Autumn is a second spring

113. Plan

"Damn!" Boun rubbed his temples and let out a long sigh as he glanced at the time on the clock hanging on the wall. The morning sun had already begun to pierce through the curtains, bathing the room in a warm glow. He couldn't believe it. He had stayed up the entire night. Again. Planning. Thinking. Obsessing.

All over a proposal.

He chuckled to himself, running his fingers through his disheveled hair. "What are you doing, Boun?" he muttered, shaking his head. 

The entire fake proposal event at the office had stirred something in him—it had sparked an idea, a realization, and then it snowballed into a full-blown mission: to give Prem the proposal of a lifetime.

It should not be too flashy—Prem wouldn't like that. But not too simple either. Something personal. Unique. A story to tell their grandchildren, he thought with a smile. 

He had drafted dozens of ideas, filtered them one by one, made bookings, checked availability, even had a few mock scripts written. His excitement had driven him through the night.

He rolled onto the bed and stared up at the massive photo frame above the headrest. It was his favorite picture of them—Prem leaning against his shoulder, both smiling at the camera, looking like they had the world at their feet.

This was one of Prem's most favorite photos, the one they had taken the last time they went out on a mini date. Boun had especially had it framed and hung it on their bedroom wall as a surprise for Prem.

"You probably think I am losing my mind, huh?" Boun whispered at Prem's image, letting his eyes linger on Prem's peaceful expression in the photo. He sighed again, the smile fading. "I miss you, Pao. I miss you so damn much."

Boun suddenly felt an overwhelming urge to talk to Prem. He at least wanted to hear Prem voice, even if they couldn't be physically together.

He reached for his phone on the bedside table and stared at the screen for a few seconds before tapping Prem's contact. It had been days since they had a proper conversation. Texts here and there. A couple of late-night voice messages. But that wasn't enough. Not for him.

He pressed the call button. The phone rang once, then twice.

"The number you have dialed is not available at the moment. Please try again later..."

Boun frowned. He hung up and redialed. Again, the same robotic message. And again. And again.

His heart clenched with irritation. "Where on earth did the crew take you for this shoot that I can't even get a signal through?"

Suddenly, he thought of Sammy, Prem's manager, Boun quickly opened her contact. If anyone knew Prem's location, it had to be her. If it was in some distant place, he could always make time to go visit Prem in the shooting location.

Just as the line connected, a groggy but distinctly irritated voice answered.

"Boun! Do you realize Sammy is already in her third trimester and doesn't need people bothering her at dawn?"

Boun blinked. "P' Ton? Shit. Sorry, Phi. I didn't realize that it was so early and that she would still be asleep. I was just in a hurry."

"Yeah. She has a hard time falling asleep these days." Boston grumbled, but he didn't sound genuinely mad. "What about you? Why are you up so early? What's going on? Why the early morning call?"

"I was trying to find out where Prem's shoot is. I thought I would give him a surprise visit. Its been so long since I saw him and I miss him like crazy"

There was a pause. Then, Boston's voice shifted, confused. "Wait. Prem's not with you?"

"If he was, I wouldn't be calling you, would I?" Boun replied, his laugh lacking any humor.

"Sammy told me Prem was taking time off work and that she dropped him at your place yesterday."

Boun sat up straighter. "What? Our place? He is not here, Phi. He hasn't been home for days."

"That can't be. I am telling you what I heard. Sammy clearly told me that she had picked Prem up from the airport and had dropped him at your place. She told me that you had already lefy for work when she dropped him home. Did you two not meet?"

"No, Phi. I couldn't even get through the call."

"Should I wake Sammy and check with her? Maybe she knows something"

"No, no need Phi," Boun quickly replied. "Don't wake her. She must be really tired. Maybe Prem had an emergency or something and left. I will check and call you if anything comes up."

As the call ended, Boun stared at the phone screen, confusion and unease churning in his chest. Something wasn't right.

He opened the home surveillance app and scrolled through the previous day's footage. Sammy's car pulled into the driveway around mid-morning. Prem stepped out, smiling, pulling his luggage with one hand. He looked... happy.

Boun's confusion deepened. Prem had come home.

Then where did he go?

He threw the blanket off and hurried downstairs to the security monitor room, determined to go through the footage in detail. As he reached the bottom of the stairs, he nearly collided with Koi, who had just arrived for work.

"Whoa! N' Boun, up already? That is really rare when N' Prem's around," Koi teased.

"P' Koi," Boun said quickly, "did you see Prem yesterday?"

Koi nodded, surprised. "Yeah. He was in such a good mood. Kept humming while cooking. He made your favorite dishes and even packed lunch to bring you at the office. Said he was going to surprise you. Why? Did something happen?"

Instead of answering her, Boun asked "He said he was going to my office?"

"Yes. N' Prem left around lunchtime. He also mentioned picking up Bew from kindergarten afterwards."

Boun stared at her, his chest tightening. "Thanks, Phi."

He walked past her, his steps slow and heavy. He was sure now. Something was wrong. Prem had come home. He had been happy. He had made plans. And then he disappeared.

The idea that Prem might be in trouble twisted in his gut. Boun's instincts screamed at him, that uncomfortable, gnawing feeling of something about to go horribly wrong. He didn't want to jump to conclusions. Not yet.

But he had to find him. And he had to do it now.