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Tee had two problems.
First, he hadn’t talked to Dew in months. Not that he was purposely avoiding him, but they just never got the time besides saying casual good mornings or goodbyes. Dew had been busy with his shoot for his new series, and as much as Tee was happy for him, he did kind of miss him, not that he’d ever admit it.
Second, was an oddly weird problem; he wondered why Dew had stopped smoking his strawberry-flavored cigarettes. Ever since they met, Dew used to smoke occasionally, but only this specific flavour that made him smell insanely sweet whenever Tee was around him. He did kind of miss that scent. And he literally might go crazy if he didn’t smell it again.
‘Maybe I should talk to him,’ Tee wondered, rolling onto the other side of the bed and opening Dew’s number.
Tee: Wanna hangout?
'Thats too upfront’ He thought about it and deleted the message.
This cycle continued until he finally gave up. He tossed his phone onto the bed beside him, but a second later, he picked it up again to look at Dew’s profile picture but his thumb accidentally pressing the call button on Dew’s contact.
Tee froze when he realised what he’d done.
“Shit—” Before he could hang up, the call connected.
“Ai Tee.” A soft voice spoke from the other end, making Tee’s heart beat fast. He immediately sat up on the bed, trying to fix his posture as if Dew was literally around him.
“Shia, Dew! Sorry, I called accidentally…” he replied, almost nervously.
“Oh…” Dew paused for a second. “How have you been? I’m coming back to Bangkok tomorrow. Maybe we could hang out?”
“Ah—well… yes, sure. I mean, I’d love to.” Tee blurted it out, hiding his face in his palms.
‘Why am I nervous talking to my friend?’
That earned a chuckle from Dew’s side.
“You okay, Tee?” he asked, almost teasingly.
“I’m fine, you idiot. Go to work…and uhm—” He wanted to ask about his cigarettes.
‘That’s too stupid.’
“Leave it.”
“Huh? What were you saying, Tee?”
“Nothing much. Now go, I’m taking up your time.” Tee replied softly.
Dew sighed. “Alright, but when I come back, you’re definitely telling me.” He paused before adding, “And also, you’re not taking up my time, Tee. I like talking to you.”
A small blush crept onto his face, and he quickly looked away, trying to ignore the warmth spreading across his cheeks. After the call ended he scrolled through his gallery. His eyes drifted to an old video from Dew’s party.
In the video, Tee was practically clinging to Dew while everyone around them teased them about it. He kept whining about how Dew smelled so sweet, and all Dew did was smile before taking him back to his dorm, his ears definitely a little red. The video reminded him of Dew’s scent yet again, and he couldn’t help but linger on the memory.
And before he could stop himself, he googled
Why would someone suddenly stop smoking strawberry-scented cigarettes?
He stared at the search bar for a second. What the hell am I doing? He deleted it. Then typed again.
Why do people stop smoking a specific type of cigarette?
He clicked search, scrolling through the results with an increasingly confused expression.
One that caught his attention was a Reddit post where someone talked about how they’d noticed their friend always smoked a particular brand of strawberry-scented cigarettes whenever he was around his girlfriend. Apparently, the scent was almost identical to the perfume his girlfriend used to wear, and smoking them had somehow become a way for him to associate the smell with her.
Tee paused.
So it could just be a memory of an ex?
He immediately shook his head.
No.
If that were the case, he would surely know.
Dew wouldn’t hide something like that from him. …
Right?
He scrolled a little further.
Another one was from someone who talked about how their friend had been strangely obsessed with strawberry-scented cigarettes. Apparently, they hated the usual smell of cigarettes and found the strawberry ones much easier to tolerate, so they started smoking only those. Eventually, though, they stopped because they realised they had started relying on the scent whenever they were stressed, and they wanted to break the habit.
Tee paused.
So it could just be a preference?
He stared at the screen for a moment and scrolled a little further, suddenly far more invested than he wanted to admit. For almost two hours he went through reddit stories, each time developing new theories about Dew. A sudden notification popped up from his group chat in which Dew was there too.
Mark: I wanna go for drinks tonight, @everyone.
Junior: I’ll joinnn.
Tee: I’ll pass.
Mark: Come on, Tee. You promised us you’d come! It’s been months since we actually hung out. 🥹
Tee: We literally met at the tournament a week ago
Mark: Yeah, but that’s not the same as hanging out, you know?
Junior: Just join us, man. Or are you scared you’ll say something weird again, like how much you miss Dew’s scent? 😏
Tee: I’m gonna kill you. 🔪
Tee was immediately going through a whole new round of embarrassment. He just hoped to God Dew hadn’t seen that message.
Junior: 🥹💗
Mark: Join us please
Tee: Fine. I’ll be there by 8.
With that, he locked his phone and sighed. At least he finally had some motivation to get out of bed and get ready.
~
The walk to the Burnout Bar wasn’t too long. Their friend group had been there many times, and at this point, it had become their casual spot since they had spent half their university life there. It wasn’t exactly the newest or fanciest place, but there was something about the atmosphere that made it welcoming. Neon and red lights surrounded the place, casting a warm glow over the dark wooden tables and crowded bar. Music played softly in the background, mixing with the sound of conversations and occasional laughter.
Tee spotted his friends lazily sitting around their usual table, already drinking.
“Look! Tee’s here!” Junior said, immediately grabbing his arm and dragging him down onto the seat beside him.
“Why are you guys already so drunk?” Tee sighed, pouring himself some beer before taking a sip.
“Oh, did you ask when Dew’s coming?” Junior suddenly asked Mark.
Tee paused.
“No idea, man. He said he’ll be here by nine-ish. Coming straight from the shoot,” Mark replied.
“Dew’s coming?” Tee asked, unable to hide his surprise.
“Oh my God—you didn’t see the messages in the group chat?” Junior looked at him incredulously.
“Oh…” The truth was, Tee absolutely hadn’t checked the group chat. He’d been too embarrassed to open it.
“Wait, wasn’t he supposed to come tomorrow?” Tee asked, trying to sound casual.
“He is. Apparently the shoot wrapped early today, so he decided to come here first.” Tee nodded, taking another sip of his beer.
Great.
As if summoned by the thought, the door to the bar opened, and a familiar figure walked in, still dressed in the clothes he had worn to the shoot.
“There he is,” Mark said, lifting his hand to get Dew’s attention.
Tee’s eyes instinctively followed. And there was Dew.
He walked over, still wearing a black mask, and dropped into the seat beside Mark, who immediately threw an arm around his shoulders and pulled him closer.
“Look who’s back!” Dew laughed, pulling his mask down and placing it on the table. His eyes immediately drifted towards Tee, who quickly looked away.
“Well, you guys must be happy, huh? Getting to hang out with a celebrity again,” Dew said, a teasing edge to his voice.
“Oh, shut up,” Mark laughed. “You’re barely even famous.”
“Barely?” Dew raised an eyebrow. “You were literally begging me for a picture last week.”
“That was for my sister!”
“Sure it was.” The table erupted into laughter, and Tee couldn’t help but smile a little.
“So, how was the shoot?” Junior asked.
“Tiring,” Dew sighed, leaning back against the chair. “But we wrapped it up quickly” Tee glanced at him again.
There were dark circles beneath Dew’s eyes. This idiot is probably overworking himself.
But the thought was quickly interrupted when Tee caught the faint smell of alcohol around him. Nothing else.
No strawberries.
Of course there isn’t, you idiot.
Stop thinking about his scent.
“Do you know, Dew,” Junior suddenly whined, clearly drunk, “the one who missed you the most was Teeeee!”
Tee immediately placed a hand over Juniors mouth.
“Shut up!” Dew didn’t even look surprised. Instead, a smirk slowly appeared on his face as he leaned slightly closer.
“Oh, really?” he asked.
“How so?”
“Do not listen to him, Dew.”
Tee could already feel his face heating up. Junior struggled against Tee’s hand for a few seconds before finally managing to speak.
“He didn’t even wanna hang out with us because he thought he’d miss you, and he kept eating strawberry-flavoured stuff because it reminded him of youuuu—” His sentence dissolved into a drunken mumble as he dropped his head onto the table.
Silence.
Tee froze.
Dew didn’t look shy. He looked awkward, his ears turning slightly red despite the smirk still plastered across his face.
“Shit—” Tee immediately pulled his hand back.
“Don’t listen to him, Dew. He’s an idiot.”
Dew let out a small laugh, still looking at him.
By now, both Junior and Mark had completely passed out on the table, leaving only Dew and Tee awake.
The sudden quiet made Tee painfully aware of how close they were sitting, and he hated how awkward it suddenly felt. Tee could feel his throat getting warm. The alcohol was finally starting to catch up with him, and he really didn’t trust himself to say anything without embarrassing himself further.
But apparently, his body had other plans. He slowly got up from his seat and, before Dew could even ask what he was doing, reached for him and pulled him into a hug. Dew was startled, his eyes widening for a second as Tee’s arms wrapped around him. A flush immediately rose to his cheeks, but after a moment of hesitation, he carefully wrapped his arms around Tee’s back.
“You’re drunk, Tee…” he whispered softly, close to Tee’s ear.
Tee only tightened his grip slightly, burying his face against Dew’s shoulder. “No strawberry…”
Dew paused. “What are you talking about, Tee?”
Tee still hadn’t loosened his hold. “You don’t smell like strawberries anymore,” he mumbled, his voice muffled against Dew’s shoulder.
“You don’t smoke those particular cigarettes…”
There was something almost whiny about the way he said it. Dew stared at him for a second before a quiet chuckle escaped him. He gently pulled Tee out of the hug, just enough to look at his face, and laughed again.
“What?” Tee asked, his eyebrows furrowing as he looked at him with a slight pout.
Dew shook his head, still smiling. “Nothing,” he said. “Then why are you laughing?” “Because…” Dew paused, looking at him for a moment. “You really missed the smell that much?”
Tee looked at Dew as if he had genuinely offended him. “You smoked those cigarettes for seven years and then suddenly quit them,” he said, his brows furrowing. “They made you smell really good. Really sweet…” He paused, looking away for a second. “I miss it.”
The smile on Dew’s face faltered slightly, though the blush on his cheeks remained.
“Well, uh—”
“Was it for an ex?”
Dew tilted his head, looking at him in confusion.
“Did you smoke them because you missed an ex and now you don’t wanna think about them anymore?” Tee asked
Dew stared at him for a second before bursting into laughter. “Ai Tee!” He reached out and pulled Tee a little closer, still laughing.
“It wasn’t for an ex.”
“Then what was it?”
Dew’s smile softened. “It was for you.”
“Huh?”
“When we became friends, you always used this particular perfume.” Dew paused, his eyes lingering on Tee’s face. “It smelled almost like strawberries.” Tee blinked. “I started smoking those cigarettes because they reminded me of you.”
For a moment, Tee didn’t say anything. Dew’s smile turned faint, almost nostalgic.
There was so much more Dew wanted to say I started because I’d fallen for you. And somehow, those cigarettes became another way of holding onto you, even when I knew I’d already started losing you. But he kept those thoughts to himself.
“Why’d you stop then?” Tee asked quietly. Dew looked away.
“Well, because…” He shrugged.
“I just didn’t feel like it anymore.”
Tee’s expression fell slightly.
“You didn’t feel like thinking about me?” There was something almost hurt in his voice, and Dew’s smile disappeared.
“That’s not what I meant” Dew sighed, looking down for a moment. “I didn’t want to hurt our friendship.”
Tee stared at him. “Well, that didn’t exactly stop us from drifting apart, did it?”
Dew’s expression softened. “I wanted to confess to you,” he whispered.
“You what?” This time, Tee’s voice came out a little too loud. A few people at the nearby tables turned to look at them. Dew immediately grabbed Tee’s hand and gently pulled him towards the back of the bar, away from the noise and curious glances.
“Dew! Let go—” Tee whined, pulling his hand free once they reached the quieter side of the building. Dew turned to face him.
“On the day of graduation, I wanted to confess to you,” he said quietly.
“I… I knew I shouldn’t cross that line because you trusted me. And the cigarettes were one stupid way of remembering you, of keeping you close without actually saying anything. I didn’t want to keep clinging onto you…it would’ve been unfair for you. Because if you found someone else I’d want you to be happy.” He swallowed. “I also thought if I told you how I felt, I’d ruin everything between us.”
Tee stared at him, his mind struggling to catch up with everything he’d just heard. Before Dew could say anything else, Tee stepped forward and pressed a quick kiss to his lips. Dew froze. For a second, he genuinely couldn’t believe it had happened. Then his expression softened, and he leaned into the moment before Tee pulled away.
“You don’t get to decide that for both of us, you know…” Tee said quietly.
“I thought I’d almost lost you.”
Dew looked at him, completely speechless. Then a small smile appeared on his face. “Guess we’re both pretty stupid, huh?”
Tee looked at him, confused. “I spent seven years thinking you’d never feel the same.”
“So…” he said, almost cautiously. “Tee, do you like me?”
Tee looked away, suddenly embarrassed. “Well, yes… sort of.”
“Sort of?” Dew chuckled.
He shook his head, unable to hide his smile. “It must be more than sort of if you just kissed me, huh?” Tee’s face immediately turned red.
“Shut up. You talk too much.”
Dew leaned closer, a teasing smile playing on his lips.
“Ai Tee, you still haven’t changed. You get flustered so easily.”
“Don’t get too ahead of yourself,” Tee whined, looking away.
“And you don’t need to smoke those stupid cigarettes anymore. I’ll be there with you.”
Dew raised an eyebrow, his smile widening. “So you’re saying I can just bother you whenever I miss you now?”
Tee blinked, caught off guard. “I—That’s not what I said.”
“But that’s what I heard.”
“You’re impossible.”
“Yet you still like me.”
“Uhhhh!” Tee groaned before looking away and sighing.
Dew smiled. “So… what does this make us now?” Tee glanced at him, his cheeks still warm.
“I don’t know. We can figure it out when I’m sober.” Dew chuckled.
“Fair enough.”
“Wait, we should head back and get those idiots back to their condo,” Tee said, glancing towards the bar. Dew just nodded.
“I’ll stay at your place,” Dew declared. Tee immediately looked at him, blushing.
"Whatever. Just don’t make a mess.”