Distant Signals: The Love Between Us

Chapter Two

At first, Kongpob simply couldn't help himself. Every time the hazers gave them an impossible task or expected them to be able to answer questions they reasonably wouldn't know, he felt an irresistible urge to speak up and challenge them. He hated seeing his friends and peers subjected to ridiculous expectations and then punished for being unable to meet them. It wasn't fair or just and at first, Kongpob had honed in on the head hazer as the main source of his growing frustration and resentment.

So, he'd provoked him on purpose.

"I just have to make you my wife."

Kongpob wasn't sure where that idea had come from, but it seemed like a logical follow up after he was told to yell "I like men" three times and ask around for a boyfriend.

Then, at the next gathering:

"No," Kongpob had said, "They sent their hearts to me only."

"Why did they send it to you only?"

"To replace my heart that was already given to you."

Another logical progression, another fierce response from his senior, though it was more controlled that time around.

Luckily, he didn't have to be the one that stood up to them every time, not with Wad picking fights with Prem, but that incident had just made Kongpob curious about what the hazers—or more specifically, Arthit—were going to do next.

That being said, Kongpob didn't agree with what the seniors were doing at all. They expected respect when they gave none. They expected obedience but refused to listen. On top of everything, their punishments were unduly harsh. Why did Arthit have to tear up May's name tag simply because Kongpob had forgotten her name? How was that a justifiable punishment? It wasn't, plain and simple.

At that time, he thought that all of the hazers were just giant assholes who abused their positions and as their leader, Kongpob placed most of the blame on Arthit. But then something happened that made him change his mind. Or rather, a series of peculiar behaviors that were at odds with the "mean head hazer" act.

First, it was the way Arthit rushed to help the girl who started hyperventilating and later went to check up on her. Next, it was the way he pretended like he hadn't nominated Kongpob for the Freshy contest and unconvincingly tried to backpedal once he was called out. Then, after acting haughty and dismissive, he turned around and gave them fruit.

These strange oddities only made Kongpob curious. What actually convinced him that the prickly head hazer was only pretending to be awful happened in the dead of night when he stumbled on what he could only describe as a secret hazer meeting. For some reason, Kongpob had thought the serious expression on his senior's face was kind of adorable. So was his reaction when Kongpob told him that.

It was why he couldn't resist teasing him after that. When Arthit finally explained why he was being punished all the time—which, okay, he could see their point about his heroics causing his peers to always expect someone to save them but that hadn't been his intention—Kongpob had thought back to the moment he'd asked for Arthit's signature and thought it strange.

"Wait, P'Arthit,' he'd asked, honestly curious. "When I asked for your signature, I wasn't acting like a hero. Why did you punish me?"

"Why do you think I did that?"

The idea that first came to mind caused a sly smile to tug at his lips and he watched Arthit's expression as he said, "I think...you have a crush on me."

Adorable. Absolutely adorable. Arthit had gaped at him, stupefied to the point of speechlessness, and he wondered if anyone else had ever seen that expression on his face.