The rain outside still refused to stop even though it was almost 3am. I looked out the window while sitting in the hanging chair in my room.

I leaned back in my chair and sighed. It seemed like this matter had really had a great effect on my heart, just like Jo said. I stood up from my chair and went to look in the cupboard and found that Phoon's notebook from when we studied together was still there.

I took that notebook from the table along with the letters I received every day and the birthday present Phoon had just given me. Phoon's handwriting and that of the person in the letter did not match. But...

Phoon's writing has changed. The person may not have noticed because when we write two different types of letters every day, there is a high chance that the two types of letters will come together.

The words "Happy Birthday" written on the gift are like a mix of Phoon's actual handwriting and the person's handwriting in the letter. At first, when I received the gift, I didn't notice. While studying together with my friends in the shop, I suddenly felt suspicious.

When I tried to look at it again, I was shocked. Although there was no proof, I was more than ninety percent sure that the person in the letter was Typhoon...

Not long after, the lights in the store went out, and immediately the commotion began. The first thought that crossed my mind was: what about Phoon? I wasn't really surprised when the lights went out because if it rains a lot around here, accidents tend to happen. When the lights went out, everyone started turning on their phone flashlights and shining a light around them, but I didn't see Phoon in the bathroom.

The next thing I knew, I had already run out because there were two bathrooms in the store. At first, I thought he might have gone to the nearby bathroom, but when I went to look, I didn't see anyone there, so I quickly ran downstairs. Amidst the heavy rain and thunder, I heard someone crying and shouting from inside. When the other party said that the door lock was broken, I knocked down the door without a second thought.

Phoon ran over and hugged me tightly, shaking in fear, making me feel extremely worried. I could only hug him and comfort him, telling him everything was okay. The person in my arms was still crying and rambling as if he had lost control of his sanity.

At first, when he apologized to me, I wasn't angry anymore, I just wanted an apology. Now, the words of apology with tears filled with guilt made me realize that Phoon must really feel guilty towards me. It made me secretly happy that Phoon still thought about my feelings. As I said before, I am someone who often forgets about my own feelings.

Maybe because I am too kind to others, people think that just apologizing is enough. Or the worst thing is that people like me don't know how to get angry or don't have the right to get angry at all.

"Phi Fah, don't be angry with Phoon. Phoon... Phoon won't do it again."

"Yes, Phi Fah is not angry anymore." I told him how I felt, hoping he would calm down, and gently wiped away the tears that covered his face.

No matter when, the only person I referred to by my name when we talked... was Phoon.

"Are you OK?"

"Yes."

"Then let's go back up."

"Yes." I reached out to take his small hand. He didn't say anything before following me silently.

"Thank you."

And amidst the sound of the rain, which was so loud that it covered my heartbeat, the other person's words of thanks rang out. I wasn't quite sure.

Gratitude for what?

But...

"Thank you too." I answered him.

It was a thank you for coming back and taking care of me, for caring, for those letters and photos, for all the love Phoon showed me.

I used to see Phoon as a younger brother and Phoon himself treated me like his older brother, because Phoon never showed me how much he loved me. If he had let me know from the beginning, if I had known that he loved me so much, I wouldn't have let so much time go by. If that was the case, how could I not fall in love with him?

Happy birthday to you!

Happy birthday to you. I think there are many people who wish you the best, but I am sure that I am one of the few who pray for you. Tonight, I prayed for you to be happy because your smile is a wonder of the world. I know that you are good at studying or working, so I will pray that you feel relieved, sleep well every night, and wake up as bright as the sun in the morning.

If I say thank you for being born, would that be too funny? But I really mean that. Thank you for being you today. The fact that you are you, that is more special than anything in this world. It is as if more than twenty years ago, God blessed the world, and that blessing is you.

I bought you a Polaroid camera as a birthday present. If you don't mind too much, I'd like to invite you to take pictures together. You may not like taking pictures, but try it. It's a good hobby. We can share photos every day. But if you don't like it, just put it away. I think it will be useful in the future. :)

I smiled when I read the message on the paper. When it was the one in the letter, it meant a lot to me, but when we were face to face, it barely said anything. So this year I received two gifts from the same person, right?

I reached in and pulled out the gift. There was a box of Polaroid cameras. I opened it and looked at my newly purchased Polaroid camera. I had bought it the day before because I had intended to take pictures and send them to him, but since he had given it to me now... I guess...

I put my Polaroid camera in the storage closet. I couldn't help myself. In the bag was a Polaroid photo of a clear, cloudless sky and a message written underneath that said,

"My prayers are with you :)"

I smiled again when I saw the message.

Yes...

Your prayers have reached me.

"Hill"

"Hm?"

"Can you take a look at this?" Hill looked at me and put the phone down in front of him.

The first image I showed him was a picture of Phoon's cards. Then I moved on to another image. The second image was a picture of the person on the card.

"What do you think?"

"What do I think?"

"Do you think it's the same person?"

"No." Hill shook his head. "It's not exactly the same, but people can change the handwriting, right?"

"Not exactly the same?"

"Hmm, not exactly the same."

"And look at this." I scrolled to the third picture. It was the note where Phoon had written "Happy Birthday" on my gift.

"Which of the first two letters do you think are the same?"

"..." Hill was silent for a moment.

"Both." I stayed quiet, waiting for him to continue his explanation.

"No," Hill looked at the three images, "it's more like the first one, but it's also somewhat similar to the second one."

"Hmm...Analyze..."

"What? Why?"

"I just want to know if you think the same way as me."

"Ah..." Hill frowned slightly, looking serious. His hand moved back and forth. After a while, he said, "These three characters were written by the same person."

"...Hmm."

"The first one is the one he's always written, and the second one is the one he just wrote, but I'm not sure why he combined the two into the third one. Or is it because...?"

"He always wrote the two characters alternately, so he accidentally wrote them without realizing it."

"Yes, it's like he's addicted to writing in one style." The person in front of me said, raising his hand to rest it on his chin.

"If the first style is normal and he's addicted to writing the second style, it means the second typeface must have been very intentional. When he went back to writing normally, it stuck."

"Yes." I nodded.

Hill also thought exactly the same as me. At first, I was sure of what I thought, but when Hill said this, I felt even more sure.

"I think the first type is the type that normally writes because the stroke is a little more natural."

"Hmm."

"The second guy looks a little stiff, which means he tried to write."

"Ahh".

"So, is that what you wanted me to analyze?"

"It means that... I found the person who sent the letter."

"Hmm? Did you find it?"

"Not exactly. He came to me."

"Because of the writings?"

"Hmm".

"Otherwise, who would have noticed? If you didn't ask, it's Nong Phoon, right?"

"Yes," I replied before taking my phone back.

If it were anyone else, they would have been a little surprised to learn it was Phoon, though he hadn't said anything yet. But since it was Hill and judging by the contents of the letter, they could probably guess.

"Do you see Phoon differently?" I nodded in response to what he asked me.

"And do you like Phoon like you like the person in the letter?"

"Hmm, I like being alone. But if Phoon is the person in the card, I like Phoon. There is no one else."

"It's a pity that he never showed it in the past." The other party's indifferent tone sounded.

Now, there were only Hill and I at the table. Jo and Arthit went somewhere.

"When you were together, was there nothing? If he liked you from the beginning, right? What happened?"

"Hill, Phoon and I haven't seen each other for almost four years. We only met again in college. What did you want me to do?" I said.

"I feel like I might like Phoon, but just by looking at him, I should have known how much he likes me. He's never shown anything more than being a little brother. Sometimes I even think I might be imagining him."

"... Ah, because Phoon doesn't show it much, huh?"

"Um... Especially back then, he didn't treat me well and then he disappeared. I thought he didn't love me anymore."

"As far as letters go... Do you like it when the person in the letters cares about you?"

"Yeah... It's like no one has done it before and he's the kind of person I like. Honestly, I didn't know Phoon would have this side. The side he wrote for me to read in letters, words or something. I've never seen Phoon do that."

"Now that you know, how do you feel?"

"I think... I can't just see Phoon as my little brother anymore."

____

P.S.: This concludes Book 1 of this novel and please be aware that this is an unedited version. The Book 2 will be posted on my tg. I republished this yet the continuation are strictly in my channel. But rest assure, I'll continue sharing some of my translations here, with the exception of Howlsiary's four-part novel series. Please support their forthcoming official English release also. Thank you!

Also for those who wanted to join my tg here's the another link as i turned the channel again into public.

https://t.me/rellewordsmith