You’re Never Normal

Posted originally on the Archive of Our Own at http://archiveofourown.org/works/26503201.

Rating: Mature
Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply
Category: M/M
Fandom: NaMon - Fandom
Relationship: Nanon Korapat Kirdpan/Chimon Wachirawit Ruangwiwat
Character: Chimon Wachirawit Ruangwiwat, Nanon Korapat Kirdpan, Frank
Thanatsaran Samthonglai, Drake Sattabut Laedeke, Off Jumpol
Adulkittiporn, Gun Atthaphan Phunsawat, Neen Suwanamas, Tay
Tawan Vihokratana, New Thitipoom Techaapaikhun, Mild Lapassalan
Jiravechsoontornkul, Ohm Pawat Chittsawangdee
Additional Tags: Rivalry, Fluff, romcom, slight angst, Enemies to Friends to Lovers,
Mutual Pining
Series: Part 3 of Close Your Eyes
Stats: Published: 2020-09-17 Updated: 2020-09-23 Chapters: 5/? Words:
26748

You’re Never Normal

by darlingjongin

Summary

Chimon, an aspiring singer, gets scouted by Off Jumpol after hearing him perform in his
sister’s restaurant. With his care, he’s thrusted into the limelight and is anticipated by
millions as a rising star. The only problem is, the stage is too small and pop sensation
Nanon already has his eyes to take him down.

Notes

Spin Off to Close Your Eyes and Kiss Me. This fic can be read without reading the previous
fics as it focuses on Namon rather than the previous ships, but they will make appearances
all through out and their interactions with each other and the new characters would have
more meaning if you’ve read close your eyes. But either way, it doesn’t matter lol.

Also, shoutout to @newborn_babii on twitter for suggesting this plot as a spinoff. I decided
to roll with it, so let’s see where this goes. I don’t know Chimon nor Nanon that well and
I’m basing their chemistry off the little amount I’ve seen on Twitter and YouTube, so pls
don’t kill me if I don’t get it right.
 Prologue

Prologue.

Chimon Wachirawit was now homeless. Of course, he couldn’t blame anyone but himself. His
parents drove him out of the house once he came back after first year of college, telling them he
had dropped out to focus on his music. No one wanted to hear that, especially after his parents done
everything they could so he could get into one of the most prestigious colleges in the city.

All he had was his guitar case hanging heavily on his shoulders with another shoulder bag with as
much clothes he could pack whilst his parents started throwing shit at him to try and get him out of
the house. He probably didn’t even pack enough socks and he knew he was gonna run out of them.

Luckily, he knew this was gonna happen, so he stashed enough money over the past year in his
secret saving account, renting a small apartment on the outskirts of the city.

‘So… Chimon right?’

‘Yes’, he replied, reaching his hand out to shake the woman’s hand.

‘So, what made you wanna apply as a kitchen assistant?’

‘Uh… I’m really good at cooking’, he stuttered, trying to make up an excuse, ‘And I also need a
job’

‘Aha, well, isn’t that why we’re all here’, she joked, looking down at his resume with an arched
brow and interested took, ‘It said here you went to Bangkok University majoring in Engineering’

‘Ah yes… I sort of dropped out’

‘May I ask why?’, the owner asked, but the big guitar case leaning on the table was enough of an
idea for her to make up her own conclusion.

‘I didn’t want to be an engineer’, Chimon confessed.

‘Let me guess. You had other dreams that your parents didn’t approve of so when you decided to
pursue, they kicked you out and now you need a job’

‘Uh… Yeah’, Chimon didn’t want to admit it, but she was right on the money. He looked down at
his hands which rested on his lap, playing with his fingers as he avoid her gaze. But he heard her
chuckle, an amused tone as she combed her hair back, looking back down on his resume.

‘Then you’re hired’, she said flat out, which made him lift his head up and stare at her with a
bewildered expression.

‘Wait, really?’

‘Yeah’, she nodded nonchalantly as she got up from the table, putting away all the other applicants
back into her files, ‘And you start today, right now actually. The restaurant’s gonna open for
dinner, so don’t disappoint’

‘I really got the job?’, he leaped up on his seat, his eyes shining when the woman turned around
with a gleaming smirk, throwing him an apron.

‘And you’ll get to keep it if you do well tonight’

‘Hey, I’m Drake’, the teenager in the kitchen introduced himself when his new employer, who
insisted on going by P’Neen, beckoned Chimon to keep his things inside the staff room and get
straight to work. He didn’t think employment would be this easy, but he didn’t want to question her
in case she changed her mind. He needed any job just to get him by, so he didn’t have the privilege
to be choosy with where he ended up.

‘Chimon’, he reached his hand out to shake the boy’s hand, ‘Have you worked here long?’

‘Since I was sixteen’, Drake smiled before going back to the storage room to get out a bag of
potatoes, ‘So, two years now’

‘Oh, so are you getting ready for college?’, Chimon asked, leaning on the counter and tying his
apron as he watched the boy who was younger than him show him around the kitchen.

‘Yeah, that’s why P’Neen’s looking for my replacement. She knows she’s gonna be in shambles
once I leave. But I’m sure you’ll do a great job, right?’, Drake turned to beckon Chimon to follow
him, opening the fridge and showing him where they store each of their ingredient. The restaurant
was a humble size, so it was easy for Chimon to find his way around, but he was told by Drake that
it can get busy, especially on the weekends, so he needed to be quick on his feet.

For someone who’s never worked before, he hoped this job won’t kill him.

‘P’Neen! P’Neen! Where are you?’, the front door opened despite the restaurant still being closed
and a ruddy teenager walked in, still in his school uniforms despite it being evening already,
shouting as if he owned the place as he threw his bag on one of the booths.

‘What is it Frank?’, Drake answered on her behave, opening the kitchen door.

‘Not you. I don’t want to talk to you’, Frank hissed back when he turned to glare at Drake,
‘Where’s P’Neen?’

‘I’m right here. What do you want?’, Neen walked out of the staff room after setting Chimon’s bag
down, rolling her eyes as soon as she heard Frank’s whining voice. Over the years, he had gotten
good at treating her restaurant as his own and no matter how many times she told Tay to keep his
son off her property, she always found Frank inside, ‘Shouldn’t you be babysitting Mook?’

‘She has a play date with Nirin and Win’, Frank explained, ‘I need help. My dad still won’t let me
work for his company’

‘You’re seventeen, of course he wouldn’t want you near his office’, Neen snorted, having to hear
Frank whine again over Tay’s decision to refuse Frank an internship at his company.

‘P’Neen, come on, you know I need some experience to vamp up my college applications’, Frank
defended himself, tugging at her sleeves like a little kid asking for ice cream, ‘Do you know how
amazing it’ll look on my applications?’
‘You don’t need to worry about your applications till next year though’, Drake shouted from the
kitchen, leaning on the counter as he watched Frank through the door.

‘I didn’t ask for your opinion’, Frank shouted back, his tone venomous, which made Chimon
watch in curiosity as so why the teenager was giving Drake attitude.

‘What’s up with him?’, Chimon whispered to his new co-worker, watching as Drake nonchalantly
took all of Frank’s hit without so much of a reaction.

‘He broke up with me yesterday’

‘Wait, are you serious?’, Chimon almost choked.

‘We’ve been going out for two years’, Drake explained, which didn’t do anything but make
Chimon even more confused as he followed Drake back into the fridge, watching him count out all
the vegetables they had stored.

‘And you’re not… Sad? Or mad? He broke a two year relationship’

‘Oh yeah, don’t mind him, he does that all the time’, Drake chuckled, picking up a toothpick and
resting it between his lips as he pulled out a peeler, passing it to Chimon, ‘Why don’t you start
peeling the potatoes? Neen’s gonna need it for her main dish’

‘Oh… Okay’, instead of prying on Drake’s confusing relationship, he decided to just ignore it and
mind his own business as he dragged the sack of potatoes in one corner, leaning on the counter as
he began to peel. If he followed his orders and kept to himself, maybe he won’t fuck up and lose
his job on the first day.

‘Who’s this?’, the boy named Frank walked into the kitchen, finally noticing the new face that had
joined them.

‘His name’s Chimon. He’s gonna start working here from today’, Drake explained. He was so
calm compared to the boy who glared at him, Chimon couldn’t help but feel slightly scared at how
Drake could keep it together.

‘Is he your replacement for when you leave me for college?’, Frank scoffed sarcastically, crossing
his arm and kicking the trash to the corner of the room.

‘Frank, are you seriously still pissed about that?’, Drake rolled his eyes as he joined Chimon,
picking up the pace and peeling the potatoes with an easily glide, whereas Chimon was practically
chopping it to square pieces.

‘You never told me you were moving out of the city’, Frank interrupted them, ‘And you know long
distance never works’

‘Which is why you broke up with me yesterday, remember?’, Drake sarcastically pointed out to
which Frank huffed and kicked the trash again.

‘You didn’t actually think I meant it, right?!’

‘See, I told you he does this all the time’, Drake quickly whispered at Chimon, winking at him
playfully before he turned his gaze at his apparently still boyfriend, ‘So, if you’re not being a petty
little brat, why don’t you come here and help us?’
Two Weeks Later

Chimon packed up his guitar once his shift ended, bowing to the customers who had taken the time
to approach him and shower him with compliments. It had been his sole validation for the past
couple of weeks as he spent his nights sitting on his futon in his small apartment writing endless
songs that never meant anything to him. He’d been struggling with work and motivation, so the
chance to stand on stage felt like a breathe of fresh air. It felt like freedom for him.

He knew he wasn’t the best, like his old guitar, it was wrecked from age and countless hits, but if
he adjusted himself, he was sure he’s still got a melody to sing.

‘Hey kid’, he heard a deep voice calling out to him once the small crowd disperses, turning around
to see a handsome tall man approaching him in a suit and tie.

‘Woah’, he couldn’t help but sigh at how handsome the man was. He quickly coughed it out when
he realised the former must’ve noticed his expression, looking down at the floor and scratching his
neck, trying to act sly, ‘Um… What can I do for you?’, he finally managed to ask after trying to
play off his initial reaction.

‘I see why my sister wants to take care of you’, the man smirked back in response, standing in front
of him as he slid his hands in his pockets, staring at him up and down, ‘You’re cute’

‘Thanks’, Chimon replied shyly, a shade of pink forming on his cheeks. The man was mature,
probably in his thirties and way to old for him, but if he was approaching him just to flirt, then
Chimon might have to make an exception.

‘You’re also pretty good on stage’, the handsome man commented and this only made him more
shy.

‘I didn’t think my performance was that great’

‘You know, you should have more confidence in yourself. Not a lot of people can keep the
audience fixed on them for more than a minute. You had everyone listening to you for a whole
hour’

‘Well, I mean I sort of sung whatever I wanted and hoped for the best’, Chimon admitted, also
being shocked at how well received his recent performance was. He thought when he performed in
a restaurant, he was just going to be ignored, used as background noise as the customers continued
with their conversations. He didn’t expect to be liked as much.

‘If you’re this good without guidance, imagine how amazing you’ll become with the right mentor’,
the handsome man smiled at him.

‘What do you mean?’, he asked curiously, his eyes widening when he watched the man pull out a
business card from inside his pocket, handing it to him.

NeverNormal Entertainment

Chief Executive Officer

Off Jumpol Phunsawat-Adulkittiporn

‘Hello Chimon. My name’s Off Jumpol and I’m the CEO of NeverNormal Entertainment. Would
you like to send me your demo?’

Off Jumpol parked his car right outside his sister’s restaurant, his eyes glued to the phone as he
read his secretary’s notes from the previous meeting he couldn’t attend. He’d just returned from his
business trip in Korea and he knew if he didn’t visit his sister, she might drive to his house and kill
him.

‘Sis!’, he shouted as soon as he stepped foot into the restaurant, the bell ringing as he swung the
door, ignoring the customers who were clearly intrigued of the boisterous man.

‘Off, where have you been?’, Neen shouted back as soon as she turned her face from the kitchen,
finally seeing her brother after he’d been away for weeks.

‘I just got off the plane’, Off explained, walking inside and leaning on the counter as he watched
Neen and Drake cook, ‘You know I’ve been busy’

‘Yeah, well don’t get too busy. Gun’s been forcing me to babysit the twins and you know I don’t
have time for it’, her whining began as soon as he arrived and Off couldn’t help but laugh at her,
crossing his arms as he slid his phone in his inside pocket, ‘And you shouldn’t leave your husband
all alone. He doesn’t say it, because he knows you’re working hard, but he misses you. The bitch
gets drunk sometimes’

‘And P’Gun isn’t young anymore’, Drake commented with an amused tone, ‘He gets hangovers
that lasts the whole day now’

‘Look, Tay and I were just handling some business in Korea. We’re back now and ready to focus
on our artists. I think we’re growing a pretty good repertoire over the past two years’

‘Still no good than Master Entertainment’, Drake pointed out, to which Off rolled his eyes and
slapped the back of his head.

‘Of course not. NeverNormal is only two years old whereas my old company is turning thirty this
year’, he explained, ‘We’ve still got a lot more to do’

‘Well, you can try by getting out of my way and stop ruining my business’, Neen pushed pass him
as she set the freshly cooked plate on the counter, ringing the bell to be taken out to the customers.
Off turned to see his beloved godson still working for her, his face bored and filled with teenage
angst, but as soon as he looked up and saw him, a huge grin beamed on his face.

‘P’Off, you’re back’, Frank shouted, earning a wave from his favourite Uncle.

‘And so is your dad’, Off reminded the boy, ‘You better come home for dinner. He misses you and
Mook’

It seemed like Frank had just gotten worse in attitude as he rolled his eyes and took the plates,
ignoring him as he walked back to the tables. Off noticed that his sister’s restaurant was full to the
brim despite it being opened almost three years ago. He was about to make a half ass joke on his
sister’s restaurant when he heard guitar strings playing, the customers quietening down once they
heard a soft voice singing. All eyes and ears were set on a young boy sitting on stage with an old
scraped guitar. He had the restaurant’s shirt uniform on with denim ripped jeans and a cap covering
his face, but Off didn’t care about what he looked like. Instead, he was intrigued at his voice,
which was sweet yet good, his gentle song that managed to earn a full house’s attention.

‘I knew you were gonna like him’, Neen chuckled as soon as she started on her next order, turning
to watch her brother stare at Chimon with awe. The moment the young boy picked up his guitar
during one of his shifts, she knew her brother was going to be intrigued. She knew she was going to
lose a part timer.

‘Who is he?’, he asked, his eyes still fixed on the young man with curiosity and wonder.

‘Just a young kid with nowhere else to go, just like us’, Neen whispered to him as she multitasked,
frying the meat and passing it to Drake to finish with the noodles, ‘And, I let him play a couple of
times here. He’s good’

‘Are you scouting for me?’, Off chuckled as he raised his brow and smiled at his sister.

‘He’s a good kid with talents. You rarely find that nowadays. Plus, I feel sorry for him. His parents
kicked him out when he said he wanted to pursue music.

‘Understandable’, Off nodded, ‘It’s not a very stabled job’

‘Says the man who manages it’, Neen rolled her eyes and rang the bell for the next order, ‘You
know how good he is, so I’ll let you decide. But either way, I think he might have a shot. And he’s
a young man too, not one of those robots these other major companies train and control. I think you
have a shot at marketing someone who isn’t perfect, but human’

His sister knew him too well, but it was probably because they realised they viewed the world
similarly. The young man continued singing, swiftly changing the song as he sang something in
English, an old song by Billy Joel that he recognised immediately. He couldn’t help but feel
amused at himself, as if he had just hit gold without having to mine for it.

‘What’s his name?’, he turned to ask his sister.

‘Chimon’, she replied with a smile, knowing her brother’s decision before he even makes it,
‘Chimon Wachirawit Ruangwiwat.
 One.

One Year Later

Nanon woke up to the screeches of his phone blaring out an obnoxious ringtone to what could only
be his manager. He had no friends, so he didn't expect anyone else to call him on his phone.

'What', his voice cracked, still fresh from his sleep as he squinted his eyes opened.

'You shouldn't have the audacity to give me attitude when I just saved your ass from a possible
scandal… Again', his manager was done with him, he could definitely tell, but at this point he
didn't care. He'd seen managers come and go since he was young so he showed no emotional
attachments to any of them.

Nanon was a child actor, being thrust into the industry at a young age where he didn't know any
better. But now, he had just turned twenty and his innocent image was completely washed out as
soon as he came of age, with pictures of him drinking, throwing up on the pavement and videos of
fights in the club resurfacing almost every other week, which was a fucking mess to fix especially
if the whole country still perceived him as the young naïve child.

He hung up the phone, laying on his bed for a couple more minutes as he stared at his ceiling.
Lately, he found himself not wanting to get out of bed, there seemed to be nothing in his jam
packed schedule that made him excited to wake up anymore. But, of course, despite his wild
personality, he was also known for at least taking work seriously, so he threw his blanket off the
bed, feeling the chill of the air con as he made his way to his en suite.

He’d been living alone since he was eighteen after moving out of his parents’ home, residing in a
penthouse in the middle of the city, tall glass windows overlooking the skyscrapers of the city. For
everyone else, this would be a dream, but for a kid, it was lonely living by himself on the highest
floor. He felt like he was stuck in a tower with no exit, but unlike Rapunzel, he didn’t have long
locks of hair to climb down on, and heaven knows no one would wanna save him either.

But, at the very least, Nanon has a timed schedule that distracted him from his restless mind. From
seven o’clock in the morning, he got ready, taking a quick shower and changing. He always
skipped breakfast since he didn’t know how to cook and it was too early to get takeaway, so by
seven thirty, he would be out of his apartment, walking to the private parking lot and driving
straight to his company building where he would get a quick coffee so he could get through the
day without collapsing.

Everything seemed to go as normal. Apart from one thing.

‘His name’s Chimon’

‘NeverNormal’s Chimon causes a stir with his recent debut, his music video for his debut single
garnering over one million views in less than twelve hours’, Nanon still had his sunglasses on as he
leaned his back on the chair when he arrived at the meeting room, closing his eyes and trying to
block out his management team’s voice. They started to sound like crows, especially when they
shouted on top of each other.

‘He’s been getting a lot of attention lately’, P’Tee, his manager, pointed out with a worried
expression, ‘I’m afraid we’d have to delay Nanon’s album so they won’t be released at the same
time’
‘Why should we?’, his PR stunted his as soon as the idea was put to the table, ‘Nanon’s previous
albums have hit number one each year and he has a large and loyal fanbase. Why should he adjust
himself to a rookie? Journalists will start to pick the pieces and come to the conclusion that Master
Entertainment is scared of such a small company’

‘To be fair, we have every rights to be scared’, P’Tee murmured to himself, ‘Off and Mild works
for that company. We know them but they also know how we work. They could use that against
us’

‘P’Off?’, Nanon whispered, recognising the name immediately as he took of his sunglasses,
looking down at the iPad with a picture of a young man, most probably his age too, smiling as he
posed for the red carpet beside a tall man he hadn’t seen in years. Off Jumpol hadn’t aged a day
and he suddenly remembered the restless nights of panic attacks the man managed to help him get
through when the eyes of the public got a bit too much for him. He didn’t show it, but when it was
announced that he was resigning, he was one of the many artists who felt like they lost something.
He lost an anchor that stopped him from getting too deep into the ocean.

He suddenly felt jealous of the man he barely looked at over the past couple of months when he
made his debut. The realisation that he was under the care of someone who most truly treated him
as a human rather than a singing machine made him feel bitter, his tongue clicking as he stared at
the photo.

‘We should release my album at the same time’, Nanon finally spoke, sitting up as he threw his
sunglasses on the table, ‘Let the public feel excited’

‘Tricky to say who’d win since you’ve been making trouble over the past month whereas this kid’s
image is squeaky clean’

‘We’ll see about that’, Nanon mumbled as he stood up, sliding his hands in his pockets and leaving
the room before the meeting finished.

Chimon, despite his growing popularity, still found himself hanging out to where it all started at
P’Neen’s restaurant.

‘This is delicious’, Chimon shouted to his former employer as she handed him a slice of cake she
baked just for him to congratulate him on his debut. It was carrot cake, his favourite, topped with
sweet icing.

‘Your song is everywhere on the radio’, Frank called out from the kitchen, sounding annoyed, but
he knew the boy was proud of him. After a year, Drake had finally gone off to college, leaving his
boyfriend and job at the restaurant which Frank picked up since his dad refused to let him work in
his company.

‘God Frank, you cut onions into legos’, Neen rolled her eyes when she turned to Frank’s work,
picking up the chucks of onions piled next to the cutting board. She instantly picked up the onions,
her hands quick and swift as she minced them, ‘I really need another kitchen assistant’, she
whispered to herself, to which Frank heard and huffed, pouting his lip as he looked at her.

Chimon couldn’t help but laugh, watching the two annoy each other yet still standing close as
Frank watched closely when Neen started to teach him the different forms of cutting vegetables.
Chimon suddenly remembered his best friend growing up. They had lost contact ever since the
latter moved to Bangkok with his family, but he wondered if Ohm needed to find a job. He had a
feeling that he was still a college student, so whilst he listened to Neen and Frank bicker in the
kitchen, he pulled out his phone and searched for his former best friend’s Instagram, scrolling
through the different names before he recognised a profile picture. He small smile grew on his face
as he clicked on the account. He still looked the same and by the looks of it, there were dozens of
pictures of him on campus, fooling around with his other friends. He quickly followed him,
sending a quick message of greeting and hoping Ohm still remembered him.

‘Hey guys, we’re here!’, Chimon turned around as soon as he heard P’Tay’s voice, leaning down
as he held his daughter’s hand as they walked in.

‘P’Fa!’, she squealed as soon as they arrived, her little legs running up to where the kitchen is,
excited to see her big brother.

‘Hey, P’Tay’, Chimon waved at him, ‘How are you?’, unlike P’Off, P’Tay wore almost nothing
but jeans and shirt, even during work, so it wasn’t a surprise to see him in a sweater and ripped
jeans, taking out his daughter to visit the restaurant like he usually does during his day off.

‘What’s up kid’, Tay turned back to nod at him, sitting beside him as he let Frank walk out of the
kitchen, picking up his sister and letting them walk outside for his break, ‘Are you allowed to be
here?’

‘It’s P’Neen’s restaurant, of course I am’

‘Yeah I know, but didn’t Off tell you not to wander off on your own anymore?’, Tay reminded him,
making Chimon roll his eyes at the stupid meeting where they started to restrict him, ‘You’re not a
normal person anymore. People are going to start following you and asking for your picture, so for
everyone’s sake, you should always travel with your manager or at least tell him where you are just
in case something happens to you’

‘I’m fine’, Chimon whined, ‘I can take care of myself’

‘Don’t be like that kid’, Tay warned him, leaning his back on the chair and staring at him with
those same worried eyes that Chimon hated. He hated how they still treated him like a fragile kid
when he knew he could take it. The industry was nothing more than a big bluff, all he needed was
to be himself and push through, ‘You’re still young, but every industry you enter is capable of
killing you or your passion. You need to readjust your life if you wanna last’

‘Stop it’, Neen walked in to set a plate of food for Tay, hitting him on the head as she did so, ‘You
do this to Frank too. Come on, stop being strict and let them do whatever they want’

Chimon couldn’t help but thank P’Neen for always siding with him. And she wasn’t afraid to hit
Tay on the head when the rest of the company was too scared to even bat an eye in his direction
sometimes.

But he supposed P’Tay had a point. Over the last week he had posed as an inconvenience when he
lined up in Starbucks, causing a ruckus when a crowd of teenagers started to block the entrance
when they begged for a picture. He felt embarrassed and he couldn’t help but apologise to the
workers and other customers.

‘Oh and by the way, you’re doing an interview for a major broadcasting show, for once, don’t
follow Off’s advice and actually take yourself seriously. These people are harsh with their
questions and they might ask something personal, so keep that in mind’
‘You’d expect Off to be the serious one and Tay to be the playful one, right?’, Neen scoffed as she
sat down after making her own meal, sitting between them as she dug in her meal, listening to the
usual playful Tay talk serious business, ‘He’s like that because he wants to prove his dad right that
he could manage his own business’, she leaned in to whisper in his ears, ‘Looks like it doesn’t
matter how old you are, you’re always seeking for your parents’ approval’

Nanon’s parents had stopped visiting him during shows a long time ago. His mother used to go,
sometimes without his knowledge, but whenever he looked out into the crowd, he always saw her
sitting on the back, with a small fan with his name printed on it and a wide grin on her face, waving
at him. Now, when he looked out, all he saw was strangers, unknown faces smiling at him, which
felt more condescending than it should’ve been. They were waiting for him to act like a different
person to fit their idea of him, which was a job he easily fitted into as a former actor, but it felt
construed, as if a fragment of himself was let go in order to fit into someone’s box.

But he didn’t show it in his face. His smile still looked genuine as ever despite his aching cheeks,
his posture straight and formal as he answered the questions with as much enthusiasms as if it was
the first time he’d been asked it, when in fact, he’d been answering the same questions for the past
five years.

‘So, how did it feel like shifting from child actor to singer?’

Torture.

‘It’s a blessing’

‘And what did you think about the fans waiting outside the airport for your return from filming?’

Draining.

‘I love my fans, it was so much fun seeing them greet me’

‘And how about the rising star Chimon Wachirawit?’, Nanon almost changed his expression when
a new question finally arose over the repetitive ones, being asked about the boy who had abruptly
crash landed straight into his life without even meeting him, ‘His debut single has gotten rave
reviews. Do you feel somewhat threatened or do you welcome new artists into the game?’

‘Well, music isn’t a game’, Nanon replied in a copy and pasted way like he was taught, ‘So, I think
we should celebrate each other’s music because it’s about the art at the end of the day’

Lies. For him competition was something that was slowly fuelling him, especially when he found
out Chimon’s long awaited album was being released around the same time as his fourth album,
which meant, for better or for worse, he’d finally meet the stranger everyone’s been talking about.

Let it be known that despite Nanon’s growing numbness over his work, he still would rather be
alone on top than be knocked down by a nobody.

‘Well, you can congratulate him backstage after your interview’, the host laughed, ‘I’m sure the
whole world would love to see the two sensations hanging together’
Chimon watched Nanon’s interview from the TV in his dressing room with a smile on his face. He
tensed as soon as the host asked about him, but the boy’s answer made him feel relieved and
somewhat comforted that an experienced singer would welcome him into the industry with open
arms.

‘He seems nice’, he whispered to himself as he felt P’Jane applying make up on his face. She
turned back to watch whatever he was watching, chuckling to herself as she shook her head and
loooked down on Chimon’s genuine happy face.

If only he knew, she thought to herself, but she thought it would be best for Chimon to experience
Nanon without any warning. Tay had spoken to her about trying to slap reality into Chimon and
she thought maybe Nanon could be the one to do that.

‘Don’t be nervous’, she told him as she finished applying make up, looking at his face and nodding
in approval, ‘And whatever you do, just keep smiling’

‘I’m gonna be fine’, Chimon chuckled, ‘I don’t know why everyone’s worried’

‘Because you’re a kid, and they’re about to eat you up’, Jane chuckled, squeezing his nose
playfully before walking out of the dressing room to call his manager again. Nanon’s interview had
finished and he was up next.

‘Eat! Eat!’, Chimon looked down to see Jane’s son sitting on the floor, playing with his shoelace as
he repeated the words his mother said. He had a tendency of following Jane around and mimicking
her every movements and he was amused as the way P’Off would let her take her son with her
during work.

‘Come here’, Chimon picked up the toddler, letting him sit on his lap as he looked at the mirror,
playing around with the brushes and giggling when Chimon tickled his sides.

‘Baby Mak, what’re you doing?’, Jane cooed as soon as she walked back in, running to pick up her
son and letting him rest in her arms. She kissed his cheeks, his tiny arms barely long enough to
wrap around her neck.

‘He’s so cute’, Chimon commented as he stood up, ‘But shouldn’t you start applying for nurseries?
He’ll be turning two soon’

‘God, I’ve started taking him to some, but he wouldn’t stop crying whenever I tried to leave him.
It’s going to be a problem in the future but I don’t think I can leave him either’, Jane whined a little,
looking down and pouting at her son, kissing his cheeks again.

‘Thank God P’Off doesn’t tell you off’

‘Me?’, she snorted, stroking Mak’s soft hair back, ‘His own office is baby proofed by the amount
of time Nirin and Win stays there’

Jane decided to walk Chimon to the front stage with Mak reaching his hand out to try and touch
Chimon’s hair, preparing for his first major show. The crowd was heavy, a mixture of staff workers
and Chimon’s management discussing last minute changes and going over the overview of the
questions just in case they decided to add new ones without their knowledge.

There were also a group of staff workers from a different company rushing around. Chimon
wondered why there was a huge commotion near the stage and it wasn’t until he saw someone with
a tissue wiping someone’s forehead did he realise who he was walking pass to.

Nanon Korapat looked charismatic even when the cameras weren’t on him, walking with stride
amongst a busy hallway whilst everyone rushed to follow him. Chimon was bewildered by how
calm he was amongst the chaos, his shirt and jeans pressed and fitted perfectly to his fit, his hair
swept back and styled without any flaw. He was star struck to say the least, especially since he
spent a good portion of his childhood watching the sitcom he was in as a kid.

‘Woah, hello!’, Chimon raised his voice and waved at him as soon as he walked past, two different
lives clashing into each other in only a few seconds, but the moment could’ve lasted a lifetime with
the way Nanon turned his eyes to look at him. All of a sudden, he wasn’t just a celebrity he’d seen
pasted around billboards that he walked pass. He was human.

It was his eyes. Chimon could tell there was something deeper in them as he stared straight into
his.

He didn’t say anything, in fact, he didn’t even acknowledge his existence as he pushed past him,
walking away to his dresser without so much as a nod back to his greeting.

‘What was that?’, he asked in shock as he turned around to watch Nanon’s back, ‘Did he not hear
me?’

‘Oh, he probably did’, Jane chuckled, she patted Chimon’s back as they finally made their way to
the front, ready for the host to call out his name.

Chimon noticed that the smile on his face wasn’t present when he was off camera and he didn’t
know whether to dig in deeper, but a small thought had bubbled inside his head, spinning around as
he waited for his name to be called out.

‘Good luck’, Jane whispered one more time, watching the small kid get hit by the bright lights and
hoping for the best as he finally walked out into the open with nothing but an optimistic grin and a
hopeful mind.

‘Oh my God, oh my God, we need a replay. Is there one on loop?’, Frank laughed when he sat next
to his dad, looking at his phone as he replayed the viral video that was going around after
Chimon’s interview. Tay and Frank almost busted a vein when they replayed an edited version,
watching Chimon walking out, not knowing on the step on the stage and tripping almost instantly
on his face with the Kahoot music playing in the background.

‘P’Neen! Can you please tell them to stop!’, Chimon whined, banging his head on the table as he
sat on the other side of the restaurant but he could still hear the music playing with Tay and Frank
snorting like a bunch of pigs.

‘Guys, this is bullying at this point’, Neen shouted at them from the kitchen, walking out with a
knife in her hand as she pointed it threateningly to the boys at the front, ‘He’s already embarrassed
enough’

‘Oh come on’, Frank shouted back at her, ‘I found you laughing when you were watching the
interview too!’
‘P’Neen!’, Chimon shouted back when Neen showed no signs of disagreement to Frank’s
accusations, pulling his hood up and covering his reddening face.

‘Don’t worry kid’, Tay said, his chest heaving from laughing too much, ‘You should take each of
this with stride. You should learn not to take yourself too seriously’

‘But I fell flat on my face and it has over a million views on Twitter!’, Chimon shouted back, ‘Even
P’Off was laughing at me during the meeting!’

‘Who cares?’, Neen shrugged her shoulders, passing a tall glass of ice tea on his table in an attempt
to make him feel better.

‘He has a crush on him!’, Frank snitched, laughing when Chimon stood up, a little too fast in
shocked fury, knocking the chair back on the floor as he picked up the cup of ice tea, running up to
Frank whilst the latter ran away, throwing the ice tea to him.

‘Hey! I just made that for you!’, Neen shouted back, watching as Frank dunked, letting the tea spill
all over his dad instead, Tay screaming when the cold drink landed all over his hair.

‘Are you fucking serious?’, Tay shouted as he stood up, leaning down to let the tea trickle down
his hair, landing everywhere on the floor.

‘Look what you’ve done to my fucking restaurant’, Neen shouted, slapping the towel on the table,
creating a loud noise as the three boys looked at the infuriated Neen with her eyes glaring straight
into their souls, ‘Who’s gonna clean all this mess? Huh?!’

Just before the boys could argue amongst themselves, they heard the front door ringing open
despite it being closing time, a tall boy walked in with a small backpack behind his back and a cap
hiding his hair back.

‘Uh, I was told by a friend that there was a job offer here?’, was the first thing he said as he looked
down on his phone with furrowed brows, probably double checking the address as he looked up.

‘Ohm?!’, Chimon shouted as soon as he recognised the tall boy, seeing his childhood best friend
walking in without notice.

‘Chimon?!’, the boy instantly smiled the moment he heard his best friend’s loud shriek, running up
to him to which Chimon welcomed him with a warm hug, ‘Oh my God, I’ve missed you!’

‘Me too! How have you been?’, they’ve slowly started to keep in contact on Instagram, catching up
on all the years they’ve missed out on each other whilst promising to meet again soon and he didn’t
think Ohm would agree on picking up a job at Neen’s place when he suggested it on a whim mid
conversation about college and work.

‘Good’, Ohm smiled at him, ‘Thank God you live close by now, I’ve been looking for a job ever
since I started University’

‘Oh, another cute guy’, Frank raised a curious brow to which he was hit on the back of his head by
his dad who gave him a warning glare.

‘Don’t even think about it’, Tay whispered, ‘I have Drake’s number on my phone’

‘You’re hired’, Neen said without even second thinking as she threw the towel to Ohm who caught
it with one hand, ‘Now clean this mess up and show me how you cut vegetables. We have a busy
evening tonight’
Nanon sat in his living room alone as he switched on the TV, replaying his interview as he leaned
the remote control on his chin. His interview was professional and entertaining, yet it was that
Chimon dude who was trending on Twitter for merely falling flat on his face.

He didn’t know NeverNormal was going to be on brand with their marketing, but Chimon was
starting to be seen as the goof of the industry and everyone seemed to be eating it up like vultures.

‘It wasn’t even that funny’, he caught himself mumbling as he replayed Chimon’s segment again,
watching him smile and wave then all of a sudden falling when he didn’t notice the stairs. He
heard the crowd’s voices of worrying as they waited for him to get up, the host trying not to laugh
as he stood up from his chair to help him out. He rolled his eyes and replayed the first five seconds
again.

Woah, hello!

He remembered seeing Chimon for the first time after walking off from the stage, heading
backstage to where his management team was waiting for him. Amongst the busy hands, he heard
someone greeting him and he couldn’t help but turn his gaze, seeing him. It was the second time he
almost changed his expression because of him, but he kept his poise and continued walking
forward, ignoring the boy’s greeting.

He found it amusing that no one had told the boy of him yet. Everyone in the industry knew his
personality was different as soon as the cameras were off. Everyone, even the rookies, were told to
avoid him at all cost, so it was either no one bothered to tell the poor boy, or he was ordered but
still wanted to greet him anyway.

For the last time, he replayed the beginning of the interview, watching Chimon smiling before
falling flat on his face again. This time he couldn’t help but chuckle to himself, but because he
found it funny, but because he knew Chimon was going to feel like that again, feeling as if he had
control of everything before tripping up and falling in front of the world to see. And he couldn’t
wait to witness it.

‘So Chimon, was there a significant memory for you that made you want to pursue singing as a
career? Or has it always been your dream?’

‘Uh… Well… I can’t really pinpoint, but if there was a moment that I genuinely enjoyed singing, it
was probably when I was in elementary school’

‘Did you perform for a school festival?’

‘No, I used to be neighbours with someone. He was definitely my age, but he never went to my
school. I don’t think he went to any school to be honest. He was just by himself sitting in his room
and I would always see his shadows on the curtains. I thought he must’ve been lonely, so I would
open my balcony every night and start singing. I mean, I didn’t know whether he was listening to
me or not, but I sort of enjoyed the idea of making someone less lonely’
‘How romantic. Did you ever meet him?’

‘No. I don’t even know what he looks like’

 Two.
Chapter Notes

Thank you @onibugistan for the ko-fi donations! And thank you for supporting me
since day one, ily ♡

Thailand; 2020

Chimon had just turned thirteen and his whole class celebrated it by going to the park after school,
sharing snacks and drinks they bought from the convenience store. After sitting on the grass for too
long, they found their legs and arms unevenly tanned, making fun out of each other when they
walked home once the sun was setting.

‘Look at your tan lines’, Ohm laughed when he pointed at Chimon’s arms.

‘At least I didn’t get burnt’, Chimon defended himself, pushing his best friend off the pavement as
he began to run, laughing as he turned to watch Ohm chase after him until they reached their
neighbourhood.

‘Chimon!’, he heard his best friend shouting as the gates opened for them. The pair lived in a
private neighbourhood that rested on the top of the hill amongst a clear scenery of grass and trees,
the air fresh and house tall and rich. But unlike everyone else in the neighbourhood, their family
came from new money, their parents working their asses off until they could afford to be part of
the riches. The two boys moved at the same day, funnily enough, one living at the end of the street
whilst the other lived by the front.

‘You better finish your biology homework by tomorrow!’, Ohm shouted at him as they passed his
house, stopping by his gate and leaning on it as he waved at his best friend, Chimon turning around
to stick his tongue out but waving back before walking to his house.

The sun was setting already, hues of blood red in the clear skies before it turned into midnight blue,
his shadows faint from the lack of sunlight. He swung his backpack from one shoulder to the other,
skipping until he made it to his house. Every day he kept his same habit of skipping over the cracks
of the pavement, whistling a melody he just made on the spot as he walked over to the gate of his
house, stopping as always as he turned to see the big house right at the end with his.

It was a lie. Him and Ohm’s weren’t the only family who came from new money. From the
whispers he heard from the neighbours in the country club and gym, they kept on talking about the
family that lived on 334. They were closed off, rarely socialising with them if at all. They didn’t
even know they had a son probably his age. When his parents ordered him to hand in his mother’s
strawberry shortcake to the family in 324, he accidentally listened to the mother talking on the
phone, something about the son being homeschooled, which was why he also barely goes outside
too.

But Chimon saw the boy riding a car with tinted windows coming home in the middle of the night.
He was playing his video games one night, staying up late when he heard a car pull over. Out of
curiosity, he opened his curtain to look out of his window to see a silhouette of a young man
walking to the house next door.
Ever since then he’d been intrigued of the boy living next door. But he never saw him, and he still
couldn’t no matter how hard he tried. So, he walked into his home, skipping to his front door and
shouting for his mum as he closed the door shut behind him.

‘Mum, I’m home!’

Present.

‘Has your parents spoken to you yet?’, Frank asked whilst they hung out in the park near the night
market, chewing on the seaweed snack Chimon bought whilst they took a rest for their break.

‘Nope’, Chimon shook their head, ‘They still hate me’

‘They paid for your tuition for Bangkok university’, Ohm snorted as he walked back to the bench
where they sat, drinking the cola be bought, it was in a plastic bag tied with a straw poked in, ‘And
you dropped out after first year. I would’ve killed you too’

‘I didn’t even want to go college anyway’, Chimon whined, ‘But they told me, so they should’ve
known they’d wasted their money’

‘You’re lucky your song is doing well’, Ohm chuckled, stealing his snacks like he always did back
in school, ‘Not a lot of musicians can make it’

‘That’s because my uncle and dad are taking care of him’, Frank added himself in the conversation
like he usually does, ‘They can make everyone into superstars’

‘Let’s be honest, how did P’Off manage to tame someone as crazy as you?’, Ohm smirked,
watching how Chimon rolled his eyes and hit his arm playfully.

‘I’m not as bad as I was when I was elementary. We were kids and we do stupid shit’

‘Trying to break into your neighbour’s house in the middle of the night really isn’t it though’, Ohm
reminded him, causing Chimon to cringe in embarrassment at the memory, punching him on the
arm, but the bastard could only laugh at him.

‘He broke into someone’s house?’, Frank asked with a raised brow, ‘That sounds like a scandal
there. You better not let the journalists sniff that out’

‘I didn’t break in’, Chimon defended himself, raising his voice and crossing his arms like a child
having a tantrum, ‘There was a boy living next door and I’ve always wanted to meet him’

‘But he clearly didn’t want to meet you’, Ohm replied, ‘So why did you force yourself in?’

‘He did want to meet me! He wrote me a note! I read it, it was in my mail box! So, I thought he
was inviting me for a sleepover’

‘And?’, Frank asked when Chimon stopped talking, looking down at his lap with a disappointed
expression at the sudden old memory of his childhood, ‘What happened?’

‘I knocked on his door so many times, but he wouldn’t open it. I almost gave up, but I remembered
my bedroom window overlooked his room, so I went back to my room and…’
‘You jumped into his window didn’t you?’, Frank snorted, stealing Ohm’s drink as he began
laughing at the boy who looked down with shame.

‘You know what the worst part is?’, Ohm whispered to Frank, ‘Chimon passed out from the jump.
He probably hit his head on something and he was sleeping on the boy’s room for hours until the
parents walked in on his face flat on the carpet. That’s when they called Chimon’s parents to report
him of breaking in’

‘I got grounded for a month’, Chimon sighed, remembering having to miss a field trip with his
home room classmates, spending his day locked in his room as he wrote a letter of apology to the
nameless family that lived next door to his house.

‘Did you ever get to meet the boy?’

‘No’, Chimon shook his head when Ohm’s phone started ringing, giving him a five minute
warning that his break was almost over, the three boys standing up, ‘He moved away before high
school started. And this bastard followed by leaving once Junior year ended’, he turned to slap the
back of Ohm’s head.

‘Woah, it’s not my fault my parents hated the pretentious pricks we lived in’, Ohm rolled his eyes
when Chimon kept on blaming him for the sudden move in the city, ‘Plus, you ended up moving
after high school ended’

‘Because my parents wanted to be close to me when I started college’, Chimon explained as they
arrived at the night market, Frank running up to the stalls and greeting the workers as if they were
family, ‘Too bad they’re stuck in Bangkok without a reason now’

‘That’s why they fucking hate you’, Ohm joked and Chimon laughed along with him, but deep
down inside, his stomach churned and his heart clenched. He hadn’t gone this long without talking
to his parents’ and he was started to miss them everyday. The fact that they weren’t present to
witness his achievements started to kill him slowly the more he thought about it. He’d always
found them in the crowd, clapping their hands after every musical, hugging him at the science fair
and cheering for him as he graduated. There was not a day he couldn’t here his dad’s deep howls
shouting his name and his mother’s intense clapping that turned her palms bright red.

They walked back in Neen’s Delight as she prepared to open for the evening, seeing that the adults
were still talking inside the restaurant, making it their unofficial meeting room.

‘Oh, P’Off, you’re here too’, Frank smiled as soon as he saw his favourite uncle sitting with his
dad, sharing a glass of wine, ‘What’re you doing here?’

‘I’m going on holiday with my family for a week and I’m giving all my responsibilities to your
dad’, he explained, ‘Gun wants to go to the Alps in Switzerland’

‘Who’s gonna take care of Nirin and Win’, Frank asked as he sat down beside the tall man.

‘They’re coming with us’, Off smiled, ‘This is the first trip that we’ll take them with us. Finger’s
crossed nothing bad happens’

‘Why can’t you just leave them with me?’, Neen asked from across the counter as she tied her hair
in a pony tail, tugging it under her hairnet.

‘Gun started crying the last time we went on a trip together’, Off confessed, chuckling as he found
it amusing now, but at the time, he had to calm his husband down as he continued texting Neen
nonstop, calling his mother and asking how their twins were only for Off to take care of a
hysterical Gun who kept on crying on how much he missed them on the plane.

‘He’s such a wuss’, Tay giggled, sipping his red wine.

‘Dad, you cried when you left Mook with me when you left to go to Phuket’, Frank pointed out
when he saw his dad making fun out of Gun when in fact, he was one and the same with the latter.

Off snorted, nearly spitting out his wine as he turned to look at his best friend, ‘Did you really?’

‘I only cried because Frank was the one taking care of her. Who wouldn’t be nervous?’, Tay
shouted, defending himself as he hit the back of his son’s head for snitching on him in front of
everyone. Chimon listened to their banter, laughing as he leaned on the counter and stared at them.
He was jealous at how close they were despite not being blood related. They stayed so close with
each other after so long, without judging each other and he started to wonder why his parents
couldn’t do that for him too.

‘P’Off, can I ask you a favour?’, he reached his hand out to tug on his boss’s sleeves, something no
one else could possibly do with their boss, but Off was approachable, and he wasn’t scared to pull
him to the corner to talk to him before he left for his holiday.

‘What is it?’, the man listened intently, even leaning down to be closer to him.

‘Uh… I know I’m twenty one and practically an adult but… would you mind reaching out to my
parents and talk to them?’

‘About what?’, Off asked with a raised brow, ‘Do they need to sign any medical records or what?’

‘No… I just really want them to come to my showcase’, Chimon tiptoed and whispered in Off’s
ears. He didn’t want anyone else to hear his request just in case they make fun out of him.

Off, on the other hand, looked down at him, staring at his expression before sighing. His sister
briefly told him about his family situation and he didn’t dare meddle with it just in case it was a
sore spot for the boy, but now that the boy was asking for his help, he had no other choice but to
agree.

‘I’ll give them a call before I leave’, Off took his request, ‘But if your parents still aren’t talking to
you, I suggest not to get your hopes up on their decisions. Okay?’

‘Okay’, Chimon nodded, but there was already hope thrust in his stomach when his boss agreed.
He felt as though maybe a stranger asking them to come might work better than him inviting them
and he only hoped to see them sitting in the crowd with their usual banner of his name whilst they
shouted for him.

Chimon, despite his rising popularity, still lived in his old apartment that he had rented when he got
kicked out. His manager told him to move into a bigger flat, just in case paparazzi took photos of
him coming out of the junk that was his apartment, but he never got around to moving. It’s not like
he didn’t want to, but he just couldn’t find the time between recording and album planning. He only
came to his apartment to sleep. He didn’t even eat breakfast there anymore, cycling straight to
Neen’s restaurant instead.
He felt lonely in his apartment and he wished he had Ohm or maybe even the loud mouth Frank to
stay with him, but after work, they all had their own lives to go back to, one which consisted of a
family they can nag and laugh with. He didn’t release how empty he’d feel without his parents
until they threw out his stuff into the driveway and shut the door on him.

He looked down on his phone, scrolling through the gossip news and accounts, checking his name
on the trending page. He wasn’t obsess with searching himself, but he was starting to be obsessed
by other artists. He wondered if they all felt somewhat empty like him or if their lavish lives truly
felt perfect like what the screens say.

He suddenly remembered Nanon. The boy his age who’d lived such a different life from him. He
couldn’t forget the way he looked at him, his eyes, it felt so strong yet somewhat fragile at the
same time. As if he hated everything but not because he wanted to, but because he had to.

He felt curious, searching up his name on YouTube, finding an array of his music videos all the
way up to the recent one, complications of fan made videos and even interviews of him when he
was young. Chimon wondered what it was like to be a child actor, to know your whole life was
watched by millions of people. Did he do stupid shit like what he did? Did he go to school and
prank his classmates? Did he sleep in the library during exam seasons whilst he tried to revise? It
bugged him how interested he was starting to become with Nanon when the latter barely batted his
eyes towards his directions the first time they met.

Chimon decided not to put too much thought on someone else’s business, locking his phone and
sleeping on his back, looking up at the ceiling and counting until he slowly fell asleep.

‘You want me to… Do a variety show?’, Nanon asked when his manager called him as he drove
into the company parking lot, ‘You know I don’t do that anymore’

‘Your fans miss it’, his manager commented, ‘They keep on blaming us, saying we don’t promote
you as much as we used to’

‘I don’t want to spend my already packed days doing bullshit shows when I could be at home
resting’, Nanon whined as he leaned his head on his stirring wheel, feeling as if he doesn’t have a
choice when his manager continued to talk about the show as if he already agreed.

‘Just do one to keep them quiet. Plus, Chimon’s-’

‘Why does it feel like I’m trying to compete with him rather than the other way round?’, Nanon
raised his voice when he heard the name again, ‘It should be him trying to get to my level, not me’

‘He’s doing twice as much shows as you’

‘Because he’s a fucking useless rookie’, Nanon shouted back, turning off the engines but he stayed
inside his car, not wanting to look angry when he walked out just in case there were paparazzi,
‘He’s gonna try to get everyone to love him by all means. Let him hoe himself around, I’m down
with all that. I don’t need to do that anymore’

‘Popularity is not stable’, his manager warned him, ‘It’s like a wave. It rises and crashes almost
instantly, so you need to jump on the new trend before you get drowned by everyone else’
‘Let me drown for all I care’, Nanon whispered to himself as he hung up the phone, ‘At least I can
breathe one last time before then’

‘I say this rivalry is stupid’, Mild pointed out in the meeting room.

‘I say we could market it’, Tay nodded as he let Chimon’s management team carry on with their
plans, ‘Nanon is one of the biggest singers and he’s been in the industry since he was eight. It
could be the Prince versus the underdog story’

‘Why am I the dog?’, Chimon asked, making everyone snort at his question.

‘An underdog means someone with little chance of winning or making it big, but proving everyone
wrong’, Mild informed him once she stopped chuckling, combing her hair back and tying it to a
ponytail. The Art Director ended up being a stand in for the PR team since Off was away on
holiday and he usually handled PR as well as being the CEO and he left his job to his trusted friend
Mild and Tay who looked over their new artist’s schedule and they couldn’t help but notice a lot of
it overlapped with Nanon’s from Master Entertainment.

‘I don’t think we need that narrative’, Mild shook her head and turned to Tay, ‘It’ll take the
attention away from his music to the drama which might have a negative effect depending on how
the journalist felt on writing about it. They could view Chimon as a wannabe who copies Nanon.
People are already making comparisons’

‘Comparisons?’, Chimon asked when he listened to her speak, ‘Why’re they comparing me with
him? The only thing he have in common is that we’re the same age’

‘Everyone does it with everyone’, Tay commented, ‘Don’t get too offended’

‘But… His music is different from mine’

‘Look, their schedules overlapped, so why don’t we try to make Chimon get along with him
instead?’, Mild recommended, going back to Chimon’s schedules, ‘Wouldn’t it be better for him to
make connections in the industry? It could lead to a collab which might do him good’

‘Have you met Nanon?’, Chimon’s manager snorted, ‘He’s got an ego of a fucking prince’

‘Okay, why don’t we just tell Chimon to try and get along with him, but if Nanon’s acting like a
spoilt bitch, then we’ll just tell Chimon to ignore him, how about that?”, Tay whined when they
were still on the topic of Nanon when they should’ve moved onto the next subject. As a small
company, they had to feel threatened by every major company including the biggest one that held
the best artists and the fact that one of the best will be up against their rookie shook the whole
meeting room.

‘Look’, Chimon finally added his voice in, sitting up from his chair, ‘It’s not like they’re gonna
force us to work together for a show. At most they’ll just interview us together, it’ll be easy to
ignore him’
‘For fuck’s sake’, Chimon whispered to himself as he put on a bunny suit outfit, standing on set
whilst they get ready for the variety show which consisted of their guests doing absurd and rather
stupid challenges and whoever wins gain a fake gold trophy that they don’t even get to keep.

He didn’t know why the marketing team thought it was a good idea to sign him up for this stupid
show, but he supposed rookies are put through more hell than everyone else since they still have a
lot to prove to the public, but Christ did people really need to see him dancing in a bunny suit for
them to buy his damn album?

‘You’re going to be paired with Nanon’

‘Are you insane?’, his whole team shouted included himself when the staff member walked
towards them to inform them of the incoming challenge which included him running around a track
in a bunny suit whilst dragging his partner in a trolley whilst they dance at the end of the race line
before pressing the bell.

‘Everyone’s been anticipating for their interactions’, the staff member defended their decision,
‘This will definitely be a big hit’

‘Or our worst nightmare’, Chimon heard his manager whisper before he put on his bunny suit, the
director’s assistant announcing the start of filming and ordering the team to step off set.

‘You look ugly’, Chimon turned around when he heard someone talking behind, seeing Nanon in a
simple shorts and orange shirt looking up and down on him with a grimace on his face, his nose
scrunch in disgust.

‘It’s nice to meet you too’, Chimon bit back sarcastically, trying to adjust his head since the bunny
head was too heavy, sliding down his head until he couldn’t see, ‘At least you should try to be nice
to me, we’re partners’

‘No, we’re not’, Nanon replied nonchalantly as he looked down on his watch, checking the time
and looking bored, ‘We’re put together to gain views, but there is no way I’ll ever be your partner’

‘Wow, I bet you’re fun at parties, right?’, Chimon scrunched his nose with as much grimace as
Nanon was giving him, ‘You’re an actor right? At least pretend to act like you’re happy’

‘How can I when you’re going to try to leech off me for popularity’

‘Who said I was gonna do that?’, Chimon furrowed his brow, glaring at the boy in front of him as
he tried to readjust his bunny suit. He was pissed that they gave him a suit a size too large for him,
‘Did you think I asked them to partner you with me?’

‘Why else would you even be here?’, Nanon smirked, ‘You’re trying to get popular the quick way
by attaching yourself to someone who’s already popular’

‘God I wanna punch you right now’, Chimon shook his head, biting his lip and gripping his hands
into a fist when Nanon continued to accuse him of bullshit.

Nanon was slightly shocked by his response, but didn’t show it on his face as they walked over to
where the host is, listening to Chimon whisper trails of curses under his breathe.

‘So, are you guys ready?’, the director shouted when he lifted his hand out, signalling that filming
was about to start, making Chimon slight nervous yet still pissed at the boy standing beside him.
And it didn’t help when he was dressed up in a heavy bunny suit, his bunny hat once again
slipping from his head.

‘Dammit, wear this for me’, Chimon whispered as he took off the bunny ears hat after it slipped
off his head again, giving up as he turned around and pressed it down Nanon’s head.

‘Are you fuc-’

‘And action!’

Nanon immediately kept his mouth shut when he saw the cameras rolling, the director or
signalling them to start the game in which he felt himself getting shoved inside a trolled, squealing
as he felt his legs dangling out, his ass hitting the hard metal as Chimon started to push him around
the set.

‘Hurry, hurry, hurry!’, once he got his balance, holding tightly on the side, he looked around to see
the other guests laughing and shouting at each other whilst they tried to run pass each other. They
were acting like a mess and he felt almost embarrassed for them. That was until he felt the bunny
ears on his head and he turned back to glare at Chimon, his expression hidden from the camera.

‘God, you’re so heavy’, Chimon gasped when he turned the trolley, drifting a little as they pulled
onto the next track. Nanon gripped the trolley harder, trying not to lose balance with how fast
Chimon was going. This dumb brat was also taking the game serious and what’s worse, he can’t
push for shit.

Chimon was having the time of his life. Not because he was playing a stupid game wearing a
bunny suit whilst the host was shouting cheers of praise and seven cameras were probably on them.
No, he was ecstatic that he could push Nanon to his limit, seeing his eyes widen and his jaws
clenched as he tried to keep calm but he knew deep down inside the boy was probably shitting his
pants.

‘Can you slow down?’, Nanon whispered, blocking the mic which was clipped on his shirt with his
hands, ‘You’re gonna tip the trolley over’

‘What?!’, Chimon shouted back, clearly not being able to hear him when the rest of the guests
started to cheer. Chimon saw that others were overtaking them, two actors he’d always admired
promoting their new series and he couldn’t help but feel star struck, his adrenaline coursing
through as he fastened his pace, turning again but this time making the usual expressionless Nanon
scream when the trolley almost tipped over from the impact.

‘Chimon!’, Nanon called out his name for the first time since they met, feeling his weight lean a
little to the left and it was like he was in slow motion, feeling the weight of the trolley crash to the
left with him in it, ‘Chimon!’, he shouted again as he tried to grab at anything he could as he felt
himself fall to the ground, tipping out of the trolley and landing straight on the hard set.

‘Dammit!’, Chimon shouted as he tried to avoid tripping over the trolley, only for Nanon’s hand to
grab a fist of his hair, tugging hit hard and he was surprised that the bastard hadn’t pulled half his
hair off by the fucking force, ‘Nanon!’, they shouted each other’s name, Chimon closing his eyes
tight as he prepared for the hard impact of the floor.

But instead, he landed on something soft and squishy that made an ‘oomph’ sound. The voices
became blurs, a mesh of sounds that didn’t make sense when Chimon finally opened his eyes, his
bunny suit almost drowning him, riding up to his neck, but when he looked around, he saw
everyone frozen on their spot, all eyes looking at him. He even looked behind the camera to where
he saw his team biting their lip nervously and looking at the director.

‘Mhmph’, he heard a small noise when he tried to get up and that’s when he realised he didn’t land
on the floor.

‘Nanon?’, he gasped out as soon as he sat up, looking down to see the singer on his back, whining a
little. Once they made eye contact, Nanon gave him a glare of irritation as he sat up, massaging his
arms, trying to stop the sudden pain from the fall, ‘Are you okay?’, he asked, reaching his hand out
to help him out.

‘I’m fine’, Nanon muttered, patting the dirt off his sleeves as he stood up. Chimon quickly stood
up as well, worriedly looking down to check on Nanon.

‘I’m sorry’

‘Don’t worry about it’, Nanon kept on muttering, but Chimon was insistent to let the world know
he was worried, walking over and patting the dirt on his legs, clearly not knowing how it would
look on camera. Nanon flinched and stepped back, ‘Chimon, stop, I’m fine’, he said again,
gripping on his arm and pulling him back up again.

He looked around on set and he felt as if the tension could drown them all out, so he smiled and
chuckled a little.

‘Looks like we lost’, he turned to Chimon, leaning his arm on the latter’s shoulder. Once his
laughter filled the set, everyone immediately relaxed, heaving a little sigh as they joined his
laughter, clapping for the pair who took last place as they carried on with filming.

Chimon felt relieved that Nanon was fine, but he was wondering why the boy was still leaning on
his shoulder when they started walking towards the host after they finished their game. It wasn’t
until the end did he notice when he looked down on his feet that Nanon had twisted his ankle and
he was probably in pain. His eyes widened and he was about to ask Nanon if he should stop
filming and go to the hospital but he realised his mic was still pinned on him, everyone hearing
him if he said it aloud.

Instead of ruining filming and embarrassing Nanon, he tiptoed a little to level his height with the
latter, trying to make him comfortable as he continued to lean on him. Nanon was expressionless,
like he usually was, and Chimon wondered how much pain he was in. He saw a few flinches when
they had to walk from one side to the next of the set, so out of guilt, he reached his arm out,
snaking it behind his waist and holding him up.

Nanon looked down at the hand resting on his waist, turning to the owner with a glare on his
expression but Chimon kept on looking straight ahead, answering questions when the host
interacted with him and laughing with the other guests. He would’ve slapped the hand away or told
him to fuck off, but the cameras and mic were still on, so he bit the inside of his cheeks, thinking of
ways to kill the fucking bastard as he continued filming with a swollen ankle.

This is why I don’t do these shows anymore.

‘You’re lucky Nanon’s professional enough to pull through’, Chimon’s manager whispered to him
the moment filming ended and Nanon pushed him away as he called for his manager, ‘You could
have his fans on your ass if you hurt him’

Chimon couldn’t help but turn back, trying to get a look at Nanon even though he pushed him
away and cursed him out as soon as filming ended.

‘Do you think he’s gonna be okay?’

‘He’s insured’, his manager comforted him, ‘They won’t let him get injured’

He wanted to go back and at least apologise, but then he started to wonder why he was starting to
feel guilty for something he didn’t mean to do? They both fell and got into an accident during the
game, so why was he the only one feeling guilty? He huffed in annoyance as he unbuttoned his
stupid costume that he kept tripping over.

‘Please tell me my next show isn’t with him too’, Chimon whined as he stretched his arms, finally
being out of the heavy suit as he walked back to his dresser.

‘No, it’s just gonna be another solo interview about your album’, his manager replied, a relief sigh
coming out of Chimon as he landed on the sofa face first, screaming into the pillow, ‘Fuck him!
Fuck him, fuck him, fuck him!’, he shrieks were muffled by the pillow but his manager heard it as
soon as he closed the door of his dressing room, looking down as Chimon kicked his legs up in the
air, punching the pillow and screaming out Nanon’s name. He couldn’t help but chuckle, finding it
amusing that Chimon was finally seeing Nanon’s true colours.

‘It’s only gonna get worse kid’, he tuts, walking over to the rest of the management team as they
prepared to leave the set.

You look ugly.

‘No, you look ugly’, Chimon growled, sitting up and ruffling his own hair in frustration until it
looked like a troll’s hair, ‘God I can’t stand him’, he muttered, but he remembered the way Nanon
leaned on him, feeling his weight against his shoulders as he kept silent about his twisted ankle. He
hated the spoilt bastard, but he couldn’t lie to himself that he was curious about him too. And that
made him hate Nanon more.
 Three.

‘Night school?’

‘More like night college’, Off explained over the phone when Chimon was preparing to head to the
studio to finish his album. His boss had just informed him that he had spoken to his parents and his
excitement coursed through the roof for a moment, only to crash down to the ground the next,
‘They want you to continue with your degree’

‘But I’ve already got a packed schedule!’, Chimon whined, heading out of his apartment and
towards his bike.

‘Which is why we might be decreasing your promotional schedules’, off suggested, ‘I’ve been told
that you nearly had your ass handed to you by Nanon’s fans the other day’

‘It wasn’t my fault’, Chimon murmured, ‘Their favourite boy is a dickhead’

‘Look, I think this might do you good. Night college is a chance for you to keep your feet on the
ground once your career hits off. You know how the cycle goes, the fame gets in your head’

‘That’s not gonna happen to me’, Chimon said, confident in himself as he put on his headphones,
spilling his phone in his pocket as he started cycling.

‘Your parents want this for you too. If they know you’re attending college, they might show up to
your debut showcase. Isn’t that why you wanted me to talk to them?’

Chimon bit his lip and closed his eyes for a second before he made a turn into the road. His parents
have always been against him pursuing arts, but he didn’t know they’d be this adamant. But, he
really wanted them there.

‘Fine’, he gave in, ‘But I get to choose which subject I’m majoring’

‘Okay fine’

Nanon opened the door for his delivery, seeing another bouquet of roses from his fans with a get
well card written inside it. Photos of him walking out of the hospital with a brace surfaced online
and his fans were quick to send him a shit ton of roses that had started to flood his hallway, but he
had nowhere else to put it, so he put the red roses down on the floor beside the door, closing the
door and walking back to his living room.

Indifference. That was Nanon’s true feelings over the rushes of flowers sent to him as he sat alone
in his apartment. It felt somewhat relieving that someone out there cared for him, but it also felt sad
that it was a stranger, someone who’d probably never even met him before. He wondered how that
worked, how someone could take the time out of their day to send a random stranger a bouquet of
flowers, surely even his fans must know the absurdity of it all.
‘Nanon’, he heard his manager over the phone that he put on speakers, his voice blasting his name
as he sat back down on the sofa.

‘What is it?’

‘Since your injured, we’ve cancelled all your schedules for the next week’

‘It’s just a sprained ankle’, Nanon rolled his eyes, ‘Everyone’s gonna think I’m a drama queen’

‘Your fans are gonna kill us if we make you work injured’, his manager pointed out, ‘Remember
the petition they signed when you made us continue your tour despite spraining your wrist?’

‘Jesus Christ, do they think I’m made out of glass?’, Nanon whined, tugging his head in frustration,
‘What the hell am I gonna do for an entire week?’

‘Relax like you always do I guess’, his manager replied indifferently, not really caring what Nanon
does with his free time, ‘Just don’t go to the club and make another mess. The stage is no longer
yours and one mistake and you’re practically giving your fans to Chimon’

Chimon, Chimon, Chimon. Why is it, whenever Nanon tried to mind his business, his name just
continued to pop up without warning? It was starting to really piss him off.

Nanon hated work. But it was also his only form of distraction. All of his ‘so-called’ friends
weren’t really his friends and he knew they all hated him. All those rounds in the club were also a
bad idea and he knew that, but he wanted to fit into the group of young actors that always hung
around together, but he knew he just didn’t fit it. He was too quiet, his personality reserved
compared to the wild and loud behaviours they had.

So, without work, he had nowhere else to go. He was trapped in his own tower.

‘You want me to apologise to him?’, Chimon shouted at Tay as soon as the standing CEO walked
into the recording studio, asking him to personally visit Nanon to apologise for an injury he didn’t
even make, ‘Does he not know what an accident is? It means it was no one’s fucking fault. If
anyone should apologies, it should be gravity’

‘Do you hear yourself?’, Tay raised a brow as he rested his hand on his hip like an annoyed Asian
Auntie in the market, ‘Chimon, his fans are vicious and annoying, so please, let’s not get into the
wrong foot with them otherwise they’ll make yours and my life a living hell’

‘I don’t understand how they could blindly follow a bastard’, Chimon whined, banging his head on
the table when he knew he had no other choice but to follow Tay’s advice. He hadn’t checked his
Twitter, but he knew they weren’t having it.

‘Just go to his apartment and apologise’

‘Can’t you just give me his phone number so I can call him?’, Chimon begged, lifting his head up
and looking at Tay.

‘Do you think we know his number?’, Tay scoffed, ‘You think we have a phone book and every
living artist currently promoting in Thailand’s phone numbers just in case you wanna talk to them?’
‘Can’t I go visit the company then?’

‘They gave him the rest of the week off for his injuries’

‘Injuries?’, Chimon snorted, ‘He had a sprained ankle, big fucking deal’

‘Just go and apologise’, Tay rolled his eyes one last time, hitting Chimon on the head, ‘I’m not
gonna let Off make fun outta me for losing control over you whilst he’s away. I made a deal that I
was gonna babysit you, now go fix your mistake’

‘What the fuck?’

‘Not even a hello? You fucker’, Chimon growled when the door opened and he saw Nanon again,
in his sweatpants and shirt looking like a fifteen year old with no make up on.

‘What’re you doing here?’, he asked, still holding on the door as if blocking Chimon from getting
in, which only annoyed the latter as he pushed him back, welcoming himself in the big penthouse
that Nanon lived in. Before Nanon could shout at him, he saw the sea of flowers by the hallway,
roses of different colours just dumped on top of each other.

‘Woah, did they think you died or something?’, Chimon chuckled, sliding his phone down his
pocket as he looked at the different bouquets, picking up the notes tucked inside, ‘Get well soon
Nanon, we hope you’re okay, rest well, you did well. Damn, they must really think you died’

‘Can you get out of my apartment?’, Nanon crossed his arms, tapping his foot as he opened the
front door again.

‘No’, Chimon simply replied with a fake smile, ‘I can’t leave without apologising to you’

‘Apologise?’

‘Yeah. My company said I needed to say sorry’, Chimon skipped to the front, facing Nanon as he
rested his hand on his shoulder, faking a pouting look, ‘Sorry wittle boy for hurting your feewings’,
he said in a baby voice, laughing when Nanon glared back at him.

‘Get out’, he growled, shrugging his hand away.

‘Gladly’, Chimon growled back once he did his job, ‘I’ve got worse things to deal with’, he
whispered as he took his phone out, calling his manager as he was about to walk out of the door.

‘Manager, I apologised to him! Now can you help me get our of night college please!’

‘Night college?’, Nanon whispered, turning around to where slammed the door on his face. He
couldn’t even ask Chimon what he was talking about since the boy already left, leaving him in
stuck in silence once more.
‘You’re gonna attend Bangkok University too?’, Ohm shouted excitedly as he got ready for
opening, carrying a crate of drinks into the fridge, ‘We’re gonna be classmates again!’

‘I’m attending the evening courses for part time students’, Chimon reminded him, ‘I’m only gonna
be in three times a week’

‘What’re you majoring?’, his best friend asked excitedly as he walked out of the kitchen and to
where he was sitting with a bottle of beer, ‘I can help you out since I’m second year’

‘Communication Arts’, Chimon said, ‘Majoring in Media Production’

‘Oh damn’, Ohm clicked his tongue, ‘I do Law’, Chimon started laughing, shaking his head as he
playfully hit his arm.

‘Yeah, I don’t think I’m gonna need your old textbooks’, he added on jokingly, ‘But maybe I do
need someone to show me around’

‘Sure thing’, Ohm grinned, more excited than Chimon at the prospect of studying again. Chimon
tried his hardest to get out of it, but once Tay and Mild agreed that it might actually be a good idea,
they went ahead and applied him to different universities that catered part time students. Of course,
with his fucking grades, he got accepted in all of them so he couldn’t even hope to be rejected. The
only reason why he chose Bangkok was because he knew his best friend attended it too. But even
then, Ohm was a full time student, so his classes and lectures were doing the day, which meant he
wasn’t even going to see him. It was frustrating at the thought that he had to make new friends all
over again.

‘Ohm, stop talking and help Frank with the deliveries. The poor kid can barely carry it!’, Neen
shouted from outside, both heads to turn, looking at Frank who had given up and started to drag the
sack of potatoes towards the restaurant, making every laugh as he heaved, sweat beading from his
forehead.

‘Shut up, the lot of you!’, Frank shouted, ‘I’m gonna tell my dad you’re bullying me!’

Due to the restaurant’s busy day, Chimon decided to explore the night market instead, looking
around the different stalls as he waited for the restaurant’s closing time so he could walk home
with Frank and Ohm. He didn’t know how long the market was until he found himself walking for
half an hour, trying the deserts and street snacks and finding it all delicious, wanting to try from
every stall.

‘You look familiar kid, have I seen you somewhere?’, he looked up to where an old man was
sitting on his chair, fanning the barbecue he was grilling as he stared at him.

‘Uh… Have you heard of my song?’, Chimon asked, and without embarrassment, he started
singing it like a jukebox, making the old man laugh at his confidence.

‘Ah yes, you’re Off’s kid aren’t you?’

‘You know him?’, he asked curiously.

‘Know him?’, he laughed, ‘I practically raised him’

‘Really? He grew up here?’, Chimon asked, walking over so that he’s practically leaning on the
stall, ‘Is that why he visits here often?’

‘Yeah’, he nodded, amused at how the boy almost leaped at the opportunity to ask him questions
about the man, ‘Been coming here since he was a little boy’

‘Woah’, Chimon’s eyes widened, ‘And how was he when he was a kid?’

‘He was a smart ass’, the man smiled, coughing a little from the smoke as he continued to fan it
away, ‘Always got in trouble with his friends’

‘Really?’

‘Yeah. And he loved to stir trouble. That’s how he met his husband’

‘Do you know P’Gun as well?’, Chimon kept asking. He’d only ever heard about his boss’s
husband, sometimes Tay or Mild would talk about him, but he never met him before, even after
working in NeverNormal for a whole year, Gun never visited the company, not when he was in
anyway, and it only made him curious who he was.

‘Uh huh’, the old man nodded again, taking out a cigarette from the pack inside his pocket and a
lighter, resting it between his lips and lighting it up, ‘Off’s boy would come here as a kid to look
for Off. He would pretend he was mad and get into a fight with him, but everyone in the market
knew he was just using that as an excise to see him’

‘Huh’, Chimon couldn’t help saying. He looked at the old man again, his hair greying and crinkles
forming on the ends of his eyes when he smiled, but he looked friendly, so he couldn’t help but sit
down next to him, reaching his hand out for a handshake, ‘I’m Chimon by the way’

‘Call me P’Pik’, the man smiled and shook his hand, ‘Now tell me, why do I always see you
hanging around Neen’s restaurant when you should be a celebrity hanging around in the city?’

‘Off told me to keep my feet on the ground in case I fly too close to the sun’

‘Good lad’, P’Pik blew out grey smokes, making Chimon cough, ‘It’s a good choice to follow
Off’s orders. Keep doing it and you might stay sane’

Chimon started college this week and he felt like a kid again. He had on a backpack with
notebooks he bought with Frank along with muji pens and sharpies to take notes. It was honestly so
embarrassing when he walked into the classroom being the only kid his age. Most of them, as he
expected, were older than him, in their mid thirties to forties wanting to gain a degree whilst
juggling work and family life.

‘Hello’, he bowed his head to them all as he sat at the back of the small class, feeling slightly out of
place. It also felt weird being in a school setting when the sun was about to go down. The campus
didn’t look as friendly or welcoming, nor did he find it fun when the hallways were silent with only
the janitors cleaning the floors.

He was gonna kill P’Off for persuading him to apply for the stupid course. He sat by himself as he
waited for the professor to arrive, looking down at his phone and texting Frank and Ohm about
how stupid he felt.

The door opened again and he was expecting their professor to show up, but instead someone else
walked in and he heaved a sigh of relief when he say someone close to his age walking in with a
backpack slung to his side. He smiled immediately, trying to be as welcomed as possible and he
saw it working as the boy smiled back, pointing at the empty seat next to him to ask if it was
occupied. Chimon shook his head, welcoming him to sit down.

‘Hey’, he greeted the boy.

‘I’m glad I’m not the only one my age in this course’, the boy laughed, ‘I was worried it’ll be
mature students’

‘Me too’, Chimon whispered back, ‘You don’t know I relieved I am to see you walking in’, he
made the former laugh at him, his grin cute and sweet.

‘My name’s First’, he introduced himself.

‘Chimon’

‘Okay Chimon’, First whispered as he looked around the class, ‘I don’t mean to be rude, but I think
I’m gonna have to stick with you till the semester’s over’

‘Fine by me’, Chimon chuckled, ‘Because I was about to ask the same from you’

‘First?’, Frank snorted as he folded the tissues into the packet, ‘Who names their kid first?’

‘He’s my age and he’s funny’

‘Is he good looking?’, Frank asked as soon as Ohm walked in.

‘Don’t you have a boyfriend?’

‘Just because I have one doesn’t mean I’m not allowed to look at other people’, Frank pointed
back, ‘Plus, Drake’s probably cheating on me by now’

‘Do you really think that?’, Chimon snorted when he looked up from his phone to Frank.

‘Of course, I don’t’, Frank whispered, not wanting to show that he missed his boyfriend already
even though first semester only started a month ago. This had been the longest Drake had been
away.

‘You know, if you want we can definitely do a road trip to visit him’, Ohm pointed out, ‘I have a
car’

‘Wait, you would do that?’, Frank turned to look at Ohm who nodded his head.

‘I mean, it’ll be a fun trip with all of us. We just need to find the time where we’re all free’

Frank quickly turned to look at Chimon who was going to be a problem since he was a singer and a
college student, which meant there was no such thing as free time with him, ‘Chimon, please tell
me you’re free this weekend’

‘No can do’, Chimon shook his head, ‘I have a morning radio show and then I have to meet up with
First for our first project. They want us to edit an advert for a product of our choice and we were
thinking noodles’

‘Noodles?’, Ohm furrowed his brow in confusion, ‘Why noodles?’

‘Because it’s fun and we’re totally gonna dress up as an instant noodle cup. First already bought
the costume’

‘I can’t believe I’m friends with idiots’, Frank sighed, getting up from the table as he walked back
to the kitchen to follow Ohm.

‘Well, you could film in Chang Mai, can’t you?’, Ohm suggested, ‘I’m sure your schedules are free
on Sunday right?’

‘Yeah’

‘Then we pick you up from the radio station and we’ll drive straight to Chang Mai. We could stop
over different places for a bit to film your advert and we’ll be in Chang Mai by the evening’

‘Then I can spend the whole of Sunday with Drake’, Frank grinned once the idea was planted in his
head. He turned to look at Chimon expectedly, pulling his stupid puppy eyes look.

‘I mean, I’ll ask First and if he’s available then we’ll do it’, Chimon gave in, not because of
Frank’s constipated version of puppy eyes, but because the idea of travelling around in Thailand
filming pieces of their advert might actually be more creative than their initial plan. Plus, he hadn’t
seen Drake in months and he was also starting to miss the only person who could control Frank.

‘Let’s fucking go!’

‘I’m going to kill you’, Chimon hissed at his manager as soon as he walked pass the radio station’s
glass door to find someone else sitting inside. He quickly turned to run away but he was grabbed
by his manager, tugging his wrist back to the station, ‘Please, not him’

‘Look, his company booked him in last minute because he’d just been endorsed by Samsung and
he’s doing a collab with some K-Pop star. The station couldn’t say no to that. Your lucky you
didn’t get dropped for him’

‘I’d rather get cancelled than share another air time with him’, Chimon whined, trying to tug his
wrist out of his manager’s grip, ‘Please, not him. Anyone but him’

‘You need to earn brownie points from his fans’, his manager reminded him, but that didn’t stop
him from trying to get away, pulling and tugging even though he knew his manager was stronger,
‘So go up there and kiss his ass if you want your album to do well’

‘For fuck’s sake’, Chimon cried, grimacing and scrunching his nose in disgust, ‘Not Nanon.
Anyone but Nanon!’

‘I can hear you!’, the bastard in question shouted and they realised there was no glass door in front
of them. The door was just wide fucking open.

‘Good’. Chimon shouted back, ‘Then you should know I don’t wanna work with you’

‘Attaching your air time with mine?’, Nanon scoffed as he crossed his arm and swivelled his chair
towards them, ‘If you’re gonna leech off me, at least make it subtle. It’s embarrassing at this point’

‘Me?!’, Chimon shouted, glaring at the boy he wanted to kick in the face so badly, ‘You’re the one
who stole my air time!’

‘I was offered it’, Nanon corrected him with a smug expression, ‘Unlike you who have to beg for a
schedule’

‘I swear to God, I will cut-’

‘Chimon, calm down’, his manager hissed at him, pulling him back and whispering in his ears,
‘There are staffs listening to you. Don’t do anything stupid, okay?’

Chimon realise they were in fact working and that the DJ could hear their every discourse, so he
bit his lip and faked a smile, straightening his posture and walking in, bowing to everyone inside
the room as he sat down next to Nanon.

They avoided each other like the fucking plague to say the least, not wanting to look at each other
unless they had to as their interview was about to begin.

‘So, Nanon, I heard you’ll be working with a surprise singer soon’, the DJ asked as soon as his
song finished playing, the red light indicating that they were live on air again, ‘Can you give us a
glue as to who it is?’

‘I wish I could, but I wanna surprise my fans’, Nanon replied with a playful tone, much different
from how he usually talked and it surprised Chimon how different Nanon could act, as if he had a
switch inside his brain that he could flip and he instantly became a different person, ‘But it
definitely is an exciting project that I hope they can enjoy’

‘Well, speaking of exciting, a lot of fans have tweeted us asking if rising star Chimon might be the
surprise collaboration’, the DJ teased, reading his phone as he looked at the pair, ‘They’re curious
as to why you’re both here this morning’

‘I’m not the artist’, Chimon replied, debunking the theories almost instantly, ‘I’m sure the artist is
much better than me’

‘They sure are’, Nanon replied and it was masked in a joking tone, but Chimon knew that the
bastard meant it. He had to stop himself from glaring just in case someone was filming them,
simply laughing back as a means of a response, ‘Since he’s a rookie, he’s still got a lot to learn’,
Nanon carried on, shading Chimon every chance he got, ‘That’s why he’s practically shadowing
me’

‘I’m not really’, Chimon replied back with a smile, ‘But I’m honoured that you’d think of me as a
close friend’
‘We only met twice’, Nanon smiled back, his tone light and playful, which only made it sound
more intimidating, ‘We’re not friends. More like Senior and Junior, am I right?’

His condescending tone made Chimon want to rip his teeth out right here and now, but he looked
towards the producer’s window to see his manager giving him a warning look, mouthing for him to
play nice despite Nanon acting like a kid.

‘Yeah’, Chimon nodded with tight lips as he gave in, ‘My most valuable Senior. I hope to learn a
lot from you’

‘Dickhead!’, Chimon shouted into the pillow again as soon as he walked back to where his
manager is, knowing he should pack a pillow seeing the last time Chimon interacted with the pop
singer, ‘Dickhead!’, he kept on shouting on the pillow, his voice muffled as they bowed their
goodbyes to the producers, walking out of the building.

‘You did well’, his manager patted his back, ‘You almost slipped up, but you picked yourself up’,
it was painful having to watch Chimon being attacked on live radio with nothing he could do. The
condescending comments and playful jabs at his music was hidden so well, but anyone who’s
worked in the industry long enough could tell that the comments came deep within Nanon’s hatred
for the boy and he almost sighed in relief once the show was over.

‘I want to slice his throat so badly’, Chimon whined, ‘He’s so fucking annoying’

‘You’re free for the rest of the day. Why don’t you go home and relax’, his manager suggested and
once he was reminded, his mood instantly shifted, especially when they left the station, a car
parked at the front hoking loudly. He looked up and the windows were already rolled down, Ohm
and Frank waving at him.

‘Get in loser, we’re going shopping!’, Frank shouted at him, ‘We’ve already packed a luggage for
you!’

Chimon smiled and raced to their car, separating from his manager who already knew about his
trip, ‘Where’s First?’

‘We’re picking him up from the station’, Ohm explained, ‘And we better hurry so we can avoid
traffic’

‘Okay, let’s go’, Chimon smiled, racing to the front passenger seat. He was surprised that Frank
didn’t hog it. As he closed the door, he saw a wave of fans crossing the road and running up to the
station with their phones out. He watched as Nanon walked out of the station with sunglasses on,
bowing his head to the growing crowd that was starting to form around him, girls and boys alike
screaming their lungs off as they begged for a picture, throwing their gifts at him to which his
bodyguard pushed them back in retaliation.

‘That’s gonna be your life in a couple of months’, Frank pointed out whilst he tutted, judging the
crowd as Ohm turned his engines again, ‘What an inconvenience’

‘He should at least look more appreciative’, Chimon whispered whilst he put on his seat belt, ‘I
mean, they took their time to visit him. One picture wouldn’t hurt, right?’
‘He’s been doing this since he was like ten’, Ohm reminded him as he began driving, but Chimon
couldn’t help but turn his head back, looking at the way Nanon kept on bowing but refusing to
accept gifts, ‘I’m sure you’d also get sick of it one day’

‘First!’, Chimon shouted when he rolled his windows down, beckoning for the boy who waited at
the font of the station with big bags by his side.

‘We’re only going for a weekend, why does he need this many bags?’, Frank asked when Chimon
asked him to help out, the pair walking out of the car, carrying a bag each.

‘I bought a noodle suit as well as a chicken suit’,First explained as they excitedly loaded it on the
boot of Ohm’s car, ‘Our first stop, one of us needs to wear the chicken suit and dance’

‘Over my dead fucking body’, Frank murmured as he walked back to the back of the car, ‘That’s
yours and Chimon’s project, so one of you do it’

‘Do you know how to use the camera?’, Chimon asked curiously as they put the camera equipment
on the back seat with First, ‘Because we need to be the ones to film it’

‘I’m not doing it!’, Ohm shouted from the driver’s seat, leaving Frank to glare at the three of them
as he cursed them out for trapping him.

‘I’m not putting on the chicken suit!’

‘Yes you are!’, all three shouted back as they got inside the car, their road trip just starting.

The embarrassment started when they stopped over a field, Frank stomping his feet on the grass as
he put on the head of the chicken suit, the three boys laughing at him as they played the music on
Ohm’s phone, filming Frank dancing to the song.

‘We need you to be more excited!’, First shouted as he held the camera, kneeling down to get a
different angle.

‘Fuck you!’, Frank shouted back, jumping up and down whilst he danced to the song again.

‘Smile more!’, Chimon shouted, laughing as he started filming with his own phone, making sure to
send it to Drake. Their road trip was a surprise, but he was sure Drake wasn’t going to know they
were travelling to Chang Mai if he saw Frank dancing in a chicken suit.

‘This is so embarrassing!’, Frank whined, stopping as he stopped his feet on the grass again,
glaring at the three boys, ‘I don’t wanna do this anymore!’

‘Ergh, fine, I’ll join’, Chimon rolled his eyes, passing his phone to Ohm as he went back to the
boot of the car, taking out the noodle suit and quickly putting it on. He picked up the instant
noodles that they packed as well, throwing one to Frank as he waddled into the frame.
‘We have to try and sell these’, he pointed at the noodles, ‘Okay, come on! Let’s play the music!’

Ohm turned on his phone again, replaying the song to the start as they began dancing, shouting the
lyrics as they improvised a choreo, pointing at the noodles and swaying their hips. Ohm couldn’t
help but snort, laughing in the background as he saw Chimon and Frank in a noodle and chicken
soup, almost choking in his laugher.

‘Okay, perfect’, First shouted cut, laughing as he stood up, giving Chimon and Frank a high five,
‘Our next stop is a temple, so let’s hope people don’t see us’

‘I hate you all’, Frank whined as he took off his chicken head, throwing it at Ohm as he stomped
back to the car.

Rising Star Chimon seen with his friends travelling after his schedules.

Comments:

I heard he’s attending college too. It’s so nice to see these young celebrities living a normal life.

God, he’s attending my university! I hope I get to see him in real life!

The fact that he doesn’t have any bodyguards, he must truly trust his fans not to approach him.

He doesn’t even have any fans, no wonder he still acts so careless. He should at least be with his
manager.

I don’t wanna compare, but compared to Nanon, he’s acting little too careless. He doesn’t know
that he’s a role model now and here he is hanging out instead of focusing on his album.

No offence, but he looks more human than Nanon. Nanon looks like a robot most of the time. Does
that boy even smile?

Nanon read the comments of the article, not because he wanted to, but because he kept on being
tagged on it. He knew it was going to happen. He knew he was going to instantly be compared with
Chimon due to their age, but they didn’t think they’d even compared how they lived their lives. It
was getting annoying. He saw the pictures the fans took of him driving with a group of friends,
walking around a busy street as if he was free, not a care in the world as he even posed for some of
the photos.

He wouldn’t be caught dead walking in a busy street without a bodyguard unless he wanted to start
human traffic.

‘What an idiot’, Nanon whispered as he closed his laptop shut, getting up from his room and
heading to the kitchen to make himself something. He had a schedule in the evening so he spent
the rest of his free time in his apartment instead of the company building. He hated the other artists
signed under his company, they were all so loud and boisterous, it drained his energy just trying to
talk to him.
He thought about Chimon attending college and he wondered why his company would ever allow
him to do such a thing? It was such a waste of time and it probably will hold back his future
schedules. How was he supposed to go on tour when he was supposed to attend lectures? He
remembered his company laughing at his face when he suggested it once years ago. They had just
booked tour dates in Japan and China, so it was impossible for him to study.

But now? His schedules were a little shorter and he had more time to kill now that he didn’t have to
keep promoting like a maniac. Out of curiosity, he looked down on his phone and typed in night
colleges. Pages worth of answers came to him, information about part time students, evening
classes and application forms.

He’d never gone to college before. He hadn’t even gone to high school either. He’d been home
schooled for his whole life, so the idea of having to sit in a room full of other students piqued his
interest more than he could admit.

Bangkok University.

He’d heard of that university. It was one of the best in the city and he couldn’t help but gleam at
the videos of the campus, interviews with the students and just seeing the crowd of people his age
mingling together.’

‘Night college’, he whispered to himself, scrolling down and looking at the red button that reading
Apply and his thumb grazed over it, his chest beating fast.

Drake attended Chang Mai University majoring in BioChem. He was lucky enough to score a
scholarship for his first year, so he had no other choice but to pick it despite being hours away
from his friends and family. The first couple of weeks were hell, but he pushed through it,
pretending to be fine with Frank called him. Over the coming weeks, he’d gotten used to the people
around him, even gaining a few friends who lived on the same floor of his dorm.

But Frank had stopped calling him every night and he was starting to wonder why. He knew long
distance was going to be a bitch for them, but he had hoped that Frank would try harder.

It was the weekend and he had just finished studying in the library, walking out to find the skies
already dark, the street lamps lighting up his path back to the dorms. It was nearing midnight
already and he was tired. The road was silent and by the time he arrived to the dorm, all he wanted
to do was sleep.

But that was until he heard his name being called.

‘Drake! Drake!’

He turned as soon as he recognised the voice, seeing his boyfriend leap out of the car and run up to
him as soon as he arrived.

‘Frank?’, he shouted, dropping his bag as he immediately ran up to him, lifting him up and twirling
him around when Frank dipped down to kiss him on the lips.

‘So disgusting’, Chimon gagged, looking at the two love birds being reunited for the first time in
months, ‘They weren’t like this when Drake worked for Neen’, he whispered to Ohm and First
who watched the both of them shouting their name with hurls of I miss you and how have you been
to each other.

‘Chimon’, Drake finally took his eyes away from his boyfriend, waving at the familiar boy as he
approached the car, ‘Did you guys drive all the way here?’

‘Yep’, he nodded, taking out his bag from the boot of the car, ‘This is Ohm, my best friend and the
one who replaced you at P’Neen’, he explained, pointing at Ohm who waved at him, ‘And this is
First, my classmate’

‘Ah yes’, Drake laughed when First greeted him, ‘I heard you’re going back to university’

‘Don’t even mention it’, Chimon whined, ‘I’ve given up trying to drop out’

‘Hey, at least you have me’, First leaned his arm on his shoulder, the group laughing beside Ohm’s
car before Frank started shouting.

‘Okay, that’s enough and I wanna sleep’, Frank clapped his hands, gaining their attention, ‘Drake
do you think you have space in your dorm for these three to sleep? We forgot to book a hotel room
and everything is fully booked’

‘You’re joking right?’, Drake raised his brow and snorted at them, ‘You think I can fit all four of
you in my college dorm?’

‘We brought blankets, at this point we just need a floor’, Ohm whined as he brought his backpack
of overnight stuff, closing the boot of his car again and walking back to them, ‘Tell me there’s a
floor for us to sleep’

‘Ergh, fine’

Drake was definitely not getting his pay’s worth since the room was smaller than they’d
anticipated. It took them half an hour just to make a makeshift bed that might fit all three of them as
Frank jumped on Drake’s bed, having the privilege to sleep on the mattress.

‘This is ridiculous’, Chimon whispered, looking down at the blanket covered floor with throw
pillows that Drake borrowed from his neighbours.

‘Look, we’re only gonna sleep him for tonight, I’m sure it won’t be that bad’, First pointed out,
about to lay on the floor when he felt something slithering on his foot. He thought it was just the
end of the blanket, so he tried to kick it off, but the damn rug won’t get off his foot, ‘What the
hell’, he whined, looking down to see what was on his feet, his eyes widening and his voice
making a shrieking voice he’d never made before as he grabbed on Ohm’s arm, tugging at him as
he jumped up on the air, legs wrapped around the poor boy’s waist.

‘Snake!’, he shouted as he pointed to the ground, the three other boys seeing the long writhing
thing on the floor beside their bed.

‘Fuck!’, they all immediately shouted, running to jump on the bed as they continued to scream like
a bunch of kids.
‘Guys, guys, please calm down’, drake shouted over their screeches, raising his hands up to stop
them, ‘It’s just Meow’

‘I beg your fucking pardon?’, Frank shouted when he saw his boyfriend acting a little more calmer
than he anticipated seeing as there was a fucking snake in the room.

‘What the fuck is a Meow?’

‘The snake. I called her Meow’, Drake explained as he carefully picked the thing up, making
everyone whine and beg for him to put it back down or throw it out of the window for all they care.

‘Why the fuck do you have a snake?!’, they shouted at the college student, not caring that they
might be waking up other students next door.

‘Dean from the faculty of agriculture caught it in one of their patches and they asked me to keep it
until the wildlife conservation arrives and takes her away’

‘Just kill it!’

‘No!’, Drake shouted back at them, ‘She’s a rare type of snake and they wanna rehouse her with
her kind’, they obviously couldn’t argue anymore and seeing as it was Drake’s room, he refused to
get rid of the beast.

‘I know damn well I’m not sleeping on the fucking floor with that thing still here’, Ohm pointed to
Drake so there was no choice but the four boys to sleep on Drake’s double bed, pushing and
tugging each other, whilst he slept on the floor by himself.

What the four boys failed to realise were snakes abilities to climb tall posts, so by morning,
Chimon tried to swat Ohm’s hand away from his cheeks, whining as he felt something cold press
on his skin and kicking his best friend’s legs to move.

‘Ohm, move’, he whined as he found himself almost tipping off the edge of the bed, ‘Get your
hand off me’, he mumbled, still half asleep as he touched Ohm’s hands only to feel that he had no
fingers. He immediately opened his eyes wide at the touch of something scaly, crossing his eyes as
he saw Meow resting on top of his face.

‘Fuck this shit!’, he screamed, standing up and throwing Meow in the middle of the bed which only
awakened the other boys, screaming and jumping off the bed as they ran as fast away from the
slithering snake on the mattress, stepping over Drake and not caring.

‘I am never visiting you again!’, Frank shouted, his head spinning and feeling vertigo for being
woken up so early and having to use his reflex to save himself.

‘Jesus, you didn’t have to stampede on me’, Drake huffed, clenching his stomach from the sudden
impact of fucking feet stomping on him, ‘Meow won’t bite’

‘I beg to fucking differ’, Frank shouted, looking down on his watch and seeing it was only seven
o’clock in the morning on a Sunday, but since their adrenaline had already woken them up, it was
too late to go back to bed, ‘That’s it, I’m getting McDonalds’

‘Wait up!’, Drake shouted as he picked up Meow, but it was too late, the four boys had taken their
jackets, walking out of his dorm in their pyjamas and heading to the nearest McDonalds.
NeverNormal’s most anticipated singer caught spending his early morning in McDonalds in his
pyjamas.

Comments:

Why does he look homeless?

Lol, so even celebrities can look shit in the morning.

They must’ve been partying all night long, I mean look at their state. They look like they haven’t
slept all night.

He looks hungover.

Poor kid thinks it’s okay to walk around hungover in his pyjamas in public. Does NeverNormal not
know how to train their artists?

I don’t know why everyone’s angry, I think he looks adorable.

People are acting as if they haven’t found themselves in the nearest McDonalds after drinking all
night in their twenties. He’s allowed to have a life too.

I’m a Nanon fan, but I do have to admit, there’s something different about him, like you can be
friends with him or see him walk pass the street. It doesn’t seem like he lives in another world from
you like all the other celebrities. He definitely has a boy next door vibe and I can’t help but like
that about him.
 Four.

‘You wanna go to college?’, his manager asked when Nanon walked in the company building for
their meeting, waiting for their CEO to arrive as they sat inside the meeting room. His manager
turned to look at him with a raised brow, waiting for Nanon to shake his head and say he was
joking.

‘I think it might be a good idea’

‘You’re releasing an album Nanon’, his manager reminded him, ‘You’ll be busy’

‘I don’t do as much shows as I used to. Plus, you haven’t accepted any scripts for me ever since I
started focusing on my singing, so it’s not like I won’t have time’

‘Nanon, why would you wanna go to college?’, she asked the celebrity, ‘You’ve already graduated
high school, you don’t need to keep studying’

‘I’m bored’, Nanon simply replied with a shrug, swivelling his chair impatiently, ‘If you won’t let
me act again, then you might as well let me go back to school. It’s the least you could do after I’ve
overworked myself for this company’

‘Jesus Godji, just let him go to college’, his PR team finally joined in after having to painfully
listen through their argument, ‘Maybe it might even help him stir clear from any trouble, Lord
knows he needs that right now’

‘I went to the club a couple of times and now I’m the bad guy?’, Nanon scoffed when his PR team
kept on patronising him.

‘You punched a bouncer in the face’, they pointed out, reminding him of the video which went
viral and almost tore the company upside down by the waves of criticism Nanon received.

‘P’Off would’ve never locked me up in a room and confiscated my phone’, Nanon mumbled under
his breath, remembering how his team handled the scandal, forcing him to stay away from the
spotlight, locking him in the recording studio until the end of the day to which they told him not to
come out of his apartment for the rest of the week. It was a living hell being by himself with no
signs of getting out. He’d never felt more suffocated.

‘Look, even if you want to go college, what would you major in?’, P’Godji asked, reluctant in
agreeing with Nanon’s sudden suggestion.

‘Well, I’ve been an actor since I was ten. I wouldn’t mind taking up film production’, Nanon
shrugged, ‘Maybe in the future, when I’m too old to act, I’ll stay behind the camera instead’

‘You? Behind the camera?’, they all scoffed at him, ‘The reason why you even like this job is
because you’re always in front of the lens, not behind it’

‘Trust me Nanon’, his team replied to him, ‘You don’t know how gruelling it is to work in
production. Why don’t we stick to what we’re good at instead?’

‘Or why don’t you let me study to see how bad it is. Am I not allowed to give it a try?’, he bit back
to them, but before they could reply to him, the door opened and their CEO walked in, quietening
the whole room as they sat up straight and looked nervously at him.
‘Get Meow out of here’, Frank whined when they sat around Drake’s table, trying to eat their
takeaway but his stupid snake kept slithering on their chair legs until they were standing on the
chair with their plates in their hand.

‘She’s gentle’, Drake kept on telling them, but it felt like a loss cause since none of them listened
to him.

‘Please Drake, for the love of God, put her back in her cage’, Ohm whined, ‘My arm’s aching from
holding my plate. I just wanna sit down’

‘Okay, fine’, Drake sighed, picking up the snake and holding her gently in his hands, walking back
to the small cage his friend gave him, setting her down the makeshift leaves and grass, locking her
up much to everyone else’s relief, sighing as they sat back down.

‘So, how’s college going?’, First asked when they settled in a comfortable silence once Meow was
gone.

‘Pretty good’, Drake nodded, ‘Slightly lonely, but I’ve been making a lot of friends’

‘That’s good’, Frank smiled, reaching his hand out to hold Drake’s under the table. Just like his
name, he could be very frank sometimes, loud and sometimes mean, but in reality, Drake meant a
lot to him and he still does to the point where he agreed in a long distance relationship despite not
believing it would work. He didn’t wanna let go of his first love just yet.

‘This kid’s been talking about you non stop’, Ohm spilled on Drake, getting a kick on the leg under
the table, but that didn’t stop him from embarrassing Frank, ‘He said he missed you and school
wasn’t the same without you’

‘Shut up’, Frank kicked him again, but Drake couldn’t help but feel giddy, squeezing his hand
again.

‘I miss you too’, he whispered, leaning in for a kiss to which the other three boys groaned and
threw their tissues at them.

‘How about you guys? Don’t tell me all three of you are single?’, Drake changed the subject to
them, eating his rice as he looked at the two new faces along with Chimon.

‘Unfortunately, we’re all single’, Chimon sighed, looking down at his plate and playing with his
food.

‘Speak for yourself’, his best friend muttered and he looked up from his food, his mouth gaping
when Ohm smirked, avoiding his eyes but still looking suspicious.

‘You’re going out with someone?!’

‘Maybe’, Ohm shrugged, acting vague which only made Chimon kick him on the leg.

‘Tell me, who?! As your best friend, I’m entitled to know who they are!’

‘We’re not official yet’, Ohm explained when Chimon kept whining, making him laugh as he
watched his best friend tug at his shirt, ‘But, we went on a date last week and… He asked me out
on a second one’

‘Oooooh’, Frank cooed, squeezing Ohm’s cheeks teasingly, ‘Someone’s getting all shy talking
about it’, he laughed whilst Ohm pushed his hand away, ‘You should invite him over to the
restaurant. Let’s see if he’s good looking’

The boys couldn’t stop laughing, making fun out of each other as they spent their lunch together
before breaking off, letting Frank and Drake have the rest of the day together whilst they explored
Chiang Mai and its beautiful temples, trying the street snacks and strolling around the busy roads.

‘Hello’, someone interrupted them whilst Ohm was trying to take a picture in front of one of the
temples. Chimon turned around when a girl tugged on his sleeves. She was a teenager, probably
sixteen years old or maybe Frank’s age.

‘Hey, can I help you?’, Chimon asked when he looked at her. She was blushing and her voice was
soft and shaking.

‘Are you Chimon?’

‘Uh, yeah’

‘Oh my God, can I take a photo with you?’, she asked, pointing to her phone and First couldn’t help
but snicker when Chimon shyly agreed, smiling as she turned the camera on, snapping a few
photos before leaving.

‘You really don’t know how to be a celebrity’, First commented, laughing when Chimon even said
thanks to the fan instead of the other way round.

‘Shut up, I’m still new at it’, Chimon replied, hitting his stomach as he turned back to his best
friend who was still waiting for them to take his picture.

For better or for worse, Chimon had gotten used to attending night college. He would wait for First
who was ironically the last person to turn up to class, and even the other mature students have
started to become friendly with him. They would help each other out with projects, looking
through each other’s ideas and brainstorming. It was almost therapeutic having to talk about other
things than his album which had started to take centre stage in the company’s to do list. He had
finished recording, but there were still so much to do. NeverNormal’s Art Director was picky to say
the least, hiring dozens of designers to create his album art and concept. They hadn’t even gotten to
the part of filming his music video for his second single.

‘Chimon!’, the door opened and he heard First’s voice, making him turn around and waving at him
to sit on their usual place.

‘Have you finished editing our commercial?’, Chimon asked as First took out his laptop, sighing in
relief when his friend nodded. He had been busy with work so Chimon could only write the over
and filming report whereas First was given the hefty job of editing the whole commercial which he
felt bad for but the latter shook his head, saying it was his favourite bit of the work anyway.

‘I had to cut a lot of Frank’s shot cos he was frowning, but I think we definitely did a good job’,
First commented, laughing as he opened his USB drive. Chimon had started to like hanging out
with First, even after their classes, they would spend the rest of the night in the night market eating
late dinner before separating.

‘You know, with your skills, you should work for NeverNormal’, Chimon gasped when he saw the
final commercial, laughing at the short dance he and Frank quickly made up on the spot, laughing
as he leaned his chin on First’s shoulders.

‘Alright class, settle down’, their professor walked in with her files, setting her laptop down on her
desk. She turned back to the opened door, beckoning someone to follow her, ‘We’ve got a new
student joining us today. He’s missed a few weeks, so I hope you all help him settle down and
prepare for your next project. You’ll be working in the same groups so if anyone willing to expand
their group, that’ll be great’

‘We can’, First lifted his hand up and offering, turning to whisper to Chimon, ‘There’s only two of
us and our next project is gonna be bigger. We might need another member anyway’

‘True’, Chimon nodded, also opened to the idea for the new student to join their group. But as soon
as he agreed, he wished he didn’t, because the person who walked through the door was the last
person he’d ever expect to see in the same room as him.

‘Nanon?’, they all whispered as soon as they recognised the boy, walking in with s backpack
beside his shoulder, bowing his hand as he stood to the front.

‘Hello everyone’, he greeted everything, ‘I’m Nanon’

‘What a fucking joke’, Chimon whined at the back, banging his head on the table and looking up
to see that Nanon had also spotted him sitting in the same class with the same surprised expression
on his face, ‘Why the hell is he following me everywhere?’

Pop Sensation Nanon’s upcoming single has gone straight to number one, beating rookie soloist
Chimon.

Comments:

Of course Nanon would beat Chimon, his fanbase is incredible.

So sad to see music gaining clout because of fandoms not because the song is actually good.

Nanon’s a pop singer and his new single is a jam. Why is everyone surprised that it would chart
well?

His album’s been hitting number one three years in a row. I highly doubt some rookie is gonna
break that.

No offence, but Chimon’s music is unique compared to Nanon’s cookie cutter singles. It shouldn’t
have charted this high. We only have his tasteless fans to thank for that.

The class was awkward. A news article had just gone viral, pitting the two singers together when
Nanon made a surprised pre-released single to hype up his upcoming album. It wouldn’t have
mattered if First hadn’t told the whole class about it. Everyone had already read the article before
the two singers came in, awkwardly asking if they were allowed to talk about it or whether they
should avoid it like the fucking plague.

Chimon on the other hand, was too busy ordering coffee next to the campus, being a little late
since he had a meeting with his company before his lessons. He had no idea they were even talking
about him.

‘I guess your plan’s working’

Chimon turned around to find Nanon standing in the queue behind him with his hands in his
pockets and wearing sunglasses in the evening like a dickhead..

‘What the hell do you want?’

‘You’ve only released one single and they’re already comparing you to me’, Nanon pointed out
bitterly, pokerfaced yet his tone was anything but.

‘I didn’t ask them to compare me’, Chimon bit back, grabbing his coffee as he walked to campus,
‘If I did, I would asked to be compared to someone else rather than you’

‘Why’re you attending Bangkok University?’, Nanon asked, ditching his coffee as he followed
Chimon, the two walking side by side but in reality they couldn’t be far from each other.

‘I can ask you the same fucking thing’, Chimon whispered, drinking his coffee and letting the
bitter taste wake him up, ‘Why are you always following me’

‘Following you? I didn’t know you attended Bangkok University, otherwise I’d have chosen
somewhere else to study’

‘Oh, give it a rest’, Chimon rolled his eyes, pushing the glass doors open as they headed to their
department, ‘You’ve been fucking obsessed with me since the moment we met’

‘Don’t flatter yourself’, Nanon scoffed, ‘You’re not the memorable person you think you are’

‘Then why are you here?’, Chimon turned to face him before he opened the door to their class.
They were standing in the middle of the hallway, only the two of them with their voices resonating
loudly.

‘Same reason why anyone’s here’, Nanon replied back, ‘To fucking study’

‘Then just do that and stop pissing me off’, Chimon warned him as he finally opened the classroom
door, stomping inside and sitting next to First. There was already tension between them but the
whole class didn’t help as they continued to stare at the two of them.

‘You okay?’, First asked when they prepared to show their commercial in front of the whole class,
whispering to Chimon who looked distracted.

‘I’m fine’, the singer replied, but in reality, he was not in fact fine. The person he hated was sitting
at the front of the class, doodling on his notebook whilst he was busy preparing his cues for his
presentation and all he could think about was slapping Nanon’s face right there and then. It was
annoying how Nanon could completely change his mood just by existing.

They were confident in their commercial, they worked all week for it and at first Chimon was
excited to show it, but as they stood at the front of the class and played it, he saw Nanon’s passive
face. He leaned his chin on his hand, looking bored out of his mind as he continued to doodle on
his notebook, not even paying attention on their commercial. It pissed Chimon off more than he
had let on, gripping his cue cards as the commercial finished, First beginning to explain their plans
and research before it was his turn to explain the concept and marketing strategies.

They received a warm clap from their professors and other felon classmates but Nanon still looked
bored, not even bothering to clap for them.

‘Does anyone have any questions for them before we move to the next group’, their professor
asked, a silence looming over them when no one raised their hands.

First and Chimon were about to go back to their seat when Nanon finally raised his hand, leaning
back on his chair as the whole class looked at him then back at Chimon.

‘What is it?’, First decided to take Nanon’s question when Chimon only glared at the boy.

‘Products are supposed to be taken seriously’, Nanon said, ‘Isn’t this reverse marketing if you
commercialise it as a joke and people are gonna get put off in buying it?’

‘Not everything should be taken seriously’, Chimon replied before First could answer, crossing his
arms against his chest, ‘You have to know what type of audience you wanna attract and with
instant noodles, it’s usually for everyone but mostly to students or young people who either don’t
know how to cook or don’t have time too. Their humour are different and more modern’

‘Oh, so you do know how to reach out for your own audience’, Nanon smirked, ‘Mind practicing
what you preach?’

‘Mind keeping the questions on topic?’, Chimon bit back and it was like the whole class was
watching tennis, turning their heads from left to right as they listened to the pair throw shade
towards one another.

‘Okay, enough questions, we need to let the other groups present’, their professor clapped her
hands, ending the argument before it could simmer into a fight, ‘Well done First and Chimon, why
don’t you guys take a seat now’

‘With pleasure’, Chimon smiled, folding his cards and walking pass Nanon who sat alone in his
own table, kicking his chair leg as he went back to his seat.

‘God, I thought the articles were wrong, but you two genuinely don’t get along huh?’, First
whispered after sighing in relief that their presentation was now over.

‘What article?’, Chimon huffed as he turned to look at First who suddenly looked nervous.

‘Nanon’s fans are livid’, Tay explained to Off as soon as his best friend arrived from his holiday
from the Alps. He ran as fast as he could to Off’s office, slamming the door as he set his iPad down
on his desk, scrolling through the article which was getting thousands of comments, ‘They think
we’re using their rivalry as a PR stunt’

‘I told you it was a bad idea’, Mild interrupted them as she opened the door, taking off her
sunglasses and walking in with a cup of coffee.

‘You thought of it?’, Off raised his brow to his best friend.

‘It was an idea that we scrapped after the meeting’, Tay defended himself, ‘Plus we told Chimon to
try and be nice to Nanon whenever they shared the same schedules’

‘You clearly don’t know Nanon’, Mild whispered, drinking her coffee as she sat down on one of
the chairs in Off’s office, pulling out a small teddy bear that she accidentally sat on, throwing it on
the carpet floors.

‘And you do?’, Tay scoffed as he crossed his arms and looked at her.

‘As a matter of fact, I do’, Mild replied back, ‘I was in his hair and make up team for about three
years, so I know exactly how he acted like and so does Off. I think it’s best to reschedule all of
Chimon’s shows so that they won’t align with Nanon. That’s the only way we can avoid this
rivalry’

‘Too late’, another person walked into Off’s office, Tay’s son looking down on his phone as he
slammed the door beside him, sitting down on one of the bean bags chair as he opened up his text
messages with Chimon.

‘Frank, what are you doing here?’, Off asked as he massaged his temples, his office definitely
getting overcrowded.

‘Chimon just texted me. He said Nanon applied for the same course as him in Bangkok University’

‘What?!’, the three adults shouted, Tay grabbing his son’s phone and looking through the
numerous text messages Chimon sent, most of them rants and curses.

‘Since when did Nanon go to college?’, Mild asked as he grabbed the phone and read through,
‘And why Bangkok University? I didn’t think he would be that smart to get in’

‘Connections probably’, Tay whispered to himself as he turned to glare at his son, ‘And why aren’t
you in school yet young man?’

‘I was just sending off my applications for the summer internship’

‘For the last time’, Tay rolled his eyes, tugging Frank’s sleeves to get up, opening the door and
pushing his son out, ‘You’re not working here’

‘Look, we can always put Chimon in a different department’, Mild offered as she threw the phone
back to Frank before the teenager left, the three adults looking at each other worriedly.

‘Chimon said he’d only go to college if we let him do the major he wanted’

‘So, let’s pull him out of college all together?’, Tay suggested, leaning on the wall and looking at
his best friend, ‘He’ll have more time to focus on his promotions without feeling overworked’

‘I spoke to his parents before I left Thailand’, Off informed them, ‘I barely got them to agree to
attend his showcase with the promise that he’d go back to college’
‘Look, do we really need his parents to be present at his show?’, Mild scoffed.

‘We don’t’, Off replied, ‘But he does. At the end of the day, he’s still a kid who misses his parents’

‘Jesus Christ’, Tay chuckled, seeing Off’s worried expression and he couldn’t help but feel
amused, ‘You see a child with family problems and you break your bones trying to protect them.
This is an entertainment company, not an orphanage. I know why you wanna take care of them, but
Off separate your trauma from business’

‘How insensitive’, Mild rolled her eyes, hitting Tay on the arm as she stood up and finished her
coffee, ‘At least he cares about our talents. I can’t say the same for other companies out there’

‘He’s allowed to care’, Tay pointed at his best friend who sat behind his desk, looking up at his
friends squabbling, ‘But he’s not allowed to compromise the company whilst trying to play dad.
He’s already got kids at home, you’d think he’d stop this saving complex nonsense’

‘He wants Chimon’s parents to be at his showcase. How is that compromising’

‘We’ve had to cancel schedules just so we can let him go to college and our tour plans got limited
to locally rather than worldwide as we had hoped because he needs to stay in Thailand for his
finals. Added onto the fact that the biggest artist in the country is now starting to hate him, I don’t
think this is looking good for us or Chimon’

‘Tay’s got a point’, Off sighed, stopping Mild from shouting back as he waved his hand up to them,
‘I’ll talk to his parents again and explain the situation. And if they still don’t wanna come, then
there’s nothing we can do about it’, he gave in to Tay’s request, picking up his phone and calling
the boy’s parents, waving his hand out to tell his friends to leave his office and get back to their
work.

‘What the fuck do you think you’re doing?’, Chimon hissed at First when the latter invited Nanon
to have dinner with them after classes, ‘Are you insane?’

‘Look, a lot of people are starting to find out that the two of you go to the same university. Before
you know it, they’ll be following you guys around and taking pictures. The least you can do is not
cause a stir and pretend to get along with him’

‘I don’t want to pretend to get along with that prick’, Chimon whined as he put his books in his
back, about to walk out of class when First stopped him by the wrist.

‘We need to wait for Nanon’, they both turned to the back of the class where he was, putting his
laptop back in his bag and walking towards them.

Chimon hated First for inviting the dick to dinner, but it confused him as to why Nanon would
agree to it anyway? He had expected the boy to scoff and shook his head in disgust whilst walking
away, but instead, he found himself sitting on the back of First’s car with Nanon beside them as
they drove to their favourite night market.

‘Chimon!’

‘P’Pik’, he grinned as soon as they made it to his stall, sitting on one of the empty tables, setting
his bag down on the floor, ‘I’ll have the usual please!’, he shouted before turning to First.

Nanon on the other hand was anxious. He didn’t have his bodyguard nor his manager, so he looked
around the busy crowd, keeping his sunglasses on despite it being night already. He looked like a
lost puppy, or even worse in Chimon’s opinion, someone who didn’t know how to be by himself.
He watched as Nanon slowly sat down in front of him, his head still shifting from left to right as if
paranoid.

‘Oh, you bought another one of your friends’, P’Pik smiled as he set their food down on the table,
‘You’re collecting friends like Pokemon’

‘He’s not a friend’, Chimon replied bluntly, turning to glare at Nanon, ‘He’s just my classmate. We
share the same course’

‘And we’re in the same group for our next project, so I thought it’d be best if we hang out and get
to know each other’, First added on, not wanting Nanon to get offended by Chimon’s words, but at
this point, the former already knew how petty Chimon acted so he rolled his eyes and poured
himself a glass of ice water.

‘Well, tell your friend to try my somtum. It’s one of my best dishes’, P’Pik pointed out, sliding the
plate of spicy salad to Nanon who looked down on it suspiciously.

‘Don’t worry, no one’s here to poison you’, Chimon muttered as he slid cutlery to him, digging
into his own meal, ‘Not yet anyway’, he whispered to himself.

Nanon’s never been to a night market before. The crowd was hefty and the food was served in old
plates, made in stalls beside the pavement. He found it slight unhygienic and he was about to pass
on the food when he looked up to see the old man staring at him with a smile, waiting for him to
try his food with an excited gleam. Something about his soft expression made him look back down
on his plate, grabbing a fork and putting a good amount of the salad in his mouth, letting the
flavour hit his tongue and the spice to burn him a little.

‘Wow’, he couldn’t help but gasped when he finally tasted the food, looking down to take another
bite full.

‘Everyone always loved my somtum’, P’Pik smiled, pleased with Nanon’s reaction as he started
eating, ‘Gun is obsessed with it. He told me he preferred it to Off’s somtum’

‘How comes he doesn’t visit the market that often?’, Chimon asked with his mouthful, ‘I haven’t
seen him around’

‘What’re you talking about, he visited this morning’, P’Pik laughed at him, ‘He’s always around
when you’re not here’, the old man found it amusing that Chimon wanted to meet Gun. It was like
the boy had gained a new fan without his knowledge and it only made him laugh,’I’m sure Off will
introduce you to him soon’

‘P’Off comes here too?’, Nanon asked, recognising the name even after years.

‘You know the rascal too?’, P’Pik asked, surprised when Nanon nodded his head, ‘He comes here
often to spend time with us or his sister. How do you know him?’

‘He used to be in my PR team’, Nanon pointed out, ‘Before he resigned to make his own company’

‘Hhmm’, P’Pik nodded, looking at Nanon’s face and not placing him. The old man wasn’t much
for recent music and TV anyway, so he gave up trying to recognise Nanon and going back to his
stall.

‘You’ve worked with P’Off before?’, Chimon asked curiously, turning to look at Nanon for the
first time since they started eating.

‘Yeah’, Nanon shrugged.

‘How was he like?’

‘Why so curious?’, Nanon asked suspiciously, chewing his food as he looked at Chimon, ‘He’s
your boss now, isn’t he? Shouldn’t you know?’

‘Christ, I was just asking. No need for that attitude’, Chimon sat up and glared at him, raising his
hand in mocking surrender, ‘Someone needs to take a chill pill’

‘Can you guys act civil?’, First stopped them before they could get in another argument, ‘I want
our group to do well in our next project and that’s not gonna happen if you’re both trying to kill
each other’, he told off the pair before he continued eating, only to be patted on the back by P’Pik
who bent down to whisper in his ears.

‘Let them be’, the old man whispered to him, watching as Chimon kicked Nanon’s leg under the
table.

‘But they’re gonna kill each other’, First whispered back to the old man, looking at his friend
worriedly.

‘I’ve seen this before’, P’Pik smirked, ‘They’ll give into each other in no time. Just wait and see’

Nanon came back home late by himself for the first time. His manager wasn’t there with him and
if she found out that he had gone somewhere after classes, she would most definitely kill him. He
threw his bag on his sofa as he walked straight to his room, jumping on the bed and hugging his
pillow. It was also the first time he’d had a proper homemade meal. He learnt how to cook after
living alone for so long, but it wasn’t as good as his mum’s cooking when he was little, so he
would opt to eat takeaways instead. The feeling of the night market was busy and crowded yet
intimate and cheery at the same time.

He didn’t want to admit it, but it felt nice, even though Chimon was there annoying him. He
wondered if, through his lack of awareness, someone from the crowd might’ve recognised him and
taken a photo, but for the first time, he didn’t care if they did. He wasn’t self conscious and it felt
fucking good.

Chimon visited Ohm on campus during the afternoon. He didn’t have any classes, but he was
allowed to use the campus during normal hours too, so he decided to join Ohm for lunch, sitting on
the grass as they ate their burgers.
‘How’s your album coming up?’, Ohm asked as he played on his phone, laying on the grass beside
Chimon.

‘It’s going to be released next month and I’m shitting myself’, he admitted, bringing his knees up
and wrapping his arms around it, ‘Everyone has such high expectations for me. I’m scared I won’t
live up to it’

‘The most important expectations is your own’, Ohm reminded him, patting his knees to comfort
him, ‘So as long as you’re happy with the album, then it doesn’t matter about everyone else. Not
even me, okay?’

‘Okay’, Chimon nodded, his lips pouted as he leaned his chin on his knees.

‘Anyway’, Ohm stood up and when looked at the time on his phone, sitting up and packing his
things, ‘I better go. We have a guest speaker for my next lecture’, Ohm explained, ‘Apparently
he’s an alumni from the college’

‘What does he do?’, Chimon asked, offering Ohm to walk him to his lecture hall.

‘A property lawyer’, Ohm explained, making Chimon whine. He’d never been much for law or
anything that wasn’t creative.

‘How did you sit through a year of engineering?’, Ohm laughed when Chimon made a grim face,
standing outside of the lecture halls.

‘By sheer force and a lot of red bull’, Chimon whined, wanting to forget his first year of university,
‘Anyway, I’ll see you at P’Neen’s restaurant’, he waved goodbye to his best friend, parting as he
walked over to the bike areas. He looked around for his bike which he parked with the rest of the
students, spotting it at the end. He unlocked the chains around it, putting away in his bag, but
before he could get on, he felt someone pushing him to the ground.

‘What the fuck?!’, he shouted when he looked up at a stranger getting on his bike, ‘Are you
fucking serious?!’, he shouted as soon stood up, trying to chase after the thief, ‘Give that back!
That’s mine!’, he continued shouting, gasping as he tried to run as fast as he could, but the thief had
already gotten his bike, cycling away from him, ‘God dammit!’, he shouted, throwing his bag on
the floor in frustration.

He watched as his bike turned smaller in size, cursing out at the thief as he sat on the hot concrete
ground, tugging at his hair.

‘What was that?’, Chimon opened his eyes an lifted his head to where someone stood beside him.
He saw Nanon with his hands in his pockets, staring down at him, ‘Did he steal your bike?’

‘You saw?’, Chimon asked as he stood up and wiped the dirt on his jeans, ‘You saw him steal my
bike?’

‘Well, I saw you chasing after someone’

‘And you didn’t help me?’, Chimon furrowed his brows in fury, ‘You stood there and watch
someone steal my bike?!’

‘What was I supposed to have done? Asked him nicely to get off?’
‘You could’ve helped me’, Chimon shouted, pushing Nanon away as he grabbed his bag from the
floor and walking back to the campus, ‘Now how on earth am I supposed to travel?’

‘Just buy a car like any other normal human being’, Nanon snorted, finding it stupid that Chimon
would overreacted at his old bike being stolen.

‘Does it look like I can afford it?!’, Chimon shouted back, ‘I don’t even think I can afford a new
bike’

‘You work for NeverNormal’, Nanon tilted his head, ‘Don’t they pay you?’

‘Like you said, I’m a rookie’, Chimon replied, walking away from him, ‘I don’t get paid like you
do’

Nanon kept standing, watching Chimon walk away from him with a confused glare. Why was it
suddenly his fault that Chimon was careless in allowing a thief to steal his bike? Why was it his
fault? And by the looks of it, the bike was on the brink of death anyway.

Chimon found himself taking the train to work and he hated every bit of it. Every morning the
carriage was cramped and crowded with workers and students commuting, he often found himself
pressed against the wall with someone’s chest on his face, or worse, an armpit.

He was even laughed at by Frank who was always dropped off everywhere by his doting dad, but
he didn’t let it get to him. The only reason why he was nervous is once Off finds out he’d been
travelling with a crowd unguarded and without his manager or at the very least a bodyguard.
Especially when the country had started to get familiar of his face. He would most likely lecture
him of how dangerous it was to travel alone.

But he didn’t need to worry for too long, since on his way back to his apartment after college, he
found something leaning on the post of his apartment block. It was a brand new bike. Of course, he
would never think it was for him in under any circumstances, but the fact that there was a car also
parked at the front of his apartment block, one which the driver’s seat window down and a face he
saw looking impatient. A face he grew to detest.

‘What the fuck are you doing here?’, Chimon asked as soon as he saw Nanon, ‘And why weren’t
you in class?’

‘I had a schedule’, Nanon replied, looking down at his watch as if timing his interaction with
Chimon, ‘But I had some time to come here before going home’

‘And how do you know where I live?’

‘First’

‘Goddammit’, Chimon hissed when his friend’s name was brought in. He wanted to kill First for
trying to get him to open up with Nanon and he was sure to punch him the next time they meet,
‘So, what do you want?’

‘I heard you’ve been taking the train lately’, Nanon commented with a pitiful look, ‘I guess it’s
more convenient for you to have one of those again’, he pointed at the freshly bought bike, its paint
still bright and wheels tough and strong.

‘I’m not taking your pity present’, Chimon huffed back, kicking the tyres of Nanon’s car, but it
only made him look desperate and stubborn.

‘Fine by me’, Nanon put on his sunglasses, turning on the engines of his car, ‘I offered it to you
and if you don’t want it, you can throw it away or resell it’, he said nothing else and Chimon
watched as he rolled his windows down, driving out of his road and disappearing without so much
as an explanation as to why he would ever buy something for Chimon.

Chimon watched the car disappear, turning his gaze to the bike which still rested on the post. He
didn’t trust Nanon one bit, especially when he was showing suspicious kindness for no reason, he
he went to his apartment, abandoning the bike on the post and waiting for someone else to steal it
once the morning comes.

Whatever he was up to, Chimon didn’t want to be any part of it.

48 Hours Ago.

Nanon drove his usual route to his company which at placed at the heart of Bangkok, passing
through stations and bus stops on his way to the tall building. He was going to record his
collaboration with a K-Pop singer today, which meant no cameras, so he decided to wear
something out of his character. An oversized hoodie with his hood up to hide his face along with
ripped jeans and a mask.

Every thing seemed normal and repetitive like his most days, but when the red light signal
beckoned him to a stop, he had no choice but to look out of his window and see the busy streets
beside him whilst he waited for the green light. He was amidst a station which was brimming with
people of all ages, in suits or uniform, walking in and out of the station. He could only imagine the
incredible heat and discomfort they must be feeling and he was about to scoff at them when he
noticed a red hoodie.

It wasn’t so much the red hoodie that gained his attention, but rather the person wearing it. It was
Chimon. He was just about to put his face mask on, walking towards the station doors.

Ah. He remembered his bike being stolen a couple of days ago. What a pity that the poor kid
couldn’t afford to at least rent a car for a couple of days before he could ask his company to buy
him one. He supposed a small company can’t cater to all of their artist and he almost pitied
Chimon.

But not long enough since he turned back to where he was heading, seeing the tree light shining
and telling him to continue on with his journey. He didn’t Chimon to distract him, but he couldn’t
help but wonder. How did it feel like to take the train to work?

His curiously definitely got the better of him when he parked his car at the car park beside the
station, walking into the train station with a hefty mind of stupidity as he paid for a ticket and
waited amongst the crowd of commuters, all looking at their phones or talking to one another.

He kept his mask on and put his sunglasses on in an attempt to hide himself from being seen. It
would cost a mess if someone recognised him in such a crowded place.
He knew NeverNormal was also based in the centre of the city, so he wasn’t surprised when he
saw Chimon standing close to him, only being separated by a few businessmen and school girls.
He couldn’t help but steal glances, seeing how he played with his phone, putting on his
headphones and waiting patiently by the edge.

Nanon wouldn’t admit it to anyone, but he couldn’t help but continue to stare at him. He looked
like he belonged in such a busy place, as if he was used to fitting in with everyone else. But
something else intrigued him. He suddenly looked familiar, as if he’d seen his posture before, his
side profile causing his brain to start banging at the thought that maybe he knew him. But he shook
it quickly, finding it stupid to find something familiar with a stranger he only just met.

They heard the train approaching fast, the crowd impatiently getting a move on and pushing him
out of the way as the doors opened, adamant on getting in as soon as they could. He stumbled a
little, trying to imitate the pace of everyone else, but unlike the boy in the red hoodie, he could
never find it within himself so fit in with everyone else. Instead, he was almost pushed in by those
who were impatiently behind him, being crushed against the wall as more people tried to stuff the
carriage. Ineffectively, he found himself pressed close behind Chimon’s back due to the events and
he didn’t know whether to try and push back so he could stand a little further away from him, but
by the time the door closed, there were no more room for him to escape from. He just held his
breathe and hoped the boy never turns around to look at him.

They were somewhat the same height, but he realised he was slightly taller, looking down and
staring at his phone. He didn’t mean to, but there were nowhere else where he could divert his
eyes, so rather than trying, he watched as Chimon checked his messages, replying to someone by
the name of Frank and Ohm before going back to his Spotify playlist and playing music.

Now Playing: Up On Melancholy Hill by Gorrillaz.

Chimon likes to play his music loud. Nanon could hear the muffled melody of the song through his
headphones and he couldn’t help but break into a smile. Despite finding Chimon’s music taste
amusing, everything else felt like hell. He felt strangers pressing themselves on him, the push and
pull hell ride of passengers trying to get on and off the trains and the eminent smell of something
awful, a mixture of the hot metal bars and sweat which made him almost gag and he was thrilled he
had his mask on.

He couldn’t believe Chimon, or anyone for that matter, would put themselves through such a hell
in the morning. This was not going to happen again, not for him nor Chimon. He came to work ten
minutes late and headed straight to the recording studio where he went on his phone first to order
the best bike he could find.

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