Chapter 1 Coughing Comrade
Kinny had been friends with Veetara since their freshman year. They first met at the pharmacy building because they had to take a 'Food for Health' class together. Veetara was studying languages, while Kinny (back when she was still Anakin Skywalker) was studying engineering. Not long after, Kinny switched majors to be in the same faculty as Veetara. Veetara graduated a year earlier, making her somewhat of a senior.
Kinny wasn't sure when her parents realized she wanted to be Padmé Amidala more than Anakin. So, when she confessed to her parents that she wanted to be a woman with a busty chest like Veetara, her parents didn't seem surprised or shocked. Her dad just took a few sips of water while her mom nodded but couldn't help but complain, "We almost had Veetara as our daughter-in-law."
"Almost what, Mom!" Kinny turned to make a face to Veetara, who was laughing awkwardly.
"So, no surgery on the lower part?"
"Nope."
"But you're going to do to boobs job?"
"Yup," Kinny nodded while discussing cosmetic surgery with her best friend.
Veetara supported Kinny in everything and firmly assured her that she could be whatever she wanted to be, including changing her name to 'Kinny' after getting her boobs done.
One day, Salee sat down next to her and cautiously asked about it, probably out of curiosity and a desire to understand her. Kinny wasn't the type to be outspoken about personal matters; she was quite shy about them. She was only confident regarding other people's issues, teaching, and English. So, she told Salee to ask Veetara instead (Kinny was close enough to Salee to let her know but too shy to say it herself). She was confident that it'd be a good way to avoid the topic and ensure that Veetara would provide Salee with the correct information on how to approach someone like her and what questions were appropriate. Veetara handled it well but was a bit too straightforward, telling Salee everything about how Kinny dealt with her body and her thoughts on it.
It was as if Salee had injected Veetara with a truth serum.
At first, Kinny didn't understand the strange vibe between these two women.
Let's just say they were both nonsense.
Starting with Salee.
Salee used to be Veetara's younger brother's girlfriend, and now she was loudly proclaiming around the office, "I'm her future wife, but Khun Jae just doesn't know it yet!" after getting her fortune told by a famous fortune teller in Khlong San district and believing it wholeheartedly. Upon questioning witnesses, they said Salee had gathered a group from the office to eat at Lat Ya Road, then took a mini-bus to Khlong San Pier because they weren't full yet. That's when Salee encountered the fortune-teller who beckoned her over, probably because she looked gullible. She sat down, blinking her eyes, letting the fortune-teller read the cards for several minutes.
"Then the fortune-teller said..." Onanong, who was present at the time, cleared her throat before quoting the fortune-teller verbatim, "I see! I see that you're going to have your boss as your husband!"
Kinny choked on her morning coffee, coughing violently.
"Have the boss as a husband?!"
"Yes."
"And she believed it?"
"Of course, she did... as you can see now."
Everyone glanced at Salee, who was bothering other people's desks and told them, 'Soon enough, I'll be the boss's wife. So, you better start treating me well, P' Aof.'
Poor Veetara!
Kinny thought to herself, amused, until she later realized that the fortune teller Salee believed in was the top one in Khlong San (the same popular fortune teller at the one in Si Phraya), who'd even read the fortune for the former governor's wife and was known for her accuracy.
If the fortune teller is that accurate, it's Veetara's misfortune!
Salee's nonsense didn't end there; there was so much of it that it was hard to keep track.
For instance, Salee was half a prankster, enjoying annoying people, arguing, and winning like a child who never grew up. But the other half was incredibly kind, caring about everyone around her to the point of knowing everything about everyone—who was sick, whose dog was ill, who forgot to eat breakfast, who lost an earring two days ago. Salee knew it all and never stayed idle. She always helped everyone as much as she could. That's why people in the office couldn't decide whether to hate or love this troublemaker.
That was what the boss, who was unknowingly going to be Salee's husband, according to the fortune teller, felt, too.
Salee managed to annoy Veetara every day.
Last Saturday morning, the two of them were arguing about something as trivial as how to pick mangosteen. Salee said to 'look at the bottom first' to find the one with the most segments, while Veetara said to 'just pick the big ones' and not waste time counting segments. Kinny excused herself from listening to the rest of the argument because it was too annoying.
By the time Kinny finished teaching her afternoon class, the two of them had already made up because Veetara was incredibly low-tech. The new phone Veetara had just bought had so many functions she didn't know how to use. She got frustrated whenever she tried to adjust the settings because she didn't know why the notification numbers weren't showing on the app icons. When Salee came back from buying pickled olives from Aunty Aeow's shop, Veetara called her over to fix the problem (according to Onanong). Salee fiddled with the phone for less than a minute, and Veetara's forty-thousand-baht phone, which Veetara used like a three-hundred-baht one, was back to normal.
"Jae Vee was so pleased she rewarded Salee with a pink Faber-Castell marker," Onanong recounted.
What is it with these two and Faber-Castell pen?! Kinny couldn't help but frown.
But even though they made up, it didn't mean they'd stay that way. Soon enough, Veetara was shouting, "Who changed the contact names on my phone?!" After scrolling through her contacts, she found that Salee's name had been changed from just 'Salee' to 'Salee loves Khun Jae. Call me if you're lonely, my sweetheart <3' with a photo of herself taken while she was adjusting the phone settings.
"Only one person touched your phone," Onanong reminded her. When Veetara realized, she shouted, "Salee!!" for the millionth time, but the little troublemaker girl had already run off.
Other trivial nonsense that Kinny could remember included Salee's birthday, which coincided with July 4th, so she celebrated both her birthday and US Independence Day, even though she wasn't half-American, didn't hold American citizenship, and had no connection to the United States other than liking Hollywood movies and having Emma Stone as her favorite actress.
Then there was the fact that she couldn't ride a bicycle but could easily ride a modified Wave motorcycle belonging to one of the male students.
Kinny could understand the doctor might drop Salee on the floor after her birth, making her grow up to be such a quirky, nonsensical person. But her friend, Veetara, was acting even stranger.
Because Veetara had always been strict and disciplined, excelling in both academics and extracurricular activities. She was so disciplined that she woke up early every morning to run on the treadmill to maintain her fit and sexy body. So, having someone like Salee constantly around should've annoyed Veetara to the point where they couldn't coexist in the limited space of the office. Kinny predicted that Veetara would have a reason to fire Salee within three months.
But no...
Salee had been working for over a year, and all her body parts remained intact.
When Kinny curiously asked why Veetara decided to keep the mischievous girl around, she nonchalantly replied, "Because she's really good at teaching." And if she waited a while and asked again, her friend would switch to saying, "Because she's a referral from Best," leaving Kinny even more puzzled about the real reason Veetara allowed Salee to continue working.
Kinny couldn't figure it out because Veetara wasn't easy to read. At least she was naturally tight-lipped, never revealing her true feelings. Even when her boyfriend of three years threatened to break up with her in front of Aunty Aeow's shop, Veetara only said, "Then just break up," after he complained that she was always working, never had free time, wasn't sweet enough, and didn't consider his feelings. (And that Veetara was too capable for a woman.)
Veetara was undoubtedly an independent woman.
But she believed that her friend must've felt some pain and regret. However, she never spoke about it and never showed any signs of hurt. Even Kinny only found out from Aunty Aeow three days later, "Veetara broke up with that guy right in front of my shop. I almost couldn't sell anything after that!" However, Salee knew the news faster than anyone but kept her mouth shut, not making a fuss as usual.
Before Kinny realized it, she saw the little one clinging to Veetara like a playful puppy.
"So annoying! Go away!" Veetara complained repeatedly. Every time she moved to the left, Salee followed. When she moved to the right, Salee followed again. It was enough to give anyone a headache. Kinny noticed that Veetara did nothing but wave her hand to shoo Salee away. Kinny propped her chin on her hand, raising an eyebrow as if she understood the nonsense between the two a bit more.
It was raining heavily today.
Luckily, it was Saturday. Otherwise, the kids who had to travel for extra classes after school would've been soaked.
Veetara closed the window blinds and walked out to check on everyone in the office. If the morning instructors were stuck in the rain or couldn't make it on time, she'd send someone else to teach the class to avoid wasting time. Everyone was present except for Little Trouble, who hadn't shown up yet.
"Has Salee arrived?"
"Haven't seen her yet, Jae," Aof said.
"Call her," Veetara ordered Aof calmly, leaving the young man confused but obedient. Meanwhile, she pretended to walk around the office, inspecting things. When Aof shook his head and replied, "She's not answering," Veetara frowned, thinking about how to scold Salee for being late. Just then, the person she was thinking about walked in, drenched, with water dripping from her skirt onto the floor that Aunty Oun and the team had just cleaned yesterday.
"You look like a puppy after a rainstorm!" Aof pointed and laughed at Salee, joined by Kinny and others who took the opportunity to tease her. Veetara could only shake her head.
"Everyone, get back to work," Veetara grumbled, waving them away before going to her office to get a towel (kept for gym days) for Salee to dry herself.
"Couldn't avoid the rain?" Veetara asked while placing the towel on Salee's head. Salee explained that she took a motorcycle taxi as usual and should've arrived before the rain, but something unexpected happened.
"I lost my house keys," Salee said, looking downcast. "So, I had to ask the driver to stop."
It turned out that Salee, being chatty even with the motorcycle taxi driver, didn't pay attention and dropped her keys. She had to walk back to find them, which took a long time. Fortunately, the road there was quite small and only had small houses and shops. So, an elderly man reading a newspaper in front of his house found them and kept them for her.
"At least you got them back," Veetara said, taking the towel back when she noticed Salee wasn't making much effort to dry herself. Salee still looked like a sad puppy caught stealing food, prompting Veetara to ask more sternly, "What's with that face?"
"Well..."
There must be something.
"..."
"I..."
There's definitely something to this.
"Well, the keychain attached with the keys I dropped was from your desk, and now the Merlion tail is broken."
"..."
I knew it!
"..."
"You even took my keychain?!" Veetara scolded, switching from drying Little Trouble's hair with a towel to shaking her head in frustration until the towel slipped off, revealing Salee's guilty face. That's when Veetara stopped.
She clicked her tongue in annoyance, wanting to knock Salee's head but couldn't because she looked so pitiful, like Aof said, a sad puppy.
"Never mind," Veetara said, frowning. "It was free; it wasn't worth anything."
"..."
"And I never planned to use it anyway."
"..."
"Consider it yours."
"But it's broken."
"So what? Never mind that."
"But it looked expensive. What a shame."
Veetara put her hands on her hips, realizing Salee wasn't feeling guilty about taking her stuff but regretting the broken keychain.
This time, Veetara knocked Salee's head hard.
"Don't take anything from my desk without asking first!" she scolded, something she should've done long ago. Salee looked up, then quickly looked away and nodded slowly. Veetara sighed loudly, muttering, "If you want something, just ask. There is no need to sneak it," that's when Salee perked up.
"Really?"
"No... I mean- / Really?"
Veetara wanted to bite her tongue. With Salee's sweet face pressuring her, she couldn't refuse, fearing she'd look like a mean adult punishing a kid for asking for snacks. She nodded reluctantly, intending to clarify 'only things on my desk,' but Salee interrupted...
...by sneezing right in her face.
"..."
"..."
"Salee!" Veetara wiped the spit off her face as other people in the office started teasing, "Haha, Salee has a cold, Salee has caught a cold," which she didn't understand why it was something to tease about.
Salee was sick.
And so was Veetara.
Both started sneezing non-stop, then coughing the next day, and clearing their throats the day after. Everyone in the office suggested they take a day or two off. However, since they were stubborn, they were quarantined in a hazard zone: Veetara's office.
Salee got hit several times for spreading the germs, and Veetara was still mad about the Merlion keychain. She kept a sour face, answering curtly, making Salee hover around her desk, trying to get her attention. Salee ended up kneeling on the floor to see Veetara's face clearly.
Actually, Salee could only see her eyes because they were both forced to wear masks.
Salee remembered that Veetara always had stern eyes.
Well.
Yes...
She didn't just fall for Veetara now; she'd loved her since forever...
It started when she was a little girl with short hair in elementary school, where she played cops and robbers with the boys.
She first met Veetara in second grade.
Little Salee wasn't feeling well that day, so her parents let her take a day off. But instead of resting at home, she had to follow her mom to an all-girls high school because everyone had to work and didn't want to leave her alone. So, Salee had to hang around behind her mom's noodle shop in the cafeteria, which was too hot for a sick child. Luckily, she was usually healthy, though small, and didn't get sick often, so it wasn't too torturous to be behind the hot pots from dawn till afternoon.
Salee realized that day that her mom's noodles were very popular, probably because of the variety of toppings, like stewed pork, beef, spicy pork bones, fish balls, crispy pork, red pork, and large pieces of fried garlic and pork cracking. Her mom also sourced various noodles from everywhere, like thin, wide, yellow, green, glass, Chan, and Vietnamese noodles. Most kids flocked to Aunty Toom's shop as soon as the lunch bell rang.
Salee watched her mother boil noodles, prepare soup, and take orders from high school students all by herself. Feeling the urge to help, she got up and mumbled through her mask, "I'll take the orders." She then stood at the front of the shop, wondering how her mother could remember complicated orders like 'extra, small noodles with stewed beef, tom yum flavor, no peanuts, no soup, and less spicy.' It wasn't just one person who ordered such complex dishes; even with a pen and paper in hand, she had to ask customers to repeat their orders twice to get them right.
Finally, she reached the last person in line, who made her look up automatically because their order was simply, 'The usual.' It was much shorter than everyone else's.
That person was Veetara, whom she later learned was a regular customer who ordered the same every day, so her mother remembered.
"Mom, this person wants the usual," Salee shouted to her mother, who was still boiling noodles behind the pot.
"Who is it?"
"It's me, Aunty." Veetara leaned in so her mother could see her.
"Oh, it's you, Vee. Just wait a bit. There are only six orders ahead of you."
Salee blinked at Veetara, who was twelve years old, with fair skin, short wavy hair, beautiful eyebrows, and sharp eyes. Veetara nodded to her mother, then stepped back and looked down at Salee, asking, "Are you Aunty Toom's daughter?"
Salee nodded.
"Are you not feeling well?"
Salee nodded faster. Veetara then placed her hand on Salee's head and said, "Get well soon," before turning back to her group of friends who'd taken a table not far from her mother's shop. Salee watched her go, touching her own head.
That day was Salee's first impression of Veetara. It was the beginning of everything that led her to kneel, hold onto the edge of the table, and tilt her head to look at someone who seemed uninterested in anything. Veetara just sat there, checking work for almost an hour.
Of course, Veetara didn't remember her because, after that day, they only met a few more times. Until Salee decided to take the entrance exam for the same high school after finishing sixth grade, her kind Jae was already in the eleventh grade, becoming a well-known senior among the students. As for Salee, she was so ordinary that she was almost invisible, just secretly admiring Veetara like half the school.
"Don't you have a class to teach?" Veetara finally looked up and asked.
Salee smiled, but the mask hid it. "Yes, in twenty minutes."
"Then go prepare. Why are you sitting here?"
"Why can't I sit here?"
"Don't argue with me. My throat hurts!"
Salee wrinkled her nose at the person who claimed to have a sore throat but still managed to raise her voice and scold her.
"There's no sign saying I can't sit here."
"Salee!" Veetara pushed Salee's forehead, trying to get her to move away. But when her fingers touched Salee's skin, she paused, making Salee pause, too, not knowing what that reaction meant.
"You're hot," Veetara frowned, using her palm to feel Salee's forehead and the left side of the neck. "You're burning up."
"Because I'm not feeling well."
"I know that!" Veetara rolled her eyes, then got up, walked around the table, and pulled Salee out of the room. Others in the office started making noises, saying, "Ew! Sickies!" probably using the same logic as sticking out their tongues at someone with eye inflection, believing doing so would prevent them from the infection.
"Khun Jae, they're saying 'ew' to you!" Salee complained, but Veetara ignored it and dragged her to the parking lot, telling someone, "Cover Salee's class today."
"Where are you taking me to do some naughty things?" Salee asked innocently after being pushed into the passenger seat of a sleek Honda Civic. When Veetara answered, "To the hospital," and then showed her a fist after realizing what Salee had asked, Salee laughed so hard that Veetara frowned even more.
"Stop joking around!" Veetara grumbled while moving the car out to take her to the doctor. "Why did you come if you're not well? Did you use up all your sick days?"
"You're not well, too," Salee mumbled. "But you still came."
"I just have a sore throat. You have a fever!"
"Then don't shout if your throat hurts."
Veetara clicked her tongue in frustration when she couldn't beat Salee in the argument. She finally fell silent until they reached a private hospital that looked too luxurious. Salee knew the medical bills must be too costly, but she hesitated to tell Veetara that it was a waste of money. She thought she could just go to a local clinic. But Veetara seemed to understand and said, "The company pays for the bills," before handing her over to a nurse to register her as a patient.
After that, they went up the escalator to wait on a comfortable sofa in front of the medicine department.
"Does the company really pay for this?" Salee whispered to Veetara, who was reading a magazine. She remembered that the employment contract didn't mention covering all medical expenses beyond the set limit.
"Yes," Veetara replied without looking up from the fashion magazine.
"But I think it'll cost more than the company's limit. So—"
"It's alright."
Huh?
Salee scratched her head in confusion until Veetara turned to her, annoyed, and said, "I'm the company. I'm the one who pays. Stop asking."
Only then did Salee exclaim, 'Ooooooh,' and couldn't help but flatter and tease, "You're such a beautiful, sexy, and kind lady. This company is so great."
Veetara put down the magazine and slapped Salee's thigh, saying, "Stop joking around!"
Salee smiled, not correcting that she meant every word. She let Veetara frown until the nurse called them to see the doctor.
Salee was advised to rest, wipe her body with a wet cloth if it felt too hot, drink water, and take her medicine, which included cough syrup, fever reducer, and decongestant. Veetara got cough drops for her sore throat. These sounded normal, but the bill was still high, making Salee exclaim, "Wow."
"Over a thousand baht?" Salee murmured, peeking at the receipt in Veetara's hand.
"With service fees, the good environment, and convenience, it's about this much. It's worth not having to wait long."
"Well, that's just using money to solve problems."
"Exactly. If we have a better option, why choose the hard way?"
Well, yes. Salee thought so, as she couldn't argue. She just wrinkled her nose at the wealthy person while following her back to the car.
"Where do you live? I'll take you home," Veetara asked after buckling her seatbelt. Salee quickly shook her head, feeling more and more indebted to Veetara, who'd already taken her to the doctor and paid the bills.
"It's okay. Just drop me at the bus stop."
Veetara narrowed her eyes, suspicious because Salee usually tried to spend as much time alone with her as possible. So when she refused, Veetara wondered if she was up to something.
"My alley is quite small; it's hard for a car to move around," Salee explained. "And I plan to get something to eat before going home so I can take my medicine."
Veetara nodded but drove past the bus stop.
"Where are you taking me?"
"To get food."
Salee raised an eyebrow. "Are you hungry?"
"Do you need to be hungry to get food? What a silly question!"
Salee stayed quiet, smiling at the grumbling driver who was scolding her for her nonsense.
And today, Veetara brought that mischievous little girl to Talat Phlu, the market that sold a lot of food and goodies, to find something to eat before heading home.
But it seemed like Salee didn't realize she was sick. Instead of choosing porridge or something hot like noodles or soup, Little Trouble wanted shaved ice from a stall by the railway. She started whining, saying she'd be happy with just one bite since it only cost a few baht per bowl.
"I'll use my money to solve my craving for sweets."
"You're just creating more problems," Veetara said, pulling the younger girl's wrist to stop her from crossing the railway tracks to get shaved ice. She looked around for a while, still undecided on what to make Salee, who was chattering about palm seeds and coconut jelly, eat.
"Noodles or porridge?"
"Shaved ice."
The young woman clicked her tongue, then lightly tapped the forehead of the one who acted unreasonably. "Get better first, then you can have it."
"But..."
"Salee."
Salee pouted but eventually walked sulkily to sit in a noodle shop not far from Talat Phlu railway station.
"One bowl of meatball soup and one bowl of wide noodles with stewed beef and lots of fried garlic, please," Salee ordered from the old man behind the pot, making Veetara look up and raise her eyebrows.
"You're eating both?"
"No, I'm having the soup."
"And what about the other bowl..."
"It's for you, Jae..." The girl stopped mid-sentence as she looked up at Veetara sitting across from her. Veetara was more surprised because Salee knew she was about to order wide noodles with stewed beef and lots of fried garlic.
"How did you know... / Jae Kinny said you like wide noodles with lots of fried garlic!"
The mischievous girl quickly interrupted Veetara, looking suspicious.
Veetara squinted her eyes at Salee again, feeling that the girl's face looked oddly familiar. It was like Veetara had seen her somewhere before besides the office. But before she could ask or press further, the girl pretended to cough heavily like she was gravely ill, then took off her mask and turned to order from the old man again, "Uncle, can I have a bowl of rice too?" She was clearly hiding something, but Veetara didn't feel like asking anymore. At least Salee would forget about the shaved ice with coconut jelly, bread, and palm seeds from the stall on the other side.
You little trouble! Veetara thought as she watched the sick girl puff her cheeks with rice and smile sheepishly.
They ate for about half an hour, then walked around for a bit before heading back to the car parked in front of a convenience store just under the Talat Phlu bridge.
Veetara insisted on driving Salee home because it was getting dark. If she were to let the sick girl go home alone and she were to do anything strange because of her sickness at the bus stop, it'd be pitiful.
So she'd consider doing a good deed for the girl.
This time, Salee didn't refuse, probably because she was too full and sleepy to move. She only gave directions until they reached her house.
"Stop right there," the girl pointed to an electric pole, where there was enough space for the car to park.
"Is it far to walk in?" Veetara asked, glancing at the alley number sign.
Salee shook her head while unbuckling her seatbelt. "It's not far. It's just hard to make a U-turn."
"Okay," the older woman acknowledged. "Then go back home."
Hearing that, Salee gave her a wai, making Veetara instinctively extend her left hand to receive the gesture.
Both froze as if time had stopped. Then Veetara cleared her throat and said, "Take a day off tomorrow. Don't spread your germs to anyone else."
"I won't," Salee refused. And when the girl explained, "I want to see you, Khun Jae," Veetara felt like her ears were ringing, unable to hear anything clearly, and couldn't say a thing. She just watched Salee get out of the car with a tight feeling in her chest.
The young woman pressed her lips together, covered her face with her hand, and tried hard not to analyze any situation that might've happened or was about to happen.
She just felt...
Felt...
...
"Khun Jae!" The call and the sound of knocking on the window startled Veetara.
"What?!" the young woman pretended to snap after lowering the passenger-side window. Salee's running back had scared her, making her expect something she shouldn't. When the girl said, "I forgot my medicine bag!" Veetara finally understood how she felt.
She...
She felt like hitting thisgirl!
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