From Something To Everything (Bounprem)

176. Last visit

Colt gently poured the water into the bowl with one hand supporting the other at the elbow as the priest chanted the prayers. Having emptied the water into the bowl, he set aside the metallic utensil and joined his hands in prayer.

He listened to the sermon being recited by the monks around him, feeling the peace and calm of the temple.

It was his grandmother's death anniversary and he was in the temple to make merits and perform the following rituals. It had been eight years since he had performed any of it and was excited and nervous at the same time.

After finishing his prayer, he headed to his grandmother's shrine.

A small smile appeared on Colt's face as he stared at the stone shrine. He placed the flower garland he had made himself on top of it and sat down on the ground.

"Swadee Khrab Khun Yay, your grandson is here to visit you again," Colt spoke slowly. "I am sorry that I couldn't visit you for a long time. I hope you are not mad at me for that."

He reached out to touch the picture of his grandmother on the gravestone. "I am really sorry if I have disappointed you. I did try my best to fulfil your wishes."

"I know you have been watching me from up there and know everything that has happened in my life till now. Life has been hard since you left me, Yay. Very hard. That did make me make some stupid mistakes that I regret to date." Colt smiled in self-mockery.

"But now, I have decided to leave everything that happened in the past, in the past and start over with my life with a new outlook. I know that wouldn't have been easy without my new adoptive family." His smile turned to a happy one as he mentioned his new family.

"You know, Yay, when their lawyer approached saying that they wanted to adopt me as their son, I was really worried. I thought of all kinds of scenarios in my head from thinking that they might be organ or drug traffickers to an infertile couple.

But when I met them in real life, I was really surprised. They were really warm, treating me as if I were their own. They didn't judge me for my past or have any kind of prejudice. They welcomed me opened heartedly to their family." Tears welled up in his eyes. "I feel lucky, yay. Lucky that I got adopted by them, that I got a family now."

The fresh tears rolled down his eyes even when he had a smile on his lips. "I felt so warm when they actually wanted me to call them dad and mom instead of Khun, or Pa or Lung. And their children... they were actually excited about having me join their family. They make sure to give me a call every other day to check on me.

We won't be talking much, but still, the fact that they make time to call me despite their busy schedules is a big thing for me, Yay. My Nongs love me Yay. They love me as their own Phi."

Colt was shedding tears of happiness as he explained how things in his messy life were finally starting to fall into place.

"I am taking the year-end exam the next week, Yay. The tutors Mom hired for me were of great help. I am sure that I am going to ace this exam and make them proud."

The smile on his face dimmed as he remembered something. "Once I am done with the exam, there is something that I want to do..."

He looked at the distance with a forlorn expression "Do you remember Boun, Yay? The guy who visited you with me the last time I came here? I hurt him, Yay. I hurt him deeply.

I had been so stupid to think that he was in the wrong and believe in other's words. He had been suffering due to my idiocy for years, Yay. If I had been a bit sharper and hadn't allowed my emotions to cloud my judgement back then, neither of us would have had to go through all these years of pain."

Colt hugged his knees as he recalled the pain in Boun's eyes the last time he saw him. "I want to apologize to him, Yay. I know that a mere apology won't be enough to redeem the damage I have caused, but I still want to apologize to him.

It is okay if he doesn't want to forgive me. But I have to tell him that I am sorry and thank him for the love he gave me, even though I couldn't recognise its value back then."

Colt lifted his face and looked at the smiling portrait of his grandmother, "I am planning to visit him after my exams. Truth be told, meeting him seems like a bigger exam for me now. I am nervous and scared. I just hope everything goes well."

He sat there talking to his grandmother for another hour. He had a lot to tell her.

He was shocked when he looked at his watch. He hadn't noticed that so much time had passed. "I need to go, Yay. I will visit you after the exam." He said with a smile and waied at the shrine.

He dusted off his clothes and started walking. He was in a good mood, feeling much more confident.

Colt had to walk a bit to get to his car. The temple had been a little crowded in the morning so he couldn't find a parking spot near the temple premises and had to make the driver park the vehicle a bit farther away.

He never understood why his adoptive parents insisted that he take a driver and bodyguard with him everywhere he went. He had already gotten a driving license and didn't need a driver to bring him around. But his parents wouldn't listen.

He felt that it was the way of living of the rich people and stopped arguing about the matter with them.

Today, he had no bodyguard by his side as he had specially requested that he wanted to be left alone as it was his grandmother's death anniversary. His parents were reluctant but gave in after his constant pleading.

He had come to the temple with the driver alone. He had asked the driver to wait for him in the car while he went to do the prayers.

Colt spotted the silver car parked across the road. His driver was probably sleeping inside the car while waiting for him.

Just as he was about to cross the road, he felt a sharp pain in his chest. He looked down and saw blood oozing out of his body. He fell on his knees in pain. He was losing control of his body as it hit the concrete footpath. His vision slowly started turning blurry before it went dark.