Until We Meet Again (English Translation)

6

Chapter 6. Hello Monday

***
The swimming club members are back from their training camp with the 1st and 2nd year juniors. Their bodies are 2 levels darker. And from confusion, they are now without doubt. After knowing that their club's President is very fierce, just hearing his name and the Vice President's name, who is usually joking, they will hurry up to run away. Don't want to meet them face to face.

Today the club's President let them rest. Just some 3rd year members came for practice. Dean collects the document and bidding goodbye to the people in the club, he takes his car key and walks to the parking lot.

It's 6:00 o'clock in the afternoon, a student is slowing down his long legs when passing by the Economics faculty. He can't help looking for someone. He doesn't know whether that person goes to his club or already went home. After coming back from the camp, Dean tried all means to contact him. But still no chance. The only connection is Team who usually bring snacks. But today he doesn't come for practice.

"We're sorry Parm, these last few days we began casting the actors. So we'll be going home late everyday." The clear voice of the girl doesn't make the owner of the name stop.

"It's okay, ManNow, hurry up and go. I can go home by myself."

Dean follows the source of the voices, then finds two juniors sitting at the stone gazebo next to the faculty building. No other students are around, so he can hear them clearly.

"Your car broke down, and Team is sick." ManNow hugs her friend's arm and shakes him. "ManNow is sorry, na."

"Hey, no need to apologise. The car broke by itself, it's not ManNow's fault. We will cheer you at the club, su su na." Parm grabs his friend's hand, ManNow just smiles and waves her hand.

"So lazy to go home alone." Parm complains, to reach his apartment by car only took half an hour. But if he took public transportation he will have to change the bus three times and spend an hour because he'll have to wait for the next bus. He often hitched a ride in ManNow's or Team's car to the train station, but never to his apartment.

Actually can ask to ride Phi Win's car, na woy ...

He sighs and lay down his head on the table.

Dean smiles slightly seeing his child-like action. Parm is someone who is very expressive, from embarrassment, nervous, confusion, crying, or childish. Everything can be seen clearly from his face. Making the one who saw him unable stand it.

Bang boom!!!

A loud explosion makes the students shocked. Dean hurriedly turns to look for the source of the explosion from the faculty building. After a while he hears people screaming, saying that the transformer had exploded. Dean heaves a sigh, this is the first time he heard such a big explosion this near. He is still shocked.

His interested face turns back to the stone table, but he couldn't see the boy who sat there.

"Parm?" He comes closer to see if the boy had already left and it seems to be not the case because he sees the bag is still on the table. And when he comes closer, he is shocked and almost jump.

"Parm!!!"

The boy he is looking for is curled up under the table, his face is so pale it is as if no blood is flowing. He is trembling all over, heavy breaths and both his hands and legs are stiff. The tall body soon pulls to hug him, the junior who is suddenly suffering from breathing difficulty, it's making him lose his heart.

Parm tightly hugs the young man's shirt, stares at his face, worrying the person who is holding him as he is full of tears.

"Phi ... Dean" his voice breaks.

"Ssshhhh! ... Don't talk." Dean reaches out his hand to grab a paper bag from the table. He hurriedly pours out the things inside and brings the bag in front of Parm's mouth who is breathing heavily.

"Calm down ... calm ... Phi is here." he whispers, his forehead is sweating. His hand grabs the small hand and repeats the words.

They stay like that for sometime until Parm calms down and breathe normally. Dean helps him to sit on the chair and squats in front of him.

"Let's go to the hospital." he says staring at the boy's eyes.

Parm shakes his head. "It's okay ... Just needs to rest for a while and I'll be fine."

"Don't refuse... Phi will drive you there." He stands up and puts back the things inside the bag and takes the bag together with his own backpack.

"No, Phi Dean." Parm hurriedly shouts to refuse.

"Walk by yourself or I'll carry you?"

The sick person soon gets well and answers "Walk by myself!"

And the first year student from Economics faculty is kidnapped by the swimming club's President to go to the hospital without anyone knowing about it.

***
"It's hyperventilation, usually because of stress." Dr. Satorn Jaidee explains "It is usually triggered by a very stressful situation or shock. What is the cause?"

"The transformer explodes loudly." Dean answers, the doctor folds his arms and sits in the examination room while his patient is still stunned.

When the doctor and Dean both turn to see and wait for his answer, Parm nods.

"Khrab, I am very afraid of loud sounds. If it isn't too loud, the symptom will not be too bad. But if it's very loud, it will be very bad."

"Do you have this symptom before?" the doctor writes down the details in a white card while the person who is asked, answers normally.

He had been brought by his parents to so many doctors, even psychiatrists.

"No, unable to breathe if the sound is like a gun or an explosion."

"Are you ever in an accident involving a gun?"

The boy shakes his head, "Never, but my mom said that I have been afraid of this loud sound since I was child."

"Can this symptom be cured?" Dean asks the doctor with a heavy voice.

"Hyperventilation is usually related to mental sickness. I can only prescribes medicine to make him relax. But if Khun Parm doesn't have any stress and we can't find the cause, it will be very difficult to cure." The doctor explains with an uncomfortable look. Dean nods. He talks with the doctor for a while and listens to his advice on how to take care of the symptom. He then pay his respects (wai) to thank him.

Since they get out of hospital, the swimming club's President is frowning and the junior sits by his side. He just found out about the symptom Parm had and he doesn't like it. What if this symptom appears when no one is near him?

They both sit quietly all the way, sometimes the driver glances at his passenger. The boy hugs his bag tightly to calm down his heart. When he loses consciousness, happiness took over. Fortunately, he had difficulty breathing only when he hears loud sounds. But when he is very stressed or excited, the symptom never appears, if it's an emotional disease like the doctor explained.

Dean grabs the steering wheel tightly to calm himself down. Worrying is not solving the problem at all, but have to look for the root cause. He glances at the boy who is hugging his bag tightly. He sees tension on his face. Maybe it is because he is unfamiliar? Or afraid?

... thinking a while and moves his tongue, his fingers tapping on the steering wheel before starting to break the silence.

"Dean, Ratthanon Wongnate, third year Management faculty has 2 siblings studying in the same University, their names are Don and Del."

"Hahaha" Parm turns and widen his eyes. He doesn't know why Phi Dean suddenly introduces himself. But that person is still waiting for a response so he replies,

"Parm ... Parm Triwinij, first year Economics faculty. Has one younger brother, his name is Phoom, grade 10."

"I live with my family, but our parents often go abroad." Dean continues as if he has to say something. And it seems what he does is effective because the tension decreases, Parm's face begins to relax, and he is not hugging his bag anymore.

"I live alone in an apartment. My father had died and my mother runs a Thai restaurant in America."

"Phi was born in April 21st."

"I was born in June 16th"

"Phi likes the sea."

"I like the sea and rivers."

"Phi is the President of the swimming club."

"Parm is a member of the Thai dessert club."

"... I like to eat Thai food." glances at the Nong.

"... I like to cook Thai food." The sound of such a light-hearted answer. Parm doesn't realise that his answer is wrong.

The car is slowing down before stopping to wait  for the light. The piquant face turns to look at the person in the eyes.

"Single ..."

"Si ..." Parm is stiff and slowly faltering. The boy wants to avoid, but he is attracted to the beautiful eyes. His lips are swollen until it's red. Then he answers when the countdown on the red light has 3 seconds left.

"Single...... too."

The sentence ended. The silence is overwhelming. Leaving some feelings that are forming more and more. The young man moves the car when the light  turns to green. He slowly drives along the road, as if he is stretching for a little more time to be together.

"Is it this your condo?" when the person next to him nods, he turns the steering wheel to the front of the building's entrance

An 8th storey low-rise condo located in an alleyway that needed their own vehicles. Dean frowns once again in the car. Now that they have arrived, he is losing the reason for them to be together.

Parm smiles and raises his hands in a wai to thank him because he had driven him home. As if it's a dream, he gets to sit in Phi Dean's car and talk with him. Even if it is not much, it can already be considered as a development. Parm takes his bag, gets down from the car but before he walks into the building, the driver opens the car window and detains him

"Wait."

The big hand holds his phone and his beautiful eyes are staring at him. Parm is looking at the phone in the big hand, his brain is working very hard to interpret it. Finally, his mind is in tangles and blown into pieces.

The reason? Because of the unasked question. Just his instincts is working, telling him to take the phone and opens the screen with a code that had been told and then press call ...

enters his number.

When the phone in his bag rings. Parm gives the phone back to the owner. He raises his hands once again and then walks into the building with a happy feeling. The driver stares at the number in his phone and moves his lips slightly.

That night, the small boy lies on the bed staring at Phi Dean's phone number with his heart beating fast. He presses to save the number and then used the picture he secretly took at the library to set as the caller's id. His lips are smiling all the time until his cheeks hurt. Rolling left, rolling right, tuck in front of the pillow and shouts out with a muffled voice.

Happy to die