"Hhhh... Hhhh..."
Their soft breaths mingled as sunlight fell across their bodies, touching Kao's eyes and hair until they glinted like gold.
Mok's fingers began tracing quiet lines from Kao's eyes to his cheek, then down to his lips, following the path his own mouth had taken moments before. He trailed back up to Kao's eyes, smoothed over his cheeks, and finally let his touch rest on those dry lips.
Mok worried at the peeling skin on Kao's lower lip before moistening it with his tongue.
Their foreheads met, bringing them even closer.
"Where are my glasses?" Mok asked, playing with Kao's hair.
But Kao kept his mouth shut. He had already come up with a plan to use Mok's glasses as an excuse to stay.
Mok locked his arms around Kao's neck, drawing him closer.
"Tell me..."
"Guess where..."
"Mmpff!"
Kao sucked gently at the tender skin of Mok's neck.
Mok shoved at his chest, unable to believe how naughty his own boyfriend could be.
"That's enough, you know. You should head back."
Now he was changing the topic.
"Mmh..." He hummed and happily played with the mask tied around the waist of Mok's costume as if it belonged to him.
"But I don't wanna..."
'What?' Mok had only just calmed down, and now his blood pressure was rising again. What if someone saw them together? But that wasn't even his biggest problem. Kao was behaving worse, and he had become completely unpredictable.
His cheeks flushed red. Mok moved toward the boxes, pretending to inspect them.
'If Kao won't move, then I will...'
The real problem was that Mok couldn't control his own desires. He felt ashamed of how easily he kept losing to Kao.
"Wait..."
Before those words could turn into a scream—no, before he could even finish—Kao grabbed Mok by the waist.
Mok's robe fluttered around them, brushing against their legs.
Their eyes met, telling stories neither of them spoke aloud, while their breathing became part of those stories.
Kao's lips parted, and his tongue moved against Mok's. The wet sound of their kiss mingled with the breeze.
"Haaa... Haaa..."
"Kao, why are you so stubborn today?"
His lips were already swollen, and his voice trembled, desperate for more.
"Hasn't it been a while?" A faint pout appeared on Kao's face. "...Don't you miss me?"
He didn't wait for an answer.
"I miss you so much that I want you."
Kao leaned close to his ear.
"I miss your voice..."
Mok smiled. "What are you...?" His thoughts were getting hazy.
"I miss your smile..." A finger teased the edge of Mok's parted lips. "I miss your..." Kao stared down at him, biting his own lip. "Mok... I want... I want you..."
'You win, Kao.' Mok hugged him tightly. It was the only way he could silence him.
"Kao..." His voice dropped into a deeper tone as he lowered his head. "Look where we are." He lifted his head and breathed in the scent of Kao's sweaty neck. The small hairs at the back of Kao's neck were still damp, and Mok pressed against them, his fingers feeling the wet strands.
"Kao... You're sweating too much."
"O-hh..." Kao closed his eyes as Mok touched his hair. At that moment, neither of them seemed to have much control left.
"I... carried some equipment for the music department..."
"Good job."
Mok bit his earlobe lightly before resting his head on Kao's shoulder, forgetting that he had been the one telling Kao not to do anything in the classroom.
"You don't like my smell?"
'What? Suddenly?' Mok raised his eyebrows and frowned. 'He knows I like it. Then why is he asking?'
"Ahh!! Mok, don't bite."
"No..."
"Then I have no choice..."
"Choice? What do you mean?"
"Baby..."
As Mok pushed him away, Kao's feet hit the boxes. But Mok didn't stop there. He covered his ears.
'No... no... I didn't hear anything. Forget it... Yes... forget it.' Lost in thought, Mok began walking aimlessly around the room.
"Baby... baby..."
Kao kept calling him, knowing how much Mok hated the nickname because it sounded too cliché.
"Kao, stop following me... No..."
Like a duckling following its mother, Kao continued circling the room after Mok. Then Mok started running, and Kao immediately followed him.
Suddenly, Kao stopped in the middle of the room, putting Mok into a frozen state.
"Ba...by... You're my baby... Baby... baby... I love you, baby... My heartbeat... baby..."
'What happened to Kao? Why is he singing and dancing?'
It was funny, but Mok had already lost control of the situation. He wanted to bury himself in the walls.
"Ba...by... You're my baby... Baby... baby... I love you, baby... My heartbeat... baby..."
"Haha..."
Mok burst into laughter, but Kao repeated the song just to see his laugh again.
The room grew loud and lively.
"Ba...by..."
The prince was so embarrassed that he wanted to jump out of the window. Even the wind seemed to blush, refusing to go anywhere. The curtain became a paid actor in Kao's performance.
"I catch you... baby..."
"Kao... Stop... Don't... It tickles..."
Mok's stomach began to hurt from laughing.
Kao's fingers had found his sensitive spots, especially his forearms and the back of his neck. Tickling him there had apparently become Kao's new hobby.
"Hah... ha... Stop it... Kao..."
"Freeze!"
"No..."
"It's not fair, Kao." Mok sulked with all the strength he had left.
"Ahh... okay... okay... Call me Phi, then I'll stop."
"I..."
Mok stumbled over the word, unwilling to accept his defeat. His eyes glared at Kao, clearly asking, 'Do you have a death wish?' But Kao knew Mok wouldn't do anything, and he had no other choice.
"Ph..."
Before he could finish, a sharp sound from outside caught their attention.
...
Clank!!
Mok quickly grabbed Kao's hands and pushed him back, creating some distance between them. At the same time, a female voice echoed from outside.
"It's alright. I can carry it all alone. Thanks for helping me..."
She stepped inside. Her shoes stopped, and her eyes fell on Mok.
'Why is she here?'
"Ohh... Mok. Why are you here?"
'That's what I want to ask.'
It was annoying enough that their quiet time had vanished into thin air. However, Mok kept his disappointment to himself while she waited for an answer.
"Sorry..."
"It's alright, Mok. Then why are you here, senior?" Her gaze shifted toward Kao, who stood behind Mok.
"I... I came to take some things..."
"From here?" She wasn't backing down easily.
"But does that matter? Do you even know me?" Even though he spoke gently, his words were harsh enough to make his displeasure clear.
"What a fool I am." She hit her own head with her hands before greeting him.
"Sawatdee khap... I am Ria, I am second year, and Mok's senior."
"Sawatdee... I am Kao, you must know me." Kao replied half-heartedly. He was usually well-composed, but now he was having the same thoughts as Mok.
"Yes, who didn't know you. Well, Mok, did the professor call you?" she asked with a smile.
"Mmh..."
"Now I get it. He's worried that you're alone, even though you're not. But the professor doesn't know that. Maybe that's why he asked me to accompany you."
After speaking, she gave them an awkward smile.
"Kao..." Mok called him in an authoritative voice.
"Go back..."
Mok never spoke to him like that in public. But the girl's eyes refused to leave Kao, and seeing it made Mok even more impatient.
"But..."
"Go back..."
This time, Mok's voice softened, and he gave Kao a smile meant only for him. It didn't matter where they were. Kao understood what Mok meant just by looking at him.
"Then I'm going..."
"Bye, senior..." She waved frantically, but at the same time, her phone rang. Instead of a regular ringtone, a song began playing.
The sound caught Kao mid-step, drawing his gaze right back to Mok.
Like birds that had forgotten the time, they stood there, locking gazes and telling stories once more.
The guitar strings blended with the piano, but the rhythm wasn't gentle or calm. Instead, it felt like a sudden stab to the heart.
A male voice joined the music through the instruments.
I am... I am just a lie, tell me...
I am just a lie.
You are the player...
Ohhh-hhh...
You are the player.
The music shifted into a rap, accompanied by a rough bass.
Tell me, just me, love.
Can I really call it love,
Name it as a tag,
But sure, it's a meal,
So I can devour you whole.
Then the voice dropped lower.
I am a bad boy... Ohhh... ohh...
I am a bad boy... Ohhh... ohhh...
You have been played... ohhh... ohhh...
I am a black flag but...
Clack!!
She threw the box onto the floor and turned off the phone, but the song continued ringing in both their ears.
'I am a bad boy, are you.' Mok stared at Kao.
Kao swallowed hard and shook his head.
'I am not. Never think that...'
Without wasting another second, Kao bolted out of the room because he couldn't take it anymore; he had almost believed the song meant something deep, but he couldn't comprehend how anyone could write lyrics like that when his mind was filled with the single thought, 'I am not a bad boy.'
"Wait... Your shirt..."
Before Mok could finish, Kao was already gone.
"He is really a funny guy... right?"
Mok, who had planned to follow Kao, paused.
"Who...?"
"Phi Kao... I actually quite like him. Do you like him?"
"I am... I..." Mok trailed off. Even her smile felt suffocating.
"Do you like rap?"
'Suddenly, rap? Am I going to be okay?'
"I like anything that sounds good to my ears..."
"Haha, no wonder everyone say you are most hard one to speak. Then, do you like adventure?"
'Adv...? Out of nowhere?'
Now he knew he had become the most unlucky one. He wanted to slip out of the room or even hide behind the curtains to escape.
"I hate adventure."
"Ohh-h then your favourite food..."
"I... I..."
...
"Ohhh! I'm sick of this. Like this? Hang the banner the same way I just showed you. Okay?"
"Then can't you just do it, Win?"
"Shhhh..." Win hissed. He wanted to jump from the ladder he was standing on.
"My neck... my body... It's sore," he muttered, looking down at his classmates.
'What is she doing? There is a spelling mistake. Then he gazed to his opposite side. 'Wait, I asked him to draw a rose. Can I hire some kindergarten children?'
Thoughts of his countless chores suddenly flooded back to him.
"Take me... take me away from this hell..."
Win yelled at the sky while his classmates whispered to one another, as if they had no idea what was happening.
[#Hashtag: Anyone who knows the best hospital, please take our good-looking senior Win. He has gone mad just now...]
Comments flowed like a seamless waterfall.
[Win... I like you... Can I take him?]
[He is mine. Get away...]
[Mad? Who cares...]
[P'Win... I am a junior. My ID...]
On the other hand, Win had no idea why everyone was staring at him like wolves....
...
Extra~
'I Think I Am the Most Handsome Ghost'
Phayu... No... The ghost ran at full speed, but his unexercised body was already on the verge of collapse.
'Why... Just why is my department so far away?'
"Haa... ha..."
He took a deep breath, but the air felt boiling hot against his painfully dry throat.
'Water... water...'
But he couldn't stop. His life was at risk.
The classroom was already a battlefield.
Students in all kinds of costumes filled the room. Even without bloodshed, their sweat, curses, and constant pushing and pulling were enough to create chaos.
"Give me that..."
"I want... This ... you... bitc—"
Thud!
"Guys, I am here."
The moment his sound was heard, everyone glanced at the door, and they froze.
Phayu scratched his wig.
'What will I do? Okay... I can do this. I can.'
He did not care, he just walked saying, "Please, can I have a way?" He passed several students. "Can I take a look...?"
Silence. Total silence.
Phayu took a mask from a box that was placed on the table in the middle of the classroom. He smiled when he found a simple one that fit his face.
"Thank God... Sadhu..." He clasped his hands in thanksgiving. Then he looked at the others, who hesitated to come closer to him and stayed like stones.
"Hi... Hey... Ohhh..."
He tried waving at everyone.
"Hey, my friend," he said in English.
"It's not working." He mumbled to himself as he walked outside, scratching his wig again.
After he left the classroom, all of them inside stared at one another.
"Ghos..."
"Ghos..."
Even the other ghosts in the class dropped to the floor, still shocked.
"Mom... take me.... it's scary..."
Meanwhile, Phayu was blushing enough to think, 'I know they must be in shock because of how I look.' Like a male lead in some grand opera, he brushed the hair away from his forehead. 'Even in ghost makeup, I was just too handsome...'
"Haha... Haha..."