HEMP ROPE

Follow your heart

Weekends were the time everyone usually slept in, yet to the housekeeper in Wanichakarnjonkul's house, it was always a workday.

 

The fifty-year-old lady cleaned the front porch and noticed the shoes at the entrance, smiling to herself. She returned to the kitchen to prepare a simple breakfast for the family. Until eight in the morning, the seventeen-year-old boy ambled down the stairs, yawning and scratching his messy hair. He made his way to the kitchen, looking for snacks before a big meal.

 

"What do we have today, Auntie?"

 

"Fish porridge, it's not done yet. Could you get your brothers?" The chubby-cheeked housekeeper smiled kindly. She had been looking after everyone here since they were little. They were like sons to her.

 

[ Auntie: Used to address older women regardless of relationships] 

 

"Man, I don't wanna wake Hia Waan. He has low blood pressure, so I got kicked every time I woke him." The kid cried.

 

"Then, please get Hia Win."

 

Wiew was fully awake. "Eh? Hia Win is home?"

 

"I saw his shoes at the front porch. I think he came back last night, but-"

 

"Hia Winnnnn" A clingy kid already ran to the second floor like a puppy heading to its long-time no-see owner, leaving the old lady to herself.

 

She exhaled and muttered to herself, "But..there's another pair of shoes. He might have a friend with him." Well, she'd cook some extra portion.

 

In the cold room by the air conditioner, two bodies lay entwined under a blanket. Team tried to turn, but his body was pressed down by something heavy. He opened his eyes slowly, thinking what sort of ghost had paralysed him. But then the sight of blond hair relaxed him.

 

Oh, it was the same old ghost. Team snuck his hand on the other's hair. He felt Win's breath on him. His stress and worries melted away when Win's arms were around him, as if what had happened yesterday was just a bad dream.

 

"Thanks, Hia."

 

His voice was as low as a whisper. Team glanced at the clock; he still had some more time to sleep. He buried himself deeper into the arms, pulling the cover up on himself and closed his eyes to absorb the warmth lulling him to sleep again. But then a stomping sound from the outside, followed by the door opening with a loud bang!!

 

"Hia!!"

 

Before he knew what happened, something heavy plunged right into the middle of the bed.

 

"Ack!!"

 

"Hia. Why didn't you say you're back? Wake up, wake..eh?" Wiew, straddling a body on the bed, went still. He noticed an extra lump. He pulled back a blanket and hollered at the sight.

 

"Hia, whơ's this!?"

 

Team's brows knitted. Confused, he sat himself up with wide eyes.

 

"....."

 

"....."

 

They could only look at each other while the room's owner was waking up.

 

"What are you doing?" Win rubbed his eyes.

 

"Who's this, Hia?" Wiew asked his messy-haired brother.

 

"My.."

 

"The club's junior," Team cut in before Win could speak some outlandish response.

 

Phawin shrugged, leaving it as that. Wiew just nodded along, he could ignore the fact that his brother was holding onto the club's junior on his bed.

 

"Hello. I'm Wiew, Hia Win's brother. What's your name?"

 

"Team." Team blinked.

 

"Wiew, leave us alone, please." Win quickly interjected. He got up to stretch. If it weren't for this stupid brother, he'd wake up a little late.

 

The youngest made a face, begging his brother to let him stay, but he got a smack in return. He looked close to tears. 

 

"Told you to knock before coming in."

 

Wiew's posture slumped, his face sad. "I'm sorryyyy."

 

Phawin rolled his eyes. He ruffled his little brother's hair as a sign of forgiveness, bringing a smile to Wiew's face again. He jumped out of bed and sprinted to the door.

 

"Come down quickly to eat. We have fish porridge today."

 

The door closed and was gone with the Wiew. The kid was so quick that he left the ones behind blinking.

 

"So that was you in your brother mode."

Win shrugged. He got up to grab a towel.

 

"You want the same mode?"

 

Team shook his head, hugging a pillow. "No. I don't want a brother."

 

Win quirked his brow with interest. He stopped to lean on the bathroom doorframe. "Then what do you want?"

 

Team decided against giving a straight answer. He waggled his eyebrows provocatively, his mischievous eyes sparkled without traces of worry from yesterday.

 

"Yeah..what do I want?"

 

“..."

 

Win narrowed his eyes at the little bastard. The arrogant air gave his heart a light bump. He couldn't help but smile in response. This guy wasn't any less adorable. He was brave to tease his senior right after he was done stressing.

 

"Wha..what?"

 

But every time Win turned serious...

 

"Hmm.."

 

The little bastard always ran away to gain his foothold. 

 

The soft pillow in Team's hand crumpled. Team meant to tease his senior, but he got ogled back enough to feel uncomfortable. His face burned so hot that he had to throw a pillow and yell.

 

"Go wash up!"

 

A large pillow was swung by the time the bathroom door was closed. It fell to the ground, followed by a low laughter coming from inside the bathroom, provoking and irritating Team.

 

At almost nine in the morning, the round table sat the Wanichakarnjonkul family. The youngest, dressed in a t-shirt and jeans, was enjoying his meal. Next to him was a man reading the news on his iPad while eating. And next, their mother, with a cool hairstyle, is on the telephone.

 

Team dropped himself into the empty seat next to Win. The porridge's nice smell wafted over him, and he had to run his hand over his stomach. The frozen food he had eaten the day before was long gone.

 

He looked over at all the scrumptious-looking foods, and his eyes stopped at the man on the other side of the table. He thought that glass and that look were so familiar. Team pondered hard. He was about to ask, but a baritone voice cut in.

 

"Ma, this is the junior at the club."

 

Team tensed. After putting her phone away, Win's mother shifted her glance to study him. Mentally, he jumped, his heart skipped, but physically, Teerayu humbly raised his hand to wai.

 

"Hello, Ma, I'm Team." He followed Win's words without realising it.

 

Phawin hid a smile. His heart swelled at hearing the brat call his mother 'Ma'. 

 

"Hello, I've heard so much about you from Win. Make yourself at home. Let the housekeeper know if you need anything."

 

"Thank you." Team raised his hand to wai again.

 

"Do you have class today? I can drop you off." The mother smiled, seeing how humble the kid was.

 

"We have a club activity in the afternoon. I'll drive. So where are you going today?" 

 

Phawin's eyes questioned his well-dressed mother, ready to go out, like whenever their father wasn't home.

 

"I'm eating out with friends." The mother made a face. Her son had been complaining a lot lately.

 

"Then, please drive safely and no over-shopping." The mother laughed energetically. She kissed her son's head.

 

"Alright. So, Team, take your time, son. I'm leaving now, see you again." She picked up her bag and swung it over her shoulder, then waved at her son's friend in a good mood

 

She looked agile. How quickly these family members did things was inherited from their mother. Team watched Hia Win and his mother's affection and couldn't help but smile.

 

He missed his parents, too. When adults weren't in the picture, Team could fully enjoy the food. The food was so good, like Win had told him.

 

"Have some more," the person scrolling on the iPad earlier now sat with his chin in his hand and smiled at Team. His eyes behind the gold-rimmed glass looked amused.

 

Team's eyes widened in realisation at the other's face and gesture. An image of a lost guy in the university returned to him.

 

"Hey!"

 

"Hia Waan, my older brother." Phawin introduced. Despite this appearance, his older brother was an imp of the household, and even Dean hated to see him. 

 

"We have three siblings. Hia Waan, me and Wiew." Team looked back and forth between Waan and Win and nodded in his mind. No wonder he found Hia Waan familiar then. They looked similar to each other.

 

"You remember me?" Waan was surprised; he hadn't thought the kid would remember him from that brief conversation.

 

"Of course. You called my name at the university. I was so scared, you know. A stranger who knew my name."

 

"My bad." Waan laughed. " I was surprised too. I saw your picture on a cellphone, and then you appeared before me. I couldn't help it."

 

"A Picture? What picture?"

 

Phawin glared daggers at his brother for giving him trouble. He quickly gathered everyone's bowls and got up to run for the kitchen.

 

"I'll put these away."

 

"Wait, Hia. What picture!?" Team reached out for Win's shirt, but he seized empty air. The tall frame trotted away, ignoring the outcry. He wouldn't lose that picture.

 

The swimming club in the afternoon was packed with its members. There were few visitors as it was an internal tryout. Team warmed himself up at the pool's edge, full of energy, as if he had not just drowned the night before. He'd eaten and slept well and had so many surprises that he had forgotten all his worries.

 

He talked with Waan and Wiew in the morning and learned they also play the same online game. With time left, they were at it, and Team found out Waan was Barbaden!! His long-time gaming party.

 

When they saw each other's online names, their laughter filled the space. Such a small world, now Team wondered if P’T-Rex was even someone he knew of.

 

Once they realised they were gaming friends, they skipped the ice-breaking conversation and talked as if they had been friends for many years. Even Win regretted having them meet each other.

 

Team mentally laughed at that. He exchanged LINE with Hia Waan; they'd meet after. He thought about introducing Pharm to Waan since Waan was close to Dean. Since Waan wanted to know who Dean was seeing.

 

"Ready?"

 

Team startled. Whoa, that was scary. Just thinking about Pharm, and P'Dean showed up.

 

"I'm ready."

 

The swimming club's president studied the junior. Team looked energetic, his eyes looked bright, which was a good sign. Dean wouldn't have allowed Team to audition if his condition hadn't improved today.

 

"Go line up." Dean shooed him. He crossed his arms over his chest as Team jogged to line up with the others, listening to the coach's instructions. The kid had a future ahead of him...

 

"Thanks to you this morning." Win rested his elbow on Dean's shoulder. "I'll get Pharm's desserts for you in appreciation."

 

"Don't." Dean exhaled his irritation, his warning serious. "They have deleted the footage, but there won't be next time."

 

The said footage was of the rascal sneaking into the club and using the pool without permission, and he almost drowned. If it weren't for the fact that he was a good kid whom people took a liking to, even Win couldn't save him.

 

After the incident last night, Phawin made a prompt call to Dean. He guessed the university officials had already seen the footage from surveillance cameras. As expected, the swimming club coach called Dean right in the morning. They had a lengthy discussion before concluding. Hereafter, they discussed the incident with Win, as he was a person involved and also the club's vice president.

 

Phawin, using this position, asked them to let it go this time. If it ever happened again, he'd be held responsible himself.

 

"Of course. I'll keep watching him."

 

"So what really happened to him?"

 

Phawin's lips tightened. He thought against saying something personal about Team and wasn't sure about the whole thing himself. Silence was his only response.

 

Upon that, Dean stopped asking. As he thought about coming up with a few more advice, the whistle from the coach pulled their attention away. The tryout has begun.

 

"That was so cool, how'd you do that?"

 

"So damn fast"

 

"Yeah, but so were you."

 

The members of the swimming club's loud chatter echoed in the locker room. They had gained quite a few new athletes to compete with K University, aside from Pruek, the president and the vice president.

 

Of course, among them was the first-year member who'd always been a top-notch performer. Team smiled from ear to ear all day, having made the best score. "Hey, Team! Wanna go grab something to eat?" a friend called to him from across the room, to which Team waved in response.

 

"Yeah! You can go wait outside." He said and quickly changed.

 

Most club members went home. Some stopped by their faculty to prepare for an upcoming Open House event, which starts next week. The swimming club's preparation was done, so there was no need to stay after.

 

The young man was about to close his locker door, but a man who had been staying with him all night held him back.

 

"Hia."

 

"How're you going home?"

 

"I'll eat with my friends first. You can drive my car back to the dorm."

 

Phawin nodded. Team's car was turning into his these days since Team disliked being on his big bike.

 

"Oh, right. Bro, you saw my time? Impressive, right? I'm faster." The enthusiastic demeanour, gleaming eyes, flaunted himself like a puppy waiting for his owner to praise him. His tail would have wagged crazily if he had had one. Win suppressed his laughter. How could he not spoil this little brat?

 

"Yeah, you did very well today." He rubbed Team's slightly damp head with affection.

 

The more compliments Team got, the more stuck-up they became. Team held his chin up and declared. "Just wait for my gold medal, competing with K University."

 

Knock

 

"Ouch." A finger flicked on his forehead.

 

"Insolent brat." Phawin's smile turned soft. But to choose Team between yesterday and today...

 

"Hia! Told you not to snap a finger or l'd-!!" 

 

He was all for the bellowing, energetic Team.

 

The outcry was stopped by soft lips pressing down on it, a tender kiss like a feather touching on water's surface, not intrusive or full of lust....as if this kiss was a reward for the good boy.

 

Thanks to the locker door, they hid their actions from the other club members' eyes. From their point of view, it just looked like the vice president talking to someone.

 

Phawin lingered on parting his lips. He waited for the shout, a kick to his shin, but none of that came.

 

"!!"

 

The sudden tug at his collar forced Phawin to clasp his hand to the locker. Followed by a soft touch and a sharp pain on his lips, startling him. Team bit the opportunist's mouth, bruising it. His hard shell slowly crumbled.

 

"My friends are waiting for me." He put on a face mask and handed a spare one to a stunned senior. "Put it on."

 

Team slung a backpack on, closed the locker door, said goodbye to Win softly and walked past everyone in the club like nothing had happened. But only he knew how red the face and lips beneath the mask were.