05

Morning Blues & Unwanted Surprises

Liyana had been sitting in silence since she woke up, lost in thought, wondering how the day would unfold. Should she even bother going to school now that she didn't have her key? Her heart skipped a beat when she remembered the lecture scheduled for that day...it was for a course she found challenging and couldn't afford to miss. She sighed, got up, and headed to the bathroom.

Around 9 a.m., she stepped into the sitting room, hoping her housemate was still home. The night before, around half-past midnight, she had come out to put away her untouched dinner in the fridge and found him asleep on the couch. Even after she finished in the kitchen, he hadn't woken up. It was only the second time he had spent the night at the apartment since moving in.

She scanned the sitting room....empty. Curious, she walked to the window and peeked into the garage. His car was still parked. A sigh of relief escaped her lips. If he had gone out, her chances of getting to school would have vanished.

She went into the kitchen, made herself some tea, grabbed a few cookies, and returned to the sitting room. Still, he hadn't emerged. She kept glancing at the time....ten o'clock was approaching, and she hated being late. Yet, she refused to ask him to unlock the door for her.

At ten minutes to ten, he finally walked in. Without looking up, she continued scrolling through her phone.

"Good morning, Liyana," he said.

Still without looking at him, she muttered under her breath, "Okay."

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw him head toward the door. She quickly got up to follow him. He noticed and stopped short, turning to face her with a serious expression.

"What's going on?" he asked.

She looked away, staying silent.

He shoved the key back into his pocket and turned as if to walk away. "Oh, I get it...you're hiding your key so I can play doorman for you now?"

She still didn't look at him. She didn't even know what to say.

He took a step away, and with a bit of panic, she pleaded, "Please, I really need to go to school."

He turned back with a smug expression. "Be a good girl and ask nicely."

She watched him walk back to the couch and sit down casually. Swallowing her frustration, she said softly, "Please open the door. I need to go to school."

"I didn't hear that," he teased.

She turned away, biting back her anger. There was no time for games. She tried again, calmer this time. "Please, open the door. I have to go."

With a faint smirk, he got up and walked to the door. "Didn't know you could be this obedient," he said as he unlocked it.

She didn't even look at him. As she brushed past his shoulder to leave, he added, "If you come back late again, you'll sleep outside....or in the garage."

She didn't respond. She walked out, visibly annoyed.

"Oh, is that your thank you?" he called after her, sounding half-offended.

But she was already halfway down the street, muttering under her breath, tired of his antics.

Later at School

After class, her friend Soraya caught up to her. "Guess what, Liyana?"

Liyana turned to her curiously.

Soraya burst into laughter. "Brother Hailong asked me yesterday if you have a boyfriend!"

Liyana's heart dropped a little. Soraya kept laughing. "I swear! He messaged me around midnight...here, let me show you. I told him you don't have anyone."

Liyana frowned. "Wait...what do you mean I don't have anyone, Soraya?"

Soraya shrugged. "Do you? I mean, if you're calling Yiming your boyfriend, then girl... I see him as a total jerk. I told Brother Hailong you're focused on school and not dating. Besides, you know how Hailong is....I wouldn't waste a breath defending myself if he were rude. Honestly, with that sham of a wife he has, I'd love for him to remarry... and imagine if it's my best friend he marries!"

Liyana stood up, adjusting her scarf. "I'm heading home. See you tomorrow."

Soraya scowled. "Why are you leaving? I just brought you good news!"

Liyana stopped. "Soraya, if I had known what last night would turn into, I wouldn't have followed you to your brother's home. Put yourself in his wife's shoes. Would you be happy if someone treated you like that?"

"Her shoes wouldn't even fit me!" Soraya scoffed. "I'm not like her. Did you see how she completely ignored your greeting and stormed into the room with her phone glued to her ear? Rude much? And get this...she left her food in the kitchen even though I told her she was staying the night. If you're rejecting Hailong, just say you don't like him. But don't pretend Yiming is any better. Hailong is smart, rich, and good-looking. So what if he was married to someone useless like Safa?"

Liyana said flatly, "If you're mad at his wife, then you go marry him. He's your cousin anyway. There's no barrier."

With that, she turned and walked off.

Soraya muttered under her breath, "Go ahead. I'll tell him you said yes, and we'll see who wins. You're out here clinging to a guy who treats you like trash. Just wait till he starts hitting you...no one will defend you."

Back at the Apartment

When Liyana got home, her housemate's car was nowhere in sight. Exhausted and starving, she leaned against the entrance, too tired to care anymore. She didn't know anyone well enough in the neighborhood to ask for help...and definitely not the foreigners around.

About 20 minutes later, she saw his car approaching. She looked down as he parked. As he approached the door, he patted his pockets and realized he didn't have the key. She watched him fumble, quietly knowing what that meant. Her heart sank...she was already dizzy from hunger.

He looked at her and said, "Liyana, I think I left the key where I just came from."

She said nothing and avoided eye contact.

"Maybe you could wait at the neighbor's place?" he suggested.

"I don't really know them," she replied softly.

"Okay. I'll be back as soon as I can."

He turned and walked back to his car. She watched silently.

Fifteen minutes later, he returned. "Lucky you...I found it."

She gave him a hard look. Lucky me? she thought. She walked past him into the apartment and straight to her room. After lying down for about fifteen minutes, she got up and went to take a shower.

Shortly after, there was a knock on her bedroom door.

She stared at it, saying nothing.

"Liyana," he called.

Bluntly, she replied, "What is it?"

When he tried the handle, her eyes widened and she stood up quickly. "What?"

She rushed to the door and opened it, clearly irritated. He placed a bag in front of her and said, "I got you food. You looked a bit tired earlier."

She looked at the bag, then back at him. He turned and walked away. She stared after him as he disappeared into the sitting room. A few seconds later, she picked up the food and quietly closed her door.

She had just started eating when her phone vibrated. She pulled it from her handbag and froze when she saw the name: Yiming.

Her heart thudded. Sitting at the edge of her bed, she stared at the screen. When the call nearly ended, she finally answered with shaky hands, putting it on speaker.

Instead of greeting her, his voice was cold. "So you were just waiting for me to call you, huh, Liyana?"

She lowered her gaze. "But... you said if you ever wanted to talk, you'd be the one to call me. You told me not to call you again."

"Oh, so because I said that, you didn't think to check in on me even once? You didn't think maybe I wanted to hear from you?"

Quietly, she said, "I'm sorry."

"If I don't forgive you, what will you do? Clearly you don't care about me anymore. You've been just fine without reaching out."

"I'm sorry," she whispered again.

"When does your exam period start?" he asked.

"Probably in six or seven weeks."

"I can't wait that long without seeing you. If I get time, I'll come by... maybe even this week."

She went quiet.

"Hello?" he asked.

"Yes....sorry. I'm here."

"What's wrong? You don't want me to come?"

"No....it's not that. The network cut off for a moment."

"Okay. I said you should expect me anytime from now."

Softly, she replied, "Alright. Safe travels."

"What are you doing right now?"

"Eating."

"Good. Switch to video call."

She hesitated for a second, then grabbed her scarf and did as he asked.

~**~

Around 5:00 PM, Liyana stepped out of her bedroom into the sitting room. She headed to the window and peeked into the garage... her housemate's car was parked there, meaning he was home. Quietly, she walked to the kitchen to dispose of the takeaway he had given her earlier. From the kitchen window, she spotted him in the backyard, seated on the lawn with his phone to his ear. He seemed to be on a call.

Not wanting him to see her, Liyana stepped back from the window. She gently put down the bag in her hand and walked out of the kitchen, returning to the sitting room. She stood for a moment, staring at the handle of the living room door, then headed over to the table where he often left his study materials and quickly rummaged through his books, looking for something. Nothing. Frustrated, she slipped back into the kitchen to check again...he was still on the call.

She hurried down the hallway toward the bedrooms, pausing in front of his door. Her heart was pounding. She stood there, clearly torn between going in or turning back. Then she shut her eyes tightly, took a breath, and opened the door quietly.

The room was neat....immaculate, even. She scanned the space quickly, not sure where to begin. As she searched, his phone lit up on the bed from an incoming message. A young man's face appeared on the screen. She turned away, eyes landing on a pair of trousers nearby. Her heart skipped. She picked them up and checked the pockets. Her fingers brushed against a bundle of dollar bills...she quickly set them aside and reached into the other pocket.

Her eyes widened.

A key and a remote. She pulled them out quickly and confirmed...it was the key to the sitting room door. Without realizing it, she smiled, placed the pants back exactly where they were, and turned to leave....

And froze.

There he was....her housemate...standing at the door, arms crossed, silently watching her.

Her heart sank. Embarrassment burned through her. She turned her back to him, wishing the floor would swallow her whole. After a few moments, he spoke.

"Well done," he said dryly.

She didn't respond. She just fiddled nervously with the key in her hand, too ashamed to turn around. Calmly, he said,

"Hand me the key."

She pouted and muttered, "It's not like I was going to use it."

"So, what...you sneak into my room every time I'm out?"

That hit her. She turned sharply and glared at him, eyes wide. Then, without saying a word, she walked over, placed the key on the bed, and stormed out of the room, brushing past him. Back in her room, she slammed the door and let the tears fall. She sat on the edge of the bed, then collapsed face-first onto her pillow, sobbing.

By 7:00 PM, Liyana was still sitting on the mat where she had been for hours. Every time she replayed her housemate's words in her head, she felt more humiliated. She hated living in this house now. She knew she couldn't go on like this, especially with him around. Finally, she decided she would ask Yiming to help her move out...just like Soraya had suggested from the beginning. She had ignored that advice before. Not anymore.

Her phone rang... it was Hailong. She ignored it. He called again. Still, she let it ring out. A moment later, it rang again. This time, it was Yiming.

Reluctantly, she picked up and greeted him.

"What's with your voice?" he asked, catching the strain in her tone.

She hesitated. How could she even begin to explain everything?

"Hey," he said again, firmer this time. "You can't just go silent on me."

"I'm here," she said weakly. "We've got an exam tomorrow, and I haven't covered enough. I'm just… stressed and have a headache."

He said, "I told you to stop pushing yourself so hard. You're smart, you don't need to study like your life depends on it. Just relax... you'll do fine."

She gave a faint smile. "Okay."

"Have you eaten?"

She shook her head. "Not yet."

"Well, go eat something and call me afterward. I'll be waiting."

She hung up, opened her WhatsApp, and checked if their neighbor had replied to her message. No response, though they were online. She hadn't spoken to her mom in three days. Something didn't feel right.

She dialed Aunt Shawa. No answer. She tried again. This time, it connected.

"Hello, Liyana. How's school?"

"Fine," Liyana replied. "How's everyone at home? Is Mom okay?"

Shawa paused. "She hasn't been feeling well, but it's better now."

Liyana's heart skipped. She had felt something was wrong.

"How long has she been sick?"

"About three days. We didn't want to tell you so you wouldn't worry. That's why I didn't reply to your WhatsApp message. Please don't panic. Just pray for her."

Liyana sat frozen.

Shawa continued, "She collapsed on her way out of her room. She hasn't been well for a while, and we've been begging her not to stress herself. Farah came from Shanghai yesterday to help. Don't worry too much, just keep calm."

Tears filled Liyana's eyes. Her airtime ran out mid-call, and the line disconnected. She dropped the phone and broke into tears.... deep, chest-wrenching sobs.

By 10:00 PM, Liyana was still sitting there, unable to move. Hailong had called twice. She ignored him. At 10:30, someone knocked on her door. She wiped her tears but didn't move. The knock came again. Still no response.

Then she heard him speak, "Hey… Liyana?"

Before she could say anything, the door slowly opened. She turned quickly. Their eyes met.

He stepped inside but stayed a respectful distance away.

"If you're upset because of what I said earlier," he began, "I was only joking. I didn't mean anything by it."

More tears filled her eyes.

"I was just teasing," he added. "Don't take it seriously."

She buried her face in her scarf, quietly crying. He knelt down, looking at her, unsure of what to say.

Finally, she looked up at him with a frown. "Do you think I'm crying because of you?"

"Then why are you crying?" he asked, genuinely concerned.

She didn't answer right away. Then, in a soft voice, she said, "My mother is sick."

His face changed. "Oh no… what's wrong with her?"

She wiped her face but didn't reply. He exhaled slowly.

"Well, sitting here crying won't help her. What she needs is for you to be strong. Focus your energy on wishing her well."

Still, she said nothing.

"Do you plan to go home and see her?" he asked gently.

She looked up at him but stayed silent.

"Are you from Shenzhen?" he added.

She nodded.

He stood up. "I hope she gets better. Try to eat something before bed, alright?"

She kept her head down. He turned and left the room, quietly closing the door behind him.

Zhanxianyibo🌹🌹🌹