Chapter 33: Causing Trouble

"Pa…dad…when did you guys get home?" Joong asked nervously as Fourth stood in front of him to hide the tray of porridge in his hand.

"What kind of a stupid question is that?" His dad Off looked at his son in exasperation as he held the door wide open for his husband to walk inside. "You can see we're just getting home!"

"Pappii, don't be mean to Joong," Gun frowned at his husband before turning to his sons. "But I am curious…who did you say drank so much alcohol?"

"Ooohh…P'Joong was just talking about a friend from his class, pa," Pond quickly tried to distract their dads from the truth. "He got a text from his friends group so he was sharing the story with us."

"Really? Because he look awfully suspicious for someone who was just sharing a story." Off frowned, placing his hands on his hips. "Joong! Come down here, will you?"

"Me?" Joong looked at his father in surprise. "Why me? What did I do?"

"I want to see if this 'friend' of yours is actually you." Off commented, his eyes still narrowed on his eldest son. "I don't trust you one bit after that party you threw in our house. So I want to check if you reek of alcohol."

"Come on, dad!" Joong tried his best to keep the panic out of his voice. "You think I'd still be standing if I drank five thousand baht of alcohol?"

"Does it look like I trust a word out of your mouth?" Off snapped. "Hurry up and get your ass down! I want to make sure you're telling the truth, and if you are, then you wouldn't be hesitating."

Fourth, Pond and Joong exchanged alarmed looks, not knowing what to do. Because even though Joong hadn't drunk any alcohol, Dunk had been reeking of it when he had dragged his ass to his room. And now, he was worried if any of that scent still lingered in his clothes.

'I'm so screwed!' Joong thought to himself, cursing Dunk seven ways to Sunday in his mind.

He thought of how to hide the porridge bowl first, since that was a priority. And since both his father's were now focusing solely on him, it was impossible to hand the food over to anyone else in time.

But just as Joong's panic reached its peak, another voice joined sounded through the room, this time female.

"Araia?" Love poked her head in through the door, her wide eyes taking in the surrounding. "Why is everyone just standing here like this?"

Fourth immediately turned towards Joong and all but snatched the bowl out of his hands and began walking up the stairs, telling everyone that he forgot something in Love's room, and just like that, Love was chasing after him as well, telling Fourth not to even think about setting foot in her room.

The tension broke and Joong visibly relaxed, dodging a frantic Love as she raced upstairs, after Fourth. He wasn't worried anymore, Fourth will handle the rest and so, he began descending down the stairs towards his fathers.

At this point, Gun looked exasperated and just shook his head, and Off only frowned at Joong and stopped him with a raised hand. "Yut. Enough. Just get back upstairs and make sure Love and Fourth don't cause any more trouble. And Pond, our car needs cleaning; can you appoint someone to take care of the mud?"

"Dai, dad," Pond got up from his seat. "I can do it myself."

"Oh, don't waste your breath on it." Off shook his head. "A few hundred baths and the car will be as good as new. Just remember to take it to the garage for cleaning."

"Dai, khap."

"Papii, come help me with the boxes," thankfully, Gun called his husband right on time. "I need to make more space in my closet."

"Ok, jaa."

As Off left after Gun, carrying all the boxes and bags they had brought home with them, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Pond turned towards Joong, motioning with is head to his room upstairs. "It seems awfully quiet. You think everything is okay?"

"Unless Love has managed to strangle her twin, I think everyone is okay," Joong sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Let me go check upstairs and take a shower to clean up any scents. See you later, mueng."

"Hmm," Pond too turned on his heels and headed down the hallway to his room, just as Joong began climbing up the stairs.

Surprisingly, he found Fourth leaning against the railing at the top, with Love nowhere in sight.

"What happened?" He asked Fourth. "Where's Love?"

"Ohh, you think she's be sticking around when I told her I need something from her room?" He scoffed. "She zoomed past me like the Flash and slammed her door in my face. That's one resemblance between P'Pond and her, both have pictures of their lovers all over their room."

"And how did you know that?" Joong raised a brow.

Fourth only gave a cheeky smile and began descending down the stairs. "I've left the porridge on the table outside your room. Take it to him before it turns cold and we face even more drama."

Joong merely shook his head and found the bowl exactly where Fourth had mentioned, and then he entered the room, only to find Dunk sitting up on the bed, rubbing at his head.

"Hey, are you okay?" Joong was at his side in an instant, his face a mask of worry as he studied Dunk closely. "Are you feeling dizzy? Nauseous?"

"A bit of both," Dunk groaned, his voice a husky whisper. "What time is it?"

"Almost five in the afternoon," Joong commented after looking at the clock. "I got you some porridge, but I'd suggest you take a shower before eating anything."

Dunk sighed, leaning back against the headboard. "Karthot na, for all the trouble I caused. I didn't mean for you to get involved."

"Mai pen rai." Joong told him, placing the porridge on the bedside table as he got up to fetch Dunk a pair of clean clothes and underwear. "Why not just clean up first and then we can talk?"

Dunk stopped rubbing his head to stare at Joong for a good few moments, looking unsure of how to proceed. But it seems that Joong was already in on the family drama because he held out the clothes to him.

"You don't have to act so tough all the time," his voice sounded soft, non-judgmental. "I'm not going to ask questions, just telling you that Phuwin already knows you're here and he's gonna tell your dad that you're staying at a friend's house for a day or two. So you can relax. You can go stay with a friend when you're sober and less emotional."

"What if I don't want to?"

"Huh?" Joong was about to turn away when the unusual words had him pausing, turning towards Dunk with a frown. "Arai na?"

"I don't want to go anywhere, Joong." Dunk told him, his expression solemn. "I just…I want to disappear. Go somewhere where no one will ever be able to find me again."