“Not long ago, we just said goodbye.”
“Why didn’t you suspect anything at all?”
Aksorn’s question rang out on the way back to the dorm. I, who was driving, turned my head to glance at the person sitting beside me for just a fleeting moment, but there was no answer.
“…Just who are you, really?”
I knew well, Aksorn was just confused.
“…Did you know, sometimes I wonder if you might be involved in all the things that have been happening to me.”
Not just involved… it was more than that.
“What do you mean?” I pretended to ask, covering up the discomfort that had been present the whole way. I was struggling to control myself, not to show how excited I was about what would happen in just a few hours ahead.
Tomorrow, my past self from another world had decided to journey to this world.
The Songjam in the mirror would disappear.
The Songjam in real life would appear….
“It means that our meeting might not have been a coincidence.”
The listener raised a smile, because he knew well in his heart that everything had happened by his own intention.
“Is that so…” I replied in a faint, soft voice, before sliding one hand over to hold Aksorn’s hand, conveying countless feelings too immense to put into words.
Only silence continued, lasting until the car arrived in front of Aksorn’s dorm. I then chose to release the other’s hand to set it free.
“Thank you, khrap.” The eyes staring back conveyed equally immense feelings. Songjam wanted to tell Aksorn to endure, for just a moment longer. “…Thank you for everything.”
Our wait is about to end…
I knew well, this would be the last time I met Aksorn as Khiao… the mysterious young man with no origin.
“Aksorn…” That name always affected his feelings. I leaned his face in, hoping only that the other wouldn’t pull away first. “After this, may you have much happiness.”
Even though he truly wanted so badly to say, We will be happy together…
The bright eyes used to look at each other made me feel dazed as if under a spell. I moved my face closer, yearning deeply for that warm touch.
The real Aksorn.
Not through a mirror anymore…
But if I did that, my long wait might come to nothing. I stopped myself by moving my hand to unbuckle the seatbelt for the person sitting there rigidly instead, before giving the warmest smile I, as Khiao, had ever given.
“Then, see you, khrap.”
I uttered the farewell phrase, the same phrase I had said to Aksorn for the last time before passing through the mirror to this world.
“Mhmm, see you, khrap.” Aksorn said, then immediately opened the door and got out of the car. I gazed at Aksorn’s face one more time before deciding to drive away.
Just one more day, and everything would come to an end….
***
“Bye now, you can open the door, khrap.”
Aksorn picked up the last piece of paper slipped through the gap under the door with a trembling hand. Tears still streamed down his cheeks as he stared at all the papers once more.
So Songjam had been by his side all along….
The junior pressed his lips tightly together, took a deep breath to control his emotions that were crashing over him like waves. Both hands rose to clumsily wipe his own tears before he stood up to his full height to confront the room door, the final barrier keeping the two of us apart.
Aksorn reached for the doorknob, turned it slowly before quickly pushing the door open.
In front of him, a tall figure was already standing there smiling. It was a smile that Aksorn felt terribly guilty for never having noticed was the same smile as the person he loved so deeply.
“Phîi, khrap.”
The forty-four-year-old Songjam called Aksorn like that while opening his arms to wait. The junior immediately rushed into the hug with a joy he had never felt before. Aksorn was glad that Songjam had succeeded, but at the same time, he felt pity for having let this junior wait for him for far too long.
Our embrace was warm, free from any dimension of time to limit it, free from any pane of glass to obstruct it, free from any bonds to separate us…
There were only two people in the same space, the same moment, and with mutual feelings.
We hugged as we had desired, feeling the warmth of a body that wasn’t cold like a glass pane. The tears Aksorn had been holding back welled up again as strong arms held his body in a yearning embrace.
“I’m sorry, Songjam… Sorry for never knowing anything.”
Songjam gently patted the back of the person in his embrace, closing his eyes to absorb the existence of the two of them who could finally touch. And no matter how strong he was, today, Songjam’s tears also streamed down his cheeks no differently. Tears of excessive joy….
“I’m also sorry for not telling you from the beginning,” Songjam said, his voice shaking. He wanted to cry until he had no tears left when Aksorn reached out to wipe his tears for him, even though he himself was sobbing until his body shook.
“You really didn’t have to go this far.”
“I just wanted to see you, to hug you, to touch you with my own hands.” Thick hands cupped Aksorn’s face with love. “And I’ve succeeded.”
Aksorn smiled widely, nodding through tears. A clever person deserves a reward.
The tall figure froze as the face he was holding moved in to gently kiss his lips, before pulling back to stand there smiling at him as before.
“So clever.”
Songjam wouldn’t let this opportunity slip away. He was the one who pulled the other in for a tight, prolonged kiss, so long they forgot to breathe, making up for the time when they could only kiss through glass. Now, Songjam felt that even if it lasted longer than this, the fact that he had met Aksorn as the person he loved with all his heart was worth the wait…
***
John Lennon’s song played softly along with the car horns on the congested road. Aksorn kept smiling like crazy even though the traffic was this bad, until the person driving couldn’t help but comment.
“You seem happy about the traffic jam, Phîi.”
Aksorn pursed his lips, shaking his head at the young man who had grown into a full adult, but to him, was still just a junior who was somewhat endearing.
“I’m happy being with you, that’s all.” He felt embarrassed by his own words. Better to just turn and look at the smoke-filled road ahead instead.
“Say it again, will you? This time I’ll record it.” Songjam took out his mobile phone, really preparing to raise it and record, but was met with a fierce glare from the other.
“No!”
“Aww, it’s rare for you to be sweet-talking.”
“Enough, Songjam. The light’s green.” Aksorn pointed out before they could find another topic to talk about again. The conversation between the two young men never quieted down.
“Do you remember, the day it was raining heavily and you let me come up to your room? I was so shocked then.” Suddenly, Songjam brought this up. Aksorn, sitting listening beside him, immediately widened his eyes with curiosity.
“And did you see anything in the mirror?”
“Not at all. It was just a normal mirror.”
“So, it was only you and me in that moment who could see each other, huh?”
“Clearly fate.”
“But I wonder, if the you in the mirror had been in the room that day and saw you, as Khiao, come up, what would have happened?” Aksorn narrowed his eyes in thought, but the answer from the person beside him made him roll his eyes instantly.
“I probably wouldn’t have recognized myself because I’d gotten much handsomer.”
“I feel like having a cup of coffee.”
“I’ll buy you coffee if you admit I’m handsome.”
“You are the handsomest in this world already.”
The two turned and laughed at each other. The word ‘happiness’ floated throughout the car until they reached their intended destination for today. Silence then fell suddenly.
“Ready?” Songjam turned to ask the person sitting beside him.
Seeing Aksorn nod in acceptance, he got out of the car. Aksorn was the one who rang the doorbell before the two stood holding each other’s hands firmly while waiting for the homeowner to open the door. After just a short while, a familiar figure walked out with eyes mixed with surprise, before changing into a wide smile…
“Hey, long time no see, huh?” Phallop said to the person who dared to hold his son’s hand right in front of his eyes, no matter how happy he was to see the two together.
“I came back as promised,” Songjam said, before turning to look at the person standing beside him again. “And I brought the person you love most back with me.”
Aksorn stared at his father’s face for a long time, until he decided he would show his feelings even more skillfully than this.
“I missed you, Father.”
Phallop frowned, preoccupied with what he had heard, quite surprised that Aksorn said that sentence. But that was what made him grin widely before grabbing his son into a full embrace of missing.
The truth was, he just wanted to separate that guy from holding his son’s hand already.
“Let’s go inside first,” the homeowner gestured inward. The three chose the front garden patio to sit and talk, seeing how nice the weather was today.
Come to think of it, they had returned to the same place again after almost twenty years had passed…
“So, the friend you used to talk about, Father, it’s him, right?” Aksorn spoke up, staring at his father’s face full of an undeniable smile. He was glad to know his father had a friend, and glad to see how happy his father was with his happiness.
“That’s right. This guy here is weirder than anyone,” Phallop pointed at his friend who just sat smiling quietly. “He just showed up saying he came through a mirror from a parallel world.”
“I guess at first you didn’t believe what he said.”
“Of course I didn’t believe it. Your mother believed it though, so I ended up going along with it.”
All three laughed together before silence was born.
“…If she were here with us, it would be good.” Those words made Aksorn slide his hand to grip his father’s hand tightly, to comfort him.
“You still have me.”
Phallop rubbed his son’s head vigorously. Not seeing each other for long and he could change this much.
“So sweet-talking now. Did you teach my son anything?” In the end, it became about blaming the other young man, who just shrugged his shoulders annoyingly.
“What would you say if I moved back home?”
“Huh?” Phallop raised his eyebrows. Even though he was happy, he hadn’t expected it to be this easy. “What about Khiao?”
“Songjam lives in his condo, khrap. He has to work.”
“Won’t it be okay not living together? Really, don’t worry about me.”
“It’s fine, khrap. I can just go see him often instead. It’s not like we’re that far apart.”
Phallop nodded understandingly, before shaking his head again in disagreement with that decision. “You can stay home until you graduate. After that, we can think about it again.”
“What’s this? Are you going to abandon me then?”
“Yes. You’re this grown up, are you going to stay for me to support you anymore? Go find a job, go.”
Aksorn made a face. Back when he really moved out, who was it that went to get him to come back home, huh?
After chatting for a while longer, the three men started looking for food to celebrate tonight. The father and son acted as helpers for Songjam, who was extremely skilled at cooking. In the end, the homeowner, who was more in the way in the kitchen than anyone, volunteered to go buy drinks instead, leaving Aksorn to help the skilled chef himself.
It was just a meal that became special because we got to eat it together with everyone present. Aksorn took the opportunity after beer was poured into glasses to bring up something he had been thinking about for a while.
“Father, khrap. Mother’s typewriter, may I use it?”
The father raised his eyebrows, took another sip of beer before responding.
“Of course. Everything in this house is yours.”
Aksorn smiled widely, extremely happy to hear that.
“…But it’s very old. What do you want to use it for?” Phallop asked curiously, not expecting his son to be interested in it so suddenly without reason.
“I’m going to use it to write a novel.”
Songjam looked up at the speaker after quietly serving food to Aksorn. That sentence made him feel doubtful, but he let his friend continue asking instead.
“A novel… Won’t using a typewriter make it even slower?”
“This is what I want to know, khrap. The feeling my Mother had while typing that novel.”
The two young men narrowed their eyes while Aksorn smiled widely, before revealing,
“I will write ‘Aksorn in Memory’ until it’s finished, khrap.”
Phallop turned to look at his friend’s face, which remained silent before nodding understandingly. Aksorn knew well that both his father and Songjam always indulged him, including in this matter too.
“I’ll wait to read it,” Songjam said, making eye contact with his loved one to express happiness for this new step the other was about to take. Aksorn smiled back confidently. He had received enough encouragement already, for his Mother’s final wish.
Aksorn wanted to be the one to continue it until it was successful…
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