Kongpob, P'Arthit and the Rice Baby (Completed)

My only Sun..

It's still not weird later on, when they meet up with their friends in their Social Studies lesson. Two groups have been mixed together and it's quite busy in the room so he and Kongpob are sharing a desk with Prae and Oak, all squished up.

Below the table, Kongpob has their legs pressed together and a hand idly rubbing at Arthit's knee. Arthit doesn't mind. In fact, he's glad of the distraction as it's a bit boring in class today. They have to present a little of the data they have been collecting, but Arthit tunes out focusing on Kong's hand until it's Prem's turn to speak.

His friend strides confidently to the front of the room and drops his folder of work onto the teacher's desk.

"The thing is, Professor," he says with a grimace, "My wife's left me and I've been trying to care for the baby all alone. I've been a great Dad, I know, but the other day I made a small mistake."

"How small Khun Prem?" The teacher asks, eyebrow lifting.

Prem stares at her again before he reaches into his bag and pulls out his rice baby.

The whole class gasps! It is clear that the baby has been through a difficult time. The bag is bulging like the rice inside has expanded and the sack is dirty with a few small holes. Swollen grains of rice are spilling from one of the largest gashes.

Their teacher reaches out and lifts the bag up high..

.. and, as though it has decided that it's had enough, the entire thing splits down the middle and cooked rice spills all over like snowflakes.

The class burst into nervous laughter while Prem takes a step away from the mess, then turns to give Arthit a despairing look. Arthit just shrugs his shoulders, unsure how to help.

"So," their teacher begins, staring from Prem to the rest with a steady eye, "We have our first casualty!"

—-

After the Prem disaster, the rest of the class is kind of boring. Prem's been given a new baby after the senior had explained that he'd taken the baby in the bathroom with him and she had rolled into the sink ("Well, I knew someone would need one eventually," the Professor had admitted, "I just assumed it would probably be Khun Bright!!" "I take offense to that, Professor!") They presented their reports and Kongpob and Arthit quickly realised that they had the most active of all the children and resorted to making dagger eyes at their teacher.

After, the whole group met in the quad.

"How, exactly, does a bag of rice, roll into a sink Ai'Prem?" Arthit asks, thumping his friend on the shoulder as they settle with their lunch trays.

The whole table turns to look at the poor senior, who is turning an uncomfortable shade of red, "S'not what happened.." he mumbles.

"Sorry, we didn't catch that." Bright says loudly, 'What did you do? Because despite what the Professor said, I am not incompetent and I am looking after our baby really well, right Mommy Maprang?"

Kongpob, Oak and the others all turn to look at Maprang who is gazing at Bright with cow eyes. "He's right." She says, "He's going to be an amazing father one day."

Praepailin tuts a few times, turning pointedly away from her boy crazy friend, and then points at Prem, "Come on, we want the whole story Phi!" The others all nod too.

Prem lifts his face from his plate of noodles and gives Arthit a pleading look, but Arthit just shakes his head and then Prem begins to talk.

".. so after Kat went, my mother rang and I was feeling a bit sad still, well sad and also a little out of my depth. So she asked me if I'd done everything for the baby that I needed to do. And seriously guys, I don't think she truly grasped that it wasn't a real child. Seriously, she was all like, well have you fed the baby Prem and have you bathed the baby? And have you done this and done that.. and it just went on and on. And I was so bored that I kept eating while she was speaking and then.. I was distracted.. and I dropped some rice soup right on top of him. Then I just sort of panicked.."