Rule No. 1: Don’t be too emotional : Chapter 32

We’re all moons. Sometimes our dark sides overshadow our light.

Richard Paul Evans

···

“Hey boy. Have we met before?” I jumped at the sound of a voice coming from beside me in the 24-hour convenience store. I was currently swallowed up in an oversized black hoodie, my identity carefully hidden, so I was terrified that someone actually recognized me.

I turned toward the voice and couldn’t believe who it was.

“Mr. Thomtoni?”

“Oh c’mon, that was too formal. Just call me John,” he said.” You’re that student who interviewed me about Harvard, right?” He smiled kindly.

I could only nod in response as John placed a can of coffee on the checkout counter.

“So, what are you doing at this gas station this late? Are you heading out of town?”

“Well… I wasn’t surprised by the question. This gas station was located far outside Bangkok, on a main route people usually take to travel to the provinces.

“Never mind. It’s none of my business.” He waved his hand quickly when he saw my hesitation.

“Anyway, it’s good to see you again.” The elderly American man, dressed like he was heading to the beach, turned to leave. In that moment, I shouted out to stop him.” Hang on, Mr John! Remember when I used to ask you about Jane Patrick Palakorn?” John froze. He turned back, his expression shifting to one of shock.” You’re still around that devil!?” I stepped closer to John, a flash of resentment rising within me. He called P’Jane a “devil,” yet he was the one who used P’Jane’s cunning to get his own daughter into Harvard-not to mention he was cheating on his wife with a student. How could he judge others without looking at his own faults? At least Jane never pretended to be a “good person.” He was a villain, but he was straightforward and honest about it. Meanwhile, John was acting like an innocent lamb despite his own dirty laundry.

“I just want to say… now I know everything.” I emphasized the word everything. John looked stunned, his face turning a shade of purple. I added, “Including your stories.”

“Actually, you’re quite lucky he let you go, aren’t you?” I grabbed my coffee, paid, and walked past him. But this time, it was John who followed me out, his voice loud and urgent.

“Do you even know about Jacky Ferguson?”

“His ex-partner? The one who took the LSATs for your daughter? Yes, I know,” I replied, keeping my face calm to show he couldn’t rattle me.

“And I know he’s in jail now.”

“Do you know who sent Jacky there?”

“Yes. It was Jane Patrick.” Nothing could surprise me anymore.

“And do you know what charge is keeping Jacky Ferguson in prison for the rest of his life?” I went quiet. That gave John the opening to flash a cold, mocking sneer.

“He killed a girl, and Jane Patrick helped him. After they split up, Jane used that to put Jacky behind bars alone.” “… !”

“Only a best friend knows a best friend’s darkest secret. You should keep that in mind, boy.” A tall figure, roughly 192 centimeters, paced back and forth, ignoring the pain in his leg. The young genius’s mind was racing. He was brilliant… he always knew what would happen and how things worked. But right now, Jenalee was rebelling against him, and that was something he could not accept. Suddenly struck by a thought, he limped to the desk and tapped the spacebar on the laptop Jenalee had left open. The screen lit up in the darkness. His “Nong Jane” was still as careless as ever-but then again, no one changes overnight. Jane Patrick took the liberty of entering the other’s Facebook after finding nothing on LINE. He clicked on the message box. Jane: Hey Phon, how’s it going? You doing okay? Teeraphon: Oh, hey! You’re not asleep yet? Hahaha. Jane: Can’t sleep. Saw you just posted a photo so I thought I’d message. The beach looks beautiful. Teeraphon: Hahaha, it’s right near my house. Just took it this evening. Jane: Wait, aren’t you in Melbourne? Teeraphon: I came back. Couldn’t handle the studies lol. I’ll probably look for a Uni here in Thailand for the next semester. Jane: That’s a shame. By the way, which province is your house in? Teeraphon: Prachuap

[Khiri Khan] .

Do you know Bang Saphan? You can visit during the break. Bring Gap too! Jane: I’d feel bad bothering your parents. Jane: My parents are chill. Just come! I haven’t seen you guys since high school. Jane: What if I wanted to go there… like, right now? Teeraphon: Are you serious? Lmao. Share your location and just come then!

I’m bored as hell anyway, nothing to do until next year. The tall figure immediately placed a call. He propped the phone against his left shoulder while scrolling through the Facebook profile of someone named Teeraphon Panchareon. After a few rings, a panicked voice answered.

[Hello? P’Jane? I’m in front of your boyfriend’s house now. I’m watching the place, but there’s no movement. I don’t think he came home. ]

“Stop watching. I know where he is now,” Jane said , his voice so flat it was chilling.

He spoke every word with absolute clarity.

“Mobilize everyone who owes me a debt. Search every route leading to that location. Watch the entire path. Check every rest stop. Whoever successfully brings Jane back to me… consider your debt cleared.”

[Are you serious, P’Jane!?]

“Dead serious. Get to it.” His voice was calm-the kind of calm the sea has right before a storm hits.

[Understood! I’ll find him! I’ll get everyone out there. Send the location to my LINE now!] I kept driving toward my destination.

Even though I wasn’t a strong driver, I was pushing over 140 kilometers per hour. By now, I must have been in Ratchaburi or maybe Phetchaburi; I couldn’t tell because it was late and I was moving too fast to read the signs. I followed the GPS, so I knew I wasn’t lost. I was going to stay at a friend’s house in the provinces and then figure out what to do next.

I couldn’t stand being in P’Jane’s dark world anymore. As I sped along, John Thomtoni’s words kept echoing in my head: He killed a girl, and Jane Patrick helped him. But P’Jane told me he’d never killed anyone… How much could I trust him? Was anything he ever told me true? I wanted to believe him with all my heart, but right now, my life was surrounded by violence and I couldn’t take it anymore.

All I knew was that I had to run. I had to get away from Jane Patrick. An unseasonable rain began to pour, making it nearly impossible to see. I fumbled with the controls to get the wipers moving and tried to find the fog light button, but I had no idea where anything was. It took me five minutes of being pulled over on the shoulder just to find it.

The rain got heavier. I started moving again at a modest speed, but as I got used to the downpour, I sped up to 80. Suddenly, things felt strange. Despite the late hour, two luxury cars with Bangkok plates began flanking me on both sides. I tried to overtake them to break free, but they swerved to box me in so quickly that I knew this wasn’t normal.

My heart dropped when I looked in the rearview mirror and saw three more cars blocking me from behind. I was surrounded on all sides, like an animal in a herd. I knew instantly they weren’t heading to Prachuap Khiri Khan-they were on a mission to capture me. P’Jane! He must have woken up before dawn and realized I was running.

He even knew where I was going and which route I took. For God’s sake, he must have a third eye. How did he know… ? Or is he really a devil? I floored the accelerator in the middle of the rain, desperate to escape. But suddenly, another sedan swerved into my lane from the opposite direction. I screamed and slammed on the brakes.” Hey!” The screech of tires on the wet pavement was deafening.

The BMW I was driving came to a dead stop with smoke rising from it. The car that had cut me off parked so close I couldn’t move. The driver stepped out into the raging rain-a tall figure, drenched to the bone, who walked up and hammered on my window.

“Jane! Get out!”

“Putt!?” | was stunned.

“Get out right now, Jane. Come back to Bangkok with me.”

“What is this? Why are you following me to take me back!?”

“Please, Jane,” he shouted over the rain.

“Just come out quietly.”

“No! You’re all here on P’Jane’s orders, aren’t you? Go away! Leave me alone!” Putt looked up and roared at the sky in frustration. Then, he walked back to his car and pulled out a metal baseball bat. I screamed and ducked as Putt smashed the window of the car I was in until it shattered into pieces. CRASH!

“Putt! You’ve gone crazy!” I shrieked over the sound of the rain, which was now soaking the seats and the dashboard. Putt didn’t listen. He reached in, unlocked the door, and dragged me out onto the road.

Thunder and lightning crashed around us as he hauled me toward his car. I kicked and cursed the whole way. Is this hell? A hell I can never escape?

“You lapdogs! You bastards! Why are you doing this? Let me go! l want to leave!”

“Can you just stay still, Jane? Do you think I want to do this to you?”

“If you don’t want to do it, then why are you!? Let me go, Putt! Let me goooo!” Putt ignored me. He shoved me into the passenger seat of his car, took a roll of packing tape, and bound me to the seat until I was immobilized. I screamed like a madman, unable to move even an inch. Putt wiped the sweat and rain from his face, his mission complete. He shouted into the storm for the others to head back. He took the keys to the BMW and tossed them to someone else to drive back to Bangkok. Putt got into the driver’s seat, drenched. He grabbed a cloth to dry himself off as I stared at him with pure hatred.

“I didn’t want to do this, Jane. I know you know that.”

“Then why did you? Just let me go!”

“Because I owe P’Jane, damn it!” Putt shouted , hitting the steering wheel in an emotional outburst.

“Do you think I wanted to capture you and bring you back to him? But I’ve owed him for a long time. A stupid debt l asked for out of greed. If I could turn back time, I would never have asked him for anything!”

“It’s been a while, and he never asked for anything in return… until now. Now I have to catch you.” “… ”

“It’s not just me who got this order. Everyone who owes him got it. He ordered people to search every single path to Prachuap. There are hundreds of us, Jane. Even if it wasn’t me, you wouldn’t have escaped his grasp. Don’t you realize what kind of person he is? How much influence he has? Aren’t you stuck with him because of a debt, too?” “Besides… you never loved me, Jane,” Putt said , his voice trailing off.

Then he shouted again, “You don’t love me, but I loved you. I’ve loved you for so long, before anyone else! But it doesn’t matter anymore!”

“Putt… ”

“Your business isn’t my business anymore, and it’s not my job to protect you. I have to drill that into my head. I told you before not to get involved with him. I warned you over and over, but you never listened to me… ”

“Putt… I… ” Putt’s eyes were bloodshot, and tears were beginning to well up, but he wiped them away so fast I barely saw them. Then he spoke in a flat, decisive voice.

“You have to go back to P’Jane. And if you say another word, I’ll tape your mouth shut too. Don’t make me do that.” This condominium was a place I had left less than five hours ago. It was familiar to me; I’d been coming and going for months. But now, it looked terrifying, like a prison-or rather, like I was stepping into a courtroom to let Satan decide my life.

“Lead the way. You live here,” Putt said , gripping me tightly.

I had no choice but to walk toward the blue door I entered every day. One truth became crystal clear: I couldn’t escape. The door opened automatically. A chill struck my heart when I saw the tall figure sitting with his back turned, his long legs crossed, calmly smoking a cigarette.

“I’ve brought Jane back to you, P’. From now on, my debt to you is cleared… right?”

“It’s cleared, Putt,” P’Jane said in a flat voice without even turning around. The words made me shudder. I wondered if Putt felt relieved to be finished with this man. I didn’t know. Putt’s debt was gone; from now on, we had nothing to do with each other. P’Jane tapped his ash into the astray.

“Close the door on your way out.”

“Yes, P.” Then, it was just the two of us in the condo. The sound of Putt closing the door echoed. P’Jane continued to smoke in silence, looking out the window as I stood there by the door, trembling. Then, he spoke softly, making me jump.

“Jane, do you know that tonight is a New Moon?” “… ”

“In English, we call it a new moon-a phenomenon where the moon moves into the same direction as the sun when viewed from Earth. It makes the sky pitch black. You can’t see a sliver of moonlight.” What is he talking about… ?

“Because the sky is pitch black, in ancient times, the dark of the moon was often used as an auspicious time for thieves to operate… for moving goods, for robbery, for murder, for hiding bodies… and for escaping.” I shook with fear at his tone.

The way he emphasized the word escaping terrified me to my core. His large hand crushed the cigarette into the tray. Then P’Jane turned to face me with a smile and an expression that made my skin crawl. In the darkness, there was only the faint light from the streetlamp outside illuminating his face, causing his features to reflect the blue of the wallpaper.

He spoke with a smile.

“Go take a warm bath. Standing there in wet clothes will give you a cold.””… ”

“Go on.” A feeling of dread beyond words washed over me. I would have preferred him to rage at me, like when he caught me running away with P’Win. The rain might have made me shiver, but it didn’t make me nearly as cold as his smile and his expression right now. I had no idea what he was thinking, and that was terrifying.

“Go, Jane.” I couldn’t resist him for even another minute. I hurried into the bathroom, stripped off my wet clothes, and closed my eyes, letting out a heavy breath. I was shaking all over.

“Should we soak in some warm water? To get rid of the chill?””… !” I gasped so hard I nearly stumbled when P’Jane’s voice rang out from behind me. The tall man limped over to turn on the faucet, filling the tub with warm water. My breath hitched; I didn’t dare utter a single word. The bathroom was so quiet that the only sound was the water rushing into the tub, until finally/, P’Jane turned off the tap.

“Get in and soak, Jane.” Unable to resist, I complied easily. I stepped into the near-hot water as he told me and submerged myself. The warm water rose slightly above my waist, surrounding me and making me feel a bit better-though it would have been much better if his sharp eyes weren’t tracking my every move. I had no idea what he was planning, but I knew for certain he hadn’t told me to soak out of care or kindness. The tall man moved closer. He squeezed shampoo into his palm and lathered it into my hair.

“You must be freezing, right?”

“Huh?” I didn’t know what to say. This was clearly a form of psychological play… a way to pressure me until I eventually snapped. Not at all-he wasn’t asking out of genuine concern. Or even if he did care, that wasn’t the only reason he was doing this. This was a test. I could only stare at him, unblinking, while P’Jane continued to act as though he were carefully washing my hair. He even wiped away the suds that nearly got into my eyes. Then he washed his hands and switched to liquid soap, lathering it over every inch of my body. At this moment, I felt goosebumps from fear more than any sense of arousal. He rubbed the soap over the small key pendant I was wearing, which made a thought flash through my mind: Could this be a GPS? Is that how he knew where I was? That’s crazy. Ridiculous. I once took this pendant to a digital sex-toy shop, and I still remember the technician laughing loudly, telling me it was just an ordinary pendant. P’Jane drew himself up to his full height. He showed me that despite his hip and pelvic injuries, nothing was going to hinder him now. He pulled out the showerhead and turned on the warm water to rinse the shampoo from my hair, letting the bubbles dissolve into the bathwater.

“P’Jane, that’s enough. I’m clean.””… ”

“P’Jane, what are you doing?! P’Jane! Ugh!” I cried out as he cranked up the showerhead pressure, spraying it directly at my face and body until I couldn’t open my eyes. Even though it was warm water, the pressure was no joke; being blasted like this was a form of torture. He only paused long enough for me to catch my breath in gasps. It seemed the intensity of the water matched the intensity of his emotions.

“Stop it, P’Jane! Are you a psychopath?! Cough, cough!” He didn’t say a word, so I couldn’t see his expression, but I could imagine it: a calm, stoic face masking deep-seated emotions. God, this method was cold-blooded. Because he didn’t want to hit me or explode at me, he used the showerhead instead, nearly choking me to death. I backed away until I hit the corner of the tub. Finally, unable to take it anymore, I held my breath and slid down into the warm water, which was starting to grow cold. P’Jane hauled me back up as I sputtered and coughed.

“I’m scared! Please don’t do anything to me! Cough! I’m sorry I ran away, but I really couldn’t take it anymore! I’m not ready to be in your world. It’s too terrifying. I don’t want to see anyone get shot, I don’t want to see you shoot anyone, and I don’t want to run from the police anymore!” He exhaled and let go of my body, letting me sink back into the tub before speaking.

“If you aren’t ready, you have to say so. How can people understand each other if they don’t communicate?” I opened my eyes to look at the man who said that. At the very least, I felt relieved that he didn’t look like a haunting, cold-blooded killer anymore, but was looking at me seriously. I spoke in a weak voice.

“I… I didn’t dare.”

“You were the one who told me you wanted to grow up. If you hadn’t said that, I would never have taken you along. Do I usually take you with me when I work?” immediately splashed water at him. P’Jane couldn’t dodge in time, and his shirt got soaked.

“I know I need to grow up, yes, but not with such ‘strong medicine.’ You took me to watch you shoot someone-is that a joke? My life… it’s always been peaceful. Studying, eating, playing football, going home. Anyone who encountered that would be traumatized! Besides, I didn’t dare speak to you directly.”

“Then is it my fault, or is it your fault for refusing to speak the truth?”

“Are you blaming me?!”

“No, I’m just pointing out the facts.””… ”

“You graduated in Psychology, and you’re so smart. Why didn’t you know this much?” This time, he splashed warm water from the tub back at me, speaking earnestly.

“Because I’m still human, not a god. I don’t know everything. I know you were terrified the day we ran from the police. Do you think I wanted to take you along for that? No. it was a force majeure. But when I saw you being strong-not even needing me to comfort you when I fully intended to-and when you said you wanted to grow up, I thought you were ready.” Damn it. Why couldn’t I find a single word to argue with him? P’Jane continued with a serious expression.

“And when you drove off like that… did you ever think about the danger? Do you know how worried I was? You aren’t even a strong driver, yet you acted so reckless.”

“You might have a high IQ, but your EQ is bottom-tier! Your methods are terrible!” I splashed water back at him.

“It’s like you think doing that will make me grow up in a massive leap, but you forgot that everyone’s mind is fragile in different ways. You wanted me to step into your world fully without checking if I was ready. Do you know how long it took for me to just accept who you are? I fought with myself in my head countless times. But now you want me to be a witness to those kinds of situations? It’s beyond my limits. When I said I wanted to grow up, I was just saying it! Ow!” I cried out when he splashed water in my face again-this time quite hard.

“Jane, look at me.” I stared back into his deep, dark eyes. There was a spark in them that looked like a blue flame, burning hotter than any red flame. P’Jane didn’t blink once, as if he wanted to successfully cast a spell over me. And even though I felt a nagging hesitation in my heart, when he looked at me with those eyes, I found I couldn’t resist him at all.

“You already know everything about my life. Before I became the ‘Jane Patrick’ I am today, I was just an ordinary boy. I don’t deny l was born the son of Chuck Terry Palakorn, but that was even worse. I lived in a bubble-a world of billionaires who make up less than one percent of the population. I found that it doesn’t make a human being stronger. If you want to grow, you have to face the heavy stuff. You have to face the truth. And this is the real world-the truth that this world isn’t just white like you see it, and it isn’t just black like you think I am. This world is grey. People kill each other, people frame each other. There is darkness, there are guns, there are weapons. There are rich people and there are poor people. There are fools and there are geniuses. Nothing is one hundred percent right, and nothing is entirely wrong. How long do you want to be ‘just a little boy’? Or do you want to be an adult?”

“You wanna be mature, or not?”

“And let me tell you, I have a gun permit. I didn’t do anything illegal in that regard.” I remained silent. P’Jane’s question-whether I wanted to remain a little boy or grow up-echoed in my mind. I was quiet for a long time, fully aware that what he said was true. But there was still something lingering in my mind. The story about him and Jacky. Even if he said the world involves killing, did he have to be one of the killers, P’Jane?

“Well?” He looked at me, ready to answer any question.

“When I ran away just now… I happened to run into John.”

“Which John?”

“John Thomtoni. Your former teacher.” A smirk played at the corner of his mouth. His voice turned ice-cold.” Is that so? And what did he say?” P’Jane remained calm. He showed no sign of panic or shock-or perhaps he was just a master of body language while burning up inside.

“He… he told me the reason Jacky is in jail is because Jacky… your former best friend… killed a woman.” I lowered my head, struggling to speak.

“And he said you helped him.” God, I was so afraid of the answer. Afraid he would say it was true-that he helped Jacky kill that woman.

“You didn’t help Jacky kill her, did you?”

“Right… ?”

“Jane, look at me.””… ”

“I told you before, didn’t I? I’ve never killed anyone. Don’t you believe me?”

“It’s not that… I want to believe you, but… then what happened?”

“I maintain that I have never killed anyone. At least, not yet.”

“Does that mean you will in the future?!”

“That depends on the situation,” he answered without a hint of worry, still locking eyes with me.

“But I certainly didn’t kill that girl. If you want to know what happened, I can tell you.”

“But are you truly ready to listen this time? Otherwise, you’ll just accuse me of forcing you to grow up again.” I hesitated for a moment before deciding to nod. It was better than living with this suffocating uncertainty. P’Jane began his story immediately.

“Jacky was like me. Bornin Bridgeport, so of course he was a rich kid. But during high school, Jacky took a liking to Alisha, a junkie girl from the nearby slums. It wouldn’t be wrong to say Alisha led him astray. He was probably attracted to the thrill that a silver-spoon kid had never experienced. Those two dated from age fifteen to seventeen. I tried to warn Jacky, but he wouldn’t listen. They had a very toxic relationship-fighting and hitting each other constantly. I know it’s bad for a man to hit a woman, but what Alisha did to Jacky was no small thing either. Mostly it was Alisha who initiated the violence. Once, she hit him in the face with an iron until half his teeth fell out; he had to have plastic surgery to make his face look normal again.” I covered my mouth with both hands in shock.

“Alisha was high almost all the time. She stole, she mugged-she did everything. She stole Jacky’s money and belongings. She was a criminal to the core. Then one day, they had a massive fight in her apartment. I don’t know what happened, but by the time Jacky came to his senses, Alisha was dead.”

“And what was worse was that when Jacky realized it, he was covered in blood. There was a saw in his hand. He had already finished dismembering her.” “… ” My skin crawled.

“Yes. Jacky was very high. He didn’t even know what he’d taken because that day he was mixing everything. By the time he regained consciousness, it was too late. He called me, sobbing and incoherent. At the time, I didn’t know anything, but I rushed to Alisha’s apartment. When I got there, she was just… pieces of meat.”

“Now you understand, right? I never killed anyone. By the time l arrived, Alisha was already dead. In fact, it was like I was tricked by my best friend into being an accomplice to his murder.” “… And then what happened?”

“I was terrified out of my mind too. I remember my skin crawling; I never thought my best friend could dismember someone. Because I knew that normally, Jacky would never have done it. He was a ‘chicken’ (coward). I looked at everything-at my friend-and I saw a genius rich kid whose life was about to end in prison because of a violent junkie who had abused him physically and mentally. I didn’t think it was fair. So I decided to take Alisha’s parts and hide them in various places. She was an orphan with no relatives, and her friends were all junkies. No one was going to come looking for her.”

“But… Alisha was a human being! You only thought that way because you don’t value people equally!”

“Yes, I admit it,” he said flatly, before flashing a smile.

“Did I look like I had the word ‘Saint’ in front of my name?”

“But I was young back then too. I was a bit shallow. I was only seventeen, Jane. I admit what I did was wrong. Let’s just say, R. I. P. Alisha.” Seventeen and he could think like that? My god… That isn’t being “shallow”!

“We cleaned the apartment, hid the pieces, and Jacky stayed free-until the day I was the one who reopened the case. Of course, I was investigated for conspiracy, but the lawyer got me off by saying l was coerced. He argued that no one would voluntarily call the police just to get themselves arrested. We fought the case for a long time, but eventually, I was cleared. Jacky didn’t make it because the evidence was airtight. When I disposed of Alisha’s body, I must have had a premonition that something unexpected might happen in the future-like Jacky betraying me. So I secretly recorded Jacky’s voice on an old phone and hid Alisha’s tooth fragments under the wardrobe at his house. When the police raided, he was trapped. No matter how good the lawyer was, they couldn’t beat that move.”

“But the point is, I didn’t kill anyone. Okay?” He looked at me steadily. He must have seen how pale I’d become because he sighed.

“I told you, this world isn’t just black and white.” P’Jane stood up to his full height, shaking his head, before splashing water in my face one last time, forcing me to turn away.

“Finish your bath and come out.” I soaked for a long time, trying to process the story I’d just heard. It was true that he hadn’t killed anyone, but he had conspired to dispose of a body and managed to get away with it. Okay… Jane Patrick. Is there anything else about him that could be more shocking than this? I hoped that was the end of it. Because I really couldn’t take any more. I finished my bath and got dressed. I could hear the piano playing the entire time-from the moment I applied lotion until I was fully dressed. I walked over to P’Jane, who was playing the piano with deep, intense emotion. Ah… I knew this song.

“Memory, all alone in the moonlight I can smile at the old days Life was beautiful then I remember the time I knew what happiness was Let the memory live again” Memory-Andrew Lloyd Webber P’Jane turned and smiled at me when I sang along to the part he was playing. That encouraged him to play with even more artistic flair. I sat down beside him, breathing in his unique scent-a mix of cool fragrance and cigarette smoke-while I looked up the lyrics on the internet and sang along, since P’Jane only had sheet music in front of him.

“Daylight. I must wait for the sunrise I must think of a new life And I mustn’t give in When the dawn comes, tonight will be a memory too And a new day will begin” I knew he was brilliant academically, but beyond that, I found that Jane Patrick was incredibly gifted in art and music. He could ballroom dance perfectly, he sang well despite not having a high range, and he played the piano like a professional. His parents had sculpted him so well. Or perhaps he was born under some perfect star to be this flawless? Why did God give all of this to Jane Patrick? Even though he doesn’t even believe in God. He really is a cheater. I watched his long, slender fingers moving as if they had a life of their own as he pressed the keys. I wished I could borrow those hands for just five minutes, just so I could know what it feels like to create music like that. Finally, he struck the last note. Once again, I clapped for him sincerely. He turned to ask me: “Do you want to hear another song?”

“Whatever you want to play. If it’s a song l know, I’ll help you sing like before.” However, he didn’t continue playing. Instead, he rested his chin on the piano and turned to look at me with a smile.

“P’Jane, what are you looking at?”

“I’m looking at you. A lot happened tonight, didn’t it?”

“Yeah, true. I definitely won’t be able to wake up for class tomorrow.” I nodded.

“Then skip it. You haven’t skipped yet this semester, have you?”

“I was planning to do just that.”

“Jane, do you know that a ‘New Moon’ isn’t just the dark moon or the waning moon? It also signifies a new beginning, because it’s the first phase of the moon before it starts waxing.” I didn’t know what to say.

“There, there, Jane.”

“Were you very scared? Of everything that happened?””… ”

“I’m sorry. I won’t take you to see things like that again, if I can help it.” I looked down, staying still while he stroked my head. I felt like l was going to cry. This… this was all I wanted. Finally, he was comforting me. Even though he said I was ready to grow up, in my heart, I was still the same fussy child-the sensitive child who always needed someone to comfort him. The tall man leaned in close to me, still stroking my head gently.

“Don’t be afraid anymore, my darling.””… Mm.” This was truly enough.

“Jane.”

“Yes,” I answered, looking up at him in the dim light. P’Jane reached out and gently cupped my cheek.

“Let’s start over. From now on, let’s speak to each other directly.””… ”

“Don’t run away from me like that again.” I nodded slowly. P’Jane moved his hand from my cheek down to my neck. Then he pulled my t-shirt aside and kissed my shoulder softly, making my whole body tremble.

“When you left… I was heartbroken.”

“Oh… P’Jane… ” I moaned in a mix of shyness and arousal as he kissed my bare shoulder repeatedly. His rough hand stroked my stomach gently. It made me feel like an electric current was racing through my body. My face flushed hot. There he goes again. Just like that time when he said his heart was breaking. Why is he so “heartbroken”… ? Does he know how much that word makes my heart race?

“Promise me you won’t run away again.” He held up his right pinky finger. I immediately hooked my own pinky with his.

“I promise.” P’Jane smiled broadly before pulling me into a hug and whispering:” So, shall we go to the bed? Or do you want to do it right here for a change of scenery?”

“Hey… P’Jane! Isn’t your hip hurting?!”