There are several songs about the November rains, the lyrics tell stories with sad endings about a love not reciprocating or an end of relationship, in any case, during the rain people become more reflective about their feelings. And for me, there is a song in particular that played when I fell in love for the first and last time.
It was November and the light rain fell on the plastic of the umbrella. The sky was dark that night and the streetlights created a lighted path to the dorm. I was late again, I spent so much time in the library that I missed the time to return, my roommate Korn had sent me dozens of messages mentioning how late he was for that Thursday night meeting.
When the music fell silent on the headphones I could hear the drops of water falling on the umbrella. I stopped halfway and took off the left phone; I loved that sound, the wet breeze touching my skin and the cold water falling on my palm. The first notes of November rain started in the right earphone. I raised my face looking at the sky and let the air out closing my eyes.
Footsteps of someone running over puddles of water seemed closer by the second.I opened my eyes and saw him for the first time. The pale skin under the soaked white shirt, the black hair wet over the forehead and the small feline eyes. He had the beauty that I had never seen before in my life, there was something about that boy that made him special to me ... Maybe the sad expression, maybe the music playing in my ear.
He passed me and I followed him with my eyes until I lost sight of him. He disappeared in the same way he appeared in the night.
Later, when Arthit entered the room, he found Korn wearing sunglasses lying on the floor like a starfish. Arthit knew what he would say the same second he saw him open his mouth.
"You are super late, my dear." said Korn "The meeting ended ten minutes ago."
"I'm sorry, I couldn't make it in time." Arthit apologized for taking off his shoes "Do you have the food list?"
"The list?" Korn seemed to think for a few seconds, and then he quickly sat down "The list!"
The young man put his hands on his head for remembering something so important and at the same time for being almost knocked over by the strong dizziness he felt.
"Ah, ah, dizziness, dizziness." complained Korn "Doctor, save me from this dizziness."
Arthit smiled at the dramatic Korn and placed the backpack on the study table.
"You need to stop standing up abruptly, Korn." warned Arthit for the twenty-fifth time that year "And why are you wearing sunglasses in your room?"
Korn sighed and lowered his glasses to look at him. From that distance Arthit looked like someone tall, the nine-cent difference between the two seemed much bigger seen from there; Korn smiled wanly and adjusted his posture to show that he was now a stylish guy.
"My new style. What do you think, doctor?" asked Korn with an excited smile on his face.
"You look good with them in the day." Arthit sat on the chair and opened the backpack.
Korn laughed and took off his glasses as he got up. He liked Arthit's sincerity and thought he was a great friend, although he was only teasing him with his eccentric tastes.
"You know how to convince me, doctor." Korn teased "I'm a really beautiful guy."
Arthit scratched his forehead and let out a nasal laugh at his friend's stupid comment. There was something he needed to do at that moment, something important.
"What would you decide?" asked Arthit as I opened the notebook "I need the list too."
Korn grimaced at forgetting to make the food list. No one could blame him for forgetting this detail when all the members of the theater club were engaged in arguing about who could work with P'An, the most beautiful girl in the club. Korn tried dozens of times to put order in the meeting that transformed with each passing minute in a battle of arguments over who was the best.
"We don't get to decide what we're going to serve." said Korn frustrated as he sat in Arthur's bed "We didn't really decide anything. The guys were too busy fighting over who was the best."
"Okay. We can do this." Arthit turned to him and smiled sweetly "This is not a problem for us, but I will need your help."
A smile lit up Korn's face instantly. He would do whatever was asked of him as long as he could get on with what he had planned for his club's tent.
"I am at your disposal, doctor." said Korn excitedly "Whatever you ask of me, I will do."
"That's nice." Arthit smiled and turned to the table "We need to decide together what to serve at the festival."
"I had thought of putting recipes in line with the time of the play we are going to stage." Korn shared his idea "P'An said that if we made some traditional dishes it would be perfect for visitors to feel like they were traveling through time. And I have to agree with her."
"Hmm, it's an excellent idea." Arthit agreed as he scribbled the notebook "Do you have anything in mind?"
"No, but I thought about calling my grandma tomorrow and asking her." Korn was excited that she was finally talking to someone about preparing for the festival "Grandma cooks very well and has an old cookbook that comes from long generations."
"This is perfect." Arthit said concentrating "I hope she doesn't mind sharing her knowledge with us."
"Grandma will be happy, I am absolutely sure." Korn lay in bed smiling "I haven't seen her in a while. We can go over the weekend, what do you think?"
Arthit kept himself so focused on the shape that the drawing won that he forgot to answer Korn. What at first were just lines and scribbles at that moment had become a face. And the small feline eyes seemed to look directly at him.
He did not notice when Korn got up from the bed and approached him, craning his neck to see what caught his attention.
"Who is he?" the curious young man asked.
"What a fright!" exclaimed Arthit with a spasm of fright.
Korn laughed and looked back at the boy drawn in the notebook.
"So, Doctor, who is this guy?" curious Korn asked again.
"I do not know." Arthit looked at the thoughtful drawing "I saw it earlier and the face does not leave my head."
"Was he a visitor? I never saw him here." commented Korn thoughtfully taking the notebook to get a better look.
"I don't know ..." Arthit sighed and turned to face Korn "Would it be strange if I said that I still see him in my mind?"
Korn returned the notebook to the table and looked at Arthit.
"I don't see any problem. According to what you drew, he seems to be a very handsome guy, maybe that caught your attention." commented Korn.
"Perhaps." Thoughtful Arthit looked at the graffiti on the paper bringing the image of the wet boy running in the rain "Do you think it is possible for someone to fall in love at first sight?"
"Hmm, I think a lot is possible in this life." said Korn wisely and walked over to the desk in the other room, bringing his chair to sit "Did you fall in love with him?"
Holding the pencil between his fingers, Arthit was silent for a few moments. He needed to reflect a little more before he answered.
"I don't know, Korn. For some strange reason, I felt I needed to keep that image." Arthit admitted as he stared at the drawing, letting out a frustrated sigh.
"Hm, you never told me that you liked boys." Korn commented curiously.
Arthit looked at him "And I don't like it, or I didn't like it. I don't know anymore."
"Okay, okay." Korn got up and approached Arthit "Come on, get up and go take a shower. You are tired and confused, a shower will do you good."
"You're right." Arthit got up and walked to the bathroom.
Korn knew his best friend very well and knew that he would think about it for hours and sometimes even days. And nothing would make you feel better than a nice, warm shower on a rainy night.
