His footsteps faded. I felt empty. His cold gaze kept appearing in my mind; he looked at me as if I no longer existed for him. What will happen to our friendship? I pushed the food aside, no longer hungry. I stood up and went to my room. I threw myself on the bed and closed my eyes for a moment.
When I gathered myself again, I got up and looked out the window. I saw Chak sitting at the garden table, writing something. I moved away from the window so he wouldn't see me. I grabbed my pajamas and went to take a shower. After I showered and returned to the kitchen, I grabbed a glass of water. While washing the glass, I heard Chak enter the room. Our eyes met. And before I could say anything, Chak asked:
"Who were you talking to about me earlier?"
I slowly breathed in and quietly replied, "With my best friend Taeng."
"Why do you tell him about me?" Chak asked, curious.
I didn't know how to answer. Quietly, I responded, "Because I can tell him everything I'm going through, and he listens."
Chak turned away and said, "But you can't tell me that?"
I didn't know what to say. "I don't know…"
Chak continued, "Tomorrow at 10:00, have your friend come to my office."
"Why?" I raised my voice, surprised by his command.
"Because I'm interested to know if he's truly trustworthy," he replied, with no emotional tone.
And with that, our conversation ended. Confused, I withdrew to my room, grabbed my phone, and texted Taeng that Chak wanted to see him the next day at 10:00 in his office. I sent him the location and said I would wait for him in front of the company.
I put the phone on the nightstand and lay back down in bed. Soon the phone vibrated. It was a message from Taeng: "I'm coming."
I had trouble falling asleep, thinking about what Chak would say to Taeng. The next morning, I woke up and went to the kitchen.
Chak was already sitting at the counter, with ingredients ready for breakfast. "Good morning," I greeted him quietly. "Today, you'll be preparing breakfast with me," he said with his usual cold but slightly overconfident tone.
I nervously nodded and decided to try to cooperate. Chak slowly stood up and came over to me, and I noticed the counter was stocked with eggs, fresh bread, bacon, tomatoes, and spinach. "What exactly are we doing?" I asked, unable to hide my surprise at how prepared he was for such an unexpected task.
"We're making rolled egg wraps with vegetables and bacon. You'll handle the tomatoes, I'll handle the eggs," he quickly replied, smiling as he grabbed the pan.
As Chak started preparing the eggs, I carefully sliced the tomatoes into thin slices. His method was simply perfectionistic, every movement calculated. The spinach began to release its aroma as he added some salt and pepper to the eggs. I took some fresh spinach and carefully added it to the tomatoes.
"Be careful not to overcook the eggs," he said, noticing me watching the pan as it heated up. "The eggs need to be just right so they roll up nicely."
"Got it," I quietly replied as I continued with my task.
When the egg wraps were ready, Chak carefully placed them on the plate, and there were also some toasted slices of bread on the side. Finally, we set a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice on the table, which smelled fresh and added a nice touch to the breakfast. I also poured myself a strong cup of coffee to complement the meal.
"Will you sit down?" he asked as he began eating.
I smiled and sat down. "Thanks for helping with the preparation," I said quietly, trying to hide the tension in the air.
As we ate, everything was silent. Both of us were too lost in our thoughts, each with a thousand questions running through our heads. I was thinking about what this meeting would mean for Taeng and how it would affect our relationship. He, on the other hand, may have already known that tomorrow would be a decisive day.
Soon, we both finished breakfast, but the tension still hung in the air. Chak stood up and left without a word. I stayed at the table, staring out the window, thinking about what today day would bring.
In that moment, I knew everything was about to change.
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