From Something To Everything (Bounprem)

136. Maternal relatives

"Au, my little puppy looks so tired. " Sairung hugged her grandson.

"Khrab, Khun Yaay. I have been working like a dog since morning. " Prem whined to his grandmother.

Prem comfortably settled down next to his grandmother on the swing bed. He had finished the last-minute check-up on the preparations before the guests arrived for the function. He didn't know what to call the whole occasion.

Sairung cooed at her grandson who was acting all cute clinging to her. This grandson of hers only came to her place very rarely and she was enjoying having his company very much.

"Mae, you should stop spoiling this brat." Jassy walked in with a tray of drinks. "And you." She smacked her son on his head. "Get off your yaay. Acting like a three-year-old, now."

"Let him be, Jassy. He must be tired." Sairung defended her grandson, who was now hugging her tighter.

"Khrab Mae. I am dead tired. I have been working since early morning today." Prem said pitifully.

"Tired? " Jassy put the tray down on the coffee table and put her hands on her hips. "You dare to say that you are tired? All the work was done by that kid, Fluke. Starting from arranging the accommodation for the guests to decorating the place, everything was done by him. All you did in the previous days was taste the food and finalise the menu, glutton."

"I worked too. I was supervising those workers since morning." Prem retorted cuddling closer to his grandmother.

"Only because Fluke left last night. Or else, he would have been the one doing it." Jassy huffed. "You didn't even invite him to stay back and attend the function."

"He couldn't stay even if I invited, Mae. He has shoot." Prem replied pouting. "and since when did Mae's favourite child need a separate invitation to attend our family function." He muttered under his breath.

Still, Jassy managed to hear the words. She smacked her son's head again. "Don't you have a little bit of remorse after exploiting that kid like this? He didn't even get enough rest organising everything."

Prem let go of his grandmother and faced his mother. "Mae, just admit that you are jealous that my friends have got my back while yours are only good at talking behind your back." He gave his mother a provocative look.

He instantly knew that his mother was going to hit him and sought refuge with his grandmother.

"Jassy, that's enough." Sairung stopped her daughter from spanking her grandson. "The guests will be here in a while. You better go and check the arrangements."

"Khrab Mae." Jassy left the scene after shooting a warning glare at her son as if telling him that she would deal with him later.

Prem stuck his tongue out and made a face at his mother as she walked away.

"Stop irritating her like that." Sairung ran her fingers through Prem's hair.

"I am just jealous, Yaay." Prem sulked and hugged Sairung's arm. "Did you know? Mae had cooked a table full of food for Fluke alone. All his favourites. She wouldn't even cook one of my favourites when I visited home. But she did for Fluke."

"You can't blame your Mae, na, Prem. You know that Fluke's Phor-Mae rarely had time for him. Your Mae is taking care of him in their place." Sairung reasoned. "Previously, there was Darla [1] to do that. But now that she is no more. You don't want that child to feel bad when he visits home, do you?"

"I know, Yaay. I love it that my Mae loves him as much as she loves me. But sometimes I feel a little left out." Prem pressed his cheeks against his grandmother's shoulders.

"Just remember that Fluke feels that every time you guys spend time with your own families while he has no one to be with." Sairung patted Prem.

Prem nodded.

"P' Bubbles...." Prem heard his cousin calling out for him from the other end of the hallway.

Prem groaned seeing Nuan walking to him with a huge smile. Nuan was the youngest daughter of his third uncle and was a total spoiled brat. Prem could never meet eye-to-eye with her.

He put on his fakest smile "What is it, Nong Sao?"

"P' Bubbles, Kha." Nuan held Prem's hand smiling extra sweetly. "Nuan heard Phi is going to act in a bl series."

Prem internally rolled his eyes. His acting in a BL series has become old news now and almost everyone in the country who watches bl knows about it. He wondered if this cousin of his was living under the rock all this while. "Khrab."

"Ahhhhhhh" his younger cousins screamed together.

Everyone in the room covered their ears to protect their eardrums from bursting.

"Why are you girls screaming like this?" Sairung was irritated at her granddaughters' behaviour.

The girls quieted down hearing their grandmother's outburst. They gathered around Prem asking silly questions which had started getting on his nerves.

"I don't understand what is so great about the BL series that all these girls are so crazy about it." Geena, Prem's second aunt spoke watching the girl's excitement. "Prem you shouldn't have taken up such a role even if you wanted to start acting."

Prem scratched his chin and chose to remain quiet.

"That's right, Prem. You could have begun your acting career in some other genre." Pattie, his first aunt commented.

"I am actually shooting for another series before the bl one, Pa," Prem answered eventually.

"Really?" Pattie's eyes widened.

"Khrab, Pa. we have already begun the shooting two months back." Prem tried to sound polite.

"It is sad that your first project won't be with someone as famous as P' Ohm," Nuan said with fake sympathy.

Prem turned to his hypocritic cousin and smiled. "You don't have to be sad, Nong Sao, your Phi is indeed having his first project along with P' Ohm."

Nuan scowled at him. He could completely understand her. He knew that the girl had a huge crush on Ohm since a few years ago. He wondered what Fluke would do to her if she ever tried to hit on Ohm.

"Wow, Prem. That is a big news. What project are you working on?" Somika, the wife of his youngest uncle and the only person Prem personally found tolerable in the family, asked.

"The series is called 'Housemates', Naa. It's a sitcom." Prem didn't mind answering the lady as he knew that she was the only one who would actually be asking him questions with genuine interest.

Soon the gathering was joined by his uncles, who started lecturing Prem on how dirty the entertainment industry is and that he shouldn't drag their family's name into the mud.

Prem badly wanted to get out of there but there was no way he could. At least not until the function was over.

[1] Darla- Earth's mother