Chapter Text
Pat had an engineering degree, with honours; he graduated summa cum laude. He was the best in his field. The youngest professor to grace the university, and is soon to be a Doctorate once he finishes his PhD. He had two masters, and all kinds of students looked for him for advice, even though he hadn’t even reached thirty.
But it was his trusty mechanic skills that he learned when he was sixteen that got him to that point. Not the university, or his diplomas, Pat was proud of something else entirely. Someone to be more specific, and that someone was walking into the room right at that second.
He smiled brightly when he saw Pran walk up to him right when his students started walking out.
“Hey,” he greeted him as he started picking up his things. But Pran placed a hand on his shoulder and made him lean in to kiss him.
“You know, every time I see you working, I just imagine what it would’ve been like if I had you in as one of my teachers back in uni…” Pran mumbled against his lips and threaded his fingers through his hair. Pat chuckled and looked back at the door, making sure that all of the students were gone. But it was a senior class, so most of them didn’t really care about staying behind. “My structural science teacher was an asshole. You would’ve been much better.”
“I wouldn’t be able to teach a class with you between the students, you’d distract me,” Pat teased him and leaned in for another kiss. “And you took structural science?”
“Yeah, of course. I’m an architect, remember?”
“Right, I keep forgetting we would’ve been enemies.”
Pran snorted and rolled his eyes as he took a step back so Pat could finish packing his stuff.
“I don’t think I could be capable of hating you.”
“Really? You don’t think we could’ve had a nice Enemies-to-lovers backstory?
“I would’ve been pretending, ‘cause the second I saw you, even with an engineering uniform, I would’ve thought of ways to get it off of you,” Pran teased him and poked his side. Pat let out a loud laugh and turned to look at him.
“Well, not much difference to how it went, right?” He said as he slung his bag over his shoulder and wrapped an arm around his waist to bring him closer. “Let’s go, I’m starving.”
Pat could recall the day he met Pran like it was yesterday. He didn’t have to talk about his degree, or his family or anything that didn’t matter to him like all those dates his mother had set him up on. He just needed those trusty old mechanic skills.
He slowed down his car and squinted his eyes when he thought he saw something. It was dark, at night, and it was pouring rain. But there it was, someone on the side of the road, with the hood of the car open, clearly trying to fix it.
He stopped his car right behind him and got out. He didn’t have his emergency lights on, so it was really dangerous. He couldn’t leave him there.
“Do you need help?!” Pat yelled and walked up to the guy trying to fix his car, he had to yell because the pouring rain was too loud for them to hear each other, and cars were zooming by.
“I’m fine!” The guy yelled, back, still buried under the hood of his car.
“This is way too dangerous! It’s too dark and the roads are slippery! You could—”
“I said I’m—!” The guy started to yell and finally looked up at him, but he stopped when he saw him. Pat smiled. They were both soaking wet by now and the guy hesitated for a moment before he spoke. “You said you could help?”
“Yeah. Yes, I can. What’s wrong?”
“I don’t know! It just started making this weird noise and I had to stop but it won’t turn on anymore!” He exclaimed and moved his hair out of his face in frustration.
“Okay, okay, calm down,” Pat said and took a step forward to place his hands on his shoulders, the guy turned to look at him, he had the cutest dimples Pat had ever seen in his life. They were showing as he bit his lip in frustration. He didn’t know if he’d been crying before he got there or if it was just the rain, but he still looked beautiful. “I’ll fix it, okay? Just get back in the car. You’re freezing,” he said as he rubbed his arms, trying to bring some warmth back.
“Okay,” Dimples mumbled and nodded slowly, not breaking eye contact until Pat smiled at him and gestured for him to get back in his car. He’d need him there anyway to try to turn the car on whenever he fixed it.
He got back in the car and Pat immediately assessed the damage. It took him all of ten minutes to fix the problem, he brought down the hood and gestured to Dimples so he could turn on the car. When he did and the engine roared alive, they both exclaimed in excitement. Dimples tried to get out of the car to thank him, but Pat made a gesture so he could stay inside since it was still pouring.
He went to the passenger seat and asked him to lower the window. Instead of doing that, Dimples leaned in and opened the door so he could get in. Pat sighed as he sat down and closed the door behind him. He could see him more clearly now with the car light on; he was still as handsome as when he first saw him in the pouring rain.
“I can’t thank you enough—”
“Pat,” he introduced himself with a smile. “It’s fine, it wasn’t a big deal. Just tricky if you’re not handy with cars.”
“You’re a mechanic?”
“Used to be, when I was a teenager,” he explained calmly. “Sorry, you didn’t tell me your name.”
“Oh, right, sorry, I’m Pran,” he replied with that beautiful dimpled smile he had. “I’d been trying to fix it for an hour.”
“Next time, just call someone. It’s really dangerous to be out here when the roads are slippery and it’s dark; someone could hit you and you didn’t have your lights on. I left mine on so people would see that you’re parked here.”
“Right, of course, why didn’t I think of that? I was— Sorry, I called someone, but they said they’d be here in like two hours and I didn’t want to wait that long.”
“Somewhere to be?”
“No just…” Pran chuckled and lowered his head. “I’m starving… And I kinda need to use the bathroom.”
Pat laughed and nodded.
“Well, uh… There’s a gas station a mile ahead,” he told him and saw Pran nodding in acknowledgement, he probably had been trying to fix his car so he could at least get to the gas station. He bit his lip before he took a leap of faith. “And… I have a couple of take-out boxes in my car. I was going to eat them by myself when I got home, but… Do you wanna share?”
Pran looked up at him and it took him a couple of seconds to answer. They were both still soaking wet and it was a stupid proposition; they should just get home and get changed, they were cold and the food was probably cold too. But Pat couldn’t take his eyes off of him and he didn’t want to let him go just yet. Apparently, Pran was just as crazy as he was.
“I’d love to.”
He followed Pran’s car to the gas station, where they both went in and Pat bought a couple of drinks while Pran went to the bathroom. They ended up eating his take-out food in Pat’s car as they conversed and got to know each other. Even though they’d only just met, the conversation flowed easily and Pat didn’t feel like he was performing, like he always was with his previous dates. His cheeks hurt from how much he was smiling and laughing. And he only wanted to make Pran smile too so he could see his dimples.
He definitely wasn’t just imagining the chemistry, because it was Pran the one that leaned in to kiss him first. Thirty minutes after they finished eating, because they couldn’t stop talking. Their clothes were still damp and their hair wet, but neither of them wanted to leave. They made out for what felt like hours and had the most mind-blowing sex ever in the backseat of Pat’s car. Thankfully, he’d cleaned it the week prior, but Pran didn’t seem to mind, he only had eyes for him. Those beautiful eyes.
Two years later, Pat was still entranced by Pran’s eyes every time he looked at him and he couldn’t believe how lucky he’d been to stop on the road just to help a stranger.
“You know,” Pran started to say, mouth full, before he swallowed and continued talking. “You could order your own food,” he said after Pat stole one of his dumplings.
“But I’m full.”
“You ate everything! Leave my food alone,” Pran told him and stabbed him on his hand with his chopticks when Pat tried to reach for another dumpling. Pat faked being hurt by that and they both chuckled. He’d been stealing Pran’s food for two years now and they never got tired of having that conversation. Pran was a slow eater and Pat wasn’t, so he always stole from Pran’s plate when he was done, even though he said he was full.
“Listen, you remember I told you about Wai’s wedding, right?”
“Yeah, of course,” Pat said as he looked down, trying to see which dumpling he would steal from Pran.
“I was thinking… Maybe you could come with me to the wedding as my plus one?” He said and Pat stopped what he was doing to look up at him in disbelief.
“I thought you said you’d be too busy with Best Man activities to bring me along.”
“I wasn’t lying, okay? Wai’s wedding is gonna be big and I’m supposed to be there for him. But I thought about it and… We’ve been dating for two years, maybe it’s time you meet my family, right? I met yours.”
Pat gulped, the way Pran always talked about his mother scared him. He knew the moment would come, but he didn’t know if he was ready for that yet.
“You’re sure it will be fine?”
“Yes, of course. Don’t worry about it, it’s the perfect opportunity. Everyone will be too distracted by the wedding to pay attention to us.”
“Well, then, I’d love to go,” Pat replied with a smile. “If you give me that dumpling you have right there,” he said and pointed at one of the dumplings in his soup.
Pran snorted and picked it up with his chopsticks. Pat raised his to grab it but Pran snatched it back. He squinted his eyes at him and opened his mouth, gesturing for him to do the same. Pat smiled and opened his mouth wide so Pran could feed it to him.
“So now you’ll come?” Pran asked while Pat chewed. He smiled brightly and nodded his head, knowing that Pran hated it when he spoke with his mouth full.
He’d taken so many trips with Pran, he loved having a weekend getaway and he thought the wedding would be the perfect opportunity to have some more time alone with Pran. They usually took his car to go to the beach, they’d found a little village that they loved and the locals loved them, so it was their special place to be whenever they wanted to get away from everything.
“Aren’t you nervous?” Paa asked him while Pat was packing his luggage. She was lying on his bed while she played with one of Pat’s old rugby balls.
“I mean, he met you, and Mom and Dad. And that went well, you guys love him.”
“Yeah, but it’s you this time. Pran is amazing, what’s not to love. And you’re… You.”
“Okay, thanks, I love you too…” Pat said as he snorted. “What’s not to love about me? I’m a successful college professor, the youngest in my field. I am working on my PhD, my students and my mentors love me and I go to the gym four times a week. I’m a great catch.”
“Your academics and your body are not the things that’re going to appeal Pran’s family.”
“I think that’s exactly what they’re going to like. Pran said his mother is a very strict woman and she always pushed him to get the best grades; she really cares about this kind of stuff.”
“Well, don’t ruin it then.”
“Ruin it how?”
“Like you always do! You know, don’t accidentally spill any food on anybody, or pick your nose when you think nobody’s looking. Be a gentleman.”
“I’m always a gentleman when it comes to Pran.”
“Until you tease him. It’s endearing at first and then it gets tiring, but it won’t be endearing if you do it in front of his parents, they’ll think you’re annoying him.”
“I’ll try not to do that, thanks for the advice,” Pat said as he closed his luggage.
“Are you gonna ask him there?” Paa asked excitedly and jumped up from the bed.
“We’re going to a wedding. It’s a little bit rude to ask someone to marry you at someone else’s wedding, right?”
“You never know, Pat! What if you find the perfect moment? This is when you gotta start carrying it around all the time, for when the moment strikes,” she said and walked to his closet to pull out the ring box that she help him buy.
“I have the perfect moment already.”
“Oh really? Your little Zero Waste Village? I’ve been there, it’s not as great as you two make it sound. Definitely not romantic enough for a marriage proposal.”
“It is to us!” Pat exclaimed and chuckled. “It’s where we ended up when our car broke down on our way to the beach. Which is similar to how we met, okay? Broken-down cars are kind of our thing. And it’s where I first told him I loved him.”
“And he said it back, I know, I know. But this is Singapore, okay? And you’re meeting his family, you can ask for their blessing!”
“Why does it matter? Same-sex marriage is only legal here. Singapore doesn’t matter, Pran doesn’t even want to go back.”
“It’s where he was born, okay? His mom may be Thai, but he’s not Thai at heart, you know? I’ve met him, he’s very… Singaporean.”
“You’re just saying that because he has better manners than us.”
“And he speaks like a thousand languages. He has a British accent, Pat! I’ve heard him speak English.”
“He also speaks perfect Thai. He loves Thailand.”
“Do you know why he has a British accent?” Paa asked, ignoring him. “Because he went to a British boarding school! They’re not like us! They are going to see right through you the moment you step in with your shorts and your flip-flops.”
“Well, I am not gonna wear that. And what’s wrong with my flip-flops? Pran wears them too.”
“Everyone wears them… Here. You are going to Singapore, with his family, who probably dress in Gucci and Prada… Actually, I feel like they might dress in brands that are so exclusive we might not even know them.”
“Pran doesn’t care about that type of stuff…”
“But they probably do. And you want to impress them. Pran already loves you, he doesn’t care if you’re wearing anything. I think he may like it more. But his family’s something else, you need to try to blend in, okay? You’re like a Thai walking stereotype. Did you brush up on your English? Or your Mandarin? Like I told you to.”
“I did, but it doesn’t even matter because Pran’s grandma speaks Cantonese. He told me the other day.”
“God, he is so far out of your league, I don’t even know how you two are together.”
“Because Pran doesn’t care about any of that, okay? He loves me, and he’s going to say yes when I ask him. At the village, at the beach.”
“Did you have sex on that beach or something?” Paa asked and rolled her eyes, she gasped when she saw Pat’s expression. “God, you did!”
“That’s none of your business! Listen, everything is going to be fine. His parents are going to love me, and we’re going to get married, fail at adopting a kid and settle for a cat instead, and then we’re gonna live happily ever after.”
“Come on, Pat, that’s not going to happen,” she said and crossed her arms over her chest. Pat whipped his head up and gave her a confused frown. “Of course they’re going to let you adopt a kid!” She exclaimed and made Pat let out a relieved sigh.
“Okay, I gotta go. Pran is downstairs with the cab,” he said when he saw Pran’s text.
“I can use your car until you’re back, right?” Paa asked as she got up. Pat, instead of answering, he reached into his pocket and grabbed his car keys to throw them at her. She smiled brightly and grabbed them in the air.
“Thanks! Good luck with Pran’s family!”
“Thank you,” Pat mumbled, still a little nervous.
It was also their first trip outside of the country together, so they’d never taken a plane. Pat had always been a road trip kind of guy and Pran loved it too. They took a cab to the airport and as Pat was taking out their luggage, someone came in and helped him.
“Oh, it’s fine, don’t—”
“Khun Parakul, you can just head on inside, we’ll handle these,” a woman who was dressed like she worked at the airline told them.
“Uhm, we don’t—”
“Come on,” Pran said before he spoke again and grabbed his hand to pull him into the building.
Pat dropped his jaw when he saw their seats on the plane, he’d never flown first class and he didn’t even imagine that it looked this fancy.
“I didn’t even know they had first class for flights this short…” Pat mumbled, it was only a three-hour flight.
“They have first class for everything,” Pran said casually as he sat down.
“We can’t afford this, Pran.”
“Pat, just go with it. My family does business with the airline; the tickets are just a perk, don’t worry.”
Pat sighed and sat down next to him, closing the door they had on their two seats.
“I knew you were well off, but not this well off.”
“Just… You know, comfortable.”
“That’s exactly what someone rich would say…” Pat mumbled as he chuckled.
“Well, it’s not like you’re poor, Pat. I’ve met your parents and I’ve seen your house.”
“I’ve definitely never flown first class, that’s for sure,” Pat joked as he put on his seatbelt. Pran chuckled.
“Let’s just enjoy it, yeah?” Pran mumbled and cupped his cheek to make him lean in and give him a kiss.
“Yeah, Wai’s going to steal you away from me as soon as we get there, right?”
“He told me he would invite you to everything, don’t worry, but some of his friends there are planning some surprises that I don’t know about and he doesn’t either, so… Maybe not that, but you have Korn, right?”
“Yeah, I can’t wait to see him. It’s been so long,” Pat replied happily. Korn was a friend from college who had moved back to Singapore with his family and he hadn’t seen him since graduation.
He snapped his head up when he saw that they had lowered the lights on the plane, so he frowned.
“It’s just a three-hour flight…” He whispered.
“Yeah, and it’s ten p.m, and with the delay we’ll get there at almost one a.m. These, turn into beds, so I’m taking a nap,” Pran said and pressed a button that made his chair go down. Pat looked to his side and pressed the same button. Their seats were so close that it almost turned it into a bed.
“You can’t take a nap,” Pat said suddenly and turned to look at him.
“Why not?” Pran asked and opened his eyes to look at him.
“Well, Pran…” Pat whispered and placed his hand on Pran’s hip to bring him closer. “I think this is the perfect moment for us to join the Mile High Club, what do you say?”
“Pat, there are people around…”
“We’ll have to be very quiet,” he whispered against his lips before he brought him into a deep kiss. It didn’t take too much convincing before Pran stripped him of his clothes.
But it only meant that Pran was yawning as soon as they got off the flight because he hadn’t had his nap.
“I swear you’re like a baby,” Pat mumbled and kissed his cheek.
“I would be sleeping by now if we were home…” He whispered and tried to wake himself up.
“You weren’t saying that back on the plane…” Pat teased him and wrapped his arm around him as they walked. “Mh, Pat… You’re so good…” He moaned, mocking Pran, who snorted and rolled his eyes.
“I did not—! I don’t sound like that!”
“Oh, well, it was more like…” Pat said and moaned with his lips closed, like Pran had done back there, trying to keep his volume down. Pran let out a loud laugh and shook his head.
“Pran!”
They both snapped their head up when they heard someone call for him.
“Pran!”
Pran smiled when he saw two people running up to them, a guy and a girl. The girl immediately jumped into his arms.
“God, we missed you!” She exclaimed as she squeezed him into a hug.
“Never be gone this long, okay?” The guy said and brought him into a hug too.
“God, I didn’t go to war, it’s a three-hour flight, you could’ve visited too!” Pran exclaimed when they stopped hugging him. They both immediately turned to look at Pat, which Pran noticed. “Uh, guys, this is Pat. Pat, my friends, Ink and Wai.”
“Wow, it’s so nice to finally meet you. He talks about you non-stop,” Ink said and brought him into a hug, which surprised him.
“Nice to meet you,” Wai said and extended his hand, which Pat took with a smile.
“Congratulations on the wedding, by the way,” he said as he looked at both of them, they frowned until they realised the confusion.
“Oh, no, no, I’m not the bride!” Ink exclaimed immediately and they all started laughing. “He wishes.”
“Hey!” Wai said in an offended tone.
“No, he’s marrying the most annoying girl in the whole of Thailand. Mandy, we don’t even know how that happened, so don’t ask,” she explained, Pat turned to look at Wai and he simply rolled his eyes.
“Are you guys hungry? Let’s go eat something.” He asked, trying to drive the attention away from the wedding topic.
“Actually, he’s—” Pat started to say but Pran was faster.
“Yeah, I’m starving,” he said and they started to walk out of the airport.
Pat placed a hand on his shoulders to bring him closer.
“Honey, you’re tired, and it’s late, we should just go to the hotel,” Pat whispered and Pran shook his head.
“It’s fine, it’s his wedding. I told him I was gonna be there for him. Plus, I am hungry, and you’re gonna love the food, I promise.”
“Okay,” Pat mumbled and kissed his forehead before they put their luggage in Wai’s car.
Pat wondered what place could be open at that time in the night, but they ended up going somewhere where there were a lot of street food vendors still open. Pran caught up with his friends, telling them all about Thailand and his life there and they updated him on all the gossip from the people he knew in Singapore, the people he grew up with. They were really nice and the food was amazing, Pran wasn’t lying. But he wasn’t surprised when Pran fell asleep as soon as they got back in the car, cuddling up to him and resting his cheek on his shoulder before he started snoring lightly.
“He’s out, isn’t he?” Wai asked and looked at the backseat, he was driving.
“Like a light. I’m surprised he’s lasted this long,” he said as he chuckled and ran his fingers through his hair, knowing that nothing would wake him up.
“We used to share a room in boarding school, you know? He was always the first one to snore.”
“Yeah, but he’s very awake when he wants to be,” Pat joked and they both laughed.
“So, Pat, you’re a college professor, right? What do you teach?”
“Uh… A few courses in Engineering.”
“You’re an engineer?”
“Yeah, well… Not a full engineer yet, I’m working on my PhD.”
“But you graduated already, and did a master’s to enter a PhD program, right? Don’t try to be humble, you’re an engineer.”
“You should brag here, you know? It’s what they want to hear,” Ink joked and looked over her seat with a smile. “How long have you two been dating?”
“Oh, just over two years.”
“What? Two years?” Wai asked, baffled. Pran gave him a confused look.
“Yeah… Why?”
“No, sorry, it’s just… We thought it was more recent.”
“Really? I thought he talked about me non-stop,” he recalled as he chuckled.
“Well, yeah, but only to tell us that he’s not coming. We don’t know much about you,” Ink explained. “He’s always all— ‘I can’t come for Christmas because Pat is taking me on a trip’ or… ‘It’s Pat’s sister’s birthday and he’s throwing a surprise party’. All good things, don’t worry. We don’t mind, because we know he’s very happy with you. But, just be warned… Not everyone is that happy over Pran being gone for so long.”
“I— Yeah, I’m not surprised, honestly. I keep telling him he should at least come back to see his mom, but he’s too busy with work.”
“Do you guys live together? Since you’ve been dating for two years…”
“No, we don’t… I share a flat with my sister, and Pran has an apartment in the city centre. But if I’m being honest I spend so much time at his place we might aswell move in together.”
“You share an apartment with your sister?”
“Yeah, we get along really well and we used to share in college so it wasn’t a problem for us. She’s been having trouble finding a job in her field since she graduated so we’re just living together for now.”
“That’s so nice of you, Pat.”
Wai stopped the car and he noticed that they were already at the hotel, so he shook Pran gently to wake him up. Someone took their bags up to their room so he didn’t even have to take them out of the car. Pat was starting to see that Pran was a little wealthier than he’d initially thought.
The bed was so comfortable, he only woke up when he heard someone knocking on their bedroom door. Pran was already awake, because of course he was, so he went and opened the door. He opened his eyes again when he felt Pran sitting down next to him and he smiled immediately when he saw he’d ordered room service.
“Mh, what time is it?” He groaned and buried his face against his pillow.
“Ten,” Pran replied and ran his fingers through his hair to wake him up slowly. “I bought breakfast before they closed the kitchen. Sorry, I didn’t want to wake you up.”
“How do you always wake up so early? You only slept like half an hour more than me in the car…” Pat mumbled and turned to look up at him. Pran only shrugged in response.
“I have somewhere to be… I have the fitting for the suit, you know? You’ll be fine on your own, right?”
“Yeah, don’t worry, go have fun with your Best Man duties. I’m meeting Korn later for lunch at his place anyway.”
Pran smiled and leaned down to kiss him. Pat wrapped his arms around his shoulders and opened his mouth into the kiss, not letting him get back up.
“Don’t forget, tonight, it’s my mom’s party, okay? Don’t be late,” Pran reminded him between kisses.
“Stop worrying, Pran, it’s gonna be fine,” he mumbled before kissing him again. “You still have time before leaving, right?” He whispered as he trailed his hand into his t-shirt.
“Pat, I just showered…” Pran tried to stop him.
“So?” Pat whispered and grabbed him by the hips so he could get on top of him, sitting on his lap. Pran let out a giggle. “We can shower again, together.”
“Pat, seriously. I have to get ready…”
“Quick one. Have you seen this room? This hotel, Pran, this is amazing. If it were up to me, we would stay here the whole trip.”
“It’s not that—”
“Don’t even say it’s not that impressive, because it is. I think this is the nicest hotel I’ve ever been to,” Pat mumbled as he kissed up his neck. “Why aren’t we staying with your parents? I thought it would be nice, you know? To go back home, like a good son.”
“I just thought it would be a better idea to have our own space, don’t worry about it. Weren’t we in the middle of something?” He asked and leaned down to kiss him, Pat let out a laugh before he started kissing him back.
Pat never thought about the way he dressed; he always thought his clothes were pretty decent; he wasn’t stylish, but it was passable. That was until he set foot in Singapore. He watched everyone through the cab’s window. He was surprised by everything, but what surprised him the most was the house that the cab driver stopped in front of. He looked down at his phone to check that he was in the right place before he paid him and got out.
As soon as the fence started opening, Korn walked out of the mansion that he seemed to live in.
“Pat!” He greeted him with arms open and a huge smile. “Dude, it’s been so long!”
“Yeah, I missed you bro. How have you been? Clearly, very well,” he pointed at the house with his chin as they walked over to the door.
“Oh, dude. Don’t even mention it okay?”
“Why didn’t you tell me you were rich?”
“This is new, alright? My parents just made some good investments, that’s it. I’m the same guy, don’t worry.”
“Okay,” Pat said as he chuckled and they walked into the house. He greeted Korn’s family and they sat down for dinner. His little sister was there, along with his parents and his auntie and his little cousins. They all seemed really excited to see him, since Korn and Pat spent four years together in university. They hadn’t seen each other in a few years, but talking to him felt like no time had passed.
“So, what finally brought you to visit me, huh? My parents were starting to think I made you up with all of our cool stories from uni.”
“I came here with my boyfriend. He’s the best man at his best friend’s wedding and he brought me along. And I’m meeting his family too,” Pat replied casually as he ate.
“Oh, it’s serious then,” Korn’s mom said with a smile. “How long have you two been together?”
“A little over two years,” he replied.
“Wow, two years? And you’re meeting his parents now? You should learn something from him, Korn. And stop bringing home girls that we’re never going to see again.”
“Dad…” Korn mumbled and rolled his eyes.
“We just haven’t had the time to make the trip. He’s both really busy. But he’s met my family already,” Pat tried to give him a hand and Korn smiled at him.
“What’s his name?” Korn’s mom asked.
“Pran,” Pat replied casually and he looked up slowly when he heard a couple of them drop their cutlery and freeze. “What?” He asked, a little taken aback by the reaction.
“Pran?” Korn asked, looking baffled. “You’re dating Pran Parakul?”
“Uh, yeah. You know him?”
“Are you kidding? Everyone knows him.”
“What?”
“Well, we don’t— I don’t know him personally, of course. But everyone knows of him. He’s like royalty around here.”
“Seriously?”
“Yes! How could you not tell me that you’re dating Pran Parakul?!”
“He’s just Pran to me,” Pat said as he shrugged.
“Wait, so he’s back?” Korn’s sister, May, said, surprised, and reached for her phone to start typing.
“Well, no… We just came here for the wedding.”
“Oh my God, you’re going to Wai and Mandy’s wedding!” Korn’s mom exclaimed.
“You know them too?”
“Pat, that’s like the event of the year, here. Everyone wants an invitation.”
“I heard they’re spending like forty million on it,” Korn’s auntie commented and Pat’s eyes bulged out of his skull.
“Forty— What?” He asked, baffled.
“What are they like?” Korn’s little sister asked. “Have you met Wai? He’s so handsome, shame he’s getting married.”
“May,” Korn warned him. “But yeah, I’m kinda curious, what are they like?”
“Well, I haven’t met Pran’s family yet. I’m going to his grandma’s house tonight.”
“You’re not going dressed like that, are you?” May asked and looked him up and down. He looked down at his clothes, having a deja vu of Paa, maybe all little sisters were the same.
“Wha– What’s wrong with my clothes?” He asked, he was wearing a simple white shirt and a pair of jeans with white sneakers, he thought he looked fine.
“No, yeah, she’s right, you can’t wear that. Come with me, we’ll find something.”
He followed Korn up to his room, a little confused by the reaction. Korn was never the kind of guy who cared about clothes, so he didn’t think he’d agree with his sister.
“Is it really that big of a deal?” He asked when they walked into Korn’s closet, which was massive.
“Yes, Pat. I don’t even know how you managed to bag Pran, seriously. He is so far out of your league…” Korn said and opened one of the closets to take out a jacket and a pair of pants.
“Why do people keep saying that? We love each other.”
“I’m sure you do. Now you want his parents to love you too, right? And you’re not gonna do that dressed like that.”
“Pran has never cared about this type of stuff. Are you sure his family will too?”
“Yes, Pat. They’re like… I wasn’t kidding when I said that they’re like royalty here, okay? Pran’s family practically built this whole city from the ground up, back when there was nothing around here. If you think this is rich, you haven’t seen really rich. He’s old money rich,” Korn explained and pointed at his house.
“Yeah but his mom is Thai, right? She grew up in Thailand; she might not care about that type of stuff. Maybe she understands me. She's been in my position before."
“I don’t know dude… I haven’t met the woman, but if she’s been here for this long and lived to tell the tale… Then you shouldn’t count on it.”
“Come on, we’ve been dating for two years now. It’s not like this is going to change us. I know him like the back of my hand. He’s the love of my life.”
“Those are some big words right there,” he said and gave him a pair of shoes after picking up all of his clothes.
“Well…” Pat reached into his back pocket and pulled out the box ring that Paa had forced him to take. Korn gasped.
“Dude!” He exclaimed and Pat opened it to show him the box. “Oh my God! Congratulations!”
“Well, he hasn’t said yes yet, so don’t get too excited. And I’m not going to ask him yet,” he said and put the box back in his pocket. “We’re going somewhere when we go back, a little village that we like. I’m gonna ask him there.”
“You think he’s gonna say yes?”
“I mean, I hope so,” Pat replied as he chuckled.
“Well, now you really have to impress his family,” he said and placed a hand on his shoulder reassuringly and gave him the suit jacket.
Korn offered to drive him, but Pat knew it was because he wanted to see where Pran’s family lived. It was good that he was there with him in the car, because their previous conversation just gave him a whole bunch of new stress that he didn’t even have. He kept thinking about what he would say to Pran’s parents when he met them and if they would like him. He fixed his jacket like a thousand times on the way. Korn lent him a dark green suit with a black shirt and Pat had left the two top buttons open. The shoes were killing him and the suit was a little tight for him, but he’d never worn anything that felt that luxurious, so he wasn’t complaining.
At some point he thought they got lost because it looked like they were in the middle of nowhere. But someone came up to the car and asked for their names. They opened the fence and Korn drove up to the house. House was a complete understatement and mansion would be too, that was a whole estate. Pat looked up at the building and his jaw dropped in awe. Who the hell had he been dating?
Someone opened the car door for him and he got out, he was too taken aback by the sight of the house, but he immediately zeroed in on Pran, who was walking up to him with a smile on his face.
“What are you wearing?” Pran whispered as he leaned close to him and placed a hand on his lower back. Pat panicked for a second, thinking that he’d done something wrong. “And why haven’t I seen you in that before?” Pat chuckled when he recognised the lust in Pran’s eyes, he chuckled.
“Just a suit Korn lent me, he said I wasn’t dressed for the occasion.”
“Well, I hope he’s not too fond of it…”
“Why? You want me to keep it?” Pat asked with an eyebrow raised.
“No, I’m gonna rip it off of you tonight.”
Pran leaned in to kiss him again but they heard someone clear their throat in the car.
“Right, uh— Pran, this is my friend Korn.”
“Hi, it’s nice to meet you,” Pran greeted him and leaned down to look at him. “Thank you for driving, do you wanna stay for dinner?”
“No, I wouldn’t want to impose…”
“It’s no problem, really.”
“Okay, yeah, I could stay for dinner,” Korn finally agreed and got out of the car.
Pat placed a hand on Pran’s hip to bring him closer; he was also wearing a suit, but his was light blue. Pran had always been very well dressed, but he never made him dress up, so he understood why he didn’t tell him about the dress code; he probably just wanted him to be himself. Pran was eating him up with his eyes. Maybe he could start wearing more of that stuff if it meant that Pran was going to look at him like that.
“Okay, let’s go,” Korn said with a garment bag over his shoulder.
“Korn, you have a suit in your trunk?” Pat asked, a little baffled.
“What? You never know.”
Pran snorted and hooked his arm around Pat’s so they could walk in. The place was filled, so Pat was sure that it wasn’t just Pran’s family.
“You can change upstairs, last door on the left.”
“Okay, thank you,” Korn said with a smile before he went up the stairs.
“He’s funny,” Pran commented as he watched him leave, but Pat wasn’t paying attention.
“Why do I feel like everyone’s looking at me?” He whispered and leaned closer to Pran.
“Because you look amazing in that suit,” Pran said casually. “Don’t even worry about them, okay? Come, I want you to meet my mom.” He pulled him along and Pat gasped.
“N-now? Okay,” he mumbled and gulped.
They walked into the kitchen and Pat was a little overwhelmed with the number of workers walking around, cooking and putting things on platters to serve them to the guests. Between all of them, he saw a well-dressed woman giving everyone orders in Mandarin.
“Mom,” Pran called her attention and she turned to look at him with a smile.
“Pran, honey,” she said and brought him into a hug. “It’s been so long, I missed you,” she took a step back and placed her hands on his cheeks. “You’re so skinny! What do they feed you there in Thailand?”
“Mom, I’m fine, don’t worry. I’ve just been going to the gym…”
“You? You hate that.”
“Well, I–” He smiled and looked back at Pat. “I have some encouragement. Uhm… Mom, I wanted you to meet my boyfriend, Pat.”
“It’s very nice to meet you,” Pat said and wai’d, not thinking too much of it since she was also Thai.
“Pat, hi, it’s nice to meet you too. Thanks for coming all this way.”
“Oh, it’s nothing, I wanted to meet Pran’s parents.”
“Well, I’m really sorry, but Pran’s dad had to go away to Shanghai for some business so he’s not going to be here.”
“When duty calls,” Pran said with a smile.
“So, Pat, tell me about you. What do you do?” She asked after she turned to one of the workers and told them something a little too quickly for Pat to understand. He was at least glad that they could speak in his mother tongue.
“I’m a college professor in the Engineering faculty,” he replied calmly while he saw her still trying to keep everything in order in the kitchen.
“Wow, Engineering, very impressive. I’m sure your parents are proud.”
“They are, yeah… Well, my dad always wanted me to take over the family business. But after I graduated, I started teaching part-time while I helped him with the business and I realised that’s what I wanted to do. He was a little upset, but he came around to the idea and he’s really supportive now,” he explained with a smile and Dissaya nodded.
“That’s interesting. What kind of business do they have?”
“Oh, just a little shop in our neighbourhood. We sell construction supplies.”
“That’s good, and you are… Only teaching?”
“No, I’m working on my PhD right now.”
“Very nice, I like academic people,” she said with a smile and Pat smiled brightly. “But you know, I think family always comes first. Right, Pran? I mean, but it’s good that your family supports you. Parents should be there for their sons all the time. Do you have any siblings?”
“Uh, yeah, I have a little sister, Paa.”
“I met her, she’s so sweet,” Pran said, trying to bring down the tension.
“You met his family already?”
“It was— It was casual, mom, don’t worry. I mean, he doesn’t have a family throwing these types of parties every week or away on business, you know? Easy to meet,” he said with a smile. Dissaya looked at him and shook her head.
“Very funny,” she told him as she pinched his cheek. “Well, you guys should go out there, meet the rest of the family, right? Pat, it was very nice to meet you, I’ll see you out there.”
“It was nice meeting you too,” Pat replied and turned around as Pran hooked his arm on his elbow. “She hates me,” Pat whispered as they walked out, Pran chuckled.
“She just takes a little more effort to get to know, don’t worry,” Pran calmed him down and squeezed his hands. “Come on, let’s meet the rest of the family.”
Pat nodded, and followed Pran, trying to calm down and be a little bit more confident. But talking to Pran’s mom didn’t help him in the slightest. He was so nervous that he’d never been more awful at giving a first impression. He tried to speak English but they actually laughed at his accent. He mixed up the water that was used to wash his fingers for drinking water, he bumped into someone when he was looking up at the chandelier, and he mistook Pran’s old nanny for his grandma.
“This is— Pran, I think I should just go, this is really bad,” Pat lamented as they walked into another room with less people.
“It wasn’t that bad, barely anyone noticed, don’t worry,” Pran assured him and placed a hand on his back.
“Pat, did you push Miss Lin? Isn’t she like a hundred years old?” Korn asked him and Pat buried his face between his hands.
“I didn’t push her, I bumped into her and I already apologised, she’s fine,” he mumbled against his hands and rested his elbows on the counter.
“Okay, have a drink, you need it,” Pran said and grabbed a glass of wine for him.
“Okay, Pran, you should’ve prepared me for all of this. Why didn’t you tell me I had to behave like I was meeting the queen of England?” He asked and grabbed the glass of wine that Pran was offering him.
“Because I wanted you to just be yourself. Relax, okay? You’re just nervous, I know you’re very charming when you want to be.”
“You can’t just put all your trust into my charms,” Pat said and accidentally moved his hand a little too roughly, spilling some of his drink on Pran’s shirt, which was white and he was drinking red wine. “Oh God,” Pat mumbled and reached for a napkin.
“It’s fine,” Pran started to say as he chuckled.
“Okay, go, go change, I’ll keep him company,” Wai said suddenly as he walked up to them and ushered him away from there. Pat sighed and shook his head once Pran was out of sight.
“Someone please kill me.”
“Dude, what’s wrong with you? Weren’t you the one who convinced Mr Lay to change finals to an assignment only with your charms?” Korn asked and slapped him on the shoulder.
“I don’t know! Meeting Pran’s mom didn’t go very well and I’m… Really out of my element here. It’s making me nervous.”
“I find that in these situations it’s better to just be a little tipsy,” Wai told him and offered him a glass of martini instead of wine. “And this one doesn’t stain.”
“Thank you,” Pat said and almost chugged the whole thing. He looked over at Korn when he hit him in the shin. “Oh, right, this is my friend Korn.”
“Hi, nice to meet you,” Wai said and turned to look at him.
“Thanks for not being a dick to Pat. I swear he’s only the endearing type of weird once you get to know him,” Korn joked and Wai chuckled lightly.
“Dude, you’re definitely the weirder one,” Pat protested but Korn ignored.
“So, a forty-million-dollar wedding, she must be special, right?”
“Don’t even mention it. Her family’s paying for the whole thing, she wants her wedding to be remembered. I honestly… Don’t care about that type of stuff.”
“Well, the bride always has the last word, right? Although I wouldn’t know, I think I’ve run off more girls than I can remember. And some guys, but you can’t marry those, right? Pat and Pran are smarter than us.” Wai let out a laugh, and Pat clicked his tongue. “Right, well, not here. I hear you can marry in Thailand now, right?”
“Yeah, one more reason for my parents to bug my sister about not having a girlfriend yet and a ring on her finger. Believe it or not, ever since I started dating Pran, the only thing they want is for my sister to settle too. I kinda feel bad for her.”
“Why didn’t you tell her to come? A wedding is the perfect place to meet somebody.”
“Are you trying to get an invitation?” Pat teased him.
“I would never. This is for your sister,” Korn joked and faked innocence. Wai laughed loudly next to them, clearly enjoying their banter. “Come on, look at this, they throw a party for anything. I think she would thrive here.”
“What is this party for anyway?” Pat asked as he looked around.
“Tan Hua,” Wai replied and they turned to look at him. “Pran’s grandma is very into flowers, and the Tan Hua flowers only bloom for six hours during the night before they wither away. She invites everyone to see them bloom every year.”
“Wow…” Pat mumbled, impressed by the party motive.
“Yeah, I guess rich people always have an excuse to party, right?” Korn joked and Wai chuckled.
“Pat!” They all turned and Pat smiled when he saw Ink walking up to them. “Hi, you made it. You look amazing, everyone’s talking about you,” she said as she hugged him.
“I know, I think I’ve never been more embarrassed in my life…”
“What are you talking about? They’re talking about you. About how amazing you look in that suit.”
“Oh, thanks, that was all me,” Korn said suddenly.
“Yeah, which is why it’s so tight. Dude, what happened? We used to share clothes.”
“Well, captain of the rugby team, you continued going to the gym and I didn’t. You have someone to impress and I don’t.”
“Isn’t it usually the other way around? When you’re single, you go to the gym so you can impress people and when you’re not you let yourself go because you have no one to impress?” Pat said and Korn rolled his eyes.
“Pat, please. You have everyone to impress.”
“Well, I think you did a good job at it,” Ink said and placed a hand on his shoulder. “And I’m glad you’re here. Pran looks… Very happy with you.”
“He’s just happy to be home,” Pat replied easily and Ink and Wai shook their heads.
“Trust me, we’ve never seen him like this,” Wai assured him.
Pat wanted to say something but that’s when they heard a loud gong and everyone was called into the greenhouse to see the flowers bloom. He walked alongside Ink while Korn and Wai walked behind them and talked. Once they got to the greenhouse, he noticed that there was a bunch of people gathered around someone.
“That is Pran’s grandma,” Ink explained and Pat smiled when he saw her. He could tell everyone was happy to see her. Suddenly, he felt a pair of hands around his waist.
“There you are,” Pran said and he smiled when he turned to see him. “Ready to meet my grandma?”
“Are you sure? I mean, there’s so many people that seem to want to talk to her…”
“Yeah, but she’s my grandma. And she wants to meet you.”
“You told her about me?”
“Of course I did,” Pran replied and chuckled.
“Is your grandma…?” He started to say and turned to look at Pran, who frowned at him. “You know, cool with the fact that you’re… Dating a guy?” Pran immediately snorted.
“Oh my God, yes. Pat, don’t even worry about it. I came out when I was a kid, I knew exactly what I wanted, and my grandma has always supported me. Everyone has.”
“Okay, great, just checking. Since you said she was so… Conservative.”
“Yeah, on other things. She still wants me to marry and settle down, inherit the family business.”
“Family business? Pran, this is an empire.” Pran chuckled and shook his head.
“Let’s not talk about that, okay? Just shake off the nerves and let’s go talk to her. It’s gonna be fine, she’s gonna love you,” Pran assured him and Pat ended up nodding as he followed him along.
He watched as everyone moved away to let him talk to his grandma. They started talking in Cantonese, so Pat couldn’t tell what was being said, but she looked very happy to see him. She pinched his cheeks and squeezed him into a hug. At the end of the day, she was just a grandma, and Pat used to have one of those. He heard his name between all the words in Cantonese and Pran’s grandma turned to give him a big smile before she said something that he didn’t understand.
“Ah ma, he doesn’t speak Cantonese,” Pran said, this time in Mandarin, so Pat could understand.
“Mandarin?” she asked and looked up at him with a smile.
“Yes, I do,” he said with a smile and approached her. He hoped he didn’t sound too much like a foreigner. But talking to Chinese clients for those two years he still worked for his dad helped him a lot. “It’s very nice to meet you, thank you for inviting me to your home,” he said and wai’d out of habit, it was a bit too formal for them, but he was used to it and she smiled like she liked it.
“You are very tall, come sit down with me,” she told him and gestured for him to sit down on the bench next to her. “I always made Pran eat all of his food so he could grow very tall, and he still managed to find someone taller.”
“Well, you always told me to find someone to look up to, right?” Pran joked and they all laughed. Pat didn’t miss the way in which Dissaya didn’t even crack a smile.
“Ah, you are handsome too. This way I can see your face up close,” she said when he sat down next to her and Pat smiled. “You have beautiful eyes.”
“Thank you.”
“Very kind eyes. They are the window to the soul. It’s a good trait to be kind, Pat,” she said and Pat nodded with a smile, a little overwhelmed by her kind words.
“Thank you, I try to be.”
“Look, it’s in full bloom!” Someone exclaimed and they all turned to look at the Tan Huas, which were opening up.
He felt Pran’s hand on his shoulder and he immediately brought his hand up to place it on top of his.
“They’re beautiful, don’t you think?” Pran’s grandma asked and Pat looked up at Pran with a soft smile on his face. He was admiring the flowers but he couldn’t look away from Pran.
“Yeah, they are,” Pat agreed, glad that Pran’s grandma was the only person who was actually being nice to him.
Pran looked down at him and gave him a reassuring smile and a squeeze on his shoulder. Having him by his side made him believe that maybe, everything was going to be fine.