Billionaire Biker Boy

Chapter 26. I'm Not Stupid

 

It was just past seven on a Sunday morning when Samut opened his eyes and noticed the rash had thoroughly subsided. Nevertheless, faint red marks remained, resembling a gecko's pattern.

..Should I go back to sleep? But P'Win is downstairs.

 

His eyes widened as a thought struck him.

..I forgot to talk to Mom and my brother last night:

 

His small hands fumbled around for his phone. It was buried under the duvet, its battery completely drained. Samut quickly charged it, tidied up his bed, and jumped into the bathroom. By the time he finished showering and dressing, his phone had powered back on, and he was stunned by the flood of notifications. His brother had called five times, his mother twice, and there were numerous LINE messages. But the most overwhelming number came from Facebook.

...What's going on?

 

Samut decided to call his older brother first. How are you? Allergic to alcohol?' Chonlatee asked as soon as he picked up.

 

"How did you know?"

‘Well, you didn't answer your phone last night, so I called Win.'

 

"Oh... yeah, turns out I'm allergic to umeshu."

'Are you feeling better now? And who paid the hospital bill?'

 

I'm better now. The rash is gone, and only a few red marks remain. I look just like a gecko. As for the bill, P'Win paid for it."

 

'How much did he pay? I'll give you the money so you can pay him back.'

 

"I don't know. P'Win wouldn't tell me... Hey, P'Win really is trying to court me."

 

'I know. I told you before, didn't I? It's good, though. He seems way more reliable than Oat.'

 

"Be honest with me. Do you know something about Oat? Why do you seem so against him?"

 

Chonlatee let out a long sigh. 'I don't know anything specific, but I just don't like him. He seems lazy and selfish, always taking advantage of you. But it's also partly your fault for bending over backwards to please him. Mom and I couldn't say anything because it's just a feeling. She said unless there's concrete evidence, we shouldn't say anything that might upset you.'

 

This time, it was Samut who was stunned by his mother's love and his brother's care. All the emotions he'd been bottling up spilt out as he shared them with his brother.

 

"Oat already has a boyfriend. Actually, he also has a girlfriend."

 

When Samut recounted what he'd discovered, Chonlatee sighed again, but this time it was a sigh of relief.

 

‘Well, it's good you found out what he's really like... So, how heartbroken are you?’

 

"It stings a bit... but it's manageable. What about P'Win? Are you okay with him?"

 

'Yeah, I'm okay. He's so smitten with you that I'm not worried.'

 

"Smitten? What're you rambling about?"

 

‘What, you haven't seen his Facebook yet?'

 

"Not yet. But let me talk to Mom first."

 

Chonlatee handed the phone to Sinee, and Samut spent a while sweet-talking his mother. After hanging up, he immediately opened Facebook and saw that Wonchana had tagged him in two posts.

...The hundreds of notifications were from the vice president's followers.

 

‘President?'

'An interview to introduce your boyfriend?

'OMG, is this an official announcement, Mr Vice

Kyaaa! Mama Bear here. Let's join the fandom!' I don't smell the grilled river prawn at all. All I smell is L-O-V-E!!

So it's the same prawn? I can really feel the love in the air!'

 

‘Wait a minute. O just met Mr Vice President a few days ago. This is definitely love at first sight!'

 

‘Which temple did you donate your money to, O? I want this kind of luck too!'

 

‘This is official now. Any guy thinking of courting O, your bonus is in danger!'

 

‘Our prawns aren't the same size because Mr Vice President let O eat them all!'

 

‘Why do I feel shy just looking at this?'

 

‘Our friend went to Bangkok and got a boyfriend. And a good one at that!'

 

Samut read the comments with his heart pounding.

...Win did this again. Why did this make me feel so flustered?

 

The small man buried his burning face into the large, soft pillow.

...How am I supposed to face him now?

 

After lying there for a while to calm himself down, Samut finally decided to head downstairs. The shopping bags had been moved to the coffee table, and Wonchana was in the kitchen... stirring something at the stove.

 

"P'Win, what're you making?" Samut asked, walking over with a neutral expression, only to gape at the array of seasoning bottles on the counter, a small bag of rice, and fresh herbs like spring onions and cilantro.

 

"Where did you get all this stuff?"

 

Wonchana turned to see Samut’s astonished face and smiled. "Good morning, O. I'm making minced pork congee. As for these, I went shopping at Foodland. Just wait a bit. This should be ready in five minutes."

 

The room's owner stood there for a moment before finding his voice. "Uh... do you need help with anything?"

 

"Nope, you can just sit comfortably."

 

So, he went to grab two glasses, filled them with bottled water from the fridge, and set them on the counter bar. Samut sat and watched the chef, who didn't seem like he belonged in a kitchen but moved with surprising ease, and wondered...

...What heroic deed did I do in my past life for a premium-grade man like this to end up with me?

 

Samut raised his phone and took a selfie with the chef in the background. Wonchana was holding a ladle in one hand and checking his phone with the other. When the shutter clicked, Wonchana looked up and smiled.

 

The tall man turned off the stove, walked over, and said, "Was I handsome in that photo? If not, we'll have to retake it." Samut glared at him and, with flushed cheeks, boldly replied, "No way. If you're too handsome, someone might steal you from me."

 

The man, afraid of not being handsome enough, laughed heartily and looked at the smaller one with gentle eyes. "No one can take what's yours. I've already made that clear."

 

"I'm hungry. Is the congee ready?" Samut changed the subject to hide his embarrassment.

 

“It's ready. Let me serve it up."

 

Wonchana returned to the kitchen and ladled the congee into two bowls, carefully arranging large chunks of minced pork, adding a soft-boiled egg on top, and garnishing with ginger, spring onions, cilantro, and a sprinkle of pepper. He also prepared a small bowl of croutons, the kind usually paired with soup or salad. When he brought the bowls to the table, the congee looked like it came straight out of a high-end restaurant.

 

The aroma made Samut’s stomach growl loudly. But first things first... he had to take a picture to show the world.

 

After snapping a photo, the chef said, "Careful, it's hot. Are you done taking pictures? Let me stir it for you."

 

"I'm done. I'll stir it myself."

 

Samut set his phone down, picked up a spoon, and broke the egg yolk, mixing it thoroughly until the entire bowl turned a pale yellow.

 

"Do you always eat it like that?"

 

Samut turned to him, puzzled. "Like what? Is there another way to eat it?"

 

"Well, mixing the egg all over like that-it's how kids eat," Wonchana laughed.

 

"Every time I stir, the egg breaks anyway, so just mix it all at once. It's easier. How do you eat yours?" Samut glanced at Wonchana's bowl, where the soft-boiled egg remained intact.

 

"Eat each part separately and only break the egg toward the end. The egg's aroma is more distinct that way, and it changes the flavour as you go."

 

"Oh, I'll try that next time."

 

"Here, let's switch bowls."

 

Wonchana slid his bowl over, but Samut refused, baring his teeth like a little Chihuahua and shielding his bowl with his arms. "No way! Why would you eat it like this? I'm fine with it. I've always eaten it this way."

 

Wonchana smiled but didn't respond as his phone rang. He answered, telling the caller he'd be down shortly, then turned to Samut: "I'll be right back. Go ahead and eat. You don't need to wait for me."

 

Despite his words, Samut waited, playing on his phone until Wonchana returned with an iced cocoa and a hot black coffee.

 

Wonchana placed the drinks on the table and handed Samut a straw still wrapped in paper. Samut smiled sweetly and thanked him. He unwrapped the straw, inserted it into the cup, and took a sip, feeling utterly refreshed.

...It's an iced cocoa with a touch of warmth.

 

That warmth seeped into his little heart. Samut set the glass down gently but widened his eyes in surprise when he took his first bite of congee.

 

"Wow, this is amazing! Did you really make this, P'Win?"

 

"Of course I did. But normally, I use homemade bone broth. Since I didn't have time to make it, I used a packet instead. I checked the brand, though, and it didn't add MSG."

 

“The croutons are delicious, too. I've never had them like this before."

 

"Usually, people eat congee with youtiao, but those are deep-fried, so I don't really like them. One day, I discovered that croutons work just as well. They're delicious too," the impromptu chef explained.

 

After finishing their meal, the two of them carried the dishes to the sink and washed them together. Wonchana noticed that Samut knew how to wash dishes, though he

seemed a bit clumsy.

 

"Can you tell me more about your childhood? You mentioned your family's business had problems. How long did it take for your mom to recover, and how did you all manage?"

 

Samut scrunched his nose before sharing openly. "When Dad passed away, everything practically froze. Mom didn't know what to do until creditors started knocking on our door. Luckily, there was life insurance money and some additional support, but she didn't use that money for investments. She saved it for our education. That's why I could still attend an international school.

 

"Mom borrowed money from Dad's friends, who were all very kind and gave her advice. At home, even though we still had help—like Auntie Pid, who was both a nanny and a cook-we had to live very frugally. Mom said that since they didn't abandon us, we had to take care of them in return. But as I said, she never let us starve and still sent us to good schools. However, we never got new things if the old ones still worked.

 

"And for toys? Forget it. I never had handheld games or robots like my friends. But I didn't feel upset because Mom always said we were lucky to still have a home and food... It took two or three years to get back on our feet and pay off all our debts. After that, it was all about making a profit. Even though we had more money, we still lived frugally because we never knew when something unexpected might happen again."

 

Wonchana smiled, feeling an even stronger urge to pamper this Chihuahua and make him even happier.

 

"Do you want a robot toy? I'll buy you one." Samut immediately glared and snapped, "I'm 22!"

 

The man eager to spoil him burst out laughing before drying his hands with a towel.

 

"Alright, let's go unpack what we bought yesterday. We can sort out the clothes for laundry."

 

Samut nodded and led the way to the living room sofa. The two of them worked together to remove price tags, separate colored and white clothes, and set aside the shoes and the traditional Thai silk fabric called mudmee in another corner.

 

By ten o'clock, Samut’s phone chimed with a series of notifications. He picked it up and saw friend requests and messages on Facebook: He scrolled through the details and saw the sender's name...

'Victoria Monet', located in France.

 

...She's stunningly chic, with an Asian look, almost like a model, heh? And then he saw the message.

'Accept my friend request. I'd like to get to know you.'

 

...Oh, come on. Another scammer?

 

This was definitely a scam. They'd try to flirt, lure him in, and then claim they'd send him a gift, but only if he transferred money first. And they even typed in Thai.

 

....Dream on if you think you're getting a single baht from this Samut.

 

Annoyed and determined not to fall for it, he typed a fiery response without accepting the friend request.

 

‘You're a scammer, aren't you? Don't even bother trying to trick me. I don't have any money for you. There's only 200 baht in my account. How could you be so heartless to take that? Oh, and by the way, I'm gay. I don't like women.'

 

After sending the message, Samut slammed his phone down in frustration.

...I'm not stupid, okay?

 

"Who was that? Why do you look so upset?"

Wonchana asked when he noticed the Chihuahua's pouty, irritated expression.

 

"A scammer, of course! They keep messaging me. They probably think someone like me is easy to fool... Ugh, I'm so A-N-G-R-Y!" Samut grumbled, puffing his cheeks and scrunching his nose before bending down to cut the price tag off his new sports shirt.

 

Wonchana laughed, deciding not to tease the easily angered one further.

Well, he certainly looked easy to trick.