Golden Ring

Chapter 38

Ring! Ring!

"Hello, Ma krub."

Gun, who had only woken up in the afternoon, mentally and physically exhausted, answered his mom's call.

"Are you okay, son? Why does your voice sound like that?" Gun's mom asked, concerned over the phone.

"I'm okay, Ma... It's just that I ate ice cream last night, so my throat hurts," Gun lied to his mom. His throat hurt not because of ice cream but because he had cried so hard until he fell asleep.

"Oh... Okay. Son, be careful next time... Oh, by the way, I called to ask when you will come home," Gun's mom said.

"Uhmm... Maybe next week, Ma, before the semester break ends," Gun replied.

"Okay, then, son... Be careful there. See you next week," Gun's mom said.

"Okay, Ma krub," Gun said, ending the call.

Gun, who had decided to stay in Pattaya for one more week, visited the places where he had lived as Li Ming. He visited the place where he used to buy vegetables and ingredients, seeing new faces or the young vendors who had grown old. The milk tea place he frequented had turned into a coffee shop. He also visited Heart's abandoned house, now empty, likely because Heart's parents had passed away.

He then went to the place where he always went after school, a location filled with memories of happiness and sadness. The "Moonlight Chicken" restaurant that used to stand there was gone, replaced by a new establishment.

"You're here," the man said, arriving late in front of Jim's burial urn.

"P'Wen..."

"Uhmm..."

"P'Wen... Do you know where P'Saleng's family is?" Gun asked as Wen placed down the flowers he had brought.

"Saleng's family has already left Pattaya. They couldn't accept what happened, so they decided to leave. I don't know where they went or have any news about them until now. I'm the only one living here," Wen explained before standing up.

"P'Wen... Do you ever hate me?" Gun asked, looking into Wen's eyes.

Wen remained silent for a moment before answering Gun's question. "I'd be lying if I said I didn't hate you... But what can I do... I've already lost him," Wen said before walking away, leaving Gun alone.

Gun watched Wen's retreating figure, recalling Auntie's words to him in Li Ming's memories.

["Li Ming." Before Li Ming left Kaipa's house, Kaipa Mom called him out before he walked through the door. "Li Ming, if someday you regret your decision... You know what you should do, but you need to act fast because if not... you can't come back anymore."]

These were the last words Auntie said to him that day.

Gun closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

🥕🥕🥕

Ah, this story is coming to an end 😭

Thank you for reading ☺️

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