Gail Soe smiled. The man, Kin De, leaned against a tree. De Ra Goe stared at them for a moment, then looked at Lut Set. Their eyes met. After a long silence, De Ra Goe finally released him.
Lut Set wiped the dust from his clothes. De Ra Goe slowly walked back toward Tim and Ha Men. Te Ra watched them go, and so did Gail Soe. Ha Men smirked.
"Hey, GG."
Gail looked at him. Te Ra struggled to her feet and moved toward Lut Set. Tim touched De Ra Goe's arm. De Ra Goe didn't look back at him; he kept his eyes fixed carefully on Gail and Kin De. Tim handed the book to De Ra Goe, who quickly took it and hid it inside his bag.
Ha Men started yapping.
"What even brings you two here?"
The man, Kin De, yawned. His clothes were the same as Gail's, but his eyes were the color of coffee.
"None of your business, punk."
Ha Men's face twitched.
"Are you insulting me?"
Kin De: "So what, Mr. Ha Men?"
Te Ra touched Lut Set's shoulder.
"You okay?"
He touched his forehead.
"I'm fine."
Ha Men looked annoyed by the man.
"Huh...? You want to—"
Kin De cut him off.
"After all, You're an embarrassment to your family. Or am I wrong?"
Gail poked Kin De's shoulder.
"Stop this already, Kin De."
Kin De looked at her.
"You know... that poke was kind of cute."
Gail remained unimpressed.
"I've heard that ten thousand times. Don't you have any other words?"
Ha Men was getting angry.
"Hey... you two!"
They looked at him.
Ha Men: "You insult me and then start teasing Gail Soe? What's wrong with you?"
Kin De didn't even bother looking at him.
"Well... I just don't care about you."
Gail looked at Kin De.
"Kin De..."
But Kin De ignored her. Ha Men was really pissed off this time.
"What did you just say, you old—?"
Tim touched Ha Men's shoulder.
"Shut up."
Ha Men looked at him.
"What are you—?"
Tim's eyes were as cold as ice.
"I said, shut up."
Ha Men looked a little freaked out.
"But still_"
De Ra Goe touched Ha Men's face, right where he was injured.
"Just stop talking already."
Ha Men: "That hurts! You idiot!"
De Ra Goe pressed his finger harder into Ha Men's cheek.
"That's the point."
Ha Men:
"Ouch... ouch, ouch!"
Then De Ra Goe grabbed Ha Men's head.
"Just don't carry on too much, shorty, if you don't want a permanent mark on your face."
Ha Men tried to rebel but couldn't escape De Ra Goe's grip.
"Stop it already!"
He looked up at De Ra Goe.
"And who are you calling shorty?"
De Ra Goe teased him.
"You, of course. Forever."
Tim just watched the chaos. Gail looked slowly at the man who had insulted Ha Men.
"You should respect people, Kin De."
Kin De looked into her eyes. He could see his own reflection there.
"Well... I don't care about people like him. My interest is in someone else."
Gail stared at him.
"Like who?"
Lut Set watched them while Te Ra sat on the grass, observing the chaos between Ha Men, Tim, and De Ra Goe. The pink on Kin De's cheeks vanished as he turned his gaze slowly toward Lut Set.
"Like the boy who doesn't easily accept his fate."
Gail also looked at him. Lut Set's expression remained blank, impossible to read. "It's not like fate even exists."
Kin De yawned softly.
"It exists. It exists so people know how to live."
Lut Set checked his injuries and looked back at Kin De.
"Well... I'm still here. Not dead yet."
Kin De: "That's not what I meant."
Te Ra, bored with the conversation, threw a rock away. Gail sighed.
"Don't listen to him. He's just really... off."
Kin De acted surprised.
"Wow. You're always thinking of ways to insult me, but all you've got is 'off'? Seriously?"
Gail looked at him.
"Then what did you expect?"
Kin De smirked.
"How about 'pet'?"
Gail: "I'm pretty sure if I saw you at a pet market, I'd throw you in the river."
Kin De smirked.
"Do you regret knowing me our whole lives?"
Gail slowly shakes her head.
"It's just that you're annoying."
Kin De seemed even more pleased.
"Yes, I am."
Lut Set watched them, then coughed. They looked at him.
Lut Set looked at Kin De.
"Want to tell me why you're even here?"
Kin De touched his chest, over his heart.
"We got a report about stolen novel books."
Tim looked at them.
"All of them?"
Gail looked at him.
"It seems so, Mr. Ro Tim."
Tim looked surprised. Ha Men and De Ra Goe remained quiet.
Lut Set spoke quietly. "
You guys... suspect me?"
Kin De smirked.
"What if we do? Aren't you special?"
Lut Set just stared at him.
"Depends on what you mean by that."
Gail looked at Kin De, and Kin De looked back.
"What?"
Gail sighed.
"...Forget it."
She looked at Lut Set.
"Don't listen to this guy's words. You aren't special, son."
Lut Set leaned his weight on Te Ra. Bored Te Ra was shocked by how heavy he was.
"Lut Set! What are you doing?!"
Lut Set looked at her.
"Leaning... obviously."
Te Ra pushed him back.
"Don't just lean on people like that! You idiot!"
Tim stared at them. He let out a tiny breath. The breath came from the top of his head, because their noses were just tiny cut marks on their scalps.
Lut Set stood up straight and looked at Gail.
"About that 'special' thing... I don't think my mom would accept your words."
Gail: "
Well... she never has before, so..."
She looked at the boys.
"You kids, go home."
Tim glanced at De Ra Goe and then walked away. De Ra Goe watched Tim go, then grabbed Ha Men by the shirt and dragged him along. Ha Men yanked at his grip. "
Hey... Hey! Just be patient for a second!"
Gail and Kin De watched them leave. Gail looked back at Lut Set, nodded, and walked away. Kin De followed her.
Lut Set watched until they were all gone. Then he looked at Te Ra.
"Now... about the novel book, Te Ra."