Arthit's POV:
Namtan was the last person I could think of, when I felt someone hug me tight. Though we have known each other for years, we rarely visit one another - we don't even call each other often. But just like how some friendships are meant to be forever, we have been the best of friends, for almost a decade now. Jay and Nam are the only two friends I have, apart from my college gang. We lived in the same neighborhood, and were practically bound at the hip, during your childhood days.
"How have you been Oon? It's been ages since we spoke!" She said, in a high pitched voice, making a few heads turn around. But as always, she couldn't care less.
"I am good, Nam. How are you? Why the sudden visit?" I asked, slowly wiggling away, from her hug.
"Nothing special. I just missed you!" She answered, without any hesitation.
"I missed you too!" I replied, genuinely. Yes, I did miss her, but somehow since Kong came into my life, I did not even get a chance to think about her. She used to be, ages ago, my crush, because she put up with my anti-social personality, and was always good to me. Once I grew up, I realised that it wasn't really attraction or infatuation, but just admiration for who she was.
We were just catching up and walking slowly, when I heard Kong fake a cough. It completely skipped my mind, that he was waiting awkwardly to be included in this conversation.
"Oh! This is Namtan, my childhood friend. And Nam, this is Kongpob, my - " before I could complete my sentence, Nam took Kong's hand, gave it a slight shake and said "Hi Kongpob! I am sorry if you had plans with Oon, but I am borrowing him for a few hours!" and turned back to me, without waiting for Kong's response.
I was as confused as he was, when she tugged my hand and started pulling me away from Kong, while saying "Let's go to your dorm. And please cook something for me! I am famished!".
I didn't think she was an insensitive person before, but I am beginning to have my own doubts now. I knew that not reacting to her, would cause Kong to misunderstand us, so I came to a sudden hault, turned around to look at Kong and asked him to join us for dinner. But what happened was far from my expectation.
"Thank you for the invite, P'. But I don't think I should disturb your reunion with your friend. Call me once you are free". was his response in a tone that reflected slight anger and irritation. But before I could respond, he just walked away, very swiftly. I tried to stop him, but he did not bother to respond. Exactly what I did not want to happen!!
With no other option, I turned back to Namtan and started walking towards my dorm, with her. Once we reached, I put my bag down, quickly refreshed myself and started walking towards the kitchen, to make some dinner. But right when I was about to start, I realised that I did not even know where the ingredients were. Everything was always taken care by Kong, that I did not even bother to look at them.
And that is when it struck me, that Kong doens't even know that I can cook! I have never offered to cook for him, simply because he cooks way better than me. So, the days when we decide to cook dinner, he does the cooking, and I take care of feeding him.
I felt a pang in my heart. The misunderstanding seems to be deeper than I wanted to acknowledge. I think I am messing up big time! I pulled out my phone, and called Kong, to ask him again about joining us for dinner and also about the ingredients. I put the call on loud speaker, and started opening all the draws in the kitchen. At first, he did not pick up my call, which only made my anxiousness, go higher and higher as minutes pass by.
I tried calling him again, and this time he picked it up but all he said was "Yes?". The frustration was evident in his voice, which started driving me mad, because it felt as if he did not want to talk to me at all, which was not something I was used to. Controlling my temper, I started asking him about the stuff I need, trying to sound as casual as possible, because I knew for sure, if both of us snapped, it will never end well.
He patiently but perfectly told me the draws I need to look for, to get the stuff I need. Right when I was about to let out a deep breath, thinking everything is back to normal, he asked "Anything else?". The lack of adjectives in his sentence, drove me insane. Of late, there has never been a conversation, where he hasn't used any sweet words or new nicknames, which I quickly started loving. Now that it wasn't there, I became mad, more than I wanted to be.
But still, I took a deep breath, and replied "Come join us for dinner." He did not even hesitate to turn me down again. "No, thanks!" was all he said, when I heard Em's voice in the background. "Let's go, buddy!" Em said and with that, he disconnected the call. I was just rooted to my spot, not because he went out for dinner with Em, but because I got to see a new side of him, which was as cold as a stone.
I tried to get back to my senses, when Nam made her presence known. She just looked at me and asked "Who exactly is he?". I have been waiting to let her know about him, because this is a major chapter of my life, and I wanted her to know.
"My boyfriend!" I said, with a little embarrassment.
No, I was not embarrassed of Kong being my boyfriend, but was totally mortified by Kong's behaviour. This is not how I wanted to introduce him, to others. I wanted to do it with a lot of pride and all the happiness he deserves.
"I guessed it. But what's with his behaviour?" she asked, too curious to refine her sentence.
"I don't think that's the right question, especially when you did not even give him a chance to speak!" I retorted.
"Riiiiggghhhtttt! Sorry about that. I was too hungry to think." she said.
I could understand what she meant, only because I have known her for years. The extent she can flip out, when she is hungry, is actually unimaginable. The fact that she at least informed Kong about her plans, in itself was a big thing, because she isn't that well mannered, when she's hungry.
I just scoffed at her response, and set off to prepare a simple dinner. Nam is not a very picky eater and she can stomach dishes even if it is only partly edible. While I was cooking, I saw her skimming through my phone. I knew, it was to look for Kong's pictures, because she did not pay much attention to him, previously.
Her smile grew with every picture she saw, in my gallery. It made my heart happy, to see that she understood how much he meant to me. She put the phone down, when I told her that the dinner was ready.
She ate while we gave each other updates about our lives, and as expected, 90% of her questions were about Kong.
After a while, she got ready to leave, only when I promised her that I will let her meet Kong soon. She assured me that she understands Kong's reaction to her arrival and told me that she would like to get to know him more. As we were leaving my dorm, I quickly texted Kong, asking him where he was. I did not immediately receive any response; but just as Nam got into her taxi and went out of sight, I received a text that just said "My room!". I smiled, and sprinted my way, to his room.
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