Chapter Text
The warm evening air wrapped around them like a cozy blanket as the group of friends gathered in Peem's garden. The setting sun painted the sky with soft hues of pink and orange, casting a gentle glow over the lush greenery that surrounded the outdoor table. Laughter echoed through the air as the clinking of beer bottles pierced the tranquil ambiance.
Peem sat comfortably in a wicker chair with a grin playing on his lips. Next to him on his left, Phum leaned back in his chair, one hand resting on the table while the other played with a strand of hair that had escaped his usual neatly styled look. Their legs brushed against each other under the table, a silent secret shared only by the two of them.
Tan was telling the group some hilarious anecdote, gesturing wildly with his hands as he recounted the story. Fang watched him with an amused smile, his fingers absently tracing circles on Tan's thigh.
Toey's eyes lit up as he listened, his laughter as infectious as ever. Suddenly he leaned into Q, who sat on his right, and whispered something in his ear. The hint of a smile appeared on Q's face as he elbowed Toey lightly, who giggled and took a swig of his beer. "You're so annoying," Q then said, but the warmth in his voice told a different story.
"What's so funny?" Chain asked noticing the interaction between the two, his arm resting on the back of Pun's chair.
Toey looked over, his eyes sparkling with mischief. "Just Q being his usual grumpy self."
"I'm not grumpy, I just don't find your jokes funny," Q shot back, though the twinkle in his eye betrayed his true feelings.
"Oh, come on, P'Q!" Toey exclaimed, slapping the table with his hand. "You know you love them!"
"Love what?" Matt asked joining the conversation, his curiosity piqued.
"Toey's terrible jokes," Q said, rolling his eyes dramatically.
Toey pouted exaggeratedly. "But they're literally the best!"
"Best at giving me a headache, maybe," Q retorted, though the grin on his face took the sting out of his words.
Toey leaned closer to Q, his playful whine growing louder. "But I thought you liked getting headaches because of me, P'Q," he teased, poking Q's side.
"Hey, stop being so lovely, you two!" Tan suddenly exclaimed as reached out and grabbed Fang's arm, pulling him closer. "Fang and I are the only ones allowed to be this adorable, remember?"
Fang in response just slightly smiled and shook his head at his boyfriend's antics. His eyes, however, revealed how much in love he was with Tan as he rested his hand on Tan's knee.
"Alright, alright, don't try to start some absurd competition," Peem said, standing up and stretching. "I'll grab other beers. Who's up for a refill?"
A chorus of positive affirmations erupted all around the table. Peem quicky disappeared into the house and the moment he was out of earshot, Toey leaned over to Q, who was talking to Tan and Chain about something. "Hey P'Q, do you think they're finally going to tell us tonight?"
Q glanced over at Phum, who was now fidgeting with his phone. "I don't know, maybe they will" he said, his voice low enough to carry only to Toey.
After a short while Peem emerged from the house, a tray of cold beers balanced in his hands. He set them down on the table with a thud, causing the condensation to run down the bottles in rivulets. "Alright, who's next?" he asked, raising an eyebrow at Toey, who's hand was already in the air.
"Me, me, me!" Toey squealed, bouncing in his seat like a kid.
Peem chuckled, popping the cap off a beer and sliding it across the table to him. "Alright, little gremlin, don't get too excited about it," he said while leaning towards Toey to ruffle his hair.
Toey playfully swiped at Peem's hand, giggling. "Hia Peem, I'm not little!"
"You're definitely little to me," Peem retorted, his eyes gleaming with teasing affection. Then he sat down next to Phum again, who had been watching the exchange with a small smile. Phum's hand found Peem's under the table, giving it a gentle squeeze.
Then the others took the remaining bottles of beer and resumed their conversations, the chatter flowing as easily as the alcohol. Beer, who had been quietly observing his friends, took a sip of his drink and leaned back in his chair, a knowing smile playing on his lips as he watched Phum and Peem.
Tan took a swig of his beer and set it down, his eyes lighting up. "So, guys, I heard about this new escape room that just opened up downtown," he said. "It's supposed to be insanely hard. We should definitely go one of these days"
"Oh, come on, Tan," Peem groaned. "Last time we went to one of those, we were stuck in the 'easy' room for hours."
Tan grinned unabashedly. "But we did it eventually! And this one's supposed to be even better."
"Better at making us feel stupid?" Peem quipped, earning a chuckle from the whole group.
"Exactly!" Tan exclaimed, slapping the table. "But it's all about the thrill of the challenge, right?"
"You say that now," Q said with a smirk, placing his arm on Toey's shoulders, "until you're stuck in a room with a giant ticking clock and you can't figure out how to open the first lock."
Toey leaned into Q, his cheeks flushed with excitement. "But that's what makes it fun, P'Q!"
Peem looked at Toey with a knowing smile. "Yeah, but you're always the first to panic when you're under pressure."
Toey's eyes widened in protest. "I don't!"
"Oh really?" Peem raised an eyebrow. "What about that time we played hide and seek, and you couldn't find the simplest hiding spot because the countdown had made you panic?"
Toey spluttered in protest, his cheeks growing redder. "Hia Peem! That was different!"
Fang cut off Peem's teasing. "I think we should go to that escape room soon, sounds fun."
Tan's eyes lit up even more, his smile growing wider as he leaned into Fang, planting a loud kiss on his cheek. "See, my babe agrees with me," he said, his voice full of affection towards Fang.
"Well, if everyone's on board, I guess we're going to the escape room," Matt said, raising his bottle of beer in a toast.
"To us getting trapped together and hopefully not killing each other," Beer added with a laugh, clinking his bottle against the others.
As the evening grew darker, the soft hum of crickets filled the air, providing a comforting soundtrack to their conversations. The fairy lights strung around the garden cast a warm, cozy glow over the group.
Phum caught Peem's eyes and for a moment, the world around them seemed to fade away. They shared a look that spoke volumes. Peem took a deep breath and leaned back in his chair, his hand resting comfortably on Phum's leg. He took a look around the table, his heart slightly racing as he took in the faces of the people who were his second family.
Their friends were having a conversation about something Peem hadn't been paying attention to and he saw this as his cue. He suddenly cleared his throat, the sound cutting through the air like a knife. The conversation immediately died down as everyone turned their attention to him.
"Alright, guys," Perm began, his voice steady. "We've got something to tell you all."
The group fell totally silent, their eyes bouncing between Phum and Peem. Beer cocked his head to the side, a knowing smile tugging at the corner of his lips.
"Peem and I are dating," Phum announced, his voice clear and confident.
The moment the words left Phum's mouth, the garden was filled with cheers and congratulations. Beer, who had seen this coming from a mile away, smiled happy for his friends. Matt eyes grew wide with surprise, his hand shooting to cover his mouth as he looked dramatically from Phum to Peem and back again, while Tan squealed with delight, clapping his hands together.
But amidst the cacophony of happiness, Pun's shock was the most visible. As Peem spoke, Pun had just taken a sip of his beer, not expecting the revelation. When he heard it, his eyes shot open, and his mouth formed an 'O' of surprise. Before he could react, the beer came shooting out of his mouth like a fountain, landing directly on Q's face.
Q's eyes went wide with disbelief, his cheeks wet with the unexpected shower. He stared at Pun for a second, his expression a mix of shock and horror. As realization dawned, Q's features morphed into fury.
"Pun, what the hell!" Q roared, jumping to his feet and quicky grabbing a napkin. He wiped his face, glaring at his friend.
Pun's face turned from shock to horror and then to apology as he realized what he'd done. "Oh my god, I'm so sorry, Q!" he exclaimed. "It just... I didn't expect it!"
"Well, you could've just said you were surprised," Q retorted, his voice dripping with sarcasm as he finished wiping the beer from his face and sat down again. Toey and Tan were still laughing uncontrollably, while the others simply looked at Pun and Q amused.
Phum couldn't help but chuckle at the unexpected turn of events. "I guess we should've seen that coming," he murmured to Peem, who nodded in response.
"Well, we're all happy for you, guys" Chain said, drawing the group's attention away from Q and Pun. "But maybe don't do that again, Pun," he added with a chuckle, patting Pun on the back.
Matt raised his beer bottle. "Here's to the new couple," he toasted. "May your love be as strong as the locks in that escape room Tan wants us to go to."
The group chuckled and clinked their bottles together. "Well, congrats, you two," Q then said. "It's about time you told us."
Peem looked at Q, a hint of surprise in his eyes. "You knew?"
Q took a swig of his beer, the hint of a grin on his face. "Well, it wasn't exactly a well-kept secret" he said. "But I figured you'd tell us when you were ready."
Toey eagerly joined the conversation. "I also knew!" he exclaimed, bouncing in his seat. "I caught Hia Phum and Hia Peem kissing at the art exhibition!" His eyes sparkled with excitement as he shared the secret he had kept for far too long for his liking.
Tan leaned back in his chair, a knowing smile playing on his lips. "Me and Fang also had our suspicions," he said. "We caught you being two lovebirds in the kitchen of Peem's parents' house."
Phum's gaze swung to Fang, a blend of surprise and curiosity etched on his features. "So you also knew?" he asked.
Fang looked back at him, his eyes gentle. He took a sip of his drink before speaking. "Yeah, I had my suspicions even before seeing you and Peem in that situation," he said. "I'm your brother, remember? I always know when you're hiding something."
"Well, then since everyone's spilling the beans," Chain began, his voice a mix of teasing and warmth, "I might as well admit that I've known for a while too."
"What?" Peem's eyes slightly widened in surprise. "Really?"
Chain nodded, his eyes sparkling with amusement. "Yeah, I saw you two at the park," he said, taking a sip of his beer. "You were so into each other that you didn't even notice me."
Phum and Peem exchanged glances. "So, did everyone here already knew?" Peem then asked, looking around the table.
"Well, not everyone," Q said, his voice filled with sarcasm as he glanced at Pun, who was still looking kinda mortified for what happened before. "Pun surely didn't know."
"I also had no idea," Matt spoke up. "But I'm happy for you both," he added.
Mick nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I had no clue either," he said.
"Probably if you weren't always so busy playing games on your phone, you might have noticed some signs," Beer teased, nudging Mick with his elbow.
"I'm not always playing games," he protested feebly, his eyes darting to his phone lying face down on the table.
"Sure, sure," Beer said, his voice thick with sarcasm. "You're always reading ancient philosophical texts on your phone, my bad."
Mick slightly rolled his eyes at the teasing and he just took a sip of his beer understanding it was a losing battle from the start. Meanwhile, Phum and Peem looked at each other, a silent conversation passing between them as the laughter of their friends filled the night air.
"Well, it's out now," Phum then said, his hand slightly squeezing Peem's leg under the table. "I guess we don't have to sneak around anymore."
Peem grinned back at him. "I'll miss the thrill of it, though," he teased.
"Oh, I'm sure we'll find plenty of other ways to keep things interesting," Phum said, his eyes sparkling.
Peem playfully shoved Phum's shoulder. "What was that for?" Phum asked, feigning innocence.
"You know exactly what it's for," Peem replied, his eyes dancing with mischief.
Phum chuckled in response, unable to hold back his smile. Peem, watching him, couldn't help but shake his head in a mix of disbelief and affection. His gaze was soft, the corners of his eyes crinkling with the fondness that he felt for his boyfriend. The way Phum's laughter bubbled up from his chest and filled the air was infectious, and it never failed to warm Peem's heart.
Then the night simply faded into loud conversations and shared smiles. As Peem leaned back in his chair, his hand intertwined with Phum's under the table, he couldn’t help but smile. Life was unpredictable, but as long as he had these moments - with Phum and all his friends by his side - he knew it would be one hell of a journey. And amidst the lively chatter and the warmth of laughter, surrounded by those he loved most, Peem realized that sometimes the best endings are just the beginnings of something even better.