Ching awoke with the usual groan of tiredness. She didn't remember what she had been dreaming about, it seemed less important now that her groggy mind began to work again.
She fought the urge to roll over and pull the blanket closer. Through her eyelids, she could see the brightness of the sun through her small window. She tried to open them, then had to squint as she sat up.
The realization that the sun was so bright because she had woken up late only just then dawned on her, but once she realized it, she bolted up and began to run out of her room.
Her hair fell in her face, and when she pushed it back she felt a mass of tangles. She gave an exasperated sigh, she would have to comb it later.
She dashed into the main room, where her mother was already busy sewing.
"You're late again." she said without looking up at her daughter. Ching stopped for a moment in front of her.
"I know, I'm sorry." she managed to say quickly through her anxiousness.
"Don't apologize, just go on." Her mother's tone held no emotion, she didn't look up from her hands.
"Have they come home yet?" Ching was searching the room for some sign her grandparents had returned, but the house seemed oddly silent, even Enlai was being quiet.
"Not yet," her mother said to her sewing.
Ching nodded and ran outside to begin her chores. If she'd stayed in the room a second longer she would have seen her mother smile down at her sewing, shaking her head.
Throughout the day Ching focused her attention on her work...or as much of it as she could. It had been close to a week since her grandmother and grandfather had left to visit with their old friends. She had tried to convince them to take her too, but her parents insisted she stay. Or at least, her mother had. Her father hadn't been present, but it was implied that he would have as well.
She kept an eye out for them as she fed the chickens. The five tiny hens ambled around her while the rooster ignored the food she tossed to the ground. For some reason it was more interested in pecking at her feet. Kicking it away, she tossed more food to try to distract it, but it continued to attack her toes. Even moving to a new spot didn't dissuade it. She didn't understand why it was picking on her.
Finally having enough of the bird's nipping, she made a break for it. She sprinted back towards the house as it trailed behind.
She made it to the house and slammed the door. It was unnecessary, since when she looked out the window she saw the rooster had gone back to the food.
She slumped onto a cushion to inspect her bare feet. A few tiny bleeding cuts, but they were enough to sting as she'd run across the dirt and grass.
Only a few moments after she entered, she heard the wailing from her parent's room that signified that Enlai was awake. Sure enough, Ching's mother soon entered holding her infant brother as he cried at the top of his lungs.
Ching winced at the noise as she looked up to her mother. She was wincing herself, but not only because the sound was right next to her ear. She held the baby close to her, trying to be comforting while her face showed no comfort at all. She looked worn, her graying hair was about as messy as her daughters - though she'd had time to put hers up in a modest bun. The glare she gave her eldest was more out of exasperation than anger.
"Ching Lan, did you have to slam that?" she asked as she came further into the room.
"I'm sorry, Mother." Her apology barely registered over Enlai's cries. Her mother stroked his head.
"Your father and grandparents will arrive any minute, and I still need to finish mending before I start dinner..." Ching listened as she went on. She wasn't complaining, Ching knew, she was listing. She wanted to make sure Ching knew how long her list was, all the things that needed to be done in a house. So that when one day she finally married she'd know what she'd be in store for. A long list.
Taking in the sheer state her mother was in - they way she had been all of Ching's life - she found it hard to understand why she should get married one day.
"Since you're the one who woke him, I'm sure you won't mind taking him for a while." she said sardonically, handing Ching her brother. Ching stood to take him, her feet still paining her. Enlai did not falter in his screaming as he changed hands, and Ching began stroking his head as she held him close as her mother had been doing.
Once her arms were free of her son, Ching's mother apparently noticed Ching's feet. "What happened?" she asked. Ching sat herself back down easily, balancing Enlai on her bended legs.
Ching looked back down at her feet too. The bleeding had stopped, but the dries blood and the dirt from the yard make them look much worse than they were.
"The new rooster," she said as plainly as she could. He mother nodded, understanding.
"Ah, yes. I don't know why he has it in for you. Try to get your feet washed, please." She changed topics quicker than her expression. Now that she knew what had happened, she seemed less concerned. Ching assumed she was merely too busy, and expected her to be able to take care of it.
Ching could take care of herself, she knew. But as her mother left the room to tend to other things, she couldn't repress the childlike disappointment that her mother hadn't taken any more notice.
She now turned her attention to her small brother wriggling in her raised lap. Ching clasped his hands in both of hers. The tiny fingers curled around her thumbs and his crying halted enough for him to be able to look at her.
She gave a small smile at his confused look. He then looked at one of her hands still holding his. Enlai then began to move his feet in an attempt to straighten himself. Ching obliged by lowering her knees so he could have somewhere to try and stand.
Using his sister's hands to pull himself up, the little one slowly moved into a standing position. Ching's face widened in exaggerated surprise as Enlai's eyes and smile slowly grew. For a brief moment he stood with his feet flat, he even stomped his feet a few times to show off his accomplishment, but that had apparently been too much. He slipped and fell back against her legs, letting out a fresh new cry.
Ching scooped him up and stood herself, shaking her head.
"You don't have to cry you know, you'll get it," she said to him. It might have sounded kinder if she hadn't had to say it over his wailing voice. She brought him close again and patted his back. She knew his age still only measured in months, but she didn't think any baby anywhere cried as much as he did.
He did have his good points as well. She'd had to watch him plenty of times, and each time he surprised her. He was always very determined to accomplish something, even if it was still beyond his abilities. She laughed every time his big eyes held such focus on his task. It had gotten him far when he was learning to crawl. Although he did tend to pout when he didn't get it right away. He'd been struggling to stand almost since he'd mastered crawling.
She still had more chores to do inside, but Ching felt that it may benefit both of them to be outside for a while. Enlai might get another urge to try and stand, especially if he was surrounded by animals and the leaves and grass to watch move about in the wind. Plus Ching still held out hope that her grandparents would arrive soon. For some reason, the house was different when they weren't home. It seemed tenser, and a tad lonelier.
Like the other families she knew, Ching's grandparents were the most honored in the family. It wasn't difficult to respect them. Their very demeanor - even without all the titles given to them both over the years - felt honorable to her. It was only lately that things were any different from the way they had been.
The family Li had been slowly changing for a while now. Ching assumed it was foolish to think that it wouldn't. She was getting older, growing up. Her parents and grandparents were as well. It was when her father had retired from the military that things felt like they were beginning to break away. He'd been in a military family, it made sense. It was more than just his duty, it was his whole life. Everyone could understand why he wasn't the same afterward. Continuing his old work as a merchant had to feel unfulfilling, like a step down. Ching wouldn't have known, he barely spoke anymore.
He hadn't been much for words before, but now he seemed even more distant. Ching knew that everyone else noticed, and it bothered her that no one wanted to say anything.
She set Enlai down in a large grassy area near one of their still-young trees. His eyes alight with curiosity as he made his way to a bug perched on a flower. She was alert to make sure that he didn't catch the bug, since it would most likely end up in his mouth if he did.
A few more hours went by and it began to get darker. Ching assumed she'd given Enlai enough time to play and her mother enough to prepare for everyone's return, so she picked up her reluctant but clearly sleepy brother and went back inside the house.
She didn't stop to see what her mother was doing, she wanted to get Enlai to bed so she could quickly sweep the rooms and a few more of her chores before she noticed.
She successfully finished the sweeping by the time the sun was completely down. It was around that time when she finally heard something outside that could've signified her grandparents' had arrived.
Ching lit a lantern and carried it outside. At first she didn't see anything, but after a moment she spotted them slowly coming up the road and out of the shadows. It looked like her grandfather had extinguished his own lantern when he saw hers.
As they came closer, Ching couldn't wait for them to make it all the way to the house. She practically sprinted up to them.
Her grandmother was riding on Palin, while her grandfather walked alongside. They didn't seem to have much to carry, but Ching thought that as long as she was greeting them, she may as well be of some help.
"Welcome home!" she said with more energy than she'd had all day. More than they seemed to have as well. The smiles that they gave her didn't hide their exhaustion at all.
She reached out for the bag her grandfather was carrying, and he handed it to her.
"I think it would be an understatement to say that it's good to be home," he said. "I doubt we'll be venturing so far for a while."
"But we will again, of course," came the voice of her grandmother from astride the horse. "It's much better to receive news about our friends in-person." Ching got the feeling that this was the continuation of something they had been talking about on their way here.
"Thank you for letting us use your horse, Ching Lan." her grandmother added to her.
"Palin's not my horse. He belongs to the family." It was Ching's automatic response. She did it more to remind herself. She did spend the most time with him.
"Try telling him that," her grandfather said, jerking his thumb at the brown horse beside him. "He's barely listened to me the whole trip."
Not much else was said as they walked the rest of the way to their home. Ching knew she shouldn't press them unless they were willing to tell her anything. So she helped her grandmother down and lead them inside. Once her mother had come into the main room to greet them she went back out to put Palin away.
After making sure he was settled in his pen, Ching went quickly back to the house. She wanted to know how their trip had been. Maybe hear how her cousins and other relatives were.
Her mother was setting the table for everyone when she came inside. Someone had lighten the lamps and her grandparents were seated at their usual spots. Her grandmother sipped tea as her mother continued to flit in and out, asking a few questions and informing them about the goings-on while they were gone.
They had plenty to share as well. It may not have been all interesting, but it certainly was more so than What Ching and her mother had to tell them.
Once Ching's mother finally sat down at the table with them, the conversation turned to how everyone in the family was doing. Ching couldn't always keep it straight which aunt and uncle had which of her cousins - she only remembered her great-aunts' and uncles' names because they were who her grandparents had gone to see - but she at least pretended to follow it.
Her grandmother wasn't talking as exuberantly as Ching thought she should be. True, she'd just come back from a trip that had probably taken its toll on her, but she had had a little while to rest. It was also how her grandfather acted that made her notice. He seemed to be watching her as closer than Ching was. Was there something wrong that wasn't being shared?
Ching seized her chance to ask in a lull between all the talking. "Grandma, are you alright?" She hoped she was being polite enough, that was another thing she needed to watch herself on lately.
Her grandmother looked over at her. The reassuring smile she gave didn't convince her very much, she was still concerned.
"I'm fine, I just have a headache." The look she then gave to her husband was one of reassurance as well. Ching was apparently not the only one she was trying to convince.
"So, Miki is getting married?" Ching's mother asked, trying to get the topic back on track.
"Yes," Ching's grandfather answering before his wife could.
"Well, that's the last of your cousins then, Ching Lan."
Her mother was never very subtle at these types of hints. Yes, she understood, she was the only unmarried girl in the family now. She was older then most of her cousins, and she still did not have a husband.
After some great debate her parents had decided against arranging her a match. This was mostly due to the special circumstances of their family. Both of her grandparents did not believe in that particular custom.
So for two years, Ching had been allowed to continue to live at home in the hopes that she might find someone suitable for herself. She often wondered - as she came closer to becoming twenty - if they would go back on their word.
Author's Note: Anybody still watching out for this story? I am really sorry if anyone has been waiting, Honestly, I was thoroughly stuck for a while. There's a scene after this that I wanted to put in, but every time I tried I just…couldn't…bring myself to. I am taking it as a sign that it doesn't need to be there, and am uploading the chapter as-is. I really hope that it was worth the wait.