Two weeks later...

Gemini insisted on taking his brother and friends to the airport.  Pond and Phuwin kept casting affectionate glances at each other, until the youngest Tangsakyuen finally had enough of it and stepped between the lovers, separating them and throwing his arms around both of their necks.  Phuwin grimaced and Pond laughed.  Joong was the only one of them who was very serious and kind of sad, but Gem didn't want to dwell on that right now.  He only exchanged knowing glances with Fourth who accompanied them.  The boy raised one eyebrow.  Gemini shook his head as if to say, "Later!"

“Remember to take plenty of photos for me with Alex and First”.  Gemini instructed them.

“Hmm, don't worry little fanboy, we won't forget, we know that Alex and First are your great loves”. Phuwin joked and got kicked for it.

“You better shut up, otherwise you'll end up going to the hospital instead of flying to Singapore”.  Gemini said it in an artificially sweet tone with the face of a charming innocent.  Fourth was tempted to record it and share it on Instagram, which he did.  P'Erin had asked them both more than once to post as much videos and posts about each other as possible, and this was a good opportunity.  Gem was so used to being constantly recorded that he didn't even notice, and at that moment he was trying to hide behind his friends Joong and Pond to avoid Phuwin, who was clearly chasing him with the intention of grabbing him and tickling him.  Gem knew his brother's favorite pastime perfectly well: picking on him, teasing him and tickling him was very high on that list, and even though he was running away from it, deep down he actually liked these moments, it made him feel carefree and light,  it was like he was five years old again and had no worries.

Fourth couldn't stop smiling as he looked at them and recorded them.  He added the description on his InstaStories: "Isn't this little guy cute?" When he put the phone in his pocket, Gemini ran forward and ran straight into the surprised Dr. Khaotung, who had only just appeared at the airport.

“Gem, watch out!” Fourth shouted, but it was too late.  Gem crashed into the smaller and shorter doctor, knocking them both to the floor.  “Damn it!”

Fourth cursed under his breath, grimacing.

“Serves you right!  You've got what you deserve, little brother!” Phuwin laughed loudly.  Even Joong smiled, although his smile was faint and subdued.

“I-I'm sorry,” Gemini stammered, stood up and offered his hand to the doctor to help him up.  Fourth came closer and whispered in his ear:

“You, Gem, or maybe you don't want to match Dunk with the doctor at all?  Maybe you want to match yourself with him?”

This question, and the fact that Gem was still involuntarily clutching the doctor's hand, made the young Tangsakyuen immediately back away and give Fourth an extremely unpleasant look.  Gem looked down at his new friend and work partner as if he had said the stupidest thing in the world, and then laughed merrily, completely unfazed by what had happened or what Nattawat had said.  He wasn't interested in Khaotung in that way and felt very comfortable around him.

“I'm really sorry, doctor.  I didn't mean to bump into you.  It's because of Phuwin, he was chasing me”. Gemini explained and pointed his finger towards the potential culprit.  Phu tapped his own chest with his index finger.

“I?  Doctor, don't believe him, I didn't do anything to him!  I didn't tell him to knock you over”.

“Yes, you may not have told me to do it, but you chased me!  You're the reason I knocked the doctor over!”

“Think what you want”.  Phuwin didn't care what Gemini thought, he was too happy.  He ostentatiously approached Pond and intertwined their fingers together.  “Today you can't piss me off with anything, because I have my boyfriend next to me who will defend me if anything happens”.

“Oh blah!”  Gemini pretended to vomit.  Dr. Khaotung laughed and Joong gave him a long, appraising look.  “Okay, enough of the good news, let me introduce you to my doctor and recent friend.  Meet Doctor Khaotung Thanawat, he will accompany you.  Coincidentally, you two luckily have rooms in the same hotel, so you can stay together. This is the person to whom you owe the opportunity to enter the paddock”.

Dr. Khaotung greeted everyone. He knew before only Gem and saw Phuwin few times. He also knew a little Dunk, but Dunk couldn't go with them, he was too busy with his college.

Khaotung didn't look like a doctor at all, and Fourth thought that with his looks, he could be a celebrity and asked him if he had considered such a career path.  Khaotung, with a friendly smile on his face, replied:

“No, nong Fourth, I didn't think about it.  I always wanted to be a doctor like my parents.  They own the hospital where I work, I actually grew up there, I hardly know any other life, but it doesn't bother me.  I am happy when I can help someone, when I can relieve pain or heal someone”.

Dr. Khaotung tactfully didn't mention the dark side of this work, the cases where patients could not be saved, the moments when he lost hope and it seemed to him that he would never defeat Death.  He didn't talk about how many times, after an unsuccessful fight for someone's life, he locked himself in his room and drowned his remorse with alcohol.  He understood Gemini in a way, and that helped them connect immediately.

★  ★  ★

The next day in Singapore...

“Who is this?” First Kanaphan immediately noticed the guys in the garage of their Williams team, for which he drove.  Four young men, whom he immediately recognized as compatriots, were talking cheerfully to each other.  One of them, the shortest one, immediately caught the eye of a handsome Formula 1 driver.

“Oh, these are our special guests, the VIPs.  See the shortest one?  This is Dr. Khaotung, he got a pass to the paddock and our garage for a whole weekend for himself and his friends after he saved the life of Alex's girlfriend, Lily”.

“Oh, it's him, great”.  First was happy with this answer.  He remembered Alex telling him about his trip to Thailand, which he also encouraged him to do, and about an accident that could have ended very tragically.  Only the intervention of an experienced and capable doctor saved Lily from death or at least permanent disability.  Alex was so grateful to the doctor who did it that he promised to get him tickets to his garage.  “Can I talk to them?”

His race engineer, Max Kornthas Rujeerattanavorapan, a very handsome young man from Thailand, looked at him with an all-knowing look.  He knew his protégé perfectly and already sensed problems.

“Oh, come on Max, there won't be any mischief, I promise!”

Max didn't believe him.

First Kanaphan was considered an irresistible man in their community, and if he set his sights on a target, which was usually a young and hot guy, it didn't take him long to hunt him down.  He was a real hunter.

First smoothed his hair with his hand and walked over to his guests.

“Look, look Pond, it's P'First!”  Phuwin shouted this into his boyfriend's ear, almost deafening him, and squeezed his arm so hard that Pond hissed in pain.

“Ouch!  I know you're excited, but could you be a little more gentle?  Even a little?”

“Oops!  Sorry!” Phu, fearing that in his emotions he could seriously harm Pond, took his hands away from him and raised them in a defensive gesture.

“I heard that you are our VIPs for this weekend?” First asked them a question that they all tried to answer together, which caused chaos and meant that the driver didn't understand anything at all.  “Calm down, boys, not all at once, because I don't know what's going on”.

“Maybe it's me,” Phuwin, the most excited of them all, jumped forward and started talking.   “I'm Phuwin, and these are my friends: Joong, Dr. Khaotung and Pond.  We came for the race, and miraculously, Dr. Khaotung had VIP entries for us to your garage”.

“I'm not his friend, I'm his boyfriend”. Pond embraced Phuwin with a telling gesture, as if to emphasize that Phu was no longer single.  Phu pinched his side.

“I see”.  First smiled at them, greeted each of them, and then focused his full attention on Khaotung, standing slightly to the side.   “Hey handsome, I take it you're single?”

Hearing this, Phuwin opened his mouth wide in surprise.  Gem won't be happy!  Oh no!  Phu looked at his boyfriend to see if they were thinking the same thing.  Pond pressed his lips into a thin line.  Yup, they were definitely thinking the same thing.  Oops!  Gem's plan, even though they ultimately abandoned it, was still fresh in their minds and they couldn't forget about it.  First's interest in the handsome doctor complicated matters, but the doctor did not let himself be fooled and, although he had been a fan of First's for a long time, he had no intention of becoming his next conquest.

“I don't think it makes any difference whether I have someone or not.  I came here to support Alex and have a great time”.

“But Doc, I can guarantee you a great time.  Just wait for me after the second free practice.  Let me take you to my place and show you what real fun is all about”. First smiled coquettishly at Khaotung, but he only crossed his arms on his chest and replied in a haughty tone:

“I can wait, but not for you, but for Alex.  I'd like to talk to him for a moment.  He's the reason I came here”.

„Oh, dear doctor, what's the harm in waiting for me too?  I guarantee you will be satisfied”.

“Don't call me dear doctor”.

Khaotung's ice-cold gaze would have robbed anyone of their courage, but Kanaphan was not a man who cowarded easily, especially if he wanted something very much.

“Why?  It's adorable.  You're cute too”.

“And you're boring.  Stop it already”. Max decided to interrupt them, noticing that the young doctor did not feel very comfortable during this discussion, in Max's opinion, completely unnecessary.

First was not pleased, but still decided not to continue talking to Khaotung.  However, he did not intend to give up.  This doctor, in a tasteful blue shirt with two buttons undone at the top and perfectly fitting jeans, made a stunning impression.  First definitely wanted to have it.  His interest was further fueled by the fact that the doctor was playing the unavailable one.

"You'll still be mine, you'll see" - First wagged his finger at him in his imagination, but he obediently followed his race engineer to change and prepare for the first training session. For now, he had to focus on completing his task on the track. Max introduced in a calm voice.  him the agenda again, while First was changing. They had no time to waste, and First was a professional in his field. He always performed the tasks entrusted to him 100%.

Meanwhile, Khaotung, Pond, Phuwin and Joong discussed the strange behavior of the Williams driver.

“I'm telling you, he likes you!” Joong patted his new colleague on the shoulder in appreciation.  “You are so lucky!  He's a Formula 1 driver! Do you know how many people litteraly dreams about this?! You're so damn lucky! It's First Kanaphan!!! If he asked me, I'd already wait for him in his room!”

“For me, he might even be the Prince of Great Britain, but as long as he's an unprincipled asshole, I don't want anything to do with him”.

“You don't want him?”

“Yup, I don't want this dumb asshole.  What's the point of being handsome if he's shallow?  Someone like him has no feelings, can't love, all that matters to him is good fun and money”.

“If that was the case, he would have signed with Mercedes and not with Williams”.  Joong questioned Khaotung's argument.

“You think so?”

“Yuuup, that's exactly what I think.  From what Gemini told us, First had three offers: Alpine, Williams and Mercedes, he could have chosen any team, but he chose Williams, even though he was not offered the highest salary.  Gem said it was apparently because First actually wanted to help Williams.  Don't you know that he is one of the greatest talents in Formula 1?  With Mercedes, he could even win the Drivers' World Championship but he gave up on this just to help the team with lower chances”.

Khaotung thought about it.

There was some truth in what Joong said.  Maybe he shouldn't have refused First so immediately?  At least he could have been nicer to him.

Khaotung sighed heavily, scratching his head.

And what now?  First is definitely discouraged and won't want to talk to him anymore.  Khaotung was sure he had lost his chance.  He knew exactly what fun the F1 driver was talking about.  Would he really lose much if he agreed?  Khaotung had no idea about Gem's plan or that this was how he was ruining him.  All that mattered was that he felt remorse.  Yes, he definitely shouldn't have rejected First straight away without any thought.  Khao decided that despite a slight loss of faith in himself and that it could be possible, he would wait for First after the second training session, but he would pretend to talk to Alex.  Well, unless Alex escapes from them first, which was also possible.

❄️💖🐰🥶❤️😂🤭🤫😅🥲🙏🥺🖤✨🥰😍😆😭❗💜💙🏎️💝👋🤗🤯💔🎶💚🤪🐶🪄🥵👀😈🔥

Finally they met!!!

Who's happy?!

I AM VERY happy!!! If you watched Only Friends series, The Eclipse series and Not Me series, you probably get where I found my inspiration for First's character!

How do you like it?

Have a nice day and thank you all for so much love! Thank you for each view, each ★, and comments, even tho it's not too many of them. I love you so much for this! I didn't expect that you will actually like it, especially because in the middle of writing this story I thought about changing it because some of you told me that you didn't liked it. I hope it's better now 😅

Thank you!

And please, support all these people, whose names I'm using here, because they're the ones who deserve the most beautiful support! Alex, Max, Khaotung, Gemini and everyone else(except totally fictional characters, and there are some like Fourth's twin, Gun from My School President series).

~Annie