Harbors of Our Own
A/N: Thank you again for all the views, follows, and reviews.
And to my French readers: Merci beaucoup! Je suis hereux que vous aimez mon histoire! Merci beaucoup pour les avies! J'adore! (Je suis desolee pour ma Francais, J'apprends encore.)
Chapter XXVI
When dinner was at last done, Yao washed his hands, dried them with a dish towel, and took off his apron, folding it up and putting it back in the drawer. Then, he walked into the living room, pacing anxiously as he waited for his parents to show up. He had not seen them for almost four years. He wondered what they would think of him. Would they approve? Or would they be disappointed? He kept checking the time. Five minutes passed. Ten minutes passed. Fifteen minutes passed. Still, no parents. Twenty minutes. Twenty five minutes. Thirty minutes. Eventually, he began to silently hope that they had forgotten all about the dinner. But at the same time...the thought of them not showing up made him a bit...sad. He felt kicked to the curb again. He felt rejected again.
Finally, after the forty-five minute mark, he heard the ring of his doorbell. He got up off the couch, and about ran to the door. He opened it, letting in a draft of crisp air. An aging Asian couple was standing there. The man was taller than Yao, he had greying dark brown hair, cropped short. He had an olive skin tone. He was dressed nicely, with a long, dark wool coat, and cold amber eyes behind his wire-rimmed glass. He bore a stone-faced expression and aura that gave him the appearance of a strict buisness man. The woman beisde him was petite, with skin closer to Yao's color. She was dressed in a light green, floral, oriental dress underneath her coat. She had a warm expression, deep chocolate brown eyes, and raven hair streaked with grey pulled into a bun.
"Ni-hao fuqin, ni-hao ma-ma. It is good to see you."
"Oh, Yao, my darling, look at you, you are so grown up." His mother said in her gentle, high-pitched voice. She pulled her son into a warm embrace.
She let go of him, and then he shook hands with his father.
"Erzi. Finally seeing you after almost five years. I'm intrested to know what you have been doing with your life." he was a man of few words, and had a monotone, but stern tone when he spoke. And no matter what he said, it always sounded like he was disapproving or reprimanding.
Yao nodded briefly, "Uhh...please, come in. Dinner is ready."
He closed the door, and took his parents coats, hanging them up on the rack beside his own. Then he led them inside.
"Oh, this is nice." his mother commented, "I like your decorating."
"Xiexie," Yao answered, "I just redecorated."
"It is definitely better than all that childish stuff you had up the first time we came here." His father commented dryly.
"It looks more mature," his mother added, agreeing with his father, "It's more appropriate for a man who is almost thirty."
"Shi." his father replied.
Haven't even been here two minutes and already getting criticized for the decorations I normally have up. Yao thought bitterly.
"Umm...ahem. Dinner is ready, aru. Would you like to eat now?"
"Yes," replied, "That is what we came here for. I have brought a bottle of good French wine to enjoy with our meal."
"Xiexie, fuqin."
His father nodded and then set the bottle on the counter. Yao led them into the dining room, which was decorated nicely for the occasion. There were three places set on top of a maroon tablecloth. There was an empty turn table, ready to be filled with food. He indicated his parents seats. His father, who was the oldest, sat first, and then his mother. Yao brought over the pot of tea, pouring it for both his parents and himself, before setting the teapot on the turn table. Then, he brought over the glass of wine, and the rest of the dishes to the turn table. He served his parents before sitting down. They went down the short line and made their toasts, before beginning to eat.
-xXx-
The dinner went on without conversation, everyone was much too busy enjoying their food.
"Yao, dear. Your food is amazing." Mrs. Wang said.
"Xiexie. I have had a lot of practice, aru." he replied.
"I am sure." Mrs. Wang answered.
Eventually, the meal concluded, and Yao and his parents were in the sitting room, on the couch.
"Umm, how is everyone?" he asked, wondering about his siblings.
"They are all well," Mr. Wang answered. Then, he went off on a tangent, speaking fondly about all of Yao's younger brothers and sisters. He spoke of their accomplishments. Kiku was in the business and marketing field, taking after his father, Thai was still in college, also pursuing a career in business. His oldest sister, Lien, was engaged to be married, and also ran her own little shop. She had also graduated from college early. Mei, Leon, and Yong Soo were still in high school, but Mei would soon be graduating and going to univeristy. So, what Yao gathered was the fact that all his siblings were doing great. And he also knew his father approved. "What about you, erzi?" his father asked, "What have you accomplished since you've moved out?" his tone was disapproving, and sounded as though he did not expect anything. This made Yao angry, but he had to control it and his tone. Because no one disrespected Mr. Wang...ever.
"I...well, I finally paid off this house, and now it officially belongs to me. As for working...I have been a cook at a resteraunt for a while now, and I'm hoping to get up to being head chef...and I...would like to pursue my career as an artist." Yao replied cautiously, not mentioning the fact that he was in a relationship.
"Those are hard careers, erzi." Mr. Wang said, "You certainly haven't done much then. Which is disappointing, considering the fact that you are my oldest son. You are supposed to be the one that takes over my business when I retire. Just as I did when my father retired, and his father before him. You know that. You should not be wasting your time in hard careers like this. You need to do something more practical, like business or marketing like me and your other brothers. Don't waste your time with uselss art."
That hurt. That hurt a lot.
Yao looked to his mother, hoping to get some sort of defense from her, but all she said was, "Your father is probably right, dear. As pretty as some of your art may be, it is not a practical career. You really should no waste your time."
"See, your mother agrees. It would be best if you did take over the business when I retire. I trust we understand each other.
"I understand, fuquin. I know you expect me to follow in your footsteps."
"Not only mine, but my father's, and his father before him, and his father before him... Business runs in the family, Yao."
"I-I understand, aru. But I-I don't really want to go into business. I want to do something different. That is why I want to pursue a career in culinary and/or art."
"You would really break tradition like that? Then you are a disappointment. A dishonor to the Wang family. I guess I will have to pass the business onto Kiku. Someone who actually values the tradition and the honor over his own selfish desire."
Yao's heart fell, and anger bubbled up inside him. How dare he! How dare he say something like that! It was his future, his path, was it not? Not his father's to dictate! But alas, it was his father, and he could not retort. He could not defend himself. His father was an elder. And he had to respect his elders. No matter how much he disagreed with them.
-xXx-
The rest of the night when on like that. With his father reprimanding him and his mother simply agreeing. It was terrible. And by the time the night was over, he felt as though he had received several blows to the head and he felt like a useless shame, a disgrace to his family. And by the time he was seeing his parents out the door, all he wanted to do was go to bed.
"I trust you will make a better decision for your life than the one you have made now," Mr. Wang said, "Until then, zaijian. Come, dear. We best be off home. I have to work tomorrow." His father was out the door without another word. Before she left though, his mother turned to him, a sympathetic look in her eyes.
"Good luck, my erzi. Know that I will always love you, no matter what path you choose for yourself. As long as you are happy. Wan'an." and with that, Mrs. Wang turned and followed her husband out the door. He closed the door behind him, a tinge of resent burning towards his mother. As if saying that would make up for her agreeing with everything his father said. He knew she had to, out of a matter of respect and decency, but the least she could have done was subtly say something when his father stepped out of line with his reprimands. But she did not. For a few moments, he stared at the door, until he turned and went up the stairs.
-xXx-
"Yao-Yao?" the sound of Ivan's soft voice got the Chinaman's attention. He had almost forgotten he was there. Yao walked in through the open bathroom door.
"How did everything go?"
He stared at the other man with a pained, bitter, saddened expression.
"Not well...I take it..."
No words were exchanged between them. All Yao did was throw himself into the merman's chest and cry a thousand tears.
"Poor Yao-Yao..." Ivan said, comforting the smaller form and rubbing his back, "There, there...let it out...It is okay...everything will be okay."
Translations
Fuquin: Father
Ma-Ma: Mom
Erzi: Son
Xiexie: Thank you
Zaijian: Goodbye
Wan'an: Goodnight
A/N: Talk about bad parents! Jeez! Mein Gott! I had a heck of a time with this chapter! No wonder why it took so long to get out of my brain! It was hard to write and I did not really enjoy writing it that much anyway. I hope the result was okay. Anyhow~next chapter has more RoChu fluff. That's the kind of thing I like to write...well, you know, aside from the angsty stuff.