Love Me in Another Universe

Chapter 107. Xuchen's Father (5)

September 21, 2001, Friday. After attending his class of "Selected Readings in European Literature" that afternoon, Guan Xuchen still couldn't shake off his worries. He asked his teacher for leave and took the bus to West City Hospital.

By the time Guan Xuchen arrived at the hospital, it was nearly four o'clock. He hurried to the Radiology Department and saw his father in the waiting area outside.

Mr. Guan's face was sallow and gaunt, with his abdomen slightly swollen. He stared blankly at the floor, looking weighed down with worries.

Guan Xuchen walked over and called out softly, "Dad."

Mr. Guan looked up, and a surprised smile spread across his face when he saw his son, "Soupy, why are you here? Didn't you say you had classes this afternoon?"

"I asked for leave to come and get the test results with you..." Guan Xuchen replied in a low voice with his head bowed, like a child who had done something wrong.

"Oh, I told you I could come all by myself. If I had wanted someone to accompany me, I would have asked your mom to take a day off." Mr. Guan's smile faded, and he said in a stern tone, "Your studies are the most important thing. How could you ask for leave so casually!"

"Dad, please don't be angry. Your health is what matters..." Guan Xuchen explained with a trace of anxiety, "Mom has to go to work, and I couldn't rest easy letting you come and get the test results alone... It's just an elective class this afternoon, I can just copy the notes from my classmates when I get back..."

Seeing his father's expression soften a little, he tentatively asked, "Dad, have you got the test results?"

"I've got the blood test results, but the MRI results aren't ready yet..." Mr. Guan said, handing the piece of paper in his hand to his son.

Guan Xuchen took the blood test results and immediately spotted two figures that filled him with great anxiety: The cancer marker was 400, while the normal value was only 8, double the 200 from Dad's last check-up; and the alpha-fetoprotein level was 500 ng/ml, compared with the normal value of 20 ng/ml, also higher than the 300 ng/ml from the last check-up.

"Ah, it seems that ablation surgery didn't do much good after all..." Mr. Guan muttered to himself, looking dejected.

"Dad, please don't say that..." Guan Xuchen struggled to hold back the worry and fear in his heart, and spoke in as calm a tone as possible, "The doctor also said that the blood test results are just for reference. Let's go ask the doctor together after we get the MRI results..."

Nearly an hour later, the father and son returned home. Seeing that his father was still in a heavy mood, Guan Xuchen patiently comforted him, "Dad, the doctor just said there's no obvious change in the sizes and number of the tumors. The high alpha-fetoprotein level may be related to the small tumors that weren't removed last time, and the elevated cancer marker might be due to inflammation. Don't worry too much. Just rest well. Maybe the next check-up in half a month will show everything is fine."

"Let's hope so." Mr. Guan forced a wry smile and added anxiously, "But the doctor also said that if there's still no improvement by then, I might have to be hospitalized again..."

Just as Guan Xuchen was about to say something more to comfort his father, he heard the doorbell ring. He went to open the door and saw it was Gao Xinglang. His furrowed brows relaxed, and he said with a surprised smile, "Lang, what brings you here? Come on in."

Gao Xinglang replied with a hearty laugh, "I came to see Uncle. Besides, the other day you said you wanted some reference materials for studying abroad, so I brought them along for you by the way."