Rule No. 1: Don’t be too emotional : Chapter 54

It’s not a perfect world, but it’s the only one we’ve got Iron Man.

“You may sign right here, Khun Wayu.” Lawyer Chuwong spoke to my father. He and P’Jane had arrived at our house to finalize the power of attorney-or rather, the documents that meant this would no longer be our home. Once Dad and P’Jane signed both papers, it was official.

“Excellent,” P’Jane said with a thin smile. Once the paperwork was finished, he and Chuwong stood up.

“We’ll take our leave now. Until we meet again.” The tall man and his lawyer paid their respects to the elders, bid us younger ones goodbye, and turned to leave. My family and I remained sitting in the same spot, the reality hitting our consciousness like a violent wave. The five of us no longer had a home. My life had never been this bleak. No matter how bad things had been in the past, I always had a roof over my head-a place to sleep whenever I felt uneasy. Now, the path ahead was pitch black. We had no residence, a 12-million-baht debt, and five lives to sustain. We had three months to move out. Since I spent the least amount of time at home, I started packing boxes early. It was much harder than I expected, but it had to be done.

“I have already applied for jobs at various hospitals,” Jet mentioned one day during my weekend home. Mom immediately turned to her second son.

“What about your further studies, son?”

“Don’t worry about that for now, Mom.” Jet gave a small smile and squeezed her hand at the dinner table.

“We have to help each other. It’s a good thing I’ve graduated; now I can help Dad and Mom earn money.”

“I’ve applied for jobs too,” Mom added .

“But I don’t know if anyone will hire me. I haven’t worked in so long.” Dad abruptly stood up from the table and walked into his bedroom, leaving only silence behind. Mom turned to me.

“Jane, go check on Dad. I don’t know if he’s unwell. He hasn’t been able to eat for a while,”

“Yes, Mom.” I stood up. As I approached the door, I prepared to knock, but my hand froze. A sound was coming from inside-the sound of dad crying. It was the most agonizing, heart-wrenching sob I had ever heard, as if his heart was being torn out of his chest. I leaned my back against the door and covered my mouth, terrified I would make a sound and alert him. I didn’t dare go in, and I didn’t dare go back to the table. As I tried to turn toward the stairs, I tripped and accidentally pushed the door open. Dad spun around, trying to hide his tears, but it was too late.

“Jane? Is that you? What is it?” I knelt on the floor in front of my father.

“Dad… please don’t cry.” He immediately covered his eyes with his hands and spoke in a dry, hollow voice.

“I failed.”

“Failed at what? Dad, you didn’t do anything wrong.”

“I failed as a man,” he sobbed. I had never seen dad cry in my entire life. Seeing it now made me feel like I was dying inside.

“I can’t take care of my wife. I can’t raise my children well. Jet lost his chance to study abroad. I couldn’t even keep the family land. I’m a failure as the head of this family. If your grandparents were still alive, they would probably ask for their daughter back.”

“Dad, this isn’t your fault at all. It was Jean’s thoughtlessness that caused this.” Dad shook his head.

“It’s because I didn’t raise my daughter well. If a child is bad, look to the parents. It’s on me.” I rested my face on his knees, letting my tears flow just like his. We cried together for a long time before I wiped my eyes and looked up at him.

“Dad, I know life right now feels like a rainy day. Everywhere we look, it’s just dark clouds and fog. But if the world only had sunny days, it would get too hot and turn into a desert. We need days like this so that seeds like us can grow.” I tried my best to give him a wide smile, squeezing both of his hands.

“Let’s fight and get through this together, dad.” Despite my words, everything was incredibly difficult. The five of us weren’t just at zero; we were in the negatives. The 12-million-baht debt to P’Jane wasn’t interest-free; it grew just like a bank loan. I withdrew all my savings to pay him, but a massive mountain of debt remained. I admit this put a massive strain on our relationship. I was the victim, and he was the creditor. No matter how much we loved each other, the two roles couldn’t be separated. I couldn’t laugh and be happy with him while my family didn’t even have a place to sleep. If he had acted perfectly normal around me, he would have been a madman too. We didn’t break up, but we became very sparse with our words, speaking mostly about Jamie. Our relationship felt like a husband and wife who had unofficially separated but stayed together to co-parent.

I told P’Jane to deduct 70, 000 baht from my salary every month toward the debt. That left me with only 10, 000 baht for my monthly expenses, and he agreed. By the second month, the family moved into a small monthly rental. Jet and Dad shared a room, while Mom and Jean shared another. There was only one bathroom. On nights I stayed over, I had to sleep on the floor in the living area. It was cramped, suffocating, and lacked any privacy. Jet found a hospital job quickly. Dad became an employee at a small pharmacy franchise in a mall near the new place-returning to being a clerk after years of being the boss. Mom couldn’t find work due to her age, so she brought her sewing machine from the old house and took in bulk sewing jobs to cover grocery money. As for Jean, she sold off every designer item she had brought back from Korea.

“Jet?”

“Oh, you’re back, P?” Jet asked , yawning.

We ran into each other at a convenience store near the rental. I looked at his face and felt a surge of worry.

“When was the last time you got a full night’s sleep? Your dark circles are terrible. Don’t tell me you just finished work?” Jet placed a drink on the counter.

“Yeah. Back-to-back shifts. Overtime. I’m exhausted. I think I’ve been going for over forty hours straight.”

“Isn’t that too much? That’s dangerous. You’re a nurse; you have to take care of yourself to take care of patients.”

“Do I have a choice, P? Our family has debt.”

“Put those back,” I said.

“I’ll pay. Go grab something else to eat too.” I paid for both of us. After we finished, Jet asked, “Did you just come from P’Jane’s house?”

“Yeah.”

“Is your car far?”

“Not far, just across the street.”

“Can we sit here for a bit? I’m so tired.”

“Sure,” I replied.

“Even if we went back to the house, there’s nowhere to sit anyway.” The two of us sat on the stools inside the convenience store. Jet opened a sweet drink, his face pale and his nurse’s uniform wrinkled. My heart ached for him. He had just graduated and already had to work this hard.

“So, Jet… working like this, do you even have time for Bambie?” Jet paused before answering in a low voice.

“We broke up.”

“What? Why?” I was shocked.

“I have a mountain of debt. I don’t want her to have to suffer with me. Better to let her go.”

“Jet… ”

“Don’t, P… don’t say it.”

“What?”

“I’m going to cry.” But it was too late. Jet pressed his fingers to the corners of his eyes, his voice trembling.

“Because I love her, I had to let her go. If I held onto her, she’d stay, but that would be selfish of me. Let her go be happy with someone who deserves her. I did the right thing, didn’t I, P?” I sighed. This debt was truly destroying everything.

“If we don’t end it today, we’ll end it tomorrow anyway,” Jet choked out.

“I can’t even take care of myself; how could I take care of her? Princesses belong with knights, P, not beggars. But I’ll never forget her.”

“Just cry, Jet. Cry right here. I’ll comfort you. Don’t be ashamed.”” I’m not crying.”

“Just let it out, dammit.”

“There’s no point. Crying won’t bring us back together.” I squeezed his hand and pulled him into a side-hug. I knew how much they loved each other. It was heartbreaking that it had to end when neither of them had done anything wrong. An hour later, as we stood by the roadside waiting to cross the street, Jet was swaying. He was “blurring out” from extreme sleep deprivation.

“Hey, Jet! Forget the football match, you need to go straight to sleep.”

“Jet! Can you hear me!?” I screamed as Jet’s head lolled forward and he collapsed toward the street. A car swerved sharply, horns blaring. I heard the sickening thud of his body hitting the pavement. He lay there, motionless.

“Jet! Open your eyes! Help! Someone call an ambulance!” The irony was cruel: we ended up at the very hospital where he worked. He had fainted from exhaustion and suffered a broken left arm. This news crushed him because it meant he couldn’t pull extra shifts anymore. Without those shifts, our income plummeted.

While Dad and Mom were only worried for Jet, their silent fury was directed at Jean-the root cause of this catastrophe. Even I couldn’t look at her. Eventually, Mom snapped.

“Have you ever thought about helping!?” Mom screamed at Jean.” Or can you only cause trouble? You aren’t in school, so go find a job or learn to sew. Do we have to wait for someone to actually die before you wake up!?” Jean tried to help around the house, but it felt like too little, too late. With only a Grade 11 education, she could only find grueling, low-paying part-time labor. Three and a half months had passed since we lost our home, and the rental unit never felt like “home.” I stood by the pool at the Palakorn estate, holding a small piece of toffee cake with a single candle.

“Happy 26th Birthday, Jenalee,” I whispered to myself. No one in my family remembered; they were too busy surviving.

“Can I celebrate with you?” P’Jane’s deep voice startled me. He stepped forward and relit my candle with his lighter.

“Make a wish again. The one you just made was a bit too small.” I closed my eyes and wished for my family’s happiness. P’Jane smiled and ruffled my hair.

“Happy 26th, Jane. You’re a year older now. May all your heart’s desires come true, Little Jane.” That nickname made me want to sob. I still loved him, but how could I be happy with the man who bankrupted my family? He was so heartless, watching me suffer without lifting a finger.

“Are you still in love with me, P’Jane?” I blurted out. He hugged me from behind.

“I love you, Jane. Forever.” ”

“Believe me, Jane,” he whispered into my hair.” Everything I do, I have a reason for it.”

“I’m probably… too stupid to understand your reasons,” I replied, tears blurring my vision. Our moment was interrupted by Auntie Jaem, the housekeeper.

“Someone is here to see you, Young Master. She says she’s Nong Jane’s sister.” I rushed to the living room, terrified something had happened to Mom or Dad. But I found Jean sitting there, still in her fast-food uniform. She immediately fell to her knees before P’Jane.

“P’Jane, I was wrong!” she wailed, tears soaking the floor.

“I see now that I’m the one who destroyed our family. Please, help us! You don’t even have to reduce the debt, just help with the interest. Everyone is working so hard… Jet had to break up with his girlfriend, Mom is sewing until her eyes give out, Dad is so depressed I’m afraid he’ll kill himself. I feel like I’m dying every day watching them.” P’Jane looked down at her, his face a mask of indifference.

“Are you only sorry because you’re tired of working? I heard you’re working several jobs now.”

“No!” Jean shook her head violently.

“I’ll work forever to pay you back, but please, let my family be free. Give Dad his house back. Let them rent it. I can’t live being the ‘evil daughter’ who made her father lose his will to live. I know I was stupid, selfish, and spoiled. I’m so sorry.”

“But how can I trust the empty words of a ‘spoiled brat’?” P’Jane’s voice remained cold. Jean looked up, her face flushed from crying.” How can I prove it to you? I’ll do anything.”

“Get up,” P’ Jane commanded. Jean scrambled to her feet immediately. He turned and walked toward his study. My heart was pounding; I had no idea how he planned to make her prove herself. My mind ran wild-was he actually going to demand something physical, like a pound of flesh? Jean clenched her fists, a sign that she was ready for whatever was coming. When P’ Jane returned, he held a set of documents. He thrust them toward the young girl. Her hands shook as she took them. I held my breath, bracing for an organ harvest contract or something equally morbid. Jean’s eyes went wide.

“This is… ”

“Yes. Information for the GED exams,” P’ Jane said clearly. I stared at him in utter shock. Jean was just as stunned. P’Jane, his hand resting on his padlock pendant, continued: “Pass these exams and get into a top university by next year. Do that, and I will return the house to your family tomorrow morning.”””

“This is the proof I want.” Am I dreaming? I thought. If this is a dream, please never let me wake up.

“But the debt isn’t gone,” P’Jane added firmly.

“It will be reduced by ten million, leaving two million. That remaining amount must come from you alone. No borrowing, and no help from the family. If you fail the GED or fail to get into a top university, the twelve-million-baht debt returns in full-along with the house. You know l don’t make empty threats.”

“Can you do it?”

“I can! I can do it!” Jean cried out, hugging the documents to her chest like a priceless treasure. Her eyes sparked with energy, her exhaustion from months of manual labor vanishing in an instant.” Go home now, Jane. Drive your sister back. It’s past midnight; don’t let her take a taxi alone. Jane? Did you hear me?”

“Yes! I heard you!” I pinched my leg, nearly yelping at the sharp pain. It wasn’t a dream. This was real. P’Jane pulled a credit card from his wallet and tossed it to me.

“Take this and buy something nice to celebrate with your family for your birthday. Swipe it, don’t hold back. Sleep there tonight. Tomorrow morning, after I drop Jamie at school, I’ll meet you and Lawyer Chuwong with the deeds.” I nodded, smiling back at him. Finally, I understood. He never intended for us to suffer forever. He needed Jean to feel the full, crushing weight of her actions. He wanted her to face the “hell” of manual labor, the loss of her education, and the sight of her family’s misery-all because of her. It was “Strong Medicine” It took a heart of steel to carry this out for five months, even risking his relationship with me, just to ensure Jean truly changed. If he had been soft for even a moment, she never would have learned.” Go on, Jean. Let’s go home.”

“Jean,” P’Jane called out as we left.

“The people you should kneel to are your parents, not me. Remember this lesson and grow from it.” After that night, Jean prostrated herself before Dad and Mom, begging for forgiveness. She even apologized to Jet and me. We cried together for half a day. Dad’s depression vanished instantly once the pharmacy and the ancestral home were returned. Mom was back to being a happy housewife. P’Jane even returned all the savings I had paid him, including interest. Then, Jet dropped a bomb.

“Everyone… I’m back together with Bambie.” He had gone to her with flowers and a one-carat diamond ring.

“I told her I’m never letting her go again, except in death.” We all huddled around to watch the video of his proposal, and there wasn’t a dry eye in the room. Even the bickering over whether the engagement ceremony should be Chinese or Thai style felt like a luxury we were lucky to have. The dark clouds had passed. The sun was out. Everything was perfect.

“Do you like it?” P’ Jane whispered, his voice hoarse with passion. We were in his bedroom, the air conditioning humming as we moved together under the burgundy duvet.

“Is it good… my little Jane?”

“Perfect… P’Jane, it’s perfect. Don’t stop… ” I gasped, my fingers digging into his back. We were lost in each other, the tension of the last few months finally exploding into intimacy. CRASH! The door flew open.

“P’ Jane!”

“What the hell?! How did you get in here?!” P’ Jane roared, fuming at the interruption. He hurled a box of tissues at the intruder. I dove under the covers, face burning with shame. In our haste, we had forgotten to lock the door. It was Lee, and he didn’t care about the scene he’d walked into. His voice was trembling, near tears.

“I’m sorry for barging in, P’, but it’s Boat! Boat!”

“What happened to Boat?” P’Jane shouted, his voice turning deadly serious.

“P’Dan… he caught him and tortured him all night. He just dumped Boat in a sack in front of the house. P’, please, come down and look at him!”