Jerome looked at the person lying motionless, face down on the sofa, the moment he returned to the room, with an overwhelming sense of affection. He had noticed for a while that whenever Jinn felt helpless and didn't know what to do, he always made this pose. And, to his dismay, he thought it was incredibly cute, so much so that he couldn't resist taking a picture with his phone.

 

"Take it easy, it's just Mom and Dad dating. It's okay," Jerome said, putting his phone in his pants pocket before walking over and sitting down in the middle of him.

 

"Ow! Jay! Do you think you weigh only two kilos, you idiot? Get up! I can't breathe!" Jinn yelled loudly. "Sit down!"

 

"Wow, I just couldn't resist."

 

"You tricked me! You planned to murder me, didn't you? You want a new boyfriend, huh? Dream on! You chose this path yourself. Even if you become a ghost, I'll follow you!"

 

Jerome froze the moment he heard those words. The amused smile on his face vanished, replaced only by worry, and he worried about whether what he had done today was the same as what his dream intended, or merely a resemblance. There was nothing guaranteed.

 

"Go ahead and follow me. Because if you don't, I'll curse you to be born a Thai person again in your next life." The speaker sat down not far from the person lounging around.

 

"You bastard! You're such a wicked and despicable person!" Jinn spread his legs across his boyfriend's lap, not caring at all whether it was heavy or not. He considered it revenge for being sat on earlier.

 

"It's normal," Jerome brushed off his worries. He'd only know for sure when he was asleep and dreaming. Thinking too much wouldn't give him the answer.

 

"Sigh. I wonder if this is for the best? I don't want to upset Mom again." Jinn lay motionless, staring at the ceiling light, his mind racing with various thoughts about what had just happened.

 

"Nobody knows, man. We just have to try."

 

“Sigh.”

 

“So what are you going to do about him?” Jerome adjusted his lover’s leg, placing it comfortably across the table, his eyes gazing at the still confused face with a reassuring look.

 

"I don't know, man. I have no idea how to treat him. Maybe it's because I'm too strong. After all this time, I've never thought about demanding anything from him. Actually, I know everything. I know why he left, I know what happened. But from my perspective, it still hurts."

 

"Back then, it wasn't easy for me to become who I am today, you know."

 

"I know." As someone who had been with the other person since they were seven years old, how could Jerome not know? Whether from his own mother or from what he had seen and heard firsthand, Jinn himself wasn't like this from a young age. Everything had accumulated from what he had faced throughout his life—the countless harsh words, both directed at him and at his mother. Jinn never gave up, fighting back with both his words and his hands. Over time, it became ingrained in his personality: hot-tempered, impulsive, sharp-tongued, stubborn, and a skilled fighter, culminating in the Jinn we know today.

 

“That’s it. All that matters is that he takes good care of his mother. As for me, I can only rely on the future. But thanks for calming me down. I don’t like myself when I’m angry either. I don’t want to listen to anything. There were so many emotions mixed up at that moment. If I had driven off, I would have gone as fast as a rocket. I think if you hadn’t calmed me down in the restaurant, I probably wouldn’t have stopped. I should thank Jerome, who’s in his thirties, for being so calm that it made me calm too.” Jinn teased the calm and mature man in a playful tone.

 

"Okay, give me a respectful bow, my dear brother."

 

"Pfft! What a jerk! Taking advantage of the situation, huh?" After spitting at the other person to his heart's content, Jinn couldn't help but recall that feeling—the painful pain in his heart when he thought an accident was going to happen.

 

"But it's strange, isn't it?"

 

"Something's strange," Jerome looked at the person who had placed their hand over their heart with suspicion.

“When you said something unexpected might happen if I drove off then, my heart ached. Suddenly, I felt like I couldn't breathe, and my whole body went numb. Hey! I was so startled. Was that a really strong reaction?” Jinn jumped, looking at his boyfriend's reaction with a puzzled expression.

 

Jerome whirled around to look at the speaker the moment he heard that sentence. His eyes gleamed, almost glowing. He was now quite certain that this event and the events in his dream were the same, even if they occurred at different times.

 

Perhaps Jinn’s feelings stemmed from the fact that if he didn't stop it, an accident would happen, Jan would die, Jinn would blame himself, and a deteriorating physical and mental future would follow, leaving him unable to design clothes again. Had stopping the other person today completely changed the future he had envisioned?

 

Jerome hoped it was. Although he didn't know the whole story yet, from what he had seen, the young man could already guess how it would end, and it wasn't something he wanted to see. Not at all.

 

"I was just startled. Or maybe I need another heart checkup, just in case the doctor made a mistake last time," he lied, his eyes wide and not even an eyebrow twitching.

 

Jerome didn't want to tell Jinn yet. He wanted to wait until things were certain before telling him. He was afraid Jin would be upset because the incident had just happened. He was prioritising his boyfriend's feelings. "Wow, I'm such a good boyfriend," he thought to himself, feeling no shame at all.

 

"Oh no, I'm not getting tested anymore. The doctor will scold me if I go again. It hasn't even been a month yet. I'm just afraid it might be true, I guess. Because after I calmed down, I didn't feel anything anymore. Everything was normal." Jinn thought that must be the case.

 

“Yeah, I guess so. But… do you think we’re being too obvious in front of Aunt Jan? Will she know we’re dating?” Jerome frowned, puzzled. They didn’t really want to hide anything, but it felt a little embarrassing to tell someone that they were currently dating someone they used to be incredibly close to.

 

"I don't think they've thought that far yet. They're just confused about why we’re so close. But if it were your mom, she'd be really suspicious and keep an eye on things. And if it were your dad... I think he'd know for sure."

Jinn analysed the situation step by step. If Jenny and Vee were here today, besides having someone to stop him from dealing with his mother and that man, they would definitely know their not-so-secret secret. Because they are two men, even if Vee doesn't like men, those glances and actions wouldn't escape the other's hawk-like eyes.

 

But Jinn forgot to consider that even though Vee wasn't there, there was another man there as well—his own father.

 

“Yeah, you’re right. My dad knows me better than I know myself. But we’re not really hiding anything, are we? We just need some time. Suddenly, my skin feels a little thinner.” The two guys looked at each other and burst out laughing. Normally, they’re quite shameless, but when it came to this, they were even more sensitive than paper. As they say, they’d been playing around a lot, and it was obvious how much teasing they’d face when they finally revealed it – from their real-life friends and online at the university’s social media pages. Just thinking about it made them stressed.

 

"It's okay, let's open it up gradually. Now that JJ and I are getting along, not many people are using the tag anymore. Where did they all move to?" Jinn muttered.

 

They're not celebrities, not in the entertainment industry at all, yet they have their own hashtag just because of their good looks? It's unbelievable. People don't use the hashtag for a huge timeframe, but there's always something to see on almost every platform. And if they happen to meet face-to-face, the hashtag becomes especially lively.

 

"Yeah, now there are tons of them. There are even people shipping us as a couple. It seems like they guessed right, haha."

 

"Well, what can I do? Since you saw the future, you've fallen in love with me, haven't you?" Jinn winked at his lover playfully before his legs were spread apart, and the body of the man who was five centimetres taller than him squeezed in between them until their faces were level. Their bodies, burning hot, pressed together so tightly there was no space between them.

 

"You're the one who fell in love with me first. You've loved me since we were kids," Jerome nuzzled his nose against the nose of the person lying beneath him. "But you're slightly wrong."

 

Jinn's breath hitched at this intensely stimulating closeness. Even though both were fully clothed, the emotions conveyed through their eyes made it seem as if neither of them was wearing any clothes at all.

 

"What? What did I say wrong?" Jinn’s voice was hoarse, the scent of the other person's perfume more distinct than anything else. Jerome, his eyes sparkling, stared back intensely, a seductive smile spreading across his beautiful lips.

 

"The mistake is saying I fell in love with you because I saw your future." Jerome tilted his face slightly and pressed his lips against his lover's smiling lips. It was so light that it was almost imperceptible, but both knew that even such a gentle touch could make the heart beneath the strong chest tremble.

 

"The truth is, because I saw the future, I realised I fell in love with you faster," the sweet voice, accompanied by words never heard before, made the listener's ears burn. The passionate emotions surged to an unstoppable height, almost hitting the ceiling.

 

"I've been in love with you for a long time, I just never realised it." As soon as he finished the sentence, a large hand pressed down on the strong neck of the person above him. Quickly, their lips met. This time, it wasn't a gentle touch; it was heavy, passionate, as if they wanted to devour each other, to swallow each other completely, to merge everything until they were inseparable.

 

Forget the past resentments; remember only the touch of your loved one.