Distant Signals: The Love Between Us

Chapter Twelve

Groaning, Arthit grabbed his phone and shut off the shrill alarm before slamming it back onto the table. He rolled onto his side and wrapped his arms around Kongpob's waist, pulling him close and nuzzling against his chest.

"Arthit," whispered Kongpob. "You need to wake up."

"Why?" He tightened his grip on the other man. "The Goblin King's dead. What do we need to wake up for? Ten more minutes."

Kongpob chuckled softly and kissed his forehead. "You said that ten minutes ago. We can't stay in bed forever. You know that, right?"

Arthit whined and hid his face. "Ten more minutes."

His alarm went off again, but this time he couldn't ignore it completely. Arthit slowly opened his eyes and Dream-Kongpob disappeared, replaced by one of his pillows. He huffed and pushed it away, trying to ignore the strange tightness in his chest. He'd woken up like this two mornings in a row now, specifically ever since Kongpob came over for tutoring, and it left a bitter, dissatisfied taste in his mouth that he couldn't quite explain. The only good thing was that Dream-Kongpob had helped him beat that Goblin King to a bloody pulp and then cuddled with him afterward, an activity they both seemed to enjoy immensely.

Arthit turned on his side. Did Real-Kongpob like to cuddle? He certainly looked like the cuddling type...Whoa, wait. Arthit blushed and covered his face with his hands, mortified at his own traitorous mind. What did it matter if Kongpob liked to cuddle or not? In all actuality, if anyone tried to hold him the way Dream-Kongpob did, Arthit would probably tense up, turn bright red, and try to escape regardless of whether or not he actually wanted to be held. Gross. It was too embarrassing—and even more so was wondering whether his enemy of a junior liked to cuddle or not.

His phone went off again, but rather than his alarm, it was a phone call. Arthit snatched it off the table, swiped to answer the call, and snapped, "What?" into the phone with far more venom than originally intended.

"Well, hello to you too," replied Knot, an uncharacteristic note of sarcasm in his voice.

"Sorry, Knot. I just woke up. What's up?"

"I was just calling to check up on you. How are your legs? You said you were going to come to class today, but do you need me to pick you up?"

"No, I'm well enough to take my bike to class. It's not that far." Probably. His ankle still ached a bit when he put too much pressure on it, but not enough to give him much trouble unless he overdid it. "But can you give me a ride later? P'Tum and P'Fon are hosting a line-mentor dinner tonight, but it's a bit far and I don't want to walk that much. Or deal with taking a bus."

"Yeah, I can do that. But can you really bike to class? Arthit, you've only rested two days."

"I can do it." A weighty, apprehensive silence followed, and Arthit sighed. Considering how exhausted he still felt despite having slept for most of Wednesday and Thursday, Knot was probably right. He wasn't well, which was to be expected, but he didn't want to miss any more of classes or hazing activities. After all, there wasn't much left for the latter. "Okay, fine," he said. "Pick me up. But...Knot, can you do me another favor?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"Today's the last freshman gathering before the flag event. Can you lead it?"

"How come?"

"I'm just really tired."

"Are you getting sick?"

"No, I don't think so." He hoped not. The coughing and issues with his legs had come about due to overexertion, and he didn't want to catch a cold on top of it. "I just don't feel up to it yet."