Chapter 8

The group fell silent for a moment, the weight of her accomplishments settling in. Then, as if unable to contain himself any longer, Ah Tong leapt up from the sofa.

"Alright, Captain Xu, we demand stories—real stories," he declared, pointing a dramatic finger at her. "Tell us about your missions. Were there explosions? Secret codes? Did you ever go undercover?"

Jin Lin raised an eyebrow at his antics. "You've been watching too many movies, Ah Tong."

"That's a 'yes,' isn't it?" he pressed, his grin widening. "Come on, just one cool story. I need something to brag about when I tell people my best friend is a badass military captain."

When they all leaned in, eagerly demanding stories of her time in the military, Jin Lin waved her hand dismissively, a playful smirk tugging at her lips. "Ah, you guys and your wild imaginations," she teased, leaning back against the plush sofa. "You've clearly been watching too many action movies."

"Come on, Little Lin," Ah Tong whined, clutching a pillow like a dramatic diva. "Just one story. You can't dangle a title like Captain in front of us and not deliver the goods!"

"Yeah!" Fang Ning chimed in, her usual gentle demeanor replaced by a rare spark of curiosity. "Even just a tiny snippet. Was it dangerous? Thrilling? Did you, you know… save lives?"

Jin Lin chuckled softly, shaking her head. "You guys are unbelievable." She reached for another handful of seeds, expertly cracking one open before answering. "I hate to burst your bubble, but I can't share anything. Most of my missions are classified, and even if they weren't... let's just say they're not exactly the kind of stories you'd want to hear over dinner."

Her casual tone couldn't hide the faint shadow that crossed her face, but it disappeared as quickly as it came. Her friends exchanged glances, sensing there was more to her reluctance than just confidentiality.

"Not the kind of stories we'd want to hear?" Ah Feng repeated, frowning slightly. "What does that mean?"

"It means," Jin Lin said firmly, though her tone remained light, "that some parts of the past are better left in the past. You know me—I'd rather focus on the here and now. So, how about we change the subject?"

Fang Ning bit her lip, concern flickering in her eyes. "Darling Xu, if it's something you don't want to talk about... you know we're here for you, right? You don't have to keep everything bottled up."

Jin Lin smiled at her friend, reaching out to give her hand a gentle squeeze. "I know, Ning Ning. And I appreciate that more than you know. But trust me, I'm fine. Really. I'd much rather hear about what you all have been up to these past few years."

Ah Tong, sensing the subtle shift in her mood, decided to lighten the atmosphere. "Well, if you're not going to give us any cool military stories, then I guess I'll have to fill the void with my own adventures," he said dramatically, flipping his hair like a diva. "Did I ever tell you about the time I got stuck on a ski lift with a supermodel?"

"Oh, here we go," Brother Mu muttered, shaking his head with a small smile.

"Wait, wait, wait—was it really a supermodel, or just some influencer with 3,000 followers on social media?" Ah Feng teased.

"Hey! Don't ruin my story!" Ah Tong protested, and just like that, the group dissolved into laughter, the earlier tension melting away.

As the laughter began to die down, Jin Lin glanced over at Brother Mu, who had been unusually quiet for most of the conversation. He was seated across from her, leaning against the back of the sofa with a calm, almost distant air. His dark eyes were watching her with a gentle intensity, but his lips remained pressed into a slight, contemplative smile. He was two years older than her, yet in many ways, he always had this quiet, protective presence about him—a trait that had been there even when they were kids, sitting side by side in kindergarten, drawing pictures with crayons and exchanging silly secrets.

Brother Mu had never been the loudest in the group, but his presence was one that anchored everyone around him. His words were few, but always carefully considered, like he weighed every sentence before he spoke. As a child, he had been the one who guided the group through every petty childhood crisis, and as they grew older, his wisdom seemed to deepen, though it was always delivered with understated grace. His cool, almost detached demeanor made him someone people naturally turned to for advice, yet he never sought attention.

And yet now, his gaze softened as he caught her eye. It was as if, despite the jovial chatter around them, he had been silently watching over her. Even as a child, when they were all playing in the park, he was the one who would quietly step in to stop a fight before it escalated, or reassure them when they were nervous about something. Jin Lin had always admired how steady and calm he was, how his presence never wavered, no matter the situation.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Brother Mu's voice finally broke through the chatter, his tone quiet but insistent. He had a way of making even the simplest of questions feel profound, as though he could see right through the surface and knew when something was left unsaid.

Jin Lin blinked, taken off guard for a moment. She hadn't expected him to ask such a direct question, especially after everything that had happened. For a moment, she didn't answer—just took a deep breath and looked away, allowing herself to gather her thoughts. She wasn't the type to dwell on things, but she knew that with Brother Mu, there was no way to hide what was truly going on.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she said after a pause, her voice steady but with a subtle note of something deeper. "Just... it's a lot to adjust to, you know?" She leaned back against the armrest, her fingers playing with the edge of her Coke can, trying to focus on the fizzy sound of the drink rather than the memories that had started to bubble up.

"I understand," Brother Mu replied softly, his gaze never leaving her face. There was no rush in his words, no pressure. He simply let her speak when she was ready, understanding that it was never easy for Jin Lin to open up about something that weighed on her. He didn't need her to say anything more; he could see it in her eyes, the subtle tension she carried, the way her shoulders were just slightly hunched, as if bracing against something invisible. He had always been able to read her like an open book, even when she tried to hide it behind her sharp, confident exterior.

"Everything changes so fast," she added, her voice quieter this time. "One minute you're surrounded by people you've known your whole life, and the next… well, things aren't so simple anymore."

It was a rare glimpse of vulnerability from Jin Lin, and the others at the table noticed it too. The playful chatter around them came to a slow halt as everyone sensed the shift in the room. Ah Tong, ever the dramatist, opened his mouth but stopped himself when he saw the change in atmosphere.

"That's true," Brother Mu murmured, still looking at her with an understanding that made her feel seen, in a way that no one else could. "But you're not alone in this, Little Lin. You never have been." His voice was steady, as though offering her a quiet promise that no matter where life took them, their bond wouldn't break.

She smiled faintly at the way he called her "Little Lin," a nickname that only he used, despite the fact that they were technically the same age in every sense. It had been his nickname for her since childhood, the two years that separated them always making him the older, more protective figure in their circle. Even now, though, it felt comforting—like a little piece of their childhood was still intact, even as they all walked very different paths.

"I know," Jin Lin said, her smile deepening slightly. She knew he meant it. "I guess I just didn't realize how much I missed... all of you. It feels like everything was put on hold for so long." Her hand paused in mid-air as she reached for another seed, her fingers lightly brushing the surface of the table, her thoughts lingering on the past she had tried to forget.

Ah Tong, ever perceptive, sensed the shift and leaned in, his usual teasing grin replaced by a more earnest look. "I get it. It's hard to come back to something familiar when so much has changed. But hey, you're still the same person, right?" He reached across the table, nudging her lightly with his elbow. "I mean, you might be a Captain now, but deep down, you're still that same Jin Lin who used to steal my lunch in middle school."

The sudden shift back to humor lightened the atmosphere once more, and Jin Lin laughed, though it was a softer sound this time, one filled with warmth rather than the usual guardedness. She glanced at Ah Feng with a playful sparkle in her eyes. "You still haven't gotten over that, huh?"

"Never will," he replied with a mock glare, making everyone chuckle again.

"It was not me, it was my second brother who ate your lunch back then and I needed to pay you back with tons of snacks in the end" Jin Lin refuted.