7 more days till the final exams.
During Physical Education class, nobody remained in the classroom to revise; instead, the entire class flocked down to the fields to exercise in an attempt to relax. The class teacher constantly reminded the class to stay away from sports like tennis and basketball, as they could very well injure their hands in so playing. Thus, the entire class was restricted to jump rope and jogging.
Jamie dragged Phana, Nai and Arthit over to play badminton. After some time, Arthit grew tired of playing badminton, and left the group to jog around the field. Before he realized it, he had already arrived at the isolated corner where the special youth had once leapt over the school gates to stand in front of him.
As he neared the corner, his sharp eyes discerned the sleeve of a white t-shirt peeking out from beyond the gates. Surprised and elated, he ran to the gates and grab hold of the metal railings, "Why are you here?"
Kongpob stretched out his index finger, and ran his fingers over Arthit's before replying, "I know that you're having Physical Education lessons now."
"There's still 7 days to graduation exams."
"I know."
"If we factor in the days where graduation exams are taking place, which are a grand total of two days, we could stay by each other's side after ten days!"
Kongpob gave a quiet chortle, "Right now, we're already staying by each other's side every single day."
"......Oh." Arthit nodded his head.
The warm afternoon glow filtered down through the leaves of the trees. Kongpob tore his gentle gaze away from Arthit's face, and finally settled on a figure that had appeared behind the younger, cool frostiness beginning to form in his eyes. Lowering his voice, he murmured, "Someone's looking for you." Before Arthit could react to the sentence, Kongpob had already disappeared beyond the gates.
Arthit turned his head behind, only to see Knott strolling over from a distance away. Arthit perfectly understood that if Knott resorted to looking for him at this hour of the day, it must be concerning something way more serious than simply warning him about the rapist at large. Shaking off the dust on his clothes, Arthit began to walk towards Knott.
There were a couple of exercise contraptions located in a corner of the field. Arthit headed straight for elliptical machine, and hopped onto it. Meanwhile, Knott sat on the sit-up bench next to him, silently watching him exercise on the elliptical machine for a period of time before finally speaking up, "Nong Arthit?"
"Yes?" Arthit answered in a casual tone.
"Do you remember me telling you previously, that you should come looking for me the minute you encountered any trouble?"
"I remember." Arthit lowered his head, his legs pumping rhythmically on the elliptical machine, as though they were a pendulum clock.
"But you never once came to look for me." Knott let out a short, bitter laugh.
"I......" Arthit shook his head and smiled faintly, "I didn't encounter any ...... difficulty."
"No difficulties? Jay and his group of friends were constantly bullying you – why didn't you tell me that?" Knott had finally discovered the connection between Jay and him.
Arthit paused momentarily, before resuming his rhythmic motion on the elliptical machine. "Even if I chose to confide in you ...... how would that have helped the situation?" He returned the question to Knott.
"I could ......" Knott couldn't bring himself to continue his sentence. The very reason why Arthit was relentlessly tormented and bullied was because he had told him the truth about Namtarn's death. And because of numerous other reasons, he was unable to protect him and to guard him from harm. At this very moment, Knott was seized by memories of sending Arthit back and forth from school – his thankful and expectant gaze whenever he ran to him from the alley near his house, the look of trust and reliance every single time he gave him every single time before he stepped into the school compound – all these no longer existed in the present day and age.
The sun blazed down, raining down heat on the people beneath it. Beads of sweat began to form on Knott's forehead.
"What did they do to you?"
"They insulted me, and punched me."
"What else?"
"That's it."
"That's it?" Knott locked his gaze onto Arthit's side profile.
The pendulum clock finally ceased its motion. Arthit turned towards Knott, and asked in a quiet voice, "If not, what else do you think happened, officer Ittikorn?"
Initially, Knott had a huge ton of things he wanted to say to Arthit – but after listening to Arthit's words, he was over come with a overwhelming sense of deflation, and he couldn't bring himself to say a single word.
The school bell rang, signaling the end of Physical Education lesson. Arthit hopped down from the elliptical machine, and headed back towards the classroom.
Knott returned to the police station with a heavy heart. On reaching the police station, his colleagues informed him that there has been a minor breakthrough in Senior Prem's criminal profiling, and that the police officers have already begun to single out youths who fit into the specific criminal profile – namely, those who frequently play truant, those who have an antagonistic relationship with their parents, and those who own a motorcycle, etc. However, despite their attempts to narrow down the suspect pool as much as possible, there were still about 20 to 30 youths who fit the criminal profile.
Lawan placed the photographs of the 20 to 30 youths in front of Knott.
Knott felt mildly put off by the easy manner in which this group of youths were labelled as suspects, and pushed the photographs aside in irritation.
Easily discerning Knott's unhappy mood, Lawan enquired, "There's no progress on your front?"
Knott took a few deep breaths in an attempt to calm himself down. After some time, he finally spoke up, "Jay has a friend named Yok Saelim. I always had a vague feeling that he was hiding something with respect to Jay's murder; thus, I stopped him a few times to question him. Although he was rather tight-lipped at the start, he eventually confessed that Jay had bullied and abused a young boy the day before Jay died."
"How did they bully and abuse that boy?"
"They hit him and insulted him......" Knott's furrowed his eyebrows, "Yok said that he left early, so he didn't know exactly what had happened after he left."
"Have you questioned the victim of the abuse?"
"Yes. He refused to say what happened."
"Have you tried asking the people who lived around the area where the abuse happened?"
"I have sent people to investigate that specific area." Knott replied wearily, "We're still looking for witnesses to the abuse."
"Hmm...... Do you think that this incident is linked to Jay's death?"
"I don't know." Knott replied in a clipped tone, rubbing his face and his neck vigorously with his hands. He could feel an insane desire bubbling within him – he wanted to figure out the truth behind Jay's death; he wanted to know exactly what abuse Arthit had suffered. This heavy desire weighed on him, overwhelming him to the point that he feels that he was going to break any minute.
"Have you been overworking yourself lately? Your emotions don't seem to be extremely stable."
"Yes! I'm extremely unstable now! Jay, Yok – and the whole bunch of male hooligans – all of them should have been incarcerated at the earliest opportunity!!" Unable to repress his infuriation any longer, Knott raised his head and punched his desk forcefully.
Lawan lapsed into a stunned silence.
A deathly silence settled between the two colleagues. Realizing his momentary lapse in control, Knott moderated his voice level, declaring as calmly as he could, "Even if nobody reported this incident of abuse to the police, I will nevertheless uncover the truth behind this incident."
"And? What happens after you uncover the truth?"
This question was too cruel for Knott to bear. As a police officer, "uncovering the truth" often entails some form of punishment being meted out to the criminal offender who had perpetuated the crime. However, even if the truth was uncovered, there was nothing that could be done for this incident of abuse.
A mangled sense of fury and hatred rose in Knott's heart, "Why can't the law....."
"Knott! Keep your emotions in check!" Lawan whispered to him urgently. "They are underaged children! What would you have the law do? Incarcerate every single one of them? They're still young!"
"Being a child does not entitle them to rise above the law!"
"No, it doesn't. But would incarceration truly solve the problem? They're still so young – they have yet to form a stable, concrete identity for themselves, and their personalities are still in the midst of formation. As adults, we are the ones that are solely responsible for the formation of their personalities, because the factors that contribute to personality formation (society, school environment and family) are societal constructs created by us adults. No matter which country you're in, whether you're in the West or in the East, the law will always be lenient towards children, because they always have an opportunity to rehabilitate."
Knott let out a short, bitter laugh, "I know. My university lecturer mentioned this before."
His criminal law professor once mentioned that the unique characteristics and personality 'possessed' by underaged offenders are often superficial and false in nature; even if an underaged offender commits the exact same crime as a mature offender, their trains of thought when committing the crime are extremely different. In fact, many underaged offenders have yet to truly form a criminal personality when they commit various crimes.
The absence of a criminal personality was the exact reason why rehabilitation and education could pull these underaged offenders back from the brink they were tethering upon; conversely, severe punishment and the lack of forgiveness would inevitably push them over the brink, and result in them growing to become greater menaces to society.
But,
What about the victims?
Knott ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. He couldn't bring himself to imagine how the victim felt when confronted with the leniency afforded to underaged offenders – after all, despite being a police officer, he himself was unable to control his emotions and unhappiness. If there was no punishment, how could their evil deeds be forgiven? How could the frustration and hatred of the victim be appeased?
"Even then, we can't eliminate the possibility that some children would be able to change; whereas the others would never be able to transform into better people. For the children that belong in the latter category, we ought to......" Knott continued protesting.
"Who's capable of judging whether an underaged offender is capable of change? Who? You? Me? Or perhaps, Senior Prem? If we simply rely on subjective human standards and perceptions to mete out punishments, both you and I would not be in this profession, for we would witness too many 'injustices' occurring every single day." Lawan cut Knott off before he could finish his sentence.
Knott's lips slowly curved into a bitter smile. Perhaps, humans simply needed to learn whilst there are times when we need to invest our entire energies into accomplishing a certain objective, there are other times when we simply simply need to learn how to accept our inabilities and helplessness.
It was just that, right now,
He was still unable to accept his inability to change the situation.
Lowering his head, he slowly shook his head from side to side, "Miss Lawan, have you ever experienced the feeling of letting down a person who trusted you with his entire heart?"
"That feeling ...... could really kill me." Knott's voice was extremely low, as though it had broken into a million pieces.
~~...~~...~~
It was the end of school.
Leisurely strolling across the wild fields, Kongpob enquired out of curiosity, "Why did the police officer come to look for you again?"
"He came to ask me about Jay." Arthit spotted a huge patch of pale blue Veronica Persicas, and bent down to pluck a few heart shaped fruits.
"What exactly did he ask?"
"He......" Arthit pondered over the incident with Knott, "He seems to be onto something."
Kongpob: "Oh."
Arthit passed him a bunch of Veronica Persicas, "Do you know how to play with these?"
Kongpob retrieved the Veronica Persicas from Arthit, and used his thumb and his index finger to pinch the fruit. With a sharp crack, the fruit exploded from within.
That night, Kongpob didn't have much to say. However, Arthit didn't mind in the slightest – after all, the both of them were originally quiet people who exchanged very few words. After dinner, Arthit revised his homework for a fair amount of time before crawling into bed.
Ever since he moved into Kongpob's home, Arthit slept extremely soundly. In the middle of the night, he vaguely felt Kongpob open his window – the night breeze blew into the room and grazed his skin gently. It was more comfortable compared to the electric fan.
After some time, Arthit was once again roused by the sound of water coming from within the bathroom. Arthit sat up on the bed groggily, and glanced at the bathroom. A beam of soft, yellow light shone from within the bathroom, effectively tearing the darkness of the room apart. Rubbing his eyes, Arthit staggered towards the bathroom and peered within. He recognized Kongpob instantly. Kongpob was topless, and seemed to be washing something vigorously in the basin.
The youth's hair was entirely drenched, and water droplets fell from his hair as his body shook with the force he exerted whilst washing the unknown object. His fringe fell over his eyes, effectively serving as a cover for any emotion that his eyes potentially betrayed.
"Kongpob......" Arthit's gentle voice rang out quietly.
Kongpob froze momentarily before whipping himself around, effectively covering the unknown item with his body. His dark, silent eyes stared at hazel one's piercingly.
"What are you doing?" Arthit asked, confused.
"......"
After a few moments of silence, Arthit took one step into the bathroom.
"Hey!" Kongpob's voice was filled with warning.
Arthit stared at him obstinately.
"I'm washing my undergarments." Kongpob smirked, "You want to come take a look?"
Stunned, Arthit stared at him wordlessly for a few minutes. After a few minutes, he came to a sudden realization, and hurriedly lowered his head and ran back to the bed in embarrassment.
Kongpob let out a silent sigh of relief and gulped. Using his long legs, he easily shut the bathroom door. Turning back to glance at the basin, he discovered that the dark red liquid that was originally in the basin had already been washed away by the water that was flowing from the running tap.
Kongpob turned off the lights in the toilet and crawled back into bed. Arthit lay on the bed, the white moonlight gently illuminating his frail physique. Knowing full well that Arthit wasn't asleep, Kongpob gathered him gently in his arms, his arms encircling the younger's waist. His body fitted tightly with the younger's, as though the both of them were two bows that fitted each other snugly.
Arthit caught the distinct scent of beer, and asked Kongpob in his quiet manner, "You went drinking?"
"A little."
Turning himself round to face Kongpob, Arthit wrapped his arms around Kongpob and returned his hug.
The two youthful bodies hugged each other tightly, their; dark black and hazel eyes gazing at each other. They could feel each other's every single breath – their bodies shivered with mixed feelings of fear and anticipation, their bodies entire in sync with each other.
Kongpob grazed his nose over Arthit's dark brows, Arthit's long eyelashes, and the tip of Arthit's nose. On reaching the younger's lips, Kongpob slowly pressed his own lips against the other's, quiet and gentle.
The cool night breeze grazed over their skins, causing a shiver to run up their spines. Arthit returned Kongpob's kiss, slowly but passionately.
The soft clothing that originally hid Arthit's body from view gradually began to loosen. The body of the youthful boy was like a slab of smooth, yellow butter. Kongpob ran his fingers up Arthit's spine, as though he was caressing a precious pearl.
The two youths hugged each other tightly, as though they were the only measure of sweetness and happiness left in each other's world.
At the end, the two youths began to tire, and fell asleep in each other's embrace.
Before sleeping, Kongpob suddenly opened his eyes and asked Arthit, "Where's the keys to your house?"
"It's in my bag."
"I will send you home tomorrow. I will help you shift your books back as well. This place is simply too small."
"Alright."
~~...~~...~~
6 more days to the final exams.
The passing of time began to feel arduous and painful, and an uneasy sense of restlessness began to settle over the entire student population.
Except Arthit. Arthit remained calm as ever, his heart at peace as he continued his revision slowly and methodically. During class time, the students engaged in animated discussions about the latest television series and the ever-mysterious raincoat man in order to divert their attention from the upcoming examinations.
Arthit munched on his gummy bears whilst he packed his table. His desk was almost entirely empty by now, with only a few reference books left in the small corner of his desk.
During the afternoon break, Arthit hurriedly headed towards the entrance of the school gates. Spotting Kongpob from a distance away, he flew down the steps and began to run towards him. Similarly, Kongpob had just begun to run towards him when a police car drove up beside Arthit. Knott stepped down from the police car. It was clear that he was looking for the younger.
Arthit tore his gaze away from Kongpob. Without sparing Kongpob a single glance, he lowered his head and sat in the police car.
Upon reaching the police station, Knott brought Arthit into the interrogation room.
As Knott hadn't managed to string a complete sentence within his head, he went to pour a cup of water for Arthit and himself. As the water began to fill the cup, the jarring witness testimony rang in his head, "...... there were several people walking past who saw them beat that boy up. They stripped him of his clothes and dragged him around, parading him for all to see. There were innumerable people who stood by, watching the debacle unfold......"
The icy cold water began to overflowing, jolting Knott back to reality. The rest of his colleagues remained outside the interrogation room. He alone went in to question Arthit.
Arthit was dressed in his school uniform. He sat quietly in the interrogation room, waves of loneliness and isolation rolling off his frail body. His head was lowered, and he seemed extremely tired.
Knott pushed the cup of water towards him, "Nong Arthit?"
"Yes?" Arthit raised his head and gazed at Knott.
He wasn't nervous; neither was he confused. This made Knott even more uncomfortable – he simply didn't know where to start, "What's going through your mind right now?"
"Right now? It's about time, I reached home." He pronounced each syllable slowly and clearly.
"Home?"
"Yes." The boy nodded his head. "If I, wasn't here; I would have, been home."
Arthit lowered his head once more, twisting his fingers into a knot. It appeared that Arthit no longer had anything to say.
Knott: "......"
"Arthit," He exhaled deeply, "Jay and his group of friends – what exactly did they do to you?"
"Jay?"
"Yes."
"He punched me. A single punch."
"What else?" Knott persisted, "What happened after that?"
"I forgot." Arthit shook his head from side to side. "I don't......remember."
He returned Knott's gaze, his eyes wide with confusion.
Knott was at a loss for words, and turned back to gaze at his colleagues standing outside the interrogation room. When his gaze returned to Arthit, Arthit was staring at the blazing afternoon sun outside the window, his brows slightly furrowed. Arthit was muttering to himself under her breath, "After lunch, it's time for an afternoon nap. Sprinkle water, near the bamboo mat."
Knott rose from his seat and walked out of the interrogation room, shutting the door behind him.
Senior Prem: "Selective memory loss? Its a form of self protection after suffering an extreme attack – should we locate a psychologist to counsel Arthit?"
Lawan: "You mean you want to awaken Arthit's memory?"
SeniorPrem: "Yok Saelim left the scene early; when he left, Jay and a few other boys which he didn't recognize were still abusing Arthit. The suspect could very well have been part of the group that was abusing Arthit. Although Yok doesn't have any impression with respect to those guys, perhaps Arthit would have some form of impression of them."
"That's true."
"He's about to take his graduation exams." Knott interjected all of a sudden.
"Pardon me?"
"HE'S ABOUT TO TAKE HIS GRADUATION EXAMS!" Knott repeated once more, his voice forcefully ringing out in the silent hallway.
21/2/2022
A/N: In the previous chapter we came across pleasant, slow moments of Arthit and Kongpob's bliss, although in some small parts, we do sense the ominous tones that underlie some parts of their outing. As the police began their investigation so as to hunt the criminal we saw that there's an increasing number of arrows seem to point towards Kongpob as his profile basically fits the criminal profile. He's just like a modest ticking bomb ready to be embroiled in this mess. Whereas in this chapter, we began our countdown towards the final exams as well as Arthit's and Kongpob's golden ticket out of this horrid town. But this time the police beginning keep an eye on Arthit, will the two be able to escape this town and find their true freedom? As Kongpob witnesses Arthit getting cornered right in front of his very own eyes, what could he possibly do to protect the younger one? Feel free to share your thoughts.
Ps. I have changed the title from Dusk till Dawn to Me After You as I felt that it fit's better, so yeah you aren't in the wrong story (:
Thank you for reading 😇