Best Buddies // KornWai //

27

After a while, Korn's crying seemed to have ceased. He was still holding his phone tightly on his hand when a notification popped up.

TING!
“It's Christmas eve! Are you with your loved ones? We have a new offer available…”

Korn blinked. It was now that he realised, it was Christmas eve. He realised why Pat and Pran threw a get-together earlier.

Pat and Pran…

Korn couldn't help but to wonder if they knew about Wai. They probably didn't and Korn didn't have any more strength to tell anyone about Wai anymore. The more he talked about Wai's condition, the more afraid he was getting.

Suddenly, a cup of coffee appeared in front of him. As Korn looked up, he saw Lay holding it while sipping his own coffee.

“I don't want it.“

Lay sighed. “You being starved will do nothing but land you in a bed beside Wai. Besides, Wai wouldn't want you to be like this, would he?“

“Take it. He bought it with his own money. For the first time,” Tao said.

Korn looked at the cup of coffee and after much thought, he gave up and accepted it while saying a little 'thank you' to Lay.

“I called his friend, uh…Pran. He is coming here with his boyfriend, I think,” Tao said.

Korn nodded. “Pat is his name.“

“…Right. Pran is coming here with Pat.“

It had been two hours since Wai was inside the operation theatre. There was still no news of him. Korn had been sitting at the same place ever since he arrived.

“Korn, I'll book a room for you in a nearby hotel. Take some rest,” Lay said.

Korn shook his head. “I'll stay here, with Wai.“

“Korn, it is us—”

Tao raised his hand and placed on Lay's shoulder, stopping the latter from speaking further more. “Let him be. We are here to take care of him.“

Lay sighed and nodded.

—

Just like that, another hour passed. There was no news of Wai from the operation theatre. Korn kept shaking his leg in anxiety, his heart picking up pace with every seconds.

“Korn!“

Pat rushed towards his friend while Pran went towards Tao to ask about Wai. Both were drenched in sweat. It was evident that they rushed here the moment Tao called them.

Korn was engulfed into a hug. Pat was worried about him. Korn was someone who'd keep everything to himself to the point that once he finally broke down, he'd be uncontrollable.

The moment Korn was hugged by Pat, the tears he was holding back for so long rushed down his cheeks. His head had been hurting from holding back. When he finally couldn't hold it anymore, he bursted out crying in Pat's arms.

“I…I…W-Wai…”

“Shush, don't say anything. It's okay. Everything is okay,” Pat said as he softly ruffled Korn's hair.

Pran went directly towards Tao. He was worried about Wai. “Phi! Wai?“

“No idea. He is undergoing a surgery right now,” Tao informed him.

“And auntie Brinda? Uncle Dan?“

“P'Brin just went home. P'Dan is on the flight back,” Tao told them.

Pat looked at the two as they talked. He saw clearly how troubled Pran looked. He could feel the anxiety of the two men. He could feel his friend's fright.

Pran felt Pat's eyes on him. He looked back with a thin smile. However, his smile soon turned into a frown when he saw how terrible Korn's condition was.

“He didn't eat anytime since he came back from your party,” Lay noticed Pran's vision on Korn. He knew about the small party that Pran and Pat threw. Korn had told him about it over phone.

Pran looked at the unknown man. He had no idea how he was but since he was here, he must have a significant role, according to Pran. So, he nodded, making a mental note to himself that he should buy Korn a meal later.

Tao saw the confusion that Pran was having towards Lay. “Pran, this is Lay, the Laedeke's dog.“

Pran blinked. He could see that Tao was insulting Lay. However, the P'Tao he knew would never judge someone like that then why…?

“I am not your dog, Tao. Fuck off,” Lay said. He didn't even look at Tao when saying that. Without waiting for an answer, he turned away and stood a bit far from them.

Tao scoffed and left as well, standing on the opposite side while saying, “Definitely a piece of shit then. Punched me from the moment he saw me.“

Pran stayed there, fazed by everything. He had no clue of the situation between the two men. He also turned and sat down beside his boyfriend who was still trying to calm down the sobbing Korn.

RING RING
Lay's phone rang, catching some attention from Pran and Tao. Lay looked at them and then turned away to answer his phone.

“Lay here.“

“I'm in the hospital. Which floor are you on?“

Lay blinked. Were his ears deceiving him? “Sorry, you're here…? Like here…? How did you even—”

“I'll explain later. Which floor?“

“Floor 2, room 14.“

TUT TUUTT

Lay blankly stared at his phone. How did Aou even manage to get away from his father's security?

Nevertheless, he ignored it and walked towards Korn. Kneeling down in front of him, he gently said, “Ko, Aou is here.“

Just as he said that, Aou came, practically running. Seeing Korn crying made his heart clenched. Lay moved aside and let Aou take his place.

Aou knew that he couldn't make Korn stop crying. It wasn't possible. Korn was not in a position to do that, especially not when his boyfriend was fighting for his life. Therefore, he simply knelt down in front of him and took his hands into his, hoping that his presence would be enough for Korn to feel consoled.

Pat indirectly offered Aou to take his place but the latter denied. Korn basically nestled on Pat's arms. He felt safe enough to do that. Aou shouldn't take away that sense of security Korn had with Pat.

Soon, tired from crying, Korn's sobbing started easing and he slowly closed his eyes, drifting to sleep.

Seeing that, Aou finally stood up, his legs aching terribly. He smiled at Korn's friends before going to Lay.

Pran moved closer to Pat as he whispered, “Pat, Korn's brother is so hot.“

Pat turned his head towards Pat, almost in a split second. He could have swore that he heard it cracked. “Pran, your friend is being operated on.“

“Wai didn't die when you engineering students ganged up on him, or when that dude showed him the gun. This is just a surgery,” Pran said.

Pat took his free hand and ruffled Pran's hair. Pran then settled on Pat's shoulder, the latter's hand on his shoulder.

“It'll be okay,” Pat said.

"I hope so."