Just The 2 Of Us

Chapter 64: Just Characters

"Any idea of what to do about Nanon yet?"

"What to do about Nanon? That doesn't concern you, Ohm. You'd better not try anything. We both know it won't work." Chimon advised him. "It's not like you expect him to send birthday wishes through his IG, right? You would notice that it wasn't really Non doing it, but one of the twins, and you would be disappointed all over again."

"Mon, you are his friend too. Shouldn't you be doing something about it?" Ohm protested as he sat on the bench of his porch trying to convince an unyielding Chimon that Nanon needed to go back to therapy.

"I am your friend too, and I actually don't know what to do about you either. How badly has Ananda affected you? What kind of drugs were you on when you tied the guy up and fucked his brains out?! You never talk to me about it! How am I supposed to know that you're not suffering from some sort of PTSD? At least Nanon's strategy to protect his sanity is well-known to us. What about yours?" Chimon crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow at his friend, wondering if Ohm was in denial, or simply too comfortable in his own skin.

"I told him the truth. And that's what matters. I feel perfectly fine now that I have nothing to hide. That weight over my shoulders is completely gone. That beast I became while I was with Ananda is not a shameless secret that I need to hide from the man I love anymore. The truth set me free at last, and I don't have to pretend that I didn't do anything wrong, or that my choices are always right. He shouldn't expect me to make good decisions all the time, he shouldn't expect me to be who he wants me to be. Now he knows what I am capable of. Now he knows how far I am willing to go to protect my soulmate. All I can hope is that he can understand the sacrifice I made and that someday he can forgive me for it." Ohm said without a tinge of regret in his voice. Chimon did think that his friend looked more serene, and he truly wanted to believe that whatever monster possessed Ohm while he was in Ananda's company was long gone by now.

"Listen, I'm happy with whatever coping mechanism Nanon chose to survive that boat trip. I myself didn't see the video, but I was instantly traumatized by what I heard regarding its content." Chimon stated in a serious tone. "I know you miss him, and you would be pleased to at least get a hug from him tomorrow, but let's give him some time and space to at least come to terms with the fact that his former boyfriend screwed a vicious psychopath repeatedly."

"Nanon shouldn't have told you about it. I didn't want you to be weirded out by this whole thing like Perth is." Ohm sighed and chewed on his lip. He knew that those close to him would never understand why he did what he did. They weren't used to seeing him in that light. And he couldn't blame them for being shocked or disgusted. Perth certainly had strong opinions about his involvement with Ananda, but that Nong couldn't bring himself to voice all of them. Nanon, the love of his life, thought he could take it, he thought he could digest the truth, but all he did was choke on it. And he choked on it so badly, that he had to rely on a few of his characters to survive that boat trip. Ohm had no doubt that their relationship was definitely defunct.

Chimon was the one who still had some sort of faith in him, but that one hadn't seen the video after all. Nanon only narrated to their friend what happened during that boat trip, and even if that video was still available, Ohm was sure that Chimon would not be willing to watch it. Ohm understood that it was human nature after all. Who would bear to see their best friend engaging in some sort of sadomasochistic deed like that one? Ohm was thankful to Chimon for not turning his back on him, and that was enough. Ohm believed that his fans also had a hard time when they learned about the bullying issue in middle school because they had only seen a superficial, almost fantastic idea of who he was. Some fans overcame the troubling feelings of admiring an actor who had a dark past, but others simply stopped following him. Rejecting whatever brings them too close to accepting that every single human being is not made only of kindness, but also wickedness is a common behavior for many.