Chapter Text
A week had passed. I was thrown into more photoshoots, acting workshops, and meetings. My body ached constantly, but I pushed through it anyway. Few stayed by my side the entire time. He was kind—often bringing me food and trying to make small conversations, even though I rarely answered him.
I had just finished another workshop, but Few had to leave early because he had an exam that afternoon. It was already nearing evening, and I was starving. My manager was still stuck in a meeting, and after insisting that I could go home on my own, he reluctantly agreed. So now, here I was, leaving the company by myself.
The past few weeks felt like a blur. I never expected any of this to happen, but I also didn’t dare complain. I was happy to be part of the series. I was walking down the hallway when I heard someone call my name.
“Gems.”
I turned around, surprised to see P’ Namping. He was wearing a hoodie, sweatpants, and glasses. Judging by his outfit, it didn’t seem like he had any schedule today.
“Yes, phi?” I asked, stopping in my tracks.
He stood in front of me, barefaced and relaxed, confirming my assumption that he really didn’t have work today.
“Do you have time? Can we grab dinner?” His question caught me off guard. Weeks had passed, yet none of them had approached me about what happened during our concert.
“Yeah, I’m done with practice,” I replied. He smiled when he heard that. “Okay then, let’s go. Don’t worry, it’ll just be us.” I wasn’t sure why he felt the need to say that. Maybe he thought I would assume the others were joining us too. He led me to the parking lot, and to my surprise, he had bought his own car. It was a secret—he wanted fans to believe it was company-owned.
The entire drive was quiet. Neither of us dared to speak. I didn’t know what to say, nor did I understand why he suddenly wanted to have dinner with me. I had to admit it—the last time I ate with him, or with any of them, felt like ages ago. Their schedules had become so busy that I barely got to spend time with them anymore.
We eventually arrived at the restaurant he had chosen and were guided to our table by the hostess. He ordered for both of us, asking what I wanted first, but he had already picked all my favorite dishes, so I decided not to add anything else.
“Gems.” He called my name again to get my attention. His voice was careful, softer than his usual tone. “Do you remember when we used to eat noodles during our trainee days? We’d cook instant noodles and pretend they were expensive sushi and sashimi. Then when we drank the broth, we’d act like it was the best ramen in the world.” He smiled as he told the story, and I couldn’t help but smile too.
Back then, our company was still new. Hardly anyone knew us, and we were just high school and college students trying to chase a dream. Resources were scarce, but we held onto the hope that one day our future would be brighter.
Now, everything had changed.
“It’s been a while, hasn’t it?” he said quietly after a moment. I looked at him and nodded.
“Do you remember your birthday before? I told you that one day I’d treat you to an expensive restaurant.” He gave me a small smile. “I’m fulfilling that promise now.”
My breath hitched at his words. He remembered?
“I’ve noticed how much you’ve grown, Gems. I still remember you following us around like a lost kid. You used to fight with Teetee over the last piece of chicken, only to let him have it because you couldn’t bear seeing him upset.” I could feel my throat go dry at his words. Those were the days we had already lost. Things weren’t the same anymore. “And now, you have your own series. I hope you know how proud we are of you, Nong Gems.”
Those words…
Those were the words I had been longing to hear from them. And now that I finally heard them, tears began streaming down my face endlessly. I couldn’t stop crying. I just sat there while P’ Namping moved beside me and pulled me into a hug.
The hug I had yearned for for so long.
The hug I watched them give Teetee so effortlessly. The comfort I desperately craved whenever everything became too overwhelming.
And now, I finally had it.
I could finally feel the warmth of his embrace.
“Phi is here,” he whispered softly. “I’m here now, Nong Gems.”
I nodded because I could feel it. He really was here now.
Our food arrived shortly after, and the atmosphere between us became lighter and more comfortable. He served food onto my plate, and I couldn’t help but smile. Just like before, he still took care of me in the same gentle way.
“How’s your preparation going?” he suddenly asked, catching me off guard. I looked up at him, and when our eyes met, I realized he was waiting seriously for my answer.
“Oh… it’s been alright. I’m still not fully used to everything yet, but I think I’m adjusting well.” He nodded as though that was the answer he had been hoping for. “I’m glad you’re adjusting well. If you ever need help, just let me know. I’ll make time for you.”
His words made me pause because deep down, we both knew that wouldn’t really be possible. He couldn’t just abandon his packed schedule whenever I asked for his time.
“What about your partner? His name is Few, right?” he continued. “Is he treating you well?” At the mention of Few’s name, I felt my cheeks heat up immediately.
“Is there something you want to share?” he asked, his tone unmistakably teasing.
“He’s… he’s nice,” I answered shyly. “He takes good care of me.”
The smile on his lips only widened, as if he already knew there was more to it than that.
“Hm… alright, if you say so.”
After that, we simply continued eating, and honestly, I was grateful he didn’t push the topic any further.
When dinner ended, we wandered around the area for a while since he didn’t seem ready to go home yet. Before leaving, we stopped by a small ice cream shop at the end of the block to get dessert.
“Gems.”
P’ Namping broke the silence again, but this time, his voice carried a seriousness I wasn’t prepared for.
“Yes, phi?” There was an expression on his face that I couldn’t quite understand.
“I’m sorry for failing you,” he said softly. “I’m sorry for not noticing that you were alone. We promised to protect both you and Teetee… to look after both of you.”
He paused for a moment, but I already understood what he meant. I really did.
“We noticed Teetee’s struggles because they were familiar to us. We saw how hard things were for him because we were around him all the time.” His voice grew quieter. “But we didn’t notice you. We failed to see you, Gems.”
I could feel tears forming in my eyes again, and no matter how hard I tried to hold them back, I couldn’t. The tears came naturally, slipping down my cheeks one after another.
“I hope that from now on, we can try to change that,” he continued gently. “Only if you’ll let us, of course.”
I nodded immediately.
Of course I nodded.
Because despite everything, I still wanted them. I still missed my brothers.
“We’ll fix this, Gems,” he promised softly. “Slowly.”
I wanted to answer, but the tears made it impossible for me to speak. Still, I hoped he understood that I was willing to try too.
“P’ Namping is here now, Nong Gems.”
And just when I thought I couldn’t cry any harder, I broke down even more at those words.
My P’ Namping was here now.
And for the first time in a long while, I didn’t feel alone anymore.
After some time, we finally pulled away from each other, tears decorating both of our faces.
“Ping? Gems?”
Both of us turned toward the direction of the voice, and there he was—P’ Keng, standing only a few steps away from us. Just like P’ Namping, he was dressed casually in plain clothes.
“P’ Keng,” I called out. I could immediately see the hesitation in his eyes, but after receiving an encouraging nod from P’ Namping, he finally walked toward us.
“Nong Gems.”
A smile instinctively formed on my lips when I heard him call me that again.
“Hi, P’ Keng.” His ears instantly turned red, as if he hadn’t expected me to greet him so naturally.
“Me and Namping don’t have any schedules tomorrow,” he started nervously. “And I talked to your manager already. He said you’re free tomorrow too, so I was thinking…” He trailed off, uncertainty clear in his expression. “P’ Keng wants to ask if you’d like to have a sleepover at our condo,” P’ Namping finished for him.
I stared at them in shock.
“You two share a condo now?” They both nodded as though it was the most normal thing in the world.
“Can you keep it a secret?” P’ Namping asked carefully. “The others don’t know yet… not yet.”
That only shocked me even more. “What do you mean they don’t know?”
P’ Keng rubbed the back of his neck, a habit he only had whenever he felt shy or embarrassed.
“Yeah… well,” he mumbled awkwardly, “they don’t know that we’re dating already.”
“WHAT?!”
My voice came out much louder than intended, startling both of them. Their faces turned even redder than before.
“And… I’m the only one who knows?”
They nodded simultaneously.
“But why me?” The two of them exchanged a glance before smiling softly at each other.
“Because you were the one who pushed me to confess to Namping during our first concert.” The realization hit me harder than I expected.
“P’ Keng, why are you being distant from P’ Namping?”
It was during our soundcheck, and I couldn’t help noticing the way P’ Keng had been acting around him. Usually, he was always by P’ Namping’s side, teasing him or playing around with him. But now, he was sitting alone in a corner while P’ Namping laughed with P’ Kong and P’ First.
“Gems…” P’ Keng hesitated for a moment before speaking again. “What would you do if you fell in love with your best friend, but you weren’t sure if they felt the same way?”
The question caught me completely off guard. I never expected something like that to come from him.
“I would tell them,” I answered honestly.
His expression clearly asked for more, making me chuckle softly. P’ Keng had always been easy to read.
“Telling someone you like them without knowing if they’ll return your feelings can only lead to two outcomes,” I continued. “Either the friendship changes forever… or you spend the rest of your life wondering what could’ve happened if you had confessed.” He stayed quiet, listening carefully.
“So you just have to choose,” I said. “Do you want to live with unanswered questions, or do you want to take the risk? Personally, I’d choose the second option. Even if things become awkward at first, there’s still a chance to remain friends once the feelings fade. But feelings that are never confessed…” I smiled lightly at him. “Those are the ones that stay with you forever.”
When I looked back at him, I saw determination settle in his eyes, and that was when I realized something.
“I think the feelings between you and P’ Namping are mutual.”
His face instantly filled with shock, but I only laughed softly before leaving him alone with his thoughts.
Back in the present, I stared at both of them with wide eyes.
“So… I was right?” They nodded at the same time.
“Oh my god, I’m so happy for you both!” I practically squealed. “Okay, I’ll come to the sleepover, but we are not sleeping until you tell me every single detail, understood?”
The two of them looked at each other, grinning so hard it was almost embarrassing.
“Okay!” they answered in unison.
I walked between them as P’ Keng led us back to the car we had used earlier. I couldn’t stop smiling. Just knowing that my two phis were in love and officially together already filled me with happiness. And on top of that, they were even living together now.
When we arrived at their condo, it looked exactly the way I imagined it would.
Every corner reflected both of their personalities. P’ Keng’s love for football was visible everywhere, while P’ Namping filled the place with soft, cute decorations. They were complete opposites, yet somehow everything blended together perfectly.
“Take a seat, Gems,” P’ Keng said as he dropped onto the sofa. “I already ordered food, so it should arrive soon.”
As I looked around the living room, something suddenly caught my eye. Among the countless framed photos, one particular picture made my chest warm.
“Oh, you saw it?” P’ Keng asked. I nodded slowly, my eyes still fixed on the frame.
“It sucked that we couldn’t attend your first day at university,” he explained. “But we saw the picture from your fansite, so we decided to print it and put it there.”
It was a photo of me on my first day at Chula. I was standing proudly in front of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine building, smiling brighter than I remembered. Back then, none of them had come because I was told they were all busy with schedules.
“You know which faculty I belong to?” I asked quietly. Both of them nodded immediately.
“Of course we do,” P’ Namping answered. My brows furrowed. “You didn’t know that we knew?” P’ Keng asked, looking confused when I slowly shook my head.
“But, Gems…” he started, only for P’ Namping to continue for him. “We sent you congratulatory flowers that day, Gems. P’ Tle even prepared a gift for you. But after that, we never heard anything from your side.”
My breath caught in my throat.
Slowly, I shook my head again.
“I didn’t receive anything, phi,” I whispered. “I was alone that day. I kept waiting for messages from all of you, but nothing came. Then they told me you were all busy with schedules, so none of you could come.”
The expressions on their faces immediately shifted into shock.
“Busy with schedules?” P’ Namping repeated in disbelief. “Gems, we were told that you wanted it to stay private. They said you didn’t want us there because it would attract too much attention.”
“Your manager told us that,” P’ Keng added quietly. And suddenly, everything started falling apart inside my head.
Because I knew they were telling the truth. Which meant the one who lied to all of us was—
The company.