Love Me in Another Universe

Chapter 109. Alone Together (1)

January 4, 2002, Friday.

Guan Xuchen walked into the living room and saw his father sitting on the sofa, looking at him with a kind smile.

Guan Xuchen felt somewhat surprised. He walked up to Father and asked softly, "Dad, you're back?"

"I've just come back to sit for a while." Father's face was a little blurry in the morning light streaming through the window, yet his deep, resonant voice was as warm as the sunshine.

Father gestured for Guan Xuchen to sit down, then said to Son with a smile, "From now on, you need to take good care of Mom and take good care of yourself too." Do you understand?"

"I understand, Dad..." Guan Xuchen hugged Father, his voice catching in his throat.

"Silly boy, you're a grown-up man now. Don't cry so easily." Father gently stroked Guan Xuchen's head to comfort him, then said with reluctance, "Alright, I have to go now."

"Dad, don't go..." Guan Xuchen clung to Father, sobbing, but Father's body began to dissolve into fine dust, drifting away with the sunlight outside the window. In the end, all that was left in Guan Xuchen's arms was Father's sweater...

"Dad—" Guan Xuchen cried out and woke with a start. He found himself clutching the blanket damp with tears, and his mother was standing by the bed, watching him.

"Xuchen, did you dream about Dad?" Mrs. Guan asked softly.

"Mhm." Guan Xuchen wiped his wet eyes with his hand.

"I dreamed about your dad last night too..." Mrs. Guan sighed gently, brushed away her tears, and said with a flood of emotions, "It feels like he never left at all..."

Guan Xuchen thought about what his father had said to him in the dream. He got up from the bed and smiled at his mother, "Mom, don't worry. I'll take good care of you from now on."

Mrs. Guan's eyebrows lifted slightly. She hummed in response and said flatly, "Get up, or you'll be late for class."

As Guan Xuchen got out of bed, he tentatively said to his mother, "Mom, maybe I won't go to class today. I can stay home and keep you company."

"No need. Go to class, and don't fall behind in your studies." Mrs. Guan seemed a little impatient, "I need to clean the house, and you'll just be in the way if you stay here."

After breakfast, Guan Xuchen said to his mother, "Mom, I'm off to class." Take care at home, and page me if anything happens."

"Don't worry." Mrs. Guan replied succinctly, then asked, "Will you be back for dinner?"

"Yeah, it's the weekend tomorrow. I'll be back right after my afternoon classes." Guan Xuchen answered.

"Then I'll buy more groceries for dinner. Off you go." Mrs. Guan said casually, then picked up a rag and started wiping the tables and chairs.

Guan Xuchen glanced at his pager instinctively, only to remember he had kept it turned off since yesterday and hadn't switched it on yet. He turned on the pager and found, besides the weather forecast, "a voice message from Mr. Wen Yuwei" sent after nine o'clock the night before.

Guan Xuchen walked over to the landline, dialed the pager service number, and followed the prompts. He then heard Wen Yuwei's familiar, sincere voice, "Hi Tommy, it's me, William. I just talked to Prince Lang and learned about what happened to your dad... Please accept my condolences, take good care of yourself, and look after your mom. The guys in the dorm asked me to send you their regards... If you don't come back to class tomorrow, just leave me a message and I can ask for leave for you... If you need any help with anything, just let me know..."