Archive of Our Own

Don't get him wrong, Por absolutely loved his job. While it had felt like quite a change from his idol training days back when he started, he grew into loving the airport and airplane almost as much as he loved singing and dancing. Applying to become cabin crew at DMD airlines had felt like a shot in the dark back then, but nowadays it felt like something fate had brought him to.

He was good at it too; the whole being a cabin crew spiel. He was a slow but dedicated learner, always had been, so procures and safety regulations got drilled into his head repeatedly and stayed there, always relevant and easy to fall back onto. He was good with people too, not only pleasing passengers by giving them a smile and the best service, also his coworkers appreciated having Por on their crew for the flight.

He was hard working, detail oriented, friendly, extremely pretty to look at, and always ready to help. All in all, Por had received many compliments and opportunities in this job and had reflectively grown from staying in the back galley all flight to business class, to going long haul, reacher senior flight attendant status within only 3 years. Now, 5 years into his new career, he was thriving as Purser and flew out every other night to random locations all over the world, managing his crew with a smile and never-ending energy.

Okay, no. That last part was a lie. A really fat stinking lie because, why yes, Por liked to be lazy. He loved to sleep. In fact, any flight attendant that says they don't love sleep more than life itself is probably lying because being cabin crew is, frankly, extremely tiring, while also fulfilling, and thus that's the reason Por taught himself early how to appear hard-working while actually just being smart on how to do things, and know when not to do other things.

Por really loved his job, but it was also extremely tiring and wrecking on the body. Still, the job, the coworkers, the planes, the airports, the passengers, even the eternal tiredness and dry eyes that came with it; he thrived in it.

Gone was Por the idol trainee. Here was Por the Purser, ambitious, beautiful, perfect, and always exhausted.

"Bro! You're awake already!" The shout seemed to come out of nowhere, making Por jump at the sound. It was a natural reaction for him, somehow always easy to spook, even when his best friend sat down in the chair next to him, plopping down two plates filled up to the brim with breakfast. Por himself had eyed the breakfast spread at the hotel, grabbed some pancakes with strawberries, and kept it at that. Auau, for his part, had gathered enough food to feed an army.

Por smiled at his friend in greeting, picking up the cup of coffee and gesturing to it. "I sure don't feel like I'm awake."

"Still stuck in the dream that is the aviation lifestyle?" Auau laughed at his own inside joke. Back when Por decided he had enough of being an idol, Auau had been the one to suggest applying for cabin crew at DMD airlines. He'd known Auau for years at that point, both having trained under the same company, and having grown tired of all the wasted oppurtinies.

By a miracle, they both got accepted and started their training together. The rest was history.

They weren't often put together on a shift, and Por had really enjoyed yesterdays out flight together with his best friend.

Por watched the rest of the crew make its way to the breakfast spread, all of them slowly waking up after a late flight. The fact everyone was already down was a miracle. Probably because it had been so busy yesterday that none of them had had a proper chance to eat their meals and prepared snacks, and now they were all starving.

"Living the dream," Por eventually settled for an answer, and started on his pancakes. Following his example, Auau attacked his own plates with definitely more enthusiasm. He went on to talk about everything he was eating, commenting what was good, what wasn't, what he should get seconds of, and Por was actually taking mental notes while mostly humming because perhaps he would be taking a second helping for himself after all.

Eventually the rest of the crew joined their table. Not all of them, some of them prefering their solitute, but the more loud bunch found them easily. Save sat down in front of Auau, clinking his coffee mug to his in greeting. Kim set down next to him, his own plate reflecting Por's more than Auau's, and crazily, no coffee to pair it with.

People who didn't need coffee to wake up were nothing else than psychopaths. Really. Por had it down to a science.

The rest of the tables were girls, a usual occurrence for flight attendants. It was a well known fact that most cabin crew were female, the rest probably gay or bi, and the lone outlier was straight or considering it anyway. People working together in such a tight space and spending the night in another country most of the time tended to bond together in… impressive ways. The amount of gossip that went around, too, was fascinating.

Not even to get started about Pilots and cabin crew sleeping together. Didn't matter if it was the same or another company. In fact, probably better if it was another airline, actually.

Por didn't judge. He'd tried it out once, too. It had been nice.

The conversation picked up, mostly letting him alone to his thoughts. Only when he finished his second plate, did Kim address him.

"How's the flight today, Por?" he asked, "As busy as yesterday?"

Por shook his head, and suddenly everyone's attention was on him. Used to it, he felt himself slip into a more attentive position. Away was the sleepiness, it was time for work.

"Should be around 200 pax. Most eco. 8 business last time I checked. No Unattended Minors booked for now, Wheelchairs an acceptable level."

"Mostly economy?" Queen asked, the one responsible for the back galley. She was relatively new but quite fast in preparing all the meals. "Did you see how many special meals?"

Por shook his head. "No info." Even as a Purser, he couldn't see that much in the preliminary numbers. It had been a long time since he worked the position himself, but he understood the frustration that was manning the back galley, especially when it was a heavy special meals flight. People were demanding on a normal flight, people with allergies and reserved meals, even more so.

"I'll help where I can," Save piped in, "Maybe we can do some position switching, if business class isn't too troublesome."

Save was a prodigy in his own way, fast and good at his job. Actually, everyone on today's flight were good workers. Por had been blessed by scheduling these past days.

"If that's okay for you, phi?"

Por couldn't care less, as long as they did their jobs well. "It's fine. We can check later once Ground Staff gives us the lists."

That was the kind of Purser he was. Chill, until people started fucking up. Then he turned strict and correct, because they had a job to perform and good service to provide. He hadn't got this far just because of his pretty face, after all.

The topic completed, the conversation flowed back into other directions. Por's own attention settled onto the conversation between Kim and Flora, who hadn't drifted too far and were still talking about work. Well, gossiping would be more right.

"I can't even recall the name of yesterdays Pilot, let alone First Officer," Kim admitted with a sigh. "I know we did introductions but they disappeared immediately after we landed, didn't even say goodbye," he huffed, "What about manners?"

"They left them on the base back in Bangkok," Flora half-joked.

"They went out for a smoke," Por spoke up, joining the conversation without any shame. When you worked with as many different people every day, you got used to all the talk and apparent lack of boundaries. "Jai and Pai are always like that. I think they only talked to their relief officer during the flight. I always figured they were shy," he shrugged.

Flora snorted. "They must've really needed that smoke."

"Bad habit," Kim chimed in.

"Never smoke, kids," Auau commented, turning away from his other conversation to switch to theirs. "Talking about bases, did you hear the news?"

They were talking about bases? Oh right. Bangkok. Por needed more coffee to survive this day, because he wasn't up to the usual speed conversations usually took in this crew. With slight whiplash, he was too late to answer.

Not a problem, Kim did it for him. Leaning forward, a sly smile appeared on his face. "You mean the transfer?"

"Transfer?" Flora asked. "What transfer—oh! Oh! I think I know."

They all smiled at each other; Kim, Flora and Auau, let in a secret that Por wasn't knowledgeable about. He looked at Save, who was also lost. The thing was, in aviation, everyone loved gossip.

"What transfer? Is someone we know switching bases?" Por and Auau's base was in Bangkok Suvarnabhumi airport. It basically meant that Por and Auau lived close to the base, and thus all their flight schedules started from there. DMD had several bases in Thailand, and even some overseas in Signapore, Malaysia and somehow, China. Flying to a destination where their company had a base always was a lot of fun, as it meant proper fancy dormitories or hotels, lots of coworkers to meet, and an airport that was more familiar than the rest.

"Someone you know very well, Por!" Auau pocked his elbow into Por's shoulder.

"Oh, you've met him?"

"Really?"

Por was confused. "Who?" He knew quite a lot of cabin crew, 5 years into his career.

"Let me give you a hint," Auau took pity on him, "It's not a flight attendant."

This didn't help in the flightest. "A Pilot, then? Or ground?" Who did he knew this well that Auau would look at him with such a teasing look, Por wasn't sure—

Oh.

Oh no.

"Teetee is getting transferred?"

"Ding ding ding! 10 points to Por!"

The thing with gossiping flight attendants was that not everything that was said, always turned out to be true. It's one of the first lessons you learn in the industry. So while the conversation had been interesting and the prospect of some Pilots changing bases exciting, it was promptly shoved in the back of Por's mind for whenever he actually could confirm the information.

Their flight back to Bangkok was blessedly easy and everyone was very loud about it after they landed. Even Jai and Pai actually thanked them as they hurried to their smoke, and the rest of the crew was also simply happy to be home.

Por could finally lie in bed, sleep until he was hungry enough to wake up, and maybe do something useful like clean his apartment or work out. It didn't matter. The next days turned out great; no work, just chill for now.

And then work started again. One flight turned into the other. Two nightly layover turned into four. He experienced a particularly heavy week because scheduling decided to put all newbies on his flight, but he managed to talk them into shape and only once considered taking someone's phone, opening an emergency exit door, and throwing it outside the plane. Consideration, not realistic in any case whatsoever.

The passengers didn't make it easy either, some insane old woman talking with ghosts in the vents during the nightflight, a middle aged guy walking into a trolley and almost knocking it over, and this very young girl that puked in the middle of the back galley. Needless to say, he had plenty of stories to complain to Auau about when he clocked in at the airport a couple of days later, there for training instead of actual duty.

The day was mostly spent behind a screen, listening to someone else revise old procedures, and behind another screen, clicking through powerpoints they barely read as he and Auau caught up. Save was there too, somehow having been paired with Auau enough the last couple of flights that they developed a code language between the two of them.

Por didn't know what to make of it.

There was still an hour until their shift was done, even though they finished their training, so they sat in the communal room stirring their coffee cups and watching the usual hassle of flight attendants and Pilots working their ass off. They were out of uniform, so not many people seemed to take notice of them.

And then someone else walked into the room. Regardless of the everyday clothes he was wearing, he still managed to demand the attention of everyone around him.

"Good afternoon everyone!" he practically yelled, then wai'ed politely, before turning loud again. "My name is Teetee, from today on out, I'll be working with you all. Please take care of me."

Well… that was an impressive introduction. The rest of the people inside seemed to agree, with laughter and slight shock people started to respond and introduce themselves. Usually when someone new joined, they didn't really care about introductions, rather they would just slowly integrate and go through the roster, but Teetee didn't seem to care for that kind of approach.

Actually, it was probably good he introduced himself like that. The rumours had already been spreading around about his transfer. And even if someone had been living underneath a rock, there wasn't a soul working here who hadn't heard all about the Teetee; the youngest Pilot at DMD airlines.

He was a prodigy. The pride of the company. A real genius.

He was also incredibly loud and energetic, and right now, a real people charmer as he made his way around the room. Auau, seated next to Por, had stood up and successfully also caught his attention. Not wanting to be rude, or worse, suspicious, Por joined him in greeting the famous Pilot.

"Auau, and this is Por," his friend introduced them. Teetee's eyes flickered to Por, and for a second, Por could swear time stood still. Then Teetee's smile increased and he waved their wai's away, bowing deeper himself.

"I'm pretty sure I'm younger than you two," he laughed, "right phi Por?"

Por nodded. "Nice to see you again, nong Tee."

Teetee, impossibly, smiled brighter.

"I look forward to working with you."

"The sentiment is entirely shared," Auau agreed. "I heard you're a lot of fun to be around."

That was an understatement. As Teetee continued his round, Por did his utter best not to hit his best friend, and then did it anyway once they left the room and there was no one to witness a murder. Auau dramatically rubbed his arm where he was hit, but looked pretty smug doing so.

"I'm going to kill you," Por mumbled underneath his breath. His friend didn't care for the threat, knowing they were entirely false. Por felt hot and embarrassed. He should've never told Auau about his meeting with Teetee.

"See you tomorrow, friend," Auau waved and walked the other way, leaving Por to stew in his own embarrassment.

Teetee did turn out to be a lot of fun to be around, and not only in the way Auau had been implying that had gone entirely above Teetee's head. He was fun, because he was nice to the cabin crew, correct in his briefings, and confident in his flying. Over the next couple of weeks, Por spent 4 layovers with Teetee as Pilot. And when he wasn't flying, he was always hanging around the base, meeting people and chilling with coworkers.

One time, while Por was out with friends that had nothing to do with work, he saw Teetee at the restaurant they were eating. When they locked eyes, Teetee enthusiastically waved him over. Por did a quick introduction of him and his friends, and although they were invited to join, they had their own group to rejoin. It was nice, sweet, casual.

Teetee had this air around him that made people like him. The fact that he was one of the youngest in the company also seemed to help. He ended up everyone's friend, everyone's nong, eternally adored. And of course… Por also ended up liking him. A lot. Of course he did.

While they'd met in the past on a layover, working together was a whole different thing. But Teetee genuinely liked his job. He generally didn't seem to mind helping the cabin crew. He always waited for them to go to the hotel together. He would join them at breakfast and suggest getting coffee for everyone.

On the beginning of his fifth layover with Teetee, he greeted him at the aircraft door with a cup of coffee especially for Por — as if he'd learned his order over their past meetings and now gloated as he gave it to the Purser.

"Morning, Teetee," Por himself was still waking up, today's flight earlier than he preferred. The coffee was the perfect surprise. He felt himself smile as he took his first sip. "Thank you so much."

"I was at the shop anyway," he raised his own cup, "And I figured you might need it. Today's an early one, huh?"

Por hummed, taking another sip. Teetee took it in stride and raised his own cup to his lips. The rest of the crew wasn't there yet, the Pilot and Purser usually a little ahead of the others. Well. This Pilot and Purser, in any case, liked to be prepared.

Por cleared his throat, deciding that now was a good time to wake up properly. "How's the flight plan looking?" He asked, then, offering his own information, "We have a full flight today. Ground staff looked really stressed."

Teetee frowned a little. It was an exceptional look on the man, who usually was full of smiles and something sweet like candy floss. "I'm not exactly happy with it, but it'll have to do."

Por raised a brow.

"It's… the weather there isn't exactly good, and it seems to be moving in our flight path. Still unsure, though, but I shouldn't despair yet," he shook his head, as if he was shaking the thoughts away. The raised coffee cup moved with him, and Por jumped because he thought the Pilot might drop the cup. It turned out to be alright. Nothing spilled.

Like he hadn't noticed Por distress, or maybe he had interpreted it differently, Teetee went on. "I shouldn't complain! A full flight, huh, you'll probably be very busy."

For someone reason, Por wanted to put Teetee at ease. "I'm used to it. Nothing I can't handle." He put up a smile, suddenly feeling silly about worrying that Teetee might spill the cup. That was just how the Pilot was. Constantly moving about. Always brightly smiling. Surrounded by people.

Pretty sure he heard someone call him a puppy before. It definitely fit.

"Just like you, I'm sure it's nothing to worry about. You're a great Pilot, nong."

"Thanks, phi."

The flight did end up terribly busy, but not due to all the passengers pressed together into the tight space that was a full flight. No, unfortunately it was due to all the turbulence. It wasn't TeeTee or his First Officer North's fault either — both of them exceptional Pilots, as far as Por was concerned. Approaching Geneva during the night, surrounded by the Alps , already was enough cause for a rocky flight.

With a 12 hour flight, the Pilots took a long rest before the final approach, and that's when it took a turn for the worse.

Por was just talking with a business class passenger, a frequent-flyer who he somehow flew with a couple of times by now and knew by first name. John was the owner of a luxury sunglasses company, and this flight wasn't the first time he brought gifts for the crew. Passengers were waking up slowly, breakfast soon approaching, so they spoke with hushed tones.

"I actually saw your photo on Instagram with the pair I gave you last time, my sales rep showed it to me," John said, and immediately Por felt himself blush. He had tagged the account on purpose, but more as a gesture to thank John than anything else. When the account reposted it, well… "You could be a model, you know."

John didn't even know half of it. Usually, Por wasn't the kind of person to boast, but the conversation was nice and it was a part of his past that he was proud of. Just when he opened his mouth to tell him about his old idol career, a slight shake turned into a sudden deep drop.

Time moved very slowly as Por's training immediately came into effect. "Lean over and brace," he quickly told John, holding himself straight by gripping the restraints of the chair. He checked the environment for lose items that might hurt, or worse, open lockers, but was blessed by today's clientele and their understanding in what was already a turbulent flight.

He nodded at John who followed his instructions easily and started moving, buckling himself into his chair as he kept checking on the passengers and his coworkers. From then on, it was a waiting game. To see if the turbulence would stay this bad, or if it was just a one-time thing.

"Good that we haven't started the breakfast round yet," said Otto, who'd already been seated before Por, seeing as he'd been working the front galley. He eyed the kitchen with a complicated expression. "The passengers won't be happy if they don't get their food soon, though."

"Safety is the priority right now," Por waved his worries away.

After a while, the aircraft stabilized enough to start the breakfast service, with a general consensus that hot drinks must be kept at a minimum. It was still risky, but Por knew that passengers would complain if they didn't get their coffee.

Right before landing, he made some time to check out the cockpit. Teetee was seated in the Pilot position again, loudly moaning at the smell of coffee when Por held it out.

"You," he said, "are a lifesaver. You're the best. You're absolutely amazing." He sipped the black liquid. "I love coffee."

North snorted, but also seemed happy to be given some caffeine. "Is coffee all you love? You were grumpy 5 minutes ago at the weather and me, you almost cursed at the tower, but now you're suddenly back to being a happy puppy." The First Officer shook his head in amusement. Por made himself useful by taking all the trash left aside by the Pilots, noticing but not commenting on Teetee's uneaten breakfast.

"I also love my work! I love flying!" Teetee argued, holding up a plastic wrapper of the only snack he must've actually eaten that flight. Por easily took it. "And I also love my coworkers, especially the one's good at their jobs—"

"Thank you!"

Teetee didn't even register North. "— Like phi Por, here. Obviously the best Purser in the whole company."

North spluttered and Por felt his cheeks burn. He pushed Teetee's shoulder, very softly, barely touching, but the Pilot still seemed elated by the reaction. Catching the faux-sad expression on North's face, Por couldn't help but retaliate the teasing a little.

"Isn't North also the best Pilot?" he said, trying to said airy and nonchalant. Teetee immediately looked between the two, lips pulling together in a pout.

"Hey, he's only First Officer! He doesn't have enough hours yet, I'm the Pilot here!"

"But are you the best Pilot?" North laughed.

Both Teetee and his First Officer turned their attention to Por, waiting for his answer. Instinctively, Por knew that whatever he said now, it would never be agreed upon by both parties. Then all that mattered was who he wanted to please the most.

That wasn't hard to decide. "Everyone knows Teetee is the star of DMD airlines," Por shrugged, playing it up a little, "So obviously he is the best Pilot."

"Waaahh! I'm dead! P'Por told me I'm the best Pilot."

"Oh no."

"Did you hear that North, did you understand it?"

"Yes idiot, I do speak Thai too," he turned to Por. "What have you done, now he won't ever shut up about it."

Seeing their antics, Por started to laugh. A kind of deep laughter that was entirely genuine, not polite, or shunned, but entirely true.

"Phi, want to sit here during landing? North can go away and I could use the support — it's bound to be tricky," Teetee asked him, puppy eyes in full effect, even though what he suggested could never realistically be. It was nice to consider, though, even if just to see North pretend to be upset.

He shook his head. "I'll support you from the back; I can't leave my crew. Otherwise I wouldn't be worthy of being the best Purser, don't you think?"

"Oh, oh, oh! You're right. Oh no," Teetee turned around, slapping the side of his cheeks softly with his hands. Fast like lightning, he suddenly sported a serious face. "I also have to concentrate then. To give the best of me." He cleared his throat, Pilot voice speaking up. "Tell the crew to prepare, there's a storm upon approach. Might have to do a go-around."

No passenger, crew or Pilot liked it when they had to circle the airport until the weather conditions got good enough to land, but it was better than a dangerous landing. "Any chance on a diversion?"

"Hopefully not, the weather at Chambéry isn't much better at the moment. Let's go for Geneva."

Content with that answer, Por waved the two idiots goodbye and made his way back to his crew. After a quick brief, they got to informing the passengers of their nearby descend. By the time they took their seats, the storm had started.

Heavy rain, no visibility, strong wind rapidly changing direction, and a wet runway made the landing one Por wouldn't ever forget. They did end up doing a go-around, but got clearance from the airport tower soon enough. All in all, it was an exhausting flight. Por was happy to arrive in his hotel that morning and immediately hit the hay after a washing up, planning to sleep as long as possible.

When he woke up, the sun was already setting. He had some messages from friends and coworkers, but nothing special enough to make him hurry downstairs to dinner. Instead he took his time showering, performing an extensive version of his skincare routine only used after night-flights, and put up an episode of his favourite episode.

With a quick look at the roomservice menu, he also called the front desk to order dinner.

It was in the last 10 minutes that someone knocked on his hotel door. With a groan, he left the soft fluffy bed and threw a bathrobe around him, before opening the door.

In front of him stood Teetee, dressed in pyjamas and glasses perched lowly upon his nose. He smiled when he saw Por, and the way his eyes took him in from top to bottom wasn't left on Por, either.

"Hi," Teetee smiled, almost shyly, "Sorry, am I bothering you?"

Too caught up in how good Teetee looked with those glasses, Por couldn't even remember what he was doing 10 seconds ago. He shook his head. "No, it's fine. What's up?" he took half a step to the side, wondering if he should let the Pilot in, or if that would imply something he didn't intend to.

"Well, actually, can I come in?"

While for Teetee, it apperantly was that easy. "Sure." Por headed back inside, shutting off the tv while Teetee automatically took the desk chair at the other end of the room. "You want something to drink?"

"I'm fine."

Por sat down on the bed, looking up at Teetee. "What's up?"

Teetee visibly hesitated. He looked around the room as if searching for something, or seeing the place for the first time, even though Por was sure his own hotel room must be identically the same. "Actually, eh, have you eaten yet?" He was tapping his foot.

This time, Por answered with a very slow nod. "I ordered room service for later."

"Oh."

Neither of them said a thing.

"Well, that's a shame." Teetee made a disappointing sound.

Por tucked tucked his legs underneath himself, shuffling further upon the bed. He used his arm to support himself as he leaned backwards, and that's when it hit him. Teetee wanted to have dinner with him. That's why he asked to come on. "I…." Cancelling right now would probably be too late. "Sorry." He eventually settled on.

The way Teetee shook his head, as if his stopping his apologies, made his whole body shake with him. Por found it a little cute, and that only made the guilt intensify.

"It's fine, it's fine. I should've sent a text or called ahead but… I figured I would try."

"In your pyjama?"

Teetee grinned. "The night is young." His eyes flickered across the bed, back to Por, and Por had to look away. He felt a brush creep on his cheeks, distant memories making his skin feel hot. "But I guess you already planned a quiet night."

He had. The need to say sorry bubbled up again. "Another time?"

That seemed to perk the Pilot up a little. "Yeah."

Although Por had no idea when that would be, he still felt a little excited at the thought. For some reason, going out to eat with Teetee… seemed like a lot of fun. It felt like something he probably should've considered a long time ago.

With a promise given, Teetee left Por alone again in his hotel room. He wished him a good night and a lot of fun, and when Por wished him the same, all that Teetee answered him with was a wink. A good-humoured roll of the eyes and the Pilot was skipping away in the hallway, while Por had to stop himself from yelling into his pillow when he flopped back on his bad.

A dinner date… with Tee. Crazy.

When he woke up the next morning, it was with less exciting news.

"So…" Por started, feeling the eyes of his whole crew trained upon him. Teetee was seated at the end of the table, too, together with North. Why he was here, Por didn't know, but it was nice to have the support when bringing the bad news. "Today's flight has been cancelled due to weather."

A collective sound of disappointment echoed across the table.

"So we're staying here for another day. Tomorrow should be as scheduled," he frowned. If the weather cleared up as predicted, that was. But those were worries for tomorrow.

Outside the windows of the breakfast restaurant, the wind and darkness was bringing weight to his announcement. Usually when they stayed more than a day in a night stop, many of the crew would go out to experience the city and culture during the day. Sometimes Por would join them, with focus on finding the best places to eat.

Everyone started talking around Por, some of then asking questions he could answer, others he could only shake his head at. Teetee and North got their fair amount of comments too, especially from Wave, a new flight attendant, who asked how bad the weather exactly was for it to be cancelled.

It was the decision of the airport, not of DMD airline. Still, Teetee supported the cancellation.

North took a whole other approach. "Since we're stuck inside anyway," he spoke up enthusiastically, gathering the attention of the others, "the Pilots wondered if some of you would be up for a drink this afternoon. There's a popular cocktail bar on the top floor of the hotel, apparently."

Afternoon, not evening, so that everyone would be sober enough to leave the next afternoon. Por knew what he was implying there. He also knew, seeing sparkles in the eyes of his youngest flight attendants, that he also had to join the rest.

Teetee caught his eyes, the same understanding dawning. They were both the leaders of their respective groups. Tonight would've been the perfect time for a dinner date, but if the crew as a collective already had plans then they had to join them.

Another time.

Making up his mind to still enjoy it as much as he could, Por took the initiative. "What hour? I need enough time to get ready."

"For a crew outing?"

"For a cocktail party, obviously," he winked at Otto, but his gaze ended on Teetee. His expression was soft, but the way he stared back carried something heated underneath.

Most of the crew readily agreed.

An important habit to remember when prepping for an overnight flight for cabin crew? Easy, always take an extra outfit to go out in. Something that was fancy enough you could wear it to an expensive restaurant, yet also was light and movable for the evenings everyone decided to go out dancing at a club. Today's outfit matched a simple black top with a jacket made of lace on top, and dark jeans that clung to his hips. His boots had a slight heel to them, and paired with some silver jewellery and soft pink lipgloss, he was ready to make his appearance.

The hotel's cocktail bar lived up to its hype; the bar itself was made entirely out of dark liquored wood, shelves filled up to the brim with bottles Por didn't recognise. High chairs to sit close to the bartender, and further away classy yet cosy tables and corner booths surrounded by lounge chairs. The light was soft, the tables illuminated by their own candles and light posts.

Even though the bar was quite crowded, he found his crew easily. In the corner at the back, at the biggest table to fit them all, Teetee stood next to the only empty loveseat remaining. Like he'd been waiting patiently, as soon as Por entered, he stuck his hand up to wave him over.

Something about the gesture and the clear easy of it made Por's heart skip a beat. Away was their professional distance, now in a more casual and intimate setting, he had no reason anymore to ignore their past memories together.

"You were the one asking after the hour, but you're the last one here," North teased him as soon as he made his way over. Teetee gestured for him to sat, following himself soon after. Por just shrugged. He had to call the headquarters to prepare for tomorrows flight before getting ready. And perhaps, he had spent just a little extra time into his appearance for today.

The effort was not wasted, Teetee hadn't looked away from him since he sat down.

"What did I miss?" he asked everyone, ignoring both North and Teetee. Just to tease them a little. He picked up the menu and scanned it briefly. Then he gestured to the waiter, wanting to order.

It was Latte, who switched his glasses for a pair of contact for the occasion, who answered. "We're scaring Wave by telling our work stories," he caught Por's intention, "Should we also order some snacks, now that we're all here?"

"Sounds good," North agreed.

After they decided on the food to order and the waiter had come and gone, Por picked up the conversation again. "So what did story did you tell Wave?" He tried to remember the times that he worked with Latte, and if they had any monster flights together. To be honest, this one definitely was on top. Problem customers, they had plenty, but after a while they all seemed to blur together.

Latte didn't hesitate. "I started with the minor incident."

"No, really?" Por was surprised. He leaned to the side, wanting to hide from the cringe of this story, only to bump shoulders with Teetee. The Pilot looked at them with interest, keeping his posture so they ended up touching. Por didn't back away. "You want to scar him?"

Although he knew the story, he was a thousand times glad he hadn't actually been present. It was a well-known story in the company. Basically, an underage guy had left the toilet a mess. Not just after using it in a normal way, no, he actually decided to jerk one out in the airplane toilet. It was disgusting to think about, even more disgusting to clean. Latte's Purser had actually made the 17-year old clean up after himself, and then they'd locked the toilet for use until they landed.

"It's like a welcome ritual, he should know the classics," Latte defended himself.

"You are so strong," Wave said, sounding entirely traumatized. "I don't know how I would've handled that."

From the corner, Shanon spoke up."You get used to it," she'd been working in the aviation industry her whole life, there probably wasn't anything she hadn't seen yet. "And you always have your Purser or your Pilot to help you," she pointed at Por and Teetee. "Or worst case, him," and ended up on North.

"You really don't like me, huh?" North asked, though it was good-humoured.

"You made me remake your tea 4 times."

"I needed some sugar."

"It was diabetic in a cup."

Por couldn't help but smile, Teetee next to him shaking from laughter. He wasn't entirely aware of what had happened between the two during the flight, but it didn't seem like anything big. Sometimes people got stressed and worked that out on the wrong person. It was better if they talked about it like this than harbouring it against each other.

"Should I intervene?" Por wondered out loud.

Teetee shook his head. "They're like mom and son, mae Shanin is just looking out for him." Shanon and North, hearing this, both shut up their little discussion to glare at Teetee. Embarrassed at being found out, or maybe he was just pretending to, seeing as he said it so loud, he tried to hide behind Por.

Por let himself be shoved in front of the bigger Pilot, liking it more than he dared to admit.

"What about you, Por," Shanon's attention was easily diverted, or maybe she was just merciful like that to Teetee. "Any stories to share?"

"Too many," Por admitted, not saying anything else.

"Por gets hit on a lot," Wave immediately recalled, "That European guy earlier too, he was flirting with you."

Teetee stopped moving behind him, hovering close to listen into the conversation, hiding suddenly forgotten. Por found his reaction cute, so he decided to play it up a lot. He smiled, leaning forward to tuck his hand underneath his chin. "John always gives me expensive things when we fly together. He's the director of a fashion company"— technically, that wasn't a lie. John did bring gifts all the time, but not only for Por, it was for the whole crew. It was just that Por had received one or two extra things after the whole Instagram picture incident.

"So he likes dressing you up?"

"Or the opposite," North chimed in. "Maybe he wants to see you take the clothes off."

The table laughed, some of them shaking their heads in disbelieve. Only Por and Teetee stayed still. Probably, too still. Por could point out John had a wife in Geneva, but he didn't see the point. He kind of wanted to see how far he could take this. The way Teetee was acting, well, what if he was jealous?

Still, Por wasn't cruel. "It's a glasses company, North."

"Daaaw."

"Boo!"

After the sounds of disappointment passed and their drinks and food appeared, more stories were exchanged. With good company, yummy food and fancy cocktails, Por was having a great time. It also helped that Teetee next to him was the perfect heater while the bar was a little chilly. They sat closer than was necessary, like Teetee knew what Por was thinking. Maybe he had his own reasons. In any case, he was an easy presence to bask in along the busy table.

"I actually forgot to ask you, Teetee," North and the Pilot had been grilling each other on their best and worst training flights, Por the willing a listener to their banter. "Why did you change bases? Was Chiang Mai too small for you?"

"Partly because of that," Teetee nodded, picking up and finishing his drink. The way he did it seemed a little too intentional, jittery. Not that Tee did anything in a normal way. It was what made him so cute to Por. "But eh… actually…" he trailed off.

Por, stirred by curiosity and a little alcohol, leaned in his shoulder. "I want to know too." He blinked, slowly.

He was vaguely aware of Wave and Latte listening in.

Teetee closed his eyes and took a deep breath. All of a sudden, he started speaking very fast. "Look, there are a couple of reasons actually, too many to name, and I was already thinking of trying someplace new for a while, but I love working for DMD airlines, even though it was my first workplace, it's also the airline that gave me the most opportunity to grow. After all, who else would allow someone as young as me to become a Pilot? At least, at that time," he was obviously rambling.

"That's 'cuz you're talented," Por watched him stumble over the praise, his explanation slowing down a little until it ceased.

The sound Teetee made sound like he was dying a little. "The reason I changed bases, actually, is… because of you, phi Por."

The table around them had grown silent, everyone listening to Teetee. Nobody said a thing, especially Por, who was trying to progress the confession. Then, for a second, he wondered if it could be true.

Weirdly enough, it wasn't that hard to believe. He just… didn't know how to answer that.

"Oh."

"Yeah."

"That's… cool."

For a second there, the table grew awkward. Then North picked up the conversation, because he was a kind person, and a good friend to Teetee. "That's so cute, you didn't tell me that before."

Por felt himself blush, and saw that same redness reflect on Teetee's cheeks. They were looking at each other, figuring something out. Por too, was connecting some dots in his mind. Still, to change bases because of one meeting…

"I mean, I would change bases just for a small chance to work together with Por, too. He is the beauty of the company," North went on, but Teetee interrupted it.

"It's not because of that, I mean, not that you're not beautiful, Por. You are, so pretty, and cute," Teetee flailed about, digging his own grave by saying anything that came up to his mind. It was so unfiltered that it was adorable.

"How about handsome?" he asked, silently to tease.

"The handsomest!" Teetee practically shouted. Por felt himself smile so hard that his mouth hurt.

"I feel like we have a company romance coming up," Shanon noted in the corner, and immediately got shushed by North. The older woman, offended, immediately restarted her small fight with her apparent adopted son. The attention was taken away from Teetee and Por for a blessed minute, the two of them just existing in their own bubble.

Por was aware of the way they were touching, had been reaching into each other space the whole evening. How they had shared a plate, made each other try dishes and their drinks. How nice it had felt to have to Teetee's attention on him again. Having Teetee next to him felt safe, somehow.

"I'm sorry," the words were mouthed by Teetee so nobody else could catch them. Por shook his head. Teetee had nothing to be sorry about it. He put his hand on his', squeezing it for a second before pulling away. All of this, it felt like the start of something really nice. Something that was a little overdue, but also perfectly on time.

"…before, Por?"

Caught up in their own world, Por hadn't heard the beginning of the sentence. He turned to Latte, who was looking at him amused. "Yes?" He asked, or answered, because Latte nodded to himself.

"Where did you meet then, at work? In private?" Wave followed up, and only then did Por realize what the first question had been. Have you and Teetee met before, Por?

Teetee looked at him, waiting for him to answer. As if he wanted to know if Por was okay with telling that story. Por groaned, not that he didn't want to tell it, but because he knew that as soon as they landed in Bangkok, everyone would end up knowing. Getting Auau to shut up about it had already been hard enough.

"Buy me and Teetee another drink, and we'll tell you," Por decided on. Next to him, Teetee radiated happiness.

THREE YEARS AGO. 25 DECEMBER 2023.

It was a night much like the one 3 years into the future, the weather cold and windy, the sky dark, but the city illuminated warmly by Christmas lights and filled with an atmosphere of cheer. Por had never minded working on holidays, especially Christmas, since they didn't celebrate it at home.

He'd landed in the late morning at the airport of Brussels. Belgium wasn't one of his usual destinations, but that made exploring it all the better. As they waited to pass immigration, his crew had stumbled upon another crew from DMD airlines — an exceptional, but not unusual, occurrence. The two crews had hit it off immediately.

The Chiang Mai-based crew had visited Brussels on several occasions. They spoke of the Christmas market in the city, how much fun it would be to visit. Por shared the same enthusiasm. As they talked, some of the ground staff present caught a part of their conversation, and immediately also recommended to visit Antwerp — if they had the chance.

After changing clothes at the hotel, they took the train together to the city. The train station was beautiful, eclectic European culture deliberately clashing with traditional architecture. As soon as they walked onto the streets, the Christmas lights decorated the city around them, colouring the afternoon romantic and joyful.

At first, the group was too big to really grab a hold of who was who, Por forgetting their names as soon as they introduced themselves. It was only when the young First Officer started walking closer next to him and asked him something, that he recalled his name.

Teetee was a literal ball of sunshine, smile brighter than the Christmas lights, his gestures dancing around like he had too much energy to spare. Usually, Por preferred quieter people like himself, drowning in their comfort. But there was something in the way Teetee did and said things that made Por smile despite himself, the younger a unique but comforting presence next to him.

And that was how they perused the Christmas Market together, first as a group, later just the two of them. Por couldn't even recall when they had split off, but didn't really find himself caring too much about it. They had some gluhwein, tried several cheeses and other snacks, and talked a lot. Teetee, thinking nothing of it, bought Por a thick woolen scarf when he saw he was cold, and when Teetee draped it around Por, Por had a brave moment and gave him a peck on his cheek as a thanks.

They were sitting in a cafe at the edge of the channel streaming through the city as they sipped their drink, leaning into each other space to keep warm.

"Do you like it?" Teetee asked out of nowhere. Por wasn't sure what he was talking about, so he took a guess in the dark.

"The job?"

Teetee's laughter was almost shy. "Sure, that too. You said you used to perform, don't you miss it?"

Por had to think about it tentatively. He hadn't allowed himself to linger much on the past before. Too hurt by the failure his idol career had ended into. It was like a dark stain, one that he tried to hide by becoming a flight attendant. He wasn't even a good one, either, so maybe he was simply failing again.

It was one of his fears, that he would not succeed in this job just as he had failed becoming an idol. If he was scared of that… "I like the job I think, I just…" Maybe Teetee was right. "Yeah, I miss performing. I miss singing and dancing. I used to think I was good at it."

"You are."

"How could you know? You haven't heard me sing."

Teetee blinked. "Then sing for me?"

Por shoved him softly, making the First Officer grin. He grabbed Por's hand and held it in his own two hands. Precious, like Por was worth something. And yet… Por shook his head. He didn't want to sing. He wasn't ready for that yet. "Maybe another time."

Gracefully, Teetee didn't push him. They sat in silence for a while, just enjoying the scenery around him. "I really like flying," eventually he broke the silence. "I think it's magical. Being able to fly a giant plane, bring people to places all over the world," he still was holding Por's hand, squeezing it a little, "Meeting wonderful people, like you."

The praise made Por blush. Teetee wasn't done yet.

"You're a really good flight attendant, did you know? I heard about you before today, and I'm so glad I got to meet you."

This really surprised Por. With the way Teetee said it, his voice soft, Por didn't end up minding it as much as he thought he would. "What did you hear?"

"Only good things, I promise."

They smiled at each other. For some reason, the way Teetee was looking at him, completely sincere, and after the day they'd spent together, Por felt comfortable to say what was on his mind; what was on his heart.

He took a deep breath. "Actually, I don't think I'm all that good. Maybe it's because I wasn't good enough to become an idol but… I don't think I'm good enough to be a flight attendant either." It hurt, saying it out loud, but also felt weirdly right to. These were the deepest thoughts plaguing him, something he had never allowed to fully form even in the safety of his own thoughts. To say this to a complete stranger, well, to Teetee he had only met just today, it was freeing.

Teetee didn't interrupt him. He listened. And then he thought about it, stroking Por's hand as he did so. Por saw him frown, grow worried, and saw something sweet dawn as Teetee's eternal smile returned.

"I understand what you're saying, but…" he let go of his hand and gestured all around them. "There's still so much to visit and discover, like this city. We're only here by pure chance, we only met because of a small coincidence in planning, and every day is a chance to see more, learn more, and become better."

He faced Por.

"I think as long as you continue trying like this, you're going to be amazing. Because." He leaned closed, hovering right in front of Por. "I think you already are."

That was when Por kissed Teetee, in the middle of a busy cafe, in a city they didn't know, on Christmas day 3 years ago. They didn't end up going back to their hotel, instead spending an amazing night in another hotel room in Antwerp.

They were almost late to their own flights the following day, making their goodbyes in the morning too short and hurried. Neither of them remembered to exchange numbers, neither of them was allowed to linger.

And so it became a magical night and a wonderful memory. One that Por would always treasure. One of a date with someone he never thought he would ever be into, or ever see again.

Until three years later.

PRESENT, THE NEXT DAY.

"That's it. Let's get ready for boarding," Por concluded their briefing, eyeing the ground staff in the door opening who was waiting for him to confirm the boarding time. As soon as he did, she walked off with a wave.

"So," Otto sat down next to Por after boarding, strapping himself in as Por confirmed the lists one more time. Half-full flight, nothing too difficult. "I noticed you and Teetee left the bar together yesterday."

Trying not to blush at the implication, Por pushed his lips together and checked the list just one more time. It gave him the chance to sound unaffected. "It's not like you think it is."

"It isn't?" Otto sounded disappointed. "So you didn't have a repeat performance of that night in Antwerp?"

He… did. They did. It had been great. Hell, it had been amazing. Por had to put up extra foundation and setting spray just to hide what they'd done the night before. Even Teetee was sporting more make-up than any other Pilot usually did. But Otto didn't have to know that.

Por just shrugged. The bell chimed to prepare for take off.

The other flight attendant just shook his head. "You're a bad liar, Por. It's all over your face."

This time, Por definitely blushed.

The flight went smooth, with some very light turbulence. Por was in his element, the afterglow giving him more energy than usual. And when it was finally time for his rest, he'd managed to time it together with Teetee's own break. If they spent more time making-out than actually resting or, not even to mention, trying to nap, then nobody noticed or commented on it.

At least, not when Teetee was with him. Only afterwards was Por barraged with catcalls and whistles, which he all professionally ignored in favour of reminding everyone to focus on their work. Still, the atmosphere continued to stay light, and everyone had a great flight.

When they landed 10 hours later, Por was elated to say goodbye to all the passengers. When everyone was off board, the rest of the crew still cleaning up, Por waited next to the cockpit for Teetee to come out. The Pilot let North leave first, telling them to go ahead.

"You flew very well today," Por complimented Teetee, kissing him on the cheek.

Teetee beamed. He cupped Por's cheek, caressing him softly. "You're amazing, you know that?"

Before that night 3 years ago , when Teetee had said those same words, Por had always hesitated how truthful that was. Somehow, with Teetee at his side and his coworkers trickling out of the plane to leave them to their own, Por had started to believe it.

He did love his job. He truly was good at it.

But if he had to admit. He definitely loved Teetee the most. And to show it, once again, he kissed him without anymore hesitation.