My Moon, Chapter 17 pg 2
My Moon, Chapter 17 pg 2
Klai’s eyes widened as he saw the person asking the question, Pie, walk up with a massive stack of dozens of T-shirts and stop beside him. It hadn’t been long since Pie disappeared into the men’s T-shirt section, only to return with a huge haul.
“Yes, since he is a partner in this store, some of the money definitely goes to him,” Phii Pi replied.
“Perfect, then I’ll take all of these. Phii, could you take them to the counter for me?” Pie said, shoving the pile of T-shirts, still on their hangers, into Phii Pi’s arms. The store owner took them with a bewildered expression before lugging the enormous stack to the counter.
Klai looked at his close friend, who was grinning ear to ear, and said, “Pie, why are you buying so many? Are you actually going to wear them all?”
“Of course, I’ll wear a different color every day,” Pie replied.
Klai shook his head with a small smile. He figured Pie was buying so many shirts because he loved the new collection, and also because he wanted to support his close friend’s store. “Thanks on behalf of Panli, Pie.”
“No problem, I’m happy to support…” Pie said with a cheeky grin, then leaned in close to Klai’s ear and whispered, “Because if he has lots of money, he can treat his future boyfriend well, right?”
“Pie, you…” Klai scolded.
The scolded friend didn’t look remorseful at all. Pie burst out laughing, pulled out a gray banknote, and lightly tapped it against the hanging clothes, saying, “Good luck, Phii Pi! May your business prosper and expand to tons of new branches!”
Pie’s actions reminded Klai of his grandmother when she opened her dessert shop in the morning. If a customer made the first purchase of the day, she’d quickly take their money and tap it on the dessert trays to attract more customers and bring in lots of profit for the day.
Even though he knew it was just a superstition,
These beliefs gave people hope
And the strength to keep moving forward.
“Klai… I’m going to check out the clothes on the second floor, okay?”
“Oh, sure, I’ll wait here on this floor.”
“Got it!”
Klai watched his close friend disappear up the stairs. He placed his paper shopping bag on the sofa in the middle of the store and started browsing for his own shirts. As he picked up a yellow T-shirt with a crescent moon design, his phone vibrated in his pocket. His slender hand reached in, pulled out the phone, and glanced at the name on the screen before answering the call.
‘Dad’
“Hello, Dad.”
[You’re coming back for dinner tonight, right, son?]
Klai smiled amusedly at his father’s worried tone. His dad must’ve been afraid he’d bail on their plans, calling to confirm again even though Klai had reassured him multiple times that morning.
“Of course, Dad. I wouldn’t break a promise with you.”
[You haven’t been home in weeks, you know. Dad and everyone miss you so much.]
Klai smiled faintly, using his shoulder to hold the phone while his hand reached for a different colored shirt to inspect. “I miss everyone too, but school’s been tough, and I’ve got a lot of work. I haven’t had much time to come home.”
[I understand, son.]
“But we talk on the phone all the time, right? That should help with the missing each other a bit.”
[It’s not the same as talking face-to-face, though. Jeab’s been whining about wanting to hug her Klaijai so badly.]
The small-framed Klai smiled, deciding between a yellow and a light purple t-shirt. Even though he hadn’t been home much lately, he called his dad and Phii Jeab almost every night before bed. Sometimes, if he was on the phone with Moon, he’d have to hang up quickly, and Panli was always eager to step aside so he could talk to his family first, often saying:
“KhunKlai, talk to your family first. I’ll play a game and wait—no rush.”
“I’ll finish shopping soon and head back so everyone can hug me, okay?”
[Good, I’ll try to wrap up work quickly too. Not much left.]
“Okay.”
[See you, son.]
“See you, Dad.”
Klai hung up and returned the light purple shirt to its place. He’d chosen the color he liked. As for the various patterns on the shirts, he didn’t need much time to decide—it was obvious there was only one he loved: the dark yellow crescent moon.
Bzzzt~
The phone’s vibration halted his steps toward the counter, where Phii Pi was folding clothes into brown paper bags. Klai pulled the phone from his pocket, expecting it to be his dad, but the name on the screen made him purse his lips nervously.
‘My Moon’
“What’s up, puppy?”
[Your puppy’s done with exams! You’re probably out of class by now, right? What’re you doing, KhunKlai?]
The smaller man shuffled to the counter and handed a yellow t-shirt to Phii Pi. “Puppy…”
[Why do you sound so down? Did someone tease KhunKlai again?]
“No, no…” Klaijai nodded firmly as Phii Pi mouthed silently, “Did he call?” before continuing the conversation on the phone. “Puppy, Klaijai has something to confess.”
[…]
“Klaijai sneaked to the puppy’s shop first.”
[KhunKlai… I was so nervous, I thought you were going to confess something else. My mind went way beyond this!]
Klaijai laughed and began to explain, “I didn’t mean to come here. I was planning to come with Panli, but the shoe shop called me to pick up my custom order, and Pie wanted to buy a t-shirt from the new collection, so I brought Pie along first.”
[…]
“But do you know the main reason I didn’t call the puppy to come along?”
[I know… because you were worried I wouldn’t focus on my exam.]
“Exactly. So, does the puppy understand Klaijai now?”
[The puppy always understands KhunKlai.]
Klaijai smiled before adding, “I met Phii Pi too.”
[Can I talk to Phii Pi for a bit?]
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