Untitled

Christian was here tonight unusually with two buddies. I looked for her vaguely, so used to seeing them together.

There was a sense of love evasive. The last fight had been over my mercy bar fining Tik when she had gone home for New Year.

‘No work bar now.’ Preemptively

I struggled to stifle curiosity. She had been there as long as I could remember.

‘Mamasan angry she.’

No sign of emotion flickered across her slightly averted profile.

They had been friends for years. Two stars eclipsing each other.

I remembered them achingly.

Suddenly flashed to a grave South African Pastor in Nakon Sawan, years ago, lamenting Thais don’t have friendships.

Getting up abruptly; ‘I go eat come back 5 minute.’

Alone, I saluted Christian who gazed back.

‘Not here’ he mouthed and a gesture of resignation.


Their public meetings had always had the cadence of lovers. He would come early.
They was adoring. Artfully unravelling the evenings, drinking beer, playing pool.
Towards midnight to go upstairs though recently the vitality had faded. Now with his friends buffooned around him.

She returned with a bag of insects.

We put it behind us.


Much much later I was told about the mayhem wreaked in the bar. Tik gigging the younger brother of the DJ until his wife with a meat cleaver…...

© Icarus. All rights reserved by the author.