Chapter 34

Chapter 34 Dispute

“Mei Fang, where are you going?”

Lin You Xi looked curiously at him.

“Are you here to play with me? I need to visit my grandma in the hospital today, so I can’t… probably not today…”

“Then I’ll go with you.”

Lin You Xi smiled and said, “I finished my homework anyway, and there’s nothing else to do.”

“Shouldn’t you be looking for Xia Yuan to play instead?”

“Xia Yuan is grounded right now; how could you not know that…”

Lin You Xi patted Mei Fang’s shoulder and said, “Listen, recently there’s a game center on Mingying Street that just opened, and I’ve seen it from outside a few times. The games inside are all new to me. Let’s go there together!”

“You mean an arcade, right? We can play those games at home on the computer too, and it doesn’t cost anything.”

“But I think the atmosphere there is more lively, and I want to experience it,” Lin You Xi pulled on Mei Fang’s arm. “You always make me play on the computer. I can pay for you this time.”

The typical gaming experience of a child should progress from the FC Red and White console to arcades and then to online PC games, with some wealthy families even adding a handheld console.

However, Baimei County was a small town with slow development. Even in 2005, plug-in cartridges like Xiaobang and arcade centers still had a significant market, while internet cafes were only beginning to rise. Lin You Xi was one of the first to get into online games and knew nothing about Red and White consoles or arcades.

But this didn’t seem to affect her enthusiasm for arcades. Seeing Lin You Xi talk nonstop about arcades, Mei Fang sighed and said, “You came along to see my grandma today, didn’t you? And after that, you want me to take you to play?”

“Yes! Yes!” Lin You Xi was very straightforward and did not deny it. “Is that okay?”

“You already snuck a peek, so you know there aren’t many girls there.”

“What does that have to do with boys or girls? You’re a boy, but you still like playing with me and Xia Yuan.”

Mei Fang was speechless at Lin You Xi’s counterattack.

“Fine, I can take you, but you can’t go alone.”

“I know! I just want to check it out! I don’t have much pocket money anyway… and if my classmates saw and told the teacher, I’d be in trouble.”

“You know it would cause trouble!”

“Haha…”

Lin You Xi smiled brightly.

Sometimes Mei Fang regretted pulling Lin You Xi into the gaming world. This girl got so addicted to games; would she ever have a chance to become a top student?

Lin You Xi followed Mei Fang off the vehicle, and they asked the adults for directions to the surgical ward. When they reached the surgical ward, Lin You Xi stopped in the hall instead of walking with Mei Fang.

“I’ll wait here.”

“Don’t run around.”

“I’m not a kid anymore, I know better.”

Lin You Xi patted Mei Fang’s shoulder. “Go see your grandma quickly! She must miss you a lot.”

Mei Fang brought fruit to his grandma’s room. At that moment, Grandma was chatting happily with a neighbor. Seeing her grandson, she was delighted and hurriedly invited Mei Fang to sit down, almost getting up to peel an apple for him before he could even start chatting.

“Grandma, no need, you rest well! I brought you fruit.”

“Look at this grandson, so considerate. You bring good fortune to your elders.”

“Hey, I tell you, this grandson is not only obedient and well-behaved, but also excels in school. He’s always among the top students in his class. The teacher says he has the potential to get into Qinghua or Imperial University!”

Grandma spoke with great energy and pride when talking about Mei Fang’s grades.

Mei Fang was peeling an orange and was about to give her a piece when Grandma insisted he eat it himself.

…

It was nearly ten years until Mei Fang got into college and Grandma passed away. The frail and partially paralyzed woman then was completely different from her current state.

Of course, with the foreknowledge of a brain hemorrhage, Mei Fang would not let history repeat itself.

When Mei Fang left Grandma’s room, he saw a group of medical staff pushing a stretcher with a female patient covered in bandages, bloodstains visible everywhere. Other patients couldn’t help but look aside.

When Mei Fang finally found Lin You Xi, she was squatting on the ground, staring blankly at the floor, lost in thought.

Mei Fang called her several times before she snapped back to reality.

“Why did you make me wait so long!”

Lin You Xi suddenly became very angry and slapped Mei Fang without any reason, leaving him bewildered. “Why did you hit me? It wasn’t that long, was it?”

“It felt like forever! You forgot about me, didn’t you!”

Lin You Xi hit Mei Fang again, and this time the punch was heavy.

Mei Fang was already annoyed.

I let you off because you’re young and don’t know better, but pushing it this far is too much.

“Stop hitting people all the time! You’re not a little kid anymore. It hurts when you hit me. I warn you, if you hit me again, I won’t talk to you.”

Mei Fang thought Lin You Xi would stop after being scolded, but she ended up pinching him hard.

Then Lin You Xi stared at Mei Fang as if waiting for him to get mad.

…

Mei Fang’s good mood from visiting his grandma was completely ruined by Lin You Xi. He turned and walked away without another word.

As he approached the elevator, a father and son appeared at the end of the window by the elevator. The child was only two or three years old, crying incessantly while the father tried to soothe him.

“Mom… I want Mom… I don’t want this stinky dad! I want Mom to hold me!”

“Mom is sick. Once she gets better, she will come and hold you, okay?”

“No… No! I want Mom to hold me!”

Listening to the father and son arguing, Mei Fang withdrew his hand from the elevator button.

He turned back and quietly watched Lin You Xi standing alone in the hospital hall, head down.

Her position faced the end of the ward, the same direction from which the stretcher had been pushed.

The curtains swayed in the wind, blowing a cold breeze.

Even though light was right in front of her, Lin You Xi preferred to stand in the shadows.

No one was beside her.

After hesitating for a moment, Mei Fang stepped forward, took Lin You Xi’s hand, and gently comforted her.

Lin You Xi struggled for a bit but eventually clenched Mei Fang’s hand tightly.

“Come on? You wanted to go to the arcade, right? Now I’ll take you, come on!”

Mei Fang tried to soothe her by swinging her arm, but Lin You Xi kept shaking it off.

“I’m so annoying. Don’t play with me in the future, just play with Xia Yuan! Just ignore me.”

Lin You Xi’s voice was already tinged with tears.

“Why do you say that? We’re good friends, right?”

Mei Fang tried to calm her down, patting her shoulder. “It was my fault earlier. I didn’t pay attention to the time. I apologize.”

“It was unreasonable of me to insist on coming with you…”

Lin You Xi bit her lip, her red eyes glistening with tears, staring at Mei Fang with sorrow and anger.

“Wouldn’t it have been better to leave me alone?”

“How could I leave you alone!”

Lin You Xi’s shout was drowned out by Mei Fang’s louder one, silencing her completely.

Mei Fang held Lin You Xi’s hand and walked toward the light.

They went down the elevator together.

She seemed like a doll, led wherever Mei Fang went.

They arrived at the bus stop.

“You want to go to the arcade on Mingying Street, right? We can take Bus 2—”

“I don’t want to go to the arcade anymore.”

Lin You Xi rubbed her eyes, appearing calmer now.

“Where do you want to go? I can accompany you.”

“Can we go there?”

“Sure.”

“You didn’t even ask where it is… who does that?”

Mei Fang repeated “sure” with a smile.

His smile gave Lin You Xi the courage to speak her heart.

“I… I want to go to the cemetery to visit my mom now. Can you take me there?”

“Sure, let’s go!”

Mei Fang gently patted Lin You Xi’s arm. “Let’s go. Right now, immediately.”

—

(End of Chapter 34)