WESTTHESUNFROMANOTHERSTAR, Chapter 29: I Know That
Daotok
He insisted on sleeping on the floor next to the sofa with the reason that he wanted to be close to me, even though there was a king-size bed in the room.
He went to fetch a lamp and a book, placing them on the table.
“You’re going to read?”
“Yeah.”
“Okay.”
I answered before lying down on the sofa at the same time he leaned back against it, pulling the table closer, opening the book and turning on the small, soft yellow lamp to shine on the pages. Now, I was lying on the sofa with him sitting, leaning back against it, reading.
“Are you going to sleep? So I can turn off the light.”
“Hmm.”
And with that, he got up to turn off the room lights, leaving only the dim glow from the lamp on the table in front. I turned onto my side, back to the light, and closed my eyes.
Even though I wasn’t sleepy, there was nothing to do but lie there and let my mind wander.
“Are you asleep yet?” He asked, breaking the silence that had lasted almost ten minutes in the room.
“Not yet.”
“Talk to me for a bit, I’m bored.”
“You won’t be able to concentrate on reading then.”
“We can talk, I want to talk.”
“Oh…uh-huh.” I stayed quiet, thinking of something to talk about so he wouldn’t get too bored. My arm was tired, so I turned to the other side, looking at the person reading from the side, “Why are you called Arthit?”
“Born on sunday.”
“You must have an English name, right? When you were abroad.”
“Dylan.”
“Oh, nice name.”
“Wow, are you complimenting me?” He turned, resting his arm on the sofa, our eyes met for a moment before I instinctively looked away.
“Complimenting the name.”
“Why did you look away?”
“…”
“It’s cute when you’re embarrassed.”
“Uh-huh.”
“Damn, really?” He said with a tone that sounded more excited, but I kept looking elsewhere, “Come on, look at me.”
“No.”
“You…damn, why does the thought of wanting to wrestle with you keep popping up?”
“If you think about it, it’s one hit.”
“Dare to hit me?”
“Uh-huh, as punishment.”
“Why punish for just thinking?”
“Just thinking about it is bad enough.”
“Can’t help it, your future husband is like this.” His words made me turn to look at him immediately, his cheerful expression making me feel slightly annoyed,
“Let’s not talk about this, change the subject.”
“Who brought it up first?”
“Maybe you just think you’re talking more.”
‘Tell him he’s not just imagining it,’ Emma’s voice rang out. I saw her sitting across from Phii Arthit, her chin resting on her hand as she watched us. “I won’t tell him.”
“Ha?”
“…Oh.”
“Won’t tell what?”
‘Tell him,’ Emma insisted. I sighed without realizing it. I didn’t know if it was necessary to share this, “It’s necessary. I’m part of your life, Michael.” “Oh…it’s just…”
“What?”
“Do you remember…when I said I talked to an imaginary friend?” Suddenly, I brought this up, causing me to frown in confusion slightly, “Her name is Emma.”
“If it weren’t you, I’d think you were mocking my mom’s name.”
“No, it’s really Emma. From the start.”
“Oh, and then what?”
He seemed more interested in this topic now; his left hand, which had been writing, stopped, and he turned his attention to me.
“I still have an imaginary friend that hasn’t gone away.”
“Oh, I see, some kids do, but not me, not Meen.”
“Oh, and she’s here now, Emma is watching you.” I said. He raised his eyebrows before looking in the direction I was looking. When he turned, Emma smiled brightly at him.
“I don’t see anything.”
“She’s smiling at you.”
“Oh, I see, can I talk to her?”
‘Yes, definitely. I want to talk too.’
“Emma says you can.”
“Am I looking in the right direction?” He asked, pointing towards Emma. The person pointed at nodded, though the one pointing couldn’t see. I confirmed before he asked, “How much do you think your friend likes me?”
‘A little now, keep going, I’m cheering for you.’
“What did she say?”
“…” I stayed silent because I didn’t want to answer much.
‘Why are you quiet, Michael? Tell him you like him a little now.’
“What did your friend say?” He turned to ask, both of them making me feel more exhausted.
“A little.”
“You like me a little now?”
“Uh-huh, Emma said so.”
“Emma is your subconscious, right?”
“Oh…uh-huh. Yes.”
“Wow, that’s great.” He smiled broadly before turning back to look at Emma, who smiled brightly, seemingly excited about what he would say next.
‘Why are you so excited?’ I asked Emma in my mind.
‘Not many people talk to us.’
“In your friend’s eyes, what do you think I’m like?”
‘You look very good, with beautiful eyes that I want to draw and keep, you could say you’re very handsome. Even if your looks aren’t what made Michael open up, your character, though you speak roughly and are somewhat harsh, is actually very cute.’
“What did she say?”
“…It’s long, forget it.” I cut him off. Telling him everything Emma said might be a bit too much…
“Damn cheater, avoiding the answer because you’re embarrassed?” “Hmm.” I turned over, facing away from both of them.
“Then I’ll ask you instead. What do you see in me?”
“…”
“If you don’t answer, I’ll kiss you.”
“Threatening again.”
“Just answer, you can’t lie either.”
“Why do you think I can’t lie?”
“You’re not a liar, I know that.”
“Well…you’re crude, rough, but…cute.” I said the last word so softly it was almost inaudible, burying my face in the sofa and the blanket.
“Me?”
“Yeah.”
“I’ve never been called cute in my life.”
“Really?”
“Usually, I get ‘handsome,’ ‘cool,’ that kind of thing.”
“Hmm, good to hear.”
“Why is it good to hear?”
“Because I’m the first one to see your cute side.”
“Agreed.”
“…?”
I was startled when he suddenly got up and sat on the still-vacant end of the sofa, making me sit up in surprise, and I was even more shocked when he seemed like he was about to take off his shirt, lifting his tank top to reveal a bit of his lower abdomen.
“Wha…what are you doing?”
“I’m ready to be yours tonight.”
“Wa…wait, stop, don’t undress.”
“Why, are you going to do it with clothes on? Sure, but with you, I’d rather take them off, or do you want to take them off for me?” He lowered his hand. “No. Just complimenting, why do you have to take off clothes?” I immediately admonished. The person in front of me lowered his hand and let his shirt fall back into place, furrowing his brows and giving me an annoyed look.
“Oh. So, you’re ready to be my wife?”
“What?”
“Aren’t I cute?”
“Well…yes, but, uh, what is this?” I was starting to get a headache. I couldn’t understand how all these situations were connected, he smiled and burst out laughing while I was still looking confused.
“What do you expect from complimenting me?”
“Nothing.”
“Oh, really? Expecting me to be embarrassed?”
“No.”
“Damn, but I am embarrassed.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, when you say it.”
“Oh, uh-huh.”
“Can I get a hug?”
“Why?”
“Don’t know, just want a hug.”
“Oh. If I say no?”
“Then no.”
I, sitting on the sofa, was quickly pulled into a hug, he spun me around so my back was against his chest, and then he leaned back against the sofa, his large hands reaching for the blanket to cover us.
“The atmosphere is right. Want to watch a movie?”
“Uh-huh.”
“What kind of movie do you like?”
“Horror movie.”
“Sure, but it’s troublesome; we’d have to get the laptop, connect it to the TV, let’s do it another day.” He said, “But not tomorrow or the day after.”
“Oh, I figured.”
“What did you figure?”
“You wouldn’t force me to stay with you for just a couple of days.”
“Move in with me then?”
“No.”
“You should think about it carefully. We could split the rent, and you wouldn’t have to deal with ghosts.”
“I like living alone.”
“I told you I’d let you live alone.”
“No.” I said, letting out a sigh. Here, living alone means I like my own room and having some personal space more than anything.
“Okay, okay, rooms next to each other is fine, I can just force you to stay with me often.”
“…”
“Comfortable?”
“…Comfortable.”
“This year it’s colder than last year, so having me to hug you is the best.”
“It’ll get hot soon.”
“Then turn up the AC.”
“…”
I didn’t respond, just let him hold me like that. No one had ever hugged me like this before, so it felt a bit strange. It took about three minutes to get used to being hugged from behind without panicking.
“Hand me the book.”
“Oh.” I complied, reaching for his book that was stacked on the table and handing it to him. He took it and placed it in front of me, “What?”
“I’m going to read like this.”
“Oh…uh-huh.”
“Can you sleep like this?”
“If I say no?”
“Then no.”
“Uh-huh.”
And then he started to focus on the book in front of him, turning it into a situation where I was reading along with him, which, of course, I didn’t understand. Even though I could translate English, I didn’t understand the content. The book was full of content I didn’t understand, the embrace from strong arms, the warmth from his body, all of it made me feel safe and comfortable in an indescribable way.
“Are you sleepy?”
“Uh-huh.”
“Sweet dreams. You don’t have to dream about me because I’ll be holding you all night.”
“…”
I slowly stretched my legs and shifted slightly for comfort, my eyes drooping as I easily drifted off to sleep in his embrace.
…
I opened my eyes to the dim light. It seemed like the person holding me had fallen asleep with the book still open. I took the book and placed it on the table, then tried to free myself from the loose embrace of his arms.
Once out of his arms, I got up from the sofa to head to the bathroom. Due to my grogginess and unfamiliarity with the room’s layout, my left foot hit something.
!!!
“What’s that!” The room’s owner woke up after hearing the noise, looking startled to see me on the floor, quickly getting up to check on me.
“…Uh-huh.”
“Are you okay?”
“My ankle hurts.”
“Damn.”
He swore in frustration before picking me up and placing me on the bed, turning on the lights in the room and sitting down next to the bed to check my ankle immediately.
“Damn, is it sprained?”
“Maybe a little.”
He gently examined it.
“Does it hurt a lot?”
“Not too much.”
“I don’t think it’s too serious, but don’t walk. If you walk, it’ll get worse.”
“Oh, okay.”
He got up from the floor, walked to get some ointment, and started applying it.
“I’ll buy you some medicine to take tomorrow, it’ll heal faster.”
“Oh, thank you.”
“You’re not going to class.”
“I have to.”
“I’ll get you an excuse note later.”
“It’s just unnecessary trouble.”
“I’ll go get the excuse note myself.”
“It’s fine.”
“Don’t be stubborn! Listen to the doctor.”
“…”
“What’s the point of being stubborn? Just stay still for a couple of days, or do you want to never walk again because I’ll chain you up? Choose.”
“I’ll stay still for a couple of days.”
“Good.”
He gently massaged the ointment into my ankle. It felt a bit strange to have someone else applying ointment for me.
“Your pants are in the way, pull them up.”
“Oh.”
Because his pants were so long that they covered my ankle, making it inconvenient to apply the ointment. I pulled up my pants as he instructed, and he slowly looked up to watch. “Your leg is pretty nice.”
“Oh…really?”
“It’s worth putting over a shoulder.” [1] If you know you know
“What does that mean…”
“Not telling.”
“Uh-huh.”
“Not going to ask?”
“If you don’t tell, then you don’t tell.”
“Cool.” He shrugged, not too bothered. After applying the ointment, he wrapped my ankle and then got up to put away the ointment tube, “Why did you get up?”
“I needed to go to the bathroom.”
“Oh, come, I’ll carry you in.”
“No.”
“Then what will you do?”
“I can walk.”
“I told you not to be stubborn.” He said, somewhat annoyed, before picking me up and carrying me into the bathroom, gently setting me down in front of the toilet.
“Don’t look.”
“Why be shy? I’m just helping you stand.”
I didn’t respond, just furrowed my brows at him in displeasure. He chuckled a little before turning his back.
“If you look, I’ll be mad.”
“Yeah, yeah, I know, hurry up or your foot will hurt more. Good thing the bathroom floor isn’t slippery.”
“Hmm.”
I quickly took care of my business.
“Done?”
“Hmm.”
And then he turned back to lift me up again, placing me gently on the bed. “Stay on the bed then, I’ll continue reading.” He said. I looked at the clock and saw it was past four in the morning, “Sleep, I won’t come to the bed.”
“Will you go running?”
“Me? Sure, you watch the room then, what do you want for breakfast? I’ll bring something back.” He asked, “Soy milk, it’s close by.”
“Hmm.”
“Okay, if you’re in pain or anything, call me.”
“Hmm.”
And then he walked back to sit on the sofa, lying down to continue reading as he had mentioned. I thought around five-thirty, almost six, he would go out jogging like last time, and with sleepiness taking over, I drifted off again with a warm feeling at my ankle from the ointment he had applied.
I woke up to the morning sunlight coming through the window. I looked around the room but couldn’t see the room’s owner anywhere. Checking the time, it was past eight, so I guessed he must have gone to his ward early in the morning. I noticed the ankle bandage had been changed to a new one, with the smell of fresh ointment indicating he had reapplied it and changed the bandage before leaving.
I checked my phone as I do every morning and found messages from Phii Arthit sent around seven-thirty.
☀︎: The soy milk place wasn’t open.
☀︎: There’s rice in the fridge, warm it up, and take your medicine too.
☀︎: Yellow one, take 1, white one, take 2, after you eat.
☀︎:. I’ll bring lunch.
☀︎: Don’t walk around too much, just sit or lie down.
☀︎: Reply when you wake up.
SS: Understood.
I replied with just that and left the chat; he hadn’t read it yet, probably because he was busy. I put my phone down and slowly lowered my feet from the bed, putting weight on them to stand up, finding that it wasn’t so painful that I couldn’t stand.
However, when I tried to walk just a few steps, a sharp pain shot up, so I leaned against the wall to rest before heading to the bathroom. I just washed my face, brushed my teeth, and came out, warmed some rice in the microwave, ate, and took my medicine as he instructed.
I saw Mr. Jeon playing in the corner of the room, and noticed there was a tray with leftover food next to his bed, indicating that he had been given breakfast. Though I wanted to play with him, my ankle wasn’t cooperating, and calling him over would be difficult. Plus, it would disturb his nap. So, I could only watch. Today, I have class with North. If North knew I tripped and sprained my ankle, I’d definitely get scolded.
I looked around to see what I had tripped on last night, but there was nothing at the spot where I fell.
I stopped caring and turned my attention back to my computer screen. Since I had some free time, I’d end up working. I kept working until I heard the door open, and it was the owner of the room coming in, wearing a white gown.
“How are you?”
“A bit better.”
“Good. You didn’t walk much, right?”
“Uh-huh.”
“Oh, lunch, eat your lunch and don’t forget to take your medicine.” He said before placing the food bag on the table and quickly turned to leave, closing and locking the door. I was left confused, not having had the chance to ask anything; he really just dropped off the food. He didn’t have more time than that.
I opened the bag to find it was just regular takeout food. I ate about half of it before I was full, then took all my medicine and continued working.
Staying in the room all day was never a problem for me; I even enjoyed it because I could work, or if there was no work, I could watch movies or play games.
I continued working until I heard a knock at the door, so I had to go open it, finding North standing there with his hair styled up as if he’d just ridden a motorcycle, holding a bag of something in his hand.
“Hey, you, Phii Arthit said you sprained your ankle?”
“Uh-huh.”
Then North walked into the room, placing the bag, which seemed to contain snacks, on the table next to my computer.
“First things first, I want to say I didn’t want to come to this spooky place at all, but Arthit said I was being a coward. Honestly, I’m not a coward, that’s why I came.”
“Oh, I see.”
“I came to visit you, brought some snacks too, eat up.” North said, pulling out many small bags of snacks from his bag.
“Aren’t you going to eat, North?”
“Nah, all for you.”
“…” I remained silent without responding, looking at him with suspicion. It’s impossible for North to share snacks without eating any himself like this, “Tell me straight.”
“What?”
“Is there something in these snacks?”
“No way, why? Do I look suspicious? I’m just being kind, bringing snacks for the sick, you sprained your ankle, right? Eat this, and it’ll flip back, heal.”
“Heal the pain?”
“Heal you out of this world, spit, why make such a big deal? Here, I’ll leave it here, you eat it.”
“You’re not good at lying, huh?” I said before picking up one bag, opening it, and trying a piece. Of course, it was just regular snacks, but what wasn’t regular was North’s behavior right now.
“Okay, honestly, it’s cursed snacks.”
“What?”
“Sigh, damn.” North sighed in annoyance and flopped onto the bed, “Can I sleep here? Is this the bed where you two hug each other?” “No.” I answered truthfully.
“He doesn’t hug you? Wow, unbelievable, for that clingy senior.”
“So how is it cursed?” I asked while finishing off one bag, sitting on the desk chair and swiveling to face North, who was lying on the bed, taking off his shirt jacket in irritation, now just in a t-shirt. I remember North complaining that his boyfriend told him to wear it, and it was very hot.
“Hot as hell, huh, what did you ask again?”
“How it’s cursed.”
“Did you eat it?”
“Yes.”
“Yes!” He said with a delighted expression, “I’m safe tonight.”
“…”
“Here’s the thing…you know. No, you don’t know, forget it. One of my friends, named Tee, he’s got fleas too. That dog-faced guy, he secretly put this bag of snacks in my bag, and by the time I noticed, it was too late to return it. I messaged him asking why he put snacks in my bag, if it was some new way of pranking, and he said yes.”
“Yes, how?”
“The snacks he stole from the child spirit at his house.”
“So he gave them to me ?”
“You’re not afraid of ghosts, right? Help me out here, I don’t want the little ones chasing me for their snacks.”
“Why would he prank you North?”
“Right, I’m quite delicate. I just poured some oil on his shirt and lit it on fire, what’s there to be so angry about?”
“Oh…oh, right. He shouldn’t be so mad as to give cursed snacks.”
“I just got him back, see, my shirt is all black now, we had to light each other up in the whole department that day, it was chaos, but it went out with just a few pats.”
“Oh, I can imagine, what a cute prank.”
“Yeah, don’t let bastards live together.” North said casually, “Ha, that flea-ridden Tee, he can’t do anything to me. Just a child spirit, ha, even the ghost of a toilet can do shit to me, hey, you know, I’ll call to mock Tee first.”
And then North really called to mock him. If I were Tee, I’d be pretty annoyed at North. After North hung up, I called out to him.
“North.”
“Huh? What?”
“When you opened your heart to his partner, how was it?”
“Why ask…oh, oh, oh, damn, this story needs elaboration.” North said excitedly, moving to sit beside me instead, pulling a chair over, “What’s going on with you and Arthit?”
“I’ve opened my heart to him.”
“Damn, what made you so dizzy?”
“…He’s sincere.”
“Yeah, I know, he’s foolish, he can’t deceive anyone, just like me.”
“You’re insulting yourself.”
“Yeah, whatever, so what, go on, tell me.”
And then I gave a brief rundown of what had happened since I decided to open up to him. In fact, it all happened just yesterday evening.
“And how was his reaction? Did my brother die from the shock?”
“He…looked strange.” I said, furrowing my brows, trying to find the right words, while North laughed cheerfully, “When I complimented him by saying he was cute, he said he was ready to be mine, and then he was going to take off his shirt.” “Damn, what a vulgar face.” North laughed, holding his head, “Why so eager? Just because of a compliment? Can’t you just compliment him a little without him stripping? Crazy, so easy to please, what else happened?”
“Hmm…and then I sprained my ankle. Oh, North, he complimented my legs, saying they’re beautiful and that he’d like them over his shoulders. What does that mean?”
“Over his shoulders?” North furrowed his brows, pondering, “Oh, oh, damn, what a mess. It’s like that moment when you need to put your legs over his shoulders, try imagining it.”
“That moment? …Oh, oh, that’s bad, why is he like that?” Once I understood the implication, I let out a big sigh, but I wasn’t surprised at his kind of humor.
“He’s so damn eager, he’s got the heart for it.” North said with a pleased laugh,
“Oh, I heard he came to see you at noon.”
“How did you know?”
“Ter told me, Phii Arthit was doing rounds with Phii Hill these days. Phii Hill said today there was hardly time to breathe, but Phii Arthit made a quick trip to deliver food to you and then dashed back, like a speed demon.”
“Riding a motorcycle?”
“Maybe twisting ears or something, why so fast, I can’t even think.” North said. I couldn’t help but smile at his confused look, “Did you eat and take your medicine?”
“Yeah, and how was class today?”
“We had a pair project, just right. I’ll send you the details later, let Arthit take notes.” North said since we had one class together today, “I’ve told the professor you’re excused, don’t forget to submit the excuse note later.”
“Hmm, got it.”
“Your leg’s been bad for several days now.”
“I can walk, it should be fine in a few days.”
“Yeah, but why are you staying in his room?”
“He didn’t tell you?”
“No, he called this morning, said to come keep you company after class, told me you sprained your ankle in his room and gave me a brief rundown on you two.”
“Oh. He just took my key card.”
“Forced you to stay with him?”
“Yes.”
“Oh, my senior, he forces what he can’t have, and you still opened your heart to this damn devil, for God’s sake.”
“Would you not do the same?”
“Not if it was Phii Arthit.” North said, “Do you think we’re alike?”
“Alike. He’s just more vulgar.”
“Like siblings crawling after each other. No way, I don’t want to be with someone like me.” North waved his hand dismissively, “What about the snake?”
“It’s in my room now.” “Oh, switched rooms?”
“Yes.”
“Uh-huh…he’s got guts, but what did you trip on?”
“I don’t know, it was dark at the time, and I forgot to look. When I checked in the morning, it was gone.” I said, pointing to where I fell last night, and North looked over.
“He probably threw it away.”
“Oh, really?”
“And you’re wearing his shirt and pants? They’re so loose.”
“Uh-huh. I didn’t have a change of clothes.”
“Want my shirt? I’ll take it off for you.”
“North, you’re always quick to strip too.” I teased.
“Kidding, then should I climb up to get you a shirt? And bring some other stuff of yours too.”
“No need, it’s dangerous, this is the seventh floor.”
“I’m good at climbing, I used to have a job that involved a lot of climbing.” “Jo?”
“Coconut seller.”
“Hmm.”
“You’re good at cracking jokes, but they’re not funny.”
“I was laughing inside, loudly too.”
“Okay, got it.” North nodded, “So what are you doing?”
“Working.”
“Then I’ll just disturb you.”
“Right.”
“Out of kindness, you don’t have to keep it.” North pretended to complain, “Can you sense anything from these snacks, or is the little brother just messing with me?”
“I don’t know. It’s fine, I’ll keep them for us.”
“You’re too kind, willing to be deceived for me, true friend, die with me, man.”
“No.”
“You’ll die with Phii Arthit, huh?” North squinted, teasing me. I kept a straight face until he looked bored, “Have you ever been embarrassed by teasing? Have you ever felt embarrassed in your life? Did you come with emotions attached?! Do you have a heart at all?”
“It’s colored.”
“Huh?”
“He’s the one who made me realize I have a heart too.”
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