6 comments/ 9395 views/ 15 favorites The Long Gun By: Paniolo Boy The loud, chest thumping beat of the blaring disco music was irritating. That and the glare from the intense lights illuminating the stage areas deadened my senses after awhile. The only saving grace with this place was the group of beautiful, scantily clad young Thai ladies dancing on the stages and the ice cold beer that the bar served. The "Long Gun" must have been the third or fourth bar that we had visited this evening as we slowly worked our way down the row of bars and night clubs that lined the middle street of Soy Cowboy; one of the prominent red light districts in Bangkok. I had originally come to Bangkok with four other guys from Tokyo last week. They were all ex-pats who were working in Japan for American owned companies. From what they told me, they took these R&R trips to Bangkok about two or three times a year. They basically partied a lot and got laid as many times as they could. Something that they could not do in Japan where a pristine and proper image was very important. Here in Bangkok, no one knew who they were so they partied hard. I had been in Tokyo visiting a friend of mine who happened to be one of the four. And he invited me to tag along as I didn't have anything better to do. I had just sold my business and my home back in Nevada and had made a nice little bundle. Not enough to consider myself filthy rich, but more than enough to be able to take a very extended vacation while I thought about what to do next with my life. So here I was in Bangkok wondering what the heck I was doing in a bar with a bunch of half drunk wannabe studs that were doing their best to get laid every day. In a way it was kind of anti-climactic. I mean, the girls that worked the bars were there to earn as much as they could with every opportunity. And the fastest way they earned their bucks was to get someone to buy their pussy from the bar. Yeah. That's what you'd have to do if you wanted their pussy. Pay the bar what they called a bar fine, then you pay the girl whatever you were willing to pay and what she was willing to accept. So getting laid wasn't a question. It was just a question of how much and with which bar girl. I had heard all the stories from my Tokyo buddy about his prior trips. His basic message was to make sure you used condoms. No telling what you might catch. And leave your wallet in your hotel safe and just carry cash around. That way, when you run out of money, you're not tempted to use your charge cards. Plus, it's very hard to get ripped off when you aren't carrying your wallet. He knew the risks but he still indulged and he kept coming back. Not very bright if you ask me. I tagged along with the group and had a beer or two. But that was about it. I mean, the girls were very pretty and sexy looking, but they were just after your bucks and most of the guys just wanted to get their rocks off. The guys should have just stayed home, watched a good porno, and masturbated or looked up an escort. That would have been cheaper and safer. I couldn't relate to banging a working girl in a Thai bar. Just wasn't me. Yeah the girls were very pretty and several of them spoke passable English. But they were after one thing and as soon as they figured out that I wasn't interested in paying their bar fine, they were off to find greener pastures. I wasn't about to risk the family jewels just to satisfy my biological urgings. So there we were in the Long Gun with two of our group of five already gone back to their hotel rooms with their dates for the evening or the hour. I had already told my friend not to worry about me. That I would find my way back to the hotel when I got tired of drinking and watching the scenery. He took off shortly thereafter with a very pretty bar girl in tow as well. And it looked as if the other guy was in the process of paying his bar fine so he would be leaving with his date shortly. So I left the booth that we had occupied in front of one of the stages, and found a seat at one end of the bar where the music wasn't as loud and the lights less bothersome. And I sat there enjoying my beer and watching the girls as they danced around in their skimpy outfits; attempting to attract a suitor for the evening. "You want beer?" the bartendress asked? She was making sure that those of us at the bar were fixed with drinks. I had just a swallow or two left in my bottle so I told her, "sounds like a good idea." as I held it up so she could see the label on the bottle. "You work here a long time?" I asked as she placed the fresh bottle of beer in front of me. "Too long." She answered. "Is ok. Pay lousy. Owner no good. Ok for now." She smiled. Probably a line that she gave anyone who asked. Who knows ... maybe she's the owner. I grabbed my newly opened beer, took a pull at it then set it back down. "You want girl?" she asked. I shook my head. "You want boy?" she smiled. "No way." I laughed. I had heard about the lady-boys that could be found in Thailand and I definitely don't have any inclination to swing that way. "Ok. I just ask." She replied. "You want eat? We make food." "Nah. I'm fine, thanks. I'll just have my beer and enjoy the scenery." It was about three or four minutes later that they changed out the girls who were on stage dancing about in their skimpy outfits, trying to get guys to drop a couple of bucks to see some skin or to buy them a drink when they got off the stage. As soon as the girls left the stage, they made a bee line to the booths and tables, trying to interest a patron to buy them a drink, then perhaps take them out for the evening. A couple of the girls even made it back to the bar to see if they could get the attention of those of us who were avoiding the action at the tables. And one of them eventually found her way over to me. "You hiding here?" she smiled as she sauntered up to me. "You buy me drink?" "Sure, but only if it's a real drink." I replied knowing that often the girls would drink tea-water to try to keep sober yet still charge us as if they were actually drinking something worthwhile. She gestured to the bartendress and a highball glass quickly appeared. Before she could pick it up, I did and took a quick sip; tea water. "I told you only if it's a real drink. No tea water." I figured that it wasn't worth the hassle so I stood up and gestured to the bartendress for my tab. The girl grabbed my hand, "what you want? You no want bar girl?" "I'm not interested in a quick fuck. Ok?" She laughed. "Want you want then? Most man want fuck then new girl. What you want?" I thought about what she asked and couldn't come up with an answer. I shook my head, "don't mind fucking but a quick fuck isn't what I had in mind." She laughed. "Ok Joe. You come find me if you want fuck. But I want quick fuck. I want make money. Ok?" and with that she left for greener pastures. I'm guessing that their basic strategy was to fuck as many guys as they could every night. Made my skin crawl when I thought about it. That was disgusting. No way I'd sacrifice my dick for that. The bartendress came back to see if I wanted another beer. I waved her off as I had more than half my beer left. But that bar girl's question kept rattling around in my head causing me to wonder, what did I want? Let alone the sex part, why was I here in Bangkok besides just tagging along with my friend? Was it that I was just bored shitless, or was there another reason? And then it dawned on me. I was lonely. I had been lonely for a long time. I came to Bangkok with my friend because I had nowhere else to go and nothing else to do. I had been recruited to work for a Fortune 500 company as soon as the ink was dry on my diploma. They liked what they saw in me and fast tracked my career with them. But after four or five years of the constant pressure and endless demands I crashed and burned; both physically and mentally. Too many long hours; too many endless weeks; too many hotel rooms; too many fast food meals on the run. I was overweight, always tired, and couldn't run a hundred yards even if my life depended on it. Whatever relationships I had with women tended to be short term as the demands of my job always came before them. Money wasn't an issue. Heck, they compensated me well for the work I did. And since there wasn't much free time to spend it, I had managed to put most of it away. But I wasn't happy. In fact, I think I was depressed although I must have been pretty good about not showing it. So I had enough of that life and I quit. I just turned in my resignation and quit. Surprised a bunch of people including my boss at the time. But I needed a change in scenery. I spent about a month trying to get healthy; eat better, get more sleep, lose weight and restore some muscle tone. Then I got bored. And as if I had forgotten all about the burnout with my prior career, I plunged right back in and started up a business of my own. Thinking back on it, I think I started the business with the thought that if I owned it, I could control the amount of time that I would have to devote to it. In other words, I wouldn't end up having to slave away trying to meet someone else's expectations. Ha ha! All of you out there who own a business will know that it's much worse if you are the owner! And did I find that out in spades. Stupid and naïve. Yep. If you want your business to be successful, you become a slave to it. By the time I got it up and running and making good money, another four or five years had passed and I was just as overweight, tired and out of shape as I was with my former job. The difference was that I was ten years older, a little richer, but tired and burned out and alone... again. I would work from dawn to past dinner and by the time I got home, I just wanted to take a shower and sleep. And that was my normal day. The monotony of the rat race that I was in hit me square in the face one day when I was waiting for a plane ride out to visit a client. I was standing in line at the gate behind a middle-aged couple. You could tell that they had been together for a lot more than a year or two. The easy banter between them and frequent touches made me envious of what they had and what I didn't. That Thai bar girl's question brought everything together for me. What did I want? I was lonely. I had been lonely for a long time. I craved for companionship. I wanted someone to share my life with. Like that couple at the airport. I wanted what they had. Not a quick fuck that the bar girl offered. I wanted someone to love me as well as someone that I could love. Someone to hug me as well as someone that I could hug. Someone who would know when I was happy or sad. Someone that I could share my life's ups and downs with. I finished my beer and returned to my hotel. I slept in the next day and woke up just before lunch. I had no idea where the rest of the guys were. But if they were up, they were probably out prowling for more pussy. I could care less. I wondered why I had agreed to come with them to Thailand in the first place. So, after taking a shower and grabbing lunch, I decided to play tourist and did a little sightseeing in the afternoon. I found out that Bangkok is full of interesting and historical places of interest. That afternoon I took one of those motorized rickshaws over to the floating market and played tourist. It was interesting to see the wide variety of things that were available. Basically anything and everything; from live chickens to beer, to microwave ovens and HDTV's, to computers and vegetables. I even saw a floating pharmacy that sold over the counter meds along with a lot of local remedies. I had dinner at the floating market in one of the many open air food stalls that dotted the area. The food was good and spicy. I enjoyed it along with a glass of lemon grass tea. It was filling and refreshing. I got back to the hotel in the late evening and took a shower to wash the grime of the day away. As I was dressing I decided to go back to the Long Gun and have a beer or two. The guys from Japan were long gone; apparently trolling the next convenient bar for their dates for the evening. As I walked through the door, I was again assaulted by the loud blaring music, flashing lights, and the smoke of too many cigarettes. And the scantily clad bar girls were just as enticing as the night before, prancing on stage in their micro-skirts. I made my way over to the bar and took a seat. The bartendress remembered me from the night before and brought me a beer before I could even ask. "You ok Joe?" she asked. "Yeah. Thanks for the beer." " You want anything Joe? Eat? Girl?" I laughed. "No, I just had my dinner and I'll pass on the bar girl. I'm just on vacation trying to relax. Taking a break from everything. I just want to relax and enjoy life a bit." She smiled. "You no want hassle then?" "Yeah, sometimes bar girls can make things more complicated then things should be." "Ok, you stay this corner of bar." And she moved me down to a far corner of the bar. Not so far that I couldn't see the girls doing their thing on the stages, but far enough away so that I wouldn't attract anyone's attention. Plus there was a nice breeze that blew into the bar from that corner. I was very cool with this. I nodded my approval to her and raised my beer bottle and tipped it towards her in salute. She smiled back at me and then resumed filling drink orders. I stayed in that corner for the rest of the evening, watching the girls flirt with every potential john that walked in the door. All it took was a farang (as in foreigner) to flash a little US or Euro currency and the games were on. One or more bar girls would converge on the farang and it was almost a foregone conclusion that someone's bar fine was going to be paid in short order. It actually got a little silly after awhile. I was betting $1's with Som, the bartendress, (we were on first name terms now) which of the girls would have their johns pay their bar fines. I was down $10 before I knew it. For some reason Som always correctly guessed which girls were the quickest. "What is your secret?" I asked her. "How do you know which bar girl is going to score with her john? And that quickly? How do you do it?" "Is simple. No secret. You don't know Peter?" (yeah, that's my name. We had introduced ourselves earlier). "Know what?" "Look for girl with little clothes. She show her titties and farang have no chance." She laughed. I laughed. Ok, a lot of us guys think with our dicks. Show us some skin and our interest (and our dicks) perk up! I guess some of us are really shallow. But I was trying not to be that way. Hence my seat at the far corner of the bar. After that revelation I was almost able to match Som girl for girl when it came to figuring out who would score next with her john. I just kept watching the girls to see who had the lowest cut blouse or who was wearing a really short skirt. Both Som and I saw one of the girls sit on a guy's leg and rubbed her crotch slowly against his leg. Bingo! Bar fine paid! It was funny and embarrassing at the same time, realizing how shallow we guys can be at times. So anyway, Som and I were trading dollars until a conservatively dressed girl got her John to pay her bar fine in record time. That stumped me. She didn't have any cleavage showing and her skirt wasn't that short. "What the hell?" I asked out loud. "She's not showing much skin." Som laughed. "I think she let him feel her pussy. Maybe she don't have panty." At some point in time, I started to feel sorry for the johns that were being picked up by the girls. They really didn't have a chance in hell to keep their cash in their wallets. It was getting really late in the evening, actually early morning ... Say around 3am or so, and Som was starting to get ready to shut down the bar. I closed up my tab and was set to head back to the hotel when she asked, "you hungry? Want eat?" I figured why not, "sounds like a good idea." "Ok, I close bar then we go eat." She got her things from behind the bar and locked the place up. "Come, we eat. I know place have good food. Not too spicy." Som led me down the street to a small open air food stand that was typical of the many small eateries in the area; little more than a table top charcoal grill and stove with a couple of small tables and chairs set up around it. I was amazed that it was still open, but then again, when you consider the number of people who were leaving the bars looking for a quick meal before going home, I figured I shouldn't be surprised. Som ordered a couple of dishes and two beers for us as I grabbed one of the small tables for us to sit on. The food was good and the company just as good. "So you come vacation Bangkok? First time?" I smiled, "yeah, my friends from Tokyo come here a lot and they got me to come along this time. And yes, it's my first trip here." "You like so far?" "Yeah, I like the people a lot." "People? You come Thailand because you like people?" She seemed to be amused by my remark and broke out with laughter. "What's so funny?" I asked. "Most farang come for easy pussy." Som continued to laugh between her remarks. "Well, that would be my friends from Tokyo. They just wanted to party and get some pussy." I admitted. "But you like Thai people?" Som laughed again. "Well, yeah." I laughed with her, "To me, Thai people make this place very appealing." "A-pee-ling? What mean?" "Means that it makes this place very likeable. Without its people, Bangkok is just like another large Asian city. But the way you people care about others makes a big difference... at least to me." "Ok. I understand now. To me, I here all time so I not know how people are other place. To me all people I know is here." "Well, everyone that I've met so far here in Thailand, have been very nice and polite. Rarely have I heard an unkind word." "Oh, you not hear because you don't know Thai words!" she laughed. "Ok, you got me there. I don't speak a word of Thai so maybe I'm wrong. But I have really enjoyed my stay so far." "I glad you like Thai people. Make me happy inside." "You're welcome." "But Peter. You lonely. Yes?" I sat there wondering if she had ESP. The look on my face must have confirmed it for her. "You no come with friends. You no want bar girl. You lonely." "Ok. You're right. Yeah. Been that way a long time." "So why not go with bar girl. That way you have good fuck." "Perhaps, but then I'd still be lonely afterwards. And I don't think the sex would be good if I didn't know the girl." "You want I find good girl for you? Not bar girl." I chuckled. "Thank you Som, but no, you don't need to do that. I think I'll just sit back and relax. Don't worry about me." So we finished eating and parted company for the evening. I went back to my hotel, took a shower and crashed. I woke up in the early afternoon and did a little more sightseeing. This time, I took a guided tour of several temples in the area. They were amazing to see, considering how old they were and the cultural and religious heritage that they represented. Later that night I made my way back to the Long Gun and by the time I entered the bar and made my way through the crowd, Som had seen me walk in and had an opened beer for me in front of the seat that she had placed me at the night before. She smiled at me as she continued to go about opening beers and serving drinks. About an hour or so later, a very pretty and young Thai girl took a seat next to me and smiled at me before waving to Som. Som came over and they hugged over the top of the bar. Som leaned over the bar and told me, "This Fa. She bar girl, but new girl. You talk with Fa. I don't think this place good for her." The Long Gun Fa was tall for a Thai woman, just a few inches shorter than my 5' 9". And she was very fair skinned. I guessed that she had a lot of Chinese in her genes. She was on the slim side and proportioned well for her height. She was dressed rather plainly, not like most of the bar girls that wore as little as possible. And she wore little make up, not that she needed much. She was just naturally pretty. "Why isn't this place good for her?" I asked Som. "She new. She want make money help family. But this not job for her." "This job isn't good for her?" "Yeah. She shy. I can see. She only serve drink. To make money, she need john pay bar fine. I don't think she want ask. I don't think this place good for her." Fa knew that we were talking about her. I was pretty sure of that as her smile had disappeared and she looked dejected. So I turned to her, "Hello Fa. My name is Peter." "Hi Peter," she said as she tried to smile. "How are you?" I asked. "I ok." "Som told me that you just started working here." "Yeah. Today third day." And so the conversation went. My asking questions with Fa answering them; but volunteering little more than a short response. That is, until I asked her about her family. "So do you have any brothers and sisters?" I had asked. "Oh yes." She replied with just a little more pep in her voice. "I have younger brother and three younger sister. They so happy. I take care them when I home. My brother just start work. He drive truck. He say good job but I don't know. My sisters still in school. I like them very much." I smiled in return, "You must miss them." "Yes, I miss them. I leave home two weeks now. So I don't see them two weeks." "Why are you here if you miss them so much?" "I have to make money. My family need money. Many bills to pay. My father sick. No work many months. Mother work but not enough money. I am oldest so I must help make money." Ok, I understood her situation. I heard that many Thai bar girls start off this way. The easiest way for them to make money is to work in a bar and sell the use of their body for an hour or two, or the entire evening. But many of them get trapped in the lifestyle or run afoul of drugs or worse. Plus there was a plethora of STD's and also the danger of AIDS. It was a hazardous trade but many girls made a lot of money and that made a big difference for their families. Their trade wasn't well liked, but the money made it tolerable. "How much money do bar girls make?" "I don't know. I think maybe 10,000 or 15,000 Baht." "A week?" I asked. I did the math and figured that would be about $500 in US dollars. "No. One month. 15,000 Baht good money." Som had been listening in to the conversation and added, "If girl have plenty john pay bar fine, then can make 25,000, maybe 35,000 Baht." Fa blushed. I could see that she was having a difficult time with the idea of letting someone use her body for their sexual enjoyment. Even with the lure of money, that wasn't something that she was looking forward to. The Som blurted out, "I don't think Fa be with man yet." I looked at Fa and she looked down and shook her head acknowledging her virgin status. "Better she work some other place. She good girl, but must help family." Fa echoed Som's remark, "I must help family. This place bar girl can make much money. So I must find customer." And so the evening went. I asked questions and Fa answered them as best she could, always insisting that she must become a good bar girl. But it was plain to see that Som was right, Fa was very unsure and very reluctant; perhaps even afraid of making herself available to the possible "Johns" in the bar each evening. She could have left our conversation at any point in time to cruise the many patrons seated in the bar. Yet she kept talking with Som and me. Her English was fairly good and I asked her about that. "Fa, you speak English well. Where did you learn it?" "My maae (mother) take me to church school. I learn English and numbers. Teacher say I learn good." "And you speak English very well." I complemented her. Fa smiled briefly, before her downcast look reappeared. "But no job. No job for girl. No one want girl can speak English and knows numbers." "Why?" I asked. "I don't know." Som leaned over the counter and said, "No one want hire her because she smarter than them. Make them look bad." Fa blushed, but nodded her head. "My brother say same thing. He say I should go big city, work for big company. So I come here, but no job. I look many company, but no job. So I come here. My family need money." It was, and still is, a sad fact of life for many Asian countries like Thailand. The gender gap was and continues to be significant. It was rare to meet a female business or political leader. The reality is that most Thai women can earn a lot more money on their backs than with their brains. It was getting late so I asked Fa if she would like to have something to eat after the bar closed. "Ok, but I must make money so I don't know. I must see if I can find customer tonight." I could see that she really wasn't that excited about that particular idea. So I intervened. "Fa, I'd like to make you a ..." "Oh, I don't know ..." "No, it's not going to be like paying a bar fine for an evening with you." "Oh! ... But I must make money." "I know, but let me explain what I'd like to offer you. Fa, what I'd like to propose is that I hire you to be my guide and companion for the next three months. This is my first visit to Thailand and I want to see more of your country. But I don't speak your language and I don't know what sights to see." "You hire me to be guide and companion?" "Yes. You interested?" "I don't know. I know guide, but what mean companion?" "It's like being a girl friend. You'll stay with me, and we'll travel around your country and see the sights. I'll pay all of our expenses. Hotel rooms, meals, airplane and train tickets, whatever. And I'll pay you a monthly fee." "Thank you but I must help family. So I must make money." "I understand. Som was saying that good bar girls can make as much as 35,000 Baht a month. I'll match that. I want to see as much of your country as I can over the next couple of months. So I'll need your tour guide services full time." "You pay me 35,000 Baht each month to be guide and companion?" she was shocked as she looked at me, then turned to Som, "Is true?" Som laughed. "Sounds like good deal to me. You make good money and have fun same time. Why not?" Fa turned to me, "You no joke? You pay me 35,000 Baht to be guide and companion?" She couldn't believe that anyone would pay that much money. "I'm not joking. I'm serious. I'm on vacation for the next couple of months and I want to see as much of your beautiful country as I possibly can. And I can't think of a better way to do that than with a beautiful woman by my side." "Why you do this? You get tour guide, much cheaper." "Yes I could. But then I wouldn't have you as my tour guide. I want someone who can speak English well and help me make travel arrangements, then take me to see the Thailand that tourists will never see. I want to meet and see the people of Thailand. And I'd like to do that with you." She blushed which turned quickly into a frown, "I not ... I-I-I ... n-n-not ..." "No you're not like the other bar girls. I can see that very well." I interjected. "And I don't want you to be one. That's not what I would be paying you for. I am willing to pay you a good wage to be my guide and companion as you will have to put up with me every day for the next three months." "You want sex, yes?" she asked apprehensively? I looked at Fa and took her hand, "that's not what I'm hiring you for. I would like you to help me see the real Thailand. I think you are an attractive woman who I can talk with easily. I won't deny that you are a very desirable women. However I'm not like that. Sex is something that only you can decide. I won't force you to do something that you don't want to do." She looked at Som, as if to ask for help in dealing with my request. Som looked back at her and shrugged her shoulders. "Up to you. But I think is good deal. I think good for you. Is good money. So what if he want sex. You have to fuck customer here if you want make money. I think Peter ok. If not work out, you come back be bar girl." That seemed to help Fa make up her mind. "Ok Peter. I be your guide and companion. But I don't know about sex. Ok? What you want me do?" I smiled and extended my hand. "Let's shake on it." It must have seemed awkward to Fa as she began to blush all over again. But we did shake on the arrangement and it got her laughing at the whole idea. "For tonight, let's just enjoy ourselves, have a couple of drinks and get to know each other better. Then tomorrow, you meet me at my hotel for breakfast. Bring enough clothes and things so you can be away for two or three months." So we got to know each other better that evening. Fa was from a small village that was basically a suburb of Chiang Mai. Her family lived in a farming community that supplied a lot of basic produce to the nearby city. Fa's family farmed approximately 12 acres. Most of it in rice, along with small plots of local vegetables that ended up on the family's dinner table. When her dad fell sick and her mom tried to take over, their farm production fell as she wasn't physically able to do everything. Although Fa's brother and sisters tried to help, they just weren't able to keep up with the demands of the farm. So gradually, the family let some of their acreage go untended. Fa told me that her siblings were a number of years younger than she was. Apparently her parents had her at a very early age, then got busy trying to earn a buck. Further children were held off for more than five years. Then they came one right after the other. Fa had finished the equivalent of high school several years ago at a school run by a local church in her village. She had been helping her mother around the house, taking care of her brother and sisters. The plan had generally been to finish school then find a suitable husband, have a couple of kids, then take care of her parents when they became too old to work. Her father getting sick the other year changed those plans radically. She ended up caring for her father and her siblings while her mother went back to work as a farm laborer in the nearby fields. However that didn't bring in enough income so they decided that Fa would have to start working as well as her brother. And here she was. She hadn't been at the bar long enough to even draw her first wage envelope. I told her of my going to school, working for a large company, then starting my own business. Then getting tired of the whole thing, selling the business as well as my home, and ending up in Tokyo. Then ending up here in Bangkok when my friend invited me to tag along with their group. Fa was nodding her head as I related my story. She said, "Som tell me your story. She say you not like other farang." I shrugged my shoulders. "All I can say is that I want to learn more about your country and your people." So Fa started her employment with me that night. I gave her most of what I had in my wallet that evening which came out to about $500 in US currency; the equivalent of about 15,000 Baht. "Fa, take this as part of your first month's payment." Her eyes bugged out at the sight of that much money all at once. "Peter! Is much money!" "Call it an advance. Just so that you know that I'm being honest with you. Ok?" "Ok. Thank you Peter. I hope I do ok." With that, Fa became my companion and personal travel guide. We left the bar and went our separate ways for the evening. We met the next morning in front of my hotel and I took her up to my room. She stowed her suitcase in my hotel room then we left to get something to eat. She told me that she had been staying with a couple of other girls so she let them know that she would be leaving. Whatever she had in the suitcase was pretty much all of her belongings. We went down to the hotel's coffee shop and ordered breakfast. "So where do you recommend we visit first?" I asked as we ate. "I think maybe we look map. I have." She then unfolded a map of the country and started to tell me a little about the area around Bangkok and beyond. We decided to first visit Kanchanaburi because of its natural beauty and cultural sites. Then down to Ko Samui for a little rest and relaxation. After breakfast, Fa and I first went to a nearby local bank where I took another cash advance and paid her the balance that I owed her as well as give me spending money for a week or so. She deposited most of the money that I gave her into her account so that her family could start drawing on it. "Do you need to call your family to let them know about the money?" I asked. She shook her head, "They don't have phone. They know to ask bank each week. If have money, then they can take." We returned to the hotel and sat down at their travel desk and made the travel arrangements. I first had the agent contact the airline and cancel my return reservations and had them credit my charge card with the refund. Fa then arranged for us to take an air conditioned bus up to Kanchanaburi the next day, and stay at one of the better hotels up there. The helper at the travel desk recommended that we try the Nakakiri River Kwai Resort, and I'm glad that we did. It turned out to be a really nice place to stay complete with a spa, huge swimming pool, nearby access to a beautiful waterfall, and a hot springs bath. And it was located next to the infamous Bridge over the River Kwai. When it came time to book our room, I told Fa to book us a two bedroom suite for our stay. "Why you want two bedroom?" "One for you and one for me." "Oh, you not want me stay your bed?" "Yes I would. But I don't want to force myself on you. If we share a bed together, I'd like it to be because you want to sleep with me and not because you have to." Fa looked at me for a moment before she lowered her eyes. "I not sleep with man before. I ... I ... ah ... I don't know how say... I ..." I placed my finger gently against her lips, "Fa, you don't have to say anything. Let's enjoy ourselves and be tourists. I won't attack you. That's not who I am." Fa smiled. "Som say you different. She say you good man. I see why." She turned to the agent behind the travel desk and booked us a one bedroom unit at the resort. I looked at her for a few moments, then leaned over and kissed her softly on her lips. When I opened my eyes, it was to see Fa's eyes slowly opening and a beautiful smile gradually emerge on her face as her cheeks glowed a soft pink. Our adventure would begin the next morning so Fa suggested that we just use the day to sight see around the area of my hotel, which we did. Fa led me through the side streets of Bangkok and showed me where the average, working class people lived. I was taken back at first by the simple and relatively low living standards that many working class Thai had. But as Fa explained, to them this was fine. They (and Fa) felt that this was pretty good. And I guess it would be if I didn't know better. From what I could see, the homes and apartment buildings were clean, and the people seemed to be busy and more or less happy doing whatever they were doing. We had lunch at an open air street vendor's stall. It was nothing more than a charcoal bar-b-que grill with a couple of small tables and chairs around it. Fa and I sat at one of the tables and she rattled off something to the old lady behind the grill. In just a matter of minutes, we had a hot lunch of a bowl of rice with a stir fry of some sort in front of us. "You try please. Is good." Fa mentioned. I tried a mouth full of the stir fry and was amazed at the burst of flavors that assaulted my taste buds! My smile lit up Fa's smile as well. "Wow!" I whispered as I stared into the bowl, then up at Fa. "This is really good!" "I happy you like. This food good for you. Good for heart. Good for stomach." Thai's, like a lot of Asians, are a pretty health conscious people and are careful of what they ate. I found out later that it was a meatless stir fry with egg plant, pickled bitter melon, and a local variety of string beans, mixed with mint leaves, cilantro and lime juice after it had been stir-fried quickly. "Peter, you have Thai food where you come from?" "Yes, we have restaurants that have Thai dishes. But this is so much better." Fa smiled. "I happy you like." After lunch we continued with our walking tour for another hour or so before returning to my hotel room in order to rest before dinner. "Fa, I'm going to take a shower." I told her when I returned to my room. "I shouldn't take too long." I took a pair of shorts with me into the bathroom and took a quick shower. When I opened the bathroom door, Fa took one look at me and blushed and averted her eyes. "I ... I ... I sorry." She blurted out. "Sorry? About what?" I asked. "You not dressed. I sorry I look." I smiled. "Nothing to be sorry about, Fa. This is what I usually wear when I'm relaxing in private." "In private? What mean?" "Oh, sorry. When I say in private, I mean when I'm alone. By myself. I hope that I didn't offend you by wearing only this pair of shorts." Fa looked at me and smiled, "Sorry, but I not see farang this way before. At home my father, my brother only wear shorts all time, so ok for me too. Just first time I see you this way, Peter." "If it makes you more comfortable, I'll put a shirt on." "No Peter. Is ok. You be comfortable. Please." So I lay down on the bed to watch television while Fa went into the bathroom to shower herself. After about twenty or thirty minutes I heard the door open and saw Fa emerge with just a towel wrapped around herself. "I forget underwear." She explained. I smiled, "well you don't have to wear any if you don't want to." I laughed. "Not wear? Not wear underwear?" she was kind of taken back by that remark. "Sure, I don't wear any unless I'm going out. I feel more comfortable without having to wear them. So I don't unless I have to go out." She smiled then quietly looked through her things and picked up her underwear and returned to the bathroom to put her clothes on. A few minutes later she emerged dressed in a nice blouse and a pair of white jeans. She continued to towel-dry her hair as it was slightly damp from her shower. "Come over here, Fa. Let me dry and brush your hair for you." She smiled and handed me her towel as she sat on the bed next to me. "My maae (mother) always do for me. Thank you." I toweled her hair for a few minutes, then took Fa's hair brush and began to brush out her shoulder length black hair. It felt really nice to brush her hair for her. It felt so soft and smelled faintly of flowers. I finished brushing her hair a few minutes later. As I handed her hair brush back to her, Fa turned and kissed me softly on my cheek, "Thank you Peter. I like very much." "Perhaps I can do this for you every day?" I asked. She blushed and smiled, "only if you want...thank you." "Peter, what does companion mean?" "Why do you ask?" "You said you want me to be companion. I want make sure I understand." "Ok. Well, I think a companion is someone's friend. Companions like to do similar things and are comfortable doing things together." "So, is like girlfriend?" "No. To me, a girlfriend means a lot more than just being a companion." "How different?" The Long Gun "Well, to me a girlfriend would be someone that is romantically involved with her boyfriend." "Romantic? Mean in love?" "I guess you could say that. No, you're right. A girlfriend should be in love with her boyfriend and her boyfriend should be in love with her." "Do you want me to be companion or girlfriend?" I smiled at Fa, "I think we should start out with you as my companion. And if at any time you want to be more than my companion and be my girlfriend, we should talk about how we feel at that time. It's something that we should talk about and both agree on." Fa smiled at me, "I think I understand. We should talk more about this. Ok? I think maybe you want more than companion. Yes?" she asked as she took my hand in hers. I smiled and gave her hand a light squeeze, "Ok. Maybe. You are a very beautiful woman. And from the little time that we have known each other, I think you are also a very good person. Someone that I would like to know better. Now whether I want you to be my girlfriend ... that would depend also on how you feel about that. I would want you to be my girlfriend only if you love me and I love you also." She smiled, "We'll see. So far I like you. I think maybe I like be your girlfriend. We'll see." Since she was ready to go out I got dressed in a nice flowery shirt and a nicer pair of shorts, and we left to have dinner. Fa took my hand and led me back to the side streets and we walked over to a floating market on the side of a river. Once there, we boarded a fairly large boat that was basically a platform that had been built on two hulls. The boat was actually a floating restaurant and we enjoyed a dinner of grilled fish, stir fried veggies, and rice, washed down with a cool minty coconut milk drink of some sort. The evening's cool breezes had replaced the heat of the day so our walk back to the hotel was very pleasant. Perhaps it was also because she held my hand most of the time. We returned to my room and prepared to go to sleep. This would be our first night together and I wanted her to feel comfortable and happy. "Fa, why don't you use the bathroom and get ready to go to sleep." She smiled at me, got a few of her things and went in. Just as she began to shut the door, she paused briefly then left the bathroom door wide open. "Peter, maybe I want be more than companion." She looked at me as she spoke quietly and sincerely. I got up and walked over to her and hugged her briefly, "Do you want to be my girlfriend?" After a moment she quietly said, "you treat me with respect. I think you like me. And I like you. I think maybe will be good." "I want you to be sure that you want me as your boyfriend. I don't want to hurt you in any way." She smiled, "you see? You think of me, how I feel. I think maybe very good be your girlfriend." She turned and went into the bathroom, brushed her teeth, and disrobed; all with the door wide open. She walked slowly into the bedroom in all of her naked glory and put her clothes away in her suitcase, then walked over and stood in front of me. "Am I ok?" I was starring at her beautiful body. Slim and perfectly proportioned. Breasts that were firm and prominent, and a sparse covering of fine, black hair covering her mons. She was going to severely test my best intentions. "... you are beautiful..." Was about all that I could manage to say. "... you take my breath away ..." She began to unbutton my shirt and slipped it from my shoulders. "Is better you be comfortable when sleep. Take shorts off." She said as she motioned for me to stand up while she undid my belt and slid my shorts off. So there I stood in just my underwear, sporting an erection that made Fa blush and giggle. " You sleep on bed with me. Ok?" "Will you be ok with me sleeping on the same bed as you, Fa? And without any clothes on?" (I find sleeping without clothes more comfortable.) She paused briefly before she replied, "I trust you Peter. Even when you hard." She giggled as she said that. "I trust you respect me and take care of me. I sleep without clothes too. At home, I sleep like this. From when I was baby. My maae say I should wear sleep clothes when I older, but I sleep this way. Is better." If it was possible I think my erection got even stiffer as I felt Fa's nude form mold itself to mine as she hugged me. Her slim build, modest breasts tipped with her erect nipples and sparse pubic hair that covered her pussy, Fa was an Asian erotic dream. She would make a monk quit his order for a night with her. I took off my underwear and we got into bed together and laid down. Me on my back and Fa on her side facing me. "Peter, you say you not hire me for sex, but you hard. You want me take care?" "Fa, I'm hard because you are a beautiful woman and you excite me sexually. I'm worried because I don't want to take advantage of you or have you be afraid of me. I have come to know you better today and I think that you are a wonderful person. I don't want to do anything that will cause you to lose your trust in me." Fa raised herself to look at me. Tears were beginning to fall from her eyes. "Peter," she whispered before laying her head on my chest, her hand on my stomach, and a leg over my thigh. --- I woke up the next morning, spooned behind Fa. My left arm was draped over Fa's waist while she held my hand to her naked breast. I couldn't help but sport an erection that lay in the channel between her butt cheeks. She must have been awake as she squeezed my hand that was cupped around her breast and wiggled her butt to bury my erection deeper into the cleft between her cheeks. "Fa," I asked? "Feel good. I like," she replied as she turned in my arms and snuggled face first into me, placing her top leg over my hip. I could feel her pubic hair against the base of my dick. I rolled over onto my back which caused Fa to then lay on me fully; her breasts pressed against my chest and my hard cock between her legs; snuggled up against the lips of her pussy. She raised her head and looked at me briefly before lowering her lips to mine for a soft yet quick kiss, "Good morning Peter. You sleep well?" she asked with a smile. I smiled in return and gave her a long kiss in return, "very well. I think I'd like to sleep like this every night." She looked at me intently for a few moments before she kissed me again; this time letting her tongue explore my month and tease my tongue as well. My arms caressed her back and her ass. It felt so good to just hold Fa in my arms. She lay on top of me with her head nestled in the crook of my neck. She kissed my neck softly before she whispered, "Peter ... I like you hold me... Please hold me long time." I turned my head and kissed her back, "for as long as you want, then longer." --- We eventually got up and dressed and had a light breakfast in the hotel's restaurant. I left a note at the front desk for my friends from Japan, letting them know that I was going off on my own and not to worry. Heck, I hadn't seen them since the day we arrived in Bangkok and went bar crawling. I doubted that they cared about where I was. Then we packed our bags and checked out in time to be picked up by the bus going up to Kanchanaburi. The ride itself took more than three hours but we got to see the countryside between Bangkok and Kanchanaburi in the process. And it was beautiful. The further north we went, the more lush and denser the rain forest became. We arrived in Kanchanaburi in the early afternoon and checked into our hotel. After depositing our luggage in our room, Fa and I became full time tourists and were off to see as many sites as we could. She had never been to Kanchanaburi either so Fa was delighted to visit many of the attractions that afternoon. We trudged back to our hotel in the early evening; tired and dusty from walking. We found out that getting around Kanchanaburi wasn't as easy as Bangkok. There weren't as many Tuk Tuks around so we ended up walking most of the time around the town. (Tuk Tuks are the Thai equivalent of an open air taxi.) But the walking we had to do wasn't that bad as many of the sites that we wanted to see where within a reasonable walking distance from our hotel. So the lack of transportation wasn't much of a hardship. It just meant that we spent more time walking. We enjoyed a light dinner at a street vendor's stall located on a street located a block from our hotel. When we returned to our room, the first thing we wanted to do was to bathe to get rid of the grime and dust from our day. Fa undressed me then I undressed her. We embraced and kissed. "I like," Fa whispered, "you hold me like this ... we kiss ... I like very much." "I like very much also, Fa. You are a wonderful woman." I replied before I hugged her again and kissed her at length. Fa led me to the shower where we bathed. Nothing sexual, just straight forward bathing. Not that I wasn't aroused by Fa's slim body and firm breasts. But I think we were both more interested in getting the dust and sweat off of our bodies. After bathing, we both were seated on the bed while I dried and brushed her hair for her. "Peter, you have brother or sister?" "I have one sister. We don't see each other very often as she lives far away from me." "Is too bad Peter. I think good to see family. I always like visit my family." "Would you like to visit with your family?" Fa turned to me, "You take me visit my family?" "If you want." She smiled and her eyes teared as she looked at me, then hugged me tightly. "Thank you Peter," she whispered. "Let's plan on visiting them after our trip to Chiang Mai. Why don't we make the travel arrangements tomorrow morning." Fa's family lived in a farming village located on the outskirts of Chiang Mai. So it would be convenient to drop in on them while we were there. Fa hugged me tighter and kissed me at length. "Thank you Peter." After Fa's hair had dried and I had finished brushing it, we got into bed and went to sleep. Again with Fa using my shoulder as her pillow, an arm thrown across my chest, and one of her legs straddling my leg. --- We woke up the next morning, changed into comfortable walking clothes and had a quick breakfast in the hotel's coffee shop. Fa suggested that we take in the waterfalls and the hot springs that morning, and perhaps spend time in the pool later that afternoon. And that became our plan for the day. We caught a Tuk Tuk up to the waterfalls. A Tuk Tuk is an open air taxi that can seat up to four people. Powered by a scooter engine, Tuk Tuk drivers were maniacs and had to be suicidal considering how they drove. Fa laughed at my first experience riding one, as I grabbed hold of the sides of the Tuk Tuk and held on trying to keep from being thrown off balance. She just kind of rolled and swayed with each turn that our driver made as he darted in and out of traffic. We made it up to the waterfalls in one piece and it was magnificent. Truly impressive display of the mighty force of nature. The falls lookout must have been at least two hundred yards away yet the roar of the falls was very loud. And the mist surrounded us constantly. There was a walkway that took us down from the lookout through a series of gardens. The path ended next to the river that was fed by the waterfall. Lots of people were milling around taking pictures; some in bathing suites walking and relaxing in the river. Unfortunately we didn't bring any swimwear so we couldn't join them. As we left the river, Fa pointed to a couple on the far bank. They were sitting in the water with the woman sitting in the man's lap, facing him. Every few seconds you could see the women flex her hips. "I think they have sex." Fa whispered. I looked at the couple and it was obvious that they were. "Shall we join them?" I asked. Fa laughed loudly and spanked my arm. "You must be gentleman." She admonished me. Then she grabbed my hand and dragged me up the path. We took a handy Tuk Tuk to the nearby hot springs. We were able to secure a private bath and enjoyed the warm waters for a couple of hours. We left our clothes in a locker in the entrance way then quickly washed ourselves before stepping into the hot water. Fa's naked beauty again took my breath away. I took her into my arms and we hugged and kissed as we relaxed in the hot waters. I refused to relax my embrace. But that didn't matter as she continued to hold me tightly. After Kanchanaburi, Fa had made reservations for a train ride south to Surat Thani (a coastal village which is a popular jump off point for Ko Samui), and also arranged for seats on a hire boat to take us to Ko Samui. She had looked at a couple of travel brochures and decided that we should stay at the Chaweng Cove Resotel. The brochures described Chaweng Cove Resotel quite well. It featured rooms that were built as separate huts on stilts over the shallow, crystal clear waters of Chaweng Bay. If you wanted to, you could just jump off your front porch into the inviting water below. The train ride took about 12 hours. Fa had booked us into a sleeper unit which meant that we had a private compartment that had a pull down bunk bed so we could nap. A little pricey however we were also able to enjoy a great deal of privacy for the long ride. After we were settled in the compartment, Fa suggested that we have a light lunch, then rest and relax a bit, and have a mid afternoon snack before we arrived in Surat Thani. We could also grab a light dinner in Surat Thani before taking the ferry over to Ko Samui. So we made our way to the restaurant car which was located two cars back from our car. The food was amazing. Fa suggested that we have a simple seafood stir fry and ordered for us both. Fa and I shared a large bottle of beer. What a lunch. After eating, we returned to our compartment to relax a bit. "Peter," Fa asked, "what you do before you come Thailand?" "I had a business back in the US. I think it turned out to be pretty successful, but it took all of my time." "All your time?" "Yes. I only had time to work. Get up in the morning and go to work. Worked all day long and usually past dinner. I usually only went home to shower and sleep." "Not good. Make you tired." I chuckled. "Yeah, it made me very tired." "No time to play? Have fun time with friends?" "No time for friends either. Sad wasn't it?" Fa shook her head in agreement, "I know sometimes have to work only. Make business good. So no time to play. So you take long vacation now?" "Very long vacation. I sold my business and here I am." "You sold business? Why?" "I wasn't happy. I was tired. I wanted to do something else." "What else you want?" "I don't know. I know that I wasn't happy doing what I was doing. It was a good business and I made more than enough money, but I just want to be happy with myself at some point." We talked a bit more, then decided to take a short nap. Fa pulled down the window blinds while I pulled down the bed from the wall. It was actually the back of the seat that we had been sitting on. Then before I knew it, Fa began to undress. In short order she was standing before me without a stitch on and had begun to undress me as well. "We take nap. I like when we sleep last night. Feel good." As she removed my underwear, my erection sprang from its confines. Fa giggled quietly as she stood up then crawled into the bed. I followed her and lay on my back next to her. She turned to me and lay her head on my shoulder with one arm across my torso and one leg across my thighs. "Comfortable?" I asked. "I like. You feel good ." she whispered as she closed her eyes. "rest now." And so we napped for an hour or so; the rhythmic vibrations of the train rocking us gently as it made its way to Surat Thani. The sound of rain falling against the metal skin of the train and the window caused me to wake up from my nap. As I lay there with Fa by my side, I felt wonderful. I didn't know where my life was headed, but Fa being here with me felt absolutely terrific. And it couldn't be sex since we had yet to be intimate. But Fa, being on this trip with me, had made a big difference in the way I felt over the last two days. I felt Fa kiss my shoulder just then. I turned my head toward her and found her looking in my eyes with a smile. "You have many thoughts Peter?" "Yes." "Good thoughts?" "Yes. Very good." "You look more happy now then at bar." "Yes. I feel much happier. It's because you are here with me. And you are such a beautiful and nice woman. " She blushed and smiled, then crawled on top of me to kiss me. Her nakedness testing my resolve to respect her sexually. She made me hard with desire. "Thank you Peter. I like be with you. You make me feel good inside." She laid down on top of me and I hugged her; softly caressing her back. Eventually we got up and dressed ourselves and returned the bunk to its closed position. After another hour, the train pulled into the station in Surat Thani. It was around four in the afternoon when we got off the train and flagged down a Tuk Tuk. We were delivered to the harbor where the Tuk Tuk driver dropped us off right in front of the hire boat desk that would take us to Ko Samui. The desk attendant let us know that we had another hour before it would leave so we left our luggage with him and decided to walk about the harbor and perhaps have dinner before we left. We walked along the wharf side for a couple of blocks before we came upon a food stall. Fa spoke briefly with an old woman and she indicated that we should sit at one of the small tables. So we did. "I ask ai yi gaa (grandmother) to make simple dinner for us." And the old woman did. Out came two glasses of cold sweetened Thai tea with coconut milk, bowls of rice, and two very delectable dishes. One with vegetables and mushrooms and the other being fish that had been cooked in some sort of soy sauce. "This is good, Fa. I like it very much." Fa was smiling, "I happy you like Thai food." "So far everything that I have eaten has been really good. I want you to continue to have me try other Thai foods." She smiled and nodded her head. The old lady looked at both of us and smiled, then said something in Thai to Fa which made her blush. So I asked Fa what she had said. And Fa replied, "she say I have handsome husband." I smiled back at Fa, then leaned over and kissed her on her cheek, which caused Fa to blush even more! The old woman laughed and clapped her hands, then said a few more things to Fa. "She say I lucky I marry kind farang. Many farang treat wife well." She smiled at the old woman and thanked her. We headed back to the boat hire desk shortly after that. I asked her as we walked whether she was embarrassed by the old woman mistaking us for a married couple. "No, I not." She smiled and took my hand as we walked. "Sometimes woman marry farang. Some people don't like. They think woman want money belong to farang. Maybe happen that way for some. But I not like that. I like you Peter. Very much. You treat me with respect. You make me happy." I smiled back at you, "and I like you Fa. I want to make you happy." Our timing was good as they had just started to let passengers on the boat. Eventually the boat left the dock and wove its way through several off shore islands as it made its way to Ko Samui. It didn't take more than an hour before we were docking at our destination. After getting off the boat, we flagged down another Tuk Tuk for a ride to our resort, the Chaweng Cove Resotel. The hotel was built right on the beach at Chaweng Cove and featured private bungalows complete with their own private pool. Actually the private pool was basically a large whirlpool that could fit two or three people. But it looked like a great way to relax after a day of sightseeing or beach activities.