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“You punks think you can keep picking on our Uni’s juniors?” Forth crossed his arms and tilted his head. Although his stance was casual, his eyes were lit in fury. “Just because you’ve gone up a year doesn’t mean our juniors don’t have seniors to look after them either.”
“You talk so big, I wonder if all you’ve got is a big mouth,” the opposing Engineering student said. “Everyone says Forth Jamornhum is so tough. I just see a scared man running his mouth.”
Forth spread his arms wide. His fellow Engineering students from his university tensed in anticipation. “Such a bold second year. But I would be a bad senior if I didn’t help educate you.”
The opposing student charged and Forth moved to start swinging but both found themselves pushed apart by steady hands. “That’s enough,” Kongpob said calmly. Although he had clearly run, he was only a little out of breath. Kongpob turned to the second year. “So, it was you bullying M University’s Engineering students, N’Kay. I should have guessed.”
Kay scoffed. “M Uni’s students started it! They-” Kay’s mouth clicked shut as he took in the thunderous expressions of both Forth and Kongpob and he looked down at the ground. “Yes. It was me.”
Kongpob’s frown deepened. “Why.”
Kay kicked at the ground. “One of them started dating a girl I like at GM Uni.” Kay looked up and pointed at the Engineers from M Uni. “Why can’t they just pick up girls at their own school? Don’t you have enough people over there instead of poaching people from our school?!”
Forth crossed his arms again and completely ignored Kay. “What kind of ship are you running over there, Kong?”
Kongpob sighed. “I’m sorry P’Forth. I’m still transitioning to being a head hazer. I’ll make sure to discipline these juniors.” Kongpob turned to the second years. “And all of you had better head back to campus. Such a poor representation of our Uni can’t be tolerated. Aim will make sure you carry out your punishment.”
“You’re leaving them to N’Aim? He’s too soft,” Forth argued. “Better make it N’Tew.”
“You think Ai Tew is harsher than Ai Aim? P’Forth, your brains are getting old,” Kongpob teased. “Fine, we’ll split the difference. I’ll tell Wad to do it.”
Forth laughed. “That’s the same as giving no punishment at all!” Forth thought about it for a moment. “Oh, I know. Ask N’Oak to do it.”
“P’, that’s so evil,” Kongpob said thoughtfully. The juniors began to sweat. “Okay, I’ll let him oversee the punishment.”
Kay and the other juniors fell to their knees. “P’Kongpob! Please have mercy! Not P’Oak! We’ll just do double what P’Tew says!”
“Do you swear on your gears,” Kongpob asked with a smile on his face.
“We swear!”
Kongpob jerked his head. “Get out of here. I’m texting Tew now.” As the students ran off, Kongpob tapped out a quick text to Tew about the situation. “Still can’t apologize enough, P’Forth. Sorry for the trouble,” Kongpob said while giving a wai.
Forth waved his hand. “It’s okay. I’m just glad you dealt with it. Just keep a better eye on them. I’ve got to start my internship soon, you know.”
“Oh about that,” Kongpob checked his other texts. “Do you want me to pick up P’Beam from his internship at the hospital? I’ve got to go in that direction to pick up P’Arthit anyway…”
“Oh could you?” Forth waved his friends off before pulling out his phone. “I have to go submit some last minute paperwork for my internship before I can meet up with everyone.” Forth frowned at the screen. “They still haven’t even decided where to meet up yet?”
“Yeah… Ai Tin keeps complaining about the food from the last place.”
“The point isn’t the food, it’s the drinks. Who cares about food as long as we have N’Pharm around?”
“P’Dean will complain if you keep asking N’Pharm to cater all our hangouts.”
“But he keeps offering?!”
------
In the cooking club kitchen, Pharm placed another delicate row of sliced vegetables on his tray of prepared ingredients. The neatly arranged and colorful display was then immediately ruined by Team snatching several pieces off of it.
“Ai Team!” Pharm jerked in Team’s direction and Team, to his credit, leaned back. Pharm was often gentle, but there was no messing with him when he held a kitchen knife aloft. “That’s for everyone! Stop eating all the ingredients!”
“But I’m so hungry! I haven’t eaten yet after practice because we’re meeting up with the gang soon.” Team tried to pout but Pharm had learned Dean’s cool stare and Team shivered on reflex. “Can’t you just feed me something small? Before we meet everyone? Plus I’m driving you there! You have to be nice to me!”
Pharm carefully selected a piece of ginger before smashing it with the flat of his knife. Team gulped. “Check the fridge behind you.”
Team turned around and opened the fridge to find a brown paper bag labeled with his name on it. “You are a saint,” Team said as he pulled the bag out. “I will die for you.”
“P’Win will be very upset with you if you keep saying that.”
“Win can-”
“Be right behind you. Hi N’Pharm.” Win slid an arm around Team’s shoulder while snatching the bag from him. “You were going to share with me, weren’t you?”
“Hia…” Team hissed as he tried to reach for the bag. “I’m starving. Besides, aren’t you supposed to be at work?”
Win continued to hold it just out of reach. Pharm ignored them in favor of continuing to prepare food and snacks. “I left early. I promised Dean I’d pick you guys up.”
“Huh? I thought I was driving Pharm and I to the place we’re meeting up.” Team made a particularly pitiful face and Win finally sighed and gave him the bag of food. He was, in turn, rewarded with a bite of the sandwich Pharm had made for Team.
“P’Win, I think you’re supposed to pick up Yo and Ming,” Pharm said as he started to boil something on the stove. “Ming has his car in for repairs right now.”
“I thought Pete was picking them up?”
“Which Pete?”
“Angry Pete.”
Pharm paused. “Didn’t P’Pete say he was only coming directly from work with P’Kao?”
Win frowned, took another bite of the offered sandwich half from Team, and pulled out his phone to begin texting.
------
“Who stole my after practice cookies? Do you want to run laps?” The entire soccer team except for Good and Ae scattered as Can yelled after opening his locker. “You freshman are getting too bold! I’m going to run you all ragged next time!”
“You know you were worse than them, right?” Ae asked as he got changed into his casual clothes he’d brought with him that day.
“Yeah, but I never stole food from P’No. I just asked him for it!” Can kicked the bench and then swore and jumped from hurting his toe.
“What about… That one time…”
“Good, that was an act of desperation! I, Can Kirakorn, am a noble man who doesn’t steal!”
“But don’t you say you stole Tin’s heart?” Pete said with a small giggle as he entered the locker room.
Can covered his chest with his jersey. “Ai Pete! You can’t just walk in here like-”
“He’s a boy, Ai Can. He can enter the men’s locker room all he wants.” Ae walked over and rubbed the tip of his nose against Pete’s before kissing him on the cheek. “Hi. Missed you.”
“Ae…” Pete’s cheeks still turned a bit pink from Ae’s affections even after a year or so together. “We saw each other for lunch.”
“That was hours ago.”
“Well, get changed quickly. I’ll still have to swing around to pick up P’Pha and P’Kit from their internships.”
Ae frowned. “P’Pha doesn’t need us to pick him up. P’Kit has his car, doesn’t he?”
“Apparently Ming borrowed it.”
“Eh?” Can finally pulled his head through the collar of his t-shirt. “But Ai Tin said Ming was banned from borrowing P’Kit’s car because he keeps leaving chocolate stains in it.”
Pete made a face and Good blinked. “Well… I guess he persuaded him this time.”
“Can we please hurry this up,” Tin said as he walked into the locker room. “I don’t have all evening to sort out these logistics.”
“Tin!” Can ran and jumped. Without blinking Tin opened his arms, caught Can and allowed him to latch on like a monkey, before turning around and walking away while Can rambled in his ear.
Ae and Pete looked to Good. “Don’t ask me.”
Ae looked at Pete and raised an eyebrow. Pete pursed his lips. “If Ae really wants to carry me to the car…” Ae turned around and pat one of his shoulders. Pete laughed and moved forward to accept the offer.
------
Pha reached for the last chart in his stack only for Beam to place five more on top. Beam only smiled despite Pha’s glare. “Come on boss, you know I can’t keep Kongpob and P’Arthit waiting since they’re picking me up.”
“And what about me?” Pha pulled his last chart out from under the five Beam had put on top of it. “Kit and I are getting picked up by N’Pete.”
“Kit has his car.”
“Ming borrowed it.”
“So why is Win picking up Yo and Ming?”
“Win is supposed to pick up N’Pharm and N’Team,” Kit announced as he flopped into the chair next to Pha, picked up the top chart from Beam’s stack, and made a face. “Your notes are atrocious today.”
“You would find your handwriting deteriorating too when you’ve been acting more like a scribe than an intern all day.” Beam massaged his wrist. “Still can’t believe pediatrics is that understaffed that we don’t even have med scribes.”
Pha tossed his last chart to the side. “N’Team has his car today. Win should be picking up someone else.”
“So what about P’Pete and P’Kao,” Kit said as he reached for another chart. “They’re just coming in on their own?”
“P’Pete refuses to pick up anyone else but P’Kao,” Beam said as he checked his phone. “On account of how everyone else is too out of the way for the place we picked, which is now… The bar a few blocks down from here?”
“What? Then why do we need to be picked up? Let’s just walk,” Pha said as he finally reached for one of the charts in Beam’s stack. “Tell everyone else we don’t need a ride.”
“N’Kong and P’Arthit are already on their way here,” Beam replied.
“So tell them to just go straight to the bar and we’ll walk. Easy. Then we can sort out rides home from there.”
“P’Pha!” Yo shuffled up to the desk. “P’Kit! P’Beam! I’m here to pick you all up.”
“N’Yo? When did you get a car?” Kit asked as he stood up and stretched.
“I asked my dad to lend me a driver today,” Yo said without blinking while Pha came up behind him to pull him into a hug. “So I got the big van too. We should get going, the bar is far away.”
“You had your dad send a driver from where he lives two hours away, just so you could take us to the bar, which is just a few blocks away?” Beam raised his eyebrows. “You really are too rich, N’Yo.”
“Eh? The bar isn’t a few blocks away. Tin said to go to some other one near RT Uni.” Yo showed Beam the message on his phone.
“This kid… making plans outside of the group chats….”
“Ming’s waiting for us in the van, let’s go!”
Kit pulled on Yo’s arm. “Did Ming…”
“He sent the car to get cleaned and detailed, just like you asked, P’!”
Kit sighed. “At last, he listens to me. Now if only he’d stop making a mess in my car with all that chocolate he eats.”
“But what about N’Kong and P’Arthit?” Beam asked.
Pha checked his phone. “Do they even know the bar changed?”
Yo slapped his forehead. “Oh, I should have told Ai Kong that I was coming to get you.”
------
“Did you have to be so rude to everyone,” Kao asked as he got in the car. Pete scowled at his phone as the group chat moved as fast as ever. “Why did you say you were only going to drive us to the meet up spot?”
“We work the farthest out from everyone. We’d end up having to double back!”
“Are you saying you can’t afford the gas?”
“Aren’t you the one who told me to stop relying on my dad’s money?”
Kao pressed a kiss to Pete’s cheek. “So you have learned something, huh?”
Pete pointed to his other cheek. “Kiss this one too.”
Kao motioned for Pete to turn his head and Pete did so. Kao moved closer and his lips hovered over Pete’s cheek as he said, “Only if you promise to be nicer to our friends.”
“Hey! I’m already nice to our friends!”
“All our friends.”
Pete grumbled but nodded and Kao gave him the second kiss. Pete pointed at his lips next. “Here too?”
“I don’t think you can afford that one right now.”
“Ai Kao, you’re on thin ice!”
“Get us to the bar on time and I’ll think about it,” Kao said with a smile.
“They’ve switched the bar three times already!”
“All the more reason for you to get driving.” Kao leaned back into his seat and made himself comfortable after buckling the seatbelt.
------
“It should not be this hard to get eighteen adults together in one spot,” Arthit grumbled as Kongpob took another turn. “We should all have proper communication skills at this point.”
“P’Ai’Oon… You’re the last person who should be talking about communication issues,” Kongpob said while glancing at his boyfriend out of the corner of his eye.
“I’m not as bad as they are!”
“You still talk to me like you’re head hazer when you don’t want to talk about your emotions.”
“0062!” Arthit shouted as his cheeks turned pink.
“You also do that when you’re embarrassed.”
“Don’t make me-”
“Are you going to make me run laps?” Kongpob’s eyes sparkled. “You know that really gets me going when you try to keep hazing me just like-”
Arthit slapped a hand over Kongpob’s mouth. “Horny bastard.”
Kongpob’s expression changed to a pout. “P’, that’s not fair! You’re just as guilty last time!”
“Who told you to- To- Argh!” Arthit crossed his arms and huffed. Despite his angry expression, his face had turned even pinker. “We agreed to not talk about it again!”
“But P’, we really have to talk about it. You really enjoyed it so we should-”
“We. Will. Not. Speak. Of. It.” Arthit jerked his head. “The light is green, get driving.”
------
“This is it right?” Ming asked as he got out of the van. “We’re not getting back in and going somewhere else?”
“We had better not,” Dean said as he got out of his own car. “If someone changes the bar again, I’m picking up Pharm and leaving.”
“I’m here!” Pharm shouted as he ran over, laiden with bags of food. “P’Dean! Can you help me with these?”
Dean easily took all the bags from Pharm while shooting a look at Win. “What did I do? Your boyfriend refused to let me pick up any of them!”
“You can come out now, Kitkat,” Ming said as he helped Kit out of the van. “I think it’s safe now.”
“Getting drinks is too big of a hassle. Can we just go home and have a pizza?”
“If that’s what P’Kit wants to do, I’ll call us a cab right now!”
“Don’t you dare,” Arthit said as he stormed up. “You lot have made us run circles around the entire city already. If you try to run away, I’ll make you do one hundred squats.”
“Are you all still fighting out here?” Kao held open the door to the bar. “Come on, they finally got a table together big enough for all of us. And they said they were okay with Pharm’s food since they only serve drinks here.”
“P’Kao, you’re a miracle worker,” Yo said as he stepped out, Pha not far behind. “See, P’Pha? You should have just asked nicely.”
“If you’d have just let me rent out the entire first bar we went to-”
“It’s too short notice! That’s so rude!”
“Does anyone hate how Pha and Yo are so disgustingly rich they can actually talk about spending money like that,” Team asked as Win tugged him into the bar.
“I’m almost that rich, Team,” Win teased. “Should I rent out an entire restaurant for our anniversary?”
“Hia, please don’t do that.”
“But you have no problem telling me to buy you a new game console?”
“There’s a difference in magnitude! Magnitude!”
“Wow, you said magnitude. Those lessons with P’Kao really paid off, huh?” Team only slapped Win’s arm before stalking off to join everyone else at the table.
------
“Are we all present and accounted for?” Pete Phubodin asked as he handed out drinks. “Ai Kao, N’Tin, N’Can, N’Peach, N’Ae…” He paused as he was handing one to Pharm. “I swear, you still don’t look like you should be drinking, N’Pharm.”
“He really shouldn’t,” Dean said, but he took the drink from Pete Phubodin and gave it to Pharm anyway. “Don’t drink too much. We don’t need a repeat of last time.”
“What are you talking about? Last time was great!” Can said, already in danger of spilling his drink were it not for Tin’s timely shift of Can’s arms. “Pharm is so much less nervous when he’s drunk. Come on, drink up, drink up!”
Forth moved to pour more liquor into Pharm’s drink and Beam stopped him. “Don’t you encourage him. I’m not patching you up if you get into a fight with P’Dean.”
Forth leaned back in shock. “Hubby, are you saying you think I’d lose?”
“I think you’re both going to end up in the hospital and I’m not an official doctor yet, so don’t test me.”
Dean looked at Pharm. “Do you think I’d lose?”
“I think we all lose if you and P’Forth get into a fight, P’Dean.”
Dean kissed Pharm’s temple. “Well spoken.”
“We are all present,” Pete Pitchaya said happily from his place next to Ae after passing out the last of the drinks. “Let’s get started. Kongpob, would you like to do the honors this time?”
“To another get together,” Kongpob said, looking around at the group. “Good food, good friends, and a good time. Cheers!”
Everyone tapped their glasses together, took their first drink, and so began their assorted chaos.
The bar owners watched wearily at the gang of eighteen men, wondering if the stories they’d heard from the other bars about how rowdy they sometimes got were true. If they were, it was easy enough to follow suit like the other bars and ban them.