The air shifted the instant Arthit stepped inside.
Karan felt it first—a tremor in his chest, a sudden ache that made his knees threaten to give way.
Arthit's gaze didn't falter. It swept past Lean, past the shadows, and landed on him with a force that made time shatter.
"Karan…" His voice was low, almost a whisper, but it carried the weight of years of longing, fear, and anger.
Karan's throat tightened.
"Arthit… I—"
"You left." The single word hit him harder than any blow could.
The silence that followed was deafening.
Karan's hands shook.
"I had no choice," he choked out.
"I left to—"
"To protect me?" Arthit interrupted sharply, stepping closer. His eyes blazed,
"Do you think I asked to be protected? Do you think I wanted to survive by hating you?"
Karan flinched, every nerve screaming.
"I—I never wanted you to hurt… I only wanted—"
"To be safe?" Arthit's laugh was bitter, trembling with unspent pain.
"No. You left me to die alone with my own heart, Karan. You left me to rot in the memory of what we could've had."
Lean's hand tightened on Karan's arm, but Karan could barely feel it.
All he could feel was Arthit.
And guilt.
And the unbearable pull of love that never died.
Mr. Sakda's voice cut through the tension, calm and deadly:
"Arthit."
Arthit's jaw clenched at the sound of his father's voice.
"Don't."
Mr. Sakda didn't budge.
"You must understand, son," he said softly, "your heart is weak because of him."
Karan froze.
Weak.
Not safe.
All those years, all that pain, reduced to a single word from the man who had always ruled everything.
Arthit's hands curled into fists.
"You don't get to say that!" he snapped.
"Don't you *dare* tell me how I feel! I survived *because of him*, not in spite of him!"
Karan's heart shattered at the intensity in Arthit's voice.
All the love, the longing, the years apart—it surged in a single moment.
He stepped forward, almost instinctively.
"Arthit… I—"
"Stop!" Arthit's voice cracked.
"Don't talk! You left! You made me hate you! You made me *wait*!"
Karan's chest ached.
"I thought leaving would save you! I thought if I stayed, you'd—"
"You'd die?" Arthit finished the sentence for him, voice trembling but fierce.
"You threatened my life, my freedom, my happiness—all because you thought love was dangerous. *Do you understand now how that feels?*"
Tears welled in Karan's eyes.
"I was trying to protect you… from *him*, from your father…"
Arthit's eyes narrowed, burning with unshed tears and fury.
"My father will always be a part of my life. But you… you're the one I choose. Do you even know how hard it was to survive all this time without hating you completely?"
Karan shook his head.
"I… I didn't know…"
"You didn't know?" Arthit's voice was softer now, shaking.
"You didn't know that every night I whispered your name in the dark because I was too afraid to call? Too afraid to hope?"
The room went silent again.
Karan's knees weakened.
"I never stopped—"
"I never stopped either," Arthit whispered.
He took a hesitant step closer, then another, until the space between them vanished.
"But you left me. And now… now I don't know if I can forgive you."
Karan's hands reached out instinctively, trembling, wanting, needing.
"Arthit… please. I never wanted to leave you. I never stopped loving you. I—"
Arthit's lips quivered, but he didn't move closer.
His eyes searched Karan's, reading every word, every truth, every unspoken promise.
"I hate that I still love you," he said softly.
"I hate that every part of me wants you… even after all this pain."
The air between them crackled with unspoken emotions—love, regret, anger, and desire—all ready to ignite.
Mr. Sakda watched silently, a predator measuring his son's heart.
Lean tightened his grip on Karan's wrist, silently warning him to be careful.
But Karan couldn't step back.
Not now.
Not from the boy who had been the center of his world for years.
Arthit exhaled shakily, the weight of years pressing down on him.
"I… I need to know something, Karan," he whispered.
"Do you… still want me?"
Karan's hands shook violently, tears spilling down his face.
"Yes," he whispered.
"Yes, more than anything."
For a moment, the world paused.
The tension in the room, the threat of Mr. Sakda, the fear, the love, the years of separation—all of it froze.
Arthit's breath hitched.
"You… you really mean that?"
Karan nodded, choking back sobs.
"I've always meant it. I would leave again, suffer again… anything… just to keep you safe. But now… I don't want to leave. Not ever."
Arthit stared at him for what felt like an eternity.
Then, slowly, painfully, a tear rolled down his cheek.
"I… I don't know if I can forgive you," he whispered.
"But… I still want you. Always."
Karan stepped closer, trembling, and cupped Arthit's face.
"Then… then let me stay," he said softly.
"Let me prove it. Let me love you, even if your father… even if the world…"
Arthit closed his eyes against the storm inside him.
Finally… he whispered:
"Stay. But know… it won't be easy."
Karan pressed his forehead to Arthit's.
"I don't care," he whispered.
"I'll stay. I'll fight. I'll survive… as long as it's with you."
Mr. Sakda's sharp voice cut through the moment:
"Your son will be tested."
Arthit stiffened but didn't move away from Karan.
"I'll face it," he said firmly.
"With him," he gestured to Karan.
"And if my father stands in our way… I'll burn it all down."
The words hung in the air like fire and steel.
And for the first time in three years… Karan allowed himself to believe:
They might survive. Together.
But the storm outside was only just beginning.
---
End of chapter 32