Silent and lonely world (Dark clouds before sunny weather - Book 1)

Chapter 6

A-Yuan excused himself after a few rounds of tag, he had forgotten he had wanted to check on Mo Xuanyu until now but he remembered just a moment ago. His classmate was still sitting by himself in the same spot as previously and he was getting worried for him now.

He quickly headed over to him. It looked like the boy was in pain for some reason as he was hunched into himself even more than before, in the same way A-Yuan used to do when his stomach was hurting. Was Mo Xuanyu feeling sick? Should he call his dad or father to help and perhaps get the boy's parents to come and fetch him? A-Yuan was now feeling bad for dragging Mo Xuanyu here when he had been hesitating in the class. Clearly he had not been feeling well and just had not wanted to disappoint the overly excited A-Yuan.

The boy stood up just as A-Yuan was getting closer to him and he had thought it was to greet him. He immediately felt better, so it was nothing to worry after all. Perhaps now Mo Xuanyu actually wanted to join in on the games and fun. He called for him: "Mo Xuanyu! We are going to the jumping castle next, come with us!"

The boy did not reply, he only stayed in place, his hand on the wall of the house. And then, before he could actually react, A-Yuan watched with terrified eyes how his classmate swayed a bit and fell back onto the ground, his eyes closed and his hand still clutching at the clothes on his stomach. A-Yuan outright panicked now. He did not know what had happened and he was scared for the boy.

He tried to call him again, multiple times, but Mo Xuanyu stayed laying on the ground with his eyes shut. He was breathing quickly, too quickly in fact, as if he had just finished running around which he had not been doing. A-Yuan could feel tears gather in his eyes, he was scared out of his mind. Despite the fact that he had not cried for years now, not like his little brother, he started crying out for his parents loudly while holding Mo Xuanyu's hand in his own. Much like Lan Jingyi a few moments before.

His dad came running soon after with a worried expression on his face. One look at Mo Xuanyu's unmoving body on the ground was enough for his little frown to deepen. And then he was on his knees, checking the boy. It was just a quick check-up really, and he was already turning to him again.

His dad patted A-Yuan's head reassuringly: "A-Yuan, it is fine, let us take him home. He was probably only too hot and he had fainted. We should get him somewhere cooler and give him something to drink. Do you think you can go fetch some lemonade for him?"

A-Yuan observed as his dad scoped the unconscious Mo Xuanyu into his arms and was now carrying him back to the house, probably to lay him down on the couch in the living room. He was still feeling bad that he had been having fun while the boy was apparently feeling been sick along, he should have paid more attention to him, or he should not have dragged him to the party in the first place. Surely if he knew that his classmate had been feeling unwell, his parents could have arranged for a visit or a sleepover at a later day so Mo Xuanyu would not have to miss all the fun.

A-Yuan did not know the boy too well; he only even spoke with him a few times. But it looked very lonely to just be sitting in the corner of the classroom when everyone was outside, playing soccer or basketball or just simply having a good time during breaks. He had also tried to have lunch with him once but his classmate looked so uneasy with him at the same table that he barely ate anything. A-Yuan let him eat in peace after that.

Now however, he was regretting not knowing the boy better and not being his friend, not truly, they had not had so many interactions between them to be able to call themselves friends just yet. He decided that from now on, he would try to get closer to Mo Xuanyu. He could not forget how happy the boy looked when he had invited him to the party, it had actually been the first time Mo Xuanyu had looked him in the eye. And A-Yuan found his eyes very intriguing and of a lovely colour, but oh so sad deep down.

He shook his head to focus and run towards the table with refreshments. He poured a generous amount of lemonade into a glass, he also added a few ice cubes since his dad said Mo Xuanyu was not feeling good because of the heat. A-Yuan wondered for a second why was then the boy having his thick jacket of the winter uniform still on. Why was he still in the uniform anyway? All his other classmates had changed into their casual clothes before coming to the party.

A-Yuan was puzzled; he would have to think more about this. Perhaps it had been his fault for dragging the boy with him right after the classes so he had not had time to change? Once again, he felt guilty, he would have to apologize to Mo Xuanyu as soon as the other would wake up. For now, all he could do was bring him the prepared drink. He hurried to the living room, hoping that his classmate would be up and ready to drink the glass he was carrying.

When he came inside however, he was shocked again. Dad had taken away Mo Xuanyu's jacket and A-Yuan could not tear his eyes away from his arms. From the wrists all the way up to the sleeves of his summer T-shirt, there were bruises, the same ones A-Yuan always got when he fell down only in different shapes. But there were so many of them, he could not believe Mo Xuanyu who hardly even stood up from his seat at school could have gotten hurt this badly.

Something was really not right and A-Yuan did not like the feeling of helplessness he had just gotten.

His dad must have heard him approaching because he turned around with a stern face. A-Yuan knew that face, this was no longer his smiling parent but a teacher worried about one of his students. And he also knew that he would now help Mo Xuanyu without fail. It reassured him somewhat. Although he was still feeling restless as he approached the table and put the glass of lemonade onto it.

Before he could come even closer to the couch, his dad told him otherwise: "A-Yuan, please go tell your father to watch everyone in my stead. I will stay here with Mo Xuanyu until he feels better, alright? Do not worry, he will be fine, I will make sure of it. Once he wakes up, I will take him home. Now go, it is your big day, go have fun with your friends."

His dad was back to his normal self, it was not his teacher anymore, it was his parent who wanted him to enjoy his birthday celebration to the fullest. He was smiling reassuringly at him and A-Yuan knew that Mo Xuanyu would be just fine, his dad never lied.

With one last look at his still unconscious classmate, A-Yuan nodded and went back to the garden. He informed his father abut Mo Xuanyu collapsing and what his dad had said. His father only nodded his head but A-Yuan could tell he was worried as well from the small frown which appeared on his face. It was so small that no one else would be able to tell, but he knew his father.

"Go play with your friends again. Your dad will take care of Mo Xuanyu."

A-Yuan did as his parents told him too but he found it hard to stop worrying. At least for a while, before his friends dragged him to the jumping castle and he was once again having so much fun that he did not want this to ruin his special day. He could just apologize to Mo Xuanyu tomorrow, it was not every day that he had a party thrown for him, he should enjoy it to the fullest.

There was a question about the age of the characters in the story, so let me clear things up a bit: - A-Yuan and Mo Xuanyu are the same age, 10 years old

- Lan Jingyi (A-Yi) is younger, 6 or 7 years old

- I picture Mo Xuanyu's cousin as around 15 years old or so (I have no idea how old he was in canon but this fits my storyline, so yeah)

Hope this clear things up a bit :)