Chapter Text
Paris was beautiful, undoubtedly, even more beautiful with Phuwin’s presence gracing the streets. A couple times he would walk around just in his own company, no managers, no cameras, no staff. Phuwin was grateful that his fame allowed him to travel far for such prestigious events, but he was just as grateful that his fame was not too overwhelming, that he could enjoy peaceful moments like these without locals batting an eyelid. It was a point in his life that he never expected to feel so tranquil, yet everything felt so right, so in place. Phuwin could happily say that he was content.
Yet, when he walked the drizzly streets of Paris, he had to hold the umbrella himself, find directions himself, wipe raindrops off his face himself. He was now aware of what was missing, now realising why he couldn’t fully enjoy these strolls like he usually would. Phuwin now knew that he left half of himself back in Thailand too.
~
It was already quite late in France, verging on 10pm and the sunset had well passed by then, he didn’t realise how long he must’ve been walking as it seemed his thoughts kept him well occupied. Phuwin was soggy, damp, and tired, he knew he should probably go for a shower yet he couldn’t face the idea of getting undressed in the cold atmosphere or putting effort into washing his hair properly. He wasn’t dirty, just a little wet from the rain that decided to grow heavier as he walked back. Phuwin couldn’t care less if he caught a cold right now, he just wanted to get on that plane and go back home. Don’t get me wrong, he was enjoying the Paris trip more than anything, but it was as if there was a strange magnet in Bangkok, always pulling him back no matter what.
Eventually getting out of his day clothes, Phuwin collapsed onto the hotel bed, the duvet enveloping his spent body. He felt weird travelling so far for an event by himself, but he guessed it was because of the break of the usual pattern of their couple events.
“ Couple ”
Suddenly now that’s all that Phuwin could think of. He reached into his pocket, still laying down as he pulled out his phone, immediately unlocking it and heading to Google Translate.
“ Couple ” He typed, translating the word into French.
“ Couple ” It read back to him. Phuwin pressed the speaker button, hearing how the word sounded on foreign tongue. It sounded soft and eloquent, from a foreigner’s perspective, and it sounded more romantic than he intended it to be
“ Couple ” Phuwin repeated, imitating the accent of the translate speaker and doing an alright job of it. He wondered how the french may see that word, how other languages perceive the notion of a “couple”. He didn’t even know at this point. Yet his friend always seemed to come to mind first any time he heard the word. It was normal for him to assume that him and Pond were a couple, right? But under what circumstances? Work? Friendship? Could friends be a couple?
Phuwin groaned and shoved his face into the blankets. He had a tendency to overthink, but now when he was tired and cold, he really didn’t want to wear his brain out even more. He crawled into bed properly, using the duvet as a shield from the cold, he pulled it right up to his cheek. The boy opened his phone, knowing it wouldn’t take long for him to fall asleep if he began scrolling on TikTok. But somehow, a well-timed notification popped up before he had the chance to scroll any further.
“ What time is it there? ” Read a message from a LINE contact very familiar to Phuwin.
Phuwin’s heart stopped for a moment, wondering whether it was the sudden brightness of the notification or the name that popped up that made him react. He also wondered how the fuck Pond always shows up just when he’s thinking of him. It’s the type of stuff that happens to the characters he plays, and he doesn’t like it.
It throws him off completely.
“ 10pm “
Phuwin bit his lip as he typed, knowing the person on the other side of the screen was watching him type. Now he was cautious of how long he typed each letter, not to be too uninterested to type slow but also not too quick to seem eager to reply. Though he was. He was eager. He began typing again.
“ Isn’t it late in Krung Thep? “
To his surprise, the other person replied straight away, and it took him off guard a little.
“ Not too late🤏 “
Lies. Utter bullshit. It was 3am in Bangkok and Phuwin already knew that, so he didn’t really know why he asked.
“ It is late, idiot ”
The soft skin of Phuwin’s hands that was cold a minute ago was now suddenly hot and clammy. His finger prints were visible on the screen and his case began slipping out of his grip as he held it with one hand. He was just messaging his fucking friend. The weather in Paris must’ve really given him a cold.
“ Not too late na.
Missing u bro. “
Phuwin stared at the screen for a moment. His mind went blank and suddenly he had no appropriate ideas of how to respond. He had to be quick though, he knew the other person could already see the ‘read’ at the side of the message. He had a million things to say. Especially after Pond had just read his mind yet again. He missed him. He wanted to tell him. Could he tell him? No. Yes. Obviously not? Absolutely yes?
“ Go to sleep. It’s late. “
Phuwin placed his phone on the pillow next to him, face down so he couldn’t see any notifications, if there even was one. He turned his flushed body to the side, facing away from the device as if Pond was laying right there beside him. His hand moved to pull the duvet down, his body now craving the coolness he was just trying to hide from. His body was hot. He was tired. He knew he could have said something different. Yet he couldn’t help but shy away from whatever this feeling was. Why was he awkward around his best friend now? Why was he acting stupid? Maybe spending too much time by himself had caused him to think a little too hard, and the sudden change of climate probably had an effect on his head. It was probably better to fall asleep and forget about any of this happening.
Yeah.
~
The sun streamed through the hotel blinds and hit his face, if it was any other day he would have let the rays seep into his skin and absorb the warmth, but he was still in Paris, and he woke up to the worst headache ever. Phuwin groaned as he clutched onto his head, tugging at his hair slightly as if that would ease the pain. His body felt as if he had poisoned himself with dozens of shots the night before, but it was only a few text messages that messed up his body this badly.
He knew that. And he felt like a fucking loser. So worked up over nothing.
Not only did he feel achy with a pounding head, but he somehow managed to catch a fever as well from the drizzly French weather that he’s not used to. The sun that brightened the room now became a burden to him, heating his shivery yet clammy body. Like I said, Phuwin loved France, but he loved his home even more, and he was missing it more than ever as he lay alone in a breezy hotel room. Phuwin thought about how Pond loved the cold weather in Europe, how he would probably enjoy doing what he was doing, walking around with 4 layers and a jacket, using the heating, seeing your breath as mist in front of you.
Wait. Why was he even thinking about Pond again?
Phuwin sighed and turned his head to see his phone still face down on the pillow. Hesitatantly, he reached his arm out to take it and turn it around to look at the screen. The screen turned on. Messages from his mum. Messages from Fourth. No message from Pond.
Right.
He did kind of shut him off last night, right? Was he overthinking it all? Did Pond fall asleep? Phuwin didn’t even check the messages from his mum, just threw his phone back on the pillow and held his head again as he felt it pound against his skull.
It was currently 8:12 and his flight was at 11, suddenly that’s all he could think about. He knew the 12 hour flight would feel like hell, but it was less hellish knowing that there was somebody waiting for him at the end of the journey.
~
Pond knew that the flight would be tiring, that Phuwin would be majorly jet lagged, he knew that he wouldn’t have the energy to do anything together when he got back, but Pond would get to see his face, and that was enough for him.
A week without Phuwin around made Pond realise how much of an impact he had on his daily life. He didn’t have anyone to pick up after events, he lacked company for an occasional dinner and his condo also felt quieter than usual. Instead, he filled his free time with visiting family and hanging out with a few friends he hadn’t seen recently. Yet still, time seemed to stop when Phuwin was away, and Pond had only began to realise that.
It threw him off. Completely.
He had sent a message the previous night, not wanting to seem desperate for attention but also not wanting to seem as if he wasn’t thinking about Phuwin while he was away on work duties. Phuwin responded just as he thought he would, with that subtle sharpness that would force Pond’s head out of the clouds and back to reality. It was almost like a reality check, something along the lines of “It’s late and i’m away, just go to sleep”. Pond didn’t mind it though, any form of communication whilst separate would give him that little serotonin boost he needed whilst waiting for Phuwin to return home. He felt like a domestic wife waiting for her husband to return home after a long day of work. They were close, undoubtedly, but Pond wondered if he was becoming too serious about it. He really took that “couple” title to the heart, but perhaps that was just how he was.
The morning sun was shining once again in Bangkok, the rays caressing the bare skin of Pond’s torso as he stretched out of his slumber. The rainy season was finally over, and the clear skies that were visible out of Pond’s condo’s windows were just the beginning he needed for his day. Pond grinned stupidly to himself, imagining Phuwin’s face lighting up when he would see Pond waiting by his car in the airport car park. Though he wouldn’t be picking him up for quite a while yet, that was just the motivation he needed to push himself out of bed. With a stupid smile on his face, he threw the duvet off of his body and swung his legs to the side of the bed, a certain joy and excitement gracing his every movement.
It wasn’t long. Wasn’t long at all.