Just before Arun was born, Chee Leon had established himself as the new up-and-coming Sales Manager for a large global pharmaceutical company. Meanwhile, Chris Lun was knocking on doors, representing a local textile company for buttons. Their parents had just been relocated from the slums to government housing, where they paid rent. Chee and Chris managed to purchase their own government-subsidized flat from their combined incomes.
Arun was born into this environment, but due to Chee's workaholic nature and Chris's frequent travels, Arun spent most of his time with Chee's parents in their small rental apartment. At his grandparents' place, Arun spent his younger years learning chess and listening to traditional myths from his drunkard paternal grandfather, being disciplined by his strict paternal grandmother, and playing with his cousins Lime and Dus.
The three children were frequently left unsupervised in Arun's paternal grandparents' small, rented apartment. There was very little to entertain them, so they had to find their own enjoyment. Arun, as the eldest child, frequently led the small gang in mischief. One of their favorite activities was using magnifying glasses to concentrate sunlight on ants—a science experiment that often ended with shrieks and laughter when the ants started scurrying away in confusion.
They learned to use rubber bands to create jump ropes, bottle caps as gambling chips, and battled spiders they caught. Arun's mischievous nature often got him into trouble. One time, when he was six, he almost set the apartment on fire while playing with matches. Another time, he climbed out the window and couldn't get back inside. His grandmother, upon finding him stuck, quipped, "Arun, do you think you're Spider-Man? Because if you are, I need to have a serious talk with your parents."
One of the most memorable incidents was when Arun decided to "barbeque" a cockroach. Armed with curiosity and a stick, he managed to catch a large cockroach and attempted to roast it over a small flame. However, the stench was so overwhelming that he gagged and had to abandon his experiment. From that day on, Arun developed an intense fear of cockroaches, much to the amusement of his cousins.
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Another time, Arun's grandfather, with a mischievous glint in his eye, decided it was time for Arun to learn the "joys" of alcohol. He handed the boy a small glass of his favorite strong liquor and raised a toast. Just as Arun was about to take his first sip, his grandmother burst into the room like a force of nature. "What on earth do you think you're doing?" she bellowed. Both Arun and his grandfather froze, caught red-handed. The ensuing punishment was severe, with Arun scrubbing floors for days and his grandfather relegated to the couch for a week. From that day forward, Arun associated alcohol with punishment and found himself unable to drink without falling drunk after a single mouthful.
Despite his mischievousness, Arun never lost his curiosity and spirit for adventure. From these improvisations, he learned to adapt and find ways to use what he had on hand to make different things. Unfortunately, due to his poverty, he also developed a mentality that nothing would change even if he did his best. This was the beginning of his lazy and indifferent attitude in school.
Although Arun was mischievous, he was never malicious, unlike Lime. Lime, forever second in the trio, went out of his way to get into trouble. Lime was often beaten by his grandmother for various reasons, but he never resented Arun for his punishments and instead found his own way to garner attention. Dus, being the youngest and a girl, just followed along with what the others did.
As the children grew up, Arun and Lime realized that they were built differently. Boys had boy parts and girls had girl parts, and they started becoming curious about these differences. They began exploring each other's gentiles, focusing mainly on the lower body since they were too young for secondary sexual characteristics to develop. They instinctively knew that what they were doing was wrong and hid from the adults when they were "playing doctor." Their attempts to conduct "medical examinations" often ended in giggles and playful arguments about who got to be the doctor and who had to be the patient.
However, they were still caught in the end and severely disciplined before any real damage could be done. Unfortunately, the seed for Arun and Lime's paedophilic tendencies was planted during these games and the subsequent punishment.
By the time Benny was born, Chee and Chris were sufficiently well-off to afford a live-in nanny to care for Benny. While Arun was left mostly on his own, largely without discipline, Benny was brought up by a live-in nanny. This did not mean that either Arun or Benny was deprived of a loving environment. It just took different forms. Arun was lovingly cared for in a large family setting by his paternal grandparents and various aunts, uncles, and cousins, while Benny was given undivided care and love from his nanny.
Arun grew up introverted and Benny outgoing. Arun tended to have people reach out to him, while Benny reached out to others. Arun and Benny almost didn't know each other existed until Arun's grandfather passed away when Arun was 12. That was when Arun went back to live with his parents.