Accidentally Married

39. Knowledge

Sailom crossed his arms, staring pointedly at Aum. "So, Aum, care to explain how Jui knows about Fah's past?"

Aum, who was busy adjusting his phone case, froze mid-motion and frowned. "What do you mean by that, Phi?"

By  Sailom's visit, Aum had assumed that the former was here just to flirt with him as always and hadn't been interested in attending to him. But from the tone of his speech, Sailom's visit wasn't for a simple reason.

Sailom hadn't come alone today. He had brought Zo along. Both of them had come over directly from Jui's boutique after having send their mothers back home. The curiosity was getting the best out of them. 

Zo rolled his eyes, leaning against the counter. "Don't play innocent, Aum. Just spill it already."

"I am serious!" Aum protested, his brows knitting together. "I have no idea what you two are talking about. If you want answers, maybe try asking a clear question first."

Sailom and Zo exchanged knowing glances. Sailom sighed and leaned in closer. "Fine. We know it was you and Nai who pulled that stunt at Cherd's wedding. You are the reason the whole thing fell apart."

At that exact moment, Nai walked in, overhearing the accusation. His sharp voice cut through the tension. "Watch your tone, you two."

Zo muttered under his breath, "We were just asking Aum because we are curious."

They didn't mean to offend Nai or Aum. They were just too curious to care about his attitude. 

As people who grew up with a silver spoons in their mouths, they had never had to watch their manners or speak politely to their peers. 

Nai crossed his arms, his eyes narrowing. "Curious about what, exactly? Whatever it is, ask me, and I will answer. But don't go making baseless assumptions about Aum."

Zo didn't hesitate. "Alright, Nai. Why did you and Aum ruin Cherd's wedding?"

Nai glanced at Aum, who gave a subtle nod, before turning back to face Zo and Sailom's eager expressions. He took a deep breath, as if deciding how much to reveal. "Fine. You want the truth? The guy marrying P' Cherd—P' Phob—was Jui's ex-boyfriend."

Both Sailom and Zo's jaws dropped in unison. "What?!" they exclaimed.

"Yeah," Nai continued, his voice quieter now. "P' Phob and Jui dated for three years. Jui was head over heels for him until he caught P' Phob cheating on him—with P' Cherd." Nai's expression darkened as he spoke. "Jui was devastated. Completely broken. Aum and I were there to see him at his lowest."

Aum's usual playfulness was replaced with quiet anger. "So, when we found out that P' Phob and P' Cherd were getting married, we couldn't just sit back and let them play happy family. They deserved to be exposed for what they really are."

Sailom let out a low whistle, still trying to process the revelation. "Wow. That's intense."

Zo, however, wasn't done yet. "Okay, fine. That explains the wedding. But how does Jui know that Cherd was Fah's ex-girlfriend?"

Both Aum and Nai looked genuinely surprised by the question. "P' Cherd was P'Fah's ex?" Nai asked, his brow furrowing.

Sailom nodded. "Yep. Jui mentioned it today at the boutique. He told my mom that he was surprised she went to Cherd's wedding despite what Cherd did to Fah."

Aum straightened up, a look of alarm crossing his face. "Wait. Jui knows we all went to the wedding?"

"Yeah," Sailom said, scratching the back of his neck. "My mom mentioned it casually when she was talking about meeting you."

Both Aum and Nai groaned, simultaneously facepalming.

"We were trying to keep that a secret!" Nai muttered. "We didn't want Jui to know we went to that circus. It would have just upset him."

"How did he react?" Aum asked quickly, worry evident in his tone. "Was he mad? Did he glare at you or something?"

Sailom shrugged. "Honestly? He didn't seem upset at all. If anything, he was pretty chill about it. He even joined my mom and Aunt Gina to gossip about Cherd and Phob."

Nai and Aum exchanged confused looks.

"Well," Zo cut in, "that still doesn't answer the big question. How does Jui know about Cherd and Fah's past? If neither of you told him..."

"I have no idea," Aum admitted. "We didn't even know that P' Cherd used to date P' Fah."

"Same here," Nai added, looking genuinely puzzled.

At that moment, Saifah entered the room, his expression curious as he took in the tense atmosphere. "What is going on here?" he asked, his voice calm but firm.

Nai glanced at him. "Perfect timing. Fah, do you know Jui before?"

Saifah looked taken aback by the question. "Jui? No. Why? Did something happen?"

Zo quickly filled him in, explaining how Jui had brought up Cherd's connection to Saifah earlier.

Saifah's brows knitted together, his usual calm demeanor wavering slightly. "Wait a minute," he muttered, almost to himself. "Is that why Jui rejected me?"

His shock stemmed from the realization that Jui, someone he thought he barely knew, was aware of his past relationship with Cherd—a painful and private chapter of his life. It blindsided him, raising questions about how Jui found out and why he never mentioned it.

It unsettled him, as it raised questions about how Jui found out and whether it influenced Jui's rejection, leaving Saifah grappling with vulnerability and confusion.  This unexpected knowledge also fuels Saifah's growing doubts about Jui's rejection and its underlying reasons.

The room fell silent as everyone turned to stare at him.

The others were stunned upon learning that Saifah had confessed to Jui and was rejected. Sailom and Zo exchanged wide-eyed glances, shocked at the unexpected revelation.

"Wait, what?" Sailom asked, his voice breaking the stillness. "Jui rejected you?"

Aum and Nai looked equally surprised but quickly masked it with awkward coughs. 

Saifah didn't respond immediately, his mind racing as he tried to piece everything together. "This...makes sense now," he said quietly, almost to himself. "If Jui already knew about Cherd and me, maybe that's why he has been keeping his distance."

 Zo crossed his arms. "Okay, this just keeps getting messier. First Cherd, now Fah, and somehow Jui knows everything?"

Sailom sighed, rubbing his temples. "One thing is for sure—we need to figure out how Jui knows all this. Otherwise, we are just going to keep going in circles."

Everyone nodded in agreement, though the unanswered questions lingered in the air like a thick fog.

The air grew tense as everyone silently processed the implications, their curiosity about Jui's reasons deepening.