26
'A'
This is another night I spent at Aontakarn's place. Whether it's because I'm too lazy to get up or because I want to spend more time with her, in the end, I call to tell Puth that I'm spending the night with Meen.
If I tell him that I'm spending the night with the sweet-faced woman, he will ask many questions, so it's better to just lie.
"You will go to hell because you lied."
Aontakarn teases me after I hang up from my brother. She's lying down and leaning her face on her hand as she says that. We're still half naked, with only a small blanket to cover us as we lie on the sofa. You can say that the blanket doesn't make much difference. It's just something to cover us up a bit.
"It would be strange if I said that I'm with you because she just got back from our Japan trip."
"You don't want to tell others about us?"
The direct question makes me uncertain whether she's sulking. But I hurriedly denied it.
"No. It's just..." I sigh a bit. "I put up such a strong front at first. It would be so embarrassing if others knew that we're together."
Aontakam giggles understandingly when she hears that.
"Right. You announced boldly to everyone that you like men. I remember that well."
"Yeah. And when Puth told me that he was going to hit on you, I tried to get in the way. I told him that it's not good to be in a relationship with a business partner. For me to suddenly be your lover... Argh. I can hear Puth's laughter in my head right now."
"If you don't want to tell anyone, don't. Let it be between just us... That's good. Personal matters should be personal. There's no need for others to know." The petite one snuggled into my shoulder to ask for tenderness after she said that. "A secret affair makes me feel sexy."
"Little Awww."
"Gosh. You kill all the sexiness in me." The petite woman laughs and bites my shoulder gently.
"Am I like a seal?"
"Chris likes seals. They're cute. To me, you're like a seal. You call for cute aggression. I want to wrestle and pounce on you."
"What are you waiting for?" The petite woman whispers into my ears. I immediately understood. I lay on my back and let Aontakarn get on top of me.
"I'm not waiting; I just... want you to pounce on me instead."
"I was going to say this time... let me be the one who goes first." Aontakarn sweeps her lips from my chin down to the place that I like the most. I spread my legs to welcome her. "In case you don't already know this, you're very delicious."
"Ah..."
That's that...
So our relationship remains a secret I feel the same way Aontakarn does, which is that it is exciting. To hide and sneak around, doing things behind others' backs, feels good in a way I can't describe. It's probably like a secret affair. Being in an honest, open relationship isn't exciting enough.
You have to keep it a secret...
But we are not cheating on each other. There is no third, fourth, or fifth person.
Our relationship goes well. We are so happy that we are afraid of how to handle it if we stumble. And yes... I chose to overlook it because there's nothing to worry about yet. Aside from our love life, our professional life is also shining. AppTalk grows quickly. Many sponsors come in. That comes with a lot of work and responsibilities.
We now have an accountant working for us.
"Everyone, please welcome our new employee, Earn." Puth was in charge of the hiring. He introduces the new employee to us. She's a fresh graduate with tanned skin and very strong features. It is clear that her family is from the southern part of Thailand. She looks somewhat like Jooy Warattaya, if I remember her name correctly.
Did Puth hire her because she fits the job or because she looks like a model?
"I'm glad to be working with everyone."
Earn raises her hands to pay respect to everyone politely. Her eyes sparkle with fire. She's ready to start her new job. I understand that well. A fresh graduate who just got a job is full of energy like this.
The fire will slowly die, and she will start to look to start her own business because being a salary worker is not enough to support her lifestyle. That's what Gen Y is like.
"Beautiful."
Aontakarn, who's sitting by my side, says that softly just for me to hear. I glance at her a bit.
"Right."
"…"
"But Karn is more beautiful."
I know that the sweet-faced woman sulks easily, so I immediately compliment her after I tease her a bit. That draws a smile to her face. After we all welcomed Earn, we split up to do our work.
It seems like Tern no longer clings to me now that we hired Earn.
"Is your ego bruised?" The sweet-faced woman, who's looking at Tem, teases me. I just shrug, understanding human nature.
"I can understand it. It's like when there's a new batch of freshmen in high school. Though they are not that good-looking, because they are newbies, everyone gets excited."
"Jealous."
"Argh."
"But Chris is always beautiful to me."
"Sweet talker."
"The newbie makes me feel better. At least Tem will no longer cling to you."
"Jealous. I feel nothing for him."
"I don't like him. He makes me uncomfortable."
"Why don't you feel that with Earn?"
"Because I'm confident that I'm better looking than her."
Sometimes she really calls for cute aggression. But the confidence she just expressed is not far from the truth. Aontakarn really is better-looking than the newbie.
"Yet you're jealous of Tem?"
"He's a man."
"You think I would be with a man?" I laugh. But Aontakarn does not smile or laugh back. I can't help but lean my shoulder into her. "Crazy. Don't overthink."
"When you're with a man, you are jealous of other women. But when you're with a woman, you have to be jealous of both men and women, especially men... They are so MI of themselves. They think that they can change a woman who likes another woman to like men. Or they just want to steal a woman from another woman. Moreover, you announced that you like men."
"Chris loves Karn."
"Huh?!"
"Ah-huh. Chris loves Kam. That's that."
I end the conversation there. It makes Aontakarn, who was trying not to smile, make an awkward expression. She can't smile, but she also can't not smile.
"Decide whether you will smile or not."
"I don't know!"
"That is so rude. If Chris says that Chris loves Karn, Karn has to say it back. That's tradition... Come to think of it, Kam has never said that you love me."
When I realize that, I turn to look at the sweet-faced woman. She squints at me cunningly. She was trying not to smile, but now she has a smile at the corner of her mouth.
"Do I have to say that?"
"Huh?"
"I thought actions were louder than words."
"That's not fair. I've already said that to you."
"I can't help it. You saying that you love me doesn't mean that I have to say it back to you."
And the petite one just walks away, leaving me to sit in front of my computer grumpily.
What's this? Why can't she just say that she loves me? Geez!
And, like I said earlier, our company is doing well. We're growing. Aside from higher revenue, Aontakarn has gained popularity. Though it's only on the intend, she has fans who come to support her. Aside from Apple, there's a huge bouquet of white flowers with an aromatic card. The note on the card is very short, yet it can make the heart of the receiver very full.
'I support you always. From your fan...
A'
You can say that the bouquet makes everyone excited. All the business partners tease Aontakarn. They read the message on the card out loud, excitedly.
"Wow... so romantic. You're becoming popular, Karn. You have fans." Jeth says this as he puts his hand on her head and sways it sideways adoringly. "It's a very large bouquet, too."
"It's nothing."
Though the petite woman says that to show us that she doesn't think much of it, the smile on her face makes my heart race. I'm happy for my lover. I'm happy that others are admiring her, aside from Apple.
"After a while, you may get to go on TV shows or get a role in a series." Puth encourages Aontakarn. Everyone nods in agreement. This is a good sign. "Will you desert us if you become popular?"
"Don't go talking like that, Puth. I just got one bouquet, and you're drawing my future already."
"Do you think 'A' is a man or a woman?" Tem, who's standing among us, asks as if this is a mystery for us to solve. Everyone comments, and all the comments go in the same direction.
"A man, of course. Why would a woman send a bouquet of flowers to another woman?"
"A woman can be someone's fan." I say this, disagreeing with everyone. Aontakarn glances at me a bit and adds on.
"Maybe... A is short for APPLE."
"Huh? Apple?" Puth looks surprised. "Why Apple?"
"Apple is my first fan. Apple frequently sends me letters of encouragement."
I shrink my neck a bit, looking uneasy. Come to think of it, what a coincidence that the person who sent the bouquet uses 'A'? It can be taken that it's short for Apple. But as her fan, I never thought to send her flowers.
Because it's a waste.
Flowers wither, no matter how many thousands of Baht they cost. It can make you feel good, but it can't be put to any good use. Someone like Apple wouldn't waste money on something like that.
And yes, 'A' is not Apple. Aontakarn got that wrong.
"What do you think, Chris? Chris!"
Aontakarn's voice startles me, whose mind is wandering. When I looked into her light brown eyes, I had to ask her what she just said.
"What?"
"What does Chris think? Do you think it's from Apple?"
"No..."
What can I say? If I say no... why do I think that? She may ask, "How did I know it wasn't Apple?"
But if I say yes, I would be feeding on her misunderstanding...
"I don't know. I don't want to hurry to a conclusion." This fan of Aontakarn is frustrating me. There are plenty of initials to use; why must it be this? "You guys go ahead first."
"Where are you going?" Puth shouts at me, asking what he doesn't need to know. Where else can I go in our office, if not the restroom?
"I'm going to pee!"
I walked away to stand grumpily inside the restroom. In the building, there are around three companies on each floor. The restroom is shared among the companies on the same floor. No one is in here right now except for me. I put my hand on the sink counter and looked into the mirror, not happy.
Damned! There's only one Apple. How dare that person take my place?
"Why are you frustrated, good girl?"
Aontakarn's voice from the door makes me frown.
"You're finished admiring your bouquet?"
"I'm admiring you instead." The sweet-faced one walks over to stand beside me. "You don't like Apple?"
"No."
"What does no mean?"
"It means there's nothing going on with me."
"Nothing means it's something... And Chris is sulking in the same way that I used to. What's this? It's just a bouquet from a fan. Apple comes before you, you know?" Aontakarn reaches her hand out to play with the top button of my shirt adoringly. "Apple is my fan. You know that already."
"So the bouquet is from Apple?"
"I think so."
"It's not."
"Why do you think that?"
"Apple never used an initial. Apple never thought of showing oneself. To suddenly send you a bouquet like this... Chris doesn't think it fits."
"Chris seems to know Apple more than I do."
I stutter. I don't know what to do, but I also don't want Aontakarn to misunderstand that 'A' is Apple. Damned.
"You want 'A' to be Apple?"
"Well... if it is, I would feel good. I would feel like Apple is a real person, not just someone I can only know through letters. Moreover, I like flowers."
"Huh?"
"I just want to let you know that I like flowers. If you say that 'A' is not Apple, then that's probably right. I was just making a hypothesis."
I feel better after hearing that, but I'm still frustrated. I want to know who sent Aontakarn the flower. Is it a man or a woman? How dare that person make me anxious?
"You're very possessive."
"Huh?"
"I've been observing that you're possessive, just like me." The sweet-faced woman wraps her arm around my neck, as if we're dancing. I look around nervously, but I don't want to take her arms off me. I like it when we touch.
"Well... I've never been in love with anyone like I am with you before."
"Same here. And even if the flowers are from Apple, it doesn't impact our relationship." The woman with striking eyes pulls me in. Our faces almost touch. "Apple can only be my fan."
"And what is Chris?"
"My lover."
"Let's drink beer today."
"I was just about to say that."
It seems like Aontakarn has successfully made up with me. As I'm about to give her a quick kiss to let her know that I'm no longer sulking, there's a flush sound from one of the stalls. A door opens right after. We can't separate fast enough.
Earn, Puth's new hire, shows herself. The striking face, with her headphones on, smiles at us a bit. She walks over to wash her hands before leaving the restroom, appearing completely normal. Yet, her action makes Aontakarn and I go quiet to assess the situation.
"Did the kid see us?" The sweet-faced woman asks. It makes me swallow hard and loudly.
"I think she saw us hug. But I'm not sure if she heard us... It seems that she had her headphones on."
Thump Thump...
My heart is pounding so hard that I can hear it clearly in my ear.
"Chris, if the kid heard us, what should we do? Should we tell everyone that..."
"No."
"…"
"We will not tell anyone about our relationship."
I don't want anyone to know about us. Part of the reason is because I've announced to everyone that I like men, so it would be embarrassing if they knew that we were lovers. But most importantly, I don't want anyone to look at Aontakarn in a bad light. She's a beautiful face for our company. She shouldn't be with me, a woman. She also already has fans.
I have to do everything in my power to not taint her in any way. Aontakarn has to have the perfect image. I will clean up everything for her as a good fan.
As Apple!