A few moments earlier, Mamushi had just arrived at the front desk.
"Sit here. There are a few procedures first."
"You can take things slow," Mamushi said with a smile.
The receptionist made sure Mamushi was seated before turning away.
"I'll go inform Samy and come back," she whispered as she hurried off.
With a bright smile on his face, Mamushi waved at her casually. She returned the gesture respectfully before pulling out her phone and calling Samy's office.
"The number you are trying to reach is unavailable..."
She tried both Samy's office number and personal phone, but neither connected.
"What is happening here? What should I do now?" she breathed, lightly hitting her forehead.
"I'm just wasting time."
Without hesitating further, she rushed toward Samy's office. It wasn't very far, but instead of walking, she ran the whole way.
Panting heavily, she fixed her clothes and knocked before entering.
"I'm coming, Samy..."
Her eyes swept across the office in panic.
"Where is she?"
She searched every corner but found no sign of Samy. Letting out a frustrated sigh, she stepped back outside and headed elsewhere.
Next to Samy's office was a smaller room mainly used by the team managers. They handled schedules, arranged friendly matches, and managed other team matters.
She headed there instead.
"P'Fon... P'Fon..."
Clack...
A sleepy voice answered from beneath the table as someone peeked out, rubbing their head.
"Khap... did you call me?"
The receptionist nearly flinched. "Oh my god... you look like a ghost."
"What do you need?"
"I forgot why I came..." she mumbled, making Fon stare at her in confusion.
Then her eyes suddenly widened. "I remember now!"
"P'Fon, someone named Mamushi is downstairs. He came to see our boss. He's really handsome too. He looks like a celebrity from Japan."
But Fon barely reacted. She didn't even seem interested enough to listen properly.
"Oh... Mamushi?" Fon yawned lazily. "Yeah, I got it."
The receptionist blinked in confusion. "Did I somehow offend her?"
"Then I'll leave it to you, P'Fon. I still have a lot of work to do."
"Mhm..." Fon hummed softly.
After the lady left, Fon bent under the table to gather all the documents she had dropped earlier.
Still biting her finger nervously, she froze.
"Did she just say Mamushi? The real Mamushi?"
"What should I do? I'm a huge fan of his."
Fon's life was simple. Wake up in the morning, arrive at work on time, then return home in the evening. The only thing she truly loved was gaming.
One day, she accidentally came across a racing livestream and instantly fell in love with it.
A twenty-six-year-old introvert, Fon had only joined K9 a year ago. She barely spoke to anyone. Eat, sleep, work, go home. That was her daily routine.
Recently, she had been stuck doing overtime because of the upcoming friendly matches.
And above all...
She was a devoted fan of Mamushi.
He was the reason she fell in love with racing in the first place.
Gathering her courage, Fon stepped outside. She ignored her dark circles and messy hair completely.
Fon was finally going to meet her idol.
But before that, she needed to inform Samy.
She headed toward the track, the documents still clutched tightly in her hands. Only Fon knew about the unexpected match that had taken place earlier.
A gentle breeze swept through her short, messy hair.
Then she saw him.
Mamushi's back.
Her idol.
The wind blew strands of hair straight into her mouth.
"I almost choked..." she sputtered, quickly pulling the hair away.
But by the time she looked up again, Mamushi had already disappeared from sight.
Fon had only managed to stare at his back for a few seconds, completely frozen in place.
"Where did he go?"
She hurried toward the spot where she had seen him—
—but suddenly tripped over her own foot and crashed onto the ground.
Back to the present...
Mok stepped out of the locker room after hearing a sudden noise...
"Wait..."
Fon grabbed his hand like a whining puppy.
"I don't think I can stand up right now."
She stared at him pitifully.
"So... Can you do me a favor?"
Mok frowned faintly. Something about the situation felt strange, but he still nodded halfheartedly.
"Can you inform Samy that Mamushi is here? Please."
Her pleading eyes made it difficult to refuse.
"Khap..."
Fon quickly released his hand and apologized for grabbing him so suddenly. Mok simply told her it was fine before heading off to find Samy.
Poor Fon.
It wasn't that she truly couldn't stand up.
The moment she fell, she accidentally caught sight of her reflection in the glass and nearly scared herself to death.
Mortified, she fled straight back to her office, groaning the entire way.
Meanwhile, uncertainty filled Fon's mind as she scampered back to her office.
"Who the hell was that guy? And why did I suddenly grab his hand?"
She completely forgot that she had never seen Mok before.
"Everything will be okay... right?"
Fon nervously asked herself.
Mok continued toward Samy, but his thoughts drifted back to the kiss from earlier.
His tongue brushed lightly across his lips, though clearly not because they were dry.
His steps abruptly stopped.
"What kind of thoughts am I even having?"
He slapped his own mouth lightly.
Keeping a calm expression, Mok glanced around to make sure nobody noticed him before continuing down the corridor.
The sound of his shoes echoed softly against the polished floor.
"I need to find Samy," he whispered.
Then the atmosphere suddenly changed.
Startled, Mok froze near the lounge area.
Before Mok arrived, Mamushi had already followed the familiar voices nearby...
Samy, Sky, and the others had just walked out from the lounge toward the track to check on Ren.
"Ow... I can't move my legs. Call Kao now..."
"I need him to carry me."
Ren suddenly caused a scene again, complaining loudly over nothing.
Kaen had finally reached his limit.
Samy looked on the verge of losing her patience entirely—especially since the bet match was completely ruined.
Worse yet, Sky and the rest of the crew simply watched the drama unfold as if they were enjoying a free opera.
"Why is everyone staring at me? Call Kao!" Ren shouted at Kaen.
"You want us to call the boss of this place just to carry you?"
"Yes! Call him!"
"Wait... boss?"
Kaen leaned closer and whispered into Ren's ear.
"That's right. The boss of K9... Kao. Kawin Tawat."
Judging by Ren's expression, he seemed to recognize the name.
"Kawin Tawat? No way." Ren shook his head, completely stunned as the realization hit him. "Kao is Kawin."
"Now I've really messed everything up... If my father finds out—
"No. Don't think about it."
"Wait... Kawin? Isn't he—"
"Ren. What are you thinking? Stop overthinking and just get up." Kaen then turned his attention to Samy.
"Samy, aren't the medical team here to check on Ren?"
"No. Just give them a few more minutes. They're on break."
"Fine. Then pick him up and take him to the front hall."
He ordered the Shadow Gears without hesitation.
"Look at him, sitting there like nothing happened after causing all this trouble..." Kaen muttered with a sigh.
Mamushi slowed his steps. From what he saw, it seemed like some unexpected match had taken place. Nothing unusual for him.
"That punk sitting on the floor… don't tell me he lost."
A faint laugh almost escaped him.
"What did you say, Ren? Let's never see each other again. I think luck is on my side."
He moved closer to Sky, but Sky didn't notice him.
"So who won?"
A deep voice suddenly came from behind.
"Of course it was our P'Kao—"
Sky immediately covered his mouth after blurting it out.
The sudden response made everyone turn toward Sky… then slowly shift their attention to the person standing nearby.
Mamushi walked straight toward Ren.
The scattered footsteps around them faded into silence.
"Mamushi? What is he doing here?" Samy shot Kaen a sharp glare.
"Didn't you know about this?"
Kaen quickly shook his head.
Even from a distance, Kaen felt nervous under Samy's gaze.
Meanwhile, Mamushi closed the distance between himself and Ren.
Leaning closer to Ren's ear, his voice brushed softly against his skin. "I didn't think you'd cheat on me and leave."
Ren froze.
"What—when did I…?"
"Shh…"
Mamushi silenced him calmly.
The scent of sweat lingering on Ren was overtaken by Mamushi's fresh scent, as if he had just arrived from the airport.
"How could you do this to me after I gave you everything?"
Mamushi gently caressed Ren's short hair before gripping his chin and pulling his chain necklace closer.
"After everything we did, se—"
Ren immediately covered Mamushi's mouth with his palm.
Mamushi forcefully pulled Ren's hand away, but Ren lowered his head shyly instead.
Everyone gawked in disbelief.
Ren, who was usually arrogant and impossible to control, suddenly looked completely obedient.
Mamushi leaned close once more.
"Are you staying here, or are you coming with me?"
Ren felt completely intimidated by him. His thoughts spiraled rapidly.
"What should I do now? He looks like he's about to drag me away by force."
"Lead the way, my roommate."
"What? Wh-what roommate?!"
"For your information, from today onward, I'm staying with you."
Samy, Sky, and everyone around them froze in shock.
"Ah—?!" They screamed together.
Mamushi pressed Ren's thigh before standing up.
"I can't move my leg," Ren muttered, while he couldn't believe what he was saying.
Mamushi stood there, just staring at his own leg as he remembered what his doctor had said about not straining it. But still, he knew Ren was not that heavy.
Then, without warning, he lifted Ren onto his shoulder.
"Samy... Phi..." Mamushi called casually. "I'll come back another day."
Meanwhile, Mok stood nearby, completely lost about what was happening.
Kaen and Samy were too stunned to speak.
"Wait..." Kaen muttered, but Mamushi never heard him.
"Samy... what exactly just happened?" Samy firmly shook her head.
Even Sky frowned deeply. "Where have I seen him before?"
Sky and his teammates were all fans of Mamushi, yet none of them recognized him immediately.
As Mamushi walked away—
"Put me down, you scumbag!"
Slap.... Slap...
Mamushi smacked Ren's butt, and a playful grin spread across his face.
"We're going for a ride today, Ren."
He pinched Ren again. "Be quiet."
Then—
Eyes met.
Mok and Mamushi stared directly at each other.
Mamushi slowed his steps near the lounge entrance.
The gap between them disappeared little by little before he finally stopped.
"Hisashiburi, Nong." (It's been a while.)
Behind Mok, Kao stood in complete shock.
"Why are you here, Mamushi?"
"Aitakatta yo… Kao. " (I missed you.)
Bonus~
K9 Family —
A quick question for Fon.
Fon was in her office, working as usual, while everyone else was curious about one thing. Unable to hold back their curiosity, Sky walked in with his phone recording.
"P'Fon, how did you know it was Mamushi?"
Adjusting her glasses, Fon straightened up.
"As a die-hard fan who has spent money just to watch his racing videos, I'm not just a fan… I'm a detective. I notice every small detail. It's just part of me. Honestly, just knowing he was okay makes me really happy…"
She kept talking without stopping.
"…blah, blah, blah…"
"Okay, cut. That's enough."
Sky lowered his phone, disappointed as a fan.
He left the office.
Fon, meanwhile, remained confused.
End~
To be continued...