LSKY Chapter 17: Let's End It

Content Warning: This work is intended for mature (NC17) audiences. If you are younger, please kindly leave this site.
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Phra Phai was a good-humored person, but that did not mean he never became irritated.

After looking at his watch and realizing he had been at the party for over fifteen minutes, the young man did not hesitate to excuse himself. Bidding farewell to the host was not difficult, but the path to the exit was more challenging. And before he could break free, a beautiful woman cooed at him from afar, wrapped her arms around his neck, and pressed her face against his chest, almost making him roll his eyes.

He was not in the mood today, and he thought he would not be in the mood any other day either.

"Phîi Phai, Phîi Phai, you've cut me off!"

Who was this?

If you asked him, he could not even recall where he had met this woman before.

The mind of the man looking at the blond hair clinging to him worked hard to remember when he had ever fooled around with the other party. But his head was filled only with images of the naked body of the person lying sprawled on the dark wooden table, his face flushed, his eyes dripping with emotion, answering his trembling voice with the admission that Sky had yielded to him.

Damn! I want to go back to the car.

"Yes, yes, I've cut you off. Can you let me go now?" Phra Phai did not hide his annoyed expression at all and pushed her away with his shoulder. But the young woman still held on, looking up at him with a flushed face. However, the one looking chose to think instead of the flushed face of another person.

She was pretty enough, and her figure was okay. But he preferred the firm buttocks of the person with the twenty-eight-inch waist.

To be honest, the woman in front of him had to be considered more than okay. She was petite and cute, with a slim waist, but her chest was not small to match. Her face was pretty and stood out even more with her blond hair. Even though the other party was rubbing the good assets her Mâe gave her against his body, it should have made Phra Phai think about easily taking her to a room. But it could not be at a time when he had just experienced an ultimate peak sensation an hour ago. Moreover, his heart was occupied solely by a cute youth. No matter how broad-minded he was, when combined with the entire set of equipment—the drafting table, tracing paper, stationery, and models—Phra Phai thought it fit perfectly.

Therefore, no time to look at others, damn it! I want to go back to hug my Mia!

He vaguely remembered that this person was probably the woman he had given his number to last time.

"I won't let go. Phîi Phai, you are a heartless-person. You said you would call me."

"I already told you I have a real one now. Go find someone else."

"Phîi Phai!"

The young man was large and tall with dark skin. The Nongs often said that his exterior could be somewhat intimidating. But because he was playful and good-natured, he was easy to approach. However, when he put on a stern face and stared sharply, most people would keep their distance. That this woman still clung to him relentlessly was probably because she was drunk!

"Let go now. I do not want to bully a woman."

"I won't let go, I said I won't let go, let go, let go!" The woman in front of him not only hugged him tightly but also jumped and wrapped her legs around his waist.

It was only because he caught her in time that they did not fall. Phra Phai let out a heavy sigh and tried to pry the gecko-like hands off. But it must be karma; he liked to hug Sky without letting go, so this time someone was clinging to him without letting go too. And she was damn drunk.

"Please let go, I'm begging you." His deep voice softened. Since using a hard approach did not work, he switched to a soft one.

When he spoke softly, the young woman reluctantly released her legs from his waist. But due to her drunkenness, she could not support herself and instead buried her face in his chest, forcing him to support her by the waist.

Should I just carry her and dump her on some sofa?

"Phîi Phai, is it true that you have a real one now?"
"Yes, I have a real one now. So please, go find someone else."

"Is she beautiful?" The drunk person looked up, biting her lip, and asked in a slurred voice.

"Yes, they are beautiful, and very cute too." He inadvertently smiled when he thought of the person who liked to bite her lip and blush. "More than me? No one is cuter than me." But the other woman was relentless, so he repeated clearly and loudly. "The real one is more beautiful and cuter. You cannot compete." He could somewhat remember that her name was not Nong, but since she called herself Nong, Nong it was. "Phîi Phai! Phîi Phai, how can you do this to me?" Suddenly, the drunk person's eyes widened. From being clingy, she became even more whiny, both hugging and nuzzling against him until Phra Phai felt frantic. He desperately wanted to return to the car. By now, Sky must be bored from waiting.

Fine, whatever. If you want me to say something, I'll say it all for you to hear. But please let me go.

"Phîi Phai, I miss you. I miss you so much. You said you liked me, so how can you leave me lonely like this?"

It was always easy to say these things before, you Phai. Why is your mouth so heavy today?

He could say things to please this woman, but he did not. He felt like reserving those rights for another youth. So he thought of the person who lay exhausted, hugging him on the dining table. He told himself that even if the table legs broke or the paint chipped from now on, he would keep it as a shrine. Thinking of this, his lips curled into a smile. "Yes, yes, I like you."

I want to go say things to make Sky blush again.

"Do you like me the most?"

"The most."

I damn well like Sky the most, you know? I have never liked anyone this much before.

"Giggle, this man is so cute."

His mouth was talking to the drunk person, but his heart wandered to the person in the car. He did not care that the young woman was stroking his cheek or throwing herself at him because it made no difference. Because when he thought too much about the person in the car and looked at his watch, which indicated he had been gone for almost half an hour, what the young man did was... pick her up!

"Giggle, Phîi Phai, you are so impatient."

Thud!

"Ouch! Phîi Phai." Then he unceremoniously dumped her on a sofa, ignoring the protests of the person too drunk to get up, because the young man turned and strode quickly back in the direction where he had left another person waiting. But if no one greeted him, it would not be that Phai, because along the way, people kept calling out to him.

"Phîi Phai, are you leaving already?"

"I'm leaving, yes. Have fun."
"Phîi Phai, hello."

"Hello. I'm going home now." Phra Phai ignored them, walking past everyone straight to his car.

Once he got into the car, he let out a huge sigh of relief and turned to look at the person next to him.

"Are you asleep, Sky?" He had been gone so long that the youth had rested his head against the window as if he had fallen asleep. The man placed his hand on the soft hair and stroked it gently with affection. But the person who seemed to be asleep moved slightly and made a sound in response.

"Mmm, I want to go back to the room."

Women who whine are annoying, but this person's whining is cute.

"Then sleep for now. I'll wake you when we arrive." Phra Phai stroked the soft hair several more times. His heart wanted to lean over and pull him in for a kiss, but he restrained himself. He did not want to disturb the person who must be quite tired. He had studied all week, and today he had both gone shopping and eaten with him, especially the strenuous activity before coming here had taken its toll. He should let Sky rest fully. Thinking this, he shifted gears, drove the car out of the huge mansion, and hummed a tune with a mood that had improved immensely, unaware of what had happened.

If Phra Phai had been selfish and pulled Sky in to look at his face for a moment, he would have known how much pain was in the young man's eyes.

Following Phra Phai, Phet himself had followed him out to the front of the house and then raised his phone to call his close friend.

"That Gun, I saw your youth."

[Which youth? Whatever, damn it.]

"He came with Phîi Phai, man!"

The person on the other end of the line seemed a bit more interested, making the person on this end smile widely. His eyes recalled events from years ago, and he could not help but lick his lips.

"That youth, what was his name? Sky... something."

[Sky]

"Yes, yes, that's the one. The one you let us borrow to play with. He came to this event with Phîi Phai." Phet remembered his friend's youth vividly, especially the part where he cried and begged them to stop. But stopping would be stupid; they had teased him that much. He wanted to have another turn, but the problem was that this time he came with Phîi Phai.

[Good. I was just looking for him.]

That Gun replied in a satisfied tone.

It seemed his close friend also remembered it vividly.

***

"Strange."

It was downright bizarre.

During the lunch break, Phra Phai, who had finished his lunch, was sitting and looking at his phone screen with a thoughtful expression. His fingers scrolled through old conversations from the past week, and he found that they were almost the same every day. If it was not...

"I have group work with friends today." then it was "I have a meeting at the faculty." or "I have an appointment with a senior." The latest was "I am busy."

At first, he thought Sky was covering up his shyness like the previous times. Especially after the last time, when he had agreed to be his, he had let it go for a while to give him time to compose himself. But it seemed abnormal now. Was he worrying too much, or was his Mia... avoiding him!

It was not avoiding like during the early pursuit days. That was saying he was avoiding but not actually disappearing; he could still be found at the dorm. But this was different. Because after a week, a thick-skinned person like him ignored the prohibitions and went to wait at the dorm. But his private investigator, Phîi Joy, reported that he had not seen Sky for several days. When he went up to the room, both pressing his ear to the door and knocking yielded no response. He considered picking the lock but was afraid of being caught for secretly copying the key. He did not know what punishment he would get, so he retreated for now.

The following week, he went to wait in front of the faculty and used his social skills to become familiar with several of Sky's friends and seniors. But he still could not find him. Asking one person, he was told he had gone back; asking another, he was told he was talking with a professor. Even calling Warain, that guy, only said... "I do not know either."

When he called the person himself, he would not answer. The latest message saying "I am busy" was already four days old. Even when he hung food in front of the room, it was left to rot until the next day when he went to check again.

Was Sky just good at hiding, or had everyone conspired to kidnap his Mia?

"What did I do wrong?"

Nothing. Even if he sat thinking, lay thinking, or thought on his side, he could not see any incident that could make Sky angry. Over the past several months, he had been a much better person. Even his birth parents said that he had finally revealed the good genes he got from them.

"Did you do something wrong, Phîi Phai?"

Phra Phai turned to look at Cho Pikun, who was sending him a cute smile, and shook his head.

"Is it not Khun's business?" The young man cut her off indifferently, not even smiling back. He ignored the other party's displeased expression, only glancing at the phone lying still and unresponsive. His mood, which had been extremely good, had plummeted to the ground. His brain kept thinking about how he should catch the fleeing youth.

If I catch you, I will scrub you until you are white. Just wait!

***

"Phîi Phai, your face looks scary."

"And does my face give you a headache or something?"

Praiphan had observed for several months that her Phîi had changed. Even though his exterior was still the same—large build, dark skin, handsome face, good at smiling, good-humored, liked to make people around him laugh—as his sister, she naturally knew there were differences. At the very least, the promiscuous Phîi had stopped fooling around, was coming home regularly, and talked about food with their Mâe, taking notes on his phone every time he learned the location of a delicious restaurant.

That Phîi Phai, who could not tell water spinach from marsh parsley, was interested in cooking!

After asking around, he confessed it was because he was the delivery line-man for the person he was pursuing. This confirmed he was completely serious.

When had this man ever been so dedicated to anyone?

The young woman could only sigh. She had heard that Phîi Phleng also had someone he was serious about. Now with another brother, Phîi Phai, she was the only one left living a carefree life. But so be it. Just seeing her Phîis happy made her happy for them. But why had it turned out that over the past week, the eldest brother's face had become increasingly sour until he could almost spit fire from his eyes?

Usually, on holidays, he would disappear by noon. This week, he had been sitting with a grim face like a bitter gourd-eating ogre since eight in the morning, until the workers in the house did not dare to walk through the living room.

"Not a headache, but it is tiring to look at. What happened?" Having said that, she moved to sit on the sofa backrest, attracting an irritated glance. Then Phîi Phai turned back to stare intently at the house entrance.

"Is someone coming?" "Do not get your hopes up, Phan." "I did not say hopes, I said I will choose."

Usually, Phîi Phai would have laughed by now, but today he was silent, eyes stern, mouth a straight line. She could only sigh, knowing she could not tease him further.

"Did you have a fight with Phîi Sky?"

Silence like this meant a bullseye for sure.

Nowadays, Phîi Phai often let slip things like 'Sky this, Sky that.' It was not just her who knew; even the fish in the tank probably knew Sky.

"We did not fight. But I have not seen him."

"Is he not studying architecture? I heard this faculty has a brutal workload. Have you heard? If you love an architecture youth, you must be patient. You should be patient too. If you want to pursue a youth from this faculty, you must understand they have no time." Praiphan herself had her eye on a beautiful architecture senior, but after seeing her lifestyle of sleeping, she had to retreat almost immediately. When she was awake, the other was asleep. When she was asleep, the other was awake. When she woke up again... that person had not even slept yet.

When would they have time to pursue anyone?

But Phra Phai looked at her with an irritated expression.

"He does not even have time to open his door to get the things I hung for him!"

Phan raised both hands level with her shoulders, signaling she would not argue. It was not that she could not argue, but Phîi's face looked more like he wanted to bite her head off than to joke around.

Phîi Phai did not get angry often, but when he was angry, he was scary.

"I am not talking to you anymore... Can I get it?" At that moment, Phîi Phai ignored her, stood up, and took long strides toward the front of the house. He looked at the worker running in, panting, and handed him a convenience store bag along with some change.

"Got it, I got it. Here you go. And the change."

"You keep it." Having said that, the large young man took long strides and disappeared upstairs to the bedroom.

"Wow! A five-hundred baht tip. What was he in such a hurry for... Are you okay? What did Phîi Phai have you buy?" The youngest daughter of the house fanned the worker who was about to collapse onto the floor.

"A prepaid phone SIM, Nai Phan. He told me to buy it for him, the fastest possible. I ran a four-hundred-meter dash to the main road. The look in his eyes when he gave the order was so scary I did not dare to walk. He gave me goosebumps." Phra nodded in acknowledgment, looking toward the second floor, mumbling softly.

"I feel sorry for Phîi Sky, having to deal with Phîi Phai in this mood. But he can probably handle it."

Making a gentle giant turn into a cruel giant is no ordinary feat.

***

Call him.

Phra Phai waited another three days. Three full days of sending messages that went unread, calling and getting no answer, going to the faculty and not finding him, going to the dorm and being told he had not been seen. So he resorted to the same method he had used before... using a new phone SIM.

Before, when Sky did not answer his calls, he did not think much of it. But now, listening to the ringtone gave him a feeling of prolonged anxiety. Moreover, he was so frantic he was almost going crazy, his palms sweating, anticipating every moment when he would hear the voice he missed.

[Hello.]

Instead, upon hearing it, he clenched his fists tightly, gritted his teeth until veins bulged. Anger surged up just as much as hurt feelings.

You can answer other numbers, but you cannot answer my number, is that it?

[Hello, can you hear me?]

The first time he called, Sky had spoken like this. At that time, he found it funny, but now he could not laugh!

"You answer when it is not me?"

[...Phîi Phai.]

"You still recognize the voice of your Phûa."

Phra Phai knew he was being unreasonable, but he really could not help it. While he was worried, overthinking, and concerned that he might be sick again, his youth was fine—just hearing his voice confirmed that. He was merely avoiding seeing him, and it was not because he was shy. This made the person who did not know what he had done wrong speak louder.

"If I had not used another number to call, you probably would not have answered, right?"

He was in no mood to play around now!

This time, Sky fell completely silent, until the person on this end tried to tell himself to be calm. There might be some reason he had not thought of. He might be as busy as Phan said. The tone he used next softened but still carried a hint of hurt feelings.

"Where have you been, Sky? I was worried about you."

[I...]

The voice he heard was both trembling and blurry, as if the person was about to cry. But it was only for a fleeting moment, so much so that Phra Phai thought he had misheard. This was especially true with the next sentence Sky spoke in a cold tone.

[Where I go or what I do is my business, is it not?]

"Why are you talking like this?"

The person on this end frowned, his sharp eyes narrowing with hidden danger.

[I have done this much, and you still do not get it?]

"Then tell me what you have done."

The other end of the line was silent for a long moment, then uttered a mocking laugh.

[I am bored with you.]

"What kind of game are you playing, Sky? I am not in the mood for jokes. We have not seen each other for two weeks. I went to the dorm and did not find you. I went to the faculty and you were not there. And now you talk to me like this? Even I have a limit to my patience." Phra Phai said in a stern voice.

If the other party were in front of him, he would not care how he looked or what he thought; he would grab him and spank his bottom until he learned his lesson!

The person on the other end of the line laughed.

[Phîi Phai, however confident you are, do you not think that someone would say this to you in this lifetime? It is not only you who gets bored. I get bored too. Since you are so infatuated with me, I have also gotten bored with you... Taming a playboy was quite fun.]

The other party's tone was so cold and heartless that the listener almost fell over.

"What are you saying?"

He asked even though he understood. He himself had done this before... a fun game to kill time. But his heart refused to believe.

[I do not think you are stupid. You already understand what I mean. I have been avoiding you like this; you should have realized by now what I am thinking. Do you know how hard I had to hold back my laughter every time you bought me food every single day? What kind of psycho wants food? If you are going to buy something, buy something else. I do not want to act like a pitiful little one anymore. And stop calling me. I am annoyed...]

"I do not believe Sky is that kind of person. Are you saying everything that happened between us was because Sky acted for me to believe? What kind of crazy talk is this?! Who told you to talk to me like this!!!"

Phra Phai was no longer the good-humored person he used to be. His eyes gleamed, his expression was extremely tense, and his voice grew louder.

But he heard laughter instead.

"You are not stupid, Sky. I know when someone is speaking truthfully or pretending..."

[Then you are more stupid than you think.]

Click!

The person who was about to yell fell silent in a heartbreaking way. The hand holding the phone squeezed it so hard it almost broke in his grip.

[Or perhaps I am smarter than you.]

"Sky..." Phra Phai uttered a call in a tone that seemed heartbroken.

His brain understood what was happening, but his heart refused to accept it. Were all those shy mannerisms just an act? Every time he saw Sky off guard, was it because the other knew he was watching? Secretly hugging him, hugging his clothes, smiling at him... was everything that happened between them just his own imagination?

Then Sky spoke words that tore Phra Phai's heart to shreds.

[Let's end it.]

Sky probably thought he was not hurt enough, so he continued in a heartless tone.

[Even though I never started with you in the first place.]

The call ended, but Phra Phai still held the phone in the same position. His sharp eyes grew moist, but not with anger. Instead, clear teardrops welled up, clouding his vision. Pain was reflected on his face.

The sentence "Let's end it" echoed in his head.

He did not just like Sky; he... loved him.

Crash!!!

"Damn it!!!"

The phone in his hand was thrown against the wall, causing the screen to crack in a wide circle. The owner did not care. Phra Phai dropped to sit on the floor, both hands clutching his head, eyes closed. But all he could see were images of the smiles, the laughter, the person who liked to hold back his laughter, and that same person looking at him with trembling eyes.

"Yes, I am yours."

"Sky lied to me. It was all just lies."

So what? It is just one youth. I can find a new one whenever I want.

A voice sounded in his head.

"Shut up! I do not want just anyone. I want this youth!!!"

The youth with a straight face who was weaker than anyone, lonelier than anyone, and more clingy than anyone knew.

"No, I do not believe it!!!"

Phra Phai opened his eyes again, revealing bloodshot eyes.

Yes, he should stop thinking about him, stop caring. After being spoken to like that, why go back to caring? He had his own dignity. But another part of him said he had been thick-skinned and endured for months; was he going to retreat just because a youth spoke cutting words to him? Even if Sky was acting, so what? He just had to make this act real, that was all.

A person like Phai had to get what he wanted, especially when it came to matters of the heart...

"Just do everything by any means necessary."

Yes, that was his slogan.

Sky wants to end it? Then let it end. But he will not end it!