My First Valentine
Part 2: Day of Hearts

After hitting my alarm for the fourth time, I think maybe that I'm awake. With bleary eyes, I check the time on my phone and bolt up in the bed. I have less than 30 minutes to get to class and it takes at least 10 to get to the classroom. Sadly, that means no breakfast for me. My stomach protests loudly. Sometimes, I really hate not being a morning person. Grumbling about that insane project from last night keeping me up, I manage to crawl out from under the covers

A luke warm shower, the basics of decent hygiene, some debatably clean clothes, and I'm ready to run with fifteen minutes to spare. After hiking my book bag up over my shoulder, I grab my wallet and keys and pull open the door. Turning to make sure it shuts properly, I notice a drink container filled with my favorite pink milk and a bag of food hanging from the outside handle with a small folded note attached.

Good morning, p'Arthit.
Happy Valentine's Day!
                 ❤Kong

"Thank you, Boyfriend!" Grabbing both, I quickly take a long pull from the straw sticking out of the drink and my stomach does a flipping happy dance. Honestly, I don't care if that guy gives me anything else for Valentine's. This breakfast today is the best thing ever, especially since I'm running late. "! I'm late!"

I run the whole way to class and just barely make it before the professor locks the door. Out of breath and thankful I hadn't spilled any of my precious breakfast, I apologize with a wai and quickly find my seat. My friends snicker at me as I collapse into my chair.

"You really should train yourself to wake up earlier, ai'Arthit." Always the reasonable one, Knott claps me on the shoulder.

"Looks like he took the time to pick up food on the way. He couldn't have woken up that late." Prem commented from behind us.

"I didn't pick up food." This teacher, though a stickler about punctuality, doesn't mind if we eat in class as long as we pay attention and don't disrupt the others. I freaking love him! With an almost reverent air, I pull out the sandwich and take a large bite.

"Oooooohhhhhhhh... did your precious 0062 make a special delivery this morning?" Innuendo drips from every word out of Bright's mouth and I can feel the blush heating my cheeks. Of course, Bright catches it before I can hide my face or calm down. "No wonder you're in a better mood this morning than you were last night. N'Kongpob knows how to tame the beast."

"Shut up! You don't know what you're talking about. Nothing happened." The blush is getting worse and I can feel the burn to the tips of my ears. It's not that we did anything but we would have if that damn project hadn't interfered.

"That's true. I thought he was going to rip my head off last night over the phone when I called him." Not to be left out of the act, Prem just has to put his nose in, too. His smile is decidedly wicked as he looks over at me. "Did I interrupt something, ai'Arthit?"

The professor clearing his throat and calling the class to attention prevents me from responding, which is a good thing. Prem's words were just a bit too accurate. His call did interrupt... something. Something I really don't want to explain to my friends.

A long while later, morning classes are finally done and we make our way down to the cafeteria to find some lunch. Along the way, I keep feeling like I'm being watched but I don't see anything out of the ordinary. There's few more colorful flowers and brightly wrapped packages in the arms of various students thanks to the nature of this particular day but no one seems to be paying too much attention to me and my friends.

Walking into the cafeteria is like walking into one of those romantic princess movies, the kind with red and pink streamers hanging from every available spot and a thousand balloons littering the floor or floating in the air. Paper hearts in all different sizes are taped to tables, chairs, and poles. Some crazy person even brought a violin and is doing his best to impress his fair lady several tables away from us.

"That dude has balls." Bright notes in approval and claps loudly with a spattering of other people at the end of the song. "Wonder if I should try wooing one of these lovelies with my vocal prowess?"

"NO!" All four of us shout at the same time, holding out our hands as if to stop him.

"I beg you, don't. Please have pity on my ears." Clasping his hands together, Toota looks up at Bright in mock panic... or maybe real panic. Bright really can't sing for . "These ears still need to be able to hear my lover whisper sweet nothings into them."

"You don't have a lover." Bright smacks him on the head with a scowl.

"Someone might surprise me and confess today." Pouting, Toota sashays over to an empty table and takes a seat.

"That WOULD be a surprise." After making that crack, Bright quickly ducks and runs for the food line as a bright red pencil case comes flying at his head. "I'm going to get in line!"

"!" Toota grumbles as he fetches his pencil case from the floor. When he turns to walk back, he stops suddenly and a hand flies to his mouth. "Hey, isn't that n'Kongpob? Isn't he just Mr. Popular, not that surprising with those dashing good looks."

I turn to look with everyone else and, sure enough, it is Kongpob with a whole herd of girls following after him. Each one is holding some kind of Valentine present and trying to get his attention. Almost all of the uniforms are from other departments, not Engineering. There are so many that his usual group of friends are lagging on the outskirts of the pack trying not to get trampled.

"Thank you for your sincerity but I really can't accept these." Even from here, Kong's voice carries over the crowd. He tucks both of his hands into his pockets with a wide grin. My heart actually skips when he denies them. "I don't want to upset my lover and it isn't fair to you."

"You don't have a lover." A girl with her hair in long braids says confidently. I'm beginning to wonder if there is ever an okay time to smack a girl, but shake myself out of it. "I've checked and no one has seen you going around with any girl."

"Uh oh, ai'Arthit, you might want to go make your claim now before one of those chicks decide to club 0062 and drag him off." Prem chuckles as he watches the drama unfold. Admittedly, I am not liking this scene but Prem needs to mind his own business.

"Maybe you should pay attention to your own boy, ai'Prem." Nudging my taller friend, I point over to where Wad is unsuccessfully trying to avoid his own small cluster of persistent school girls. "Unless you're okay with him getting a side piece."

"! We aren't like that." His words are harsh but his eyes never leave the slim Freshman who always seems to have an attitude. I pretend like I believe him.

I'm not sure what happened with Kong and that girl while I was talking to Prem but, in those few short minutes, the situation escalated with girls making demands now that they believe he is single. Half way making up my mind to go over there, Prae Pallin beats me to it and has my jaw dropping.

"Get your claws off of Kongpob! Leave him alone!" Pulling Kongpob behind her, Prae stands tall with her arms crossed and a severe look in her eyes. Ma Praeng and Mae stand on either side of her, effectively blocking Kongpob from the crowd. "He said he already has someone so you need to find your manners and accept the situation gracefully. Don't tarnish our gender with your bad behavior."

"But he doesn't have a girlfriend. I know he doesn't have a girlfriend." That same girl argues again and a few others back her up. More than half have already backed away, either intimidated by the angry beautiful girl or genuinely ashamed of themselves.

"He says he has a lover. We say he has a lover. What you say doesn't matter." Ma Plang, never one to filter her words, fires back at the intruding girls.

"Do you think you know him better than us?" May asks reasonably from Prae Pallin's other side.

"Oi, Kongpob!" Tired of the whole thing, I motion to my overly popular boyfriend to join us at the table, making sure to scowl at the group of annoying girls. "Can't you move a little faster? I'm starving to death!"

"Sorry, p'Arthit! Please excuse me." With a polite wai to his rabid fan club, Kongpob jogs up to me with a wide grin. The rest of his friends follow more slowly as the crowd disperses. "What would you like to eat, p'? I'll go up and order it."

"Just sit your down. I can get my own food and I'll grab yours, too. I owe you for breakfast." Before I can walk away, there hooting coming from the peanut gallery so I flip them my middle finger as I walk by.

"You don't owe me anything, p'Arthit. Why don't I come with?" Standing up, Kongpob tries to follow me.

"Just sit. I can order your bland as food by myself." I pause to make sure he actually sits back down before I continue to the food lines.

"P'Arthit?" A perky voice has me turning to see who it is and I'm greeted by a sweet faced girl with cute round cheeks and bouncy curls in her hair. Her big brown eyes shine up at me like an adorable puppy and I have a strange urge to pet her on the head and give her a biscuit. "Hello, p'Arthit. I'm Malee, a first year in the Literature Department."

"Hello, n'Malee. How can I help you?" Holding off my hunger, I give the petite girl my attention. I may not be a senior from her department but I am still her senior.

"I really like you, p'Arthit! Please go out with me?" She holds up a neatly wrapped box with a large red heart on it and gives me a hopeful smile. "I made you chocolates for Valentine's Day."

It hurts my pride to admit this but I don't usually get direct confessions on Valentine's Day... or any other day, for that matter. That's not to say that I don't get chocolates. I do, but I find them hidden in my locker or left on my desk with sappy cards attached. Most people are too afraid of my temper to approach me like this, so this little girl has me a bit shocked.

"Um, p'Arthit? Will you be my boyfriend?" She tries again and I realize that I was probably standing there staring at her stupidly. Shoving the candy box into one of my hands, the girl (I've already forgotten her name) wraps an arm through mine and looks up at me with those puppy eyes again. "I will be a very nice girlfriend to you."

"Sorry but..." I try to pull my arm out of her grasp but she doesn't let go.

"Please give me a chance." While I'm still trying to untangle our arms, I don't notice that she's gotten on her tiptoes and is leaning in towards my cheek with her lips pursed.

"What the...? Wait!" Just as I'm about to shove her (as gently as I can) back, a thick notebook suddenly appears in front of my face and blocks her kiss.

"P'Arthit extends his apologies but he is already off the market and unable to respond in kind to your request." The voice with the notebook is very polite and laced with a dark chilliness that sends a shiver over my skin. With a smile that clearly has nothing to do with being happy, Kongpob takes the gift box that I had forgotten was still in my hand and gives it back to the girl. Automatically letting go of me to take the present, she pouts up at him.

"But he doesn't have a girlfriend. My friend from the Arts Faculty told me he was single when she had him and his friends fill out a survey a few weeks ago." Are all the women on this campus so ing persistent? Plus, I thought those surveys were supposed to be anonymous and confidential? There is some messed up ethics going on here!

"I was single back then. Now, I'm not." This should be obvious. The girl is cute but she needs to get a clue and it's starting to tick me off.

"Are you telling the truth?" She eyes me suspiciously. Has she been lied to her whole life or hung around with derelicts to be so untrusting of others? "Or are you just trying to brush me off?"

"P'Arthit doesn't lie." Even Kong's legendary patience is running thin and his smile fades away.

"Yeah, I don't." Enough is enough and my temper has hit its limit. Grabbing Kong by the collar of his white school shirt, I pull his face down to mine without warning and press my lips to his. This isn't a dainty kiss. I'm making sure to mark what's mine for anyone else who may be watching, too.

I slide across the velvety softness of his lips and gently on his lower lip before releasing him. In the background, I can hear our friends catcalling and whistling but I don't care. The only thing I see is Kongpob slowly opening his eyes and staring back at me with every bit of love that I could hope for.

"Sorry, but I really can't accept your candy and I definitely can't be your boyfriend." The girl stands there completely stunned with wide open. The wave of my temper isn't finished with her yet. "I'm already his boyfriend."

She still doesn't move and her eyes continue to stare at us unceasingly. It's getting a bit weird. Did she faint while standing up with her eyes open?

"Let's get our food, Kongpob." Uncomfortable, I pull him away by the hand to stand in line for food and Kongpob willingly follows me with a goofy grin on his face. The after effects of what I just did hit me and drop his hand, knowing my face is probably tomato red from embarrassment. I can't believe I just did that! With nowhere to hide, I look up at the ceiling with a groan and Kong chuckles behind me. There's going to be no living with him after this.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see the girl come back to life with the oddest smile on her face and she mumbles something that I can just barely hear.

"I think I just became a fan of BL..."

**************************************

-A/N-
I know this isn't what some of you were expecting.
*Insert gutter thoughts here*
Hope you still like it.

Which is better? Jealous Arthit or jealous Kongpob?
Cast your vote!

Now is the time for all my wonderful readers to upvote ⬆ and show this story some love.
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Thanks for reading!

-Jae-