Tina’s P.O.V

 

            “Young master?” a familiar voice wakes me up in this morning and every morning outside the room in front of my door though I always pretend that I don’t hear until this voice calls me a few times forward. I wait until this voice calls me 3 times then I will decide to answer.

1         2         3…

“Yes?” I finally answer while I am lying on my bed.

“Please wake up now because it’s already time to go to school, young master. It’s 6:30 am already.” My house manager tells me.

What? Why so early today? He usually wakes me up at 7am or so. I hurriedly get out of my bed then shout my shock back to him.

“Wait, uncle, isn’t it early to wake me up today? Don’t you know that I won’t get enough of my sleeps?” I’m starting to get annoyed now.

“I should offer my apologies to you first, young master, but this is the order from master. He ordered me to wake you up at this time. Please forgive me. Though you need to arrange yourself quickly because he is in urgent.” It’s kind like a long speech, right?

“It’s not like I have to go to school with him.” True because I don’t usually go to the school with my dad. I drive all by my own to school.

“Umm, maybe you will have to go with him this morning. If you’ll excuse me, I have some other things to do. But I will come back to take you down in a few minutes. Please be hurry, young master.” Then his voice is gone.

            Right, I know this. This man, when he says something, he really means it. I’m not like a kid to let another people arranging things for me, right? At least, I don’t want to be.

I don’t really get to the point why dad wants me up with him today (dad never asks or wants to take me to school), he’s totally busy to think about me and my sister. Nah, whatever, it’s really not a big deal.

I don’t really try to be hurry like Uncle John (the house manager) wants me to but I can also make it on time. By the time that I fully arrange for myself, he already comes in front of the room again.

“Young master?” he speaks in a low voice.

“Coming!” I reply while I’m picking my brand bag, MCM, and walking to the door. As I open the door, he is about to speak another word to hurry me.

“Can you just keep it calm? I don’t think dad has something important this early with me!” – it’s really true about this quote I spoke.

“It’s not really important, truly yes, young master. Truly true for you, but I will be in so much trouble if I can’t bring you down by 5 minutes left. I will get scold from master again, please kindly understand my situation, young master.” Blah blah blah…

I roll my eyes then walk pass him, he seems to follow me as I get myself from the first floor to the ground.

My dad is waiting at the car. It’s so ordinary because dad always has breakfast with everybody before he leaves to work, but what’s wrong with him today? I still don’t want to care much so I walk outside of the house and I can see that the car is waiting at front of the front door on the our car-driveway. I walk as usual as I can because I can also reach the car.

As I get into the car, dad still has no expression at all until the car driver drives out from the gate that’s when he finally speaks.

“You must be curious of why I’m asking you to go with me today, is dad correct?” he asks me while he’s looking at the window.

I reply uninterestedly to him by looking at my phone and speak.

“You must have something to ask me, right?”

“It’s more than an ask, darling, it’s a have-to” he raises his voice.

Dad has never bullied since I was a kid, but now he is?

“Are you trying to bully me?” I also raise my voice.

“You can think at any way you want.” – he’s remaining cool as always.

“Are we talking about my university again? I’m not changing to business major! I love technology and science in Rangsit University! We have already discussed about it, and I have already iin there for 1 year, so I’m not changing!” I’m kind of mad now.

This is the only university that I’m interested to be in. Only rich people are able to get in and it’s known as the best university in Bangkok! Dad wants me to study business major but I’m more interested to science thing. Don’t blame me. Though he wants me to learn something else, he didn’t bully me about that at that time.

“No, that’s not what I’m talking about. I’m talking about something new to you. I have a friend who works for me. His daughter also interests in technology and science like you do. After seeing her having to go so far from her house just to fulfill her dream of studying, I decided to suggest your university to her dad. Her dad also acknowledges about it, but he can’t afford it. Therefore -”

“You’re paying your money to let that girl in, right?” I cut him off with my guessing.

“Yes, by using my name and money to let her in.” he confesses.

I roll my eyes to him and speak.

“Dad, look, aren’t you too kind-heart?” I speak as if it really sounds funny.

“The same trait we share.” He finally reveals this quote.

That’s a way to keep me shut up. And I know right? This trait! I can’t ever get rid of it. Though I don’t want to help people, I just can’t bear seeing them in trouble.

“Whatever” I look back to my phone.

“Mind if I request something more? Well, it’s not a request it’s a must again. Because of going to school by the same road, why don’t you just pick her up? It’s easy because her house is on the same rode as your school.” – now I’m being bullied again.

“Well- I…”

“Master, we already arrive” the driver cut me off when I’m trying to reject.

My dad opens the car door and so do I. As I step out of the car, I take a look at the house that we are parking the car in front of. It’s not a house, actually. It’s totally a small café shop. So ordinary, so simple, nothing different from other café shop with some lights on their name and flowers in front of the shop and stuff.

My dad walks in so I have to follow him.

*in the café shop*

 “Sawadee ka” a girl around my age greeted him with “wai”.

This girl, she’s like… she’s very hard to describe with her indescribable face. She’s like, a sweet-girl-face, very unique, though her height is pretty low. She can only stand by my neck compare to my 165cm. Apparently she might be 154cm or so.

“Sawadee Khrap-” -my dad “wai” her back. “Where are your parents, Aom?”

So her name is Aom? I’ve never heard this kind of name before.

“Aww, mom is at the grocery shop and dad is at the back of the house. He will be here for a while, Uncle Steven. Sorry to have you wait for him.” She replies. Her voice is so unique I finally notice that.

“Sir Steven?” another voice from the back of the shop is looking for my dad.

“Sawadee Khrap” the owner of the voice greets my dad.

“Jecht, Aom, this is my daughter, Tina, whom I told you about.” Now my dad is introducing me to other people.

“Sawadee ka” I greet them before they greet me.

“Sawadee khrap” Jecht smiles.

“Sawadee ka” Aom seems to be uncomfortable seeing me (appearance), though I just smile back to her.

My dad looks like he’s so happy about me meeting Aom, he just smiles with nonstop then finally speaks again.

“Tina, please do remember to take her from home to school and drop her back everyday, okay?” Bullying or requesting?

I would really like to reject, but seeing Aom’s father smiling at me so nonstop, that’s why I decided to say okay while Aom is getting more uncomfortable hearing my answer.

“It’s about time to go to school, you both should get going now. You can have this car for TODAY, the other driver will drive the car to get me. Good luck, Aom.” Blah blah blah…

“Thank you, Uncle Steven. Sawadee Ka” she shows her goodbye to him, then I just smile to my dad then get out from the café shop before she does.

As she gets out of the shop, I already get to the driving side since the driver will be here staying with my dad. Aom pauses and is standing in front of the front door with a shock face after she sees my driver gets inside the shop and I am standing on the driver side. I get what she means by standing there so I try to .

“Can you open the door by yourself on the passenger side or do you need me to open the door for you like a servant?” I ask her with a laugh sound from my throat.

She doesn’t laugh at my tease but she just stares at me as if she doesn’t like me.

“No one ever dares to make you open the door for him or her.” She’s walking now crossing the sunlight for a moment until she reaches the car. And that! That beauty with sunlight! Her eyes are chocolate brown, they bright beautifully with the reflecting of the flash to my eyes. Her hair is dark brown and it perfectly suits with the color of her eyes, her skin is so bright with the sunlight on.

I stare at her with the idea of her beauty, but that doesn’t mean she can have my attention.

“Are you so going to unlock the door or not?” she’s asking me with her eyebrows pushing together.

Oh right! I almost forgot that I haven’t unlocked the door yet, so I unlock the door and get myself in the driving side, while she also opens the door and gets herself into the passenger side as well.

I start the engine and it turns on so quickly because this is my dad’s car, he never gets his car hard for himself.

It might take 20 minutes to get to school from her house. For the first 5 minutes, I try to be proper as hard as I can, but she still seems to be uncomfortable. The moment that I decide to look at her, she is starring at me in disbelief, and that’s when I realize that she doesn’t like my looks at all, I can say she doesn’t like tomboys’ looks.

I don’t mean anything but I just want to so I start the conversation by dividing myself a little time from staring at the road to stare her a few seconds then look back.

“I know what you’re thinking.” I look at her then back to the road.

“What do you know about me?” her voice sounds like a nasty girl now perhaps she really IS nasty.

“The looks from your eyes to me really tells me something.” I half smile to her as I am concentrating at the road.

“There’s no theory proving that when you’re looking at someone’s eyes, they can tell you what he or she is thinking.” She sighs.

“True, but it has nothing to do with theory, it has to do with feelings and realization. And I know exactly what you think of me.” I laugh now

I can feel that she’s stopping on starring at me and trying to distract herself the view from the outside.

I let alone for a while then begin again.

“You don’t like tomboys, right?” I try to make the conversation straight so I can prove my guess is right quicker.

She tightens her eyes by the time that I look back to her.

“…” she speaks nothing. So remaining silent like this should be the answer of “yes” right? I will take that as a yes.

“You can think whatever you like, I might look like a tom but I have never liked a girl in my entire life.” I’m telling her the truth what I really am though she doesn’t really believe me.

“Really?” she is really in a not-believe-in-Tina religion now. Ha Ha.

I nod then raise my left my eyebrow to her. She smiles and my truth of telling her that I have never liked a girl before as if she doesn’t believe it.

Finally I stop the car then lean closer and closer to her until she has no place to lean backward from me then finally speak of something to make me go backward.

“What are you doing?” she’s in shock.

“What if I’m not a tomboy, what if I’m just normal like everybody?” my face is just a few inches away from her and I can smell her breath mixing with the perfume she’s using. Even in breath, the air that comes from her body mixing with the perfume of the English scent. I know this scent because it was the scent of the brand that I always support before but I have never used it, though she’s using it, does it mean she likes the same brand name as me?

I stare at her in the eyes for a few seconds then she finally breaks out my stare.

“Why are you stopping? Don’t you have to drive?” she turns away from me.

I laugh at her question then lean back to my normal place then stare around the environment.

“I’d love to, but please take a look carefully around you.” I laugh again.

She analyzes the area from the window of the car then she inhales to show it as her horror.

            “What’s happening today? Are we having any national festivals today that we have to stuck in the road like this?” she’s getting confused now.

            I laugh at her again and this time it’s harder and louder until she starts to get mad. Seeing her mad makes me want to reveal the answer.

            “No, don’t get it confused. We’re at the front gate of the school.” I half-smile at her but she doesn’t notice that.

            “But why are many girls there standing with uncomfortable faces.” She’s asking while her eyes are still starring in horror around the car.

            “You’ll find the answer when we get into school. But now, do you wanna see something cool?” I laugh again but it’s just a short laugh.

            I push down the window of the car then get my head a bit out of the window and smile.

            “I’m sorry, but can I have my way into school? I’m in urgent.” I smile again though my smile is directed coincidently to a girl who stands nearby my car. She almost faints by the time she notices my smile is to her.

            After that, all the girls really make their way for me to drive and Aom seems to get her answer now. I look back at her with a tease face then ask her again.

“Do you wanna see something even cooler?” I raise my left eyebrow with my half-smile to her but she stays silent but looks at me as if nothing is going to happen. I wanna prove her that the upcoming happening is even cooler than the last one.

“Watch” then I look back to the window smile and to exactly the same girl who almost fainted at a few seconds ago.

As I’m looking to her for 2 or 3 then half-smile and wink to her the pull up my window mirror back then drive. I drive pass her then I ask Aom to look back that girl. It’s really funny that my wink can make a person faint. That girl REALLY faints.

“No one ever says you’re cool when you make someone fainted.” Aom complains.

“You finally understand why there are many girls standing in front of the gate, right?” I laugh.

“Whatever, I don’t think it’s awesome” she rolls her eyes.

“True, it also makes me bored and even irritates me, sometimes but I can’t help” I admit this fact.

“Are they all standing in front of the gate with that kind of face everyday?” curious Aom.

“You still haven’t realized about it?” I frown.

“Huh?” Aom is opening her eyes widely now.

I park the car at my parking spot in the school where dad buys this spot just only for me then I sigh. I rest my eyes for a moment then turn to Aom.

“What would a girl do when she gets jealous especially when she sees her crush gets to close to another girl?” I tease and laugh back.

“So that was all about me? Please, it’s not as if I’m their kind” she rolls her eyes and I’m nodding as she rolls them.

“Whatever you think and say, it’s not something they would want to listen but me” then I stop the engine and get out of the car, Aom follows me.

I walk away from car a few steps then I can hear someone is shouting from my back.

“Tina!” it’s a man’s voice. Basically this sound sounds like a man in fact, it’s more like a guy. Ha ha.

I turn back to see if my imagination is real, and it is. I can see Aom keeps following me but beside that, Pei, who is my friend, runs to me.

“Wait up!” he shouts as he’s running from his car to where I’m standing.

Pei is a good friend to me. Pei usually is funny because he likes to laugh and do funny things. But more important, he’s a kind heart boy. He’s always there to cheer me up when I have problems and he helps me a lot. To our nature, it’s like we were born to be opposite. Though I was born to be a girl, I don’t like girly stuffs while Pei was born to be a boy, but he likes girl stuffs more than I do. However, Pei has never questioned this to himself because he knows himself well. He knows he can never be a real boy nor a real girl but he likes the way he is now, having his parents and friends accept him as the way he is, it’s all he can think and wish for, said Pei.

“You’re so late! Were you busy preparing yourself to be a so-called beautiful again?” I .

He rolls his eyes then answer “Well, I don’t know how I can clean your brain to make you remember me. I always am BEAUTIFUL and there’s nothing more to make up for. My beauty is the most beautiful thing I have.” Then he laughs at himself while I’m laughing along too.

A few seconds after the laugh, he realizes that there is someone standing beside him then he turns to look who she is.

“AH! Aom! But why…?” he shouts until everyone looks at him.

“Can you just keep you voice lowing down?” Both Aom and I scold at him at the same time. It is truly a coincidence then I turn to look at Aom and I realize that she’s already looking at me. We both laugh.

“I’m sorry. But Aom?” he’s getting more curious.

“It’s a long story, Pei. But to begin with, I should thank to her dad.” She shrugs.

“What did he do?” asking the following up questions, huh Pei?

“He helped me in, silly boy!” she laughs.

“Uh oh, how many times have I told you not to call me a boy? And of course, not silly boy but beautiful girl! Don’t you realize that I’m more beautiful than you are now?” Pei says with laugh along his voice.

“Huh? Wait! You both know each other already?” I know nothing about them two.

“Apparently yes! I am her oldest friend in this universe.

“We should get to class. It’s starting now.” I laugh along then break them out.

“Yeah, let’s go.” Pei says then jumps like a kid but then Aom raises her left eyebrow with disbelieve on the idea of Pei being childish like that. Oh well, he’s been like that for a long time so no problem at all.

I walk a few steps forward then I suddenly realize something about Aom’s lacking.

“Have bought the books yet?” I turn back to Aom as I speak.

Aom shakes her head with a confusing emotion then I close my eyes with a sigh.

“You suppose to have books when you’re a student here even the first day. It’s the rule.” I explain.

“How am I supposed to know about it? In fact I’m a new student here!” she complains back.

I roll my eyes then explain again.

“Listen, no lecturers will think you’re a new student here while the school has already been opened for students for one week like that. Especially when you’re with me, they will definitely think that you’re someone old from last year.”

“As if there were any punishments for those who don’t own books.” She stares away.

I nod then she looks back to me.

“There is for not having books with you when you’re in class.” Then I continue “Fine, I’ll take you to the school book shop”

“But how much are the books per set?” 

"Follow me and don't worry about it." I raise my left eyebrow.

"Oh" Aom gets to be scared by the idea of the price of the book.