Content Warning: This work is intended for mature (NC17) audiences. If you are younger, please kindly leave this site.
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Perspective - Third Person
Today, the university feels more lively than usual. It's not because the moment classes end, the students rush out of the room—that's just normal. Instead, what makes Pitchaya curious is the cheerful atmosphere everywhere he looks. He wonders if there is some event happening today.
Now, the IC students are back for the new term since their last break was only a short two weeks. After Ae got drunk, Khun-chai Pete went back home. Not for any particular reason, but because the drunk person woke up embarrassed and couldn't even face his Mia. So, he asked to take some time to get over the embarrassment.
Today, though, the new term has started. However, instead of being picked up by the well-built Shorty, a tall, half-foreign guy has shown up instead, making Pete frown in confusion.
"Oh, disappointed, huh?" The expression on Pete's face is a bit too obvious, causing Pond to laugh, making Pete hurry to deny it.
"No, I'm just surprised you're the one picking me up. Where's Ae?"
"He's been busy today. Actually, he's been busy for several days now." The more Pete listens, the more puzzled he gets. Since that drunken night, he and Ae haven't seen each other at all. Then when they do talk on the phone, it's only for five or ten minutes before bed because Ae keeps saying he's been busy lately.
"Is it because of the event preparations?"
"Not just preparing—Ae's directly involved too." The tall, half-foreign guy answers right away, smiling widely as if he knows something good.
"Involved?"
"Don't ask, don't ask. This kind of thing you have to see with your own eyes. Let's go. I've arranged to meet Em at the building." Not only does the loud-mouthed guy refuse to explain, but Pond also strides ahead out of the IC building, heading straight for the familiar bicycle, which hasn't been ridden much lately. He pats the back seat.
"Hop on, Khun-chai."
"Don't joke, Pond." The exaggerated gesture of the 3S guy bowing and gesturing to the bicycle as if it were a carriage makes Pete laugh.
"Hey, I'm not joking. I've been ordered today to take care of you as best as I can."
The more Pond talks, the more confused Pete gets, but he still walks over to sit on the back of the bike as the tall guy starts pedaling towards the Faculty of Engineering building. As Pete looks around, he notices many students are heading in the same direction.
"Is this event a big one? Am I allowed to join, Pond?" Pitchaya asks uncertainly. First, he's from the IC, and he doesn't know if he can join other faculties' events. Second, he doesn't even know what event Ae's faculty is organizing today.
"Anyone can join."
"So, what's the event?"
"You'll find out when we get there." As usual, Pond refuses to answer until they arrive in front of the faculty building. He gets off the bike, locks the wheel, and... gestures toward the event.
"Today, Pond, you're acting strange." Of course, the one watching makes a strange face too.
"Heh, not as strange as Ai'Ae."
"Hmm?"
"Nothing."
No matter how many times Pete asks, the person walking in front still keeps his mouth shut, until he gives up and just looks around. He notices that in the courtyard below, both friends from his year and seniors have gathered for the event, and he can hear screams coming from the bicycle parking area.
It's almost six in the evening now, and the sky looks as if it's been painted with a brush in shades of gold and orange. It seems that the closer it gets to dark, the more lively the atmosphere becomes. The handsome Khun-chai can only follow his friend into the event, with the eyes of many girls turning to glance at him with interest.
"He's so handsome! Is he competing? If so, I'll go buy balloons for him."
"Probably not. The contestants are probably all backstage by now."
Pete frowns even more as he walks through the crowd. He sees a large stage up ahead with a male student singing on it, and he starts to feel a small inkling.
"This way, Ai'Pond!" Before Pete can figure it out, a voice calls out, and when he turns, he sees Bow waving at them. The owner of the name changes direction to head over there.
"Hey, Pete! Wow, no matter how many times I see you, you're still more handsome than the guys around here, huh?" The girl greets him, as a sound of clearing his throat softly comes from Piing.
"I heard that."
"I meant for you to hear it." Bow turns to respond, then looks back at the IC boy with a scrutinizing gaze, one that makes him feel both hot and cold, so much so that he can't help but avert his eyes. Seeing this, Bow smiles sweetly.
"What a shame, huh? But what can we do?"
"Stop talking so much, Ai'Bow. Go help the seniors over there. You too, Ai'Pond."
Before Pete can voice his questions, there's something that stops him from asking again. Piing speaks up, but before ushering the two friends away, the plump guy winks at him, making Pete even more sure that he might be the only one not in the loop.
"Oh, Pete's here!"
While standing around without knowing anyone, surrounded by people from other faculties, Pete turns towards the greeting and sees the person who once gave him advice on matters of the heart, breaking away from her friends and walking straight towards him.
"Em, whew, what a relief. I don't know anyone here. Suddenly, Ai'Pond just brought me here." The way the handsome guy rubs his chest makes Chae-em laugh, and she waves him over.
"If I told you, it wouldn't be a surprise." With that, she leads him towards the front of the stage, where three or four other friends are already waiting. Each of them is holding a heart-shaped balloon. Then the grand introduction begins. Afterward, the only guy there can only stand quietly, looking around for the person he wants to see, but doesn't spot him.
"If you want to see Ae, I'll whisper that you should keep a close eye on the stage."
"Ae? Really?" The young man is now starting to realize that this event might be a singing contest, as each person on stage sings a song—solo, duo, or even in a group. There's even a boy band performance with singing and dancing. So, could it be that Ae... will go up there to sing?
Heh heh, "If you want to know, you'll have to wait and see!" Chae-em teases.
"All right, everyone, let's not waste any time. Let's welcome our next contestant!"
Pete, who's still looking around, suddenly jumps as the people around him scream loudly. He turns in confusion to look at the stage and sees that the person stepping up is a tall guy with a handsome face, sporting a bit of a rugged beard, holding an acoustic guitar. And it's likely this guy who's making the crowd go wild.
"Hey, I made it back just in time."
"Just in time! P'Tharn is on!" Pond suddenly appears from who knows where, accompanied by P'Type. Em nods vigorously and leans in to whisper.
"P'Tharn is a very talented senior in music, very handsome! The girls go crazy for him." Pete nods in agreement, as he also finds him handsome. However, when Pond suddenly runs back with Bow, and with P'Type appearing too, he feels a bit strange, as everyone seemed to be pulling out their phones, ready to capture the moment.
"Hello!"
"Ahhh! Ahhh! Ahhh!" Just a simple greeting evokes waves of screams, while the handsome guy on stage smiles around.
"Actually, I didn't come to play the drums today, and I'm not participating in the contest either..." The person on stage speaks, causing everyone to listen intently.
"One of my younger brothers asked me to help play the guitar for this event because he wants to confess his feelings to someone special, but he's too shy to say it. Of course, this person is already here at the event."
With that, a buzz of excitement spreads through the crowd as everyone looks for the mysterious guy who is supposed to confess his love, but no one sees anyone else on stage with the senior. Only the senior named Tharn is sitting on a round chair, resting a guitar on his lap, adjusting the microphone to catch his voice, and his sharp eyes scan the crowd until they land on Pete's group.
Huh?
Pete jolts in surprise at that moment when...
"This song, I want to dedicate to someone... my feelings that I've never told him directly."
"Who is it?!!!"
"Yeah, so who's he going to sing for? Wait, who's he singing for?"
A deep, bold voice echoes from the speakers, causing the audience to look around to identify the owner of the voice and who the song will be dedicated to. If anyone looked at Pitchaya, they would see just how stunned he is, his cheeks gradually turning red... until his entire face is flushed.
Hey! That voice belongs to Ae!
Then, the person on stage smiles as a low, melodic voice begins to rise.
"It must be love
That keeps me standing here
It must be love that makes my heart
Never want to stop."
"No way," at that moment, the deep, soothing voice harmonized with the beautiful sound of the guitar, while the person receiving the feelings feels like they can hardly stand, their knees weak, their heart racing so fast it feels like it might leap out of their chest, because from the first note, they already knew what song it is.
A song that holds meaning for us.
"Whether it's true or not, he must have secretly practiced singing all week," Pond whispers in his ear, while P'Type laughs as he leans in to whisper to the younger student, who he often sees as a member of the football team.
"He asked me to help find someone to play guitar for him."
At this moment, if Pete feels anything, it is... he's going to sing for me.
The sun sets, leaving the event area dimly lit, with only the soft yellow lights shining on the stage, where a handsome young man plays beautiful music. However, the person standing there listening closes their eyes, unaware of where the singer is, only feeling their heart tremble with a "surprise" they never thought they would receive.
"Even if it seems like there's no chance,
Even if I have to miss again,
But love still asks me to do this,
To give it to you until you accept,
To tell you I love you until you say yes,
You are my happiness.
If you don't accept it—
Let me start over as many times as I am ready,
If in the end, you don't change your mind.
It's okay; my heart refuses to give up.
If waiting for me to stop my heart,
It must wait for the world to stop spinning first.
It must be love that changes the word 'life'
To sound meaningful. It must be love
That makes waiting an easy matter.
Even if it seems like there is no chance,
Even if I must miss many things,
This waiting is still worthwhile
Because you are the destination.
I will give to you until you accept it,
I will confess my love until you agree.
You are my happiness.
If you do not accept it,
I am ready to start over as many times as necessary.
If in the end, you do not change your mind,
It's okay; my heart refuses to give up.
If waiting for me to stop my heart,
It must wait for the world to stop spinning first.
On the day you have no one,
On the day this world abandons you,
On that day, please turn and look.
I will stand right here.
And I will give to you until you accept it,
I will confess my love until you agree.
You are my happiness.
"If you do not accept it,
I am ready to start over as many times as necessary.
If in the end, you do not change your mind,
It's okay; my heart refuses to give up.
If waiting for me to stop my heart,
You must wait for me to turn and walk away, do you hear?
It must wait for the world to stop spinning first."
The senior on stage waves his hand one last time before allowing silence to envelop the entire event. Everyone is paying close attention, just like the group standing around Pete, who can barely hold his breath as he fights back the tears threatening to flow. Then the deep, soothing voice resonates with the final sentence.
"It must be love."
Everyone falls into silence, and then the senior named Tharn smiles at everyone. "I hope this song conveys the feelings my junior has for this person."
"Screeechhh!"
As soon as Tharn speaks, the screams erupt loudly, overwhelming the atmosphere as everyone wants to know who owns the mysterious voice that all declare the best performance of the event today. Though, there are still some parts, some moments, that were hesitant, as if they have not practiced well enough. However, the voice, full of emotion, makes many people at the event envious of the one being confessed to.
And the one being confessed to is… crying.
It is the best surprise of his life.
Thoughts swirl in the mind of the person who lowers his head, trying to hold back his tears, and it is fortunate that it is dark here, so no one notices that the person being confessed to is a handsome man who is crying. Just then, as the next contestant steps onto the stage...
Thud!
The warm embrace of someone wraps around Pete's waist, accompanied by a soft whisper:
"I love you, Pete."
Swish!
Pete turns to look with wide eyes, seeing the person who appears from behind while trying to maintain a calm face, even though his cheeks and ears are completely red. His friends, who helped set the stage for tonight's success, chuckle, and Pond shakes his cellphone back and forth.
"I'll send it to you."
"Thank you," Ae simply says as he pulls the weeping person out of the event by his hand.
At that moment, only a few people notice the two men holding hands as they exit, one of whom is crying. No one expects that the sweet confession of love tonight is not given by a man to a woman but rather by a man who wants to express his feelings to someone he deeply loves… that's all.
"Stop crying, will you?"
After walking hand in hand for a while, Inthach pulls the fair-skinned person to sit on a bench. He wraps his arms around Pete's head and pulls him against his shoulder, soothing him softly, as he feels shy about what he has done. In this lifetime, Ae promises himself that he will never do this again.
Ai'Pete is the first and the last.
Throughout the time waiting behind with P'Type's friends, he sat still like a log, too excited to do anything. However, thinking of everything the person in his embrace has done for him over the past few months makes him want to do this, not merely as a form of repayment, but to let Ai'Pete feel the emotions of being the one who receives love as well.
"Ae… when did you start preparing?" The muffled voice from the embrace makes the listener turn elsewhere, but he still recounts the story.
"A few weeks ago. Honestly, I wanted to do something for you. Since Pond is the event organizer, I asked him if I could sing a song. He's so resourceful, knowing that someone like me would never enter that silly contest if it weren't for you, so he suggested finding a guitarist for me as well. After searching, I found P'Type's friend who has a band, so he practiced with me. Really though, I didn't want to make it complicated. If I went up to sing, I didn't know if I could even do it… so I decided to stay beside the stage."
The story of Inthach makes Khun Pitchaya look up.
"That's why I haven't been able to call you lately... I told you, if I sang, the speaker would probably blow," Ae says.
"No, not at all. It's beautiful! Otherwise, would I be crying like this?"
"Don't pretend to flatter me," the listener turns his face away, clearly embarrassed, making Pete smile.
"I'm serious... Ae, your singing is lovely. May I ask when you decided to sing?" The football player is a bit taken aback, not expecting the other to notice. But the sparkling, teary eyes looking at him soften his heart, so he finally responds, laughing softly.
"Back then... at Pran," it may not seem like much of an answer, but Pete smiles even wider, leaning closer to the other.
"Because I once asked you to sing, right?"
If silence is a form of answer, then it's the best one, because Pete feels his face growing hot at the thought of someone remembering such a small detail. He looks down, mumbling softly.
"Thank you, Ae."
I'm the happiest I've ever been.
The thought runs through the mind of someone too shy to meet the other's eyes, causing the one who makes the surprise to glance over.
Grab.
Ae reaches out, gently grabbing his romantic partner's head, pulling him closer, and plants a kiss on his forehead before softly saying:
"I forgot to tell you... I love you."
This time, Pete responds with the same words Ae once used:
"I know. I know, Ae."
That's it. The two of them sit quietly, facing opposite directions—not out of a fight, but because they're too embarrassed to look at each other.
Thus, the short guy pulls off his surprise for his romantic partner successfully.
~~~
"I’m thinking of looking for a room."
Inside the luxury car, Tinn comments casually, prompting the person playing a farming game on his phone to argue back, nearly shaking his head off.
"Huh? A room? Like a dormitory? Hey, your house is nearby. Why waste money renting a dorm? You can just commute back and forth."
Khaen continues, "Living at home is comfortable. There’s someone to cook for you, a spacious room to sleep in, and it’s not even that far. Why bother finding a room just to strain yourself?"
Tinn lets out a big sigh at the question, glancing at the person beside him as he signals to turn into the driveway. He answers while steering the car into the house.
"It’s inconvenient."
"You mean to... to make love or something?"
Khaen almost uses the wrong word, nearly making Tinn turn and glare at him, but he quickly corrects himself. He even laughs loudly at how seriously Tinn takes things.
"That’s it. It’s not convenient."
"What’s not convenient? My mom hasn’t said a word about me staying over at your place. Oh, or is it that your family complains about me sleeping over all the time? Hey, if that’s the case, you can come stay at my place instead."
Khun Tinn feels like retorting, asking whether Khaen even uses his brain to think, but he’s too tired to argue. So, he just explains rationally instead.
"If I stay at your place, are you confident that you won’t make the entire household realize what we’re doing?"
Silence.
"Damn, you’re right. Le might not care anymore, but if my parents hear me moaning inside the house, they’ll definitely break down the door."
Khaen-ta-lup nods immediately, acknowledging that the issue with his younger sister has already been resolved. She had a one-on-one conversation with him, asking everything—how they fell in love, how they got together, why it wasn’t Ai’Pete but him.
After hearing it all, his little sister simply said, "Sigh. I may be disappointed, but... well, you managed to snag Phii Tinn. Keep hold of him, okay, Phii Khaen?"
So, she really sees him as Ai’Tinn’s "little girl," doesn’t she?
"So, you’re saying you want to get a room just for that reason?"
"Not exactly. It’s also for freedom."
"Then why didn’t you get a dorm from the start? Why wait until now, after dating me, to start looking?"
It sounds like he’s accusing Tinn of only wanting a room for that, but Khaen doesn’t mean it that way—he’s just curious. However, it causes Tinn to fall silent before finally answering.
"I just... still wanted to have a presence in the house, I guess."
"Ai’Tinn..."
The sympathetic response makes Khaen snap his head around to look at Tinn’s profile, only to see him return to his usual stern expression. He now understands that his romantic partner is more pitiful than annoying. Since they’ve been together—no, even before that—Tinn has revealed little things to him. One thing Khaen has noticed is that whenever Tinn talks about home, he always looks like he’s carrying the weight of the world.
"Hey, don’t worry about the bloody fucking people in your house. You’ve got me, okay? I may be crazy and all over the place, but I’m not going to leave you."
The listener parks the car in front of the house and turns to look at him.
"You’re not going to take that back, right?"
"A guy like Ai'Khaen keeps his word."
That simple, straightforward sentence makes the burdened one smile. But just as Tinn looks up slightly...
"Shit."
"Hey! Didn’t you say you wouldn’t curse at me!"
The mere exclamation makes Khaen yell, but it prompts Tinn to quickly step out of the car to face... Tul Metthanun.
"Bringing a friend over, Tinn?"
His older brother, standing at the entrance of the house, smiles at him. It makes Tinn clench his fists and put on a neutral expression.
"What does that have to do with you?"
"Don’t you think you’re being a bit cold to your older brother?" The Thai-English half-brother teases with a playful tone, while Khaen quickly steps out of the car upon seeing the person he’s hated even before meeting in person.
His face looks good, but he’s a complete shit-lizard.
"Hello. My name is Tul. I’m Ai’Tinn’s older brother. It’s surprising. I’ve never seen Tinn bring any friends home before. It seems like you’re someone important."
Even though his greeting is accompanied by the smile of a kind-hearted older brother, and his voice is warm and pleasant to hear, for Khaen, this smile makes him want to rough-up his face until his nose breaks. How can he use that face to speak so kindly when he’s hurt Ai’Tinn so much?
"What does that have to do with..."
"Khaen!"
Before Kirakorn can finish speaking curtly, Tinn calls out firmly and steps in front of him. He meets the gaze of his older brother, who is still smiling broadly, despite clearly guessing what Tinn’s friend was about to say. The two brothers stare at each other intently until Tinn speaks first.
"Khaen, go upstairs."
"But you..."
"I’m telling you to go upstairs." Tinn's tone is commanding, but the hand gripping Khaen’s arm trembles slightly, making Khaen–who wants to curse Tul out thoroughly–take a deep breath instead.
He said not to make enemies. Don’t make enemies, Khaen.
However, the one who repeats this silently to himself just mutters, "Fine," in answer before turning to walk into the house–from which he’s been freely coming and going for weeks–without the slightest display of courtesy. Khaen doesn’t even bother to wai the older brother of his romantic partner.
Meanwhile, the two brothers continue locking eyes as though waging a silent war.
"He seems like a straightforward kid."
"Don’t mess with him!"
"Ha! Since when can you order me around?" But Tinn’s sharp voice only makes his older brother laugh before his smile turns sly and devious.
"Just don’t mess with him," Tinn says in a threatening tone as he turns to head upstairs as well, even though he feels uneasy about the way his older brother looks at his romantic partner.
I will absolutely not let you lay a hand on Khaen.
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