— in the night when the sleep is gone
I'm lucky because I have you now
When you look for the things of the past
Be careful because the ocean is vast —
Chay smelled like jasmine and vanilla. It was an interesting combination that Kim hadn't smelled on him before. He wondered if he smelled like that as well. He wondered if it was because of that shower gel as Chay called it. Chay's soft hair was covering Chay's face obstructing Kim's beautiful view in an already dark room. He brushed his fingers gently through Chay's hair and closed his own eyes again. Chay's bed was the most comfortable bed Kim had ever laid in and yet it had been hours since Chay kissed him good night and Kim still couldn't sleep.
He was so worried about his ships and his crew. When he was away from them in his own time it was different, but now? Now he was three hundred years away from them and he didn't even know how to get back to them. Or if he ever would. Chay promised him that they would get back. And he trusted Chay. Of course, he did. But the suffocating feeling inside of him stayed present no matter what he did. He simply needed to get back. Not only for his ships and his crew but for his mother. Especially for his mother. He thought that he would never again feel the need, the hunger for the Ruby Red. Since Chay came into his life, the Ruby Red stopped being the object of his desires. But now, the need for Ruby Red was back. However, it was different. Kim didn't need the Ruby Red simply because he felt like he physically couldn't live without it; no, this time it was because he knew that it was the only way to get back to his home. No matter what would happen, no matter how long they would have to look for it... they had to find it. There was no other option...
"Can't sleep?" Chay's sleepy voice pulled Kim back from his spiralling thoughts. Chay lifted himself up on his elbows and looked down at Kim. "Are you alright?"
"I am. I just...yeah, I can't sleep," Kim whispered into the night and rolled over even closer to Chay. "I'm sorry if I woke you up."
"That's okay," Chay whispered back and leaned in to peck Kim's lips. "You are worried about your ships, aren't you?"
Kim hummed.
"I told you we will find the way back. I mean it, Kim. And until we find the way, don't worry alone. Let me in—I want to worry with you."
"You are too good for me," Kim whispered and closed his eyes. Chay truly was too good for Kim. What did Kim do in his life to have Chay by his side? All Kim did since he was twelve was kill, kidnap, steal, lie, torture, use... basically, all he did was being a pirate. When they took away his mother, he thought that he would never be loved again. And he was good with that. He learned how to accept that. But then this boy, who was now looking at Kim as if he was the most precious thing in the world, came and turned Kim's world upside down... even more... he brought his own world with him.
"I'm not too good for you. I am the one for you," Chay whispered, his lips gently dancing over Kim's lips.
"Hmm, can the one for me kiss me then? Maybe I'll sleep better." Their eyes met the moment Kim opened his own, making Kim smile.
"The one for you can kiss you but I'm asking for a kiss in return..." Chay teasingly leaned in but then pulled right away before their lips could meet.
Kim wrapped one arm possessively around Chay's waist and the other he pressed to Chay's nape bringing their lips together, "all my kisses belong to you."
All those words that made Chay's head spin and heart beat to the rhythm of love for his pirate and yet Kim still couldn't bring himself to say that he loved Chay. If Chay wasn't safe and sound in Kim's arms right now, and wasn't being filled with all those heavenly emotions while their lips were moving as one, maybe he would be bothered by it, maybe he would be scared that Kim didn't really like him, but he knew... he knew that Kim loved him. It was in ways only Kim knew how to love, and Chay wouldn't exchange it for anything else in the world.
⋆༺𓆩☠︎︎𓆪༻⋆
"Alright, so what should you wear today, hmm?" Chay stood in front of his closet, trying to come up with the best look for Kim today. This was fun. It was like playing a dress up your boyfriend game but in real life. But what should he go for? Chay had a lot of clothes, which was good, but it was also making this choosing game pretty hard.
"Hmm," he turned towards Kim who was sitting on the bed, watching Chay with a soft smile.
"How about you let me choose?"
"No!" Chay immediately shook his head. "No, no, this is an opportunity I won't have when we get back to your time. Let me dress you the way I want to."
Kim laughed, "okay... but we are going on a beach, remember."
"I know," Chay bit his bottom lip and looked back into his closet. "How about these," he pulled out black shorts and a white linen shirt. "Simple but perfect for today."
Kim stood up and took the clothes from Chay, "for how long you were picking, I was afraid that you'd make me wear something ridiculous."
"Excuse you?" Chay raised his eyebrow. "My fashion taste is immaculate!"
"It is," Kim quickly nodded. "And I have never said anything else."
"Good boyfriend," Chay pecked Kim's lips and ran out of his room, downstairs.
"Granny! Granny!"
"In the kitchen, dear."
"We'll be out the whole day today," Chay announced the moment he walked into the kitchen.
His grandmother looked worried when she turned to him from the breakfast she was preparing, "why? Where are you going?"
"No worries, granny. We are just going to the beach and I want to take Kim on a little date. You know that there are so many things he has never seen in his life."
"But be back before dark, okay?"
"I promise," Chay smiled at his grandmother reassuringly and kissed her cheek. "But I have one question."
⋆༺𓆩☠︎︎𓆪༻⋆
"So, grandma said that if we want to find the Ruby Red we can't look for it," Chay said when they arrived at the beach. The sky wasn't as clear as it was yesterday and the ocean seemed to be a little bit more restless, but it still looked beautiful, and to Kim, it looked like home.
"But we have to look for it if we want to find it," Kim said. He was looking at the horizon, foolishly hoping that maybe if he were to look long enough he would spot his ships and his crew.
"I think that we can try both," Chay said, lying his head on Kim's shoulder and looking into the distance at the horizon as well. "We can look for it today and tomorrow we can just come here to relax and who knows, maybe we'll just stumble on it out of nowhere."
"That sounds like a plan," Kim smiled and turned to Chay, kissing him deeply.
Chay sneaked his hands around Kim's waist, pulling him even closer and kissing him back. It always made Chay giddy all over whenever Kim was the one who kissed him first. His pirate. His favourite pirate. The pirate of his dreams. How lucky Chay was? How happy he was... all he wanted was to make Kim so happy as well. And if for that, he needed to find Ruby Red, then he will.
Kim broke off the kiss and pressed his lips to Chay's forehead, "let's search for our home."
"Yes, let's do it," Chay took Kim's hand, their fingers intertwining together effortlessly, as they walked the beach. Once in a while, they stopped because they saw something glisten in the sand or in the ocean, but none of it was ever their Ruby Red. They had stayed at the beach until the late afternoon, but eventually, they both got hungry and Chay wanted to take Kim to one of his favourite restaurants. It was a small restaurant hidden in an aisle away from loud crowds and tourists. It was owned by an elderly couple and only the locals knew how amazing the restaurant was. They had the best Mango Sticky Rice in the world! Chay would vouch for that.
"I like it here," Kim said, his eyes slowly scanning the environment around him,
"I'm glad," Chay squeezed Kim's hand while they waited for their order to arrive. And when it did, Chay smiled widely, pointing at Kim's plate, "you have to try this. It's delicious! I guarantee you will love it!"
Kim looked at Chay and grinned, "I know Mango Sticky Rice, darlin'. I'm pretty positive that this was a thing already in my century."
Chay pouted. He wanted to show Kim something new. "Well... and what? You should have pretended that you don't know it. And tell me how good it is!"
Kim nodded with a smile, "alright, darlin'... I'm sorry. What's this, hmm?" Kim looked down at his plate. "Mango and rice? Hmm... let me taste it." Kim took a bite and closed his eyes, "hmm mmm delicious!"
Chay giggled, slapping Kim's arm, "okay, okay, thanks for trying."
"Everything for you, darlin'," Kim winked.
Chay was about to devour his own portion of the Mango Sticky Rice when the restaurant owner—khun Lamon stopped by their table.
"Porchay! How have you been, son?"
"Good, very good, khun Lamon. I hope that you and your wife have been even better."
"We've been as good as old people can be," khun Lamon laughed. "Anyway, I have to go back to work, but I wanted to tell you that I heard there will be a historical pirate exhibition open, I think starting next week. My granddaughter works in the museum, so when she told me I immediately thought about you. I know that you love pirates so much."
Kim chuckled, hiding his smile in his hand. Yeah, his darlin' definitely loved pirates.
"Oh, yes... that's great! Thank you, khun Lamon," Chay smiled.
"Pirates' exhibition?" Kim asked when they were alone again.
"Uhmm... wanna go?"
"Will I see myself there?" Kim smirked.
Chay froze on the spot. Oh god. How was it possible that he never thought about it before? Kim was one of the most famous pirates in history. That meant there had to be information somewhere about his life and... death. He thought about it many times—what if Kim would die before he would find his way to Chay? And after they finally found their way to each other... Chay didn't want to lose Kim during some kind of pirate danger... so if they knew how Kim died in the past they would be able to avoid that.
"So, I'm about to say something really weird, but please bear with me," Chay started, looking right into Kim's eyes. "We are in your future, which means that you are already dead."
Kim frowned, "well, that isn't what I was expecting to hear."
"Yes, yes, I know but hear me out... we can find the way you died and then we can just simply protect you from that."
"You can find out the way I died?"
Chay smirked, "I think, I can."
To be continued...
P.S. hmm I wonder what will Chay find... 🫣