God's Bargain

(5)

"Sean" yibo echoed the woman's words, not just once but thrice as if he's on a trance, like he's being hypnotized, and the woman nooded everytime, saying "yes" encouragingly everytime

"go on, call him, go to him, ask him and he'll give you everything before you can even ask" she said and yibo's being lured back to take a seat, to hear more of this said god

he felt this once, and he's feeling it again. the coldness, the sudden coldness creeping on his skin, running deep to his veins, flowing with his blood

then his phone was vibrating on his pocket and yibo snapped out of his daze

his sight coming back on focus as he stared at the visible smile behind that hole and yibo's feeling creepy about it. about that sensation that seems to slow down his time, the feeling of floating out of nowhere, the feeling of being underwater and he can't breath and yibo was suddenly coughing as if realizing that he's been holding his breath since

"I know you're curious. let me talk and you shall listen"

yibo was not going to make that mistake happen again. he won't let this woman control him again. did she cast a magical spell on him? did she cursed him?

yibo knows that it's better to leave until he still can so he shook his head then he bow, "thank you, I'll think of it" he said as politely as he could, hide the fact that he's affected as he could and he leaves, not looking back even if he heard the woman say something like she's sure that yibo will come back because that's what the string tugged him to do, until he can no longer feel the eyes of the woman burning on his back and he could hear the bustling vehicles again. when yibo saw the son and mother from earlier, he thanked them and bid goodbye. promising on his mind that they would never meet again

~

"ah, yibo. you're back!"

yibo's hand froze mid air when liqin opened the front door, a garbage bag on her hand with a-ying on her tail

yibo nooded and also smiled at a-ying, "I'll put this outside" he said, prompting at the garbage bag and liqin smiles at him, taking the offer with a compliment, "you're not just handsome, kind too. if im not so deeply in love with my husband then ill marry you within a heartbeat" then she winked

yibo laughs at her playful flirting, also when he hears the said husband talk dramatically about being betrayed in his own house. he can't help but to be amused

he just finished putting the garbage away and was dusting his hands off when a-ying's small figure startled him as he turn around

"where did you go uncle yibo? did you went to the market again?" the boy asked and now he's feeling bewildered of being approached by the younger out of nowhere. he's still acting so shy around yibo this morning before he left and now he's the one initiating the talk between them? aren't the young man warm up so fast?

yibo was never that good at kids. smiling at them, acknowledging their presence is all he got as it's rare to find them like this, like a-ying. he doesn't know how to talk with them, like should he be more careful with his words or should he make his tone a little childish to keep them entertain or what? and even though Jackson have two, there's no way he could bond with them even though Jackson and him was in good terms as long as his brother's family was still leaving under their parents roof

and a-ying was already running back to the house. yibo still have his mouth hang open at his spot

then he followed, jogging after a-ying because he should, right?

"a-ying" he called and two pairs of eyes was suddenly on him. except for a-ying because he's currently hiding on his father's arms

liqin look between him and a-ying with a clueless frown on her face