I cried so much that my eyes were swollen for three days straight. Without Janephop by my side, it felt like something essential in my life had been ripped away, to the point where I could barely breathe.
Sometimes, I would call him for some task, momentarily forgetting that he was no longer there. And, upon remembering this, the tears would come back, repeating the cycle over and over, until my mother, seeing my state, could no longer bear it.
"Stop crying, In... Mommy's heart can't take it anymore."
"I want to stop too, Mom, but I just can't. Why did you and Dad have to be so cruel and send Jane away? You could have talked to him calmly."
"And if Jane hadn't left, would you have been able to face him? In, you said yourself that you couldn't accept his feelings."
My mother noticed immediately.
"But we could pretend that none of this happened..."
"That's something that people who run away from their problems do, my dear... It's better to accept reality. This will soon pass. Call a friend to come stay with you, so you won't feel so alone."
"But who would I call? I don't have any friends."
"Who doesn't have any friends?"
"Someone like me."
I said, discouraged. My mother looked at me with compassion and hugged me.
"Oh, my love, you must be forgetting someone, right?"
"Who, mom?"
"Surprise!"
My mother's "surprise" really made my tears stop. The sight that opened before me shocked me: Arun was standing right in front of me. I looked at my mother, confused, almost with my mouth open.
"Mommy brought a friend for you, Nong in. Now you can stop crying, my love."
"Mommy, how did you manage to bring Arun here?"
"Because I'm smart, pretty and resourceful, my dear. It just so happens that a friend of mine went to a very famous restaurant and took a picture, and by coincidence, Arun appeared in the background. See? It's fate!"
"And she just agreed to come?"
Arun didn't say anything, but I could imagine that out of consideration, she agreed out of respect for my mother, her former boss.
"Of course she would come. I told you that you were very sad, and you two are already quite close."
"?!"
Arun and I turned to my mother, surprised. She looked a little confused too.
"What's wrong? Did I say something wrong? Or was what I said inappropriate?"
"The context didn't work well, Mom."
"I just wanted to say that you two are really close, you know... Well, Arun is here now, so Nong In, don't ask so many questions. Arun, please take care of my girl. She's a poor thing: besides beauty and money, she has nothing else in this life. Stay here and talk, while I send someone to bring some snacks."
"Do you want to talk right here?"
I asked, pointing to my room. My mother nodded with a smile.
"Do you want to talk at Suphachalasai Stadium? Too big, don't you think?"
"We'll talk right here, mother. Thank you."
My mother left, closing the door to leave us alone. We stood there, trapped in an uncomfortable silence, until I, trying to lighten the situation, bit my lip lightly and invited her to sit on the bed.
