Kokliang turns to a narrow alley after escaping a horrible traffic from the main highway. Seating beside him in the front is Jeff, who is directing him where to go.

"Go slow from here," said Jeff, wanting to be sure that he does not end up in the wrong house. From behind the windshield, he can tell that a lot has changed in the scenery of the place in just a span of a year.

"Sure thing." Kokliang relaxes his foot on the accelerator, reducing their speed to 10 km/h as the speedometer indicates. "Where in Thonglor are we?"

"Saeng Thong Alley."

"I think this is my first time here." The lawyer can't help but admire the houses lining the street. He is careful not to take too long when he glances to the side, or he could bump to another car that is parked on the street. "Looking for your house I presume?"

"That's right," replied Jeff as he scrutinizes every structure that they slowly pass by.

"Who do you live there with?"

"My sister and her family."

"Ahhh with in-laws. You told me that you have another one in Sisaket, right?"

"My parents' house."

"I thought you will be getting off there, hahaha. I would've declined it," said Kokliang out of honesty: a 7-hour drive from is something he is not ready do at the moment.

"You can pull over to the side." Jeff points to the right, to which the other immediately steers to.

"Is this your sister's place?" asked Kokliang, pointing to the house on his right.

"Nah. It's this one," answered Jeff, turning his head to the left.

The edifice that Jeff is looking at is a rotunda house with multiple number of sides, which no Latin combining-form word is be enough to correspond to. Made majority of concrete, the front nearly resembles that of the official residence of the POTUS in Washington D.C.: columns, whose bases touch the ground, surround both the semi-circular terrace on the second story and the vicinity of the front door. A pillared enclosure out of cement and gravel provides another layer of security to the structure, ending with a gate at the front, which has been designed and painted to disguise the metal it is made of as varnished oak wood. Judging by the plate embossed on it, the house can be identified with the number 87-B.

"Thanks for the lift," said Jeff, extending a hand over after relieving himself of the seat belt.

"You're welcome and stay out of trouble from now on." Kokliang grips the hand firmly and gives it a light shake.

"Got it," assured Jeff, smiling, then, relinquishing their hold.

"How do I get out of here?" asked Kokliang unlocking the doors using the central switch mounted to the one he is leaning on.

"Straight ahead then turn right at the end. On the next street, take a left at the fork."

"Thanks. See you around Jeff."

"Thank you very much for all your help."

"Part of the job," said Kokliang, shrugging and smiling as he feels proud to have won another case.

Jeff turns back to the door, opens it, and disembarks. He waves a final time to the door from the outside.

Walking towards his sister's house, Jeff can hear as his former counsel drives away to get back to the main highway. When he gets to the grilles of the gate, he surveys the front yard, and he can tell that the lawn has been well-maintained: the grass are just the right height and the flowers on the side are blooming. The aisleways are clean as well, having no trace of mold or algae whatsoever.

Parked on the bay at the far right is his car – the latest model of a Chevrolet Camaro whose scarlet exterior gleams at the touch of the sun's golden rays. On the roofed patio on the left of the main door, Jeff can see his brother-in-law playing with his nephew.

"Thunder looks the same as the last time I saw him," Jeff whispers as he fixes his shirt and pants, referring to the boy who is seated on the floor and trying to connect the tracks of a toy train. After that, he glances to the other side and sees that the simple seesaw, which he and his brother-in-law – Longshi Lee – had built, has been replaced with a mini carousel with three mechanical seats and each having an animal's design: one an elephant, another a pony, and the last a duck. As of the moment, he can only guess if those ponies will move up and down once the machine is switched to life. Before he can extend his hand to press the doorbell, his brother-in-law gives him a wave, and afterwards, taps Thunder on the shoulder and points to where he is. Jeff sees his nephew jumps to his feet and gestures to his father that he wants to be carried, extending both arms forward. Giving his son a piggyback ride – the version where Thunder is seating on his father's shoulders – Long takes little steps to their gate: his son is jumping from where he sits because of excitement.

"Stay still, Thunder," said Long, to which his son obeys. After squatting down and bending his head forward, Thunder slides off his shoulder and stands on the ground.

As soon as Long opens the gate, the boy launches himself to Jeff, who is already down in one knee to catch him in a hug.

"How are you, champ?" asked Jeff while rubbing Thunder's hair with his palm.

"I'm fine, Unkle Jep," answered Thunder after separating himself from their embrace. "I've been a gwood bwoy."

"Really now?"

Thunder nods at the question.

"That's good," acknowledged Jeff, giving his nephew a kiss in the forehead after. "Where's mommy?"

Thunder points to door at the façade

"Let's go see her?" invited Jeff, assuming a squat position.

"Okay." Thunder walks behind his uncle and mounts him, wrapping his arms until both hands meet at the front just below the neck.

"Thunder, Uncle Jeff must be tired. I'll carry you instead," snapped Long – Thunder's stepdad.

"It's okay bro," assured Jeff. He is already used in calling his brother-in-law as bro. Standing up, he does a little hop to get a good grip of his nephew's legs. "Although I must admit that he got heavier than the last time."

"Yeah. He's fond of eating cereals and drinking milk," said Long, stroking his son's head. "And you Jeff, why didn't you tell us that you'll be released today? We could've fetched you," he snapped, looking at Jeff this time.

"I want to surprise you guys, specially this one here." Jeff glances at Thunder, who treats his uncle's back like a cushion – only not as soft as a real one.

Walking towards the house, Long said, "Good thing that you are already here, Jeff. Your sister and I have made some plans while you were away. I think that this is a good time to share it."

"About what?"

"You'll see."

As they near the entrance, Long overtakes the two, going straight to the door to open it. After the Jeff and Thunder go in, he remains outside to tidy back his son's toys.

Standing a couple of steps after the threshold, Jeff surveys the scene in front of him, turning sideways every once in a while trying to compare what he is seeing now versus those he saw before. Directly ahead of him is the stairs that leads to the next floor, where three bedrooms are: two are master's bedroom, while the remaining is just a mediocre one yet can take in at least four persons – typically for guests coming over to spend the night. The balustrade, Jeff sees, has been redone, as it now has a post-to-post handrail and metal balusters.

He takes his eyes back and looks on the left of the living room where the same sofa set he used to sit or lie to are still there, and the only thing new in them are the sheets they are covered with. Their 75-inch Smart TV is still mounted on the wall and below it is a disc player, both of which Long uses to watch over and over again movies from the MCU in bluray format, and whose remote controllers Thunder always puts in one of his three favorite hiding places: one of the many windowsill on the ground floor; inside the drawers of the two small tables by the sofa; atop one of the eight chairs in the dining room.

Turning to the right this time, he sees that something is in there that wasn't there before – a chandelier-fan hanging above the dining table. Its body and five arms, which are holding the plastic ebony-black blades, are made of chrome steel. The chandelier in the middle is that of crystal, which amplifies the light that it gives out when the machine is powered on.

"Hey there, buddy. That's enough ride for you," said Long, tapping his son on the back after rejoining the two inside.

Facing him, the boy extends his arm like what he did earlier with Jeff. Long takes him by the armpit, carries him over, sets him seated on his forearms.

"That was like wearing a backpack with a brick in it," commented Jeff, stretching and trying to get the curve of his spine back to normal.

"I told you so, and he's only four," supported Long, rubbing his nose against his son's. "Why don't you call mommy and tell her that Uncle Jeff is here."

Long is about to stoop to set the boy down, so he could walk to the kitchen when, suddenly, Thunder turns and looks at the bar table, behind which is the kitchen area of the house.

"MMMMOOOOOOMMMMMYYYYY!!! UNKLE JEP IS HEWR IN THE LIBIM WOOOOM!!" yelled Thunder. The obvious struggle in pronouncing the words makes him sound cute.

Long immediately moves his face away, wincing as his left ear is next to Thunder's mouth.

Jeff, for his own misfortune, ends up covering the hole of his right ear using his pointer and middle fingers while scrunching his face. "He still does that?" he asked when Thunder stops.

"Yes," answered Long, shaking his head to relieve himself of a momentary tinnitus.

Jeff smiles after, turning nostalgic all of a sudden and remembering the time before he was imprisoned when Thunder usually shouts to announce something, acting like a walking megaphone. Then, that feeling of surety finally hits him: he is at the safest place he can be – home – and without anyone to take him forcefully away again. The fridge in the kitchen is something he can swing open again to get some drink or cookies. The bed in his room upstairs is where he can go to once more whenever he wants to reflect, listen to a beat or two, or get a quick nap. As he fully immerses himself to the fact that he can once again live a normal and happy life, a lady peeks out of the bar table. At the instant she sees Jeff, she immediately turns around and makes her way to the three by the door. 

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Author's Note

There's no place like home, right? Imagine how Jeff felt after stepping foot on their house, seeing his extended family, and taking Thunder into his back and hearing him shout his voice box out - again. Hahaha!

How will Jeff get what he had lost? Where will be his starting point? It is hard, but it has to begin somewhere, right? Stay tuned for the release of the next chapter - Big Sissy - in the following days.

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