Jett and Chan took Khem back to the master's residence. Jett decided to return to Grandma-Si's house to assess the situation, leaving Chan to look after Khem at the master's place.
Upon returning, Khem locked himself in his room, and Chan could only sit outside, listening to his friend's cries, feeling the overwhelming sorrow that could not be expressed in words, unable to do anything to help.
He prayed that everything would pass quickly and well.
The sound of the "Thani Krasang" funeral song played throughout the village.
Grandma-Si's funeral was held that evening, amidst the grief of many villagers. Her body was to be kept at her home for a single night for merit-making before being cremated at the temple the next day, as per her final wishes conveyed to everyone.
Since she had no children or grandchildren, she didn't want to burden the villagers. Although some disagreed, preferring traditional customs, they realized they had never repaid her kindness; thus, fulfilling her last wish seemed appropriate.
"Master, why don't you go back, shower, and change your clothes? I'll take care of things here." Jett approached the master, who was still in his bloodstained white shirt, wet from the pond, not having changed even after over two hours. He was worried the master might fall ill.
The atmosphere around the master was too tense for anyone to casually speak, except for his close disciple, Jett. But seeing the master nod in acknowledgement, Jett quietly stepped back, not saying anything more.
At this moment, no matter how chaotic the surroundings were, Pharan sat still on the floor, his black eyes fixed on the incense sticks in the pot in front of the coffin, which burned away one by one.
Every minute passed slowly, and every memory flowed back, shaking the feelings he had kept hidden in his heart with sorrow.
For Pharan, Grandma-Si was not unlike a mother who had given him life.
She had given him his first embrace after losing his mother, fed him his first
spoonful of rice, and made the first treat with care. All of these were acts of Grandma-Si.
Thus, despite understanding the truth of life that all humans are born to eventually pass away, it's impossible not to feel sorrow.
Before the time for the monks to arrive for the funeral rites, Pharan had to return home to bathe and change. During the walk back, every step felt heavy, as if the ground itself might split apart, the forest spirits recoiled in fear. Even the land spirits of this area trembled.
It was a kind of anger no one had encountered in this life before.
Upon returning to the house, as he ascended the steps, he heard two distinct sobs from both wings of the house. He paused at the central part, listening to both, then decided to head right.
Pharan entered a room where a table held an incense pot and two bottles of red soda. In the center of the table stood a wooden sculpture of two boys holding hands, crafted by a woodcarver.
The crying came from one who had lost his twin brother, never to return.
"Ekk." Pharan called out softly. Soon, the boy in the blue school uniform appeared. The young boy clung tightly to Pharan's trousers, still sobbing pitifully.
"Master, hic, Thong, Thong, huhu." Pharan gently stroked Ekk head, then responded in a low voice,
"Um, I know."
"Hic, I can't stay here without Thong, Master, hic, can you bring Thong back to me?"
Pharan held his breath for a moment at that request, knowing well he couldn't fulfill it.
Pharan understood well the pain of losing someone so dear, but if one still had breath, the only option was to keep struggling. However, for those who had lost their breath, there were still ways to meet again.
"I can't bring him back, but I can send you to him if you wish." Pharan said, causing Ekk to slowly lift his head to look at the monk's face once more.
"..."
"What do you say?"
"..."
"Do you want to stay here, or go to where you both should have been from the start?"
In truth, neither of them should have been summoned into this statue by Pharan's grandfather, a shaman, if it hadn't been for his youthful experimentation. If not for that, they would have been reborn long ago.
Hearing this, Ekk, thinking of all the time spent here, cried softly, nodding before retreating and bowing at the monk's feet in respect.
The memories in this Thai house were precious to the orphaned spirits like Ekk and Thong, who had no one to care for them, but ultimately, what was most valuable to Ekk was his twin brother. With tears in his eyes, he said to the master,
"Thank you so much for everything."
Upon finishing his words, Pharan knelt down, touched the young spirit's head he had spent decades with, and chanted a mantra to adjust their spiritual state. Ekk's form slowly transformed into a soft yellow light floating above Pharan's hand, which he then placed into a wooden box.
Tomorrow, he would take it to the temple for the abbot to help send the spirit to a better place alongside Grandma-Si.
After placing the wooden box back in its spot, Pharan stared at it for several minutes before saying:
"I hope in your next lives, both of you will be born into a family that loves and cares for you well."
Khem got up at dawn to prepare food, which he then took in a basket to Grandma-Si's house with Chan. Upon arriving at the funeral, the first thing he did was pay his respects by lighting an incense stick and offering an apology.
"Grandma-Si. I'm so sorry for causing you to leave like this. It's all my fault."
"..."
"If I hadn't come here in the first place, all these terrible things wouldn't have happened."
"..."
"If there's still a breath in me, I'll make sure to do merit often for you, Grandma."
"..."
"I'm really sorry." After saying this, he placed the incense stick into the pot, bowed once, and slowly stepped back to place the food from the basket he had prepared into the alms bowl set aside, then went to sit at a chair behind where no one would notice, to listen to the monks chanting.
Khem spoke little and was more silent than usual, causing Chan, who had been observing him all the time, to feel uneasy. Even Jett, who was assisting the Reverend, kept glancing at him frequently.
Jett was worried that Khem might blame himself too much, but he was also concerned about the master's state of mind. Thus, he stayed close, not daring to leave Khem alone.
Jett had no idea how the master felt about Khem now, after losing someone so dear, almost like a mother, due to Khem's karma. However, to Jett, Khem was still a friend he would never let go of easily.
'Just wait, Khem. I'll make the master understand that none of this was your fault,' Jett thought to himself.
When the time came for Grandma-Si's cremation ceremony, her body was placed in a pickup truck and driven into the temple. Ten villagers were ordained to perform the ceremony, ten monks chanted Buddhist mantras, offerings were made, a sermon was given, and the monks chanted the Matika Bangsakol, followed by the offering of traditional items and then the pouring of water as the final step.
After the merit-making for the deceased, the abbot, or Luang Por Sua, led the procession. During the procession, the village chief carried a lit incense stick. Behind him, the master, dressed in black from head to toe, held Grandma-Si's portrait, followed by Jett, Uncle-Chai, Uncle-Lah, Uncle-Mek, and two other men carrying the coffin on their shoulders, with the villagers bringing up the rear in the final farewell to Grandma-Si.
After circling the funeral pyre three times, Grandma-Si's coffin was placed on the cremation platform. During the recounting of Grandma-Si's life and her good deeds for the village, there were intermittent soft sobs.
Understanding the truths of life, they conducted the Bangsakol cloth offering ceremony, followed by villagers placing jasmine flowers and incense sticks at the base of the pyre for the lighting.The monk was the first to walk up, placing sandalwood flowers, candles, and incense, and also set the wooden box containing Ekk's spirit next to Grandma-Si, entrusting her to watch over this spirit too. He spoke softly in the Isan dialect, as always:
"See you later, Grandma. Please take care of Ekk too."
After the monk had placed the flowers and returned to his seat, the villagers followed, lining up to place their own sandalwood flowers. Among them were Chan and Khem.
The final act was lighting the cremation pyre. Grandma-Si's coffin was moved into the crematorium, and the light grey smoke wafting from the top of the pyre was a sight that tugged at many hearts, leading them to clasp their hands in prayer over their heads.
From now on, this small village would no longer have Grandma-Si, the guardian of their spirits. May Grandma-Si be with those she loved and find peace in a good realm.
As everything concluded, Khem felt a change in the hand he thought was Chan's; turning, he found it was not his friend but a village child looking confused. Chan quickly let go, apologizing.
Looking around, Chan saw only villagers milling about, and Khem had vanished without him noticing. His already worried heart grew even more anxious.
At that moment, Jett, having finished his duties with the monk, hurried over but frowned when he saw Chan standing alone, looking pale and sweaty. He rushed over without hesitation.
"Where's Khem, Chan?" Chan, still frowning, shook his head.
"I don't know." Jett, in frustration, slapped his own forehead, then grabbed Chan's arm, urging him to move.
"Damn it, come on, let's go back to the house!" Jett hoped that Khem was just tired and had gone back to wait for them at the residence, praying he hadn't gone anywhere.
But their prayers were in vain; Khem had packed his belongings and left the village, leaving behind only a tear-stained letter.
'To Jett and Chan, thank you for always helping me. I'm sorry forcausing you trouble. Please apologize to the master and the villagers forme. I'm sorry I'm too cowardly and weak, causing problems like this. Ihope you all have a good life from now on. Goodbye.'
After reading the letter to the end, Jett placed it back where it was and made to dash out of the room, but Chan grabbed his arm.
"Khun Jett, where are you going?" Jett looked incredulous before replying sharply,
"To find Khem, what else? If we let him go like this, he'll definitely die!"
Chan furrowed his brows in response,
"I understand how you feel. I'm worried about Khem too, but we can't just rush out like this." This was because neither Jett nor Chan knew where
Khem was at the moment or where he intended to go. Acting without a clear plan would only waste time and could potentially make things worse.
"Let's consult with the master first." Jett, after considering the reasoning, took a deep breath to calm himself and then nodded in agreement. When they left the room, they saw the master waiting in the central area of the house, as if he already knew what had transpired.
Without delay, Jett and Chan approached the master on their knees, hands clasped in a wai before speaking,
"Master, Khem has left the village." Jett said urgently. Pharan set his coffee cup down beside him before responding,
"And what of it?"
Jett swallowed hard seeing the Reverend's impassive gaze, then continued in a trembling voice, "Master. If he goes out there in that state, he's surely going to die. Please, master, help us." Before Jett could finish his sentence, the Reverend cut in,
"In fact, you shouldn't have brought him here in the first place."
"..."
"I told you, didn't I? Not to meddle in someone else's karma."
"..."
"Do you see now what happens when you interfere in others' affairs, or must I die for you to realize?"
That statement hit like a lightning bolt. Jett swallowed, reflecting on the master's words, his heart trembling with sorrow and regret for his actions.
Indeed, it was Jett who had approached Khem, bringing him here, whichled to many people getting troubled and even caused Grandma-Si's deathdue to Khem's karma. Everything was Jett's fault.
But the thought of stopping everything and letting Khem face death alone felt like a spear piercing his heart.
Khem was a dear friend whom Jett loved and wanted to protect with his life; he wanted to see Khem live a long life with him. Therefore, he couldn't bring himself to stop.
Having thought about it, Jett slowly knelt down and spoke with a tearful voice:
"I'm leaving now, Master."
Jett and Chan shouldered their bags as they left the master's house, but they hadn't even passed the rubber tree forest when they spotted a white
pickup truck parked by the road, with the village chief standing beside it.
Seeing this, they approached.
"Uncle village chief, are you going somewhere?" Jett asked softly, not daring to think much of himself at this moment.
"I'm here to pick you up. Aren't you going to look for Khem? There's still time if we go now." Both Jett and Chan's eyes widened, they exchanged a glance before Chan asked further:
"Do you know where Khem is, village chief?" The village chief nodded, not admitting that he actually didn't know when Khem had left the village or where he intended to go, if someone hadn't come to tell him.
"Hmm, hurry, get in the truck, we don't want to miss him." That was all it took for Jett and Chan to rush and jump into the back of the village chief's truck.
The house fell into silence after the two disciples left. What Pharan didnext was to drink from a sacred water pot he had blessed earlier, then heretched out the black blood that had accumulated in his chest over the pasttwo days into a basin, repeating this process day and night.