Crossing The Line (fanfic) ~ Completed

16. Untimely Visit

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"Zi Xuan......Qian Ru......come down. Dinner is ready."

Mama Qiu bellowed from downstairs causing Zi Xuan to wake up from his sleep. The light radiating from the lamp on his study table was too bright. It made him blink a couple of times to adjust to the sudden brightness. He looked around the room and realized that he had fallen asleep while studying. A groan slipped his lips as he rotated his head. As the cramped nerves in his neck stretched, it nearly filled his eyes with unshed tears.

"Don't make me call you twice or else you won't be getting any dinner today."

Hurried footsteps resounded near his bedroom door and a small head peeked in.

"Gēge....hurry or else we both would be sleeping hungry today. From the sound of her she is likely to carry on her promise."

Before he could say anything his little sister sprinted away down the steps. Yawning loudly he rubbed away the sleep from his eyes, pocketed his cellphone and exited the bedroom. As soon as he reached the kitchen, delicious aromas wafted his nostrils making his tummy ruble in response. An array of dishes lay on the dining table making his mouth water. Like always mom had out done her cooking skills as was her habit on a Sunday night.

His father was already seated at the dining table while Qian Ru assembled the cutlery. He walked up to his mom and took the plates from her grasp.

"Allow me....." Saying this he put the plates on the table and sat besides his sister.

When everything was set the family of four started their dinner. It was only on a Sunday night that they could all gather together at the table. On other days his father would usually come home late due to too much work. So his mom had insisted that at least on a sunday night they would have a proper family meal, no excuses allowed. No one dared to argue with her reasoning, not even their dad. None of them were fool enough to challenge her temper when she got mad. She would always remind them of how dinners were the most important meal in her family while she was growing up and she had wanted to keep the tradition alive in her own household.

The chopsticks in Zi Xuan's fingers were extended midway when he felt the phone in his pocket vibrate. Setting the chopsticks back on the rice bowl he reached inside his pocket and pulled out his cell phone. It was a message from Cheng En asking him about the project that they had to submit tomorrow. He quickly typed a response and placed the phone beside his bowl.

Picking up the chopsticks his eyes hovered hungrily over the food confused as to what he should taste first. Finally he decided on the pan-fried fish in ginger soy sauce. The rich flavour of the fresh ingredients hit his palate making him hum in appreciation.

"Mom this is so~~~~~good! Dad you need to try this first."

He fetched a fleshy piece from the fish and offered it to his dad. Seeing his son's enthused face papa Qiu tasted the fish and his face mirrored the same expression as his son. Taking a few more bites he praised his wife on her cooking skills. A blush crept up mama Qiu's cheeks with the shower of praises being bestowed upon her by the three of them.

"Awww...Mom you're as red as a plum." Qian Ru teased her mother.

Seeing their mother shy away caused Zi Xuan, Qian Ru and their father to burst out in a joyous laughter. The house was filled with an easy playful atmosphere as they chit chatted about this and that and laughed at papa Qiu's jokes. One of the best things about Sunday was having their dad join them for dinner. His father always managed to make them laugh with his sense of humour.