Khem woke up early in the morning and turned to see that Master Pharan was no longer there. However, the sense of satisfaction from the night before made Khem smile.
Initially, he had planned to return to Bangkok if Master Pharan didn't help, but now, Khem had changed his mind. Jett wouldn't need to persuade Master Pharan or do anything else on behalf of Khem because from now on, Khem would handle it himself.
Khem would make Master Pharan's heart soften!
First, he would start by tidying his own bed. Khem got up and was slightly startled to see Jett and Chan sleeping on either side of his bed.
"When did you guys get here?" Khem blushed, thinking they might have heard his conversation with Master Pharan last night, given how loudly he had been crying.
Seeing they were sleeping comfortably, he didn't want to wake them, but he had to because Khem intended to clean the entire Thai-style house, though he didn't know where to find the cleaning supplies.
"Jett, wake up, wake up." Khem gently shook Jett's shoulder, and soon Jett sat up, rubbing his eyes.
"Is it morning already?"
"It's, uh, five in the morning." Jett almost bit Khem's head off.
"Damn it. Why are you up so early?"
"Sorry. I want to clean the house for Master Pharan, but I don't know where the cleaning supplies are." Khem replied sheepishly, feeling guilty.
"Maybe if we do this, the master will be more lenient and let us stay here." Jett slapped his knee excitedly, flames of determination in his eyes.
"Good! That's how we should do it. Let's go, wash up, and I'll help clean!" Jett stood up abruptly, heading to wake the other friend.
"Chan, wake up, man!"
When Chan woke, Khem first apologized to him. Seeing that his friend wasn't angry, he explained his plan. Chan, still a bit confused since being dragged here by Jett the day before, nodded in agreement (once again).
The three of them lined up to leave the room, heading downstairs to wash their faces and brush their teeth before going to the cleaning supplies room.
Usually, the master hired a trusted maid to clean weekly, but she had recently gone on maternity leave, so lately, the master had been cleaning the house himself.
The kids, now well-rested and full of energy, cleaned with such fervor that the noise reached Pharan's ears as he lay in bed.
The sounds of clinking kitchen utensils and the banging of a ladle against a pan mixed intermittently, causing the master to furrow his brows.
'The older ones are cleaning the house, master, the teak floors are asshiny as mirrors,' whispered Ekk, standing to the left of the bed, followed by Thong from the other side.
'Phii Khem is cooking as well, it smells delicious. Phii Khem's motherwas right, master, you won't...' But seeing the master reach for the cane by the bedside, they both dashed out of the room.
Who would have guessed that Pharan would leave the children's room at almost four in the morning...
Dressed in a white t-shirt and black cotton trousers for sleeping, Pharan had to get up. He walked out to sit at the ceremonial area and saw the three children, sweat covering them, already waiting. As soon as he sat on the higher seat, Jett, being the eager student, quickly crawled up to him.
"Master, Khem woke us up to clean together today, that is, um...well...you see..." Jett hesitated when he met the master's look that seemed to say, "And then what?" Chan glanced up, having just tried to speak to the master himself.
Seeing that things weren't going well, Khem quickly crawled closer to the master, clasped his hands in front of his chest, and looked up with wide, hopeful eyes.
"Can I stay here until the new term starts? I promise I'll help with all the housework and won't be a burden to you, Master." Khem blinked at Master Pharan once, who felt like smacking that handsome forehead with a coconut, but Jett was to blame for this behavior.
However, he could only think it because in reality, Master Pharan just sighed with exasperation.
These guys were arguing without him even saying he wouldn't let them stay.
"If you're going to stay, you must formally become my disciple." As soon as he finished speaking, Khem smiled broadly with joy, and Jett almost hugged him but restrained himself out of respect for Master Pharan, only jumping for joy quietly in his mind.
But the matter wasn't settled there.
"And you, do you know the situation with these two? Is that why you followed them here?" Master Pharan turned his question to Chan, who shook his head in response. Jett immediately looked uncomfortable.
Oh no. If Master Pharan tells the truth, their plan to trick Chan into being Khem's protector would fall apart!
Khem bit his lip, feeling guilty when Master Pharan's look seemed to scold him for not telling the truth to his friend, so he quickly crawled back to Chan, leaving Jett to be disciplined with a tap on the head by Master Pharan.
"Chan, I'm sorry for not telling you everything. It's just that..." Khem proceeded to tell Chan everything, from the curse on his maternal family to the near-death experiences. Chan was visibly shocked by what he heard.
If anyone else had told him this story, he wouldn't have believed it, but after getting to know Khem and Jett, he could accept it easily.
"You all need to decide carefully. If you're in this together, it means you three are willing to risk your lives for each other when faced with danger.
But if you're not sure you can do that, it's best to go your separate ways from now." What he said was the truth; he couldn't guarantee everything would end well. If someone later panicked and feared for their life, all his teachings would be in vain.
It was better to make the decision now, to avoid wasting everyone's time.
Jett and Khem looked at each other before turning to Chan. Chan adjusted his glasses slightly before crawling closer to Master Pharan...and bowed in a way he never had before.
If asked how he felt after hearing what the master said, he would have to admit he was scared...Who isn't afraid of death, right? But watching over Jett and Khem had become another reason for him to live, and he didn't think he could just stop doing it, so he wanted to try asking,
"I'd like to become your student, master."
Jett stood up straighter as if to say Chan spoke well. Khem was both overjoyed and relieved to the point of tears, but quickly wiped them away and smiled to thank Chan.
To become a student, one had to perform the traditional "Wai Kru"
ceremony like the other students of Pharan. So, they would need to prepare offerings and incense for the ceremony tomorrow. Today, after setting up the meal for the master, they had to inform their volunteer club friends that they would be staying behind, to not worry everyone.
Regarding Kornkan, Pondit, and Tejaton, they were now out of danger but still needed to stay in the hospital for observation for several days, with their parents closely watching over them. Once they were better and returned home, they would have to fulfill their promise to ordain as monks for six years and maintain the eight precepts for the rest of their lives.
It was hoped that their experiences would serve as a lesson, making them respect places they visit and refrain from rude behavior or disrespectful challenges.
After the ordeal had passed, the villagers organized a "Baai Sri Suu Khwan" or in the Isan dialect, "Soot Kwahn." ceremony for the students to call back their spirits and morale, and to wish them good fortune before their long journey back to Bangkok.
Khem, Jett, and Chan went to Grandma-Si's house, where the ceremony was to be held. Grandma-Si's house was half concrete and half wood, with a spacious ground floor that could accommodate dozens of people. From the front, one could see the prominent seven-tiered golden tray for the spirit calling, with village elders and residents seated around the walls, each holding several sacred threads.
Upon arrival, Khem, Jett, and Chan walked respectfully through the crowd to get inside, then crawled to sit near Phraemai, who was positioned at the front.
"Prae, how are you feeling? Are you okay now?" Prae almost burst into tears again seeing Khem.
"I'm okay, you're okay now, right, Khem? I heard that..." Phraemai bit her lip, not daring to say the word "ghost." but Auntie-Kaew had told her that Khem had disappeared without anyone noticing, only to be found later lying in the forest, luckily found and brought back by Pharan.
"Sorry, Khem. It's because you were watching over us, right, that this happened?"
Khem shook his head.
"It's not because of you, Prae. My luck has just been down lately, but it will get better soon. Don't worry." Prae exhaled before nodding.
"When the term starts, let's have a barbecue. Including Chan and Jett."
Phraemai didn't forget to turn to tell the other two friends sitting next to Khem, because everyone here had been affected because of her.
Jett and Chan nodded with a smile, hoping they would all survive until the term started.
Soon, Grandma Si began the ceremony chants, asking everyone present to clasp their hands in prayer.
"Namo, me, Buddhatejasa, Ratanattayathamika, Tejapasiddhipasithi deva, Narayana, Parameswara...
"Shri, Shri, this is a good day, Shri, Shri, this day, elders say is good, a day of divine luck, for calling back the spirit, we then recite the spirit-calling chant: Come here, spirit, thirty-two spirits, gather ninety-two spirits, come back to be whole in the body, to continue the lineage."
"The old healer calls for the spirit to return, saying: Come, spirit, the head spirit stay at the head, the eye spirit at the eyes, do not leave, the mouth spirit at the mouth, do not flee, the hair spirit from feet to crown, come to admire the new, the shoulder and round eye spirits, come to fill the body, both the foot spirit, and the hand spirit, the navel and small belly spirits, do not separate, come to be placed in the body, calling: Come, spirit.
The chest spirit come to the two breasts, the hair spirit come to the hair, the leg spirit come to the legs, the shin spirit come to the shins, the neck spirit come to the neck, the belly and chin spirits, the slender waist and arched eyebrow spirits, all spirits within, calling: Come, spirit..."
After that, Grandma-Si took the holy water that Pharan had blessed and used the sprig of jasmine to dip in it and sprinkle it over the students, especially drenching Phraemai and Khem.
After receiving the holy water, they lined up to have the villagers tie sacred threads around their wrists. Over these four days, they had experienced much, both in terms of care and protection.
"May you be happy, always surrounded by good things, may you not know pain or sickness, young lady."
Upon receiving these blessings and as the time to leave approached, some students were moved to tears from the emotional attachment, especially Phraemai, who cried immediately upon seeing Auntie-Kaew and Uncle-Chai, even before they could tie the threads. Auntie-Kaew hugged her for several minutes to calm her down before tying the thread.
Jett, seeing Grandma-Si chewing betel nut alone, crawled over to her.
"Grandma-Si, please tie a thread for me." Grandma-Si, who had just taken a break, pulled a thread from the golden tray. She had known Jett since he was little; back then, he was a chubby, cute, yet mischievous child.
He had always called out to her, and now, grown up, he was still as playful as a monkey, just like his father's ancestors.
"May you be strong and healthy, free from pain and illness, may you sleep soundly and wake up refreshed, and remember to wear shoes when you walk outside."
Jett burst into laughter, thinking that only Grandma-Si would bless him like this. It was worth all the times he had refilled her refrigerator with water!
Once the ceremony was over and it was time to go home, Jett, Khem, Chan, and many villagers stood to see off the students onto the bus. They didn't forget to hand over gifts for everyone to share on the journey, waving goodbye for the last time.
As the tour bus departed, leaving behind a faint cloud of dust, it was time for everyone to go their separate ways and resume their duties.
"Let's go back home, we need to prepare the offerings for the master's ceremony." Jett said. Khem nodded hesitantly. Chan, as usual, followed quietly behind.