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Perspective - Third Person
Though Kirakorn isn't one to dwell on things—or to be honest, doesn't think about anything much at all—lately, certain events keep circling in his head.
The kiss? No... it's not that.
Being pushed so aggressively? No, that's not it either.
So, what is the thought lingering in his mind?
"We've reached the second spot in the list of the most dateable handsome men, with a score just shy of our number one. The reason? It's likely because this handsome man is already married to a beautiful wife. However, that hasn't stopped him from being every woman's dream guy. And the runner-up we're talking about is... Tul Metthanun!"
"That popular, huh?"
Yes, the only thing stuck in Khaen-ta-lup's mind right now is one thing: Tinn's lousy older brother who heartlessly hurt his younger sibling.
Are they even brothers? They look nothing alike.
Khaen practically presses his face against the screen of his brand-new phone, squinting at the brown-haired man with European features. He then compares him to his younger brother, who doesn't show any mixed heritage—except for one thing... he speaks three languages, not including Thai.
What's with the ability to speak so many languages? Here I am, barely speaking Thai in a way anyone can understand. Khaen shrugs slightly and goes back to reading about Tinn's older brother.
"His mom is British, and he's six-foot-two. How tall is six feet again? A foot is thirty centimeters, right? So that is... a hundred and eighty-six... or something? Can't this interview be written more Thai-like? Who's going to sit here calculating how many centimeters six feet is?" Khaen grumbles to himself as he takes in the brief background of the man he hates without ever having met him. Then, he scrolls through photos of this man's family.
There he is, Tinn's older brother, with his arm around a beautiful woman who must be his sister-in-law, and in his other arm, he holds an adorable boy who must be his nephew. Nothing in this picture shows the violence this man has inflicted on his younger brother.
If he hasn't heard it from Tinn himself, Khaen wouldn't believe that someone who looks so kind and approachable, always smiling, could be so despicable.
Then there is the little interview snippet where he says he dedicates his life to his family and isn't interested in anyone else. That alone is enough to make half the women in the country scream, trembling as they dream of being his mistress. Anyone reading that would think this man is a family-loving saint.
"The more I look at him, the more I want to punch him. What a fake. What a depraved personality. I'd love to scrub that smug face."
For Khaen-ta-lup, none of the information in the article changes his view of this man. People can say he is biased, but he... truly believes Tinn.
And the more he thinks about it, the more he feels sorry for the sharp-tongued Khun-chai.
LINE Message Alert.
Woof, woof!
"Why are you barking, Guccii? It's just a message, don't worry about it!"
However, that pity has nothing to do with Khaen feeling any obligation to respond to Tinn's LINE message. Ever since they exchanged contacts, Tinn has been messaging non-stop.
Even though Khaen admits he isn't the brightest, he knows that replying will just lead to getting dragged outside.
Not going. I feel like I'm being tricked again.
LINE Message Alert.
Not caring. Not interested.
LINE Message Alert.
Not caring. You can send messages all you want, but I won't reply. Who's going to stop me?
LINE Message Alert.
So persistent, damn it. I'll just mute the notifications.
Cherp!
Bloody hell!
Cherp!
Turning on Do Not Disturb, damn it!
In the end, Khaen grins in satisfaction as all the buzzing and ringing finally goes silent. He feels a bit guilty, but sometimes he thinks it's good to trust his instincts. Tinn's aggressive advances might not stop at just a kiss.
Woof, woof, woof!
"Quiet, Guccii!" But as soon as the phone stops buzzing, his beloved dog starts barking, resting its head on his lap.
Khaen pushes the heavy head away, but Guccii doesn't give up, poking him with its paw, looking up as if pleading on behalf of the one spamming LINE messages.
Khaen frowns. "No! Not replying, not reading, not interested! As for you, are you my dog or his? Siding with him like this!"
When his dog doesn't side with him, Khaen complains out loud. Guccii persists, nudging with his nose and mouth as if urging his owner to reply, until Khaen gets annoyed.
"Alright, alright! You've met him once, and now you're on his side?" Khaen grumbles as he finally pulls out his phone and sees the latest message Tinn has sent.
"Did you forget whose name is on the device you're using?"
"Fucking shit-lizard!!! You're threatening me!!!" Khaen yells loudly, barely able to click into the chat fast enough.
He sees that Tinn has been typing his name—sometimes just "Khaen," other times "Khaen-ta-lup," asking if he's there. The worst message, though, is the one where Tinn threatens to take back the device if Khaen doesn't reply.
As if he's scared of that.
"You really think you can scare someone like me?" Khaen says aloud, but his fingers type: How may I be of service to you, Khun-chAi'Tinn? He even adds a crying monkey sticker to top it off.
Yeah, I'm scared!
Come on, he's only had the phone for less than a week, and now it's about to get taken back.
"Oh, damn, he's calling!" Right at that moment, instead of typing, Tinn calls. Khaen reluctantly answers, intending to yell at him for being so annoying since noon. All that comes out though is:
"Uh, hey man... what's up?" His tone is soft as can be.
"Why didn't you reply?"
"I didn't see it. It's not that I didn't want to reply." His fingers are crossed so hard they're almost locked.
"You changed your profile picture five minutes ago."
"I... I just changed it and then put the phone down!" There's no way he's admitting he didn't want to talk.
"But I messaged you an hour ago."
"Don't make this a big deal. What do you want? I'm busy playing with my dog. I don't have time to talk to you." Khaen speaks casually, planning to hang up before Tinn can trap him with anything, but before he can follow through, Tinn says:
"Do you know that behavior like this means you're avoiding your debts?"
"I'm not avoiding anything! Someone like Ai'Khaen never runs from debts! It's only been a week, not even a month yet! When did I ever dodge your debt? Just say what you want, Ai'Tinn. You're just looking for trouble." Khaen snaps, genuinely angry now.
Insult him however you want, but never accuse Ai'Khaen of cheating anyone.
"You're acting in a way that makes me think so."
If Khaen had taken just a second to think, he might have realized he was about to fall into Tinn's trap again.
"Then what should I do to prove that someone like Kirakorn never runs from debts, huh?"
"Would you really do it if I told you?"
Again, if Khaen had stopped to think for just a second...
"Yeah! Of course, I'll do it! Just say what you want!"
"Good… from now on, when you wake up, send me a LINE message. If I text you, reply within the hour. Then if you fail to do that even once, I'll consider it intentional debt evasion. Got it?"
"Fine!!! I'll prove it to you! When I wake up, I'll message you first thing! I'll even throw in a goodnight sticker before I sleep! Is that enough for you… huh?"
Wait, what did I just agree to?
Khaen's eyes widen, and his mouth starts to open in shock as it hits him… I fell for his trick again.
"Hey, Ai'Tinn, that didn't count just now, okay? I—"
"I called to say just this. I hope you keep your word. Goodbye."
Huh!!!
The person holding the phone stands there dumbfounded, blinking repeatedly while listening to the now silent line. Then, he raises his hand and hits his own head before groaning.
"Fucking shit-lizard! You're vile! You tricked me again! And you, Khaen, how could you agree to that? How could you agree! Damn it, it's all your fault, Gucci! If you hadn't made me answer him, I wouldn't have been fooled!" He shouts, then the moody owner stands up abruptly, glaring at his beloved dog with a grudge. After that, he storms back inside, leaving Gucci to whimper.
If Khaen-ta-lup could understand dog language though, he would know that Gucci isn't taking anyone's side because...
And what about my lunch, boss? I've been barking for a while now, and you don't understand dog-speak?
"Yeah, I'm an idiot, huh? The profile picture! Tinn is using a picture of himself, isn't he?"
After sitting there frustrated about being tricked for a while, Khaen suddenly remembers his task from a few days ago. He might have already gotten a picture of Tinn. But, sorry, it's a couple-photo—our cheeks are super close. If he just crops it and gives it to Le, he'll get scolded for cutting it weird. That's why this mission isn't accomplished yet.
Now though, Khaen's tiny brain finally clicks. The picture of Tinn has been in his hands since he got Tinn's LINE ID. He won't get scolded by his sister now!
"Mom! Where's Le?" The tall figure runs straight to the back of the house to ask his mother, who is hanging the laundry.
"She should be upstairs. I saw her come down to grab some snacks to take back up." With his destination clear, Khaen runs up to the second floor right away, ignoring the sign on the door that says…
"No Entry Without Permission (Especially You, Ai'Khaen)."
"Ai'Le! I got a picture of him! Oh?"
The person who is excited that his sister won't be bullied by her senior suddenly freezes when he sees that his younger sister is not in the room. He looks toward the bathroom and shrugs.
I guess I'll wait for her in here. He walks directly to the small desk where her laptop is placed. Why does Ai'Le have one while he doesn't? This machine was bought with her own money, and she clearly states that it's off-limits. Don't touch it if you don't want to die. The older brother, however, doesn't pay much attention to the warning.
"Hm... What's this?" The screen that is still open causes the young man to squint slightly. He scrolls the mouse cursor down a bit and feels something off about it.
Two men... kissing each other on the cheek.
"This page is weird." Khaen mutters softly, not yet realizing that he's looking at an admin screen. He continues scrolling down to see the images below, which show men hugging, kissing, some are solo shots, others are couple photos, and there are even cartoons along with clips.
Creak.
"Ah... Huh...."
"Hey!!!"
Screech.
Khaen pushes the chair back in shock, his eyes wide as he stares at the clips on the page. Sorry, but this is not an innocent cartoon with two men holding hands. It's men sucking each other's nipples, and what the hell is that at the bottom? It's not censored at all! Their hands are all over each other.
Creak.
"P'Khaen!!! How did you get into MY room? Hey!! What are you looking at?"
"Le... Ai'Le... What the hell is this?" At that moment, the room's owner returns, yelling and trying to snap his brother back to reality while pointing at the screen that shows two men passionately thrusting against each other.
Khaen's face blanches as he asks his younger sister, his voice short, while Lemon rushes in.
Bang!
"Who let you into this room, Ai'Phii Khaen!" Lemon closes the screen and asks in a fierce tone, which her older brother usually submits to, but not this time.
"You explain right now what that was about!"
"Well... it's gay cartoons. I watch them to relieve stress."
"Do you really watch stuff like this?" Khaen asks, still puzzled, causing the listener to start fidgeting a bit like someone caught red-handed.
"So what? What I watch is my business. You get out now!"
"I won't leave until you tell me."
"I won't tell you! Get out, you crazy brother!" The girl with glasses insists stubbornly, even though her face pales from her brother discovering her hobby. This prompts Khaen to bring out his trump card.
"No. If you don't tell me, I will tell Mom that you watch gay movies."
The listener looks like she wants to leap forward and strangle him, but this threat is more than enough for the top student who has hidden her interests from those around her. She grumbles in response.
"I'm a yaoi girl." When she sees her brother looking baffled, she elaborates a bit more.
"I like to see boys get together. Clear enough?"
Khaen's jaw drops in disbelief as he looks at his sister, who has been a studious person since childhood. He then blurts out a question.
"Are you twisted?"
Thud!
"Oi!"
The notebook placed on the table smacks the brother's head immediately, and Lemon speaks with a voice full of disappointment.
"This kind of preference isn't called twisted. Why? It's just liking to see two men in love. Is that wrong? It's the same regardless of gender. Haven't you ever read books that say people are actually bisexual? It's just society that limits gender to pair men with women. Besides, I haven't done anything wrong. So what if I'm a yaoi girl? I study better than those who spread their legs for men, even better than you. Once you study as well as I do, then you can say I'm twisted!"
"Hey, take it easy. Calm down, okay? I didn't mean it." Khaen feels flustered when his sister unleashes a barrage of words, clearly holding back for a long time.
This makes Lemon bite her lip tightly. "Are you one of those who discriminates against the third gender?"
"No way! Not at all! I have friends like that. I just didn't expect you to like this kind of stuff… heh." Seeing that his sister is serious, he quickly defends himself while thinking of his two friends who are currently dating.
"So, don't tell Mom about this, okay?" Lemon warns beforehand, making Khaen nod quickly. It's not that he doesn't want to tell; he just fears she'll smack him with the notebook again. That really hurts.
Thud.
"But since you know, you have to help me."
"Huh?" Then, the upset person suddenly changes her mood by sitting on the bed, crossing her arms and speaking in a sulky tone, leaving Khaen looking bewildered.
"What are you talking about?"
"You have to help make Tinn and Pete fall in love."
"Huh!" Khaen cannot believe his ears, feeling extremely confused.
Tinn and Pete? Did Lemon misunderstand something?
"You're not hearing things. Now that you know, actually, I have a yaoi page where I want to post pictures of Tinn and Pete. It should be really thrilling. So, as a friend of those two, you have to tell me everything, okay?"
"No way! That's definitely not okay, especially since Pete…"
Khaen suddenly finds himself unable to speak. Pete hasn't announced that he's dating anyone, so how can he tell Lemon that Tinn is pursuing her brother?
This thought makes Khaen fall silent. He looks at his sister's eyes, which sparkle more than usual. He worries that if he shares the truth, she will likely post about Tinn chasing her brother on that ridiculous page of hers. So, if she's going to misunderstand… then let her misunderstand.
"Anyway, I'm not getting involved."
"Did you forget who made you breakfast?"
Khaen freezes.
Seeing her brother's pause, Lemon, who knows his weakness well, smiles sweetly.
"What if I happen to drop a cockroach into your food… would you still eat it?"
Khaen's face goes pale at the thought. If he had to name something he hates and fears the most, it would definitely be cockroaches. He's seen those videos of cockroaches giving birth. Khaen once couldn't eat for three days.
"So, if there's any update, you have to tell me… understood?" She knows she's won, her voice cheerful, before she shoves her brother out of the room, adding, "Don't tell Mom."
She then slams the door in his face, leaving Khaen standing there, dumbfounded. His mind only registers one thought: Tinn and Pete.
"Tinn is after me, not Pete. I don't even want to say that he likes your brother." However, if he reveals this, it would probably end up on her page. It's better to keep quiet for now, even if he feels a bit annoyed. He just doesn't know what exactly he's annoyed about.
However, before bed that night, Khaen messages Tinn, saying... "Annoying! I hope you have nightmares!"
Yeah, you made my sister misunderstand. You made me frustrated, so just have your nightmares!
~~~
Ae's birthday is this month.
Even though Pitchaya remembers that his partner's birthday is this month, he has been too busy with various things to prepare a gift in time. Plus, after he bought Ae a pair of football boots last time, Ae returned the money, leaving him at a loss about what to get for his birthday.
It shouldn't be too expensive.
Pete can't help but feel a little anxious about this because all he can think of are a watch, a wallet, a sports bag, or anything related to football, which, of course, would cost money. However, after several months of dating, he knows that if he buys any of those things, Ae will get mad.
Ae plays video games sometimes, but not often.
Ae loves football, but when he goes home, he has a gang that plays Sepak Takraw as well.
Ae doesn't like sweets, so he can scratch cake off the list.
See? Finding a gift for Ae is not easy at all.
As for Ae, I really don't know, Pete thinks.
"I really have no idea because Ae's birthday falls during the school break, so we have hardly ever celebrated it together. We've never given each other gifts either. Just hanging out together is considered a birthday celebration." This is the answer from Pond, which is not helpful at all.
Additionally… "Ai'Pete, I'm really sorry, but can we postpone the trip? The worker at home just quit, and there's no one to help P'O."
The other day, Ae returned from Prachuap Khiri Khan, bringing gifts for both him and his mother. However, he couldn't stay long because they are short-staffed at home. Pete understands this. However, he feels lonely. The worst part though is that he doesn't have time to ask if Ae needs anything right now.
"I've been careless. His birthday is next Wednesday already." Pete sighs again as he walks into the building. Just before he goes up to his room, a shrill voice calls out.
"Nong Pete!"
Thud.
"I miss you so much! We live in the same dorm; why don't we ever see each other?"
Then, a large projectile hugs him from behind. That doesn't startle Pete anymore. Instead, he laughs and turns to meet the gaze of the kathoey, who is looking at him with longing eyes.
"Good morning, P'Money."
"Ahh! Oh no! Let go of me right now, lady! How dare you interfere with my partner!"
"Are we going to fight? Who's your partner? Nong Pete is mine! We live under the same roof now, right, handsome?" Manophop retorts, confronting the younger student accompanying her, making him flustered.
This only delights them more, having a handsome guy in their embrace, while Nong Pete is overjoyed, not struggling or running away, and he even smiles charmingly, nearly causing her to melt into a puddle on the floor.
"Ha ha ha! Yes, we live under the same roof."
"Nong Pete! Don't side with that crazy lady! Your reputation will be utterly ruined… How long are you going to cling to him, lady? Soon, Nong Pete will have marks all over!"
"Well, look who's talking! And what are your hands grabbing? Watch it!" Manophop not only retorts but also swats the hand that reaches to grab Pete's shoulder, making the other student side roll their eyes in irritation.
"By the way, is something bothering you? You look troubled. Come here, if there's anything, you can tell me... but let's keep it between the two of us, okay?" Then they flutter their fake eyelashes, which used to scare Pete, Now though he smiles back and tells them directly.
"Sigh. I don't know what to get for my friend's birthday."
"Hmph" Instead of receiving an answer, Manophop gives him a glare and releases their arms, acting very pouty.
"If you're looking for a gift for a chick, don't ask a kathoey! Not impressed!"
"No, it's not! It's a guy friend!" The junior quickly corrects them, which makes the listener look over.
"Really?" Manophop teases, narrowing their eyes slightly as they observe the junior (who now seems like a favorite child) before deducing further.
"Don't tell me it's that short, buff, dark dwarf."
"How did you know?" Pete looks on in amazement that his senior guessed correctly. He lifts his chin a little and proudly admits.
"What is there anything that the gossip queen P'Money doesn't know?"
"Stop meddling in other people's affairs, and just tell Nong Pete directly that you're being nosy." Money's junior snipes.
"Do you want to die? Aren't you afraid that you'll choke on your own words?" Manophop turns to sarcastically jab their friend, but just a bit, then turns back to the one who seems troubled about the birthday gift.
They lift their chin confidently and declare. "Then Nong Pete has asked the right person! I am a creative genius! If you want something, tell Manophop to think of it for you."
Their confident demeanor seems to ease the listener a bit, but he is secretly a little anxious that the idea from his senior will be too extravagant for Ae to handle. However, since he has already asked for help, he might as well try it.
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