Autumn is a second spring

108. Task

Boun sat at his desk, rubbing his face harshly, hoping it would help clear his mind. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't focus. His thoughts were clouded with the memory of his fight with Ohm. He hadn't meant to hit him—it just happened.

He replayed the moment over and over again, trying to make sense of it. Ohm had said he wanted to cut ties with his parents. 

Boun simply couldn't understand why. Weren't parents supposed to be the most important people in one's life? No matter how difficult things got, wasn't family supposed to stick together?

 When Kao had intervened and told Boun that it was Ohm's decision and they should respect it, instead of trying to talk him out of it, Boun had felt utterly lost. He felt like there was something happening beneath the surface, something he wasn't privy to.

For the first time, Boun felt like an outsider.

Ohm, Ann, and Seth had never made him feel like one before. From the day he was adopted into the Ritprasert family, they had treated him as their own, never letting him feel like he wasn't their real son. But now, everything felt off. 

The warmth that had always been there was overshadowed by something he couldn't quite grasp. Was he truly a part of this family, or had he just been fooling himself all these years?

Boun let out a heavy sigh and decided to clear his mind with a cup of coffee. He made his way to the café, hoping the quiet would offer some peace. Just as he was about to step inside, he caught a glimpse of a group of his employees huddled together, whispering amongst themselves. The moment they noticed him, they froze. 

Boun narrowed his eyes and called them over. "I saw you hiding. Come out here all of you."

The employees exchanged uneasy glances before reluctantly stepping forward. One of them quickly nudged Meg, pushing her toward Boun. She shot them a glare but knew there was no way out of this.

"What is going on? Why are you all here?" Boun asked, crossing his arms.

Meg hesitated for a moment before answering, "Well... We just found out about James' ex getting married day after tomorrow and thought that it would be a good day to execute our plan on cheering James up. So, we were kind of planning a special surprise for James."

Boun raised an eyebrow. "A surprise?"

Meg nodded. "Yes. And since you promised before that you would take part in it, we were wondering if you would like to join us in the planning now."

Boun let out a small chuckle. He did need a distraction from his thoughts and couldn't focus on work either, so he agreed readily. "Fine, I will join you all. What are you planning?"

"We have a few options to pick from. Nothing is finalized yet," Meg grinned and gestured for him to follow. 

The employees led him to an unused room in the office—a storage space filled with old furniture. Boun frowned. "Why are we having a meeting here?"

"To keep P' James from finding out that we are planning a surprise for him," Rang explained.

Boun nodded, his gaze shifting to Pae, who sat in the center with two bowls in front of her. She held them up with a mischievous smile. "Here is the deal: One bowl contains the names of everyone present here, and the other contains tasks that we need to do. Whoever's name is drawn will have to do whatever task is picked. The others will be in charge of helping the selected person complete the task perfectly."

Boun sighed but nodded in agreement along with everyone else.

Pae shook the first bowl, closed her eyes, and pulled out a slip of paper. The room was silent as she unfolded it. A second later, she grinned widely and announced, "Khun Boun Kha!"

The employees erupted in cheers, clapping and laughing as Boun stood up with a resigned expression.

Pae then shook the second bowl and held it out for him. "Go on, pick your task."

Boun reached in and pulled out a piece of paper, unfolding it. The moment he read the words, his face twisted in disbelief.

"There is no way I am doing this."

Everyone's cheers turned to confusion. Pae snatched the paper from his hands and read it aloud: "Get on your knees and propose to James."

A stunned silence followed, then Pon broke it by asking, "Why not?"

"It just doesn't feel right," Boun said firmly. He didn't really like the idea of proposing to anyone other than his Pao.

Pae crossed her arms. "Come on, Khun Boun. We all know you are madly in love with Khun Prem. Nobody here is going to take this proposal seriously. It's just a fun way to cheer James up."

Meg chimed in, "Yeah, James will understand it's just for fun as well. And this won't be leaving our department. No outsiders will know of this. We promise."

Boun still looked hesitant.

Rang smirked. "Khun Boun, just think of it as a practice run for when you propose to Khun Prem for real."

The employees murmured in agreement, nodding encouragingly. Boun ran a hand through his hair, his lips pressed into a thin line. 

After a long pause, he exhaled deeply and said, "Fine. But on one condition—no one records it. No photos, no videos."

He couldn't risk it. Other than the fact that it would be whole scandal if those photos or videos got out, he was worried that Prem would misunderstand the situation. 

He had been feeling guilty that he had impulsively asked James to move in to their place after finding out that James was being harassed by his ex-boyfriend and fiancé, without consulting with Prem first.  But when Prem said that he was okay with the idea when Boun explained the situation to him, he was more than relieved. This showed how much his Pao trusted him and he didn't want to break that trust for completing a random task.

"Deal!" Pae agreed immediately, and the rest of the employees cheered.

"Don't worry Khun Boun. We will get everything ready for you. All you will have to do is to propose."

Boun shook his head with a sigh, already regretting this decision. But deep down, he couldn't help but be a little amused.

If nothing else, at least it would be a distraction from the thoughts plaguing his mind.