Sun & Sea - Book 2

Sun & Sea - Escape and explanations_2

But Arthit wasn't done. He was clenching his teeth and fists, and it looked like it was taking so much strength for him to say the next sentence.

"And, since you're the one who kidnapped Saifah, am I right in thinking you were the one to set fire to our home?" He spitted out.

Talay was taken aback, stunned. Saifah had rolled into a ball a bit further from them and was lulling himself back and forth, afraid by the interactions between his P's.

Seeing that Talay wasn't answering anything, Arthit pushed more, tears streaking down his face, veins tense in his neck.

"You were also the one who attacked my parents that night, weren't you? You're the reason why my father is dead! Murderer!" He threw himself at Talay once more to shower him with hits, but this time, Talay wouldn't let it pass. He sidestepped and caught Arthit's stretched arm, twisting it in his back in the same movement, Arthit's weight driving him to the floor.

Arthit was mad like a fire. His face was reddened by his anger, and if they could have, his eyes would send bolts of lightening to pierce Talay's body. But he was fighting the sea, liquid and uncatchable.

"What are you gonna do, now? Threaten me, so I would repay you? Kill me, like those guys wanted to do?" Arthit didn't understand what passed through Talay's eyes at that moment, but if he had been a spectator of the scene, he could have seen that it was the same expression as he had had himself before. Pain coming from a lack of trust, the kind that leaves you crippled.

The realization that there was such a deep gap between them that none of them could ever step back to the other. They were standing two worlds apart from each other. It hit so hard.

Talay let go of him slowly, staggering.

"It's not like that, it's not like that...," he murmured, passing a hand upon his face, his vision turned black.

"P'Lay saved me!" The small crystal voice interjected. Saifah had gotten up and was tugging at Arthit's clothes.

"What do you mean, Nong Fah, he kidnapped you! He imprisoned you! He's not a hero, he's the villain!" Arthit spat out, his words like poison, spreading through Talay's mind, each sentence a new stab.

"But that's not true, P'Arthit," Nong Fah pouted, "he saved me from the fire. And he put me in this room so the bad people wouldn't hurt Nong Fah."

Arthit looked back at Talay. "If this is true, why didn't you bring him back to us? He would have been safe with us!"

Talay slowly shook his head, not daring moving more. "He wouldn't have," he said with a hoarse voice. They would have searched for him. They may have beaten him up for the sake of revenge, like they did your father and mother. I'm so sorry for your father. I'm so sorry I didn't know."

Arthit didn't understand a single word of Talay's gibberish: he was still under the influence of his complex emotions and Talay wasn't making sense either. Somehow, he still wanted to hear what Talay had to say. He know he should cut ties with him, grab Nong Fah and run away, but... A part of him wanted so badly to believe that Talay wasn't this villain.

Talay gathered his strength, and tried, beginning with the hardest part:

"You're right, it was me who set fire to your house."

"You!" Howled Arthit, jumping at him, pushing Saifah aside, who fell on the ground with a sob. "Nong Fah!" Arthit exclaimed, rushing back to him. "I'm so sorry, Nong Fah, P'Arthit isn't himself right now, I'll try to be a better brother, don't cry, now, please?" He said, wiping Nong Fah's cheeks.