When Chak and I entered the kitchen, we wanted preparing coffee. As we got closer to the counter, we noticed something unusual. Kit was almost too close to Taeng, his hand resting on Taeng's shoulder, while Taeng, with a slight smile, was fixing Kit's hair. They both looked relaxed, almost too relaxed. I felt a slight tension, as if Taeng and Kit had forgotten that they weren't alone.
Chak noticed the same, but stayed quiet until I looked at them with concern. "What's going on here between you two?" I asked, with my usual curiosity, which was becoming more and more obvious.
Kit and Taeng quickly avoided eye contact and almost simultaneously grinned. "What about you two?" they answered almost in unison, clearly ready to tease us a bit.
I raised an eyebrow and stared at them, but I couldn't hold back my laughter when I noticed that they were both trying to avoid the question. "Seriously, what's going on?" I asked, this time seriously wanting to know more.
Taeng and Kit exchanged glances, and it seemed like they had silently agreed on how they would answer. "You think there's nothing between you two?" Taeng asked, looking me and Chak.
"You are pretty close to Chak too," Kit added with a slight smile, looking at Taeng, then back at me.
We all smiled. Chak and I exchanged surprised looks, but it was clear to both of us that this was something we couldn't hide any longer.
The doorbell rang. Kit went to open the door, and Samchai and Rattan entered together. Rattan walked ahead, followed by Samchai and Kit. When Chak saw Rattan, his eyes sparked with a flash of uncomfortable realization.
"Sit, Rattan," Chak said coldly, gesturing to the table.
Once we were all seated, Rattan immediately pulled his phone out of his pocket and placed it on the table. "I brought evidence," he said, unlocking the screen.
The screen began showing images – pictures of Chak in various situations. In the office, in the car, even on his way home. All clearly hidden photos, obviously collected by someone for a long time.
"How many pictures does she have of you?" I asked, stunned, looking at Chak.
"She could be your personal photographer," Taeng sarcastically added.
"I wonder which one is her favorite," Kit added, raising an eyebrow.
Chak gave all three of us an icy stare. He stared at the pictures for a while before coldly commenting, "Looks like she's in love with me. Why else would she have so many pictures of me?
When I watched the photos, I felt a slight pang of jealousy. How could she have so many pictures of Chak when I don't have any of him? I couldn't help but wonder why I had never thought to take photos of him, to capture the moments when we were together.
"What are we going to do?" I asked him quietly.
"I don't know. But we have to do something," Chak muttered.
He took my hand and gently squeezed it. I felt my heart start beating faster.
Rattan swiped his finger across the screen and opened the messaging app. "Look at this," he said and began reading aloud:
---
Noon:
Niran has been in the office with Chak all day. I don't know what they were doing. Non say that Niran said that he must enter data into spreadsheets. I saw Chak go out and come back after an hour with a bag. Probably food. I think they ate together.
Raeng:
Did you try to break into his drawer?
Noon:
Not yet. But I saw him smile at some message. I bet Chak sent it to him.
Noon:
Chak and Niran spend too much time together. I want to separate them, but I don't know how. If you have any ideas, let me know.
Raeng:
If you want us to get rid of him… Take a picture of them together. Leave the rest to me.
Noon:
I know there was an article in the newspaper today. Chak thinks it was leaked. He was mad at Niran. The plan worked! We just have to wait for him to fire him.
Raeng:
Get closer to Niran – undercover. And plant the documents in his drawer. Make sure no one sees you. After that, it'll all be done.
Noon:
I already am. The documents are in there. I just have to wait for Chak to find them.
Raeng:
Well done. Be ready when Chak gets rid of him. You'll be the one who stays by his side.*
I looked at Chak and whispered, "I can't believe it… Noon is working with Raeng. She framed me with the documents. And all this time, she was playing the role of a friend."
Chak clenched his jaw and looked away, his jaw tightening. Kit broke the silence: "We need a plan. A really good one."
I stood up and walked towards the door leading to the terrace. I needed some air. As I leaned against the railing and took a deep breath, I heard the familiar sound of footsteps. Taeng came up behind me.
"What's wrong?" he asked quietly.
"I don't know who I can trust anymore, Taeng. How can someone be so obsessed with Chak that they'd destroy me? She planted the documents on me, and now… now I'm the one who looks guilty. I haven't done anything to her."
Taeng put his hand on my shoulder. "Obsession can be a dangerous thing. What Noon is doing isn't just infatuation. It's vengeful madness. But you're not alone. We're all with you, Niran."
"Do you think it will work out?" I asked, still staring at the night sky.
"I know it will. Come on. Let's go back."
When we returned, Kit was already preparing a plan. His voice was serious:
"The plan is like this:"