Content Warning: This work is intended for mature (NC17) audiences. If you are younger, please kindly leave this site.
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Today, the restaurant near the university was filled with architecture students from various years who had just finished a meeting about freshman orientation activities an hour ago. They had come to get some food before parting ways and were using this opportunity to update each other on how their lives had been during the past few weeks of break.
"I went home. But Phîi Som didn't. She said she was gathering information for her thesis next year," said Pear, one of the student committee members, while subtly gesturing towards her senior brother sitting among the group of soon-to-be fifth-year students. She then turned to look at her other classmates.
"So, how have you all been?"
"Nothing special. When I didn't have work, I just sat around reading comics all day," Sky replied, then turned to look at the friend beside him.
"Âi'Rain had it better. He must have had exciting things happening every single day."
Everyone turned to look at the fair-skinned friend. Then Chik, the handsome guy of their year, put an arm around his neck.
"What 'things,' man? Tell me about it."
"Phîi!"
"Oho! Right in the face, Âi'Piren."
"My name is Rain, R-A-I-N! And I know you're not so dim-witted that you don't know what it means, you bloody fucking cur!" At the end of his sentence, Rain scolded his handsome friend right to his face for daring to mispronounce his name. Just having his Bpǎa call him 'Âi'Dee' these days was painful enough. His name was quite pretty, but everyone ruined it.
"Ouch! From now on, I'll call you Nông Fon. So cute!"
"You're annoying," Rain frowned and scolded his friend, which made the one being scolded laugh heartily.
"So, what's this about exciting things?" Pear asked curiously. The 'Nông Fon' fell silent for a moment, his face heating up a bit, because the most exciting thing during his break wasn't going to the inner-city race or seeing people have conflicts, but rather, it was about one specific person.
His heart had been working hard every single day lately.
"It's... nothing much."
His flushed face didn't convince anyone, causing several pairs of eyes to turn towards the person who probably knew best.
"Oh, he has a romantic partner now."
"Huh! You? Who made a mistake with you?"
"Âi'Shit-lizard Chik!" Rain couldn't take it and kicked the handsome guy's chair with full force, utterly annoyed by his irritating behavior. The guy just laughed loudly.
"Really? Who is it, Rain? Who?"
When it came to matters of love, the girls asked eagerly, all looking at the face of the little one who everyone knew had been trying to court Pear for a long time, but the girl herself hadn't acknowledged it. He had only stopped pursuing her two months before the break, meaning someone must have come along during that time. They couldn't figure out who.
Which girl in our year likes this guy's persistent nature?
"I'm not telling."
How could he say it was the famous graduated senior, Phîi Payu? He just couldn't say it.
It wasn't that Rain wasn't brave enough to say he was now dating a guy; many guys in his year were gay, like this Âi'Chik, who had announced it from the start, so no girls bothered him. But when he thought about everyone comparing how he managed to get together with that famous person, he felt too lazy to answer questions.
Most importantly... he was embarrassed.
"Who is it, Sky?"
"Someone whose name you all have probably heard before."
"Âi'Sky!" Rain called his friend in a strong voice, but his face was even darker. Sky just shrugged, as if it was simple.
"I haven't said the name yet. Don't get worked up."
"Who is it, seriously? Can you guys not keep me wondering? I won't be able to sleep tonight."
"Oho! My business makes you think so much you can't sleep, Âi'Chik? Damn! What are you thinking about me?" Rain said, deflecting. The handsome guy looked him up and down and said in a serious voice,
"I'm disappointed. Not a femme."
"Bloody fucking cur!"
He wasn't actually regretful, but the guy's expression was so irritating he couldn't help but curse.
"Don't ask about my business. Let's just say I have someone for real now. That's it. The end. No need to say more." Rain declared, though he secretly glanced at Pear. Strangely, the heart that used to flutter because of this girl was now calm and still. Not a bit of the feeling of wanting to get close, to talk, or to make eye contact remained.
Perhaps because he had gotten used to being near, talking to, and making eye contact with someone else.
Even though Phîi Payu wasn't a girl and wasn't pretty or cute at all, Phîi Payu made his heart flutter more than everyone else combined.
I miss him already.
As he thought this, he secretly took out his phone while everyone was shouting and teasing each other, and found a Line message from Phîi Payu.
...Finished with university yet?...
A short message that made him frown. Rain immediately called back, waving his hand to shoo his friends away from his business. His unwilling-to-play-along expression made the others lose interest and change the topic from love to the professors they'd meet next semester, and the work they had to submit that the seniors had talked about, causing the fun atmosphere to wither a bit.
Thinking about having to face extremely heavy workloads and extremely harsh criticism made them wish the break would last forever.
[Hello. Where are you now?]
"One second... I'll be right back," Rain hurriedly walked out of the restaurant, ignoring the teasing calls.
"Hello. Rain is at the restaurant near the university, Phîi. Why?" the little one asked curiously, looking down at his watch and realizing Phîi Payu should still be working. Besides, he had already said today he was meeting friends. It wasn't really a freshman activity, but seeing his friends gathering, he had tagged along with Sky.
[Miss you.]
Ugh, don't read my mind like that.
The same feeling transmitted through the phone made Warain bite his lip to suppress a smile, feeling incredibly good.
Forget women! I want this one!
[Take a picture of your face right now and send it to me.]
"Why?" He knew his face must be red, but he wanted to know what Phîi Payu would flirt with him about. He was sure to make him blush again. But...
[I want it for amusement.]
"Wow! Is that the mouth talking?"
[The same mouth that kissed Rain yesterday.]
The person on this end fell silent, covering his mouth as if Payu was standing right in front of him. But soon, a smile escaped. He knew they were just talking nonsense now. He still didn't know why Payu had called, but he wanted to talk a bit longer, more than he wanted to go back to his friends inside the restaurant.
"You keep asking about me. What are you doing, Phîi?"
[I...]
"Oh, Rain, what are you doing out front?"
Rain turned to look behind him and saw it was his pretty friend.
"One second... Have you all split up inside already, Pear?" he asked the young woman, still not taking the phone away from his ear. The listener shook her head.
"No, no, we're still talking. But I'm going to 7-Eleven. Do you want anything, Rain?"
"Going alone? Want me to come with you?"
It wasn't that he still liked her, but seeing her go alone, he offered.
"It's just a short walk. It's fine. I can go myself." With that, the speaker pointed to the phone, indicating he should continue talking, and walked towards her stated destination, leaving Rain to continue his phone call.
"Where were we just now?"
[Rain]
"Yes?"
Why does Phîi Payu sound tense?
[Where is that restaurant you mentioned?]
Although surprised, Rain answered the question obediently.
"Why are you asking, Phîi?" If he had known beforehand why Phîi Payu wanted to know, he would never have answered this question.
[I'll be there in ten minutes. See you in the restaurant.]
"Hey!!!" Phîi Payu hung up immediately after saying that, making Warain's eyes widen, staring at his phone bug-eyed. When he tried calling back, the other party declined the call, refusing to answer. This made the little one turn sharply to look inside the restaurant, and good lord, everyone from every year was there!
What is Phîi Payu coming here for?!
If Payu heard the question, he'd probably answer shortly... To make an appearance.
"Hey! Phîi Payu is here!"
"How did Phîi get here?"
"Hello, Phîi. Long time no see."
"Phîi, you really surprised us!"
"Squeal! Who invited Phîi Payu? Why didn't you tell me first? I would have dressed up nicely to wait!"
The moment Khun Payu appeared in the restaurant, the juniors all turned to look, exclaiming excitedly, raising their hands in wais repeatedly. The male juniors came straight over to greet him, while the female juniors all took out their mirrors and powdered their faces en masse. And in the middle of it all... he looked at Phîi Payu with a twitching eye.
The scene made the person who had followed him inside speechless.
So loud.
Rain thought irritably, his face already scrunched up. But what could he say now? He could only walk around and go sit with his own group of friends, who were peeking at the famous senior, but no one dared to get up and greet him.
When they had first entered university, Phîi Payu had already graduated. Even though they'd often heard the professors mention him, it wasn't like they had a chance to meet him in person or know him well. So they could only watch the chaotic scene unfolding with awe.
"Are you sure you should be sitting here?!" Sky leaned over to whisper in his ear.
"And why shouldn't I sit here? This is my spot, isn't it?" Rain forced a smile, though he felt a slight chill wondering what his big partner was doing here.
"Because of that," his close friend pointed towards the senior surrounded by juniors. Rain followed his gaze, and his eyes stumbled upon one person.... Phîi Som.
Oho! That gaze doesn't hide the admiration one bit.
Rain had prepared himself from the start that when Phîi Payu came, he'd have to see irritating scenes like some girl rubbing her breasts against the arm that held him every day. Just look at Sai; even his friend did that. But who would have thought that having a senior brother with a cute face (cuter than his) standing so close, looking with sparkling eyes, unlike the usual fierce image of Phîi Som, would make his heart itch terribly, as if someone had thrown fiberglass at it.
Phîi Som, that's your Nông's Phûa!
—His heart wanted to shout loud enough to shake the restaurant, but all he could do was let his face droop... droop... until it was about to turn into a ladle.
"Aren't you going to show ownership?" Sky suggested, while holding back laughter until his shoulders shook.
My, just think about it. This Âi'Rain declared loudly that Phîi Payu was so bad, had a terrible personality, that he would defeat him, even to the point of picking a fight with the senior before. But look now, he's not giving Phîi Payu a dirty look, but is glaring at the senior instead. If this isn't funny, what is?
From his expression, Sky could tell he was close to losing his temper.
"No. Why should I do that?" Still! The stubborn one shook his head the other way.
"Suit yourself. But I warned you. Be careful. The person who said she wanted to offer her younger sister because she wanted to become in-laws might offer herself instead and become a direct relative, you know." Rain's face drooped even more. He glanced at Phîi Som again and found that this fierce person was acting like a kitten.
Where's the person who kicks people down? There's only a cute person smiling sweetly.
However...
"Are you holding a grudge against me or something, Âi'Sky?" Had the usually calm guy who was now being sarcastic taken the wrong pills? Sky just shrugged, though his eyes sparkled with amusement.
"You hid it from me for months."
The one with the guilty conscience of not telling his friend shut his mouth tightly, until Sky laughed and patted his shoulder for encouragement.
"Come on. When you go home later, he'll be all yours alone."
"I know you're a true friend," Rain said gratefully.
"Nope. If you two argue, I'll have to suffer getting up to answer the phone in the middle of the night again. Ever since you had a partner, my ears have had much more peace." The cold-hearted friend said deadpan, making the one who had just professed love bite his lip in frustration but unable to do anything. He didn't want to turn and look, as it would only pain his heart, so he turned back to the table to join the others for fun. But...
"I always thought men with long hair were slobs, but today I've changed my mind," one of the female friends, who never hesitated to criticize people in their year, said dreamily, her eyes drifting towards the seniors' table.
"Right? So damn handsome, man." And Rain was even more stunned, because the one who blurted out the praise without maintaining her refined image was his former crush... Pear.
Now Pear was squealing with another friend, completely ignoring the guys in their year.
"If you like him that much, why not go ask for his number?" Âi'Chik teased jokingly.
"As if I don't have it already! Got it from Phîi Som. But who would dare call?" Pear said shyly, while other friends shook her arm, wanting it too. Rain's face fell even further.
"Why not ask Âi'Rain? Âi'Rain has it. He has the Line, the number, Facebook, IG," Sky chimed in, causing the girls to all look at the fair-skinned friend in unison.
"What? Who knows? I don't know," the real partner quickly shook his head flustered, kneeing his close friend's leg as if to say 'why are you talking?' His friend looked back as if to say... Just show ownership and get it over with, so you don't have to be irritated.
"Oh, Rain is in Phîi Payu's râhad line, right?" Pear remarked as if she just remembered, leaning in excitedly.
"Ah... uh, yes, that's right."
If it were four months ago, if this beautiful girl leaned in so close, this Âi'Rain would have pounced. But now, he leaned back as far as he could. Honestly, he was scared, and his irritation multiplied. He wanted to declare, What the hell? Don't you care about the person you used to court? Wouldn't he be disappointed? If you want my Phûa like this, I want to say he's taken, damn it!
Gulp!
"Phîi will sit with you all, Nôngs."
"Phîi Payu." The one leaning back started slightly because his head bumped into the person who had come up behind him. Two hands rested on his shoulders, the greeting making him tilt his head back to look. A happy smile escaped. But... Phîi Payu wasn't looking at him.
Damn! Phîi Payu is looking at Pear!
"Hello, Phîi Payu. Do you remember me? We met when you came to see Rain last time," Pear greeted enthusiastically.
"Of course I remember. Som showed me a picture of her younger sister before. Seeing you then, I knew it must be Nông Pear. But I didn't have a chance to say hello."
What is this? A nice, handsomely smiling guy?
The person who pulled up a chair to sit next to Rain did so seamlessly. And the person sitting next to him?... was clenching his fists tightly.
Calm down, Âi'Rain. Phîi Payu is just acting like a kind senior as usual.
"My Nông is cute, right, Phîi? Can I apply to be Phîi Payu's romantic partner?" That senior brother also chose to come to this table, advertising his sister without regard for heaven, earth, or the gods.
Meanwhile, Payu looked at the pretty, blushing girl's face, then alternated looking at the junior he found endearing. He remembered that back in his student days, Som had followed him around quietly, looking at him with admiring eyes. He knew that if he reached out, he could probably have her easily. But honestly, not a single thought of that sort had ever crossed his mind.
This youth had never made his heart flutter.... Unlike today.
Today, both the older sister and the younger brother made him shake terribly... shake with the desire to kill someone.
"Phîi hasn't told you why I'm around here, has he?" Phîi Payu changed the subject so abruptly that everyone at the table couldn't keep up, except for the intimately close person whose eyes widened.
"Oh, right, why did Phîi Payu come? Did someone call you to come?" Som also asked as if she just remembered. Payu smiled... a wide smile, a handsome smile, a heart-stoppingly handsome smile that... made him want to drag him to bed. And he said in a gentle voice,
"No. Today, Phîi came to pick up my romantic partner."
"Huh!!! Who is Phîi Payu's partner?"
That was it. Som exclaimed loudly until the seniors turned back to crowd around curiously, because after studying in the faculty for years, they had never seen the other dating anyone seriously. As for the real one... he was staring wide-eyed, looking at Payu in disbelief.
Payu turned to make eye contact with Rain for a split second, the corner of his mouth twitching into a smile.
"A secret."
Once again, Rain understood that Phîi Payu was giving him a choice.
If he didn't want to tell, he could just sit still and not say anything. The topic of conversation would change on its own.
But if he wanted to tell, he knew very well what he had to do.
The choice... Rain looked at the pretty girl who clearly looked crestfallen, looked at Phîi Som whose mouth was hanging open, and at Âi'Sky who kept kicking his leg. But above all else, he looked at Phîi Payu, who had come to see him even though he must be tired from work.
Once he made his decision, Rain stood up so abruptly that his friends were startled.
"What's wrong, Âi'Rain? Need to take a shit?" Âi'Chik asked.
"No. But I'm going home."
He made his decision right then, announcing it loudly as if telling the whole restaurant.
"What's with the suddenness, Âi'Rain?" Phîi Som asked, confused, but was even more confused when the senior he respected also stood up.
"Hey! Phîi Payu, where are you going? You haven't answered our question yet. Who is your partner? Is it someone in my year?"
Payu looked at the little one beside him. He could see what the large, round eyes were telling him. Then he turned to tell Som,
"Going home. Phîi said from the start that I came to pick up my partner." Everyone looked around, their hearts suspecting, but finding it hard to believe. Until their gaze circled the room and returned to Payu, their lips began to hang open, their eyes widening more and more because.... Phîi Payu was putting his arm around Âi'Rain's shoulder.
"My partner is going home, so Phîi has to go back too."
"Huh!!!"
Amidst the cries of surprise, Rain glanced at Pear, who was too shocked to speak, turned to look at Phîi Som who had no words coming out, looked at Sky who was giving him a thumbs-up. And strangely, someone like Âi'Rain.... felt triumphant.
Damn it!
He didn't care a damn shit what anyone thought anymore. He didn't care that this was the girl he used to pursue. He didn't care about the senior he respected. Right now, he just wanted to announce to the whole world that the person next to him belonged to someone. So Rain turned to the handsome guy of their year who was stroking his chin thoughtfully.
"Âi'Chik, you asked me who my partner is, right?"
Snap!
Rain raised his arm to wrap around Payu's waist in return, then looked up with a sweet smile.
"Let's go home, Phîi Payu."
"Mm, let's go. Phîi is leaving now." Phîi Payu was so kind, obliging without refusal. He said goodbye to the other juniors and led Rain out of the restaurant amidst the astonishment of the juniors in the faculty. But before stepping out of the restaurant, the tall figure paused, turned back to look, made eye contact with Pear for a split second, then scanned the room.
"Phîi forgot to answer why I came..... I came to make an appearance. Now that you know, don't touch this person."
With that, Payu led his young partner, who was smiling from ear to ear, out of the restaurant amidst the astonishment of the juniors who knew the god Payu very well.
The god who today came to display his godhood, making a spectacular debut so that when the semester started, everyone would know that Âi'Rain belonged to whom!
"So awesome, Phîi Payu. Did you see Phîi Som's face? He looked totally dazed.
Inside the car, Rain was clapping his hands and laughing loudly, not caring that he had parked his car at his friend's dorm. He could get that another day. But today, he just had to go back with his partner, since he had come to pick him up!
Whoosh!
But the laughter died down when Payu leaned over to trap him with both arms. His sharp eyes looked into his, and if he wasn't mistaken... they were cloudy.
"Do you still like Pear?"
"Huh!" The listener exclaimed in confusion, looking at the other's face without understanding, before parting his lips.
Screwed! Âi'Sky must have told him about Pear!
The image of the day Sky met Phîi Payu flashed into his mind—the day his friend had sold him out completely. But back then, seeing Phîi Payu not saying anything, he thought he didn't mind that he had just been pursuing a girl. Only now did he remember that during the phone call earlier, he had been talking to Pear. So, the not-stupid person was gradually understanding why Phîi Payu had come here.
Yes, to make an appearance. But not to the entire year of juniors, but to... the girl he used to pursue!
"You're jealous?!"
"Extremely jealous." A person like Payu admitted directly, which made Rain's mouth fall open before turning it into a wide smile.
"You're jealous of me? Didn't you see how Pear was looking at you? Ouch! Pear isn't interested in me. I could court her until I died and she wouldn't care..."
"I don't care how that girl looks at me. I only care about how my 'Mia' looks at that girl!" Before Warain could finish speaking, Payu cut in with a strong voice, intense eyes, and a curt tone, which made the smiling one gradually close his wide smile. But Rain wasn't scared; he just toned down the wide smile to a suppressed smile as best he could.
Today he saw another cute side of Phîi Payu.
Wow! Phîi Payu is making a face fierce enough to wrestle him in the car, but he's still calm enough to give him the choice again whether to announce their status or keep it a secret.
How could this not make him want to please him?
Two pale hands pressed against the big guy's cheeks, and Rain looked up with pleading eyes, asking in a coaxing voice.
"And have you seen how your Mia looks at you, Phîi?"
The gaze that Rain didn't think to hide his feelings—it was both whining and coaxing, both sulky and appeasing, both pleasing and incredibly sweet, the kind he had never used to look at anyone else before. His hands stroked the cheeks gently, just like when he comforted the angry person that day, and it would probably become their way of sulking and appeasing forever. The tall figure raised his hands to cover the small ones, holding them tightly.
"Rain will tell Phîi Payu that Rain has never used this kind of gaze to look at anyone else either."
His answer, whether he had pursued Pear or not, it had never developed into deep feelings like with this person. So, Rain was confident he had never used this kind of gaze with anyone before. Was this enough to make the jealous person understand?
"Huuuh!" The stern-faced person finally let out a sigh.
"Okay. I won't punish you today."
"Hey! But Rain didn't do anything wrong!" the little one pleaded for justice. Payu pressed a firm kiss on his cheek and pulled back.
"Right. Not wrong for making me jealous. But if you ever cheat on me, you know what a person like me will do, right?" The speaker turned to start the car, but the listener... well, he swallowed hard. If just jealousy made girls pale like that, then if he cheated... Oho! The image of dying on the bed flashed through his mind. And not the usual kind of death either; this one would involve breaking tears, crying until almost out of breath.
"Rain would never cheat on Phîi Payu!" the little figure quickly said, trying to please him, moving to hug his arm, rubbing his cheek against the shoulder, then looking up.
"Right now, Rain only has Phîi Payu. Oh, and Phîi Payu isn't allowed to have anyone else either."
"And if I do?"
"I'll throw a tantrum, wreck the house, make everyone at the garage scatter," the little one bared his fangs, punched the shoulder, and said fiercely.
"Hahaha! Then I don't need to be afraid."
Not because this little junior could actually do anything, but because...
"Rain will never be disappointed in me because of something like that. No way."
A person who always spoke and acted truthfully. And right now, Payu was promising that nothing of that sort would trouble the little one's heart, because a person like Khun Payu had many other ways to make Rain's heart sway as if in the middle of a storm, without needing regret... his stormy heart.
But Rain's good mood didn't last long before there was another issue.
"Âi'Payu! That damned kid from the event called to challenge you to a race!"
The moment they stepped into the garage, Sai-fah came out the door with a gnashing-teeth expression, telling his twin brother irritably, which made Payu frown deeply.
"Damned kid?"
"The one who dropped the car at the event."
That was it. Payu's eyes gleamed, and he took long strides into the office.
"What did he say?"
The scene made Rain himself have to hurriedly follow, worried.
No, he wasn't worried for Phîi Payu. He was worried for that damned shit-lizard who dared to challenge a person like Khun Payu, because right now... the one being challenged was making an expression that Rain didn't want to see one bit.
Seriously, I think that challenger is the one who won't survive.
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