front of the master’s bedroom door, clasped his hands together, and recited the spell Grandma-Si had given him:

“Ya Metta, Mo Karuna, Buddha Pranee, Tha Yindee, Ya Endu, Dua Namoputtaya.”

Then, Khem took out a can of cooling powder from his underarm. Normally, Khem would use regular baby powder, but since it was out, he used the cooling powder instead. He poured some into his left hand, used his other index finger to swirl the powder in three circles, took a deep breath, and blew towards the priest’s room door.

Unfortunately, at that very moment, the bedroom door opened.

The master’s face, already pale, became even paler. Khem stood there, frozen like a stone, hearing Jett’s voice faintly telling him, “Hey Chan, run!”

Khem stood there with his eyes wide for several more seconds before slowly turning around.

KHEMJIRA CHAPTERS HOME

KHEMJIRA, Chapter 22:

  It took about forty minutes to travel to the temple fair in the district, which was lively with lights, sounds, and people. The roads were constantly busy, contrasting with the peacefulness of the village where master Pharan lived.

Pong let the kids off at the temple entrance so he could go find a parking spot. Jett suggested they wait near the stage where the traditional Thai music was being performed.

Jett and Khem walked into the fair together, with Chan following behind, passing through numerous street food stalls towards the stage area to find a place to sit. Jett and Khem stood waiting while Chan went to rent a large mat for them to sit on.

Not long after, Phii Pong arrived, bringing with him several items of food.

“Nong Khem, I bought this for you.” Phii Pong said as he handed over a cup of buttery popcorn that Khem had been eyeing since they entered the temple gate, but had decided against buying due to the long line, not wanting to make Jett and Chan wait.

Khem’s mouth slightly dropped open in surprise, not expecting Phii Pong to go through the trouble of lining up to buy it for him. He quickly bowed his head in thanks before accepting it with both hands.

“Thank you, Phii Pong.” Khem gave a little smile, his eyes sparkling with joy, forgetting his previous reserved manners as he eagerly started eating.

Pong’s heart raced, the name ‘Phii Pong’ echoing in his ears like a ringing bell, which filled him with such contentment that he didn’t feel like eating anything else.

Seeing the sweet look in Phii Pong’s eyes and the single serving of popcorn, Jett immediately concluded that Phii Pong was interested in Khem. Rumors had circulated since their school days that Phii Pong had an interest in men.

Jett nodded to himself. If Phii Pong was serious, he was ready to help, as the other man wasn’t bad; he didn’t drink alcohol or smoke, being an athlete, and he was financially stable. But for now, they would have to take things slowly until they could handle the issues with Khem’s karmic debts.

After finishing the popcorn, Khem suddenly thought of the master. It was a pity that the master couldn’t enjoy these delicious foods, but if he had come, there would be no one to watch over the house. If it were Khem, he probably wouldn’t dare to leave the entire teak wood Thai house unattended to go on a long outing either.

“Jett, can we buy some food to take back for the master?” Khem asked, turning to Jett, who was stretching, preparing to go and dance in front of the stage. Jett nodded.

“Sure. You buy them, and I’ll give them to the master myself.” Khem smiled and nodded quickly.

“Can I come too? I want to buy something for my mom and my sister as well.” Pong added.

“That’s great, brother. Then, could you buy something for my friends too? I’m going to dance for a bit. Come on, Chan, get up.” Chan, who was savoring the last meatball, was pulled by the collar from behind and had to let go of his food to follow.

“Greetings to all the friends and fans of the Mor La Sing Isan singing troupe…”

“There it is! Come on, Chan!”

Khem could only wave his hand in the air as he heard the host’s voice and the drummer’s beat, while Jett dragged Chan towards the stage, running so fast that dust flew without waiting for Khem’s objection. In the end, Khem had to go shopping with Phii Pong alone.

Memories from the past came flooding back; Khem and the master in their previous life often went to temple fairs together. Grilled squid was something Phawat loved to eat…

  Khem gazed at the grilled squid stall, until Pong, walking beside him, asked,

“Nong Khem, do you want some? I’ll go stand in line for you.” Khem looked at Pong, shook his head, and then smiled.

“No, let’s go to that stall instead.” Khem pointed to a vegetarian spring roll stall a few shops down.

From what Khem had observed, the master in this life didn’t really enjoy eating meat.

Pong nodded with a smile.

“Okay, let’s go then.”

Cut to the front of the stage. The crowd had made space for the dancers.

“Here comes the shining star, the young politician!”

“Go, Jett, don’t let your father’s name down!” As soon as Jett took his usual spot, he received cheers from those who recognized him. Jett smiled, raising his fist to the sky, ensuring that this performance would not disappoint anyone.

Chan did not join them in that area, merely standing at a distance, occasionally glancing left and right because he had a feeling that something bad was about to happen soon.

The sound of drums started up again after the female singer had finished her introduction.

“Listen up, brothers and sisters, the magpie bird flies over the bamboo tip, who’s got something big, let’s hear you shout now!”

At that moment, Jett responded with a loud shout, catching the attention of the man standing next to him, but Jett paid no mind, raising his hands to dance as the melodious sound of the traditional Thai instrument, the phin, came from the speakers.

Soon, the rhythm shifted to a waltz, with the sound of the phin blending with drums, guitar, and heavy bass. Chan was taken aback when Jett began to perform an array of dance moves that resembled dancing worms, mango snatching, hair combing, applying powder while looking in the mirror, and many more moves that were hard to name.

All Chan knew was that he wanted to stop being friends with Jett right then and there.

Jett let go and lost himself to the music and rhythm, unaware that someone had him in their sights. As he was swaying his hips in high spirits, someone’s foot kicked him from behind, nearly making him fall forward.

“Damn, who did that!” Jett turned around angrily, only to clench his teeth when he saw who it was.

“Hey, long time no see, huh?”

“Klaa!” Klaa was Jett’s peer from school, though they were in different classes, and he was the nephew of a black magic practitioner whose relationship with the master was not great, which naturally reflected on their own relationship.

“Yeah, it’s me. What’s your problem?”

“I should be the one asking, kicking someone out of the blue. Are you stupid?”

As soon as he finished speaking, Klaa’s friends who were standing behind him stepped forward, each of them giving Jett intimidating looks. Realizing how many there were, Jett instinctively took a step back.

At that moment, even the music and singing paused for a second, though they continued with a sense of caution.

Chan thought Jett’s dance moves must have provoked someone, so he hurried over.

“Khun Jett, what’s going on?” Jett, seeing the number of people on the other side and then looking at his own friend, started sweating. He grabbed Chan’s shirt and said briefly,

“Run.”

Pong noticed that Khem wasn’t very lively, so he invited him to shoot at the toy booth in the amusement area. With ten bullets, Pong shot down several toys and hung them around Khem’s neck since Khem couldn’t hit any, barely managing to hold the gun up…

After that, they went on the kiddie train and the carousel, which helped Khem relax and let go of many things. He thanked Pong several times and bought two sticks of grilled pork skewers because that was all he could afford from the five thousand baht the master had given him, intending to use the rest for groceries for the master before returning to Bangkok.

Pong observed Khem looking lost in thought, seemingly missing someone, and decided he should do something. He asked Khem to wait there and went to buy some cotton candy on a stick. When he returned, he handed it to Khem and said,

“Khem, I like you. Not as a brother, I mean, I like men. If you feel the same way, would you give me a chance to court you?” Khem was taken aback, mouth agape, as he hadn’t expected this confession so soon. He had an inkling of how Pong felt about him, but not that it would come out so quickly.

However, even if given more time, Khem knew he wouldn’t be able to reciprocate Phii Pong’s feelings.

“I…” Khem hadn’t finished his refusal when a commotion from behind made him turn around. It was Jett and Chan leading a large group of young people running towards them.

Pong’s eyes widened when he saw who was leading the group; it was his upcoming boxing opponent.

Seeing Pong, the leader grinned and reached into his pocket, pulling out some tamarind leaves, which he then used to chant a spell. Soon, the leaves transformed into dozens of hornets in a magical display, though the villagers and vendors couldn’t see them.

“Phii Pong, Khem, run!” Pong, sensing danger, grabbed Khem’s hand and ran towards the back of the temple where there was a pagoda filled with urns. Jett and Chan followed closely, with some hornets stinging along the way until they reached the temple wall, where they were cornered.

Jett and Chan turned to face their adversaries, protecting Khem and Phii Pong.

They clasped their hands together and chanted in unison,

“Pah, Nah, Tah, Mah!” This was a spell to momentarily immobilize enemies with malevolent intent. Although hornets could be conjured similarly, Jett and Chan didn’t have the materials to act as a medium for this spell. Moreover, if not controlled properly, this magic could backfire, harming themselves or innocent bystanders.

But Klaa lived up to his name in the worst ways possible, regrettably!

Since Jett and Chan had practiced meditation well and both had strong wills, the spell they chanted worked effectively. When everyone stopped moving, Jett quickly spoke up.

“Phii Pong, the car keys, please.” Pong, guessing what Jett was planning, immediately handed over the keys.

“Chan, take Khem to the car and drive to the exit. Phii Pong and I will follow later.” Chan nodded, quickly taking the keys.

“Let’s go, Khun Khem.” Chan said to Khem. Khem was worried about Jett. Although he didn’t know what was happening, he understood the situation was bad, and his presence would only be a burden.

“Jett, Phii Pong, be careful.” Jett nodded repeatedly, and Pong smiled, pleased that Khem was concerned. Then, Khem and Chan ran off to one side.

On their way, Ekk, who had come out to prevent ghosts from the graveyard from obstructing them, helped them get to the car without issues.

Back to Jett and Pong, after Chan had taken Khem away, they quickly used physical force to deal with the larger number of opponents before the spell wore off.

At the Thai house, Thong, who had rushed back, reported the situation to Pharan, who was meditating in the shrine room.

Upon hearing the report, Pharan’s sharp eyes opened. He stood up, went to the storage room, and retrieved a jar full of tamarind leaves, no less than ten thousand, took them downstairs, and then poured them out, chanting a spell with a calm voice:

“Turn into wasps.”

Because Chan, who was part of the spell, had left, the immobilizing spell quickly dissipated. As Jett was still exchanging blows with Klaa, and Klaa was about to pull out more tamarind leaves to summon more wasps, suddenly the moonlight dimmed, and a loud buzzing filled the air above.

“Shit!” Klaa and his followers were startled by the sight. The sky, once lit by the moon, was now filled with an immense swarm of wasps, clearly sent by someone.

But among those with magical abilities that Klaa had encountered, at most they could conjure just a thousand hornets!

Klaa knew ‘who’ had sent these hornets, but they were only meant to intimidate him since the other party didn’t want to cause trouble with his master or uncle, and had been avoiding any direct confrontation with his uncle.

However, Klaa had no intention of backing down. If he were to be attacked by this swarm, he wouldn’t die but would certainly be in a bad shape.

“Damn it, just wait, you’ll get yours!”

Once Klaa and his gang ran off, Pong immediately fainted. Luckily, Jett caught him in time.

Jett saw red rashes slowly appearing on Phii Pong’s face and body, along with his body temperature rising, which made him exclaim in panic,

“Oh crap!”

And when he looked up to see the swarm of hornets still hovering, as if urging them to hurry back, he felt like banging his head against a pagoda to escape the blame.

Upon returning home, the three kids quickly carried Phii Pong up to see the master.

Pong, who had no protective amulets against magic, naturally couldn’t handle being attacked by magically conjured hornets. This was unlike Chan and Jett, who, despite having swollen faces, felt no pain.

Thus, when learning to cast spells, one must also learn to counteract them.

Besides providing medicine, Pharan didn’t intend to help further; Jett and Chan had to treat Pong on their own. The matter of their punishment would be discussed the next day.

After that, they parted ways. Jett and Chan couldn’t rest because they needed to heal Phii Pong by that night. They had learned enough from the master about treating ailments caused by magical means.

Khem came downstairs, intending to sit and feed the dog the spring rolls he had bought, which were now in a mess from running away from the gang, making them unappetizing. He didn’t dare offer them to the master.

But before he could sit down, someone who had been standing behind him since who knows when tugged at his shirt collar with a finger.

Khem jolted and turned to face the master, quickly hiding the bag of spring rolls behind his back.

“Master…”

“What are you doing?” Khem looked into the master’s eyes, thinking he already knew, so he lowered his gaze and answered softly.

“I…I bought spring rolls, but they’re all mushy now. So, I was going to feed them to Dang…”

“For whom did you buy them?” Khem bit his lip gently before answering.

“For you, master.”

“If it’s for me, put them on a plate.” Khem glanced at the master’s face briefly and then looked down, unsure.

“But, they’re mushy now, sir.”

“I can eat them.”

Khem pinched himself to not show his happiness, nodded, and went to put the spring rolls on a plate, setting it on the table for the master.

“Please, enjoy.”

Pharan sat down, looking at the plate of spring rolls filled with vegetables that he liked. Though his face didn’t show it, he ate them all with his head bowed. When he finished, Khem, who had been waiting to clear the plate, did his duty, looking at the empty plate and repeatedly telling himself not to be too happy.

After washing the dishes, he came out of the kitchen, but seeing the master still there, he hesitated to walk past.

“Sit here.” The master said, looking at him intently. Khem saw a nearby chair being pulled out and, curious, walked over to sit.

Pharan took out a tin of herbal medicine, opened it, and touched the ointment with his fingertip.

“Stay still.” He said, gently applying it to Khem’s clear temple, where there was a red, swollen mark from a wasp sting.

It was a good decision to send Ekk and Thong to follow them. Otherwise, he might have ended up like Pong…

  Khem stared at the master, but when their eyes met, he quickly looked away, his heart beating so hard it felt like it might leap out, his hands clenched tightly in his lap.

  Pharan noticed the red streaks covering both of Khem’s cheeks before looking down at the several talismans hanging around his neck, speaking softly as he moved his finger to apply the ointment to the other temple.

  “Tomorrow, the orphanage will come to pick up donations. Anything you don’t use or can’t use anymore, donate it for the children’s benefit.”

KHEMJIRA CHAPTERS HOME

KHEMJIRA, Chapter 21:

  Why did he have to touch someone he’d just met for the first time…

  That was the thought that crossed Pharan’s mind as he intervened.

Pharan returned to his room to meditate, calming his mind and heart, reflecting repeatedly on his actions because what he had done was not befitting of his role and age.

If the consequences of revisiting the past were this impactful, one would need to be much more cautious in the future…

Three days after that day, Khem followed Jett’s advice diligently. He woke up early to clean the house and cook, spent his free time meditating and listening to Dhamma talks on the radio, and when he was bored, he would sketch around the area of the master’s traditional Thai house. He didn’t venture outside the premises for his own safety.

Most importantly, Khem avoided encountering the master. If there was no necessity, he barely went through the central area where ceremonies were held, which he used to sneak glances at multiple times a day. Now it was down to once or twice a day…

Khem really wanted to clasp his hands and apologize to Jett, but ignoring the master entirely was something he couldn’t do.

Currently, Khem was making palm fruit in syrup, as Auntie-Kaew had brought some palm fruit over that morning on her sidecar motorcycle. Once done, Khem planned to portion some into bags for Auntie-Kaew.

When it was lunchtime, Jett and Chan came down to the kitchen to find Khem. They helped carry the food to eat on the bamboo bed. Having just finished making the sweet, Khem turned off the stove to eat first, planning to enjoy the dessert later, not forgetting to set aside a portion for the master as usual.

“Khem, let’s go to the market today.”

Jett said with a good mood, looking forward to going out.

“Oh, isn’t the village chief free today?” Khem asked while blinking, since usually, the village chief was the one who bought the ingredients.

“Yeah, Grandma-Si isn’t feeling well, so the village chief took her to the doctor in town.” Jett answered.

Hearing that, Khem quickly asked, “What’s wrong with Grandma-Si?”

“It seems just a normal cold, nothing serious. Elderly people can get sick easily with a little wind or rain.” Khem nodded, relieved by Jett’s explanation since Grandma-Si had lost her husband less than two years after they married and had no children, choosing to remain single. If it had been something serious, Khem worried there’d be no one to take care of her.

“Let’s find time to visit Grandma-Si.”

“Yeah, I was thinking of helping to fill up her fridge.”

Chan sat quietly, listening while serving the food onto the plates for Jett and Khem, to keep their conversation flowing. This act had only recently become a habit, almost as if it happened naturally without much thought, and with repetition, it had become a routine.

Today, since the three kids needed to go to the market, Pharan decided to let Jett and Chan off early. He walked downstairs to have lunch in the afternoon, after the children had already eaten. This was his routine to avoid direct encounters with Khem.

Khem was aware that the master was avoiding him. Whenever the master came down to eat, he would usually excuse himself to do something else. But today, Khem had made a dessert, so he stayed to serve it after the master finished his meal.

“Master, would you like some sugar palm in syrup?” Khem asked, coming out of the kitchen, his head bowed and hands clasped behind the chair where the master was sitting. Pharan, who was about to leave, sat back down and simply said,

“Bring it over.” Khem pinched himself, trying not to get too excited, reminding himself that the master was an easy eater who would consume whatever was prepared. Even if it wasn’t made by Khem, the master would eat it. So, he turned to serve the aromatic sugar palm in syrup into a bowl and placed it in front of the master. After setting it down, he intended to leave, but the master called him back.

“Wait.” That was all the master said before he started to slowly taste the dessert Khem had made. In less than three minutes, he had finished it all, including the syrup, then stood up and turned to face Khem, who was still standing there with his head down.

Five thousand baht in banknotes were handed to him.

“Here’s for the groceries. Buy enough for a week, and use the rest to get yourselves some clothes and necessities.” Pharan said, noticing that the three kids were wearing the same clothes repeatedly.

“No, it’s okay, Master, I mean…” Khem shook his head, hesitating to refuse out of politeness, but then he thought about the others, knowing he couldn’t refuse on their behalf. Perhaps Jett and Chan needed it, and five thousand baht seemed like quite a lot.

Khem was still contemplating when he heard the master sigh, which made him feel guilty and unable to refuse. He just pressed his lips together.

In the end, the five thousand baht was folded in half by the master and slipped into the pocket of Khem’s short-sleeved shirt. Then the master turned and walked away immediately.

Khem felt downcast but knew he shouldn’t refuse the master’s kindness. He decided he would discuss with Jett and Chan how to best use this money.

At three in the afternoon, Jett and Chan were released from their training room. One of the disciples brought a pickup truck for the kids to drive to the market as requested by the village chief. The disciple went up to pay his respects to the master, had a brief conversation, and then came back downstairs. He then rode back home on a motorcycle with his wife who had come to pick him up.

“Who’s driving?” Khem asked as they were all getting ready in the room. He himself couldn’t drive a car, could manage a bicycle, but wasn’t confident with a motorcycle. Most of the time, he just walked wherever he needed to go.

“I’ll drive.” Said Jett while applying face powder at the vanity mirror. Khem, who was applying sunscreen from a packet beside him, was slightly taken aback.

“Jett, you can drive a car too? I didn’t know that.”

“Yeah, I’ve been driving since I was fourteen. My dad taught me.”

Khem nodded, thinking it was somewhat enviable, but he was too scared to learn to drive himself. Walking was more comforting. He then turned to ask Chan, who was styling his hair with gel.

“What about you, Chan? Can you drive a car?” Chan nodded, looking at Khem through his thick-lensed glasses.

“I can manage, but my mom doesn’t let me drive much because of my poor eyesight.” Khem made a sympathetic face, and Chan smiled, lightly ruffling Khem’s hair as if to say it wasn’t a big deal.

Once they were ready, they all got into the old but well-kept white pickup truck and headed straight to the Saturday market in the sub-district.

The weather was quite hot, and the market was starting to get crowded, so the three decided to shop quickly and head back. Besides buying ingredients, Jett, Khem, and Chan each selected three sets of clothes.

Most were local cotton outfits made by the villagers, along with some personal items, as they would be heading back to Bangkok in just a week.

But they hadn’t expected to bump into Pong, the village chief’s son whom they had met three days prior while at the market.

Today, Pong was tasked with being the driver for his mother and sister, but seeing the crowd, he decided to wait near the market exit instead of joining them.

Initially feeling bored because his mother and sister were taking too long, his annoyance vanished upon seeing Khem, whom he didn’t expect to see again. He was filled with joy and quickly approached to greet him.

“Hello, Khem. So we meet again.” Pong smiled, his eyes sparkling. Although Khem was startled, he gave a small smile and returned the greeting with a wai, knowing that Pong was several years older.

“Hello, Khun Pong.”

“Oh, Phii Pong, hello!” Jett, who had just followed Khem and was haggling over the price of fresh chicken, greeted Pong.

Jett and Pong knew each other quite well since their families were both in government service, their homes were close by, and they had known each other since childhood when Jett was small and not very good at fighting, often needing Pong to protect him.

“Chan, meet Pong, another of the master’s disciples.” Jett took the opportunity to introduce Chan to Pong.

Chan just smiled in greeting and slightly bowed his head since his hands were occupied.

“Hello, oh, you’ve bought a lot. How are you getting back? Want me to give you a ride?” Pong asked enthusiastically, hoping to score points with Khem, but Jett shook his head.

“No need to trouble you, Phii. We’ve got a pickup truck.”

“Oh, really…” Pong said with disappointment. Khem quickly averted his gaze. At that moment, Jett sensed something but didn’t comment.

Seeing that they had met anyway, Pong didn’t want to miss the chance to get to know Khem better, so he brought up another topic.

“How about you guys come with me to the temple fair tonight? There’ll be a folk music performance. If you’re going, I can pick you up this evening.”

Upon hearing the word “folk music.” Jett’s ears perked up and his eyes sparkled with excitement. His blood started to boil with the same fervor he felt back in high school. Jett never missed temple fairs, merit-making events, or any gatherings where there was a stage for folk music!

“Khem, do you want to go? The district temple has a big fair every year with lots of food and games.” Jett said, eyes wide for effect, making it clear he didn’t really need to ask Khem’s opinion…

“Well, if the master allows us to go, we’ll go. What about you, Chan, do you want to go?” Khem turned to ask Chan, elbowing Jett who was pressuring him with his gaze.

Chan nodded.

“I’m fine either way, but we should ask the master first, like Khem said.” Khem nodded in agreement, and Jett then turned to smile at Phii Pong.

“That’s fine, Phii Pong. I’ll call you again later, Phii.”

Pong, who was about to ask for Khem’s contact information, quickly shut his mouth and nodded to Jett, deciding to wait until after the outing to ask.

“Then we’ll head out first, Phii, take care.”

“Sure, drive safely.” He gave a small smile to Khem, who merely bowed his head in response before following Jett, with Chan bringing up the rear.

Upon returning home, after preparing the meal for the master, the three of them hurried back to the house to ask for his permission. Jett volunteered to be the brave one, crawling close to the master and clasping his hands in a wai.

“Master, there’s a temple fair in town today. Can we go?”

Pharan immediately gave Jett a sharp look, as Ekk, who had accompanied them to the market, had already reported to him. He knew who had invited them and what the intentions were, but he didn’t explicitly forbid it.

“Are you sure you can take care of yourselves?”

Khem kept his head down, avoiding eye contact with the master. Chan stayed silent, while only Jett stood up confidently, sure of the skills he had learned over the past days under the master’s rigorous training. No ghost or person could easily mess with them.

“I won’t let the name of the master’s student be tarnished!”

Pharan nodded with a hint of annoyance, because every time they said this, something always happened. But it was good for them to go out; he would have some quiet time alone.

“You have until midnight.” Jett almost jumped to hug the master but restrained himself, instead nodding rapidly and giving the master a leg massage in flattery.

For a moment, Pharan’s eyes met Khem’s, who was looking, and soon they both looked away.

Having received permission, they quickly went to bathe and dress up with excitement and joy, applying powder and cologne until the scent reached the village entrance. Soon, Phii Pong arrived in his four-door pickup truck to pick them up at the house steps.

When Pong arrived, he first went to pay respects to the master to get permission to take the kids out, also mentioning the sacred armband he planned to wear for a match that the master had promised to make. He thought it would be ready by tomorrow or the day after.

Once the three kids were dressed, they crawled over to sit beside Pong in the main part of the house. Pong turned to look at Khem, who was wearing a light yellow T-shirt, and smiled with affection. Today, Khem looked particularly cute.

But before long, a strong gust of wind passed through, making Pong look around for the source, but finding nothing unusual, he furrowed his brows and said,

“Is it going to rain, or should we hurry?” Jett quickly nodded in agreement, and all four of them went to say goodbye to the master before heading to the parked truck downstairs.

Once they reached the truck, Pong rushed to open the door for Khem, who smiled and slightly bowed his head in thanks.

Pharan stood on the porch of the house, watching the four of them with an unreadable expression, which subtly conveyed a slight hint of displeasure…

It was at that moment that Khem turned to look back at the master, his heart skipping a beat, but he didn’t want to read too much into the master’s gaze or assume it was disapproval.

Khem thought that in this short amount of time, he wouldn’t be able to detach himself from the master as everyone might expect. So, acting this way would probably ease the situation for everyone. He slowly turned back to smile at Phii Pong before getting into the truck, allowing the other to close the door for him.

The four-door pickup truck had long since driven away from Pharan’s Thai house, but he remained standing there, his brows furrowed as he recognized a stronger wave of his own displeasure.

Even after several minutes had passed, the image of Khem smiling back at Pong was still vivid in his mind.

Instead of returning to his room to sleep as he had planned, he changed his mind and headed straight to the shrine room to meditate.

“Thong, Ekk.” Pharan called out after closing his eyes for a while. Soon, the two boys appeared, responding in unison,

“Yes, Master.”

“Go keep an eye on them.” Ekk and Thong held back their smiles, one of them wanting to tease the master a bit more, so he asked with an innocent face,

“And if they split up, who should I follow, Master?”

  Pharan opened his eyes, his hand now gripping a cane that had been beside him, which made the twin spirits’ mouths drop open in surprise. They quickly stood up and dashed through the wooden wall.

KHEMJIRA CHAPTERS HOME

KHEMJIRA, Chapter 20:

  Chan quickly stood up in shock as Khem suddenly started crying. Seeing Khem’s behavior, Jett got goosebumps, something screaming in his head that this was bad. He dropped the broom and dragged his little friend to sit on the bench under the mango tree.

“Khem, what are you hiding from me? Tell me everything!” Jett accidentally raised his voice at Khem, causing Chan, who was standing nearby, to intervene while pointing at Khem, who was now sobbing heavily.

“Khun Jett, calm down first, can’t you see Khun Khem is crying even more now?” Jett pinched the bridge of his nose to relieve stress and then hugged his friend.

“Oh, I’m sorry. Go ahead and cry it out, there, there.”

Khem hadn’t intended to cry…but all these feelings were being filtered out by memories from past lives that the master had once told him to forget. Thinking that the master might soften his heart for that woman named Prim, his chest ached painfully.

After crying until he felt slightly better, although tears still flowed and his body was still hiccupping lightly, Khem moved away from Jett’s shoulder, his head down with embarrassment, wiping his tears.

“Jett, Chan. I’m sorry.”

“Khem. You and the master have something going on, right? I’ve been puzzled ever since the master refused to take you as a disciple, and then he said some weird things.” Jett asked with a tense voice, his eyebrows furrowed. Initially, he intended to wait until he was sure before asking, but now things seemed to be getting clearer.

Khem pressed his lips together tightly, looked up to meet the eyes of his two friends, his round eyes quivering, until Chan softly asked,

“Khun Khem…do you like the master?”

“Uh…” That question was like a bolt of lightning striking Jett’s head. He was about to turn and curse at Chan for being so direct, especially when Chan had just advised him to stay calm!

Khem started crying again, nodding and shaking his head, looking utterly confused.

“Me and the master, hic, we were lovers in a past life.” Jett’s mouth dropped open; a second bolt of lightning struck the same spot, followed by a third, fourth, and fifth as Khem recounted everything, including how both he and the master had shared a past life and had revisited those moments together, as well as what had happened in the middle of the night.

Both Jett and Chan believed Khem’s entire story without reservation.

“Actually, I wasn’t asleep that day either.” Chan said. Usually, he was a light sleeper, and because the house was made of wood, footsteps were clearer than in a concrete house. The faint scent of incense told Chan it was the master who had entered, but he thought the master was just checking on them, so he didn’t bother to open his eyes to look.

Khem nodded, “I’m sorry, even though the master is your master, and yet, hic.”

Khem wanted to forget, tried to forget, but he couldn’t. As long as he saw the master’s face every day like this, there was no way Khem could forget…

  Chan, imagining a future where they both decided to be together, nodded in agreement.

“For me, the master is just an ordinary person. Not a monk forbidden to marry or start a family. Whom he loves or likes, or how Khun Khem feels, that’s a matter between both of you. Khun Khem, you don’t have to worry about this.”

Jett nodded, but his expression didn’t improve; it actually looked worse.

“That thing. If you and the master both like each other, that’s fine, I wouldn’t mind, it would be good knowing someone would take care of the master in his later years. But from what you’ve told me, that’s not the case now, right?” Jett’s words felt like a lump stuck in Khem’s throat, and Khem couldn’t deny that the master had always set clear boundaries with him.

It was only Khem who harbored one-sided feelings for the master…

Seeing the pain and confusion still in Khem’s eyes, Jett further emphasized the truth about the master he knew.

“I’ve known the master since I was a kid, and he’s always been a man of his word. When he said he wouldn’t help you, he meant it. He only took in Chan because he wanted to pass on his knowledge, so there would be someone to help you in the future, even though the master usually doesn’t take just anyone as a student. That’s already him bending his rules for us…”

Yes, so Khem shouldn’t complicate things for the master any further.

Everything seemed dark to Khem; wherever he turned, he was haunted by old memories, especially those from just a few days apart when they parted in such pain, reminding him of the hurt from not being able to change anything.

Moreover, in this life, Khem was a man, which might be one of the reasons why the master rejected him.

With tears in his eyes, Khem asked softly,

“What…what should I do, Jett?” Jett pulled Khem into another hug, gently patting his back in comfort, although his words felt like sharp spears piercing his best friend’s heart.

“Let it go, Khem, just let everything go. It’s hard, but I’ll help you, trust me.”

Khem closed his eyes tightly before breaking down in tears he could no longer hold back.

“Ugh…” Khem was like a fragile glass that had shattered repeatedly, like a small creature wounded all over, yet still struggling to breathe.

Chan had no words to add because he agreed with Jett’s sentiments. He could only stand silently, shielding his friends from the sun…

Pharan led village chief Chang, along with his daughter and son, upstairs to the house. They sat down in positions that were level with each other but at a certain distance, as the others were not his students who needed to show him reverence.

They were like the forest and the tiger, interdependent.

For the village to receive funding, it was exchanged for sacred items and assistance from his magical abilities, as long as it wasn’t beyond his capacity, like in this case.

The master asked Prim and Pong to write down their birth dates on paper and give it to him. He then calculated the numbers and gave a prediction based on what he saw.

However, in the midst of silence, Pong suddenly clasped his hands together and spoke up.

“Master, could you do me first, please? Uh…I need to use the bathroom.”   chief Chang glared at him.

“I told you not to drink so much water!”

Pong, still with his hands clasped, raised them over his head in a gesture of apology, and Pharan glanced at him briefly before switching to Pong’s birth date paper.

“Before the fight, try not to leave home much. As for the sacred item, I’ll make an armband for the boxer and send it to your house, but it’ll take about three to four days.”

The armband Pharan referred to wasn’t just a piece of cloth with magical inscriptions; it was a specific type of equipment boxers wear around their upper arms during fights, considered a talisman for protection and invulnerability, made from cloth or sacred thread inscribed with magical symbols, sometimes containing herbs, yantra scrolls, or other amulets inside.

Pong smiled broadly, his hands clasped over his head in gratitude.

“Thank you so much, Master. Uh, may I use the restroom?”

“Go ahead.” Once given permission, he quickly excused himself and went downstairs.

Pharan then turned back to Prim’s birth details, furrowing his brows as he calculated, before shaking his head and sighing silently to himself.

“Khun Prim doesn’t have a fate for accidents, but she does have health issues. It would be better if you rest more during this period.”

Prim blushed because it was evident she often had minor accidents due to overworking herself and not getting enough rest, though she had covered it up with makeup, and her father couldn’t tell, leading him to make up an excuse to bring her to see the master.

“Oh.” when he turned to see her gaze, she was startled and gave a dry, sweet smile instead. Then, she took the opportunity to talk and catch up with the master as planned, especially since this was the first time she had a chance to be in the house.

“Is the master well?”

Pharan nodded with a softened demeanor, a mix of resignation and fondness for the young woman, because despite her age nearing thirty, Prim still hadn’t decided to settle down with anyone. She was only a couple of years younger than him.

For Pharan, Prim was like a little sister who grew up alongside him, someone he had known since childhood, so he never thought of her in any other way, even if she didn’t feel the same and had declared she would only let go when he got married. But this couldn’t change his feelings.

“I’m fine, and how about you, Khun Prim?”

“Ha ha, as you can see, I’ve been busy with work lately, so I haven’t been sleeping much…”

The initial solution to the issue between Khem and the master was this: after Khem agreed to let go of his feelings for the master as suggested by Jett, the approach was for Khem to avoid meeting the master. If they had to meet, he should keep his behavior and words reserved, like a layperson speaking to a monk.

As for the master, Jett would continue to keep an eye on him because, in reality, there weren’t many who truly understood the master well enough to see through him. But because of this, he didn’t want Khem to take such a risk, as if the master truly didn’t like him, Khem would be the one to suffer the most.

Jett and Chan decided they needed to master their skills quickly and take Khem back to Bangkok as soon as possible.

Khem understood and was aware. When Jett gave him a straightforward reminder, he regained some composure. Even though it was hard, he had to try. He reminded himself not to trouble the master and to look at his own situation.

While sweeping leaves, lost in thought, he backed into someone in the kitchen.

“Sorry.” Khem quickly moved away, bowing his head in apology. The other person was a tall, well-built man with tanned skin and an undercut hairstyle, who was blinking at Khem in confusion.

“Who are you? I’ve never seen you before. What’s your name?” Instead of accepting the apology, the man asked in a friendly manner, addressing Khem with ‘casual mung’, which Khem found a bit awkward, making him more inclined to want to run away.

“Uh, my name is Khem.” He said, and then the man standing opposite him had a strange glint in his eyes, causing Khem to lower his gaze.

“Such a cute name. I’m Pong, nice to meet you.” Khem was about to bow in greeting, but instead, Pong extended his hand, so Khem had to lower his hand and offer a handshake instead.

However, before they could shake hands, Khem felt a chilling cold on his back, and someone standing behind him passed a scripture through Khem to Pong.

“You have a tendency to get hurt physically during this period. I recommend you recite the thirty-fourth verse before sleeping every night, Pong.” Pharan said calmly, yet suddenly Pong felt a chill down his spine. The image of Master Pharan standing protectively behind Khem seemed like a warning to back off. Therefore, Pong clasped his hands in respect, took the scripture, gave a stiff smile to Khem, and then walked away to find his father and sister. Even though he felt it was a pity to let someone so much to his liking slip away.

Khem stood silent, head bowed, not responding to the master, until he heard the master’s quiet command.

“Finish sweeping the leaves and then go prepare the meal. When it’s done, cover it with a lid, and I’ll come down to eat.”

Khem looked at the table and saw that the lid the master referred to was one he had made since that morning. After giving his instructions, the master walked away, leaving Khem standing there alone.

  And he said I didn’t need to make it…

  Khem wanted to ask but didn’t dare, so he just took a deep breath, trying not to think too much about the master’s actions, believing that the master must have his reasons for behaving this way.

  “Don’t waver, Khem. Otherwise, Jett will surely beat you to death.” He told himself three times before heading to the kitchen to prepare the food as instructed.

KHEMJIRA CHAPTERS HOME

KHEMJIRA, Chapter 19:

  The next day, Khem, Jett, and Chan woke up at five in the morning, got up to clean the house and prepare breakfast for the master. Most of the ingredients were vegetables and fruits grown by the villagers and brought to the master. For meat, the master would have the village chief buy it from the market every week.

The master ate simply. He didn’t have any particular favorite foods, so Khem prepared dishes he was most skilled at, like clear tom yum soup with stir-fried Chinese kale in oyster sauce, omelet with acacia leaves, and garlic pork. Chan, who could cook a bit, assisted. Jett, besides cooking rice, wasn’t good at much else and was afraid of hot oil, so he stood in the corner behind a pillar, waiting to help carry the dishes outside.

Once they finished eating, they separated their own portions from those of their friends, because the students could not eat with the master.

When Jett invited the master to come down to eat at the table, the three of them distanced themselves and sat in a circle around a bamboo bed set up outside the house, not far from where the master was eating, just in case he needed them.

Khem kept glancing at the master while eating, which was noticeable. Jett slightly squinted at his friend, feeling suspicious about Khem’s behavior towards the master since yesterday, but hadn’t found the right moment to ask about it. He decided to wait and watch for a while before having a heart-to-heart conversation.

As for Chan, luckily he had brought spare glasses for emergencies. Otherwise, he would have had to go back into the forest to find his old ones or perhaps borrow the village chief’s pickup truck to go into town to get new glasses.

After they finished eating, they collected the dishes and helped each other wash them. Then, they lined up to go up the stairs where Pharan was waiting.

Khem crawled to sit at the side, leaving Jett and Chan to crawl forward and pay their respects to the master.

Once the students were gathered, Pharan began to explain the path ahead in learning the mystical arts, starting with Chan.

“Before learning the magic arts, the basic practice is to train in meditation, or what we call ‘Samatha-Kammatthana’. Meditation involves chanting mantras while controlling your breath. As for Kammatthana, it’s a bit more complicated.” Jett nodded in agreement while listening with his hands clasped. Chan, not yet knowing what Kammatthana was, sat quietly and listened intently to the master.

Pharan pulled out two books; one was a common guide on Kammatthana practice, and the other was a compilation of various spells that a beginner could learn in a short time.

“There are forty objects of meditation, you must choose one to focus on. Try reading and see. If you want to practice, I’ll guide you, but mastering it takes time, whether it’s slow or fast depends on the individual. If you don’t want to practice, that’s okay too.”

“Yes, master.” Chan bowed in gratitude and reached out to take the two books.

“The other one is a spell book compiled for protective Buddhist magic. You are absolutely forbidden to misuse it.” Chan nodded.

“Yes, sir.”

“The rules of learning the art of black magic are important. First, you must have unwavering faith in the subject you’re studying, believe in your master, behave according to moral precepts, and have patience. Only then can you succeed in this art.”

Chan clasped his hands together in reverence to accept the instructions.

“I understand, master.”

Pharan nodded, his sharp gaze meeting Khem’s just as he was caught peeking. Khem, startled, quickly lowered his head, his face turning red to avoid the master’s notice.

But there was no way he wouldn’t be noticed. Pharan raised his eyebrows slightly, aware that what happened last night probably meant Khem hadn’t slept as soundly as he thought.

“Then let’s start with the first step of training.” After that, Jett and Chan were often taken by the master into the shrine room to practice meditation for their lessons, without Khem being allowed to join. They would spend their time there from morning till evening, only coming out during lunch breaks and bedtime, during which Khem would always prepare meals for everyone.

However, the master rarely came out where Khem could see him, and if he did, it was when Khem wasn’t paying attention, almost as if the master was avoiding him.

Today, as usual, Jett and Chan came out from their training room at lunch to eat, but the master did not join them.

Khem looked at the omelet with acacia leaves on the separate plate meant for the master with a sad expression because the master wouldn’t come down to eat.

“Khem, do you want to eat this? If not, give it to me.” Jett, who was gobbling his rice, asked Khem, who was just staring at the remaining omelet without touching his food, having been lost in thought for some time.

“Khun Khem, is something wrong? You seem less cheerful lately.” Chan, sitting across from him on the bamboo bed, pushed up his glasses and inquired.

“Yeah, that’s right. Or are you lonely? Should I ask the master to let us go for a day or two and take you out somewhere?” Jett’s eyes sparkled with the suggestion, and Chan nodded in agreement, though he didn’t dare speak up too much for fear that the master might overhear.

The master had whispering spirits, Chan felt that sometimes he seemed to be listening to someone, and Jett seemed to see it too, but no matter how hard he looked, he never saw anything.

Khem swallowed his rice and shook his head.

“We. We made it for the master, but he probably won’t come down to eat. Jett, you can eat it. We’ll make another one for the master this evening.” Khem said before passing a plate of omelet with acacia to Jett.

Jett, dizzy with hunger, didn’t notice his little friend’s feelings and accepted the plate out of sheer hunger, as the training had sapped a lot of his energy.

“I’m not lonely, really. The master is going out of his way to teach us, so Jett and

Chan, focus on your training. Don’t worry about me.”

“Are you sure? If you feel lonely, just tell me. Don’t worry about the master scolding you; he’s actually very kind at heart.”   Khem felt reassured.

“Oh, thank you.”

Chan blinked and looked at Khem again, it seemed like he might have had a hint of tears in his eyes but was trying hard to suppress his feelings. Chan wanted to ask but decided against it if Khem wasn’t willing to share, so he continued eating with his head down.

As evening fell, Jett and Chan came down for another meal, washed up, and then returned to the shrine room to continue their training. Khem sat swatting mosquitoes while guarding the master’s meal on the bamboo bed until almost midnight, but still, the master did not come down.

What could have happened to the master? Considering just last night, he had come to Khem’s room to apply some ointment…

Khem clenched his jaw, feeling both uncomfortable and sad, thinking he must have done something wrong for the master to avoid him like this. But no matter how hard he tried to figure out what it could be, he couldn’t. So, he decided to take the plate of fried rice with egg upstairs. He intended to knock on the master’s door and insist he come out to eat, even though it was well past dinner time.

Khem walked upstairs carrying the plate of fried rice, but before he reached the shrine room where Jett and Chan were training, something tugged at his shirt from behind. Turning around, he saw something fleeting disappear into the door of the master’s bedroom, which was adjacent to the shrine room.

That thing indicated that the master was in there, not in the shrine room where Khem was heading to knock.

Khem turned back towards the master’s bedroom door, took a moment to steel himself, and then knocked.

“Master, are you asleep?”

There was no immediate response, but after a moment, the door slowly opened, revealing the master in cotton clothing, his gaze cold as he looked at Khem.

“What is it?” The master’s stern voice made Khem clamp his lips tight, his eyes burning with emotion, feeling a tightness in his chest he couldn’t describe, but he still tried to keep his composure, knowing there was no turning back at this point.

“I…I noticed that you haven’t come down to eat…so I brought some for you.” Pharan looked at the plate of fried rice in Khem’s hands without expression before replying,

“I’m not hungry. You can take it back and eat it yourself.”

Khem swallowed hard, as if swallowing his hurt along with his saliva.

Seeing Khem with his head down and silent, Pharan was about to close the door to dismiss him, but before the door could shut, a small hand got in the way and was caught in the door.

Pharan pushed the door slightly away from Khem’s hand but didn’t open it to look at Khem’s face again.

“Have I…done something wrong, master?” Khem asked, trying to keep his voice from trembling.

“…”

“If I’ve really done something wrong, could master please tell me? So I can apologize properly, master.”

Pharan was silent for a moment before gently prying Khem’s fingers from the doorframe.

“You haven’t done anything wrong. I just don’t want to eat. If you’re not going to eat it, give it to the dog, don’t waste it.”

“…”

“And from now on, don’t make extra. If I’m hungry, I’ll make something for myself.”

The door closed. The sound of the lock clicked in Khem’s ears, and tears continued to flow down his cheeks from earlier, but not wanting to bother the master further, he carried the plate of fried rice away.

Khem went to give the fried rice to the spotted dog, watching it eat with joy, which slightly comforted him, and he gently patted the dog’s head.

“Thank you, dog. Sorry for giving you something that someone else didn’t want.”

Inside Pharan’s room, after Khem left, the peace that had settled in his heart for several days from not facing Khem was once again disturbed.

The reason was the night Pharan realized he had been caught sneaking in to apply ointment to Khem.

Pharan thought that his excessive attention towards Khem was due to lingering feelings from a past life. If he hadn’t looked back, he wouldn’t feel this way, but forgetting was impossible. So, he tried to avoid and distance himself from Khem, treating him like any other acquaintance who wasn’t his student. Even if it were his student knocking on his bedroom door late at night for such matters, he might face more than just his usual cold words.

It wasn’t like he hadn’t eaten anything lately; he often used magic to make himself invisible to Khem, so Khem wouldn’t notice when he went down to eat.

Sitting down by the bed, he loosely clasped his hands, resting his elbows on his knees, staring at the closed door as if he could still see Khem standing there. When he heard the dog named ‘Dang’ bark several times in a row, he guessed that Khem had probably given the fried rice to the dog as he had intended, and he let out a soft sigh.

The two friends, Ekk and Thong, who had tried to play matchmakers, exchanged looks and then shook their heads in resignation.

Jett and Chan had made satisfactory progress in their meditation practice in a short period, and they had memorized almost all the magical spells the master had assigned. The only remaining step was to apply these skills in real situations, which would be their next test before all three, including Khem, had to return to university for the new term.

Two days had passed, and Pharan and Khem still hadn’t had a proper conversation, which Pharan thought would continue.

Today there was no training, but Jett, Chan, and Khem weren’t just lounging around or going out to play. They helped clean up around the house, sweeping leaves, and weeding. Meanwhile, the master was weaving bamboo into mats for covering food.

Not long after, a four-door pickup truck arrived, and three people got out: a middle-aged man, a young woman, and a young man in his late twenties, all dressed in expensive-looking clothes.

“Hello, master Pharan.” The man greeted with a respectful wai, and Pharan, who had stopped his work, returned the greeting.

“Hello, village chief.”replied the village chief with a smile and quickly calling his daughter and son forward to pay respects to Pharan.

Prim, once her father made way, quickly moved to the front and performed a wai, then gave Pharan a sweet smile, followed by her younger brother, Pong.

Pharan nodded in acknowledgment. Although he didn’t make eye contact with Prim, his expression wasn’t as cold as usual.

“What business do you have with me, chief?”

The chief nodded, gently stroking his daughter’s hair with a look of concern.

“Recently, Prim’s luck has been down. She was even grazed by a car a few days ago, so I wanted to bring her to you, master, to take a look. And for Pong, he’s got a match next week with the neighboring sub-district, so he’d like to ask for something blessed by the master.”

Pharan nodded in acknowledgment and invited the chief, his daughter, and his son up to the house, amidst the curious glances of the disciples standing not too far away.

Especially Khem, who, upon seeing the look in the young woman’s eyes, immediately understood how she felt about the master.

“That’s strange. Normally, Khun Prim never gets to come up to the master’s house.” Jett remarked, arms folded over the broom handle, his voice filled with curiosity. His words made Khem pursed his lips slightly before asking hesitantly, while Chan continued pulling weeds silently.

“Why, Jett?” Jett then recounted that once, ‘Prim’ or ‘Khun Prim’, the chief’s daughter, was almost engaged to the master according to the elders’ wishes, because the master’s father and the chief were close friends.

However, the master’s grandfather loved him more than anything and didn’t want the chief’s family to use his grandson’s magical skills for their own benefit, so he opposed the engagement and made the master become a monk to follow a more spiritual path.

The master, who loved his grandfather more than his own father and had no affection for the chief’s daughter, went along with his grandfather’s wishes. This caused a great rift between the master’s father and both his grandfather and him, leading to his father remarrying and moving abroad, never setting foot here again since that day. The master’s mother had passed away when he was young.

Khem’s expression saddened upon hearing the master’s backstory, never imagining he had such a sorrowful past.

“Poor master.”

“Yeah, and that’s not all.” Jett continued, explaining that Khun Prim liked the master a lot, to the point where even when the master became a monk, she would drive from the district to offer alms in the village almost every day, and on special Buddhist days, she’d come to make merit at the temple.

“But besides Khun Prim, there were many young women enchanted by the master. I don’t know what he did to charm so many people. There was even a Pharan Monk Fan Club formed back then. On Buddhist days, groups of people would come to the temple looking for the master, causing the abbot to constantly remind them of their manners.”

Khem’s mouth hung open slightly in surprise.

“Was it really that much?”

“Men can be like that too, that’s why I told you not to make eye contact with the master for more than three seconds.” Jett remarked. In Jett’s eyes, Khem often seemed more like a girl than a boy, which prompted him to caution him without knowing whether Khem liked men or women. But regardless of Khem’s preferences, the feelings Jett had for him would never change.

“Is that why the master disrobed?” Khem guessed, not thinking he was right.

“Yeah, the master didn’t want to trouble other monks, so he chose to disrobe and set up this school at the end of the village.”

“…”

“Even now, Khun Prim hasn’t given up on wooing the master, but it’s been a long time, and the master still hasn’t softened towards her. This is the first time she’s come into the master’s house. Normally, he doesn’t allow women into the house unless it’s absolutely necessary.”

Khem clenched his jaw, his eyes burning, as each word from Jett made his heart squeeze with fear.

“Or maybe the master wants to walk the middle path again, hey, Khem, why are you crying!?”

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