When the right time comes

17: Memories

"Ridiculous! Why are you so naive, Xiao Zhan?"

Yu Bin was utterly disappointed at his friend sitting against him in the bar. Xiao Zhan twined the liquid in his glass looking at nothing. Maybe his friend is right.

Yu Bin took a sip from his drink and sighed. "I have known you since childhood. What you had done for that family until now is enough for your repayment for them taking you in as their son. In other words, they just took you in as a nanny for their son. I doubt whether they truly loved you."

"Enough, Yu Bin! You are crossing the limits."

Xiao Zhan seethed through gritted teeth. He was hearing whatever Yu Bin had said because he thought his friend was right until then but if he said the Huangs didn't love him, that would be a lie.

It is true that they were busy ever since he met them. They were always away from home regarding work but still, they spent time with both him and Jingyu whenever they could though it was so scarce. Xiao Zhan never felt unloved by them. They never showed him any partiality. They treated him the same as they treated Jingyu.

"Okay. I'm not saying anything. You have always been like this. Don't like it when I tell the truth."

"But it is not the truth. They never left me unloved. That's the only reason I'm still staying with them. Do you have any idea what I would be suffering if I had to live in an orphanage? Do you think it was better to live as an orphan when they were willing to provide me with a family?"

Yu Bin went silent. He had his own arguments to fight him back but in the end, it was all about comfort. Whatever he argues back, a family would always be a family no matter what.

For a while, Yu Bin said nothing, only enjoyed the peaceful atmosphere in the bar. He hates clubs. Not only clubs but also he hates most of the crowded places. That's why they are here in this bar, which has a sophisticated atmosphere as much as the high bills they would expect to receive at the end.

Xiao Zhan didn't have any preference like that. Crowd or peace, he selects it according to his situation. Now that his friend needs company, he is more than willing to accompany.

"What about your new project Bin bin?" Xiao Zhan refilled their empty glasses. "Have you set the date to fly to Korea?"

Yu Bin took a big sip of the bitter liquid in his mouth, showing faces as if he hated it. Xiao Zhan wondered why in the world this guy forces himself to drink it if he does like its taste.

"I have. Yes." Yu Bin wiped his mouth with a tissue and leaned back onto the chair, throwing the tissue onto the table casually. "It's next month. I would be staying there for like... um.. almost two weeks or at the most one month." a piece of tender beef from what they got as a side dish went into his mouth.

Xiao Zhan nodded, taking a sip of his drink.

"When I'm away, my cousin will be staying in my house. She is enrolling in our Zhejiang University by then. The only concern is whether she will give my home back like how I handed it over to her or not." He chuckled.

Xiao Zhan smiled. "Is it that trouble maker? The one who called me while you were drunk in her hostel room."

Yu Bin choked. "Exactly! It's that same shit!" He laughed. "Don't make me remember that horrible day, Zhan zhan. I should have killed her the same day."

They laughed. His cousin was a naughty teenager who couldn't sit still without inviting trouble everyday. Back then, when she was still studying in high school, one day she called Yu Bin saying she gonna suicide because of her first break-up. Yu Bin on the other hand, panicked hearing it. If he let the others know it, it would taint her image and so, he broke into her hostel room where she was drinking secretly with her friends. She was afraid to suicide and thus decided to choose the easiest way available. Drink, forget and let go. Yu Bin became a fool, breaking into her room without anybody knowing.