From Something To Everything (Bounprem)

111. Poverty and survival

"Having nowhere else to go, I moved in with Colt. We both of us living together in that tiny house of his. For the first time in my life, I got to know what poverty was like. We had no one to support us and had no money. Colt used to tutor some students before that. But when the news that both of us were from the queer community spread, no one was willing to let their children come to us to learn. Also, the fact that both of us got expelled from our school under my dad's influence was also not helping.

We struggled to make ends meet on a daily basis. We couldn't find any good jobs as we were still underaged and didn't have many qualifications. We started doing odd jobs to get enough money to buy food. Even a piece of meat became a luxury for us.

Our old friends too started keeping their distance from us. It was as if we had lost everything we had. Colt used to cry himself to sleep on most days and as the culprit behind all this mess, I felt extremely guilty. I swore to myself that I would turn Colt's life back to normal. I started looking for more jobs."

Prem could see that Boun was slowly opening his scar. He didn't know what to do. He wanted Boun to tell him everything at the same time he didn't want him to feel the pain again. He bit his lips and listened to Boun speaking.

"Through one of the neighbours, I got a job as a server in a nearby restaurant. Actually, it was a gambling den. There were all kinds of things going on in there, money laundering, gambling, drugs. When I got to know, I wanted to back out. But the pay was too good to say no. I acted as if I knew nothing and continued working there.

One day, the place suddenly got raided and I got caught. I was locked up in the police station for three days as there was no one to bail me out. The policemen showed me no mercy. I became their punching bag for the whole three days. Colt visited me but he had no way to get me out of there. In the end, the neighbour who had introduced me to the place came and bailed me out.

He apologised to me for sending me there. He said that he didn't know it himself and had just found out when Colt went to him to beg."

Boun's voice became nasal and cracked as he cried. Prem didn't touch him as he didn't want to interrupt Boun.

"Soon after my injuries were healed, Colt helped me find a job in a nightclub. It was similar to my previous job but the place was much safer. I was... I was..." Boun started hyperventilating. The memories of that day flashed through his mind.

Flashback.

Boun felt his body burning up. His body felt as if it had lost all its strength. He was panting heavily and sweating loads.

Removing the bow tie that was part of the server's uniform, Boun leaned against the bathroom sink, splashing water on his face.

He heard footsteps outside the door and hid inside the cubicle out of instinct. It was the staff restroom and he didn't want his colleagues to see him like that.

"Where do you think that twink go?" Boun heard a voice outside cubicle.

"I saw him come this way." Another person spoke.

Boun could recognise the voices of the people who spoke. They used to be regulars in the gambling den. He peeked through the small gap between doors to confirm his guess. He had a gut feeling that those people were looking for him. He held his breath and shrunk back, trying to reduce his presence as much as possible.

"He wouldn't have gone too far. I have already drugged him." The third guy said.

"Looks like he didn't come in here. Let's search elsewhere." The fourth guy told and led the group outside.

Things started making sense to Boun. Those four people had tried to make a move on him when he was in the gambling den as well, but the security there was against people taking advantage of the staff and had kept the four in line. When he came here, he had no one to protect him.

After waiting for a while, Boun walked out of the restroom. His mind was a mess and he couldn't even stand properly. But the years of physical training he had since he was a kid, helped him endure everything. He escaped the place and went to find Colt who was in the condo.

The sight he saw when he reached there broke him.

As he entered the condo, he could hear two voices. One was Colt's and the other was a very familiar one.

"Don't worry, phi. I have done everything just the way you instructed me to." Colt's happy and energetic voice was heard from the bedroom.

Boun peeked into the room through the door that was left ajar.

"Good boy." Boun's eyes widened as he saw the other person in the room.

It was none other than his own eldest brother, Alan. Both Alan and Colt were on the bed, naked, cuddling with each other, looking happy and content. A used condom laid not too far away from the bed.

"Boun has already got a record of drug dealing and gambling. Now, all that is left is to do is to get the sex tape of him. I have already hired those people to make one. They were so eager to make it that they were willing to give money back to me as a payment." Colt said cheerfully.

"He is pretty after all," Alan smirked. "I wonder how my nong is going to feel after he gets gang-raped today." A vicious smile spread on his lips.

He leaned in to kiss Colt deeply, which turned into a full-blown make-out session.

Boun felt completely broken at that scene. His own brother, the one he idolised and the person he loved were the people stabbing him in the back.

He cried silently. He was in so much pain. Both mentally and physically. The drug was starting to get into his senses. He struggled not to make any noise.

Leaning against the wall, he walked to the door. He suddenly noticed Alan's phone that was put on charging in the living area. He quickly got to the phone and sneaked out of the condo.

Hiding behind the community dustbin, he called his only true friend. The one whom he could trust completely. The call went through and a deep voice was heard from the other side.

"Swadee Khrab, P' Alan."