"Five hundred." "The cap is stuck." "Pull it a little." "Is that a hotel?" "Yes." "Hello." "Do you have a room?" "King-size bed." "Dresser." "TV, only gets the normal channels." "Bathroom, twist the tap tightly." "It's got a leaky faucet." "Here's the key." "If you need anything, my room's upstairs." "Thank you." "Excuse me." "Where's Laem?" " Who?" " The foreman." "Inside." "Has the client been around?" "Here and there, though mostly he stays in Phuket." "But he's aware of the delay." "If there's a problem, you can meet him in Phuket." "What time should I be here tomorrow?" "I start work at 8:00." "You can come whenever you want." "Where are you staying?" " In town." " Huh?" "Why don't you stay around here?" "Too expensive." "You look nicely put together." "A city guy shouldn't complain about money." "This town is quite boring." "There's nothing for you to do." "I like it quiet." "Look, that's Yai." "He's a local boy, and even he's gone crazy." "I don't think you'll last long." "Yai!" "You bastard!" "Why all the fuss?" "Don't be a jerk!" "Excuse me." "I'll come back." "Oh, sorry." "One moment." "I brought a new towel." "The old one had a hole." "Thank you." "You cleaned my room?" "Sorry for the mess." "It's a bad habit from living alone." "It's my job anyway." "What's your name?" "Na." "My name is Ton." "I won't bother you anymore." "Ah Jeck, you forgot the broom again." "Oh, sorry." "Sister, I'm grown up now" "And all the girls in town have an eye for me" "Watch your head." "Put those ti les away." "The sun dries them out." "Move those ti les." "Hey!" "How's everything?" "Okay." " Hungry yet?" " No." " Let me know if you need anything." " Thank you." "Hey!" "What's that?" "Ruins." "Stay out of there." "It's haunted." "Ton, where are you?" "Nearby." "Can you sign off on some designs?" "Okay, I 'I I be right back." "Na, where have you been?" " The market." " What did you buy?" "Oranges." "Ah Ma likes oranges in the afternoon." "Isn't that a watermelon?" "Oranges didn't look nice today." "So I bought a watermelon instead." "Nice watermelon though." "Aren't you going to work?" "I am, but I'm going to eat first." "Want to join me?" "I've got laundry to do." "Maybe next time." "Hello?" "Ah Jeck." "Ah Jeck?" "Finish your lunch?" "Fed it to the dog?" "No soup?" "Hungry for noodles?" "Stop hitting me so hard!" "Hello, Na." "How are you?" "Fine." "I was smoking over there." "It's pleasant up here." "Nice to watch the sunset." "Don't see it much in Bangkok." "It must be boring for you here." "No." "I like it." "What's that mountain called?" "I don't know." "Is your work finished?" "Another two months." "I'm sorry, but I don't know what you do." "I'm an architect." "Supervising a project at the beach." "One of those new resorts?" "Yes." "They're rushing to finish by year's end." "Those are all big hotels." "Why are you staying here?" "I'm just a regular guy." "My boss designs the hotel." "I just do the toilet." "Bigger isn't always better." "I'm comfortable here." "Things are still unsettled here." "And the beaches are still empty." "Mostly we just get regulars." "Not many walk-ins like you." "I'm not a walk-in anymore." "Please think of me as a regular." "Thanks." "Oh, I bought your son a candy." "If he gets a toothache, you can send me the dentist's bill." "He's my nephew, my brother's son." "But I raise him as my own." "Do you have any children?" " Do I look so old?" " That's not what I meant." "No children." "I'm always on the road." "Not ready to be a father yet." "I'll help you." "It's mostly personal things." "That's okay." "Whose is this?" "Same color as your face." "I'll help you." ""Today, the weather forecast... is cloudy with a high chance of rain."" " Na!" " Yes?" " Laundry pickup." " Okay." "Are you asleep?" "Do you need something?" "This is for you." "I saw some nice oranges in Phuket." "Thought Ah Ma might like them." "Thank you." "I'm leaving tomorrow." " Tomorrow?" " Yes." "I'll be gone a week." "But I'll be back." " Back here?" " Yes." "Can you keep my room?" "You can leave your things." "I'll watch them for you." "Thank you." "I won't bother you anymore." "You're really here." "I didn't think you'd be back." "How come?" "Everyone says they'll return, but they never do." "Maybe they found a nicer place." "A week in the city." "I was so bored." "Too many cars." "Too many people." "Bangkok." "Everyone dreams of the city." "You come to the country instead." "Riding buffaloes in the field" "I'm just an ugly country boy" "Why did you come to work here?" "The office had a project, needed someone to supervise." "The boss asked for volunteers." "I was the only one who raised my hand." "How come nobody wanted to come?" "Nothing much to do." "Mostly just observing." "I'm only here to please the client." "But I like the freedom." "Nobody else wanted to waste two months." "What about weekends?" "In Bangkok, I bunk with my sister." "It's inconvenient." "I can live anywhere, it's all the same." "You like living alone?" "I don't think I could." "I don't mind." "No people or a lot of people, isn't it the same?" "Don't you get lonely?" "No." "I have Ah Ma and Ah Tee." "And the hotel." "There's always something to do." "The days fly by." "No time for loneliness." "Sleep well?" "Yes." "And you?" "Okay." "Actually, I didn't sleep at all." "Me neither." "Ah Ma, what are you looking for?" "Are you cold?" "A little bit." "It's colder than Bangkok." "Save money on AC." "Mountains on one side, sea on the other." "What's that got to do with it?" "I don't know." "Feel trapped sometimes." "Oh, beautiful South" "Oh, beautiful South" "Mountains, sea and arsonists" "You like my new song?" "Heard it before." " Bored of it?" " Yes." "When I was young, this hotel was the biggest in town." "Then people discovered the beaches." "And we became just a rest stop." "Now there are fewer tourists." "So I have fewer customers too." "Things will get better." "Pa said this town is strong." "When he was young, there was malaria." "Half the town died." "In my time, there was a great flood." "We had to move up the mountain." "And now, there is the tsunami." "But we always recover." " You were born here?" " Yes." "Genuine Southern girl." "But educated in the city." "Hey you, technical school girl curly hair and dark eyes" "I went to college, not technical school." "Just kidding." "I used to be a pub musician." "Sang that song a lot." " Can I make a request?" " What song?" ""You're So Beautiful."" "Is that appropriate?" "Hey, watch your mouth." "I'm bored of that one." "I'll write you a new song." "I'll wait for it." "It's almost midnight." "Let's stay a while." "Won't Ah Jeck come up here?" "He has the night shift." "I hung a bell on the door." " Just in case." " Really?" "Should I remove it?" "Is it going to rain?" "I'll take down the towels." "Need some help?" "No." "It's my personal things." "Uncle, you go ahead." "I'll clean up here." "Thank you." "Take the buns." "They're your favorite." "Can I have some chompooh too?" "Just leave the apples and oranges for Ah Ma." "What?" "You need money?" "No." "You look pretty today." "Someone saw you walking with a man." "People like to gossip." "Who was it?" "Why do you care?" "Just curious." "Whatever you do, be more careful." "Wit, wait." "Take this." "When are you coming home?" "What is it?" "Not asleep?" "Just pretending." "It's a wild flower." "Very pretty." "What was this place?" "A tin mine." "But that was in Ah Gong's days." "It's been abandoned since I was a girl." "No more tin left." "Which way is the town?" "There." "What's that?" "Ang Kee yellow oil." "Try it." "I'll pass." "It's good stuff." "I use it at bedtime on my neck, ears and nose." "My pillow's all yellow." ""Somthawin."" "No wonder I can smell you a mile away." "The benefits fill up two A4 pages." "Okay, grandma." "Pa used to use it." "Got the habit from Ah Ma." "Silly." "Just kidding." "You were close with your pa?" "Yeah." "And you?" "Not really." "Actually, not at all." "Why not?" "He didn't approve of me." "Didn't want me to be a musician." "So I became a bar manager but got hooked on the drink." "Finally, I decided to reform myself." "So he found me a job." "That was the first time we spoke in five years." "What's the matter?" "Yesterday, some people were staring at me." "Don't pay any attention." "They were gossiping about us." "That's the way people are." "I've known them since I was a girl." "Some were even friends of Pa." "I want to live quietly." "Not like this." "Hold me." "Back so early?" "Nothing to do as usual." "I missed you." "Someone may see us." "Ah Jeck, you left the broom out again." "What's the matter?" "Your car was broken into last night." "Anything missing?" "Nothing much." "You're supposed to keep watch, not fall asleep." "It's not his fault." "I shouldn't leave things in the car." "Must have been a passerby." "I'm very sorry." "You want to file a report?" "Never mind." "Any other cars parked here last night?" " Only mine." " Anything happen?" "Who are those kids?" "What kids?" "They've driven past three times already." "They drive around in circles." "The town is small so they've got nowhere else to go." "It's nothing." "Local boys?" "I don't know." "Close your window." "What's your name?" "Nuranae." "My brother is Nai." "Where do you live?" "Kik-kuk town." "Do you miss home?" "When will the rain stop?" "What's that?" "Electricity board." "Electricity?" "This place has been closed for years." "When will you come home?" "I don't know." "You're always welcome there." "Why should I return?" "I'm fine here." "Keeps me out of trouble." "What trouble?" "Everybody else has moved away." "Only you are still drowning here." "So are you." "Can't you let others be happy?" "Ah Tee." "Ah Tee." "Girls, have you seen Ah Tee?" "Here's a gift for you." "I don't want it." "You don't want it?" "Leave him alone." "I'm bored." "Bored?" "Bored?" "Pa and Ma lived in this house before the hotel was built." "Now it's become ruins." " You're an architect?" " Yes." " Have a project at the beach?" " Yes." "I used to go there often." "But not lately." "Not since the incident." "The waves that day... destroyed everything." "Homes." "Cars." "I walked the entire beach." "There was nothing left." "Were you here then?" "No." "I saw the news on TV." "How is it now?" "It's better." "Everything is the way it was." "Pa and Ma wanted us to care for this hotel together." "But I'm useless." "So my sister has to do it alone." "I'm a lost cause." "Once a gangster, always a gangster." "But Na is different." "She is good." "And she can be the way she was." "Take care of her." "Sleep well?" "Yes." "Had a nice dream." "But now I can't remember it." "It's gone in an instant." "What time is it?" "I don't know." "Time to wake again?" "Mop the floors." "Change the sheets." "Never any time for myself." "Sleep then." "I'm thirsty." "Going to get a drink." "I have a surprise for you when I return." "I wrote you that song." "But the singer needs a drink." "Then he can sing." "What are you looking at?" "Nothing." "Hello." "Still using my old number." "Nam gave me yours." "Don't scold her." "How's your new home?" "That's good." "I'm no longer a musician." "Gave away the bicycle." "Couldn't keep it." "I don't go there anymore." "I got a new career." "I've come down south." "I'm in the car, leaving soon." "Can I come back and see you?" "Okay, I'm coming back." "Thank you for answering the phone." "If he's not dead, he may never recover."