New looked at the person sitting across him and blushed.
To say that he was embarrassed was an understatement and the more he looked at Tay, the more he was reminded of how wanton he was last night that he just wanted to seep into the deepest part of the earth so he could avoid him.
And what made it worse was that he was sober. He may have forgiven himself if he was drunk as fvck but no.
"You okay?" Tay asked.
He cleared his throat and continued munching his food. They had ordered takeaway as he had no plans of eating outside considering his current situation.
"Tss," was all he could say.
His body hurt like hell and the embarrassment he felt only added to the burden he had as they shared a meal. He couldn't even look him in the eyes.
"Wh-what?" he asked as he noticed Tay staring at him.
"Nothing. You just looked beautiful with all the marks I've made."
"Fvck you, Tay," he murmured as he carefully shifted on his seat. His arse still hurt like hell that every time he moved, it felt like it was the end of the world.
"New, can, can we just, can we just stay like this?"
His eyebrows furrowed as Tay looked at him with a sad expression. He didn't really get what he was saying but he could sense sadness in his eyes.
"Wha-what do you mean?"
"Can we not end this?"
"Tsss. Seriously, you want us to spend the day just eating?"
"Tss. You know what, for someone educated, you suck."
"Just say it clearly. Don't talk in codes. I'm not a fucking programmer, Tay Tawan. I'm still hating you for what you did to me th-"
"Don't-Don't leave me!"
He stilled as Tay cut his words off.
"Wh-what?"
"Don't tell your parents there's nothing going on between us, please..."
Tay's last word came out as a whisper but New clearly heard it.
"Wh-why?"
"Why? Oh shit, New Thitipoom, I like you, okay?"
New was caught off guard but he just dismissed him and started laughing... nervously.
"Oh come on, Tay. I know we had sex but I didn't know you'd get this attached. I mean, you don't really have to feel responsible for what we did. I was tipsy and -"
"Why don't you believe??" Tay placed the utensils on the plates suddenly, making them clatter.
"Like. Tss. You like me? Oh come on Tay, I know I'm not the only person you told that. Do you always confess after having sex?"
"Yeah, you're not the first person I told that. But this is the first time I meant it," Tay suddenly stood from his seat, dragging the chair which created a loud noise in the room, and quickly went for the door.
"What now, New?" he whispered to himself as the front door closed.
_____
Tay threw his bag on the floor and plopped on the sofa. He'd been absent from work for two days, but he didn't really give two fucks about it.
Dad calling...
"Hello, dad?"
"Son, are you okay? I was told you were absent from work yesterday. Is anything wrong?"
He sighed and cleared his throat.
"Everything's fine, dad. I just need to take care of some things."
"Okay, son. Take care of yourself."
"Thanks, dad."
He heaved a sigh and closed his eyes as he settled on the sofa.
He wanted to spend more time with New, but he got agitated when he didn't believe what he said earlier.
For the first time in his life, he was sure of what he was feeling.
_____
New bit his lips as he tried so much not to wince in pain as he settled on his seat in his office.
As much as he wanna skip work, his boss called earlier reminding him of the reports he had to submit ASAP. He also had to screen some applicants for the position that just became vacant so he had no choice but to go to work in such state.
He was also feeling slightly dizzy. It was a good thing Earth didn't even hesitate to fetch him when he called which was something he sort of regretted as he was bombarded with questions as to where his "boyfriend" was.
"Are you sure you're okay, New? You look pale and why are you wearing a turtleneck in this hot weather?" Earth asked the moment they entered his office.
"I'm okay. Can you just turn on the AC?"
"Okay. But are you sure you're fine though? It seems like you can barely move."
"I-I'm fine. Don't worry," he smiled timidly at him as he started going through the papers.
"Okay. If you need anything, just call me, okay?"
He just nodded and smiled at him.
_______
New was halfway done with his report when he felt his head getting heavier. He was also getting dizzy and he didn't know if it was because of the reports he'd been doing since this morning or something else. He decided to get a glass of water.
He was on his way to get some when he felt his surroundings turn upside down before everything went black.
_____
Tay lazily placed his feet on the coffee table as he watched Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire for the the nth time in his living room.
He wanted to know what New was doing but he stopped himself from calling him.
He was about to get some chips when an unknown number called him. As someone who didn't answer unregistered callers, he just swiped the reject button.
Answer my call you moron or else I'm taking your boyfriend from you.
His eyebrows furrowed the moment he read the text from the same number and he already had a clue who called.
Unregistered Number calling...
"What do you want Mother Earth?" he said the moment he pressed the answer button.
"Where the hell are you? And what did you do to New?"
"Wh-why?? What happened to Hin?" he asked as he removed his feet from the table so he could sit properly.
"He's in the hospital you moron. He was running on high fever and-"
He quickly ended the call and grabbed his keys.
_____
New squinted his eyes to adjust to the light and he almost panicked when he realized he was no longer in his office.
The last thing he remembered was his head getting heavier the more he flipped the pages of his report and then getting a glass of water.
"Hey, don't move so suddenly."
He looked at Tay who was sitting beside his bed.
"Wh-what are you doing here?" he replied as he slowly sat up on the bed. He was feeling better and his body was not that sore.
"Hey, calm down, okay? You lost consciousness at work, yesterday. You've slept the whole day."
He looked at the hospital gown he was wearing and muttered a cuss when he saw his marks getting exposed and he bet some had already seen them.
"Tss. Don't worry too much about your marks. They look good on you, trust me."
He just neglected Tay and roamed his eyes around the room and noticed that it was not a regular room.
"Wh-where am I?" he asked as he looked at how grand the room was to be in a hospital.
"In the hospital," Tay replied nonchalantly.
"You-" he was about to say something but they heard a knock and three nurses went inside.
"Good morning, Mr Thitipoom. Good morning Mr Vihokratana," the three of them greeted together.
They then approached him.
The first one checked his temperature, the second one placed water and medicine on the bedside table, and the third one wheeled in a trolley.
He just sat there gawking at them, not even getting a single clue as to why he was being taken care of by so many people.
They heard a knock and another nurse came in and placed a basin with water on the table on the other side of the bed.
"Here's the one you asked for Mr Vihokratana."
Tay just smiled and muttered his thanks at them before they went out of the room while he remained gawking at Tay.
"What the hell is happening?" he asked but Tay just rolled off the sleeves of his button down shirt and approached his bed.
"He-hey. What are you doing?" he nervously asked as Tay reached out for his hospital gown and untied it.
"Come on. I'm not gonna do anything to you," Tay replied and grabbed the wet towel from the basin.
He bit his lips as he watched Tay wiped his chest with the towel. Then he held his hand as he started wiping his arms, face, and neck.
He just stayed still, looking at Tay the entire time who was wiping him so gently.
"You could have asked the nurses to do this. I-I don't wanna be much of a hassle to you," he murmured.
"Tss. As if I'd let others lay their hands on you," Tay replied as he tied his hospital gown again.
"Do my parents know I'm here?"
"Yeah, I've talked to them on the phone already. They know I'm taking care of you."
Tay then dragged the trolley nearer and removed the food cloche revealing several dishes.
"Here," Tay said and adjusted the overbed table.
He watched as Tay placed the dishes on the table. He was about to grab the utensils but Tay already got them.
"Open your mouth," Tay said and held out the spoon filled with food to him.
"Tay, I'm not a handicap," he protested.
"You need to eat. Come on."
He just sighed and accepted the food. Tay feeding him was something he didn't even dare imagine but there they were, on the hospital bed, with Tay feeding him.
"Wha-what?" he asked as Tay was staring at him.
"I'm, I'm sorry."
It was almost a whisper but it was loud enough for New to hear.
He evaded Tay's eyes and looked somewhere else.
"It's not your fault. You didn't force me into doing it."
"But still, I hurt you. I don't wanna hurt you, Hin."
He glanced at Tay who was still staring at him.
"I-I'm hungry. F-feed me some fish," he said to change the topic and Tay quickly obliged.
"Can-can I be discharged today? Tay, who assigned me to this room? It seems like my one-month wouldn't be enough to pay half of the expenses," he said as Tay handed him a glass of water.
"Nah. Don't worry about the bill. My uncle owns this hospital. You don't have to spend a single penny."
"But sti-" his words were cut off when Tay inserted a spoonful of rice in his mouth.
"You should eat so you can take your medicine. Again don't worry about anything. I've got you all covered."
_____
New was bored as hell as he mindlessly flipped through the channels of the television in his room.
Tay left earlier for he had some things to attend to so he was left all alone.
He grabbed his phone and called Gun.
Hey, what's up?
"Gun how are you?"
I'm good. I'll be working overseas for the first time. My script got picked and I'm on the process of revising some lines. How about you? How's work?
"I'm, I'm actually at the hospital right now?"
Why? Are you okay? What happened?
"Just fever. Gun... remember Tay? I told you about our situation, right?"
Yes. Why? Did something happen?
"Well, uh, shit. This is embarrassing."
Gun chuckled on the other line.
You had sex. Am I right?
"Geezz. You don't have to say it out loud," he whined as he shifted his position on his bed, completely lying on his side.
"I mean, well, you know, uh we did the did and I'm embarrassed as hell, I couldn't even look him in the eyes that long."
"You know what New, I understand you. I mean I also felt the same way when Off and I, you know, did it too. But probably the only good thing we had was we were actually clear about our relationship that time."
New sighed and bit his lips.
"I know. But he, but he said he likes me, Gun. I am confused, Gun. I mean, I know to myself that I like him even way back in uni, but I don't know if he likes me as much as I like him."
"New, to say that you like someone is not enough. For me, it's like walking on thin ice. One wrong move and you'll break everything. Why don't you both sort out your feelings first. I guess that's better than going to a battle without knowing what you are really fighting for. And what makes you think that he doesn't like you that much?"
"I know him, Gun. I know it's a bit harsh but I can say that him loving someone other than himself is something next to a miracle. Who knows if he's just taking advantage of my feelings for him. I don't know, Gun. I'm scared and confused at the same time. You know what happened way back in uni, right? Who knows if I'm just his past time or an experiment to test his sexual orientation. I love him, Gun, but I can't trust him enough. I can't trust his feelings and actions."
"Just take things slowly, New. I mean, he could have really changed. Everyone changes, right?"
______
New looked at his phone to check the time. 11:11.
He checked it again for any messages but there were none.
He was starting to get sulky. Tay promised earlier that day that he would come back and they would eat dinner together. But the day was about to end, still he heard nothing from him.
He checked his phone again for any sign of him and sighed.
Guess he would have to sleep on an empty stomach.
_____
"Good morning, Sir. You can be discharged today, Sir. Everything has been accounted for so you can go anytime you like."
New glanced at the nurse and then at his phone.
He tried calling Tay but his number was unreachable.
He even sent him a message but he hadn't receive any word from him.
Tay, I'm getting discharged today. Can you pick me up?
He typed on his phone, but hesitated and deleted it.
He then searched for Earth's name.
"Hello? Hello, Earth, can you pick me up?"