Chapter 12: The Approach
She glanced at her watch. It was already 9.45 pm.
'It's still early. I was afraid that I was going to be late. Ah Si would be angry if I was late. He is such an old lady sometimes. Nag, nag, nag. urghhh. Luckily I managed to close up the store pretty fast even though I had to work alone tonight. Oh well. I'll just have to wait for him then, but it's okay. Ah Si is very particular about being on time. Wonder why he's not when it comes to his classes. He seldom went to his classes and even if he does, he'll be late more than half an hour. Speak of the devil. there he is now.'
The ride she was waiting for stopped right beside her. She smiled towards the driver of the Porsche when she slides in the passengers sit.
"You're early. Usually I have to go in the shop to help you out," said Ah Si.
"Help out and complaint at the same time! I've told you so many times that I don't need you to come and fetch me. From college, from work, from my house. but, no. everything should be your way! Now, you're complaining about having to wait me all the time. I don't really need you to do all this you know. I already have my scooter. I can go by myself," grumbled Shan Chai, looking straight at Ah Si.
"Okay. Let's make a new deal. Whenever it was day light and the weather's fine, you can go to the college and work by yourself. However, when you have night shifts or overtime, I'm going to pick you up to and from work, without any complaints. You'll be happier and I won't be stressed out because of you! How's that?" asked Ah Si bluntly while driving the car.
"I stressed you out? You.. Fine! I agree, Mister-Blaming-On-Me," agreed Shan Chai, at the same time getting back on Ah Si. 'He had changed so much. He is gentler now. We seldom quarreled with each other anymore. He really is such a good friend though sometimes he is such a controller. Everything must be done by his way. Nevertheless, he is so easy to understand and if you are good, you could ask him to do anything for you, providing that you make he thinks that it was his desire. I remembered when he thought it was his idea to have the camping trip last weekend. The whole time he wanted to complain but the rest of us shut him off by saying it was his idea at the first place. Jing, Mei Zhuo and Xi Men can't believe that I managed to tricked him like that. It was really funny.'
"So, tomorrow, I'll pick you up at 8 okay? Xi Men is riding with us,' reminded Ah Si, bringing her out from her thoughts.
"Huh?"
"We are going to the beach house tomorrow, remember? Since there is only the five of us and since Mei Zhuo wanted to be alone with Jing, Xi Men have to ride with us. Hey, why don't you asked Xiao You to come along?"
"She's at her grandmother's place together with her family. That is why I have tonight's shift by myself. Ah Si, do I really have to go? I haven't had the chance to spent time by myself since the day my parents moved out. I'm thinking of cleaning my house," begged Shan Chai to bail out from the trip.
"No. I am not going to leave you here alone without any of us to be there for you if anything happens. Tell you what, I'll send some of my maids to clean the house for you."
"My house is my responsibility, Ah Si. Never mind. I'll follow along for this trip but next week, I'm having the weekend to myself. Promise? You can't turn your back from this, okay?"
Ah Si nodded but his face was opposing the idea. Shan Chai smiled. She knew she could count on Ah Si to keep his end of the promise. It has been two weeks now, and every day she was with F3 and Jing, especially Ah Si. She had spent most of her time with Ah Si because he'll pick her up from her house to the college, from the college to work and then back to her home again. She love hanging around with them, and they let her keep her mind from thinking too much about her parents, but she still needs her time alone to do her own things.
They reached her house about five minutes after ten and as usual, Ah Si would only leave after she had entered the house. She put her bag aside and head straight to the bathroom. That was when she took a brief look at the calendar and realized today was the night of the full moon. Dashing to the bathroom and had the fastest shower in her life, she took off wearing a grey sweater and the previous jeans.
'How can I forget about tonight? I hope I can find a way to get in Ying De.'
She parked her scooter at the roadside behind the big tree at the east wall of Ying De. Walking slowly until the end of the wall, she took a peek to see whether the guard was at the post or not. If he wasn't she was thinking of sneaking through the big gate because it was big enough for her to squeeze in. To her disappointment, the guard was there.
'How am I suppose to get in? Ehmm. if I stand up on my scooter, I think I might be able to climb over the wall and climbed down by the tree at the other side. If only I could find the right tree that was closed enough to the wall,' she thought.
Pushing her scooter and at the same time scouted for the right spot, she found the spot about five minutes later. Double-stand her scooter exactly near to the wall, she began to climb up.
"You might fall, you know."
"What the." she jumped at the sudden voice.
Turning around, she scanned the perimeters before she saw someone in the shadow leaning at the tree on her left. Climbing down from her scooter, she walked towards the figure.
Stopping about a meter from it, she asked, "Who are you? Show yourself slowly. I know you're not the guard. Don't make any sudden moves. I know tae kwan do."
"The moon is full tonight, right? Aren't you a bit late for moongazing?"
'That voice.Lei?'
"Lei, is that you?" she asked, curious but anxious. Slowly, the figure stood up and walked towards her.
"LEI! It's you!!" exclaimed her, happy to see the face that was now clear enough for her to recognize. A small smile formed on his lips.
"Shan Chai, it was nice to see you again."
Feeling very happy to meet Lei again after so long, she ran forward and gave him a hug.
"You're back! It's been so long, Lei. How was your father? Is he okay now? Is that why you came back? And why are you here?" she questioned him one after another, after letting go off Lei.
"My father is okay now. He's been discharged from the hospital last Wednesday. Knowing that he is stable now, he asked me to go back to Taiwan. He said I had missed my classes for far too long."
Catching his breath, he continued, "You're asking me why am I here? Do you think I would forget about our event every month? I came here straight from the airport to meet you. I knew you'd be here because of the full moon. I waited since eight. I was beginning to think that you wouldn't show up. Luckily I saw your scooter's light. So, I came out here and here I am, finding you pulling out this stunt. It's not nice for a girl to climb walls," said Lei, shaking his head.
Laughing at his comment, Shan Chai made a come back. "It's not nice for a gentleman to be sneaking around, either."
Smiling, Lei took Shan Chai's hand and led her to the main gate. Going straight to the guard, Lei said, "Hello. My name is Hua Zhe Lei. Please open the gate."
Hearing his name, the guard quickly unlocked the gate and pushed it open for them to get through.
"Just call me when it was time you wanted to come out, Mister Hua Zhe Lei," said the guard, giving Lei a little nod.
'Wow! That was easy. I guess owning one fourth of the college has it's advantages after all.'
They went up the roof, their usual place and sat at the railing like always. All this time, they were holding hands without any sign either of them would let go. In silent, the two of them looked up to gaze at the moon.
Shan Chai don't know how long exactly they were there, but, she was shocked to find that the sun was up the minute she opened her eyes. She then got her second shock when she realize that she was already at the floor and slept the whole night with her head on Lei's lap. Getting up, she got her third shocked. Lei was already awake and was looking at her. Feeling that her blood had rushed to her face, she quickly stood up.
Looking at her watch, she screamed, "It's five minutes to eight! Ah Si, is going to kill me!!"
Glancing at Lei, who are now standing up as well, she asked, "Did the others know you're back? We're are going to the beach house this morning and Ah Si is suppose to pick me up at eight."
Shaking his head, he held out his hand at Shan Chai and said, "Then, we better get moving."
Taking Lei's hand in hers, she nodded and smiled. Together, they went out of Ying De. Stopping in front of Shan Chai's scooter, Lei said, "Have another helmet? I'll drive, or was it ride?"
"You know how to ride the bike? How come Ah Si didn't? He rode my scooter once, as the passenger that is. It was so funny. hehehehe. I was practically invincible if you look from the back. The scooter even had a flat tire... hehehe.when we got to Mei Zhuo's house. hehehe. He grumbled all the way too," told Shan Chai about her experience having Ah Si as her passenger, laughing within sentence.
Lei smiled but, without Shan Chai noticing it, Lei's eyes were giving out signals that he was jealous.
She glanced at her watch. It was already 9.45 pm.
'It's still early. I was afraid that I was going to be late. Ah Si would be angry if I was late. He is such an old lady sometimes. Nag, nag, nag. urghhh. Luckily I managed to close up the store pretty fast even though I had to work alone tonight. Oh well. I'll just have to wait for him then, but it's okay. Ah Si is very particular about being on time. Wonder why he's not when it comes to his classes. He seldom went to his classes and even if he does, he'll be late more than half an hour. Speak of the devil. there he is now.'
The ride she was waiting for stopped right beside her. She smiled towards the driver of the Porsche when she slides in the passengers sit.
"You're early. Usually I have to go in the shop to help you out," said Ah Si.
"Help out and complaint at the same time! I've told you so many times that I don't need you to come and fetch me. From college, from work, from my house. but, no. everything should be your way! Now, you're complaining about having to wait me all the time. I don't really need you to do all this you know. I already have my scooter. I can go by myself," grumbled Shan Chai, looking straight at Ah Si.
"Okay. Let's make a new deal. Whenever it was day light and the weather's fine, you can go to the college and work by yourself. However, when you have night shifts or overtime, I'm going to pick you up to and from work, without any complaints. You'll be happier and I won't be stressed out because of you! How's that?" asked Ah Si bluntly while driving the car.
"I stressed you out? You.. Fine! I agree, Mister-Blaming-On-Me," agreed Shan Chai, at the same time getting back on Ah Si. 'He had changed so much. He is gentler now. We seldom quarreled with each other anymore. He really is such a good friend though sometimes he is such a controller. Everything must be done by his way. Nevertheless, he is so easy to understand and if you are good, you could ask him to do anything for you, providing that you make he thinks that it was his desire. I remembered when he thought it was his idea to have the camping trip last weekend. The whole time he wanted to complain but the rest of us shut him off by saying it was his idea at the first place. Jing, Mei Zhuo and Xi Men can't believe that I managed to tricked him like that. It was really funny.'
"So, tomorrow, I'll pick you up at 8 okay? Xi Men is riding with us,' reminded Ah Si, bringing her out from her thoughts.
"Huh?"
"We are going to the beach house tomorrow, remember? Since there is only the five of us and since Mei Zhuo wanted to be alone with Jing, Xi Men have to ride with us. Hey, why don't you asked Xiao You to come along?"
"She's at her grandmother's place together with her family. That is why I have tonight's shift by myself. Ah Si, do I really have to go? I haven't had the chance to spent time by myself since the day my parents moved out. I'm thinking of cleaning my house," begged Shan Chai to bail out from the trip.
"No. I am not going to leave you here alone without any of us to be there for you if anything happens. Tell you what, I'll send some of my maids to clean the house for you."
"My house is my responsibility, Ah Si. Never mind. I'll follow along for this trip but next week, I'm having the weekend to myself. Promise? You can't turn your back from this, okay?"
Ah Si nodded but his face was opposing the idea. Shan Chai smiled. She knew she could count on Ah Si to keep his end of the promise. It has been two weeks now, and every day she was with F3 and Jing, especially Ah Si. She had spent most of her time with Ah Si because he'll pick her up from her house to the college, from the college to work and then back to her home again. She love hanging around with them, and they let her keep her mind from thinking too much about her parents, but she still needs her time alone to do her own things.
They reached her house about five minutes after ten and as usual, Ah Si would only leave after she had entered the house. She put her bag aside and head straight to the bathroom. That was when she took a brief look at the calendar and realized today was the night of the full moon. Dashing to the bathroom and had the fastest shower in her life, she took off wearing a grey sweater and the previous jeans.
'How can I forget about tonight? I hope I can find a way to get in Ying De.'
She parked her scooter at the roadside behind the big tree at the east wall of Ying De. Walking slowly until the end of the wall, she took a peek to see whether the guard was at the post or not. If he wasn't she was thinking of sneaking through the big gate because it was big enough for her to squeeze in. To her disappointment, the guard was there.
'How am I suppose to get in? Ehmm. if I stand up on my scooter, I think I might be able to climb over the wall and climbed down by the tree at the other side. If only I could find the right tree that was closed enough to the wall,' she thought.
Pushing her scooter and at the same time scouted for the right spot, she found the spot about five minutes later. Double-stand her scooter exactly near to the wall, she began to climb up.
"You might fall, you know."
"What the." she jumped at the sudden voice.
Turning around, she scanned the perimeters before she saw someone in the shadow leaning at the tree on her left. Climbing down from her scooter, she walked towards the figure.
Stopping about a meter from it, she asked, "Who are you? Show yourself slowly. I know you're not the guard. Don't make any sudden moves. I know tae kwan do."
"The moon is full tonight, right? Aren't you a bit late for moongazing?"
'That voice.Lei?'
"Lei, is that you?" she asked, curious but anxious. Slowly, the figure stood up and walked towards her.
"LEI! It's you!!" exclaimed her, happy to see the face that was now clear enough for her to recognize. A small smile formed on his lips.
"Shan Chai, it was nice to see you again."
Feeling very happy to meet Lei again after so long, she ran forward and gave him a hug.
"You're back! It's been so long, Lei. How was your father? Is he okay now? Is that why you came back? And why are you here?" she questioned him one after another, after letting go off Lei.
"My father is okay now. He's been discharged from the hospital last Wednesday. Knowing that he is stable now, he asked me to go back to Taiwan. He said I had missed my classes for far too long."
Catching his breath, he continued, "You're asking me why am I here? Do you think I would forget about our event every month? I came here straight from the airport to meet you. I knew you'd be here because of the full moon. I waited since eight. I was beginning to think that you wouldn't show up. Luckily I saw your scooter's light. So, I came out here and here I am, finding you pulling out this stunt. It's not nice for a girl to climb walls," said Lei, shaking his head.
Laughing at his comment, Shan Chai made a come back. "It's not nice for a gentleman to be sneaking around, either."
Smiling, Lei took Shan Chai's hand and led her to the main gate. Going straight to the guard, Lei said, "Hello. My name is Hua Zhe Lei. Please open the gate."
Hearing his name, the guard quickly unlocked the gate and pushed it open for them to get through.
"Just call me when it was time you wanted to come out, Mister Hua Zhe Lei," said the guard, giving Lei a little nod.
'Wow! That was easy. I guess owning one fourth of the college has it's advantages after all.'
They went up the roof, their usual place and sat at the railing like always. All this time, they were holding hands without any sign either of them would let go. In silent, the two of them looked up to gaze at the moon.
Shan Chai don't know how long exactly they were there, but, she was shocked to find that the sun was up the minute she opened her eyes. She then got her second shock when she realize that she was already at the floor and slept the whole night with her head on Lei's lap. Getting up, she got her third shocked. Lei was already awake and was looking at her. Feeling that her blood had rushed to her face, she quickly stood up.
Looking at her watch, she screamed, "It's five minutes to eight! Ah Si, is going to kill me!!"
Glancing at Lei, who are now standing up as well, she asked, "Did the others know you're back? We're are going to the beach house this morning and Ah Si is suppose to pick me up at eight."
Shaking his head, he held out his hand at Shan Chai and said, "Then, we better get moving."
Taking Lei's hand in hers, she nodded and smiled. Together, they went out of Ying De. Stopping in front of Shan Chai's scooter, Lei said, "Have another helmet? I'll drive, or was it ride?"
"You know how to ride the bike? How come Ah Si didn't? He rode my scooter once, as the passenger that is. It was so funny. hehehehe. I was practically invincible if you look from the back. The scooter even had a flat tire... hehehe.when we got to Mei Zhuo's house. hehehe. He grumbled all the way too," told Shan Chai about her experience having Ah Si as her passenger, laughing within sentence.
Lei smiled but, without Shan Chai noticing it, Lei's eyes were giving out signals that he was jealous.