Dear cupcakes, sorry for not updating last week.

Here we go.

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"Dad, when will mom be back from her trip?" asked Fiat as he sat beside his Dad in the living room.

"Around afternoon or early evening. Do you need anything, son?" asked Khun Kong calmly as he didn't avert his eyes and continued to read today's newspaper.

Fiat remained silent after that as he pondered on his thought to ask his Dad the golden question in his mind. After a few minutes of thinking, he threw all the caution into the air as he nudged his Dad's arm and asked away the question.

"Dad, when do you plan to have the 'talk' that you wanted to have with me? Didn't you ask me to return to have that talk?" asked Fiat as he fully faced his Dad.

Khun Kong heaved a sigh as he placed the newspaper he was reading on the small, round table in front of him. He turned to his right to face his son and answer his questions.

"I wanted you to be ready for that talk," said Khun Kong as he stared at his son with a poker look.

"Is this something to do with the document you gave me before? You didn't allow me to read through it or even take a look. Am I allowed to read through it now?" asked Fiat excitedly, without knowing how serious the contents were.

"Get those files here and take a look. After that, I want you to give them to your P'Forth," added Khun Kong.

"Let me get it first, Dad," said Fiat as he ran upstairs to his room to get the file.

Khun Kong looked at the way his son disappeared with a sad smile on his face. He couldn't change the past and regretted his mistakes most of his days.

He also knows what he is doing now might hurt his son and will cause him to get separated from him. But he had to do what was due a long time ago. He could only hope for his son to understand his intention.

"Dad, I got the file. Let's read through them," Fiat reached the living room with happy skips on his way.

"Fiat, before you read them, Dad want you to know that this is my karma and my doings. It has nothing to do with your mom or you. By chance, in future, if I'm not with you, please don't blame yourself. Please know that this is my karma getting back at me, and your Dad is willing to face them," stated Khun Kong with a guilty look.

"Dad, you are scaring me now. Are you sick? Are you dying and going to leave me?" questioned Fiat with a scared look and eyes ready to cry.

"No. I'm healthy, my son. Meet me outside in the garden when you're done reading these documents," Khun Kong said as he patted his son's shoulders before he left the living room.

Fiat watched his Dad walk away as he stared at the documents. He took a few deep breaths before finally opening the papers to read through them. He always wondered why his Dad kept the content of these papers confidential. Now Fiat finally got to know them. And he is curious how his P'Forth got involved.

~

The continuous knock on the door downstairs woke Beam from his sleep. He grumpily twisted in the bed as he sought warmth from the person snoring softly beside him. He hoped for the knocking to stop in a while and continued his sleep.

But to his dismay, the knocking got loud per minute.

"Whoever that is, I'm going to kill you," he cursed as he got out of bed and went downstairs.

"Who's there?" he asked as he searched for the keys.

"It's me, Nong Beam. Grandpa Mew," he heard his grandpa's voice from the other side. His whole family knew how much he hated waking up early in the morning.

"Why you're here so early, Grandpa?!" he angrily asked as he opened the door wide enough to enter. He didn't even spare him a glance as his eyes were still half closed due to sleepiness.

"We missed you,"

Beam froze on his spot as he heard the familiar voices. He blinked his eyes a couple of times to get rid of sleep and look at the people to whom that voice belonged.

Beam saw additional people behind his grandparents. He believed that he was not ready to meet anybody from his past. He would feel awkward facing his aged best friends. But only a glance at his ageing best friends was enough to prove him wrong.

"Beam... Is that really you?" asked Kit with teary eyes, as he couldn't trust his eyes.

And that was all it took for Beam to rush to his best friends, or should I say, past second parents?

Phana engulfed Beam in his wide, stretched arms as Kit joined the hug.

"Pha...Kit...," he called out as he busked in their combined warmth.

"We missed you so much. Never leave us again," cried Kitty, without worrying about the teasing he may get from his naughty friends later.

"I won't. I promise," replied Beam with teary eyes too. This situation is not what he expected when he woke up today.

"Oe, oe, oe, get inside and cry, guys. My old bones are tired of standing," complained Grandpa Gulf as he guided all of them into the house.

After settling down, Beam went to freshen up and wake Forth while P'Gulf took it upon himself to arrange the lunch they brought on the way in plates. P'Mew helped him with the food while Wayo and Ming tried to console their still-teary husbands.

Beam was the first to return to the dining area. He informed the others that Forth was in the shower.

"I thought you gave us time to catch up first, Grandpa Mew. Why did you bring the others here instead?" asked Beam as he saw his grandparents alone in the dining area.

"Yes, We agreed to give you both time to catch up. But it was a week ago. Your friends were eager to meet you again, and I can't handle your past and present parents nagging me to bring them here to meet you.

By the way, is everything alright with Forth?" asked P'Mew worriedly.

He was worried about his once younger brother when Beam informed them that Forth got a fever just like him after gaining all the memories. The Kongtanins were not different from him. They were worried about their son too.

All of them could only take a relieved breath when Beam called last night to update them about Forth's condition. Both mentally and physically.

Not long after, all of them gathered at the dining area as Forth joined them. Forth casually took the seat beside Beam, and the rest could only smile at the familiar gesture.

"It's good to get you both back. I missed you both so much. How are you both now?" asked Ming as he smiled goofily with them. Even though all the people at the table were aged and were past their sixties, they still behaved the same as they were still in their twenties with Forth and Beam.

"We are good now, Grandpa Ming. How was your life? Did Grandpa Kitty torture you so much?" teased Beam.

"Owh, we just got you back, and you already started to cause trouble and tease us," complained Kit from his other side. He didn't want to leave Beam's side.

"Beam, behave. Eat first. You look thinner than I remember. Is Jaturapooms not taking good care of you?" asked Phana sternly.

"Pha~, all of them care for me so much. They showered me with love since I remember. I was engrossed in something and didn't bother about my meals," Beam admitted with a shy smile.

"Let's finish this and get to that matter in the living room. Beam, eat more. I don't want them to complain about this again," scolded Gulf good-naturedly.

"Okay, grandpa Gulf," Beam replied as he smiled cheekily.

~

Khun Kong sat on the bench by the pond and watched the school of Koi fish in their small pond. It has been two hours since he left Fiat with the papers. Any minute now, his son might storm him with hateful words and disgusted looks due to the content of those papers.

But,

In contrast to his thinking, his son ran to him as he cried in his arms.

"Dad...Dad...," he cried in Khun Kong's arms like a small kid.

"Fiat, Luk(son)... Why are you crying?" Khun Kong questioned, confused.

"Dad, don't leave Fiat, na. You already did merit for everything. You don't have to do this? Pa Arhit won't want this. Even P'Forth won't want this, na. Please, Dad," he cried some more.

"Listen carefully, my son. What happened was my fault. Even though I try to fix it, I can't bring back those who died because of me. I have to repent for my mistakes. When I'm not here, Please take care of yourself and your mom. She may seem very strong, but we both know she's not," Khun Kong tried to humour his sad son. But, it was not funny enough to make Fiat smile. It only made him cry hard.

"Can't you wait till I graduate?" asked Fiat with hopeful eyes and tried to negotiate.

"No, Fiat. It is already over the due, na," Khun Kong tried to console Fiat.

"I just left you guys for a day, and you both are already shooting a melodrama without me?" teased Fiat's mom, who returned from her trip to Chian Mai.

"Mom, Please convince Dad, na," Fiat pleaded with her, not leaving his Dad's arms.

"Fiat, your Dad is right. If he doesn't do this, he won't forgive himself ever. Let him do what he wants, na. Mom will be there with you until Dad come back to us. Please understand Dad, na, luk," she consoled Fiat as she caressed his hair softly.

"I won't try to understand his reasonings. I don't want Dad to leave me," Fiat declared between his sobs and ran to his room.

His parents could only watch him with a sad smile. Their only son loves his Dad more than his mom, and that's not a secret. They could comprehend why Fiat couldn't take his Dad's decision. But he has to understand the situation. Fiat is aged enough to know the family's dark secrets now.

Even though Khun Kong did everything to bring the family back to the light and the family is clean of any dark secrets, it's better, to be honest about that part of the family to his only son. If anything, he must know what and why his father took those extreme measures.

"Pho, are you sure about this? Won't the shareholders be mad at you? What if...?" Fiat's mom tried to ask him, which got stopped by Khun Kong with a soft smile.

Even though Fiat's mom consoled Fiat bravely, she expected Khun Kong to change his mind at the last minute. From her point of view, her husband has repented more than necessary, and he lost more in this too.

If someone has to die or suffer for what happened forty-plus years ago, then it's Khun Saen only. Not her husband. Not the person who lost everything in a single day and lived his whole life in remorse.

"You were so brave to advise our son. What happens now, Mae?" teased Khun Kong as he side-hugged her.

"If Khun Arhit was here and begged you to stay, would you listen to him?" she asked sadly.

"If P'Arhit's here, he would do the same thing you're doing. He would say what you're saying. But here, this is not agreeing to anything you both say, na," he said as he placed her palm on his heart.

"No matter what who says, I betrayed my Nong that day. I have to do this, Mae. How was your trip there?" he tried to divert the conversation as he saw how sad her eyes looked.

"I visited my parent's grave and also his after meeting my friends. They took good care of their gravestones, and the place got planted with a new batch of flowers for summer. You could've come with me. It was peaceful there," she added as she hugged him.

"I will follow you next time. I miss P'Arhit too," Khun Kong stated with a faraway look.

~

Throughout the meal, Forth remained silent and didn't spare P'Mew or P'Gulf a glance. He kept looking down at his plate or his hands.

P'Mew seems to notice Forth's gloomily gesturing and doesn't bother him with casual talks. He remained silent as well. Beam and P'Gulf caught the awkwardness among the once brothers.

Unlike Beam, Forth believed everything to be his dreams or imagination. After remembering how he let down his loved ones, he wasn't daring enough to face them. Forth sometimes wonders what happened to his outright confidence and wild braveness from his past life. Did he lose that trait in his reincarnation?

Apart from Beam and P'Gulf, Phana caught the weird expression on his now grandson and best friend's face.

"Kit, let's clean the table. P'Mew and P'Gulf, you guys, should rest in the living room. We will take care of the dishes," said Phana as he dragged Kit along. Wayo and Ming followed their husband to let some helping hands.

"Forth, I will be Kit and Pha," Beam suddenly declared and rushed to the kitchen when he noticed it was only him with the jaturapooms.

Forth get alarmed when he figures out that his friends and family left him to face the reunion he delayed all this time. P'Mew remained quiet, and P'Gulf watched them both silently too.

"I'll be in the living room, Gulf," said P'Mew as he got up to leave the dining area when he sensed how tensed and troubled Forth looked.

He thought that maybe Forth needed more time to adapt.

As he was about to leave the table, Forth caught his wrist. P'Mew stood frozen on his spot as he felt the familiar grip on his wrist.

The past Forth used to grab him by the wrist, unlike other brothers who prefer palms or not holding hands at all.

"P'Mew...I'm home," he said more like a whisper as tears gathered in his eyes.

"Welcome back, Nong," replied P'Mew in a hoarse voice as he tried hard to hold back the sobs threatening to escape his lips.

"I'm sorry, P'Mew. I failed you," added Forth as he finally hugged the old figure in front of him.

Mew and Forth were more than 180 centimetres tall and had a muscled build in the past. But the guy in front of Forth was not the tall, strong man who raised him more like a son than a brother. The guy before him is the man who aged like fine wine, but still, the wrinkles in his eyes and shrunk height showed how time passed.

Forth let his tears run free as he once again felt like a child in front of his elder brother. If there is one thing that the jaturapoom brothers especially had, was that their brotherhood.

P'Mew hugged him tightly in his arms like he always did and felt like their travelled back in time.

"What happened there, Forth? How did the plan go south?" asked P'Mew when Forth was finally stable, not crying and seated in the living room with the rest of the people.

"Did Khun Kong betray you? How did Khun Saen figure out the plan?" asked P'Mew again as Forth remained silent.

"P'Kong had no choice. They had his lover and forced him to reveal the plan," whispered Forth sadly, recalling the past.

"So, he did betray you? I told you not to trust him 100 per cent?" stated Beam heatedly.

"If I was in his shoes and they had you, I would have done the same thing, Beam. We can't blame him fully for the situation. P'Kong didn't abandon me there," added Forth, defending him.

"Yes, he did. I saw him pointing a gun at you, and he shot you!" argued Beam in anger. The image of injured Forth falling into the ocean due to the shot wound never left his mind.

"No, you got that part wrong, Beam. Khun Kong didn't point the gun at me. He aimed the gun at Khun Saen, who targeted a gun at you from behind. Since the ship went through turbulence, Khun Saen accidentally shot me instead of you," explained Forth.

"That's not possible. I saw Khun Kong-"

"No, Beam. Khun Saen is known for following his principle in cases like this. He won't attack the defenceless. He knew I would die no matter whether he shot me or not. He wouldn't waste his bullet on me. You have no idea how relieved I felt when the bullet hit me instead of you," said Forth as he held the distressed Beam in his arm.

The said person was stunned by the truth. He hated the wrong person all this time. Since Grandpa Mew told him about Khun Saen's condition, he wished to torture or bring Khun Kong in front of justice for all of his wrongdoings.

"You have met this Khun Kong in this life, right Nong?" asked Grandpa Gulf as he remembered reading news about Khun Kong being the special guest for Beam's university event.

"I met him when I joined the music band in my 1st year. He acted strange around me. I couldn't understand the emotion behind his eyes whenever he saw or spoke to me. He was a very supportive sponsor of our band, and it was he who gifted the Ship photo frame in our studio. To think back on it, I now understand why I felt attached to the ship picture even if I felt angry towards it," elaborated Forth as he noticed others' expressions.

Apart from him, all the people in the house were planning to punish the said Khun Kong. But, after listening to Forth's part of the story, they don't know how to proceed anymore.

"If we have to blame someone for what happened to us, then blame Khun Saen, not P'Kong. I'm sure he has been living in hell all this time," concluded Forth as he hugged the angrily pouting Beam.

"Let's say Khun Kong is innocent and doesn't deserve punishment. Then who should we sue for the health issues they caused for the island people?" asked Kit, confounded.

"I preserved one copy of the document Forth gave me before he left for the offshore rig, the record I requested Kit to submit to the navy. I felt I needed to save a copy, and I did just that. When I left Leo at the hotel a week ago, I went to obtain the papers back from the safe locker.

I have the documents with me. With those papers, we could execute the lawsuit successfully. But, If we need more solid evidence like pictures or sample results, then we need to dig deeper," commented Beam.

"All the samples are gone with the fire. Where would we find them now?" asked Phana stressed.

"If only we were fast in executing our plans," said P'Mew as he heaved a sigh. It felt like they are back to one all over again.

Suddenly Forth's phone vibrated, indicating incoming texts. He looked at the others who were present there uneasy before he took out his phone from his pocket to check the content.

He noticed he received multiple pdf files and pictures from Nong Fiat. He pressed the messenger app as Beam leaned in to see it too. What he received from his Nong seemed like all the answers to their prayers.

The texts ended with the 'We need to talk, P'Forth' text from Fiat.

Beam stared wide-eyed at Forth as he passed his phone to P'Mew for a second opinion.

Even though those files made P'Mew feel overwhelmed, he composed himself fast.

"Well, let's meet him, Forth. He seemed like he got answers to our questions," said P'Mew with a determined face.

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End of Chap 18.

TBC.

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~

Dear cupcakes,

Two or three more chapters and this story will end.

Hopefully, I could deliver the story well till the very end.

Don't forget to share your thoughts about this update, and don't forget to vote and share.

Till we meet again, take care and stay safe.

Buh-bye.

~