Surprisingly, the current awkward atmosphere persisted for quite some time. Tay and I each played with our phones or watched TV in the living room upstairs. He played the game with a frown on his face. The background sound of the game and the sound of the cookies running around muddled the sound of the television, but he did not ask for a heart for some reason. Finally, I sent a heart by first looking at Tay. He remained silent with a scowl on his face.
His older brother and sister arrived at the house upstairs less than two hours after we had finished dinner. It was still awkward, and I didn’t ask if Tay was upset with me. Was it because I was discussing what happened at school? Still, I thought about it as much as I could on my own and only said that it was fine for his older brother to listen…
“Guys.” His sister spoke up and entered through the upstairs doorway. I sat up on the sofa, drooping, and straightened myself.
“Yes?”
“I’m going with my brother. What are you going to do?”
“Are you going to leave already?”
Tay didn’t answer at all, and I asked instead.
“Since it’s the end of the year, I’m going to go out. I’m just stopping by for a quick meal. I heard Tay's grades on the GAT were excellent. I came here to make fun of you because you are the only one in our family attending a good university.”
“Oh…”
Tay was teased by his older sister, but he only said, “Ah, don’t do it.”
His older brother who was standing next to his sister also said, “If you want something to eat, tell me. Let me treat you.” Then he added, “There’s a place here that does good sashimi; would you like to deliver? I thought seeing him sip soju after eating sashimi would make him look like a real adult."
When I couldn’t say anything, Tay looked at me with a wrinkled face and answered his older brother harshly.
“Just go, we’ll take care of it.”
His older brother and sister, who had been asking me if I wanted anything to eat before they left, eventually gave up and left the house. It became awkward again as the loud voice disappeared. I was becoming increasingly troubled as I looked into his eyes. Tay watched me fidget with my fingers intertwined, then moved his gaze slowly.
“New Thitipoom.”
“…Yeah?”
“Do you want me to order sashimi? The place my brother said earlier.”
“Well…”
After a moment’s hesitation, I asked.
“Then are you going to drink?”
Tay smiled at that moment.
“You are so cheeky.”
Still, he wasn’t in a bad mood, so he looked at his phone with a more cheerful expression than before. He began using the delivery app one day because he always spends time with me. Originally, I was told that he didn’t order delivery food, but he could now do so quite well. I sat next to him, fiddling with my phone and resting my cheek on his shoulder.
Tay, who used to stiffen his body, was now used to pulling out the arm I was leaning against, wrapping my head, and stroking my cheek.
“Shall we eat this?”
“Yeah… these two.”
Tay placed his cell phone next to him after we had finished selecting a menu and ordered. I thought he was upset about something until now, but seeing what he was doing now made me wonder if I was mistaken. He positioned his body at an angle, and I landed on him. He grabbed my cheek with one hand tightly.
