Don't Fall in Love! (English Version)- UNDER REVIEW

CHAPTER 22

When I was younger, I often saw my father in the newspapers. Every time he came out of a burning house, his face and clothes were stained with ash mixed with sweat. I thought he was incredible for always managing to survive his missions, and I was never afraid of what bad things could happen to him because I thought he was a brave and strong superhero.

But after that tragedy, my world completely collapsed. All my fantasy had turned into something dark, like the stains on my father's arms on that stretcher. I kept wondering why he had sacrificed his own life for someone, without even thinking that he had a family waiting for him. I thought it was unfair that he had left and abandoned us.

Now I watched Erix, seeing all the suffering of the past etched in his eyes. I always wondered where the only survivor of that fire was. Who was that little boy crying, looking at the ambulance, begging his parents to come back to him?

ㅡFaye, I... I'm sorry.ㅡThat was all Erix managed to say. It seemed he didn't know how to express the words stuck in his throat.

We were standing on the small porch of his cabin. A gentle breeze brushed the few strands of hair that had come loose from my loose bun.

ㅡWhy didn't you tell me?ㅡ I asked, holding the photo in the air. Erix remained silent. I let out a weak, awkward laugh. ㅡSo that's it. It was all because of guilt.

ㅡNo, Faye, I'm not with you because of guilt, I'm here because I love youㅡhe declared.

ㅡThen why didn't you tell me anything?You know how much I suffered, thinking my father didn't even care about me, that he hadn't even thought about me that day...

ㅡI suffered too, Faye!ㅡ I was startled by Erix's tone. ㅡMe too...

The words flew away with the wind. I sighed and ran my hand through my hair, my patience completely exhausted.

ㅡErix, let's take a breakㅡI finally said, and left the cabin.

I came to the conclusion that we needed to heal first. Or I needed to heal first. If we continued together like this, we would hurt each other even more.

I went into my room, lay down on my bed, and squeezed my eyes shut, preventing more tears from escaping.

...

I woke up, somewhat disoriented. I looked around, finding nothing but darkness. Which meant that Zara hadn't returned yet.

With some difficulty, I got up and took a shower. After doing so, I put on my pajamas, brushed my teeth, and curled up in bed again. Minutes later, someone opened the door, revealing Zara, who was carrying a lunchbox and a small bottle of juice.

ㅡHereㅡ she said, extending them towards me. I frowned. ㅡDon't get me wrong, Erix asked me to bring this for you.

Hesitantly, I took the lunchbox and the juice and stared at them. I wasn't hungry at all, so I put them on the nightstand.

ㅡAren't you going to eat?ㅡshe asked indignantly.

ㅡNo.

ㅡDon't you know how hard it was for me to bring this for you? The boy I like asking me to bring food to another girl? And then you refuse?

ㅡThen eat it.Just leave me alone, Zara.ㅡI turned away from her and closed my eyes.

The next day, I woke up feeling worse than the day before. I had to call Ma to come pick me up. Now I was in her boyfriend's car, who, from what I see, will soon be my stepfather. I found out his name was Elton Tran, of Vietnamese origin. He was a coworker of Ma's who suddenly became her boyfriend. They were the same age.

ㅡFaye, what happened to you?ㅡ Ma looked at me through the rearview mirror, worried.

ㅡI... I'm just feeling sick.ㅡ I looked out the window, letting my thoughts wander, like the leaves of those large trees that became almost a blur because of the speed the car was traveling.

ㅡI know you wouldn’t ask me to pick you up just for that.ㅡShe turned around and looked me over.

ㅡIreine, maybe she’s tiredㅡ Elton said.

Dr. Chang sighed and turned back around. And I closed my eyes.

ㅡFaye, daughter, wake up, we’re here.

I woke up, finding a pair of Ma’s almond-shaped eyes staring at me. I got out of the car and we waited for Elton to take my suitcase out of the trunk.

Upon entering the house, I went to my room and, like yesterday, burst into tears. In a matter of seconds, Ma appeared at the door, worried.

ㅡWhat happened, Fang’er?ㅡThe affectionate tone in Mandarin came from her mouth, after she placed one hand on my shoulder. Fang was my Chinese name, which meant “fragrance” or “perfume.” Some of my teachers and classmates in China kept misspelling my name, turning it into "square".

ㅡMaㅡ I sobbed. ㅡErix and I are going to take a break and...ㅡ Another sob. ㅡI don't want to be without him, but I feel like I'll hurt myself even more if I stay with him, because I'll keep remembering that day.

Ma didn't seem confused and didn't ask why I was doing all this, which made me believe she knew very well what I was talking about.

ㅡFaye she looked into my eyes and I'm sure you saw right through me—do you want to go to China to visit your father? It's been years since we've been there, and the more we run away, the worse it will be. We need to say goodbye to the past, face to face, and move on. Your father was a great man, and we can't forget that, that's a fact. But we can't let bad memories stop us from being happy. I don't think that's what he wants. I'm sure he would be sad if he saw you like this.

I nodded with a weak smile on my lips. Ma hugged me and stroked my back. We stayed like that until I calmed down. When I did, she went to the kitchen to make lunch. Meanwhile, I stayed in the room to pack my bags, because we would be leaving tomorrow morning.

>>>>