BLINDED BY LOVE

COMING BACK HOME

Pon’s fingers loosened, and the phone almost slipped out of his hand.

The restaurant was noisy, but the voice on the other end of the phone was so clear, elegant, and gentle, cutting through the bustling crowd and reaching his ears.

He tightened his grip on the phone, hesitated for a moment, and then called out, “Phi?”

He and Way had intermittently exchanged WeChat messages over the past two months, mostly initiated by Way, asking him how he was doing outside, whether he had added clothes now that the weather was getting colder, and other trivial matters.

He was more concerned than when he was at home.

He would reply, but after a long day at work, coupled with the ongoing cold war at home, he often kept his replies brief, just reporting that everything was fine with him, to prevent his family from worrying.

But they hadn’t spoken on the phone for a while.

Maintaining this invisible tacit understanding, he refused to back down, and his siblings were temporarily unwilling to yield, so they remained at an impasse.

Like many families who were estranged yet still cared about each other.
But now, Way suddenly called.

Hearing his brother’s voice unexpectedly, Pon couldn’t explain why, but his nose felt a little sour.

He excused himself from the restaurant, pushed open the door, and quickly walked to the shade of the umbrella.

The sparse shadow of the plane tree fell on the white table. The red parasol shielded the sunlight.

He sat on a white chair, holding his phone, and asked nervously, “P'Way, is there something wrong for you to call?”

Way remained silent on the other end.

“Can’t I call you if nothing’s wrong?” Way asked softly, with a hint of bitterness in his voice. “You’re my younger brother. I just want to see how you’re doing. Is that not allowed?”

As he said this, his gaze gently swept over Davika, who was sitting beside him, with a hint of helplessness and complaint.

He had wanted to make this call for a long time.

However, Davika hesitated. She didn’t know what Pon’s current thoughts and feelings were.

She was afraid that if they called suddenly, Pon would become even more rebellious.

Now, even though she cared deeply about Pon, she refused to show any weakness, sitting stiffly upright like an indifferent sculpture, wearing a white dress with clean and beautiful pearl earrings, making her look like an emotionless idol.

But she was unwilling to miss even a single word of Way’s conversation with Pon.

Pon felt uncomfortable when Way asked him, lowering his head.

He actually had a deep emotional bond with his family, and these days he missed his siblings too.

Being asked like this made it even harder for him.

“I didn’t mean that…” he mumbled, “I’m just afraid you might need something urgent.”

“There’s nothing urgent, I just want to see you,” Way smiled.

He glanced at Davika, sighed again, feeling little helpless with the big and small stubbornness in his family.

He was the only one who could mediate.

Considering carefully, he asked Pon softly, “PonPon, tomorrow is the Mid-Autumn Festival. How do you plan to spend it?”

Pon was taken aback by the question.