Chapter 18

Everything unfolded exactly as Tee had predicted: Kannika could not escape her crimes.

​Not only was she implicated in drug possession and trafficking, but her past was also unearthed, revealing her collusion with thugs to bully classmates. Most terrifying of all, her ability to manipulate those criminals stemmed from the very drugs her family produced. This meant she had begun distributing narcotics since her school days.

​The girl who blew the whistle on Kannika’s drug dealings turned out to be one of her former bullying victims.

​Nunew sat listening to Duangkamol eagerly recount the news she had gathered while waiting for Tee to finish speaking with the lawyer. He had decided to follow Tee’s advice, taking this opportunity to file a lawsuit for everything Kannika had put him through two years ago.

​Truthfully, Nunew didn't want to get involved in legal battles. Since Kannika’s future was already destined to be spent behind bars, he felt digging up the past was unnecessary. However, Tee disagreed.

​He said Nunew deserved to have justice restored.

​And it seemed someone else agreed.

​Evidence of this appeared when Tee and Nu arrived at the law firm; Duangkamol was already waiting at the gate.

She had crucial evidence to provide: a video capturing the entire incident where Kannika framed him. It was clear, from start to finish.

​The moment Nunew saw the video, his entire body went cold and began to shiver. Tee stood beside him, rubbing his back to comfort him while staring intensely at Duangkamol.

​Duangkamol was stared at until her scalp went numb, forcing her to clarify.

​"Back then, I only intended to secretly record a video as evidence of her violent tendencies toward staff. Who would have guessed..."

​Nunew tried to regulate his breathing while gesturing for Tee to hand the video over to the lawyer. Only after Tee’s figure disappeared from view did he ask in a low voice.

​"Has P'Zee seen this video?"

​Duangkamol looked Nunew straight in the eye, curled her lip, and shook her head.

She had only told Zee she had useful evidence to submit; she never mentioned it was a video. She didn't want to be the first name put on the boss’s permanent blacklist.

​Hearing this, Nunew breathed a sigh of relief. He wasn't ready to face the pity or remorse of that man.

​As Nunew stood at the office gate with Duangkamol waiting for Tee to get the car, he spotted a familiar vehicle. It was the car that had picked him up and dropped him off countless times during his rookie days.

​Duangkamol had mentioned earlier that DMD had a company-wide schedule that afternoon. Nunew waved goodbye to her, intending to walk to the parking lot to find Tee.

​However, his silhouette had already caught someone else’s eye.

​"Nunew!"

​Nunew politely adjusted his mask and pressed his palms together to greet the group before him. His gaze flickered almost imperceptibly toward the most prominent man.

​"Hello, everyone."

​Since the crisis at Wat Suthat, it had been a while since Nunew had seen the DMD brothers, except for that coffee meeting with Zee. Truthfully, if he hadn't learned from Tee that Tutor and Yim were constantly trying to convince the others to investigate Kannika, Nunew would have found no reason to ever meet these people again.

​"Jelly..." Nat murmured, too timid to look him in the eye.

​Seeing this, Nunew silently waited to hear what they had to say.

​Before Nat could speak, Net stepped forward. To everyone’s astonishment, the tanned young man pressed his palms together and bowed deeply.

​"Nunew, I’m sorry."

​Net’s apology was sincere—an apology that should have been offered long ago. From the moment he chose silence over the injustice Nunew suffered just to protect business interests with Kannika’s family, Net knew he was wrong. He had betrayed a true friend.

​"Jelly, I’m sorry..."

​With Net leading the way, Nat and the others followed suit, bowing in apology.

​Especially Zee.

​If Nunew had observed a little longer, he would have noticed Zee’s shoulders trembling. But why was he trembling? Remorse or grief? Nunew didn't know.

​All Nunew could do was stand there like a statue. He didn't know how to react. Watching the apologetic expressions he had once craved, he finally heard himself reply hoarsely.

​"It’s okay," he said. "You did nothing wrong."

​Suddenly, Nunew realized that after all this time, he no longer held onto the need for apologies. If he were the Nunew of two years ago, he might have burst into tears or lashed out in reproach, only to eventually wipe the slate clean and start over. He knew his nature—he couldn't hold a grudge, especially when the other party was clearly remorseful.

​Unfortunately, he lowered his eyes; that was the Nunew before he took those sleeping pills to end his own life.

​Nunew looked up at the clear blue sky, his heart filled with relief.

​"I am also at fault."

​Nunew smiled broadly, as radiant as a streak of autumn sunlight.

​"I was too confident in thinking that everyone would stand by my side."

​Nunew was no magnanimous angel. He was just a petty boy stumbling into his twenty-second year. Petty enough that even though his mouth said it was okay, his mind couldn't erase the trauma he had endured.

​That was his nature.

Harsh toward loved ones, but indulgent toward strangers.
​
"I still have to thank you all."

​This time it was Nunew’s turn to bow, greeting each person one by one.

​"Thank you for investigating Kannika for me."

​Zee stared at the forgiving but formal demeanor of the boy just a few steps away, feeling as if his heart were being squeezed.

​Zee suddenly remembered Nunew’s eyes on the morning he left the DMD office. From the floor above, Zee had watched through the glass as Nunew slowly walked to the car with Tee; the wounds on his palms hadn't even healed. Not seeing Zee seemed to help Nunew’s emotions stabilize; at least he hadn't lost control like the night before. He sat in the passenger seat, his eyes drifting vacantly out the window.

​Dazed, yet indifferent.

So different from the star-filled eyes Zee once admired.

​Zee could understand why Tee hated him so much. Because, back then, the one who truly killed all the innocence and hope in Nunew wasn't Kannika. It wasn't the fans turning their backs, or the fabricated slanders from the media. It wasn't even the anti-fans' tactics.

​It was him—the person who said he loved Nunew.

"Why did you say you loved me, only to not believe in me in the end?"

​The accusation was still fresh in the court of his conscience. Zee watched the boy’s blank expression, his feet moving instinctively. By the time he regained awareness, his shadow was already covering Nunew.

​Zee coldly brushed Nunew’s formally pressed hands down, his throat dry.

"Nu, you don't need to thank us."

​After all the suffering Nunew endured, the only thing they could do to belatedly atone for their mistakes was investigate Kannika. But could this action truly salvage the trauma and pain inside him?

No, it was only soothing the guilt that plagued them every day.

​Nunew silently watched his reflection in Zee’s tormented eyes and shook his head gently. His small hand tentatively touched Zee’s face, making Zee hold his breath. He didn't dare move until he felt a soft fingertip brush away a tear from the corner of his eye.

​Nunew smiled tenderly and calmly took a step back.

​"But I still want to say thank you."

​Nunew looked at the people he once loved and trusted, finding flashes of countless moments covered in the dust of sorrow. The moment his heart first felt a flutter. The moment his passion learned to stubbornly chase a dream. The moment his emotions understood what it meant to be overwhelmed.

​All of it reminded Nunew that he must not forget to thank them.

Thank them for having once been in each other's lives.

​Nunew could feel the complex gazes of every DMD member before he turned away.

​Nunew’s carefree youth had ended forever at the age of twenty.

However, that didn't mean his life was over.

​As the world witnessed, the twenty-two-year-old Nunew was still running headlong toward the future.

And he would not look back.

- The End -