Xi Men looked around the modest rental house A Si and Shancai had been
calling home for the past month. It was alright, by normal standards. In
fact, the two-floor airy stone house held a certain charm, with its old-
fashioned wooden walls and wide windows.
He exchanged looks of satisfaction with Mei Zuo and together they strode out into the small veranda overlooking the quaint Madrid calle.
"This is better than I expected," Mei Zuo remarked, roaming an appreciative eye over the view of the old-style buildings around them.
Below them came the sound of the ladies leaving, together with Qing He, Shage and Shancai's parents. Xiao Qiao, looking really beautiful in a flower-print dress, looked up and waved at them. Mei Zuo waved back.
"Where are they off to?" Xi Men asked.
"Sightseeing," Mei Zuo replied, watching them leave, his eyes trained on Xiao Qiao who walked between Jing and Shancai.
"Aren't they tired at all?" Xi Men wondered aloud. "We just arrived more than an hour ago and now they want to go sightseeing."
Mei Zuo only smiled.
From behind came A Si's voice. "Well, don't you want that? We are left to ourselves, at least for a while."
Both turned around to find A Si standing there. With loud hoots of laughter all three rushed together in a tight hug.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Looking at A Si now, Xi Men could hardly believe he was the same guy they grew up with. He no longer has the trappings of the Dao Ming fortune. He laughs more freely now, and he looked like a huge weight was taken off his shoulders.
A Si caught his friend staring at him, and he grinned. "You looking at me somehow makes me feel weird," A Si joked, much to Mei Zuo's amusement.
Xi Men laughed along and said, "I was just marveling at how much you've changed. And yet, you're still our brother A Si. I think the Madrid air has done something to you."
A Si's face became stern. "Did I ask for your opinion?" This elicited more hearty laughter from the two.
When they sobered, Mei Zuo shook his head, and said, "Feels like old times. The only thing lacking is Lei."
"He's not coming?" A Si asked, turning a questioning look at Xi Men.
"When I called he said he'd try. His schedule is pretty tight."
At that instant, the doorbell rang. The three looked at each other. "Are they back already?" Mei Zuo asked, as A Si stood up to open the door.
...and there stood Hua Ze Lei, smiling warmly at his friend.
"Lei!" A Si exclaimed and, before he knew it, gave Lei a brotherly hug.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"I'm not really sure about this," A Si said, hesitating at the kitchen doorway, as Mei Zuo is pushing him out.
"Go. Get out of here. We've got it covered."
"But what if -- "
Xi Men, standing beside the kitchen counter, a knife in one hand and a piece of red pepper on the other, waved him away. "Don't worry, I'm in charge here. I know how to handle myself with these knives."
"It's not you I'm worried about," A Si replied, digging his heels in as Mei Zuo kept pushing him away. "I'm more worried about dinner. You'll just mess it up!"
Mei Zuo hooted with laughter as Xi Men feigned an anguished look. "You wound me, A Si."
"If dinner's a disaster, we could always get something outside." Mei Zuo finally succeeded in pushing A Si out of the kitchen. "If the house burns down, it wasn't me," he whispered jokingly and slammed the door in A Si's face.
"That's not funny!" A Si yelled at the closed door, but all he heard was the two's laughter. "One smell of smoke and I'll break this door down!" he warned, finally seeing the humor of the situation. Xi Men and Mei Zuo, in the kitchen, cooking dinner. Ah, wonders will never cease.
That's it, then. Dinner is now out of his hands and into those two hooligans. Left with nothing to do, he wandered into the den and spotted Lei in the veranda, being his usual desolate self, looking out into the darkening day.
It's a few minutes past five; already the sun has begun its slow descent into the west, sending forth a reddish spray of colors across the horizon. A Si sauntered into the veranda and stood beside Lei.
"Hey," he said softly.
Lei turned his head slowly. "Hey," he replied, and returned his gaze to the evening sky.
"It's beautiful, isn't it? The sunset." A Si breathed deeply. "I've gazed at that same sight everyday for the past few weeks but I still can never get over its beauty. Everyday it seems to grow more and more magnificent."
Lei gave out a muffled laugh, causing A Si to look at him strangely. "What?"
"Nothing." Lei shook his head. "Just...you've changed."
A Si chuckled. "Xi Men said it must be the Spanish air."
"No wonder you find it difficult to go back to Taiwan."
This remark earned a snort from A Si. "Speak for yourself. Who dug himself into a hole in Japan?" He paused, then became serious. "I thought you wouldn't come."
"Of course I'll come. I wouldn't miss it for the world."
A Si laid a hand on Lei's shoulder. "I'm glad you did, because I would not have pushed through with the wedding if the three of you weren't there."
Lei studied his friend's face quietly. Suddenly he smiled. "You're lying. You would still marry Shancai even if the whole world were against you."
A Si seemed to think for a moment then returned his friend's grin. "You're right. I was lying." Playfully he gave a hit at Lei's shoulder, and Lei did the same to him.
Lei became serious again. "This changes a lot of things, A Si, except one thing." At A Si's inquiring glance, he said, "I promised a long time ago that I will protect Shancai, no matter what it takes. Although you'll be her husband, I will still hold true to that promise."
A Si's face lit up. "I don't think I want you to turn back on that promise, either." They smiled and, for the first time in a really long while, the best friends shared peaceful moment, devoid of any hard feelings.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The musician tipped his sombrero as applause erupted from the people who surrounded him to hear him play, Shancai's parents and Qing He included. "Gracias, señor, señora," said in his thick-accented English.
The three rushed back to where Shancai and Jing were standing, amused. Not far behind them Xiao Qiao, Shage and Dao Ming Zhuang were checking out the window of an antique shop.
"Did you hear that, Shancai?" her mother said effusively. "He called me señora!" She clapped her hands. "I love this country! The people have very good taste!" she added, giggling like a school girl.
Beside her she sensed Jing bite back a smile. "Ma!" she scolded in embarrassment, also aware of the amused glances the passersby are throwing at them.
"Shancai, never mind your mama," Papa butted in. "She's excited just because the only words she understands are Si, Señor and Señora. Besides -- " A loud slap at the back of the head from Mama halted his words.
"Ma! Pa! Please, not here!"
Papa leaned closer. "Ei, Shancai, you know anywhere I could buy one of those sombreros?"
"I saw a shop over there," Qing He offered and before Shancai could say anything the three of them were rushing off.
"Qing He!" Shancai yelled after them. "You're not helping!"
But they were already off, apparently too excited to even hear her. "Aaargghh!" she gritted her teeth.
Jing laid a calming hand on her arm. "Let them go, Shancai. They'll be fine."
"I know, but I'm worried they will spend too much. It's bad enough Xi Men took care of their air fare coming here."
"You know Xi Men doesn't mind one bit," Jing assured her. "Besides, they are having a lot of fun. The least we could do is let them enjoy themselves while they're here." When Shancai nodded, Jing looked around. "I don't know about you, but my legs are tired from all that walking. Why don't we sit down at that bench over there?"
Shancai agreed but looked around. "Where are Sis and Xiao Qiao?"
"They went inside the shop with Shage. Something must have caught their fancy." They both sat down on the bench, content on just looking at the square and the people walking around them, at the same time keeping an eye out for her parents and the antique shop.
Jing turned to Shancai. "Tomorrow's the big day," she began. "How does it feel?"
That now-familiar feeling of complete happiness and excitement overcame her once again and she smiled. "It feels right. Like I have lived my whole life, knowing it will come to this, and yet...I couldn't be happier, Jing. I could not ask for more."
"I'm glad to hear that," Jing said, and her sincerity cannot be doubted.
She sighed. "I only wish Xiao Yo were here...and Hua Ze Lei."
Jing looked down and Shancai regretted the words as soon as she said them "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to --"
"You think he'll come?"
Shancai shrugged, choosing her words carefully. "I don't know. I hope." She looked searchingly at Jing. "Are you hoping he will?"
Jing did not reply. In fact, she seemed to avoid answering the question as she jumped up from the bench.
"There they are!" she exclaimed, pointing at the antique shop as Xiao Qiao and Dao Ming Zhuang were stepping out, Shage behind them. Shancai could only stare thoughtfully after Jing.
Staring at her retreating back, she wondered exactly what went wrong between Lei and Jing. When they came to Barcelona she had thought they would make up, but Lei had told her back in that seaside town in Taiwan that his story with Jing is over. He never did tell her why.
It's obvious Jing still has feelings for Lei. As for Lei...well, he is about as predictable as English weather, so they say. With him you never really quite know what is going through his head. She only hoped they would find happiness, whether together or apart; they are two of her favorite people in the world and nothing would make her the happiest than to know everyone shares her bliss.
As she joined them she could not help but think of Lei, and hope he will be here tomorrow. It's the most important day of her life; will she be spending it without him? Many times he had been her pillar of strength. Will he pick tomorrow, when she is at her strongest, not to show up?
Heaven seemed to smile upon her when, arriving home later, the first thing she saw when she looked up at the balcony was the sight of two of the three most important men in her life: Dao Ming Si, together with Hua Ze Lei.
He exchanged looks of satisfaction with Mei Zuo and together they strode out into the small veranda overlooking the quaint Madrid calle.
"This is better than I expected," Mei Zuo remarked, roaming an appreciative eye over the view of the old-style buildings around them.
Below them came the sound of the ladies leaving, together with Qing He, Shage and Shancai's parents. Xiao Qiao, looking really beautiful in a flower-print dress, looked up and waved at them. Mei Zuo waved back.
"Where are they off to?" Xi Men asked.
"Sightseeing," Mei Zuo replied, watching them leave, his eyes trained on Xiao Qiao who walked between Jing and Shancai.
"Aren't they tired at all?" Xi Men wondered aloud. "We just arrived more than an hour ago and now they want to go sightseeing."
Mei Zuo only smiled.
From behind came A Si's voice. "Well, don't you want that? We are left to ourselves, at least for a while."
Both turned around to find A Si standing there. With loud hoots of laughter all three rushed together in a tight hug.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Looking at A Si now, Xi Men could hardly believe he was the same guy they grew up with. He no longer has the trappings of the Dao Ming fortune. He laughs more freely now, and he looked like a huge weight was taken off his shoulders.
A Si caught his friend staring at him, and he grinned. "You looking at me somehow makes me feel weird," A Si joked, much to Mei Zuo's amusement.
Xi Men laughed along and said, "I was just marveling at how much you've changed. And yet, you're still our brother A Si. I think the Madrid air has done something to you."
A Si's face became stern. "Did I ask for your opinion?" This elicited more hearty laughter from the two.
When they sobered, Mei Zuo shook his head, and said, "Feels like old times. The only thing lacking is Lei."
"He's not coming?" A Si asked, turning a questioning look at Xi Men.
"When I called he said he'd try. His schedule is pretty tight."
At that instant, the doorbell rang. The three looked at each other. "Are they back already?" Mei Zuo asked, as A Si stood up to open the door.
...and there stood Hua Ze Lei, smiling warmly at his friend.
"Lei!" A Si exclaimed and, before he knew it, gave Lei a brotherly hug.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"I'm not really sure about this," A Si said, hesitating at the kitchen doorway, as Mei Zuo is pushing him out.
"Go. Get out of here. We've got it covered."
"But what if -- "
Xi Men, standing beside the kitchen counter, a knife in one hand and a piece of red pepper on the other, waved him away. "Don't worry, I'm in charge here. I know how to handle myself with these knives."
"It's not you I'm worried about," A Si replied, digging his heels in as Mei Zuo kept pushing him away. "I'm more worried about dinner. You'll just mess it up!"
Mei Zuo hooted with laughter as Xi Men feigned an anguished look. "You wound me, A Si."
"If dinner's a disaster, we could always get something outside." Mei Zuo finally succeeded in pushing A Si out of the kitchen. "If the house burns down, it wasn't me," he whispered jokingly and slammed the door in A Si's face.
"That's not funny!" A Si yelled at the closed door, but all he heard was the two's laughter. "One smell of smoke and I'll break this door down!" he warned, finally seeing the humor of the situation. Xi Men and Mei Zuo, in the kitchen, cooking dinner. Ah, wonders will never cease.
That's it, then. Dinner is now out of his hands and into those two hooligans. Left with nothing to do, he wandered into the den and spotted Lei in the veranda, being his usual desolate self, looking out into the darkening day.
It's a few minutes past five; already the sun has begun its slow descent into the west, sending forth a reddish spray of colors across the horizon. A Si sauntered into the veranda and stood beside Lei.
"Hey," he said softly.
Lei turned his head slowly. "Hey," he replied, and returned his gaze to the evening sky.
"It's beautiful, isn't it? The sunset." A Si breathed deeply. "I've gazed at that same sight everyday for the past few weeks but I still can never get over its beauty. Everyday it seems to grow more and more magnificent."
Lei gave out a muffled laugh, causing A Si to look at him strangely. "What?"
"Nothing." Lei shook his head. "Just...you've changed."
A Si chuckled. "Xi Men said it must be the Spanish air."
"No wonder you find it difficult to go back to Taiwan."
This remark earned a snort from A Si. "Speak for yourself. Who dug himself into a hole in Japan?" He paused, then became serious. "I thought you wouldn't come."
"Of course I'll come. I wouldn't miss it for the world."
A Si laid a hand on Lei's shoulder. "I'm glad you did, because I would not have pushed through with the wedding if the three of you weren't there."
Lei studied his friend's face quietly. Suddenly he smiled. "You're lying. You would still marry Shancai even if the whole world were against you."
A Si seemed to think for a moment then returned his friend's grin. "You're right. I was lying." Playfully he gave a hit at Lei's shoulder, and Lei did the same to him.
Lei became serious again. "This changes a lot of things, A Si, except one thing." At A Si's inquiring glance, he said, "I promised a long time ago that I will protect Shancai, no matter what it takes. Although you'll be her husband, I will still hold true to that promise."
A Si's face lit up. "I don't think I want you to turn back on that promise, either." They smiled and, for the first time in a really long while, the best friends shared peaceful moment, devoid of any hard feelings.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The musician tipped his sombrero as applause erupted from the people who surrounded him to hear him play, Shancai's parents and Qing He included. "Gracias, señor, señora," said in his thick-accented English.
The three rushed back to where Shancai and Jing were standing, amused. Not far behind them Xiao Qiao, Shage and Dao Ming Zhuang were checking out the window of an antique shop.
"Did you hear that, Shancai?" her mother said effusively. "He called me señora!" She clapped her hands. "I love this country! The people have very good taste!" she added, giggling like a school girl.
Beside her she sensed Jing bite back a smile. "Ma!" she scolded in embarrassment, also aware of the amused glances the passersby are throwing at them.
"Shancai, never mind your mama," Papa butted in. "She's excited just because the only words she understands are Si, Señor and Señora. Besides -- " A loud slap at the back of the head from Mama halted his words.
"Ma! Pa! Please, not here!"
Papa leaned closer. "Ei, Shancai, you know anywhere I could buy one of those sombreros?"
"I saw a shop over there," Qing He offered and before Shancai could say anything the three of them were rushing off.
"Qing He!" Shancai yelled after them. "You're not helping!"
But they were already off, apparently too excited to even hear her. "Aaargghh!" she gritted her teeth.
Jing laid a calming hand on her arm. "Let them go, Shancai. They'll be fine."
"I know, but I'm worried they will spend too much. It's bad enough Xi Men took care of their air fare coming here."
"You know Xi Men doesn't mind one bit," Jing assured her. "Besides, they are having a lot of fun. The least we could do is let them enjoy themselves while they're here." When Shancai nodded, Jing looked around. "I don't know about you, but my legs are tired from all that walking. Why don't we sit down at that bench over there?"
Shancai agreed but looked around. "Where are Sis and Xiao Qiao?"
"They went inside the shop with Shage. Something must have caught their fancy." They both sat down on the bench, content on just looking at the square and the people walking around them, at the same time keeping an eye out for her parents and the antique shop.
Jing turned to Shancai. "Tomorrow's the big day," she began. "How does it feel?"
That now-familiar feeling of complete happiness and excitement overcame her once again and she smiled. "It feels right. Like I have lived my whole life, knowing it will come to this, and yet...I couldn't be happier, Jing. I could not ask for more."
"I'm glad to hear that," Jing said, and her sincerity cannot be doubted.
She sighed. "I only wish Xiao Yo were here...and Hua Ze Lei."
Jing looked down and Shancai regretted the words as soon as she said them "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to --"
"You think he'll come?"
Shancai shrugged, choosing her words carefully. "I don't know. I hope." She looked searchingly at Jing. "Are you hoping he will?"
Jing did not reply. In fact, she seemed to avoid answering the question as she jumped up from the bench.
"There they are!" she exclaimed, pointing at the antique shop as Xiao Qiao and Dao Ming Zhuang were stepping out, Shage behind them. Shancai could only stare thoughtfully after Jing.
Staring at her retreating back, she wondered exactly what went wrong between Lei and Jing. When they came to Barcelona she had thought they would make up, but Lei had told her back in that seaside town in Taiwan that his story with Jing is over. He never did tell her why.
It's obvious Jing still has feelings for Lei. As for Lei...well, he is about as predictable as English weather, so they say. With him you never really quite know what is going through his head. She only hoped they would find happiness, whether together or apart; they are two of her favorite people in the world and nothing would make her the happiest than to know everyone shares her bliss.
As she joined them she could not help but think of Lei, and hope he will be here tomorrow. It's the most important day of her life; will she be spending it without him? Many times he had been her pillar of strength. Will he pick tomorrow, when she is at her strongest, not to show up?
Heaven seemed to smile upon her when, arriving home later, the first thing she saw when she looked up at the balcony was the sight of two of the three most important men in her life: Dao Ming Si, together with Hua Ze Lei.