From Something To Everything (Bounprem)

134. Kid

"Why the fuck did you bring me here?" Prem gripped the steering wheel and glared at the little creatures outside the window.

Little creatures called 'children'.

Yes, Prem hated children. Especially 'human' children. He could put up with puppies, kittens or any animal cub but not human cubs.

He loathes them to the point that he can't meet eye to eye with them. his past experiences with those creatures haven't been good.

He couldn't understand why Fluke and Earth loved children so much.

"Stop making that face, will you?" Earth unbuckled his seat belt. "We need to pick up Art. He is coming with us to Chiang Mai today."

"WHAT?" Prem's eyes widened in horror.

"Why the heck are you screaming, Prem?" Earth covered his ears.

"What do you mean that Art is coming with us?"

"It is exactly what I said. We are taking him with us. There is no one to look after him while we are gone."

Prem frowned disliking the idea of having to take Art with them. "What about P' Kao's Mae? Can't you send him to her?"

"Pa Jane and the rest of the family are in Australia, Prem." Earth rolled his eyes at Prem's short memory.

"I am not coming if he is coming." Prem sulked. He didn't want to handle the kid.

"Either you are coming by yourself or we are tying you up in a sack and bringing you with us as cargo. The choice is yours."

"Won't you guys be busy with all the rituals and stuff? Who is going to babysit the kid if you bring him along?"

"You," Earth answered without missing a beat.

"Me? Why would I babysit that kid? I will not do it." Prem said shaking his head vigorously in denial.

"You will, Prem. It is settled and there is no need for discussion in this matter." Earth said in a firm tone.

"Why???" Prem whined and pouted.

"You better be good to the kid, because P' Boun loves him more than anyone else. So, behave." Earth said warningly. He got out of the car and went to the school gate.

Prem groaned and punched the steering wheel "All of you are bullying me."

A few minutes later he saw Earth walking back with a small kid who looked like a miniature version of Kao, smiling and talking with each other.

Earth opened the rear door and helped the little guy into the car. He buckled the child properly before entering the car himself.

"Art, this Aa Prem, Papa [1] and Poppy's [2] best friend." Earth introduced Prem to the little guy, sitting in the passenger seat.

"Swadee Khrab, Aa. My name is Arthit Dechaphatthanakun. I am five years old." The little kid said wai-ing at Prem.

"Swadee N' Art." Prem smiled at the kid feeling somewhat relieved that the little one wasn't as bratty as he thought. "Are you hungry, Nong?"

Before Art could answer, his stomach growled, answering the question on his behalf.

Prem chuckled. "How about Aa take you to eat something?" he offered.

Art's eyes lit up at the offer. He nodded happily.

Earth heaved a sigh of relief seeing the interaction. He was afraid that Prem would act childish and throw a tantrum.

Prem stopped the car in front of a café. The trio got out of the car.

As they walked into the café, Prem felt something grabbing his hand. He looked down and saw the little human cub holding his hand.

"Do you want, ups?" Prem offered. The café was pretty crowded with school kids and their parents.

Art raised his hands towards Prem as if permitting him to lift him up.

Prem lifted the little guy. Art wasn't heavy and he could carry the kid with a single hand alone. "So which one do you want?" they stood in front of the pastry display.

Art looked at the wide range of options in confusion. He was having a difficult time making up his mind. After a long thought, he pointed at one of the pastries. "That one."

Prem had been observing Art all this while. "Is that one enough?"

"Or that?" Art pointed at another pastry in confusion. His little face extruded helplessness.

"How about, Aa get them both for Art?" Prem asked.

"Really?!" Art looked at Prem in excitement and admiration. "Can I get both of them?"

"Of course." Prem smiled widely feeling pleased.

"Thank you, Aa Prem.," Art clapped his tiny hands.

Earth scratched the tip of his nose, standing beside the duo. He could clearly see that Art had already managed to get Prem wrapped around his fingers.

His phone vibrated in his pocket. Seeing that it was a call from Yacht, he went out to attend it.

Prem, carrying Art was already standing in queue to order when Earth came back.

"Prem, give me the car keys," Earth said in a hurry.

"Huh?"

"I need to go back to the kinder garden. P' Boun's nieces are still there. The youngest [3] fell sick and was taken to hospital. So, there is no one to pick the girls up." Earth explained in one breath.

Prem took out the car keys and handed them to Earth.

"You guys wait here. I will go pick the girls up." Earth said before running off.

Prem and Art found a nice seat near the window after they had placed their order. They didn't have to wait long before their orders arrived.

Both of them dug in without hesitation.

As Prem closed his eyes as the sweetness of the chocolate fudge hit his taste buds. He was trying his best not to moan out loud in front of the kid. he had been watched by the little guy sitting opposite him.

"You are really Pao." Art finally spoke.

Prem's hand that was scooping the fudge paused hearing the sentence. He looked at Art. "What did you say?"

"Aa Boun was right. Aa Prem's cheeks really look like Salapao." Art giggled.

Prem's ears suddenly turned red for some reason. He himself didn't know why he was feeling his face heat up just by hearing that Boun had talked about him to his nephew.

"Can I also call Aa Prem Pao?" Art asked innocently.

"No!" Prem shook his head. He couldn't let anyone else call him that name other than Boun. He noticed that Art's smile had faded lightly so he hurried to explain. "What Aa meant is that Aa Boun is older than Aa Prem, so he can call Aa Prem by nickname. But Art is younger than Aa. You can't call Aa by nickname."

Art pouted but still nodded in understanding. "Then what should I call you? I don't want to call you Aa. Because I already have three of them."

He looked at his half-finished pastry sadly.

"How about Art give Aa Prem a name like you gave to Aa Earth and Aa Fluke?" Prem suggested.

Art tapped his chin with his index fingers thoughtfully. "How about Art call Aa 'Popsy'?"

[1] Papa - Art addresses Earth as Papa.
[2] Poppy - Art addresses Fluke as Poppy
[3] Youngest - the youngest nephew of Boun, Alan's third child.