Why did he have to touch someone he'd just met for the first time...
That was the thought that crossed Pharan's mind as he intervened.
Pharan returned to his room to meditate, calming his mind and heart, reflecting repeatedly on his actions because what he had done was not befitting of his role and age.
If the consequences of revisiting the past were this impactful, one would need to be much more cautious in the future...
Three days after that day, Khem followed Jett's advice diligently. He woke up early to clean the house and cook, spent his free time meditating and listening to Dhamma talks on the radio, and when he was bored, he would sketch around the area of the master's traditional Thai house. He didn't venture outside the premises for his own safety.
Most importantly, Khem avoided encountering the master. If there was no necessity, he barely went through the central area where ceremonies were held, which he used to sneak glances at multiple times a day. Now it was down to once or twice a day...
Khem really wanted to clasp his hands and apologize to Jett, but ignoring the master entirely was something he couldn't do.
Currently, Khem was making palm fruit in syrup, as Auntie-Kaew had brought some palm fruit over that morning on her sidecar motorcycle. Once done, Khem planned to portion some into bags for Auntie-Kaew.
When it was lunchtime, Jett and Chan came down to the kitchen to find Khem. They helped carry the food to eat on the bamboo bed. Having just finished making the sweet, Khem turned off the stove to eat first, planning to enjoy the dessert later, not forgetting to set aside a portion for the master as usual.
"Khem, let's go to the market today."
Jett said with a good mood, looking forward to going out.
"Oh, isn't the village chief free today?" Khem asked while blinking, since usually, the village chief was the one who bought the ingredients.
"Yeah, Grandma-Si isn't feeling well, so the village chief took her to the doctor in town." Jett answered.
Hearing that, Khem quickly asked, "What's wrong with Grandma-Si?"
"It seems just a normal cold, nothing serious. Elderly people can get sick easily with a little wind or rain." Khem nodded, relieved by Jett's explanation since Grandma-Si had lost her husband less than two years after they married and had no children, choosing to remain single. If it had been something serious, Khem worried there'd be no one to take care of her.
"Let's find time to visit Grandma-Si."
"Yeah, I was thinking of helping to fill up her fridge."
Chan sat quietly, listening while serving the food onto the plates for Jett and Khem, to keep their conversation flowing. This act had only recently become a habit, almost as if it happened naturally without much thought, and with repetition, it had become a routine.
Today, since the three kids needed to go to the market, Pharan decided to let Jett and Chan off early. He walked downstairs to have lunch in the afternoon, after the children had already eaten. This was his routine to avoid direct encounters with Khem.
Khem was aware that the master was avoiding him. Whenever the master came down to eat, he would usually excuse himself to do something else.
But today, Khem had made a dessert, so he stayed to serve it after the master finished his meal.
"Master, would you like some sugar palm in syrup?" Khem asked, coming out of the kitchen, his head bowed and hands clasped behind the chair where the master was sitting. Pharan, who was about to leave, sat back down and simply said,
"Bring it over." Khem pinched himself, trying not to get too excited, reminding himself that the master was an easy eater who would consume whatever was prepared. Even if it wasn't made by Khem, the master would eat it. So, he turned to serve the aromatic sugar palm in syrup into a bowl and placed it in front of the master. After setting it down, he intended to leave, but the master called him back.
"Wait." That was all the master said before he started to slowly taste the dessert Khem had made. In less than three minutes, he had finished it all, including the syrup, then stood up and turned to face Khem, who was still standing there with his head down.
Five thousand baht in banknotes were handed to him.
"Here's for the groceries. Buy enough for a week, and use the rest to get yourselves some clothes and necessities." Pharan said, noticing that the three kids were wearing the same clothes repeatedly.
"No, it's okay, Master, I mean..." Khem shook his head, hesitating to refuse out of politeness, but then he thought about the others, knowing he couldn't refuse on their behalf. Perhaps Jett and Chan needed it, and five thousand baht seemed like quite a lot.
Khem was still contemplating when he heard the master sigh, which made him feel guilty and unable to refuse. He just pressed his lips together.
In the end, the five thousand baht was folded in half by the master and slipped into the pocket of Khem's short-sleeved shirt. Then the master turned and walked away immediately.
Khem felt downcast but knew he shouldn't refuse the master's kindness.
He decided he would discuss with Jett and Chan how to best use this money.
At three in the afternoon, Jett and Chan were released from their training room. One of the disciples brought a pickup truck for the kids to drive to the market as requested by the village chief. The disciple went up to pay his respects to the master, had a brief conversation, and then came back downstairs. He then rode back home on a motorcycle with his wife who had come to pick him up.
"Who's driving?" Khem asked as they were all getting ready in the room.
He himself couldn't drive a car, could manage a bicycle, but wasn't confident with a motorcycle. Most of the time, he just walked wherever he needed to go.
"I'll drive." Said Jett while applying face powder at the vanity mirror.
Khem, who was applying sunscreen from a packet beside him, was slightly taken aback.
"Jett, you can drive a car too? I didn't know that."
"Yeah, I've been driving since I was fourteen. My dad taught me."
Khem nodded, thinking it was somewhat enviable, but he was too scared to learn to drive himself. Walking was more comforting. He then turned to ask Chan, who was styling his hair with gel.
"What about you, Chan? Can you drive a car?" Chan nodded, looking at Khem through his thick-lensed glasses.
"I can manage, but my mom doesn't let me drive much because of my poor eyesight." Khem made a sympathetic face, and Chan smiled, lightly
ruffling Khem's hair as if to say it wasn't a big deal.
Once they were ready, they all got into the old but well-kept white pickup truck and headed straight to the Saturday market in the sub-district.
The weather was quite hot, and the market was starting to get crowded, so the three decided to shop quickly and head back. Besides buying ingredients, Jett, Khem, and Chan each selected three sets of clothes.
Most were local cotton outfits made by the villagers, along with some personal items, as they would be heading back to Bangkok in just a week.
But they hadn't expected to bump into Pong, the village chief's son whom they had met three days prior while at the market.
Today, Pong was tasked with being the driver for his mother and sister, but seeing the crowd, he decided to wait near the market exit instead of joining them.
Initially feeling bored because his mother and sister were taking too long, his annoyance vanished upon seeing Khem, whom he didn't expect to see again. He was filled with joy and quickly approached to greet him.
"Hello, Khem. So we meet again." Pong smiled, his eyes sparkling.
Although Khem was startled, he gave a small smile and returned the greeting with a wai, knowing that Pong was several years older.
"Hello, Khun Pong."
"Oh, Phii Pong, hello!" Jett, who had just followed Khem and was haggling over the price of fresh chicken, greeted Pong.
Jett and Pong knew each other quite well since their families were both in government service, their homes were close by, and they had known each other since childhood when Jett was small and not very good at fighting, often needing Pong to protect him.
"Chan, meet Pong, another of the master's disciples." Jett took the opportunity to introduce Chan to Pong.
Chan just smiled in greeting and slightly bowed his head since his hands were occupied.
"Hello, oh, you've bought a lot. How are you getting back? Want me to give you a ride?" Pong asked enthusiastically, hoping to score points with Khem, but Jett shook his head.
"No need to trouble you, Phii. We've got a pickup truck."
"Oh, really..." Pong said with disappointment. Khem quickly averted his gaze. At that moment, Jett sensed something but didn't comment.
Seeing that they had met anyway, Pong didn't want to miss the chance to get to know Khem better, so he brought up another topic.
"How about you guys come with me to the temple fair tonight? There'll be a folk music performance. If you're going, I can pick you up this evening."
Upon hearing the word "folk music." Jett's ears perked up and his eyes sparkled with excitement. His blood started to boil with the same fervor he felt back in high school. Jett never missed temple fairs, merit-making events, or any gatherings where there was a stage for folk music!
"Khem, do you want to go? The district temple has a big fair every year with lots of food and games." Jett said, eyes wide for effect, making it clear he didn't really need to ask Khem's opinion...
"Well, if the master allows us to go, we'll go. What about you, Chan, do you want to go?" Khem turned to ask Chan, elbowing Jett who was pressuring him with his gaze.
Chan nodded.
"I'm fine either way, but we should ask the master first, like Khem said."
Khem nodded in agreement, and Jett then turned to smile at Phii Pong.
"That's fine, Phii Pong. I'll call you again later, Phii."
Pong, who was about to ask for Khem's contact information, quickly shut his mouth and nodded to Jett, deciding to wait until after the outing to ask.
"Then we'll head out first, Phii, take care."
"Sure, drive safely." He gave a small smile to Khem, who merely bowed his head in response before following Jett, with Chan bringing up the rear.
Upon returning home, after preparing the meal for the master, the three of them hurried back to the house to ask for his permission. Jett volunteered to be the brave one, crawling close to the master and clasping his hands in a wai.
"Master, there's a temple fair in town today. Can we go?"
Pharan immediately gave Jett a sharp look, as Ekk, who had accompanied them to the market, had already reported to him. He knew who had invited them and what the intentions were, but he didn't explicitly forbid it.
"Are you sure you can take care of yourselves?"
Khem kept his head down, avoiding eye contact with the master. Chan stayed silent, while only Jett stood up confidently, sure of the skills he had
learned over the past days under the master's rigorous training. No ghost or person could easily mess with them.
"I won't let the name of the master's student be tarnished!"
Pharan nodded with a hint of annoyance, because every time they said this, something always happened. But it was good for them to go out; he would have some quiet time alone.
"You have until midnight." Jett almost jumped to hug the master but restrained himself, instead nodding rapidly and giving the master a leg massage in flattery.
For a moment, Pharan's eyes met Khem's, who was looking, and soon they both looked away.
Having received permission, they quickly went to bathe and dress up with excitement and joy, applying powder and cologne until the scent reached the village entrance. Soon, Phii Pong arrived in his four-door pickup truck to pick them up at the house steps.
When Pong arrived, he first went to pay respects to the master to get permission to take the kids out, also mentioning the sacred armband he planned to wear for a match that the master had promised to make. He thought it would be ready by tomorrow or the day after.
Once the three kids were dressed, they crawled over to sit beside Pong in the main part of the house. Pong turned to look at Khem, who was wearing a light yellow T-shirt, and smiled with affection. Today, Khem looked particularly cute.
But before long, a strong gust of wind passed through, making Pong look around for the source, but finding nothing unusual, he furrowed his brows and said,
"Is it going to rain, or should we hurry?" Jett quickly nodded in agreement, and all four of them went to say goodbye to the master before heading to the parked truck downstairs.
Once they reached the truck, Pong rushed to open the door for Khem, who smiled and slightly bowed his head in thanks.
Pharan stood on the porch of the house, watching the four of them with an unreadable expression, which subtly conveyed a slight hint of displeasure...
It was at that moment that Khem turned to look back at the master, his heart skipping a beat, but he didn't want to read too much into the master's gaze or assume it was disapproval.
Khem thought that in this short amount of time, he wouldn't be able to detach himself from the master as everyone might expect. So, acting this way would probably ease the situation for everyone. He slowly turned back to smile at Phii Pong before getting into the truck, allowing the other to close the door for him.
The four-door pickup truck had long since driven away from Pharan's Thai house, but he remained standing there, his brows furrowed as he recognized a stronger wave of his own displeasure.
Even after several minutes had passed, the image of Khem smiling back at Pong was still vivid in his mind.
Instead of returning to his room to sleep as he had planned, he changed his mind and headed straight to the shrine room to meditate.
"Thong, Ekk." Pharan called out after closing his eyes for a while. Soon, the two boys appeared, responding in unison,
"Yes, Master."
"Go keep an eye on them." Ekk and Thong held back their smiles, one of them wanting to tease the master a bit more, so he asked with an innocent face,
"And if they split up, who should I follow, Master?"
Pharan opened his eyes, his hand now gripping a cane that had been beside him, which made the twin spirits' mouths drop open in surprise.
They quickly stood up and dashed through the wooden wall.