Everyone's wingman
The first bell of Monday morning echoed through Siam Horizon High School, followed by the familiar chaos of students rushing through the corridors.
A girl stood nervously outside Class 11-A, clutching a tiny paper bag.
"...I can't do it."
"You can," a calm voice replied.
The speaker was Phum Suthipong, who leaned against the wall with his camera hanging around his neck. He wasn't looking at the girl. Instead, he adjusted the camera lens as if this happened every day.
"It'll only take ten seconds."
"But what if he rejects me?"
"Then you'll survive. Rejection lasts a few minutes. Regret lasts much longer."
She stared at him.
"...Why are you so good at saying things like that?"
Phum shrugged.
"I've had practice."
Before she could ask what he meant, footsteps echoed from the staircase.
"He's coming!"
The girl froze.
"So what do I do?!"
Phum gently nudged her forward.
"Walk."
She stumbled toward the boy she'd liked for months.
Phum slipped away before anyone noticed he had been involved.
Five minutes later...
His phone buzzed.
Unknown Number: "HE SAID YES!!! THANK YOU!!!"
Phum sighed.
"Another one."
He tucked the phone back into his pocket.
Meanwhile...
Across campus...
A volleyball flew straight toward someone's head.
"LOOK OUT!"
THUD!
A tall boy caught it one-handed before it hit a first-year student.
"Whoa."
The younger student blinked.
"You saved me."
The boy grinned.
"You owe me bubble tea."
"Tee!"
The volleyball captain turned around.
His teammates were already laughing.
"You scared another freshman."
"I saved him!"
"You also charged him for it."
"It's called business."
Everyone burst into laughter.
That was Tee Thanawat.
Loud.
Friendly.
Impossible to dislike.
Within minutes, someone called his name again.
"Tee!"
A second-year student hurried over.
"I need your help."
"What happened this time?"
"I... I like someone."
Tee covered his face dramatically.
"Oh no."
"What?"
"Not again."
By lunchtime...
Tee sat on a bench outside the cafeteria.
"So..."
"What's their name?"
The student whispered it.
Tee nodded seriously.
"Step one."
"Become friends."
"Step two."
"Don't confess over text."
"Step three."
"Smile."
The student scribbled everything into a notebook.
"You make this sound easy."
Tee laughed.
"It isn't."
"So why do you always help people?"
His smile softened.
"...Because everyone deserves someone."
"And you?"
Tee blinked.
"...Me?"
"Who helps you?"
For the first time that day...
He had no answer.
Later that afternoon...
The photography club met in their small classroom overlooking the sports field.
Phum adjusted a tripod while pretending not to notice his classmates whispering.
"Did you hear?"
"They're calling him the Professional Wingman again."
"He literally helped three couples this month."
"I wonder if he's ever dated anyone."
"I don't think so."
Phum rolled his eyes.
He had.
Once.
For exactly...
Three days.
Then the girl confessed she actually liked his best friend.
He never talked about it.
Instead...
He picked up photography.
Cameras never changed their minds.
Outside...
The volleyball team finished practice.
Tee wiped sweat from his forehead.
One of his teammates smirked.
"So..."
"When are you getting a boyfriend?"
"What?"
"You help everyone else."
"It's your turn."
Tee laughed loudly.
"I don't think I'm the main character."
"What does that mean?"
"You know in dramas?"
"The best friend is funny."
"He gives advice."
"He pushes the leads together."
"But..."
"He never gets chosen."
His teammates stared.
"...You've thought about this way too much."
That evening...
The school was almost empty.
The sky glowed orange as the sun dipped behind the buildings.
Phum wandered through the courtyard with his camera, looking for the perfect shot.
Click.
A row of bicycles.
Click.
Golden light through the trees.
Click.
Then—
Someone suddenly stepped into the frame.
A volleyball rolled across the path.
A boy chased after it, laughing.
Click.
Without thinking, Phum pressed the shutter.
The photo captured the exact moment the boy looked up, sunlight catching in his eyes.
"...Oops."
The boy picked up the volleyball and noticed Phum.
"Hey!"
Phum froze.
"You took my picture, didn't you?"
"...Maybe."
The boy walked closer, smiling instead of looking annoyed.
"Do I at least look cool?"
Phum glanced down at the camera screen.
"...Actually..."
"You do."
The boy leaned over to see.
"...Whoa."
"That's... surprisingly good."
"I'm Tee."
"Phum."
For a second, neither of them said anything.
Then Tee grinned.
"Nice to meet you, Photographer."
Before Phum could answer—
"Tee!"
A group of teammates called from the gate.
"We're leaving!"
Tee started jogging away, then suddenly turned back.
"Hey, Phum!"
"If you ever need a model..."
"I charge one chocolate milk."
He winked.
Then he ran off.
Phum looked down at the photo again.
For some reason...
He didn't delete it.
That night, after the lights in the school had long gone out, a shadow slipped quietly through the empty hallway.
The figure stopped at the school bulletin board and pinned up a small cream-colored note.
The handwriting was neat, almost elegant.
It read:
"Second leads deserve happy endings too."
The stranger smiled faintly, adjusted the note so it sat perfectly straight, and disappeared into the darkness before anyone could see who it was.
The next morning, the entire school would be talking about it.
And without realizing it...
Phum and Tee's story had already begun.
