Dont call me small (English Translation)

11

Co--translator : acid_wash

Chapter 11: Dragons don't eat sweets.

The orange light shining in the sky replaces the darkness. A new dawn of day shines in the room, signaling the start of a new day's activities. The location of the school on the hillside making the air surrounding that area fresh and cold. The sound of the warbler that began to feed, along with the crickets that have been buzzing since last night, sounded like a beautiful song lulling the sleeping people, sinking them even more to the deep sleep. The first night in Suan Phueng District, Ratchaburi Province, has finally passed...

The little one had just closed his eyes and fell asleep. It's hard to get Namtarn to sleep, yet a new day had already fallen. Last night, after chatting with his group members about their morning presentation preparation, Namtarn had to call his brother. He reported what he did the whole day, then excused himself to bed because he was too tired.

It's the first time for Namtarn to spend the night alone and out of home, and it got him excited to the point that he couldn't sleep. The excitement and the fear made him uneasy, especially when he saw the moonlight and the shadow from the branches from outside the window. The atmosphere made him start imagining spooky things. Even though there are many people in the room, it's still not as comfortable as sleeping in his own room. And when he couldn't bear the lethargy anymore, he finally fell asleep.

"Namtarn, wake up."

"Namtarn, if you don't wake up, you're going to be late." Namtarn started to gain consciousness as he heard the alarm ringing, and someone kept on poking his shoulder. However, since it wasn't the time he usually wakes up in the morning, his body reacted with annoyance.

"Oh, stop bothering me, I'm drained," after finishing his sentence, he turned his face away from the other party.

"Oh, your tears will definitely be drained if you don't wake up and are late for the presentation." Upon hearing about the presentation, the person who was determined to study suddenly opened his eyes. Namtarn rubbed his eyes, stretched his body lazily, then turning his head towards the person who woke him up.

"Wow, good morning, Deer," Namtarn said to his best friend, who's already dressed up.

"Good morning, Namtarn. Are you going to take a shower first, or do you want to eat breakfast first?" Deer asked as Namtarn tried to come to his sanity.

"Oh no, it's cold. I'll just wash my face, brush my teeth, and go change my clothes," said the small guy.

"Then I'll wait in the room. Once you're done, let's go downstairs and get some breakfast together."

"Okay," Namtarn replied before turning to the side of his bed, where he had put his small suitcase. He picked up the things he needed. Once he's done, he got up and went to the shared bathroom.

"Ah!" Namtarn almost tripped the moment he tried to stand up. Luckily his close friend was there to hold him just in time before he could fall.

"Thanks, Deer, my pants are too long." Namtarn pointed down the length of his pants to the other person before he realized that he wasn't wearing his own pants. Last night, P'Mangkorn let him borrow his boxer shorts. Not only are the pants longer, but the waist is also wider, making it difficult for Namtarn to wear them without them slipping off his waist. So, Mangkorn brought his sweatpants for Namtarn to wear instead. Now that he thinks about it, the boy then took other pants with him to change into, and return the one he was wearing.

"No problem, Tarn. Now hurry up and wash your face," Deer replied. There were only the two of them in that room. Other people have probably gone to do their personal errands or went for a walk while waiting for breakfast time.

"Okay. Wait for me."

After managing their personal affairs, all students brought their de-energized bodies to the cafeteria, the same place they went to gather last night. It was no surprise that everyone showed up in such condition since the weather is cold, and it's the weekend where they usually spend their days lying around at home. But instead of sleeping in, they have to be here. Thus, the image of the students this morning is no different from zombies being gathered to eat.

They spent about half an hour finishing breakfast, and afterward, it's time for their morning presentation. The cafeteria where the students previously eat their breakfast is now transformed into a temporary presentation venue. The final presentation ended smoothly as the students only had to report the result from their earlier presentation. When the presentation ended, the professors gave feedback to each group.

Of course, Namtarn's group received a lot of praise, with only a few suggestions to be adjusted. Still, overall, his group's presentation is probably the professors' favorite. The group also got the highest score. That made the boy smile until it feels like his face was about to burst as the results were as what he expected.

"I would like to thank the professors and students for visiting our school and giving knowledge to our students. As the principal and representative of the school, I would like to give a small souvenir."

After the whole field trip schedule ended, the school director thanked the university professors and students before giving souvenirs to the professor in charge. The students then took photos together before preparing to collect their belongings from their room and ready to return to the campus.

"Want me to help you with that, Namtarn?"

"Thank you, P'Rung," said the little one, thanking the older guy who came to help him carry his bag. Seeing the smaller person trying to carry a small suitcase with great difficulty, the older one volunteered to help. As any senior would help their junior without any hidden intention.

Namtarn glanced at his senior's face, which doesn't seem as gleaming or playful today as he was yesterday. But even so, Rung still acted kind, as usual. So Namtarn didn't pay much attention as Rung took his bag and went on to follow the senior to leave the dorm along with his best friends.

When they got to the bottom of the building, they found another third-year senior standing there, waiting. Mangkorn asked to take his Nong's suitcase from his classmate in a normal tone, and the other party agreed to hand it over to him without a fuss.

"I know, I know, okay. Stop staring at me that way. Namtarn, you'll have to excuse me now. I'll see you at the university," Rung told the younger one. He was about to walk away when the small guy's voice stopped him.

"P'Rung rides the same car as Namtarn, right?" Asked the boy when he realized that Rung would be on the same bus as him. Why would the other say they would see each other at the university?

"Oh, I have to change seats for our trip back to the university. But even if I can stay on the same bus, there'll be a shameless dog who will keep on barking and chasing after me. So, I'll go first and see you later." Rung bid his farewell while saying stuff that Namtarn couldn't understand. Namtarn turned to his close friends Meen and Deer, standing next to him, but the two also shook their heads in confusion.

"N'Deer and N'Namtarn, get in the bus. As for Ai Meen, you can go and sit anywhere." The small guy can't help but realize that even if his senior gave orders to the three young men, it seems the latter is being treated differently.

"Okay… okay…you treat Deer and Namtarn like your younger brothers. I get it. I'm not as cute as my friends," said Meen mockingly.

"Stop talking too much. Everyone's waiting."

"Okayyy… I'm going. You guys go ahead. See you soon, Deer, Namtarn. Have a nice trip."

"Meen, are you really not going with us?" Namtarn asked his friend again to make sure.

"Yeah, I better hurry. I want to catch some sleep. Later, guys…" after bidding goodbye to his friends, Meen immediately headed to the bus. Namtarn, Deer, and Mangkorn went to another bus, which happens to be the third-year senior bus.

The Baan Chulapak group (Comma house) has allotted a personal budget to hire a driver for the reward trip they won in the house performance competition earlier in the semester. And actually, they'd be happy if other students want to join in on their trip. But since everyone's already exhausted, they'd instead go straight back to the university. Besides, the professors have also planned to take the students to visit several tourist attractions on their way back to the university. While the Baan Chulapak group will take a different route from the other two buses.

"Take good care of the younger kids, Morakot, don't let them get into trouble." Once they arrived at the parking lot, they find the professor waiting for them in front of the car to remind Mangkorn to take care of the junior's safety.

The professors don't entirely agree with the idea of letting the students leave by themselves and not joining the field trip until the very end. But the seniors promised that they would take good care of the juniors, and their travel plans were no cause for concern. The professors finally allowed them to go on their own and return to university once they're done.

"Yes, I promise I will take care of these kids. There's nothing to worry about." Mangkorn convinced the professor. The professor nodded and returned to his car.

"Nong Deer, here, give me your bag," as ordered, Deer handed over his luggage to the senior.

"Thanks."

"All set. Now, how should we arrange the seats?" Once they entered the minibus after packing their bags, Mangkorn immediately asked the two juniors about their seats.

"I'll go sit with Deer so he doesn't feel alone," Namtarn said firmly. He's afraid that Deer will feel lonely if Namtarn was to sit with other people. But actually, Namtarn also doesn't really want to sit with other people since he's with Deer, his best friend who happens to be in the same group.

"You may do as you please," Mangkorn said in a low voice.

"So, who are you going to sit with, P'Mangkorn?" Asked Deer. As far as he could see, there were only three third-year students in the car, including Mangkorn. The other senior students are girls who are close friends and chose to sit next to each other. So, Mangkorn would be left to sit alone.

"I'm sitting with my friends. They're on their way from the market around here. They should arrive soon."

"Oh, will more third-year students be riding in this car?"

"Yes, four more people."

"Oh, I thought there would only be us."

Mangkorn smiled at the juniors, not giving any more response. He just told the youngsters to get on their seats because they will be leaving soon.

It wasn't long before the said four other seniors arrived in a minibus they rented from the local villagers. Namtarn and Deer were familiar with some of the seniors who just came. There was a third-year senior who's also Mangkorn's close friend, Pung. There's also the person who's been talking with them through their LINE group chat since they had left Bangkok, King. They also know the second-year student who took care of them. And then, there were two other seniors that they're not familiar with but are also members of the Comma House (Baan Chulapak).

"Hello, brothers and sisters. Hello, everyone. I'm King Fa…not King Gan." (T/N: he made a word pun from two phrases that contain the word 'King', but have different meanings).

"We are now in Ratchaburi province. How are you doing so far? Miss me yet?" a sharp, ear-piercing voice came before the students in the car. The owner of the voice stood next to the driver, holding a mic in his hand.

"Finally, the day has come where all of us members of the Comma House (Baan Chulapak) will travel to Suan Phueng. We will travel for two days and one night as a result of our first-year members' effort. They've practiced so hard, so we can win the most popular vote. So, today, forget about the university, forget about the field trip. Free your mind, and enjoy the rest of the trip." The second-year student who was the house leader spoke while the car's wheels began to turn, indicating that they were about to start their journey.

"Now, let's talk about our schedule for this trip. First, we will go to the Alpaca Hills to see the world's cutest animal. We will stop by to take beautiful pictures and feed little alpacas. Don't be afraid of these alpacas. Not only are they cute, but alpacas are also animals that allow people to approach them without fear of danger." King said in a voice that mimicked a famous guide's tour guide, making Namtarn laugh while he was trying to listen attentively. His mood was lifted because of this senior's jokes.

"Once we're done with the alpacas, we'll stop by a famous restaurant in Suan Phueng district and have lunch for about an hour. And we will visit some popular places, like Baan Hom Tian, a place that has a nice view with a retro style."

"After that, we'll go to the accommodation we've reserved. But on the way to the resort, we will need to buy some snacks first. When I called to reserve the accommodation, they informed us that there will be no convenience stores or other shops near the resort. They have a shop inside the resort, but I think the price in that shop will be higher. So, I think it's better to buy the food beforehand."

"The next morning, around 4:30 am, we will go up the hill to see the sunrise, but if you don't want to wake up, that's okay. But please let me know who's going and who's not, before 2 o'clock, so I can inform the resort how many cars we need and have them prepare it in time for us." Since they were on the topic of tomorrow morning's plans, Namtarn turned to the friend sitting next to him with excitement.

"Will you go up and watch the sunrise tomorrow, Deer?"

"Probably. I searched for it online, and it looked stunning, so I want to go up and see it with my own eyes."

"Hmm, but it's so early. I'm just afraid that I can't wake up on time."

"Let just set the alarm clock. If I can get up first, I'll wake you up too, Namtarn."

"Yes, please, thanks."

"And after checking out of the resort, on our way back to the university, we'll visit the Damnoen Saduak floating market. Of course, I've reserved a boat enough to fit all of us." King continued.

"We’ll go around the floating market until no later than 2 pm, and then we’ll leave for the university, which according to my estimation, we will arrive at 4 pm. So, if you're going to have someone to pick you up, you can tell them when to pick you up."

"Alright, after this, it'll take about half an hour to reach our first destination. In the meantime, you can take your time to rest, as I will do too. For now, my MC duties are done, so see you later."

The people on the bus applauded King once he finished talking as if he was a talk show host. They then went on to enjoy their leisure time. Some chose to play with their phones, some preferred to chat with each other, but others decided to just lie back and rest, as it was still early in the morning and they were still sleepy. Our little one is no different. He blinked his eyes in drowsiness before finally entering the world of sleep.

Shortly after, their minibus stopped in front of the Alpaca Hills, just as the 2nd year senior told them earlier. The passengers got off the bus before walking to the information and ticket counter. The older students manage their group's expenses while the first-years wait nearby.

"The weather's nice," said the little one as he smelled the air in the zoo. As it was late in the day, the surrounding air was not as cold as in the morning, making Namtarn happy. In fact, he was so excited that he talked to his best friend non-stop before arriving at the farm.

"Yeah, I think so too. But I think it’ll turn colder in the evening. P'King said that the area is close to the mountains, so it's probably going to be colder than when we stayed at the school," he said.

"Really? Did you bring any jacket or sweater, Deer? If you don't, you can wear one of mine. I've brought a lot of them." Hearing his friend's weather forecast, the little boy widened his eyes in shock. He can't handle the cold weather so much that he could hardly sleep that night when they stayed in the school accommodation. Yet he still managed to ask his friend, worried if the other person didn't bring any warm clothes. P'Namkang has prepared several T-shirts for Namtarn, so his friends can borrow them when needed. Speaking of his brother, Namtarn realized that he hadn't replied to Namkang's LINE message. So, he decided to go to the side to take photos and send them to his brother.

"It's okay. I've got it covered. Thanks a lot," Deer replied.

"Gather round, everyone." After purchasing the entrance tickets, the second-year student (P’King) gathered the rest of the Comma house members and distributed the tickets.

"So, listen up. These are your tickets. Please show them to the staff when you get in the entrance gate. But before that, let's go to the reception area together because the staff will show us an introduction video to this farm first."

Hearing this, they all rushed into the reception area. Inside the hall, there was a section where tourists can see instructions on what to do upon entrance, what to do while you’re inside the farm area, including the safety rules. It turns out that the hall was packed with a crowd of local students and tourists. More than 20 people had already entered the video presentation room.

The Alpaca Hill farm management provided a video for visitors to introduce the history and the areas in the Alpaca Hill site. The video also explained how the visitors can interact with the animals on the farm so they won't harm the animals. The video was played for about 5 minutes before it ended, and then the staff came and told them they could enter the farm. He also gave the visitors an orange tote bag where they already put food for the alpacas and the farm map in it.

After walking through the entrance gate, they stopped at the ticket checking point. The first thing that welcomed the visitors was cute birds, like the owl species that occupied a semi-exposed booth. They weren't put in a cage and were just perched on some logs, instead. They just sat there, not moving an inch, making everyone think they were puppets, and excitedly took pictures of the cute owls. But it wasn't long because the actual attraction would be in the back, past this door. 

"As I have informed you earlier, we will be here for about 2 hours. So, when the time is due, can everyone please return and gather at the spot where we parked our car when they arrived. For now, you can walk around the farm area as you please." At the end of the announcement, the freshmen and seniors immediately scattered to different places inside the farm. As for the little ones, Namtarn and Deer, the two agreed to see the Little Alpacas first. Because as they can see on the Alpaca Hills farm map, Nong Alpaca was located close to where they are standing.

"Come on. I want to go see the little alpacas."

"Okay, let's go." Deer laughs secretly at his friend's excited expression, of course not to offend the little one. He even allowed Namtarn to act as a tour guide as he wanted.

"P'Mangkorn, are you going see the alpaca too?" Seeing that Mangkorn was still standing near them and didn't look for his friends, Deer asked the other person out of curiosity.

"Yes, I'll go with you. In case something bad happens," Mangkorn replied while smiling, and then he looked away.

"Yes, let's go together. The more, the merrier. Hurry up!" Namtarn said. After that, he led the two other guys to follow him, the petite guy who volunteered to be their tour guide. As he was looking at the map, the two men followed Namtarn without hesitation. Mangkorn looked at the petite guy's hand loosely holding his palm. He then smiled slightly, not saying anything, but keep following his Nong. But in his head, he kept thinking about the little tour guide. 'Nong's hand is so soft,' he thought to himself.

Now, our young friends and the older guy are looking at the baby alpacas. These cute animals looked like camels, but in Namtarn's mind, they're more adorable than the camels. The alpacas sent him a pitiful face, but they don't allow food other than what has been provided for the farm visitors. The food that Namtarn brought from home was confiscated by the staff when they entered the farm.

"Sorry, I don't have any food left," Namtarn talked to the alpacas as if they can understand what he was saying.

"I didn't expect you to be that strong," he said. Namtarn's bowl fell to the ground because of Nong Alpaca. Namtarn tried to feed the alpaca, but he didn't think that it would be so strong that when it leaned down to eat the food Namtarn was holding in his bowl, it got pushed with strength and fell to the ground. Alpacas can't stoop down to eat anything that's on the ground, so even if there were food piling on the ground, they wouldn't be able to eat them. If you were to feed them, it would have to be from the same height level as their face or a little lower than that.

"You can have mine instead, Namtarn," Deer said when he saw that his friend had a sad expression on his face. But Namtarn kept shaking her head. The amount of food in his bowl was relatively small, just enough to buy him time to take a few photos with the alpacas while feeding them. So Namtarn thought that if Deer shared his food with him, he wouldn't be able to take enough pictures.

"Deer, give me your phone. I'll take a picture of you while you feed it." Namtarn picked up the phone from Deer before posing to take a photo while trying to keep up with the speed of the alpaca's eating. He only managed to press the shutter 2-3 times, and when the food runs out, the alpaca flicked their faces away as if saying: no food, no pictures.

"I only got 3 photos. The others are a bit blurry." Namtarn stared at a picture of Deer feeding the alpaca with envy before handing the cell phone back to the owner.

"Okay, thanks, Namtarn."

"Ahem," the older person cleared his throat, reminding the young ones that he was still there with them.

"P'Mangkorn, you want me to take your picture? Here, let me take one for you." Namtarn turned to smile at the forgotten mentor. The other party shook his head slightly before handing over his own unwrapped bowl of food to the little one.

"I'm not an alpaca. I can't eat these. You have to give it and feed the alpacas yourself." The little man snorted slightly as he spoke in a low and dissatisfied tone.

"No, you want to take a photo while you're feeding them, right? Take it."

"Then you won't have a picture of yourself feeding the alpacas," Namtarn said. The little one sulk while puffing his cheeks so cutely that the person looking at him wanted to pinch those soft cheeks.

"Well, we can take the photo together. Wouldn't it be fun?" said Mangkorn, which the other party thought was not difficult to follow. Taking a photo alone can be done anytime, but we rarely have a chance to take pictures together often. 

"Come here, Deer," when the little one turned to invite his friend to join the frame, the other kept shaking his head before saying something.

"It would be better to take a shot when we're feeding them. But, if there are too many people in the frame, people won't be able to see that we are feeding the alpacas." Deer replied,

"Really? Then, let's have one with Namtarn and P'Mangkorn first, then we'll go buy another bowl and take another photo with Deer," the petite guy offered an idea. He is willing to spend his money to buy another bowl of food to take a picture with his friend.

"Okay, then give me your phone, and I'll take a photo for you." Deer said. This time, Namtarn passes the phone to the other person. At the same time, Mangkorn removed the plastic seal wrapped around the food bowl before stepping behind Namtarn and handed the food bowl to him.

"This time, be careful."

"Yes," Namtarn replied, the little one determined to hold the bowl firmly before sending it to the little alpaca to eat. Mangkorn saw that Namtarn couldn't hold his bowl because the alpaca pushed it intensely. Hence, he piled his hands under Namtarn's to help the younger hold the bowl steadily. However, when seen from the third person point of view, you would see a picture of Namtarn feeding the alpaca. Behind him, Mangkorn helping the other person holding the bowl of food. Namtarn's sparkling eyes fixed on Nong Alpaca, who was eating his food deliciously. At the same time, Mangkorn's gaze stopped at the small figure. If you saw it yourself, you would agree that they look like a couple.

"That's it, the food's all gone now. I can only give you another bowl. If you eat too much, you'll be fat", Mangkorn couldn't help laughing at his Nong's sentence. It sounds like the other person was talking about himself instead of the alpaca.

"P'Mangkorn, please take a picture of Namtarn and Deer too." After taking a photo of the couple, he headed back to his similarly sized best friend. And when the photo session was completed in the little alpacas' area, they thought it was time to move on to the next zone. The petite guy waved goodbye to Nong Alpaca before walking to the next area.

"Namtarn, send me the photo we took just before."

"Okay, I'll send it to you by LINE," replied the little one, taking out his phone to send the photo to the other person immediately.

"Yes, I've received it."

"Oh! There's a giraffe too, Deer. Let's go see it." He quickly grabbed his best friend's hand and ran into the new zone without paying attention. As he arrived at the new area, the tall and long giraffe amazed the petite guy. The mentor who was following behind looked at the cute person running in front of him affectionately. He managed to post something on his own Facebook account before following the younger people entering the giraffe zone.

Mangkorn Morakod added a new photo just now: Feeding Nong.

Comment 1: Feeding 'Nong', huh?

Namkang Narawat: Do feeding need to be that close?

Mangkorn Morakod: The alpaca was too strong for Namtarn @Namkang Narawat

Pung Pongkook: Let me go with Nong too.

Rung Reungrit: And you said that he was only a brother…Did you expect me to believe that?

Mangkorn Morakod: Yes @Rung Reungrit

Mangkorn Morakod: Shrimp @Pung Pongkook

Comment 2: I saw the picture and couldn't help but think…

Comment 3: Heart is broken.

Fern Fern: Who's that cutie, Mangkorn?

Morakod Mangkorn: A Junior @Fern Fern.

---

Rewind to yesterday.

"Hey Mangkorn, can I talk to you?" After finishing dinner and everyone slowly returned to their room, Rung took the opportunity to clarify something with his friend. And seeing that the other party had nothing to do, it was the right time for him to talk with Mangkorn.

They both stopped in front of the reception building. The sound of the wind blowing softly, and the sound of insects in the night, showing the abundance of nature.

"What?" asked Mangkorn in a resentful tone.

"Why do you have to interrupt me when I approached Namtarn?" Rung wasted no time and went straight to the point.

"You like Namtarn too, don't you?" Mangkorn didn't budge.

"Well, I like him, and I intend to court him."

"I don't think you should. That kid is not ready for that kind of relationship yet." Mangkorn replied.

"You sure you only see him as a brother? How would you know if he's not ready yet? He has never tried dating anyone to know so."

"I don't see him that way. He's a Nong that I have to take care of because Namkang asked me to. He doesn't want anyone to mess with his little brother, so you better give up."

"If you say so, then you must do as you say. But I'll wait and see if what you say today will be the same as what I thought." After that, the other party immediately walked up to the building, leaving Mangkorn in silence.

Do I like Namtarn? Mangkorn thought to himself. He never opposes or hates homosexuality. But he just feels that he needs to take care and sometimes wants to prank Namtarn. He just thinks that Namtarn looked cute whenever he's sulking. That's all.

End of chapter 11.