BLANK ซีรีส์ 2024 (Original Story)

CHAPTER EIGHT: Confidence

It's been three days. A-Nueng disappeared after I kicked her out because I was frustrated. Honestly, the first day the cheerful child didn't appear, I didn't feel anything. Luckily I wasn't being watched or having to listen to that annoying nasal tone of voice. But when it was the second day, and this is the third day. The silence is getting closer to me.

I'm not lonely. Let's get this straight.

I'M NOT LONELY. I'm just a little worried because someone I see everyday has disappeared. It made me think about all the bad things that could happen to A-Nueng. So, here I am, looking through the school gates, the bell rings to signal that school is over. This is not strange at all.

How could this be unusual? I'm just here to make sure she's safe. After I see it, I will go home. I'm "Nueng", who doesn't care about anything in this world.

The smells of children's daily experiences at school. It was the accumulation of odors by children who would grow into working adults. We can also call it "student smell". That makes me dizzy. I glanced at the people around me and saw male students lined up at the fence as if everyone was waiting to see a celebrity.

There used to be boys lining up at the fence waiting for me like this. Ahh, I miss my old, glorious days. I got a lot of candy and flowers when I was a student here. Wait. The boy next to me looked familiar.

"Hey."

I called out to the person beside me who was the origin of the "student smell" I was talking about. The boy with acne on his temples was shocked and was about to run away.

"Where are you going?"

"Ouch!"

The boy was tall, but looking at his eyes, he was maybe a little shorter than me. I grabbed his backpack, which caused him to lose his balance. He slowly turned his head to look at me.

"W-why are you pulling me? Have we met before?"

"Aren't you the boy who lives on the same street as me?"

It took me a while to recognize him. And when I asked that, the boy closed his eyes tightly, like someone who was caught committing a crime.

"Yes."

"Why are you running from me?"

"I.."

"You followed A-Nueng home that day, right?"

His face turned pink. He may be a very shy person. He couldn't stop ducking and dodging. He likes her but doesn't dare show himself because he's afraid of being disappointed.

"I apologize."

"Why?"

I raised my hand to accept his apology and let go of his backpack before I turned back to peek at the girl.

"You didn't do anything wrong."

"Auntie doesn't think I'm scary?"

"Who are you calling Auntie?"

I glanced at the person who called me that, displeased. Calling me as if we were close, even if it was out of respect or not knowing what to call me, to me was unacceptable.

"Y-you."

"Call me, Khun Nueng. I'm not your Aunt."

"Yes, ma'am. Khun Nueng."

"Are you waiting for someone? So you waiting for A-Nueng?"

"Yes."

"Every day?"

It's a little strange that I'm trying to talk to this boy because I don't usually approach someone first.

"Yes, every day."

"How long have you been interested in her?"

When I asked directly, the boy's face turned as red as a tomato. He swallowed so hard that I could see his Adam's apple moving.

"Since I was in second grade."

"Does A-Nueng know that there is someone waiting for her at the fence because he is interested in her?"

"I don't think so."

"You've never shown yourself?"

"Never."

"Why?"

"I wasn't confident enough to do it. I was afraid she would hate me."

I glanced at the boy before laughing a little. Does what he does everyday make things better? If you know that you will lose or be unfit from the start, you should not enter the field of play. That's annoying.

"If you know that you are not worthy, just leave. There is no room for losers in this world."

"Who am I competing with?"

I immediately turned to him when he asked that, and like that. I thought the red-faced boy looked away. He stood with his backbent. Lack of self- confidence ruins his good personality.

"Compete with people who are more confident than you, of course. And in the end he was the one who won, while you can only imagine A-Nueng's face when you helped yourself."

"What!?"

I shrugged nonchalantly. What I said was natural, so I didn't think too much about it. All boys do that. Anyway, there's no point in talking about it any further, so I'll just talk about what I want to know.

"Has A-Nueng been at school for the past three days?"