But what did catch people's eyes was the person that stood in the very front of the crowd, leading the chants with a megaphone in hand, our sun…, Akk.

Following the students, the teachers came out. No one had ever seen Akk that brave before but no one understood that after everything that happened, Akk just had nothing to lose anymore. He had enough of pretending he did, pretending that people still loved him, pretending that he didn't have to stand up for himself and people were still on his side but it wasn't true... anymore.

He was once the sun that would bring shine to everyone's lives but now the brightness and the heat was too much for others to handle. No one loved him anymore. People hated him. No one loved the sun in the summer. People are selfish. They only love it when they need it and are freezing in the cold.

Akk wouldn't step back anymore. He was ready to face the consequences. He was finally doing what he wanted to for so long, standing up for the right thing without thinking about what others would think of him. He was… he was finally proud of himself.

Teacher Waree and Chadok walked towards the school gate, both of them staring at Akk in disbelief. But Akk didn't pay attention to them, not a single glance. He continued shouting, “We want freedom!”

In an instance, all the eyes that he could meet were shocked. No one had ever thought that someone like Akk would ever stand up for the student’s rights, but there he was, leading the whole group.

After a final realization, teacher Waree walked forward and attempted to snatch the megaphone away from Akk's hand. But Akk was stronger so she couldn't. “What are you doing, Akk?” She yelled. “You're the school president!”

Akk stepped back. “Isn't it my duty to make sure the school and its students are safe?” He asked. A shorter figure smiled and nodded from beside Akk, another leader, the head of the class, Thua.

“We're just doing our duty, teacher,” Thua said to teacher Waree. Teacher Waree was speechless. Chadok was looking at them blindly, still as stern as ever, not a single expression evident on his face. No one ever knew what he was thinking.

From between the crowd, came out Wat and Kan. They also stood there in disbelief. “Akk, how could you do that?” Kan shouted.

“You're going against your own people, Akk!” Yelled Wat.

“I don't care!” Akk yelled even louder. “I've had enough!” The fake smile he wore on his face slowly faded away as tears began welling up. “I'm just trying to do what's right!” He yelled again, his voice almost breaking as he began to sob between the sentences.

Thua landed a hand on Akk's shoulder in a comforting way. “He's right, Kan,” He murmured.

“No, he's not!” Teacher Waree yelled from beside, her voice barely appeared to be anywhere near true. She knew he was right to some extent.

“Do you not see what the school’s been doing to us?” Asked Thua, his voice louder than he had ever raised.

“And what exactly did the school do wrong?” Teacher Chadok suddenly asked, walking closer.

“You really don't know?” Thua asked but before he could continue to point out, Akk quickly wiped his tears and began to say, “Threatening students, supporting crimes, brainwashing children, not providing justice, forcing own opinions and beliefs on students…”

Akk tried to continue until he was stopped by teacher Waree’s yell, “Stop!”

But the argument didn't stop. “You were a part of it too, Akk!” Kan yelled, his voice breaking, on the verge of crying. If Wat hadn't held Kan back, he would have probably already punched both Akk and Thua.

“I know I was!” Akk agreed loudly. “But I regret it and I don't want to be anymore.” His voice toned down, his face dropping. He hated that he hadn't realized what he was doing before. He was hating others because he was biased, biased and brainwashed by his own school but he wouldn't let people control him anymore. He's not a toy everyone could play with whenever they wanted.

“I said stop!” Teacher Waree yelled again. “Everyone! Go to your class,” She continued. “Akk, Thua, come to the principal’s office after class.”

After giving just a glance to teacher Waree, both of their eyes filled with fear yet satisfaction, Thua and Akk walked after the class towards the classroom. They knew there would be consequences of their actions but it was fine. They were willing to face them. They didn't do anything wrong but to change the system of that school, sacrifices must be made.

Akk hadn't expected Thua to join in with him with the plan, just like how no one expected him to come up with such a plan. Akk just thought Thua was neutral but probably not. That day after the teachers forced the jums to say the pledge in front of everyone, he had come out to notice Ayan almost yelling at Thua. Ayan had probably told him to speak up, just like he had to Akk. Another sign that disappointed Akk, he wasn't special.

Akk hadn't really liked Thua at first. He didn't know why, but the boy acted a bit too innocent, suspicious sometimes. The day Akk had followed Thua and Ayan in the café for all, he had realized that Thua was close to Ayan before he even joined that school. He didn't like that. It was a strange feeling whenever he thought about it that Thua was probably closer to Ayan than him. And if Thua hadn't been the head of the class, Akk would have gotten that title too. It'd be a bit too many responsibilities, yes but he'd have more titles to be proud of.

But that whole situation had changed Akk's opinion over Thua a little. Maybe him being close to Ayan wasn't so bad after all, at least he had realized to do the right thing.

Going back to the class, Kan and Wat totally ignored Akk and Thua the whole time. Akk felt bad at first. They were the only people that always stood by Akk's side by all means, before Ayan came into his life. They were even there when he had done all those horrible things but he knew that was going to happen one day or another. They forgave him because they believed with all their trust that Akk didn't do any of those heinous crimes but the truth was, he did. He did break their trust. And counting now, he had done it… twice. Why would someone want to be friends with someone that broke their trust twice, right?

Akk had nothing to defend himself with but he wasn't planning to either. He had done what he had to protect the school and its students from getting dragged into the black hole of oppression from society. And even though he knew he may regret it later, it wasn't the time to think about that. He had never been that brave and he had to know how to use that bravery at the moment. Otherwise, he'd understand what he had done and break down at any moment. He was scared of the consequences, he had to admit but at least, he'd be happy that he'd once done something right.

Thua, on the other hand, looked totally expressionless, emotionless. It's like he had turned into a statue the minute he got the chance to let out what he had been suppressing inside for a long time. But Akk knew he was hurt as well. Kan and Thua had been friends even before Akk came into the picture and that same friend turning away from him just because he stood up against him was painful. And no one knew it better than Akk, who hadn't only stood up against his beloved teachers, friends, classmates but also against his old self.

* * * * *

Ayan laid on his bed, turned towards the bedside table. He hadn't slept at all the other night. So many things were fixed on his mind and Kongpob had told him to go to sleep. Kong knew that he was suspended from the school. However, Arthit didn't. Another concern that kept Ayan awake. What would Arthit think if he got to know that his son got suspended from school because of his misbehavior apparently?

But that wasn't that big of a deal. Ayan didn't really care. Probably because he knew his parents would understand if he explained properly. What concerned him more was Akk. What was he doing? The conversation he had with Akk the other day left him quite hanging. He understood that Akk was trying to do what was right but he couldn't help but worry. His instincts told him that Akk wouldn't be able to face it properly, especially so that he and Ayan hadn't been talking to each other much lately.

Ayan couldn't help but be worried. It was all new to Akk. What if he messed up and got demotivated again? He trusted Akk in every way possible but he didn't know that Akk trusted him as well so much that he was willing to stand up and open his eyes. Yet it scared him. It scared Ayan that Akk wouldn't be able to handle the consequences, it scared him that Akk would give up.

The school had probably just ended. Akk was probably taken to the office to discuss his punishment. All these worries didn't let Aye go to sleep. He thought Akk trusted him but did Akk trust him enough for him to come to Aye if he wasn't feeling it, if he was vulnerable? Probably yes. It was a pleasure for Ayan to realize that he was almost the only person Akk was comfortable enough to be vulnerable with.

After a while, the doorbell rang. Both his parents were asleep after a long day at work. So Aye had gotten up to open the door. A small smile appeared on his face the second he saw Akk, even though Akk didn't look quite okay.

Akk's eyes looked puff, his face glossing with dry tears. The second Ayan opened the door, Akk jumped on him, spreading his arms all around Ayan's small body. Ayan immediately held him back. He knew Akk would be emotional after he was finally able to get the difference between right and wrong but it still amazed him that Ayan was the first person he thought of in such a situation.

Akk's hands gripped into Ayan's body tighter. “Akk…” Ayan started but the warmth of the embrace made him shut up. He wished he could stay in that warm embrace all his life as he closed his eyes.

After a few seconds, Akk stepped back. “Aye, thank you,” He murmured.

The small smile on Ayan's face got wider. His hand lifted up to land on Akk's face as he rubbed his thumb under both of Akk's eyes, wiping the almost dried tears. “You did it. I'm so proud of you,” Ayan replied.

Tears began welling up in Akk's eyes again. Ayan stared at his eyes, mesmerized. He held Akk's wrist and led him inside slowly, locking the door on the way. As they both walked towards Ayan's room, Ayan looked at Akk, his tears still threatening to fall. They both sat on Ayan's bed. Aye's thumb still grazed over Akk's face, wiping his tears.

“It's okay. Let it out,” Ayan hugged him again. “You're allowed to be weak. At least with me.” That line made Akk's sobs even louder. Akk hugged him tighter. His sobs calmed down slowly.

Once their bodies detached, they looked into each other's eyes again. “Do you want to tell me about it?” Ayan asked, his voice very calm.

Akk shook his head. He needed some comfort. He didn't want to face reality just yet. He wanted to get lost in dreams and in the embrace of Ayan without caring about anything else.

Ayan smiled. “It's okay.” He leaned his upper body against the bed frame, spreading his arms out in the air as if inviting Akk towards him. After a few seconds of hesitation, Akk crawled forward and laid on the bed beside Ayan, his head pressed on Aye's arm which was wrapped around Akk's body. “Are you tired?” Aye asked, his fingers tangling in Akk's hair.

Akk nodded. How could he not be tired? After all that happened, he was exhausted. For the first time, he had learnt to understand how Ayan felt all along.

As Akk stared at Aye's face right over his body, he couldn't help but wonder why was Ayan doing it all? Why did he care so much about Akk? He didn't understand. He didn't understand what Aye was thinking, what he was wanting.

But what he didn't understand even more was his own wishes. Why was Aye the first one that came to Akk's mind when he needed someone to stay by his side? His parents would also have been there for him to do the same. But why Aye? Why was it always Aye? How did Aye gain the power to change Akk's mindset fully? Since when did he care so much about Ayan that it drove him to go against the school he had been protecting for most of his life?

He didn't know but he didn't care. All he knew was he wanted Ayan to be there for him and he wanted to be there for Ayan. He wanted to be with Ayan every single minute of his life, it didn't matter what the label of their relationship was. He wanted Ayan to stay and never disappear again. But most importantly, even though he, himself, didn't get his feelings, a part of him wanted Ayan to acknowledge his feelings. The feelings that he had been denying, running away from for a long time.

To Be Continued……

* * * * *

A/n: Ayan sure is the cure for Akk's mind but all the medicines have side effects or wear off after a time. What do you think will happen after this?

Please vote and comment if you liked this chapter. Thank you for reading ❤️