Chapter Text
Wave woke up when Pang rolled over and hit him. You have to be shitting me. He held his temple to stop the throbbing feeling from creeping up. He stared at Pang before getting an idea. He watched him until he could hear him start to snore slightly, then raised his hand before slapping him hard. Then he fell asleep. Fake sleep.
“Wave?” he heard Pang call out. He let out a fake snore. “Wave wake up," he felt his body shake with the rough movement that Pang shook him with. He rubbed the fake sleep out of his eyes “What do you want?" Pang blinked at him slowly. “I felt something hit me.”
He hummbed. “Thats odd. Now get out of my way. I have class.” “Wave skip class.” Pang said. “Why would I skip class?” He asked. “So we can do research," he laughed mentally. This was so Pang. “You’re falling into old habits.”
“Okay so?” “Don't drag me into it.”
"Wave, I’m being serious; you’ve never missed a class; even when you were so sick, I had to make you food and bring you to the doctor.” Wave hated remembering that time. “Don't speak of that.” He spat. "Ou, okay, so you’re still moody in the morning.” Pang smiled his signature dumb one. “Die.”
“You know you missed me, Wave. Just stay here and let's find them.” He pretended to wonder if he wanted to stay, but he knew he would say yes. He always said yes to Pang. "Fine, you're still as annoying.”
"Yay, now I'll let you go from my room.” Pang scooted backwards, putting space between them for the first time since they said goodnight. "Finally, I have a routine, and you're disturbing it.”
Pang tilted his head and smiled with those deep dimples. “Can I follow your routine with you?" Wave felt his heart start to beat faster than normal. Who says this type of stuff? Why is my heart beating so fast again? He quickly scrambled off Pang’s bed and made it to the door. “Do what you want.” He turned around to hide his quickly reddened face, made his way out, and heard Pang's footsteps behind him.
He started his routine by showering, but thankfully Pang didn’t follow him into the shower but rather stayed outside the bathroom door like a stray cat. He left the room to allow Pang to enter. “You take long showers, Wave.” He sighed. "Go shower and hurry up since you want to be a nuisance and follow everything I do.” Pang giggled before going for his shower. This left Wave alone with his thoughts. He did not need this alone time. His mind went straight to the fact that his face heats up around Pang. His ears would ring and burn when Pang would compliment him or say weird things. He needed help about this, and he felt like Claire would probably be of use. If they could find her, at least.
His thoughts were broken by Pang opening the door. “See, it only takes like 10 minutes, not 20.”
“Why are you so annoying? Just let me shower for however long.”
“What do you do next?” Pang asked. He didn’t say anything to Pang and walked back into his room. He could see out of the corner of his eye that he was still following him. He sat on his bed and waited. Pang broke the silence by speaking. "Was this all you do?”
“No.” “Then why are we waiting here?”
“Because my next step is waiting for you to knock on my door and grab the food and eat.” He watched his eye’s widen. “Oh, is that really part of your routine?"
“I'm not repeating myself.” Pang nodded and stood up “Let me make our food.” He patted his knee, and he felt Pang’s hand linger. Weird. “I’ll be back.” Then he was left alone again. He needed a distraction. He realized he hadn't messed with his potential since he was forced to forget.
He picked up his laptop from his desk and opened it. He blinked slowly and laid his hands on it. Before his very eyes, it woke up and displayed exactly what he wanted. A new vlog by a girl named Veah. She was a girl from New York who was in college here, somewhere in Bangkok. It started to play without any movement from him, and he sat back to watch peacefully.
As it started, she was walking around her campus when a girl came up from behind and waved at the camera. Wave gasped audibly. Right in front of him was Namtann. This can’t be. How did he find her so easily? He needed to get Pang.
He didn’t have to move from his bed as Pang walked in holding two steaming plates of ขนมปัง. “How did you make this so quickly?” he questioned. "Secrets, I cannot tell.” He let it go before turning to his screen. “Wave is that, Namtann?” He nodded silently. He didn’t know what to say.
“How did you find her?” His tone was laced with an accusation.
“I didn't. I watch this girl named Veah who goes to a college in Bangkok and vlogs about her life here. I didn’t pick this video either; my potential did it. Well, I did think about watching her video, but I didn’t know Namtann would be a part of it.” Pang continued to silently stare at him. “Will you say something? You’re quietness is unsettling.”
“I’m just in shock. How do we get to her?” Wave shook his head. “We don’t. We bring her to us.”
“How?” Wave didn’t answer and willed his potential to search for her social media. “I’ll find her, and you can message her.” Pang made a shrill noise. “Why me?” he asked. “Because your Instagram is more friendly-looking than mine.”
“That’s not true.” He stared at Pang while chewing his food. "Okay, maybe it is, but still, I don’t want to do it. What if I scare her?"
“You don’t have to. Ill do it just using your account.” Pang sighed in relief. "Oh, that's better. Do you need my information?”
“No, I already have it.” Why would he say that? He didn’t have to know that. I’m an idiot.
“What?”
“Eat your food and don't ask questions.” He said. He didn’t want to seem like a crazy person. He just remembered it from their freshman year. “ You’re scary. Glad we’re partners.”
"Yeah, no, don’t say that.” My ears are burning again. Seriously, I need to find out what is wrong with me. I’m finding Claire next. “Why? Don’t you love me?"
“I will ruin your phone; don't test me.” “Yeah, whatever your threats, don’t scare me anymore.”
A comfortable silence fell over them. He was staring at Pang. There was something in him that just made him want to keep looking. He looked cozy, but cute cozy. Is this what a crush is? Wait, crush? Do I like Pang? Can I even like Pang? Is that why I’ve been feeling like my heart is going to fall out every time he says something mushy? “God, this cannot be happening to me.”
“What can’t?” Pang’s voice brought him out of his thoughts. “Huh?”
“You said, God, this cannot be happening to me. So what's happening to you?" Why do these things happen to me? What do I even say now? "Nothing; don’t worry about it. We need to find everyone else; we only have Namtann and Mon by the looks of this Instagram post.”
“What post?” He turned his phone to show Pang a recent post with Namtann and Mon both smiling at each other. “They look happy and slightly in love.” Pang said. Wave grunted. “They’re not in love, Namtann-”
“Did you like Namtann or Mon? Is that why you’re disagreeing?”
“Again, will you let me finish? They’re not in love because, by the looks of her feed, she is dating the vlogger Veah.”
“Oh-”
“Yeah Oh. Next time, let me finish.” Pang hid his face, looking guilty. “Sorry,” he said. “It’s whatever; I’ll try to get into contact with her. I also found Claire, who is luckily dating Punn. Along with Ohm, who is a comedian as of now, I did see a photo of Korn and the twins with him, so we have everyone.
Pang didn’t say anything, but Wave could feel his stare of shock.
“You’re amazing, Wave.”
“What?”
“You’re amazing, and you have a brilliant mind and skills. You could take over the world, but please don't. I don't want to fight against you, only with you.”
“You need to stop talking sometimes.”
“Just let me compliment you. You know you like it.”
“Shut up and get out while I finish this research.”
Pang let out a heartfelt giggle. Wave wanted to hear that laughter every day. I think I like Pang. Is this what it means to like someone? How would he even tell Pang? “No, that sounds like a terrible idea.” “I’ll keep it to myself.” Pang never left his room, but he was preoccupied with his thoughts. Pang’s presence was oddly comforting to him. He was glad Pang didn’t ever listen to him.
Wave needed to lie on the floor. He turned off the lights and laid down near the twinkling lights. He let his eyes rest. “Wave.” Does he ever shut up? I’m trying to keep it together here. “What do you want now?” Pang got up from his bed and laid next to him.
“What if I told you I liked someone from our class?" Oh, this just made it so much worse. What does he even reply with? "Oh, so do I.”
“Why would I care?" He spat out. I did not mean to make it sound so mean. Can I not do anything right?
“Would you be upset if it wasn’t you?” Yes, I would. Why would you ask this? Do you know? Was I bad at hiding whatever it is I’m feeling? “Why would you say that?”
“Would you be upset if it was one of the guys?” “I’d be a hypocrite then.” Pang and him were holding eye contact. Their faces are just two inches apart. This felt like some cheesy coming-of-age movie. Wave wouldn’t mind living through that, if it were with Pang. Why did he have to like someone else? The music started to play quietly. Where did that come from? Did he do it?
“Wave.” His heart raced upon hearing Pang say his name again. He whispered, “Yes.”
Pang held his face, bringing them closer. “What if it was you?” Pang whispered. Wave felt his heart race faster. “Me?”
“What if I said I wanted to grow old with you and have an apartment together while we finish college together, and then we could graduate and adopt a black cat like you’ve always wanted to have?"
Wave’s lips began to tremble as he tried to hold in his tears. "Pang, what are you saying?”
“I'm saying that I love you. I'm saying that I hold so much love for you, Wave, that it feels like I'm being burned with a cigarette. I’ve always liked you, but ever since you helped me remember our past, I realized I didn't want to live without you again. I never wanted to.”
He felt the tears slide down his face. How could he not see that Pang loved him just as much as he loved him? Wave wiped the tears from under Pang’s eyes and brought their foreheads together. They stayed in each other's arms.
“Wave.”
“Why must you break the silence?”
“Because I want to ask you to go on a date with me.”
“Oh.” He paused. Pang really does want a relationship. “Is that a no?” “You’re an idiot.” Pang scoffed, “Mean.”
“But you’re my idiot. Yes, I'll go on a date with you unless it involves me going outside and interacting with other people.”
“So I can’t take you to the carnival?” “Let’s go.”
Wave sat up and dragged Pang up. “Right now?” he asked. “Yes, you know I like the carnival, and you offered, so now we have to go.”
"You’re moving kind of fast for someone who hasn't even told me he likes me yet.” Wave paused and looked straight into the others eyes. “Pang.” It was Pang’s turn to answer. “What?”
“I want to go on this date with you and come back to our dorm, sleep in the same bed, wake up in the same bed, and for you to follow my routine just like you did this morning for the rest of the time we have together.”
“Does that answer your confession?” He asked Pang.
“It does. You made it sappy; you could have just said you loved me.”
“Who said I loved you?” “Whatever.”
"Also, your confession was even more sappy, so I don’t know why you’re hating.” Pang shoved him. “What do we do now?” he asked. “We go on our date, and we come back here and find our friends.”
“Do you think this will work out?”
“What us or finding our friends?” “Both.”
Wave stayed silent, leaning against Pang’s side. “We can try. It’s about trial and error. This time, we don’t have a responsibility to save our friends and everyone else. We can take our time. We can be ourselves.” Pang sighed before giggling. “You suddenly know how to give speeches.”
"I think you have infected me with having a positive outlook on things.” Pang nodded and let his head rest on top of Wave’s. Wave finally knew what these feelings and actions were doing to him. He guessed he didn’t need Claire at the end. She is so going to tease me.
“It is us against the world now.” “It is.”
“You’re cute when you’re not hiding your feelings from me.” “You knew?” He asked.
“You talk out loud sometimes.” He gasped in shock. "Pang, why didn't you tell me then?"
“I wanted to wait for the right moment.” He groaned and hid his face in his hands. “I hate you.”
“Not what your thoughts were saying.” Wave removed himself from his side and shoved him onto the ground. “This is payback.”
“No Wave, don't tickle me.” “Too late.” He started to relentlessly tickle the other and laughed watching Pang struggle away from the tickles.
Pang managed to gain the upper hand and started to tickle him back. They giggled amongst each other until they both got tired and laid down next to one another. “You still want to go on that date?” Pang asked. “I do.”