Fish Upon the Sky - Swapped Jackets & Stolen Kisses [LukeNeo]

Chapter 3 Part II

Neo stupidly squeezes the hand with his free hand. Mix doesn't seem to mind, eyes watching him with bemusement.

"You don't remember me, do you?"

"...."

"Last Friday, at 'Bai-Mai'..." His eyes round mischievously against the silence, dragging his words as he waits for him to say something. What exactly? Neo gapes opening and closing his mouth like a fish. He racks his brain to recall if he hit on him by mistake or did something equally stupid while he was plastered. But comes up with a great black hole.

Neo smiles-grimaces upon Earth's tense brows, gut weighing down like a bedrock. Shia. He can't afford to be on P'Earth's shit list.

"You," Mix pauses, smiling carefreely as though he's talking about something trivial as the weather, "popped up behind the counter I was at, chatted me up for a second, stole my beer right from my hand. And the best part, left me a tip afterwards. You were smashed to the bones, meung."

An awkward moment of silence prevails.

Maybe it's the way he phrased it, but if that doesn't sound like something close to a terrible attempt of flirting into someone's pants and degrade them like a cheap hooker at the same time he doesn't know what is. A hazy memory of spilling beer, blurry bar lights, and a struggle of a climb comes barreling into his mind out of nowhere making his head swim. His hand automatically comes up to touch the side of his head like muscle memory; wincing to the foggy echo of a thud- two, no- three. How the hell is he still alive?

Someone barks out a laugh unexpectedly and Neo startles when Earth starts pounding his back in sync with his loud HA HA's until he swings.

"Meung! You are that guy! Swam across the counter instead of using the gateway! Shit, if it didn't make my day. I was wondering what happened to you. Glad we finally met. Sober!"

Pond jerks his head wildly in a row.

What the fuck is up with that head?

"Earth. Pirapat Watthansetsiri. Feel like I've seen you before though," Neo flinches when he peers into his face. "You are from the Engineering faculty, too, aren't you? How old are you nong?"

He blinks at the palms pressed together in a wai, "Oh," dumbly nods letting go of his nose and waiis back, "Sawatdee P'Earth, Trai Nimtawat, uh Neo... nineteen." He doesn't forget to greet P'Mix this time around, inwardly cringing at his stupidity.