Wines And Guns

31.

Porsche laid by Kinn's side for more than an hour trying to soothe and calm him down. He had seen Kinn break into anger but he rarely let panic show onto his face. It was still unclear to him why Khun Korn would let his son suffer like that. Khwan had insulted them multiple times on face. None of them were willing to open up about their past with him. It broke his heart to see Kinn this way. The way his life was going it was no surprise that he didn't want to get out of that forest. He had tried to remain strong through all of this but it truly scared him when he saw Kinn break apart. Whether it be due to anger or fear he had seen Kinn fight through it all. It was normal for him to feel so stressed due to all that pressure but it was absolutely appalling to watch him like this.

"Porsche"

"Yes?"

"Ask Pete if he and Vegas will be willing to see us next week."

"Next week? The last time we talked he sounded desperate. I believe they really require our help. Don't you think it'll be way too long?"

"We need to arrange everything beforehand. Vegas won't trust us completely no matter what. We have to keep our guard up while making sure he doesn't freak out. There is a high chance that someone might try to take advantage of the situation that uncle is dead. Vegas is in a vulnerable situation. He might think that he'll be able to handle everything alone but he needs help".

"I see".

"Vegas hates me. He always had. It's not his fault entirely either. He was always forced to push himself. He had to live upto uncle's unrealistic expectations. He was never enough. Everytime we tried to do anything together he got yelled at for not doing it good enough. He could never score good enough, play sports good enough or do anything according to uncle. Even when he did his best and won competitions as a kid it didn't matter. He was never going to inherit the entire property. By the time we were teenagers he was so full of hatred and bitterness towards me that we couldn't do anything together anymore".

"Khun Korn didn't try to stop him? He just watched his brother abuse his son like that?"

"He used to stop uncle from being harsh when Vegas was too young. But he could do nothing after a point. Even if he stopped uncle from hitting him infront of us it only meant that he would hit him harder after they went home."

Kinn took a deep breath before he continued.

"Aunty used to come over to stay a lot with Vegas and Macau. Those sleepovers were just attempts to protect themselves from uncle when things got too bad. They stayed over until he was calm. She used to sit with mama and cry when she thought no one noticed. She knew that she couldn't leave no matter how much she wanted to. That's what could've been best for her and her kids. It was like she was in a cage. She was the last person Vegas had hoped from. All was gone for him when she died. He couldn't even mourn properly."

Despite all that had happened between Kinn and Vegas there seemed to be a sense of regret and pain everytime he spoke of him instead of anger. Circumstances had torn them apart. Deep down Kinn knew that it wasn't Vegas who chose to be raised this way. He had seen Vegas's dedication to give his brother a better life.

"You know despite all this Vegas achieved the one thing I never could. He managed to keep his brother shielded from the hell. Even though not completely he always did everything he could to protect Macau. He was determined to protect whom he loved and he did that. Just like you. You always made sure to give Porchay the best life you could no matter how much you had to struggle. Meanwhile look at me. I don't even know what goes on with Khun. He has created a different world for himself. And Kim only talks to me out of formality. I could do nothing for either of them".

"Are you kidding? Tankhun loves you so much. His way of showing that love is just a little eccentric. He cherishes you. He still sees you as his little brother. Kim is involved with the family but he's pursuing a career he loves. You took up this work so your entire family could live their lives. You worked hard for so many years to give them the life they deserved. And you still continue to do so. You can only free yourself from this if you stop what they started. The comparison, the completion."

"It won't be that easy Porsche. Things have gone too far now".

"You're right. It won't. But it can happen Kinn. You know Vegas isn't like your uncle."

Kinn remained quiet. He kept holding onto Porsche's hand.

*

"Vegas I have to put the laundry for washing".

"You did that yesterday."

"I have to do it everyday Vegas."

The evening was peaceful. Vegas made sure to sit quietly for atleast half an hour everyday with Pete who worked without stop the entire day. He could do very little to help around and always felt immense guilt for that no matter how much Pete tried to console him. He felt like he was contributing nothing while Pete had to handle everything. He had cared for him and and Macau like no one had previously. This was the least he could do. He was ready to take up any challenge to keep Pete happy. Even if it meant facing his worst fears.

"I promise I'll finish everything quick and then we'll sit here for as long as you'd like".

"Then let me help you. That way the work will get finished faster."

"You need to rest Vegas."

"But-"

"That way you'll recover faster. Then we'll do everything together. And at the end of the day we'll have lots and lots of time to ourselves".

Pete always got him with that. He placed a kiss on Vegas's forehead and walked out of the room to start doing the laundry. He checked his phone to find messages from Porsche who wanted to meet him and Vegas next week and from another from an unknown number. It was a bank transaction of a significant amount. Pete stood there feeling puzzled. This couldn't have been from Kinn or Porsche. He wasn't sure who else was there to just send him such a huge sum of money out of nowhere.

*

Kinn was walking around the house to clear his head. He couldn't imagine what he would do without Porsche. Everyone thought he was strong and steady. But it was truly the people around him who managed to give him hope in the most dire situations. He could hold Porsche and sleep the entire night. He wasn't paying attention to where he was while walking around. He was pulled out of his thoughts when he heard some noises towards the end of the corridor. His first instinct was to pull out his gun and point it forward as he slowly approached the area. There was no one around except a tie pin that belonged to Porsche.

"Porsche? Porsche are you here?"

There was no answer. It was the emptiest and darkest corridor of the house. Kinn found himself standing right infront of that room again. He looked around one last time before he walked away as fast as he could.

Porsche stood in the balcony feeling the light breeze hit his face. He was waiting for Porchay to get back home. Kinn had been feeling better after talking a bit. He had managed to convince him to see Time and Tay the next day for lunch. He felt that being around his friends might help Kinn. His phone began ringing. There was nothing but a number flashing on the screen.

"Hello?"

There was no response on the other end.

"Hello? Who's this?"

All he could hear was a high pitched noise from some machine. The call was cut off immediately leaving him feeling puzzled.