WESTTHESUNFROMANOTHERSTAR, Chapter 9: Indigo
Daotok
SS: Hospital where they’re treated
SS: Relatives’ home, vacation home, favorite or sentimental place
SS: Close friends, pets
SS: Grave
☀︎: ?
SS: Places where your mother might be
SS: Not just at home
SS: Everything, everyone, every place connected
SS: Try to think
☀︎: Yeah
SS: In the worst-case scenario
SS: The spirit might be lost
☀︎:: Not likely
☀︎: We’ve already done a summoning ritual at the church
SS: !
SS: Here
☀︎: What?
☀︎: Shit, what is it, what the hell?
☀︎: Did you send it and then die?
SS: No, no, not dead yet
☀︎: I was just joking
SS: So
SS:. After thinking about it
SS:. I’ve helped you a lot
SS: I’m very tired
SS: We’ll have to go to many more places.
☀︎: So what?
☀︎:: Are you going to ditch me?
☀︎:: Don’t, damn it.
☀︎:: What do you want? Tell me.
SS: Do you have anything to trade?
☀︎:: Like what?
SS: I’ll tell you later.
☀︎: Okay.
“North. I was just kidding.” I reiterated to the person in front of me, referring to when I jokingly asked him to beat up the guy. North knew I was just playing, but he came up with this strange idea. Since I’m helping the cigarette seller find his mother, and he hasn’t repaid me yet, if you ask about repayment, I wouldn’t know what to ask for because I don’t think I need anything from him.
“Come on, you’ll just help him for free?”
“I’m not getting anything, maybe just asking for a meal or coffee.”
“That’s too little, have him help you with your ex, that’s the best deal.”
“…”
“I know you don’t want to resort to physical harm, but that bastard, what’s his name?”
“I’m not telling.”
“What? I don’t even know his name.”
“Kram.”
“Huh?”
“His name is Kram.”
“What kind of person is named ‘Kamm’?”
“Kram, Kram.” I said, sighing, “Can we not talk about his name so often?”
“Then I’ll call him ‘Kamm’.”
“…Okay.”
“But let me tell you, when you guys were dating, you must have been a very calm couple.” “Why?”
“Calm Dao.”
“…” I looked straight at the person in front of me and let out an exhausted sigh, but the issue was North was laughing, laughing for quite a while before he could stop. “Are you okay yet?”
“What? Not funny, huh? I was laughing, you know?”
“North, you have a low tolerance for humor.”
“Yeah, and you’re not really laughing, huh? Just give me a little smile at the corner of your mouth.”
“Ha ha ha ha.” I forced a dry laugh for North.
“You’re forcing it, but well, thanks.” North said, still chuckling a bit. North has a good mood because he has a low tolerance for humor, anything slightly funny makes him laugh, even if it’s just five or ten baht. Sometimes I want to try being as cheerful as North. “How many Line requests has he sent now?”
“Probably…seven by now.”
“And there’s no sign of him stopping, right? Won’t it be worse if he comes back?” North tried to explain to persuade me. I was also listening intently, “Okay, he might not do anything to you, he might just be persistent, but then what, do you want to get back together with him?” I shook my head as an answer.
“And how strong is your resolve?”
“…” I went silent and sighed again because honestly, I’m not confident at all about how it would be if I saw him again. Just a message from Line was enough to unsettle me. Just seeing his Line name as a cloud icon, the one he used to use, without even having his picture as a profile, I’ve already smoked several cigarettes, not to mention the beer, which made my work progress slow down for a while. Thankfully, I managed to meet the deadline in the end. So, if he comes back, it would definitely have some impact. “See, you can’t even answer.”
“North.”
“What?”
“I don’t understand it at all, it’s strangely contradictory.” I decided to say. I had already given everyone a brief overview without going into details because I thought it wasn’t necessary. I just mentioned that he had cheated on me with a close friend, “I hate him, I don’t want to think about him, but sometimes…I’m happy with the old memories.”
“Do you still love him?”
“Honestly…I don’t know.” I answered with uncertainty. I kept telling myself that I didn’t love him anymore, that I shouldn’t, that I must hate him, but I couldn’t answer confidently. Otherwise, Emma wouldn’t have made me promise not to go back to him, as if I were making a promise to myself.
If I were really sure,
Why would I need to promise myself?
“Do you still want to love him?”
“No, that’s not true. I don’t want to.”
“You’re in the process of getting over him.” North said casually. I nodded in agreement; it must be something like that, “Are you still crying?”
“Not anymore.”
“How much does it hurt?”
“It doesn’t hurt. Just a bit shaken. If you ask if I’d get back with him, no.”
“What did he do to you, I want to know.”
“I’ve already told you.”
“Oh, you just told it briefly.”
“Well, that’s about it. The main thing is, I caught him sleeping with our friend, that was the breaking point. Before that, there were smaller details like lying to me, secretly flirting around, sleeping with others, borrowing money under the guise of necessity but actually giving it to someone else, talking bad about me behind my back, and secretly selling my original work, stuff like that.”
“He slept with someone else?”
“Yeah, he blamed it on me not being ready, so he had to have sexwith someone else.”
“Wow, what a bastard, how many years were you together?”
“Two.”
“I bet those were two shitty years.”
“It was…bad, but if you ask if it was happy, it was, in a fake kind of way.” I said before reaching for my iced cappuccino to drink.
“Don’t you have that special ability? Why didn’t you know he was lying? At least, you should have some sense of how he was feeling. When he’s lying, his heart must be fluttering or something.”
“Not really.” I shook my head slightly, “As I’ve said before, it takes a lot of concentration to read someone’s feelings, and besides, I’ve never read his feelings. I told myself that lovers don’t need to do that. I already understood him, and trusted him too.”
“Oh.”
“But honestly, deep down, I was scared.”
“?”
“Scared to find out he was lying.”
“Ah.”
“Funny, isn’t it?” I shook my head gently and gave a slight pout.
“It’s not strange, there really are people who are afraid to find out someone’s lying. So, they don’t investigate, don’t follow up, don’t meddle in things like that, but deep down, they know. They just pretend not to see.” North said, “I bet you must have been really into him. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be so affected.”
“Yeah, sure.”
“asshole.”
“Hmm?”
“Don’t you think about opening your heart to anyone else?”
“No.” I shook my head slightly, “Why do you keep asking this? Why are you so keen on me getting a partner?” I furrowed my brows, not quite understanding why everyone seemed so eager for me to open my heart.
“A lot of people like you.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, at least several of my engineering friends have asked for your Line.”
“And you gave it to them?”
“Yeah, some of them have added you.”
“Oh. I’ve blocked them all.”
“Wow, why?”
“I don’t want to talk; my LINE is already chaotic with just clients.” I said in a normal tone, “I’ve already told everyone that I’m not interested in that kind of thing.”
“They’re just worried about you, that’s all. They know you like being like this. They just think it would be nice if someone looked after you sometimes. Don’t say you can take care of yourself, you bastard, you go to the hospital once a month, you don’t have the right to say that.”
“I haven’t gone this month, and I’m not going anymore because hospitals are so boring.”
“Okay. That’s good then, you don’t open up, no problem, but you know not everyone is a bastard like your ex.”
“And not everyone is as good as North’s partner either.”
“How did you turn that back on me?”
“Well, it’s true, everyone’s lucky to have a good partner, but not everyone in the world is that lucky. I don’t want to take the risk, and besides, I think my life is good enough as it is.”
“…Damn.” North cursed and laughed out loud, “You bastard, why don’t you want a partner? Oh, because your life is good enough, that’s hilariously depressing, is there another way to put it?” North teased, still laughing.
“Uh…I’m okay with how I am now.”
“Yeah, that’s better, you bastard, your life is good enough, huh?” The person sitting across from me gently rubbed his head.
“Can’t I say it like that?”
“Probably not, better to answer indirectly.”
“Okay.”
“Back to Kram, let Phii Arthit help. He owes you one anyway, think of it as him paying you back with some petty coins, even in a game.” North returned to the previous topic, “No need to go as far as beating him up. Just let Phii Arthit help to keep him away, curse him out, threaten him.”
“Really?”
“Absolutely, and then maybe a punch.”
“…” I bit my lip lightly, pondering for a while. What North suggested wasn’t bad, but asking for help wasn’t really my nature. “We don’t really know each other, wouldn’t it be strange to suddenly ask him for help?”
“Don’t we know each other? I think you guys might know each other to some extent already.”
“Is that so?”
“And what is Phii Arthit to you, your neighbor?”
“The cigarette seller.”
“Yeah, okay, let’s leave it at that.” North said, “So, that’s the decision then?” “It’s better not to. It’s fine.”
“Why are you so stubborn?”
“North you is the stubborn one.”
“Alright.” North let out a small sigh and made a sullen face, “I just thought, since he owes you a favor, you should make use of it. Think about it, apart from this, there’s nothing else that Arthit can do to repay you. He’s only good for a few things, and being a friend in need is one of them.”
“…Hmm.”
“Come on.”
“What?”
“You’re hesitating, and somehow, I feel good about it. Like I’ve accomplished something by convincing someone like you.”
“Alright.” I couldn’t help but smile a little at North’s excitement, “Hmm…maybe it could be good.” I said what I was thinking; indeed, apart from this, there isn’t anything else the cigarette seller could really repay me with. Treating me to meals, drinks, or coffee isn’t that necessary. Plus, he has used my services a lot.
“Yeah, it would take one worry away.”
“What?”
“Honestly, I’m more inclined to not want you to get back with that scoundrel because he’s really a bastard, but if I meddle too much, it might look bad. If one day you change your mind and want to go back to him, I’ll be the bad meddlesome dog here, with the feeling of protecting my friend to the death from returning to an ex. In the end, if you go back, I don’t want to be too vocal. I don’t want to howl; let Arthit do the howling instead.”
I chatted with North for a while longer before he excused himself to leave. I went back to my room, lay down, and was flooded with thoughts. Part of me wanted to forget about it and get back to work, but another part was thinking, if he really does come back in two months, what would I do?
I dozed off like that, waking up to find myself drenched in sweat because I hadn’t turned on the air conditioner before sleeping. I went to take a shower, planning to go back to work at the coffee shop as usual. While I was packing up, I got a notification on my phone.
☁: It’s just morning here.
☁: Do they have durian in Thailand?
☁: I’m thinking of stopping for a cappuccino first.
☁: Do you still drink cappuccino?
☁: When you drink it, do you think of me?
☁: Just need to handle a few more things, and I’ll be ready to return to Thailand.
☁: I want to see you soon.
I frowned at the screen for a moment before blocking that LINE again, as I usually do. Why does he keep trying to come back? I packed my things into my bag before heading outside. While waiting for the elevator, another LINE notification came up.
☀︎:: Let’s talk.
SS: I’m about to go outside.
☀︎:: Where?
SS: In front of the elevator.
☀︎:: Wait.
☀︎: I’m coming.
…
Arthit
After the kid from the next room messaged me in the afternoon, asking me to gather information about my mother, I called Direk to ask for all the details. Once I had the information, I messaged him right away, but when he said he was going out, not wanting to wait, I decided to go with him.
He was waiting for me in front of the elevator, and we went down to the front of the condo together.
“Which place?” I asked.
“The same Starbucks.”
“Yeah, want to go together? It’s going to rain.” I asked because the sky outside was starting to darken. He nodded slightly before following me. It didn’t take long to reach the usual coffee shop.
“Did you get what you needed?” He asked. So, I started telling him all the details I had gathered. I asked Direk about who or where my mother might have had a connection with, as he suggested. She had no relatives or close friends anywhere, so the possibility of her being with someone else was dismissed. We do have a vacation home, though. I had forgotten about it because after mom got sick, we didn’t go there together anymore. Direk said it’s almost abandoned now, but if we plan to go, he’d have someone prepare the house beforehand.
As for her personal belongings, she loved things that belonged to her grandparents, like heirlooms, but those items are at Direk’s house. Regarding pets, I’m not sure; would there be anyone who would stay with their pets even after death? Because she once had a dog, but when she got sick, the doctor warned that allergies might complicate things due to her very weakened state, so we had to give it to a shelter. After she passed away, when Direk went looking for it, he found out it had been adopted by another family.
“The hospital where she was treated is only in LA.” I said, “And the vacation homes are in two places: Phuket and Hawaii.”
“Ah…hmm.”
“As for feeding a pet thing, who would still be attached even after death?”
“I’m one of them.”
“…” I furrowed my brows, looking at him somewhat confusedly, “Well, alright, my dad will find out who took it in.”
“Uh-huh.”
“Do you have anything else?”
“That’s all I can think of, and that’s already a lot.”
“Do I have to take you to all these places?”
“Probably.”
“Yeah, I’m starting to feel strangely guilty.” I said. Even though I don’t usually feel too guilty about others, this time, I really felt like I was bothering this kid too much, “And what’s the exchange for this?”
“Hmm?”
“Yeah, tell me. So I don’t have to owe you anything.”
“…” He went quiet, put down the pen he was using to work, and pondered for a moment.
“What?”
“Go beat up my ex for me.”
“…Huh?” I looked at him, not believing what I just heard. Wait, what kind of exchange is this? “Wait, what?”
“No, I said it wrong.” He said, “Not beat up, but like…keep him away, help me out.”
“…” I still had my brows furrowed, looking at him with confusion, waiting for more details, but he didn’t say anything more, “What? Go on.”
“Well…in two months, he’s coming back, help me out.”
“Help with what?”
“Yeah. Don’t let him interfere in my life.”
“Damn, why? Is he that persistent?”
“Yeah, keep it as a last resort before resorting to hitting.”
“Yeah, I get it.” I raised my hand to press my temple, “What do you call this approach?”
“A dog deterrent.”
“Right, and if in the end you reconcile with him, I’d be the dog.”
“Exactly, North suggested it because he doesn’t want to be the dog.”
“Crap.” I muttered, not in the best mood. Honestly, it’s not much, but imagine if I tried to keep this kid’s ex away, only for them to reconcile in the end, I’d be howling, the bastard, it would be like, what was the point of that? “Give me the details.”
“?”
“The details about your ex, who am I supposed to keep away?”
“His name is Khram. He should be twenty-three by now.”
“Male?”
“Yeah.”
“Oh, okay, and why in two months?”
“He’s studying abroad, almost finished.”
“Oh, do you have a picture?”
“No.”
“Okay, fine, two more months then, what am I supposed to do?”
“Threaten, curse, whatever.”
“Right, right, sounds complicated. Just don’t reconcile and let it be over.” I said, but he didn’t respond, just picked up the pen and continued doodling on the tablet, ignoring my question. And when are you going? I’m not really free these days. “I’ll go myself, to the house in Phuket.”
“Huh?”
“The vacation home in Phuket, it’s close, I’ll go there myself, and you’ll pay for it, right?”
“Yeah. Fine, just don’t steal anything from my house.”
“I won’t.”
“If there’s nothing else, I’m leaving.”
“Wait.” the person sitting across from me called out first, “How am I supposed to get back?”
Oh, damn, I forgot, he came with me, I completely forgot about the return trip.
“Do I have to wait for you?”
“You invited me, didn’t you?”
“Shit.” I let out a big sigh before slumping back onto the sofa, playing with my phone out of boredom. I shouldn’t have invited him, trying to be nice thinking it would rain, completely forgetting he was here for work and it would take a while to get back. Bored and with nothing to do, I grabbed the iPad from the back of the car to read until he was done working.
Would it be too harsh to leave him and go back alone?
After asking him for help, only to screw him over, Fah would definitely give me an earful. …
Daotok
After getting information that the cigarette seller had a vacation home in Phuket and there was a possibility that his mother could be there, since it wasn’t too far, I decided to go myself. I didn’t want to wait after getting off the plane; I took a car straight to the target vacation home using the GPS coordinates sent by the cigarette seller.
Upon arriving at what seemed to be the right house, I took a photo and sent it to confirm, and he replied that it was the correct place. I used the key he gave me to enter. It was just a typical vacation home, quite spacious and clean, probably had someone come to clean it recently.
I used the same method as before, walking around to inspect every room and every part of the house, but like before, I found nothing. I sent a Line message to the cigarette seller telling him I found nothing and then left the house, making sure to lock the door as I found it. I had a bit of time before I needed to head back, so I decided to do some sightseeing.
Not long after, my phone buzzed with a new Line message, and when I looked at the screen, I couldn’t help but frown again.
It’s him again… SS: *Sends contact list
☀︎😕
SS: My Ex
SS: Today I checked the place in Phuket for you.
SS: Help me out.
☀︎: Yeah, yeah
…
☀︎: Has added you.
☁: Who is this?
☀︎:: What’s your problem, you bastard?
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