As they neared the school gate, Yan Heng let go of Zhu Yaya's hand. Still feeling uneasy, she secretly held onto the hem of his jacket instead. She looked up, stealing a glance at him, and seeing his expression was normal with no sign of refusal, she continued to hold on.
The night at Scott High School was quiet except for the howling cold wind. The dim lights and the menacing shadows of the trees seemed less frightening with Yan Heng by her side.
Looking at his profile, her heart suddenly felt at peace.
"How did you know I was trapped?" she asked, puzzled.
Yan Heng kept his eyes forward and said calmly, "I was waiting for you at the school gate."
He didn't continue. He didn't tell her how terrified and panicked he had been inside; he didn't tell her how he had practically run all over the school looking for her. Some things didn't need to be said out loud.
Zhu Yaya understood as soon as she heard.
"It gets dark early in winter, so you don't need to walk me back to the West District."
"Oh."
He glanced down at her expression and added, "I'll make sure to take you directly to the South District first from now on."
"Mhm."
...
By the time they reached the school gate, Zhu Jianjun and Gu Tao were already there. Seeing Zhu Yaya safe and sound behind Yan Heng, they both breathed a sigh of relief.
"Yabao, are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere? I'm sorry, Dad was late coming to find you!" Zhu Jianjun was heartbroken.
Zhu Yaya felt a pang in her heart, and the tears she had managed to hold back began to well up again.
Gu Tao stood to the side, full of questions. "Senior Yan, what happened to Zhu Yaya?"
"She was locked in an old classroom in the Duxing Building."
Both Zhu Jianjun and Gu Tao frowned.
"Zhu Yaya has such a good personality! Who would do something like this?" Gu Tao pondered.
Zhu Jianjun first thanked Gu Tao. "Thank you for your trouble, young man, helping us look for Yabao. It's getting late, you should head home now, or your parents will worry."
Gu Tao scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "It's no trouble, Uncle. Zhu Yaya is my classmate; it's only right to help. My home is nearby, and I already let my family know earlier."
"Really, thank you!"
"It's nothing, I didn't really do much."
Gu Tao took a look at the pitiful Zhu Yaya. "Zhu Yaya, Uncle, Senior Yan, I'll head off then. And, Zhu Yaya, make sure you get some good rest when you get home."
Zhu Yaya nodded slightly, her voice choked with tears as she whispered, "Goodbye."
Yan Heng gave a slight nod in farewell.
After Gu Tao left, Zhu Jianjun ushered Zhu Yaya and Yan Heng into his car.
"Yan Heng, thank you too today! Thanks to you, we found Yabao. Uncle Zhu will drop you off at the West District first!" Zhu Jianjun said, looking at Yan Heng and Zhu Yaya in the back seat through the rearview mirror.
Yan Heng seemed to think of something, his expression turning somewhat gloomy.
"No need," he said softly. "I have something to do in the South District."
Zhu Jianjun didn't press further, just told him to be careful.
Yan Heng nodded. Looking at the sobbing Zhu Yaya beside him, he sighed inwardly. He put down his backpack, unzipped it, pulled out a few tissues, and handed them to Zhu Yaya.
Zhu Yaya took them with tears in her eyes.
Just then, Zhu Jianjun drove over a steep bump, jolting the car. Yan Heng reached out a hand to steady Zhu Yaya.
When they reached a certain spot in the South District, Yan Heng pointed and said he wanted to get out. Zhu Jianjun stopped the car there and waited for him to alight.
Yan Heng picked up his backpack, glanced at Zhu Yaya, and said to Zhu Jianjun, "Uncle Zhu, I'll be going now."
"Alright! Be careful on your way."
He then turned his gaze to Zhu Yaya, a touch of gentleness in his eyes. "Zhu Yaya, I'm leaving. Get some good rest."
"Mhm."
After getting out of the car, Yan Heng watched Zhu Jianjun's domestic-brand car drive away. He slung his backpack over his shoulder, turned, and walked off. He wound through several streets, breaking into a quick jog, and came to an abrupt halt in front of the Beijing Third People's Hospital in the South District before turning and going inside.
Zhao Jing hurried through the hospital lobby. Turning back, she felt she had just seen a familiar figure.
"Nurse Zhao?" a young intern nurse beside her asked curiously.
Zhao Jing shook her head. "It's nothing, let's go. The patient is waiting for us!"
Zhu Jianjun parked the car and deliberately softened his voice. "Yabao, it's okay now! We're home!"
Home?
Zhu Yaya was stunned, tears still clinging to her eyelashes. She was quiet for a moment before saying, "Okay, let's go home."
Zhu Jianjun got out first to open the door for Zhu Yaya. As Zhu Yaya was about to leave the back seat, she noticed a crumpled ball of paper where Yan Heng had been sitting. She picked it up, thinking it was trash, and decided to take it home to throw away.
Once home, Zhu Yaya suddenly felt an unprecedented sense of peace. Zhu Jianjun went to the kitchen to heat up food for her, telling her to go take a hot bath first and relax.
Zhu Yaya agreed. Just as she was about to throw away the paper ball, for some reason, she felt a voice inside her clamoring for her to look at it.
Curious, she unfolded the paper ball. It was a medical report. It was for advanced malignant brain tumor. The patient's name was Cheng Xian.
"Dad," her voice trembled, "is Yan Heng's mother's name Cheng Xian?"
"Yes!" Zhu Jianjun was surprised and puzzled by his daughter's sudden question. "Why do you ask?"
Zhu Yaya gave Zhu Jianjun a deep look and handed him the medical report.
The report had been tightly clenched before, now crumpled and even torn in a few places. One could see how distressed the person who saw it had been.
No wonder, no wonder he had looked so haggard lately.
A pang of heartache welled up in Zhu Yaya.
Zhu Jianjun took it, looked, and couldn't help but sigh. "That boy Yan Heng, really..."
Zhu Yaya took the report back and said, "This seems to be from the hospital where Mom works. Should we send Mom a message and ask her to look into it?"
"Mhm." Zhu Jianjun nodded heavily.
After her bath and dinner, Zhu Yaya didn't rush back to her room. Father and daughter sat quietly together on the living room sofa, waiting for Zhao Jing's reply.
Zhao Jing sent a message back after a while, and they both leaned in to read it.
"It's true."
These four words made both their hearts tremble.
Then another message followed: "I'm not in that department, so I don't know the specifics. I just found out from a colleague I asked."
Zhu Yaya and Zhu Jianjun fell silent.
Zhu Jianjun suddenly got up and went to the balcony for a smoke, making a phone call to someone. Knowing Zhu Yaya disliked the smell of smoke, he closed the balcony door, and she couldn't hear his conversation.
Zhu Yaya returned to her room to charge her phone. When it had enough power to turn on, she opened a search engine and looked up "advanced malignant tumor." Her heart sank.
Incurable, short survival time, requires considerable expenses.
Why did Yan Heng's mother suddenly get a malignant tumor, and at such a late stage?
She thought of the tall, slender boy who had held her tight tonight and felt deeply sad for him.
She could hardly bear to imagine it—if Yan's mother passed away, Yan Heng would have no family left in this world.
Could he withstand such a blow?
