Love Mechanics

Chapter 3. Out of sight, not out of mind.

[Vee Vivis] 

Preparations for the university's upcoming Prom King and Prom Queen pageantry had been keeping me fully occupied. For juniors, we sure get a lot of pressure from seniors to deliver a spectacle. To make matters worse, even though I won the Prom King title, last year our faculty's representative was only the runner-up; expectations were thus running high to reclaim the title this year. I wanted to argue that it's all about looks, and at this moment, no one can compete with that hotshot Kan from medical school. Who'd be able to outshine him?

I looked on as Yeewa powdered up the face of Fuse, my faculty's representative. I wasn't hoping for the title; just a top-5 finish would be a victory in itself. These days, hot and handsome guys are blooming as fast as flowers on the first day of spring.

Speaking of juniors, my mind went back to the guy I met just a couple of days ago. I was slightly taken aback to see him smoking beside Ploy's room. Though I'd been there many times before, it was the first time I'd seen him. He looked at me condescendingly when I embraced Ploy and even blessed our love—wanted to gouge those eyes out and stomp on them. Have you never felt true love?

After l...um...slept with him, he woke up and sat silently, glancing at me as if he'd sensed remorse for having had such sinister thoughts. If he really stopped, I thought I'd just let him be. I don't know the reason why, but it felt strange looking at him. It wasn't a feeling of anxiety nor guilt, though, as I didn't think his matters were any of my business.

Anyhow, I'll just let it go. He's a guy, I'm a guy—no need to ponder too much.

"How's it goin'?" I look up at the voice coming from above me. Surprisingly...it was Bar. Was he here to see the junior? I stare back at him and tease,

"Thought you'd be over at the medical school."

"I'm an engineering major," he replied wryly, then glancing towards the Faculty of Medicine group of students, where that Faculty's Prom King representative was looking back at him. 

Sure...gotcha. Your words suggest engineering, though your heart yearns for a medical career. He rarely drops by to see his friends or juniors, having eyes only for Kan.

 

In my opinion, Kan and Bar are a perfect pairing. I usually don't like to observe gay couples, as it seems somewhat off-putting. The only one who had been openly supporting guys to date each other is Yeewa, our faculty's Prom Queen, up to the point where I don't feel that awkward upon seeing such a type of dating anymore. Oh my...Thailand only. 

Rather than getting the creeps, I instead wish them well. This type of love can also work out well, and I no longer think it's detestable or unacceptable like I used to. Mark, however, poses a problem for this particular couple. I rolled my eyes at my own thoughts. It's just... Why does that junior come into my mind again?

A Line message notification from someone's phone snapped me out of my thoughts. I frowned at the source of the sound, who was now fervently helping Yeewa apply the finishing touches on Fuse's face. The notifications kept ringing in.

"Just read them, Bar, it's annoying," Yeewa complains.

"I'll put it on silent." Bar takes out his phone to turn off the notifications, but...smiles to himself as he reads the messages, then giggles out loud as he finishes reading and looks towards the medical school group. No prizes for guessing what he does next...he walks over to see the Prom King of that faculty.

Bar, the man of engineering. Bar, the cog of our faculty, always drinking and partying with the ladies till late. That Bar has completely gone since the medical school freshman made a move on him.

"Look at that, he says he doesn't like guys, but he's basically stuck to him," Yeewa says as she touches up the faculty Prom King's lips, motioning towards Bar as he draws near Kan's face with a smile. Kan's eyes widened with an embarrassed look...how cute.

I smile as I watch them from afar, knowing fully well that they wouldn't notice me since they're in their own little world. It was then that my eyes caught sight of a stone-faced guy staring at the couple, the guy with whom I had recently been intimate. His eyes were conveying pain...His facial expression was one of torment.

"Vee...Vee!"

"What!... What's the matter?" I turn to Yeewa, our faculty's prettiest woman, though I must make it clear that our faculty doesn't have that many women. There are only three female seniors in our department, to be exact: Yeewa, the Prom Queen, her friend Pan, and Tata, who...likes women. So  Yeewa is the prettiest one by default, followed by Pan, and then finally Tata.

"I've been calling you many times. Whatcha lookin' at? We have to send him up on stage soon" Yeewa follows my eyes, though the spot I'd been looking at earlier had now been vacated.

"Well...send him out then. Try your best, alright?" I reply to Yeewa and give Fuse a pat on the shoulder.

"How about looking at Kan's face before saying that? I admit that I'm good-looking, but Kan is on another level." Fuse says before giving me a sheepish look.

"Don't put your tootsie face on, bro...be a man up there on the stage." I tease him with raised eyebrows.

"You silly senior! I'm a man, aren't I? What with being this handsome and all?" he snaps back, drawing laughter from Yeewa and the pretty junior Prom Queen representative. Fuse is a handsome guy, but it's funny how he suddenly becomes a cutie pie with a bit of foundation and powder. It's good that he's tall, otherwise… He would be no different from Bar, the man of engineering.

"Alright...let's get going." A beaming Bar comes over and touches my arm.

"Took you quite a while to come, Mr Handsome." Yeewa pokes fun at Bar with her words and eyes. Bar grumbles a few words back before heading towards Fuse.

"Do your best. Go all out. Aim for a Top-5 finish. Act confident like Vee does. Don't let your good looks go to waste." I roll my eyes as he says those words. Pat his shoulders and encourage him all you want; there's no denying he's model material and also happens to be his faculty mentee.

"Yes, my senior mentor. I will bring back the title so as not to shame the lineage of our faculty's hot shots!" he raises his fist and hollers out loud. Good thing the other faculties had already left. 

"A Top-5 finish would suffice, no need to claim the title," my friend replies.

"Hey! Why don't you support me to be Prom King?" Fuse asks.

"How can he cheer for you? A traitor like him has his eyes set on that faculty over there." Yeewa nudges her face towards the now vacant makeup area of the medical school.

"How could I cheer for other faculties? I'm supporting you, Fuse, do it for the hotshot lineage!" he clasps the contender's hand tight.

"For the hotshot lineage!" he clutches at Bar's hand, his handsome face exuding confidence, so much so that I'd probably lose to him in the pageant.

"Go on now, you hotties, even the one who's won it all like me ain't making such big talk," I say while lightly patting Fuse's back.

"You're so last-gen, Vee. This generation belongs to Kan, King Tossakan, the ruler of all faculties, ya know?" Yeewa leans over to rub it in my face.

"C'mon! I haven't even stepped up on stage yet, and you're already handing the title to Dr Kan?" Fuse pleads to Yeewa.

"No need to make such a pitiful face. I'm fed up with engineering guys, so I'm gonna swap the workshop shirt for the doctor's gown." Yeewa deliberates while turning towards the junior Prom Queen representative and grimacing. "The longer you stay here, the more you'll realise that the sweet faces of engineering students can calm you down even more than the Buddha statue. Date them for a month or so, and you'll realise it's best to just remain as friends. Definitely not couple material."

After sending Fuse up on stage, Yeewa joined the faculty's group among the large audience. I follow Bar as we snake our way through the crowd, hearing the soft shrieks from girls as my face brushes against theirs, which has the effect of transforming my frowning face into a sparklingly handsome one. Good looks do have their advantages.

"Shit!"

"Ouch!"

I turn towards the person swearing as I pass by. Amidst the spectators, a pair of oval eyes was glaring in my direction. He snubbed his face when he saw that it was me who had bumped into him, making a face before being dragged away by his friend.

"Hurry up, Mark, James is waiting!"

I look at the person being called, who glares back at me with menace before bellowing out a reply,

"Yeah, yeah, I got bumped into." We bumped into one another, but why blame me? I glared back at him, though he was unperturbed. Not even an apology. Such great manners. I should tell Pond to let him have it during the cheering practice sessions.

I ignored him and kept walking until Bar and Yeewa eventually brought us to the group of friends who were standing there spectating.

The crowd's shrieks and screams upon seeing the good-looking Prom King pageant contestants made me feel irritated. There was no questioning the beauty of the Prom Queen contestants, but as for this year's Prom King candidates? Let's just say my good looks age like wine.

Each faculty's representatives went all-out to put their talents on display. Our faculty didn't prepare anything special, as Fuse only knew how to play musical instruments and thus gave a performance with the guitar and piano. I didn't pay attention to the other faculties, as I had lost all my energy just willing Fuse not to make any mistakes during his performance.

"The medical school's performance is by far the best this year."

Dew, the pretty girl from the Faculty of Arts, owner of the 'Dew Dely' university gossip page, mentions. She's the event's MC, together with a guy whose name I didn't know. Dew's comments bring loud cheers from the crowd, while she looks towards Kan and sees a quietly confident smile beam out from his handsome face as he bows politely in gratitude.

"And now it's time to announce the contestants who pass to the next round. We will only announce five pairs, though the couples will be competing separately in the next round, which is the interview round." Dew's male co-host explains the rules, which draws excitement from the crowd.

"Ya think he'll make it to the next round?" Yeewa asks me apprehensively.

"Sure, he will. His performance was very good." Bar replies confidently.

"Was it? While strumming the guitar, he made a mistake with the chords." Yeewa points out nervously.

"It was barely noticeable," I reassure Yeewa as Bar looks at us with a confused look.

"Why are you looking at Yeewa like that?" Pond, who was standing beside Yeewa, asks.

"I'm confused about who she's referring to, strumming the guitar?"

"Fuse, of course, who else could it be, huh?" I question while glancing at him knowingly.

"Oh..." he blinks and blushes slightly.

"I got it. He was thinking of Dr Kan," Kla claims while pointing at Bar's face.

"Why, you traitor, you. One of our own is competing, yet you're supporting someone from another faculty," says Pin, who was standing beside Kla. Bar kept on arguing his case before finally relenting. 

Gosh! I really don't understand the concept of manliness in my friend. Just accept your actions. Oh! That's aimed at me. But anyhow, I'm not gonna keep dwelling on the brief moments for which that junior's face pops up in my head.

As the event progressed, Fuse made it into the Top 5, as I had expected. What was beyond expectation, though, and became the talk of the town long afterwards, was the public announcement of Dr Kan and my friend being in a relationship.

I stood there, gaping and stunned, not unlike the thousands of people gathered there. Kan confessed the story of how he had set his heart on P'Bar these past six years. PBar walked up on stage, drawing frenzied screams from the girls in the crowd. I was taken aback as he reprimanded Kan, showing little concern that his words were being picked up by the microphone Kan was holding. Perhaps the entire university had heard him by now.

"The hell...you think I'm some kind of unreachable star? Why wait to become Prom King before asking me out?" Bar admonishes, paying no heed to the crowd. Even the judging committee, which included professors and honorary alumni, were dumbfounded.

"What?"

"If you wanna ask me out, then just ask. No need to draw things out and embarrass me!" Everything stood still, not a sound could be heard. Kan himself was also taken aback.

"P'..."

"I've given you my lucky charm. I've already kissed you. Do I even have to initiate asking you out, too?" Bar questions spitefully...

"P'Bar..."

"Why do you keep calling my name? Will that make us a couple?"

"Will you go out with me?"

"Yeah"

The crowd erupted in a chorus of cheers and jeers. Worst of all was Lily, who had found her way up on stage and teased the couple through the microphone, further embarrassing Bar. Even though Kan's fan club made a fuss about him not winning the Prom King title, which instead went to the Faculty of Law, it seemed as if they got a victory on their own terms. The exuberance continued until the Kan eventually dragged Bar off the stage.

That's when my Line notification alert rang.

‘You won; Kan also won; I lost.'

The Line message was from the junior whom I had warned not to interfere with my friend's love life. The junior, whom I had taught a lesson, had thoughts on inflicting pain upon others. The one whom I thought I'd feel good to see lose. But why wasn't I feeling good?

"Vee! You wanna go out with us?" asks Pond, who had played his part among the jeering crowd that led to the couple leaving the stage in embarrassment.

"Where?"

"Doesn't matter! Yeewa says Bar's gonna be with Kan for quite a while. We'll just go hang out wherever." 

Hanging out in this case means partying all night. I take my phone out to see the time, but the first thing I see is that Line message. I let out a sigh and swipe the message away, along with the thought of his arrogant looks.

"You guys go ahead. I've gotta go back to Ploy." I answered, even though I still didn't know where the night would lead me.

"Still lovey-dovey? It's been nearly a year already, and still so devoted?" Pin teases, prompting me to give him a good smack in the head.

"I'm an unwavering lover", I shoot back and raise my eyebrows.

"Rather than you haven't found anyone better." Yeewa disputes.

"C'mon, guys, if it's not true love, then why'd I bother dating for almost a year?" I contend, thinking of how my pretty girl must be busy cleaning up after the pageantry. Luckily, clean-up duties in our faculty were assigned to the sophomores, allowing me to have some free time after the event.

"It's nothing bad, I'm just envious. After all...it's hard to believe a guy with good looks and a player's face like yours has actually remained faithful." Kla says teasingly.

"So faithful indeed, no eyes for other girls at all." You pitched in.

"Why're you guys teasing me? I've been dating for a long time already. Save your teasing for Bar, will ya?" I rebuke while pointing at their faces.

"True, we should go tease Bar instead."

"But I say we go get some drinks for now, I'm damn tired."

"Whatever, you...you always drink no matter whether you're tired or not."

"Yeah, yeah, let's just go." My friends joke among themselves as they go along their way.

"You okay?" I turn towards the sweet voice beside me.

"Um...yeah," I reply to Yeewa and raise my eyebrows.

"Since you're not coming with us today, I thought something's the matter," she continues.

"Nothing, as I said, I'm going to see Ploy," I claim.

"You guys aren't fighting, are you?"

"What? Ploy and I?" I question her speculation.

"Well...yeah. Or are you seeing anyone else?"

"It's not like that, Yeewa. We're still an item, nothing to fight about," I answer with a smile. Although Ploy and I have had our fair share of minor arguments over the past year, about things such as certain dating anniversaries that I don't see the point of celebrating and hence don't bother to remember, I felt happy to see her smile after each time we make up. And even though I made her feel bad recently, not once have I been unfaithful to her. Our love remains unaffected by my actions.

"That's good to hear then. I thought you guys weren't on good terms." She waves her hands as if to give in to me.

"And what about you? Won't you go drinking with them?" I ask.

"Sure, I will. I'm waiting for Pan to come pick me up.  A pretty single lady like me gotta play the field. No one to go back home to report to."

"If you insist, then I'm fine with that too, Yeewa," I say wryly.

"Why of course! Living this way has its benefits. Pretty, but choosing to be single. Making the guys vie for my attention. Celebrating gender diversity." She proclaims while raising her hand to the sky. It's not that Yeewa doesn't have her fair share of suitors. As long as she drops the eccentric act she's in now, she's a very attractive girl. And although I don't agree with her ways, I'm the live-and-let-live type of person, so I'm good with whatever floats her boat.

We went our separate ways after Pan had come to pick up Yeewa. Before leaving, she had instructed the sophomores to finish cleaning up within the next two days. I gave their long faces a stern look, causing them to scatter and return to their chores.

Rrrr~

My phone rang before I left the area. The name on the phone brought a smile to my face. It wasn't a broad smile, but a smile nonetheless.

"Yes, Ploy..."

[Vee, where are you?] the sweet voice from the other side of the line asks with a slight tinge of wheedling as some commotion could be heard in the background.

"I'm about to head back. Where are you, Ploy?" I reply and ask back. I was really just about to head back.

[I'm at a friend's house. Vee, can I spend the night here...?] There ya go, that explains the suspicious wheedling tone.

"Just don't get too drunk," I answer.

[Yay! How lovely my boyfriend is.]

"Ploy's lovely boyfriend", I smiled as I replied to her.

[Good response. Get home safely, take care of the room and don't fool around, okay?]

"You think I'm some kind of guard dog? Hurry back, I'm missing you so much. Wanna hug you right now."

[My my, don't be mad. I'm gonna head back asap. Be a good boy, now. Luv ya.] 

Her words bring a smile to my face. I like it when she acts cute. I feel good when she says she loves me. I'm happy to be dating Ploy.

"I love you too."

I was about to turn the key to enter the room after having managed my thoughts. I chose to dismiss the thoughts about that junior and wait for Ploy in the room. I didn't reply to Mark, just looked at his texts so that he knew I had read them. I didn't quite know what to text him back, whether to say that he deserved it and that it served him right, or to say that I was sorry and console him; it's just not in me to reply to him like that.

"C'mon...open it."

"Hey! Calm down, Mark." I turn back to see the source of the two voices not far away. At the front door of the next room, two guys were embracing. The small cute one was bashfully trying to avoid the kisses of the taller one, who appeared intoxicated.

"Open..."

"Yes, yes, I'm about to...hey! Stop trying to kiss...me, Mark." Some kind of force led me to approach the two of them. I grab Mark by the collar and separate him from the other guy before scolding loudly.

"The hell you think you're doing!" I roar at him. He faces me, sharply narrowing his oval eyes before pulling my hand away from his collar.

"What the hell're YOU doin'?" he barks back with a raspy voice, which results from the alcohol. The stench I'd come to be familiar with reeked all over. Did he actually drink the alcohol or take a shower with it?

"Go back," I say to the little guy who was looking at us, bewildered.

"Uh...what?"

"I said go back," I emphasise, one hand holding Mark's while the other gesturing towards the elevator.

"Don't go back." The person next to me voices out, his hazy eyes looking towards the guy before approaching him.

"I said, go back. And as for you...come with me." I reiterate, before pulling out Mark's key card and key from the little guy's hand, open the door and shove Mark inside.

"Go back...and don't mess with him anymore!"