WESTTHESUNFROMANOTHERSTAR, Chapter 20: Crashing
Daotok
“Okay, huh?”
“You look really pale.”
“My face is normally like this.”
“Really? And what’s that mark?”
“The ghost in the room.” I answered North’s question. This class was a free elective that any faculty could enroll in, so North, needing credits, decided to take it with me while Ter and Cat didn’t join.
At first, it was a bit unusual to have a friend in class since I usually studied alone. North would chat a bit, nap, or play games, which made my class time more interesting.
The navy blue shirt of the person sneakily eating snacks next to me was quite noticeable among the white student uniforms. Since it was a mixed class with students from various faculties, the engineering shirt stood out.
“The ghost in the room bit you?” North raised his eyebrows in surprise, and I nodded in response, “What did you do to provoke it? Why was it so violent? Let me see.” Then he took the liberty to pull down my collar to look at the mark.
“I didn’t do anything to provoke it, but I’ve already told it not to do it again.”
“Will it listen to that? But, wow, ghosts have sharp teeth.”
“Do they?”
“Yeah, right here.” North said, opening his mouth and pointing to his own canines as an example. I touched the mark on my neck again.
“I didn’t even notice.”
“If you told me it was a werewolf or vampire, I’d believe it.”
“It might be a vampire then, so last night I must have been drained of blood.” “Oh. That explains why you look so pale, that’s how it is.” North seemed to understand something and chuckled a bit, making me smile inadvertently. Being with North was good for clearing my mind, “And how’s Phii Arthit doing? Last night, you threw him on the floor in your room, right?”
“Nothing much.” I answered. The other seemed to be pondering something, “Is there something?”
“No.” North shook his head, “If there’s nothing, then that’s good.”
“Did you bring your motorcycle?” I asked, remembering that today North had classes all day, so he had to bring his motorcycle himself since his free time didn’t align with his partner’s. If his partner was free, they would give him a ride.
“I brought it, why?”
“Can I get a ride back with you?”
“Oh. Didn’t you come by motorcycle?”
“No.”
“Then how did you get here?”
“My neighbor dropped me off.”
“…” My answer made North go silent and furrow his brows in confusion, “Why did he come to drop you off?”
“He said I was sick.”
“Are you sick?”
“I had a fever last night, but I think I’m okay now.”
“Oh, uh…hmm.” North pressed his lips together tightly, seeming to think hard.
Why does he have to look so troubled just because I asked for a ride?
“It’s okay if you don’t want to.”
“No, no, no, it’s just…okay, I’ll take you back to your dorm.”
“Thanks.”
“Yeah.”
After getting confirmation from North that he would take me back to the dorm, I secretly took out my phone to message the guy next door, telling him he didn’t need to pick me up anymore.
SS: You don’t need to come pick me up anymore.
☀︎😕
☀︎: Why?
I don’t know why, but seeing his reply like this, the image of his displeased face and his gruff voice came to mind. I guess I’ve been spending too much time with him lately.
SS: Going back with North.
☀︎: How did North get here?
SS: I had class together with North.
☀︎: Free elective?
SS: Yes.
☀︎: Doesn’t Jo take him to class?
SS: North had classes from early morning.
☀︎: Can he come to drop you off?
SS: Yes, I asked.
And then he didn’t reply anymore. So I put away my phone and focused on studying, catching a glimpse of the person next to me secretly using their phone under the table, but I didn’t pay much attention.
☀︎: Do you want your tires to burst?
Nrth: What?
Nrth: Oh, lol
Nrth: Wasn’t you trying to get over someone?
Nrth: You come to drop him off, huh? Wow, have you ever done this before?
Nrth: Giggle
☀︎: Fuck off
Nrth:. If you’re not happy, just curse
Nrth: Softly
☀︎: What do you want with me?
Nrth: What, what?
Nrth: Do you like my friend?
☀︎: Yes
☀︎: I like him
☀︎: Are you satisfied now?
☀︎: I’ll pick him up and take him out to eat too.
Nrth: Let’s go, go, go
☀︎: So damn annoying.
Nrth: I don’t trust you, huh?
Nrth: I’m keeping an eye on you.
Nrth: That mark on his neck was your doing, right? Answer me!
Nrth: You opportunist, I trusted you to sleep in my friend’s room.
Nrth: Understand, man. I like him, how can I help it?
Nrth: With the person I like sleeping next to you, how could someone like you endure it?
Nrth: Right?
☀︎: Is that your husband cursing?
☀︎: When Jo was courting you, he was quite something.
Nrth: …
Nrth: And then what?
Nrth: Are you going to pursue him?
Nrth: Would that be good?
Nrth: Have you thought it through?
☀︎: I don’t know.
Nrth: We’ll talk later.
Nrth: We have a lot more to discuss!
Nrth: Tonight, I’ll join you.
Nrth: To keep watch! Watch!
Nrth: I’ll keep an eye on you! Dylan!
☀︎: But he has to ride with me.
Nrth: No
Nrth: He is riding with me!
☀︎: Are you trying to steal my thunder?
☀︎: He has to go back with me anyway, doesn’t he?
Nrth:. Sure
Nrth: *sends picture
Nrth: Here’s a picture
Nrth: Phipungto is studying very hard
Nrth: Hehe
☀︎: Why send it?
Nrth: Don’t let him know I saved it secretly
☀︎: Yeah, saved it.
☀︎: LOL
Nrth: LOL
…
Daotok
“Phipungto.”
“What?”
“I just remembered my bike’s tire is low on air. It could be dangerous to have a passenger, and it’s hard enough to drive alone.”
“Oh really, then it’s fine.” I nodded in response before turning my attention back to the lecturer standing at the front of the room. Earlier, it seemed like North had taken a sneaky photo of me, but whatever, he likes to take pictures of others when they’re not looking or making funny faces. I wonder if there are any good photos on his phone.
The person North teases the most with candid photos is Ter. Being cursed out or receiving annoyed reactions from Ter is considered a success for North. Those two used to be roommates until they both got partners and moved out. Cat never gets caught in candid photos because he’s always aware when someone tries to take a picture, maybe it’s a photographer’s instinct. As for me, I’ve been photographed too, sometimes I know but pretend not to, like just now. North once complained that teasing me isn’t as fun as teasing Ter because I don’t make a fuss.
“And how will you get back? Will you have Phii Arthit pick you up?”
“I guess I’ll walk.”
“Why?”
“I haven’t gone for a walk around the mountain for a while now.”
“It’s chill.” North said with a slight pout, “So why didn’t you ask Phii Arthit to give you a ride to enjoy the view?”
“No.”
“Why?”
“I should be asking why I have to ask him.” I replied, looking confused. North laughed for no apparent reason; he’s always like this, can laugh at anything in the world.
“You once said you didn’t want a boyfriend, right?”
“Yeah, so why are you suddenly asking about this?”
“No reason.” North shrugged, “Do you have a type? I could introduce you to someone.”
Because North had mentioned that several of his friends were interested in me and I was still single, he seemed eager to make introductions. Even though I had already said I didn’t want anyone, North seemed to want me to at least consider opening up. It’s out of good intentions since everyone keeps complaining that I don’t take care of myself and they want someone to look after me.
But even if I say that, I still stand by my decision to stay single.
“I don’t know. I’m not interested.” I answered.
“If they’re good-looking, would you be interested?”
“Hmm?”
“Good-looking, rich, stuff like that.”
“No.”
“Why?”
“What do you like about your boyfriend, North?” I asked back, which seemed to surprise him, but he still answered.
“He’s good to me.”
“Oh, um.”
“Do you want someone who’s good to you?” “No.” I shook my head gently.
“Do you like someone who’s an asshole to you?”
“No.” I answered in a flat tone, turning to him, “I don’t like anyone.”
“Wow, what’s that, you’ve got a heart of steel.” North looked displeased, as he often does when things don’t go his way, sitting with his chin resting on his knees, staring at me instead of at the front of the class. Fortunately, it’s a large lecture hall, so the professor doesn’t notice much.
“North.”
“What?”
“Why are you staring at me?”
“I’m just assessing you.” North answered while stroking his chin. Why do I feel like lately, I’ve been stared at a lot? What’s going on? “Hmm…you’re quite goodlooking. Even if you’re not as good-looking as me.”
“…Thanks.”
“But you act all gloomy. It doesn’t suit you.”
“It’s fine. If I were as lively as North, I’d probably die of exhaustion.” “Not having as much energy as me is kind of a shame.” North said with a halfsmile, “Back to the original topic, are you really going to walk back?” I nodded in response, and he sighed.
“Should you call Phii Arthit to pick you up? You came with him.”
“It’s fine.” I answered, jotting down what the professor was saying, unlike North who had lost interest in the lecture halfway through. When exams come close, he’ll probably ask to borrow my lecture notes again.
“Do you hate him?” He raised his eyebrows to ask.
“No.”
“Then why don’t you let him pick you up?”
“I can walk.”
“Isn’t it more convenient if he picks you up?”
“It’s really fine.” I answered honestly because I had already told him I’d go back with North, but if North couldn’t take me, I didn’t want to bother anyone else, and walking back wasn’t a problem anyway.
“You seem to live life without needing to rely on others.” He said, “Let’s eat together, have Phii Arthit pick you up, and we’ll go eat together.”
“We can eat just the two of us.”
“I’m going to eat with Phii Arthit too…”
“…” I furrowed my brows slightly, turning to look at him, starting to find North’s behavior strange, but seeing North’s grumpy face, I stopped wondering, “Okay then.”
“Good.”
I took out my phone again and typed a message to inform my neighbor that I needed him to pick me up again and that North would be joining for the meal. Then I went back to paying attention to what the professor was saying. North, on the other hand, was listening on and off, probably because the lecture was genuinely boring, plus engineers like North probably aren’t into chemistry like this anyway. When class ended, I packed my bag and walked downstairs with North. The parking area in front of the faculty had become a focal point for many, especially women, as a tall guy was leaning against a sleek big bike, seemingly looking for someone. When his gaze stopped at me and North, he froze.
North and I walked over to him.
“Annoying, everywhere we go, people keep staring.” North teased, and the one being teased just shrugged indifferently.
“It’s normal, and you’re going with us, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Why are you here? Go back to your husband.” He said, not seriously. North didn’t reply, just pointed two fingers at his eyes, then at him, indicating he was watching.
I would have preferred to ride a regular motorcycle rather than a big bike since I didn’t feel safe the last time I rode one, but since North said his tire was low on air, there was nothing to be done.
He got on the bike and handed me a helmet. I took it, put it on, and climbed on behind. Last time, getting on was quite hard, but looking at it now, if I held onto his shoulders, it would be easier.
“Sorry.” I said, asking for permission to touch him, then reached out to hold onto his shoulders to mount the bike successfully.
“Hold on tight, be careful not to fall, Phii Arthit drives like shit.” North warned. I nodded slightly to show I understood, and then the beautiful big bike took off rapidly. …
Arthit
My gaze was still fixed forward while driving my favorite big bike, different from usual only because someone was riding behind me, gripping my shirt tightly around my waist.
I’ve never let anyone ride on my big bike before, truly, because it’s annoying. When someone rides with you, it adds weight, making it feel unfamiliar, to put it simply, it’s not as agile.
At first, seeing him struggle to get onto the big bike was kind of funny, like a tiny creature trying to climb something, but him grabbing my shoulder while getting on and being close like this wasn’t too bad.
I thought I wasn’t driving that scary, I figured it was because he’d never been a passenger before, that’s why he was scared. If I were racing, that’s when it would be truly scary.
When we got to the restaurant, the short guy behind me held onto my shoulder and slowly got off the bike. I don’t know why, but I felt an itch, an urge. He couldn’t take off the helmet, so again, I had to reach out to help him. Can’t he even take off a helmet? And what’s with that exhausted look? How tiring could riding on my bike be?
“Scared?”
“…” He didn’t answer, just nodded slightly, and seeing that, I felt like I wanted to grab and bite him right there!
Wait a minute.
Wasn’t last night enough of your crazy behavior, Arthit? You see this short one and you always feel this itch to grab and punch him!
Huh…or maybe you can…
Before I could do anything else, North, driving a black motorcycle, pulled up next to us, took off his helmet, put it on the bike’s mirror, and looked at us.
“What’s up?”
“Just got here.” the short one answered. The three of us walked into the restaurant. Though I was still annoyed that North followed us, I let it go. “Looks cozy, sticking close like that.” North quickened his pace to walk beside me, covering his mouth with his hand and whispering, grinning in a way that made me want to smack him.
We walked over to the table. I sat across from the alien, and North sat next to him again. I remember when Hill used to go out with his wife, this asshole, North, would always be there like a leech. And he doesn’t even seem to realize how bothersome he is. Even though Hill might not mind you, I certainly find you annoying, you bastard.
“Ha ha.”
“What’s so funny?” I turned to ask North.
“I don’t know, Phii, I just feel like something fun is about to happen, right,
Phipungto?”
“Is that so?” the low-battery robot answered in his usual soft voice, unlike the bastard next to him, who’s all over the place like a Golden Retriever every day.
“Doesn’t your husband mind you coming out to eat like this?”
“Nah, I asked permission, I’ll buy some food to take back for him.”
“Oh.”
“Phipungto, what did you want to eat?”
“That’s right, North.”
We had ordered our food, and when I had some free time, I sat there with my chin resting on my hand, occasionally looking at the person across from me because there was nothing else to do.
Today felt as dull as any other day, but maybe I’m just tired, right? The fever seems to be gone, thank goodness it didn’t come back, otherwise, I’d be in trouble. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed something and turned to look, seeing North with furrowed brows, looking back and forth between me and that short guy with a puzzled expression.
“Why are you looking so confused?”
“Just wondering.”
“Wondering about what?”
“Seriously…” North made a troubled face, “Between you two, it’s all dead air, was it like this when you went abroad together?” “Yeah.” I answered.
“What’s with this super awkward atmosphere?”
“You get uncomfortable easily.”
“No, Phii. I’m normal. You two are the weird ones, gone mad.” the whiner let out a big sigh, “Phipungto the block.”
“Huh?”
“Review the San Francisco trip with Phii Arthit then.”
“…There’s nothing to review.” He answered just as expected. I raised my eyebrows at North, not surprised, and then North took over the conversation, bringing up this and that, while the low-battery robot just responded, occasionally asking back. His fate isn’t much different from mine. If he weren’t so talkative, he’d have given up by now.
Yeah, but it’s different when he talks to me; he responds longer and even smiles at North. Even if it’s just a little smile.
North…
That little brat.
“Last time when you looked at my fortune, right? You said my life would reach a turning point, I think…” I heard North saying that, and after a while, the food was served, including takeout for Jo. Don’t tell me I have to pay for Jo too. No way.
“Yeah, and you, are you paying?”
“I’m not paying for Jo.”
“Such a cheapskate. Can’t even pay for this.”
“Your husband’s pretty rich, why are you so stingy?”
“That’s not related, you should ask why if Phii Jo works hard, why should I be extravagant?”
“Wow, but your husband uses banknotes instead of scratch paper, you know?” “That’s too much, Phii, but I’ve seen him make paper airplanes out of money when he was bored, with nothing to do.”
“Airplanes, huh, that’s nothing, man, that day we went to study, the table was too low, and that asshole Jo used a stack of money as a bookstand, I tell you, it was comfy reading.”
“Fuck.” North swore and burst out laughing, “So you haven’t seen him use it as a blanket yet, he asked me to sew it into a sheet one day, to use as a blanket. Took me two or three days, and it was a huge sheet.”
“Damn, that’s going overboard, you bastard.” I couldn’t help but laugh a little at our nonsense, this was just playful banter about Jo’s excessive wealth. By now, he’s probably sneezed and lost an eye.
We kept chatting casually, North turned to talk with the short one sometimes. I glanced at him occasionally until we finished eating and asked for the bill. I paid for everything. It wasn’t much, just treating them to a meal. As we walked out of the restaurant, North got close and whispered:
“What’s this, Phii? It’s not the atmosphere of someone flirting.”
“Flirting, what?”
“Flirting, you know, aren’t you into him? This feels so awkward.”
“And then what? I don’t know.” I replied, looking at the blue-haired guy leading the way.
“Come on, I thought you’d be more experienced.”
“Your dad is experienced, man. It’s not like that.” I cursed, this bastard made me sound like a total idiot, “I’ve never done this kind of thing, get it?”
“Wow, that’s tough, and the person you’re trying to flirt with, sigh, hopeless, just give up.”
“Give up, fuck off.” I said quietly, “Are you going back?” I asked when we were near the parking lot, soon we’d have to part ways.
“I’ll go back, why? Oh.” North nodded in understanding, “I have to go back and give food to Phii Jo.”
“You talk like my friend is a dog.”
“Come to my room, so we can talk, plan things out first.” North narrowed his eyes with a smile that definitely had something hidden behind it.
“Inviting me to your room, huh? This is your chance to be a little husband.” “Bah! You bastard, what are you going to do? If we don’t help you, you’ll be at your wit’s end, not knowing what to do.” the person next to me said irritably, “The only thing you know how to do is grab him and do something, and you haven’t even done anything yet, but you’ve already bitten your friend’s neck.” “I want to argue, but, yeah, it’s true.” I sighed, admitting that the only thing I could think of was to grab him and beat the hell out of him until he was black and blue.
What can I do? I’ve never in my life thought about courting anyone. Just admitting I like someone is hard enough, let alone having to do something complicated like courting. Can’t I just skip all that trouble? Can’t it just be that I wake up and he’s my wife?
“Or we could just call. No, for something this big, we need to meet and talk, we have to have a meeting. Seriously, I’m still in shock, I need to prepare myself mentally first.”
“Yeah, do whatever, I’ll come to your room later, make sure to chain Jo up too, he’s so damn fierce, doesn’t like anyone coming into his room.”
“It’s fine, I’ve slept on your sofa before.”
“Yeah, yeah.”
I responded to North before walking towards my car where the short guy was waiting. He was standing there quietly, waiting for me and North to finish our conversation, not knowing that we were talking about him the whole time.
“Hey.”
“What?”
I looked down at the guy who was shorter than me, and he looked up at me. He’s just this tall. If I pulled him into a hug now, his head would fit right under my chin. Before I knew it, I had already extended one hand. I intended to pull him into a hug because I wanted to know what it would feel like, but instead, I ended up ruffling his hair. He didn’t look too pleased and seemed more surprised that I would do something like that, before moving to step away.
Seeing that displeased look, I couldn’t help but smile.
“Hey.”
“What?”
“Nothing.”
“…”
Before I put the helmet on him and then on myself, I got on the bike and waited for the other to climb on. Once he realized it was easier to get on by holding onto my shoulders, it was better that way.
I set off to drive back to my condo, and he held onto my shirt the whole way.
“If you hug, it would be safer.”
“…”
He didn’t respond. I accelerated a bit more until he had to really hug my waist.
Yeah, this is better than just holding on, by a lot. Why didn’t he hug from the start?
I’ll take a longer route, might as well, there’s plenty of gas.
And I want you to hug me for longer too.
“Can you go slower?” I heard the person behind me say, not very clearly because of the wind.
“No.”
“…”
“But if you hug tighter, I might slow down.”
I said it with a smirk no one could see at that moment.
I felt the person behind me hug tighter, slowly easing off the throttle, satisfied. He must really be scared, I guess. He’s not scared of cars when they go fast but is scared of big bikes. Not surprising, the level of fear is quite different. When I slowed down, he loosened his grip. So, I accelerated again, and he hugged me tight once more. If I said I like the way he hugs with a trembling body like this, would it be weird? It makes me want to comfort him somehow.
And then we arrived at the condo parking lot. He slowly got off the bike, looking a bit unwell but didn’t say anything, walking inside with me following behind.
If you ask why I followed him inside when I was supposed to leave:
I’m sending him home, if I say I’ll send you home, then I’ll do it properly and that means till he is safe and inside.
I noticed the person in front of me still trembling slightly. If it were anyone else, they would have been upset by now, but the shorty wasn’t. He didn’t even ask about the hug, probably still not caring, yeah. Well, good, truly great at ignoring, keep it up.
He opened the door to his room, not forgetting to turn back to thank me. I just raised my eyebrows to say ‘no problem’ before turning around to walk back to my motorcycle to go to Jo’s place as planned with his wife.
Apart from Fah’s room, there are only Jo’s and Hill’s rooms that serve as my emergency sleeping spots when the key card is lost. I think losing the key card has been a problem for a long time, but I don’t know what to do about it. A bit of drinking makes the problem go away, but changing the door system isn’t possible since I don’t own the room; I’m just renting. If the condo owner doesn’t allow it, there’s nothing I can do.
I often go to Fah’s room because he’s kind, perfect for being taken advantage of by someone like me. I can sleep on the sofa, eat free meals without washing dishes, water and electricity are free, the bathroom is clean, the air conditioning is cool, the room is tidy, and Fah’s wife is wonderful by even sending my clothes to be washed. I wake up with nicely ironed clothes ready for class.
Going to Hill’s or Jo’s rooms is much less frequent, except for those rare moments when I feel like being considerate to Fah. If it’s Hill, it takes all day to convince him to agree to me sleeping over. Hill hates every living thing on the planet except his wife and himself, cold and heartless towards me, but very nice to his wife. However, his wife is kind, cooking extra food and sending my laundry to be cleaned just like Fah’s wife. Yeah, Hill’s wife is also great.
Getting permission to stay in Jo’s room takes a considerable amount of time. When staying with him, there’s no happiness, he’s as fierce as a dog, always growling, and cursing at me all day. Being with Jo is really annoying, but the advantage is his room is spacious and luxurious. Plus, North likes to sing loudly. Even if he sings well, so what? I’m deaf to it, can’t complain because it’s not my room.
And one thing I think about, when I sleep over, there must not be zero sex getting on. They must be annoyed. Maybe they do, especially Jo, he definitely wouldn’t care if I’m sleeping outside. Luckily, I’ve never heard any sounds leaking out. I’m not some pervert wanting to hear that stuff.
I walked up to Johan’s door, rang the doorbell, and after a while, North came to open it. As I walked in, I saw what I expected; the room owner looked openly displeased at me.
“What the hell are you here for?”
“Calm down, Johan, didn’t North tell you?”
“He told me roughly.” Jo said, letting out an annoyed sigh, “I knew it would come to this, no way you could give up.”
“I did my best, man.”
“Yeah, the person you’re serious about is interesting.”
“Really?” I furrowed my brows before taking off my black jacket that I wore while driving, “So what should I do then? Because if you don’t give me some guidelines, tonight I might end up breaking into the room and pinning him down on the bed.”
“You’re fucking savage.” Jo shook his head slightly.
“You wouldn’t do that, would you?”
“Shit no, at first, I couldn’t stand anything at all, you bastard.”
“Can’t you just not stand it?”
“Not here anymore, are you?” North put his water glass down on the table and sat next to Jo.
“When Jo was chasing after you, it wasn’t this unbearable.”
“I can bear it.” Jo said. North gave him a slight glare before letting out a sigh. “Let me ask first, do you really like my friend?” I nodded in response, “And who knows about this?”
“You guys and Fah.”
“Hill doesn’t know yet?”
“Not yet.”
“You won’t be able to hide it for long, Arthit, it’s better to tell him straight up.
Seriously, Hill’s got better senses than Fah, and you’re not good at lying either.” “I’m a straightforward person, not good at lying.” I said, knowing well I lack the ability to lie because, honestly, I don’t want to lie about anything, I want to say everything directly. Or if some things shouldn’t be said, it’s better not to say them,
“Actually, North isn’t good at lying either.” “Yeah, true.” Jo agreed.
“Honest fools, right?” He said, proudly raising his thumb, “But the real issue is how you’re going to pursue Phipungto. Because Phipungto listens to his friends, especially Ter and Phoon.”
“Why?”
“I’m guessing. I think Phipungto likes people with good hearts. When he first opened up to us, his only group of friends, Ter was the one trying to get close. So, you should ask Ter.”
“Here we go again, we can’t avoid Hill.”
“Damn.” I cursed in frustration, running my hand through my hair, “Do I really have to do it? Can’t I just do it my way, be myself? He told me to be myself, didn’t he?”
“Phii, you don’t have to be yourself too much, you can be a little better than you are.”
“Fuck.”
“But I think you shouldn’t do anything rash, it’ll just shut him off more.”
“I know.”
“Old wounds, right? You’ll have to prove to him that you won’t hurt him like the last person did.”
“Oh, the ex…” I repeated North’s words and thought back to them. The ex means that bastard Khram whom I beat up and sent to the hospital, right? That asshole, look at what you did, I should have just killed you then and there.
From what I remember, he was quite an asshole too, especially when that short guy cursed him out like a dog at the café.
“I’m not his ex, why be scared?”
“The guy is marked in his memory, what can I do?”
“Sigh. Isn’t this impulsive? Maybe it’s too late, I’ve already bitten his neck.
Lucky that he thinks it’s a ghost; sometimes ghosts have their uses.” “Bit his neck?” Jo raised his eyebrows, repeating my words.
“Yeah, bit hard enough to leave a mark, it’s still there.”
“Well, that’s good then.”
“Phii Jo, how can that be good!”
“The first time, I did something similar. Even if it wasn’t a bite, it was similar.” Jo said with a calm face, unlike North who looked agitated and suspicious, “It’s not good, but I wanted to do it.”
“Yeah, it’s not good, but I wanted to do it.” I echoed Jo’s sentence, making North sigh again, seeming exhausted.
“Sigh, enough from both of you, Phipungto isn’t me, Phii.”
“I know, if it were you, I wouldn’t have done it.”
“Try it then.”
“What kind of breed are you, damn fierce.”
“Phipungto is someone who doesn’t need anything anymore, has a career, can live alone, happy with everything. You have to ask why he would want you in his life.”
“Hmm…yeah, that’s true, I’m not exactly useful.”
“Sigh, let’s end this, I’m going to sleep, you bastard.” Jo said, sounding bored as if he was about to get up from the sofa, but North held him back, “Tell us your good points then.”
“Good looking, rich dad, and big down there.”
“I’ve heard you brag about it several times, is it really big?” Jo squinted at me. I gave him a smile.
“You have to try it, Jo.”
“You can’t use that kind of approach with me, that won’t work.”
“You never know until you try, let’s see.”
“Sigh.” North sighed again in irritation, trying to steer the conversation back on track, but we were just being senseless, “Answer properly, damn it, I’m getting annoyed.”
“Don’t get so worked up, little brother. It’s…better to have me, for peace of mind.”
“That’s it?”
“What more do you want?” I furrowed my brows, trying to think of an answer, “I can protect him. Take care of him when he’s sick…maybe, yes, I can be someone he can rely on.”
“Rely on how? You can’t even rely on yourself.”
“Take me as a burden then, in case life’s too good for him.” “Fuck you.” North started to pinch his temples.
“I think I’m good-looking. Just my good looks should be enough, right?” I said with a firm tone, and I meant it, “Right, Johan?”
“You do have that going for you.”
“See, even Jo agrees.”
“I said take care of him, okay.” North ignored everything we were discussing and focused seriously on that matter, “Can protect, yeah, that’s true.”
“Uh-huh.”
“You won’t cheat on him, right?”
“No.”
“How can you be sure? You’ve never dated before, have you?”
“If it would hurt him, then I won’t do it.” I said honestly, which made both listeners look a bit stunned, “What, why the surprise?”
“Not at all, Phii, that’s good, you seem very serious. I approve. I’m on your team.”
“You have to be on my team, North.”
“Oh.” North clicked his tongue in annoyance, “Phipungto doesn’t have a problem with rough talk, so that’s easy for you. I think you just shouldn’t do anything too aggressive. But does he know you like him?”
“I don’t know, I didn’t hide anything, I just asked him to hug me while driving.” I said straightforwardly. When I told him to hug me, I didn’t think much of it, I just wanted a hug. After that, I wouldn’t care what happened.
“You drove fast, huh?”
“Yeah, it was worth it, I swear. I’m still in a good mood now.”
“Great.”
“You’ve done it too, right?”
“Never missed out.” I gave a thumbs up to Johan, my dear friend who almost always agrees with me, “If he hugged you, does that mean he’s interested?”
“Yeah, I think he likes me too.”
“…Wait.” North interjected softly, sounding exasperated, don’t let self-absorbed people stay together, “You forced him…”
“North, are you my code junior? I’ll just ask this, are you my junior? In the three years we’ve known each other, what have you given me?” You can’t make me miss Phipungto.”
“Sigh, yeah, yeah! He likes you, oh, who wouldn’t like someone as handsome and rich as you, are you some kind of reincarnated god or what, my bro. Who can compete with my senior, they’re all just low-lives, spit. Whoever gets you is damn lucky, man.”
“You speak well, North, you deserve to be my junior.”
“Go for it, Arthit, don’t overthink it.” Jo waved his hand dismissively, “In the end, if you can’t have his heart, just have sex with him.”
“Yeah, yeah, just have sex with him. Even if you don’t have his heart, having his body is still good, better than nothing.”
“Hold on, that’s your friend, North, didn’t you say to take it slow at first?”
“Not slow anymore! Go for it, Phii Arthit. If the wall is too thick, break it down!”
“Calm down first.” I had to be the one to calm things down because my friend’s wife seemed like he could breathe fire, “Okay, then. Just don’t do anything impulsive, right? Geez, we didn’t even need to talk about this.”
“We should talk. I care about my friend, everything should go through me first.” “Then it’s all good, I’m heading back.” I said, standing up and slinging my jacket over my shoulder.
“You’re in such a hurry, Phii, play a game with me before you go.”
“Let’s do it next time, I need to rush back to my future wife, he must be crying because he misses me by now.”
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