9

Yang Qiu sat across from Mrs. Chen at the dining table. His eyes were downcast, and he was fidgeting with his fingers. 

​"So, what's up?" Mrs. Chen asked, concerned. 

​"Um, well…" Yang Qiu paused.

"Don't worry, Yang Qiu. Take your time if it's difficult."

"Thanks…" Yang Qiu took in a deep breath. "So,basically…" 

Yang Qiu recalled the details of the call he received from the hospital in the city, as well as how he was unable to contact his dad. "At first I thought that maybe it was a scam and that he was busy…" He lowered his head.

"Have you tried calling him again?" Mrs. Chen was caught off guard at this sudden news. 

"That's the thing. I called him a couple times today, but he never picked up." Yang Qiu's brows furrowed.

"Oh…" Mrs. Chen frowned. This is more serious than I was expecting.

"I'm really scared…" Yang Qiu whispered quietly. 

"It's going to be okay, Yang Qiu," Mrs. Chen said comfortingly. "This is quite a serious matter, and I'm glad you're willing to talk it out with me. I will try my best to help you, as long as you are willing to accept my help." Mrs. Chen wholeheartedly wanted to help as much as she could, after all Yang Qiu was like a second son to her. 

​"Yeah, thank you." Yang Qiu raised his eyes a little and tried his best to smile. He was extremely grateful for Mrs. Chen's care, but he was too preoccupied to acknowledge her much outwardly. He paused for a moment to organize his thoughts.

"I just don't know what to do... My dad… you know how distant we are. I don't know if it is right to leave everything behind to go see him, even though he is my biological dad. But if I don't go, I'll feel terrible as well." Yang Qiu decided to just let out all his thoughts. "And the thing is, he will obviously need a lot of time to recover, and if I end up going then I'll probably feel obligated to stay until he is better. I feel like I will be missing out on some of the most important years of my life that I could be having here…" I will miss Chen Xia and Mrs. and Mr. Chen…

There was some silence as Yang Qiu calmed down his emotions.

"Do you think you will feel better going versus not going?" Mrs. Chen felt that this was indeed a very difficult decision to make. 

​Yang Qiu mulled over the question for a while. 

"I… don't know. I can tell myself it wouldn't affect me much if I don't go… but he is still my father and whatever interaction we've had wasn't bad at all… I feel like I am obligated to at least go visit him. I'm just scared of all the uncertainties." It feels like walking into endless fog. Not being able to see where you are going is such a scary and suffocating feeling…

"Well, if you go visit him, it doesn't mean you can never come back, right?" Mrs. Chen tried her best to follow Yang Qiu's thought process, trying not to put any unnecessary influence onto his decision. 

"Yeah… but it will still be time away from everything and everyone I've ever known… it'd be scary to move to a completely new place on my own."

"Of course it would be." Mrs. Chen couldn't help but sigh at Yang Qiu's situation. "Well, there's not much I can help with for your decision, but just know that whatever you choose, we will all support you. If you choose to leave, we will wait for you to come back." Mrs. Chen reached out to hold Yang Qiu's hand.

"Thank you, Mrs. Chen." Yang Qiu felt some relief knowing that she would support him no matter what. It gave him much needed comfort.

"Thank you, too, for trusting me with your feelings,Yang Qiu."

​At night Yang Qiu tossed and turned in his bed, unable to fall asleep. He flipped over and came face to face with the teddy bear Chen Xia had bought him many years ago for his birthday. He pulled it into his arms and hugged it tightly.

​I can't just leave you behind… but I feel like I have to go see my dad. It's been a few days since I got that call… I can't help but worry. I wonder if he is doing okay. I've been dragging this out for too long. But it's really just too hard to make a decision!

​Yang Qiu buried his face into the teddy bear's stomach. 

​What Mrs. Chen said also makes sense; just because I go see my dad doesn't mean I'll never come back… It just means I have to spend a period of time away from here,especially since his injuries seem very serious… Oh, I really hope he is doing okay… 

​Yang Qiu felt a bit disappointed in himself for having such a mild reaction to his father's accident. He just couldn't seem to care any more than he already did. After all, his dad was more like an acquaintance than a family member. However, he also felt a need to be a more filial son.

​With endless thoughts raging in his mind, Yang Qiu quickly became tired. He fell asleep clutching the teddy bear to his chest.

2 days later

​When Yang Qiu woke up, he was extremely nervous. After thinking through his choices for the past couple of days, he had decided that it would be best for him to at least make a visit to his dad in the city. He would decide how long he would stay later once he was there and knew the situation better.

He headed out the door. I need to tell Xiaxia and Mr. and Mrs. Chen about my decision.

He was extremely preoccupied as he walked to the restaurant. I'm scared… I don't know if I should tell them yet. Xiaxia is going to be so upset…

Before he knew it, he was at the entrance of the restaurant. He pushed open the door and walked in, taking a deep breath and releasing it as the door swung open. 

"Good morning!" Chen Xia's cheerful voice greeted Yang Qiu immediately. 

Yang Qiu looked over to the stairs and saw Chen Xia rushing down towards him with a giant smile on his face. He was clearly very excited about something.

"Good morning!" Yang Qiu temporarily forgot about his worries when he saw that Chen Xia had recovered from his cold and would be going to school with him today. 

Mrs. Chen walked by just as the boys were walking out the door. 

"Take it easy today, Xiaxia! And you boys have fun on your last day of school!" Mrs. Chen knew that today was a special day; it was the last day of school. She was also relieved that Chen Xia had recovered in time for it. 

"Yeah, yeah mom, I'm all better now!" Chen Xiashouted back. 

Mrs. Chen laughed while shaking her head, then closed the door and went back inside.  

​After not being able to see each other much for the past few days, both boys felt a renewed sense of excitement to be able to spend time together.

"I'm so glad I got better in time! Now I can go to the last day of school with you!" Chen Xia was overflowing with energy.

"Yeah! I'm glad you're better too!" Yang Qiu smiled at Chen Xia. He gets excited to easily… and it's just like when we were younger! Haha. 

They walk together without speaking for a while, enjoying each other's presence. 

As the silence grew longer, Yang Qiu's face also became more serious. I have to tell Xiaxia… but I can't just tell him now. He is so happy… I'll just have to do it later.

"Everything okay?" Chen Xia's voice brought Yang Qiu back to his senses.

"Huh? Oh yeah, everything is fine." Yang Qiu tried his best to show a convincing smile.

Chen Xia didn't ask any further, though he could tell something was wrong. We've been friends for so many years, I can tell when there is something wrong with you, you know? But since you don't want to talk about it, I won't pry. 

"Well, if anything is wrong, you can tell me! I'll always be there to listen!" Even though he did not force Yang Qiu to share his feelings, he still wished to show his support. 

"Thanks, Xiaxia, it means a lot." Yang Qiu couldn't help but feel that Xiaxia really did have a lot in common with Mrs. Chen. He was very moved. Yes, I will have to tell him sooner or later… but just not now. 

"Don't think about sad things right now. We should have fun on our last day!"

​The school day was filled with all sorts of activities, and the courtyard was filled with laughter, shouts, and cheerful air. 

​Chen Xia took advantage of his newly recovered health to participate in as many activities as he could, wholly enjoying himself on this last day.

​Yang Qiu, however, didn't seem to enjoy himself nearly as much. He couldn't help but worry about how he was going to tell Chen Xia about his plans, as well as his fears for his own future. The day passed by in a blur, leaving Yang Qiu's mind even more jumbled and tired.

After school, they ate dinner at the restaurant.

"Today was so fun! It makes me feel like I can't wait for next year. After summer break of course though." Chen Xiareflected verbally. 

"I'm glad you had fun, Xiaxia!" Mrs. Chen felt relieved that Chen Xia seemed to have fully recovered

Yang Qiu also smiled a little, then continued eating quietly. Chen Xia noticed his silence and decided to comment on it. He was getting worried, and felt that since they were at home, it would be fine to bring it up. 

"Hey, you've been like this all day. Is something wrong? Did you not have fun today? Are you not excited about being on break?" Chen Xia immediately let out a stream of questions that he had been holding back since morning. 

There was a moment of silence. Yang Qiu was caught off guard by Chen Xia's directness. 

"I um..." Yang Qiu fiddles with his hands.

"I… I will be leaving in the next few days. My dad got into an accident a few days ago and is hospitalized now… I have decided that I am going to go see him. The injuries seemed serious, and I don't know when or if he will get better. I will probably have to stay with him until he fully recovers... It might take months or even a year." Yang Qiu's voice trailed off into a whisper.

Silence.

"I won't be able to spend summer break with you... and probably next school year too, Xiaxia. I really don't want to leave, but at the end of the day he is still my dad and I feel like I am obligated to at least give him this amount of care..."Yang Qiu looked slowly at Chen Xia, feeling slightly scared to see his reaction.

Chen Xia was staring at him with an unfathomable expression. After they locked their eyes for a few seemingly endless seconds, Chen Xia's eyes started tearing up. Seeing that Yang Qiu was not joking in any way. He suddenly got up and rushed out of the room, not wanting to cry in front of Yang Qiu and his parents.

"Xiaxia-" Mrs. Chen got up to go after him. It had been a long time since she had seen Chen Xia react to something in such a way. He was thoroughly shocked.

After Mrs. Chen left, the room was quiet for a bit.

"Ahem, uh, Yang Qiu!" Mr. Chen spoke up. "I'm sure this was no easy decision to make. Don't mind Xiaxia, he will come around to accept it. I'm sure you know that Xiaxia will support your decision no matter what, as will I and Mrs. Chen." Mr. Chen could tell Chen Xia's reaction saddened Yang Qiu greatly. "Do you need help with anything?"

"Um... I don't really know. I'm so unsure of everything... I just want to make sure my dad is okay..."

"I totally understand. When do you plan on leaving?" Mr. Chen asked.

"Well… I was actually thinking of leaving tomorrow..." Yang Qiu felt a bit embarrassed to have hidden this critical information from them for so long. "I received the call a few days ago; I feel since I have decided to go, I should be leaving as soon as possible." Yang Qiu explained his thoughts.

"I see... this really is quite sudden. Well, if there is anything we can help with, please let us know." Mr. Chen was secretly a bit reluctant to let Yang Qiu leave so easily, after all he could tell both boys would miss each other a lot. And just like Mrs. Chen, Mr. Chen viewed Yang Qiu as almost a second son. He would miss Yang Qiu a lot too. 

"Thank you... really thank you so much. For everything."