Jett thought about getting even with an elbow smack, but this time he feared he'd lose both his elbow and his ground, so he retreated, clasping his hands in apology over his head. When Khem returned, Jett almost carried him away from the house.
Pharan watched the two boys until they were out of sight, then shook his head in mild exasperation.
"Khem is quite cute, isn't he, Master? Won't you help him for real?"
"Yeah, Master, he's really pitiful."
"Thong" and "Ek." The twin ghost boys appeared, sitting formally and clasping their hands in supplication. These two ghosts were quite close to Jett; whenever they were together, they got along like peas in a pod, causing trouble since Jett was knee-high to a grasshopper.
"Want to get your heads knocked like Jett?" Both ghosts gaped at each other before quickly crawling away. Ordinary people might not be able to touch spirits, but the master could!
"We're leaving, we're leaving!"
Jett and Khem arrived at the assembly point right on time at seven in the morning for their scheduled meeting. The first thing they had to do was exercise by doing aerobics to stretch their muscles, led by a senior female club staff member. Many villagers also joined in the exercise.
"Oh, I'm hungry." Jett groaned while rubbing his stomach. After exercising in front of the flagpole, they all gathered at the school cafeteria for breakfast.
"We didn't eat anything last night, and Jett hasn't slept all night. I'll go get some porridge for you, wait here." Khem said, and Jett nodded while yawning. While waiting for Khem to fetch the food, Jett slumped his face down onto the table to nap.
Chanwit, who was in a similar condition, sat down at the table opposite Jett with some porridge. The events of last night left him curious and sleepless. Uncle Chai, the homeowner, had returned at some unknown time;
when he went to take a shower, he saw Uncle Chai sleeping on a bamboo bed behind the house.
Seeing Jett this sleepy only reinforced Chanwit's suspicion that whatever happened last night, Jett and Khem were definitely involved.
Today, he would keep a close eye on these two to find out exactly what happened last night!
Jett devoured two full bowls of pork porridge and a strong cup of black coffee, the bitterness of which woke him up completely, making him ready for the hard work ahead.
Next, they divided into groups to head to different sites: one group to repair the school roof, another to build a library, and another to go to the temple to restore and repair the damaged areas, which were not far from each other, allowing for help if one group needed more people.
The installation of the water filter was scheduled for the next day. After the major Buddhist holiday and the ceremony to honor Indra and Mother Earth, which the village chief had just announced to the volunteer students this morning.
"I heard that the big Buddhist holiday and the ceremony to honor heaven and earth here are usually held in the ninth month, and we're only in the fourth month. Why the rush?" one student remarked to another while they were painting the school fence.
"The villagers might want us to experience their culture. That's good, I brought my camera." another responded.
"Yeah, that's great. We'll get lots of pictures to post on the university page, which might help us get more funding next year." They said, laughing cheerfully.
Cut to Jett and Khem, who were part of the temple restoration team. Jett, looking more robust than Khem, was recruited to fix the roof of the pavilion. After helping others scrub and clean the temple walls, Khem was assigned to be the mural painter on the walls, along with five other club members.
"Wow, Khem, you draw really well." praised Phraemai, a fellow student sitting next to him. Khem's drawing depicted a woman in a white blouse and traditional Thai skirt, kneeling with hands clasped in prayer, with a small boy around three or four years old sitting beside her, and a monk in front giving blessings. The scene captured the early morning atmosphere of a crowded community.
Indeed, Khem had drawn his own family.
"Yours is beautiful too, Phrae. The color balance is great, and the detail on the clothing is excellent." Khem complimented Phraemai in return. She had drawn a woman in ancient Thai attire floating on a boat in a pond surrounded by lotus flowers.
Phraemai laughed when she saw Khem sincerely admiring her work,
"Haha, you're too kind, thanks. Seeing you so focused made me serious too." Khem blushed at the compliment, slightly easing his tension as he noticed how easily Phraemai got along with others. They chatted a bit more before each returned to their work.
Jett watched Khem from the temple roof, while Chan, who was helping the villagers mix cement below, also kept an eye on both of them. Come lunchtime, they had sticky rice and fried pork wrapped in banana leaves for lunch, courtesy of the villagers. The sweet and salty taste was something Khem especially liked, reminiscent of how his mother used to fry pork for him with stir-fried vegetables when he was a child.
Missing his mom, Khem wanted to finish his work quickly and return to the master's house to be with her.
The temple work finished around three in the afternoon, later than the school project. This was a free time for the students in the club; some went back home to rest, while others hitched a ride on the village chief's truck to the market in the sub-district, as the next day was a major Buddhist holiday with a planned ritual, requiring preparations.
Once Jett came down from the temple roof, he was immediately engaged in conversations by various villagers. Meanwhile, Khem was all over the place, running in and out of village houses.
Jett had told him that last night, many of the village's spirit doctors had to rise and deal with spirits to assist Master Pharan, not getting any sleep, which Khem felt responsible for, even though no one knew this as the master had kept it secret. To make amends, Khem wanted to help the villagers. In some houses, he helped repair water pipes; in others, he cleaned; he helped dig in gardens for planting, and at some places, he assisted in sorting grains.
After Jett finished talking with one of the villagers, he couldn't find Khem. He had seen him heading towards Grandma Si's house, but when he asked her, she said he had finished cleaning her house and then left.
Chanwit watched Jett, who seemed restless whenever Khemjira wasn't nearby, and he couldn't help but furrow his brows in suspicion about their relationship. It was unusual for friends to not let the other out of their sight like this.
Or were they more than just friends?
Chanwit was left to ponder this on his own. The world had moved on; even though he might seem like he was from another era, it wasn't as if he didn't understand human rights.
But the look in the eyes of people with romantic interest was not like this.
His father had once been entranced by a woman, leading to his divorce from Chanwit's mother. The way his father looked at that woman was filled with love and desire.
But the look in Jett's eyes when he looked at Khemjira was more like how a mother watches her toddler taking his first steps, as if if Khemjira stumbled, Jett's world would end...or so he thought.
Damn it.
Chanwit pinched his temples, not understanding why he was so fixated on Jett and Khemjira.
"Hey, you." Chanwit lowered his hand, his eyebrow twitching slightly when someone called him "you." in the rudest way possible, but when he saw who it was, his body tensed up instantly.
Confused, suspicious, and excited, these three feelings clashed in Chanwit's head.
"Khun Jett?" Chanwit accidentally called out, which made Jett raise an eyebrow, wondering how the other knew his name, but then he remembered he was somewhat famous and didn't think much of it. Right now, he had to find Khem.
"Yeah. Have you seen my friend? He's small, big eyes, brown hair, and is wearing a blue t-shirt." Jett described Khem to Chan, but the answer he got left Jett momentarily speechless.
"My name is Chanwit, you can just call me Chan." Chan responded with a frown. He was usually polite to others, but being called "you" by someone he wasn't close to was really irritating, especially by Jett.
"Oh, right, okay. Chan, have you seen my friend? Small, big eyes, brown hair, wearing a blue t-shirt." Jett corrected himself by adding the name, thinking the other just wanted to introduce himself. Chanwit was still annoyed, but it was better than being called "you" earlier.
"Why do you keep following Khem around all the time?" Chan thought it was best to ask directly because he had been observing these two all day without getting any answers, and it was wasting his time.
"Huh?"
"The incident where the bus nearly crashed, and then many villagers walking down the road to the west in the middle of the night, in the same direction Jett and Khem went earlier. What exactly is going on? What are you two up to?" Chanwit fired off questions without giving Jett a chance to respond.
Hearing the accusations, Jett started to get irritated, about to curse out Chan, when Khem's voice rang out from behind:
"Jett, help me, help me!"
"Damn!"
"Watch out!"
Khem was struggling to carry a whole bunch of bananas, his arms laden with bags of food and snacks hanging off them. He stumbled over a stone.
Both Jett and Chan felt like they'd been zapped, their bodies jerking as they rushed to help Khem. Chan, being the largest and strongest, took on the task of carrying the banana bunch, which was quite heavy...
Meanwhile, Jett quickly relieved Khem of the bags of snacks and other food, complaining as he did so:
"Why did you bring back so much stuff? Are you starving or what, Khem?"
"The villagers gave these to me, okay? Keep talking, and I won't share any!" Khem retorted immediately.
In truth, Khem initially didn't want any reward, intending to repay the villagers and atone for the trouble he caused. But the villagers wouldn't take no for an answer. Eventually, Khem couldn't refuse their kindness and accepted everything they gave, including this entire bunch of bananas...
"You've gotten quite bold, huh?" Khem stuck out his tongue at Jett before turning to the man who had come to help carry the bananas. This man was tall, with jet-black hair slicked back and wearing square-framed glasses, giving off a scholarly vibe. Khem vaguely remembered his name was Chanwit.
"Is your name Chanwit? Thank you for helping. Otherwise, I'd have fallen flat on my face. Here, let me take it now." Khem said, checking his hands and shirt, which were already stained with paint. He then extended
his arms to take back the bananas, thinking he could manage now that his arms were free from the other bags.
However, Chan shook his head in refusal. He stole a quick glance at the red mark on Khem's arm before replying.
"I think it's better if I hold it for you."
"Let me choose one for you to hold." Jett quickly said, feeling a strong aversion to Chanwit since the earlier incident, wanting to send Chanwit away.
But Khem felt an immediate liking for Chanwit, sensing he was probably a good person. There was something about Chanwit that made him feel safe, and he seemed more mature than both Khem and Jett. If they could be friends, it wouldn't be bad at all.
"Then, how about we go sit and eat some snacks? We've got so much, no way we can finish it all." Khem suggested with a flushed face. Chanwit looked at him and felt a sense of endearment, so he nodded.
"Sure, there's a small wooden pavilion up ahead where we can sit and rest."
"No way, Khem, let's just go home. I want to take a shower." Jett objected with a displeased face, but he was taken aback when Khem turned to look at him with a pout and raised eyes.
"Can't we sit and have some snacks first, Jett? I'm hungry, and if we walk all the way to the master's house, I'll definitely faint." Jett's mouth opened and closed as he glared at his friend in annoyance.
"Fine, but you turned to stone in front of the master, remember!" Khem put both hands over his ears as if to block out the words, just thinking about the master's face made his legs tremble.
"Alright, alright, Chan, lead the way."
While eating snacks at the village's central wooden pavilion, Khem eagerly asked Chanwit about himself, his major, and year of study. It turned out Chanwit was studying Social Sciences, majoring in Psychology, and was in the same year as Jett and Khem.
"Wow, you're really smart."
"It's just okay, ouch." Jett yelped as Khem pinched his waist. Chan wasn't paying attention to Jett. He nodded to Khem and responded,
"Khun Khem, you are smart too."
"Ugh, sorry, sorry."
"Sorry on behalf of Jett, he's just got a foul mouth like this, but he's actually a good person." Khem apologizes on behalf of his friend while Jett turns his face away, and Chan gives a small smile.
"I don't mind crazy people." Jett says, turning back with his neck almost snapping.
"Damn, do you want a punch, Khem? My waist is all bruised now!"
"Jett, calm down!"
For the sake of Khem, both Chan and Jett temporarily stop their bickering and focus on eating, with some small talk about tomorrow's plans.
After eating, they helped clean up the trash, but Khem had set aside some food for himself, his mother, and the priest. Khem hadn't properly thanked the priest for the events of the previous night.
Then, Chan walked Khem and Jett to the end of the concrete road, flanked by banana trees, with a rubber plantation ahead where a narrow dirt road cuts through.
Earlier, Chan found out that Jett and Khem were staying at the house of Master Pharan, a respected shaman in the village. Khem explained that Jett was also a disciple of Master Pharan, which is why they were staying there since Jett's real home was far away in the district.
"Just drop us here, you can go back." Jett quickly grabs a bunch of bananas from Chan, while Khem stands waiting not far away.
"About what you asked me, don't go asking Khem about it, got it?" Jett warns as a final note. Even though Chan didn't mention it to Khem earlier, one can never be too sure in the future.
Chan shrugs.
"Next time, if I ask you and you don't give me a good answer, I'll ask Khun Khem."
Jett glared at him.
"Damn, you'll get it from me." Khem shouts, hearing something about getting 'it'.
"Jett, what are you saying!" Jett immediately gets annoyed.
"Ugh, you're really annoying, you know that!"