Because of You: Junping and Yuerong

Chapter Eleven: Discovery

At the end of that summer break, I stood in the same spot in Yuerong's driveway that I had stood when the car he and Grandfather were in drove away. My stomach was bubbling. I know I should've eaten breakfast, but I couldn't. I couldn't eat anything all morning because I was too excited.

The servants at the house had offered to let me wait inside because of the heat, but I didn't want to go inside. I wanted to see the car as soon as possible. I needed to see him as soon as I could—even if it were his shadow behind car windows.

It's not like I hadn't seen him in the two months he had been gone. We'd been able to Video Call on WhatsApp at least twice a week, but instead of comforting me, these calls often made me lonelier. Had I missed anyone or anything this much before? I didn't think so.

I felt differently now though than I had when the car had driven away. I felt furious and helpless then, but now I felt calm and empowered. Looking back on that summer, I know if there is one thing I should be thankful to Yuerong for it would be the fact that our friendship had made me an active participant in my own life. Up until that time, I had merely reacted to things. I didn't really make a lot of active choices. Even in my friendship with him, I had never taken the initiative; I had merely reacted to things, words, and ideas that he had.

He was the one who talked to me first. He was the one who offered to tutor me. He was the one that noticed my talent for math. He was the one who stood up for me. He was the one who encouraged me as a partner in the math competitions. He was the one who brought me into his grandfather's world. I had just taken it all as if I were an empty box waiting to be filled up.

I wondered, as I waited in the heat, how anyone decent had put up with me. No wonder, so often my brothers had been frustrated with me. All this time, I had thought they were jealous of me because I was the youngest and my mother doted on me while they went without that. I hadn't understand why they no had stopped bothering to ask me things. Why would they when I barely grunted at them and seemed indifferent to everything but the games on my phone?

I had always been so bored and couldn't understand why they tried to do anything. What was the point? It had all seemed easier to just live, but I hadn't been living. Now, I was eager to start each day. Yuerong had given me that gift.

When the car finally appeared around the bend in the driveway, I thought my heart would burst right out of my chest. I started grinning right away trying to get a glimpse of anything through the tinted glass. I had imagined running up to the car as soon as it stopped. Grabbing Yuerong and laughing. Pulling Grandfather's bags out of the trunk and asking them questions about everything they had seen.

But that didn't happen.

The car barely stopped before Yuerong jumped out. I mean I knew it was Yuerong, but was it Yuerong? Who was this young man getting out of the car with Yuerong's face? I had noticed that his face was a bit tan and a bit thinner in our Video Chats, but this Yuerong was as tall as me and had lost all the baby fat that he once had. His arms were toned and muscly, and so were his legs under dark blue shorts. Yuerong had always been kind of like a cute hamster, but now?

My mouth went dry and I just stared. That happy anxious feeling changed into something else. Was that dread?

I didn't have to respond though because Yuerong was the one who ran up to me and hugged me.

"Why are you just standing here not saying anything?!? Come, come. Let's help Grandfather."

I followed him and shyly bowed at Grandfather. He looked at me and smiled. It's like he knew what I was thinking, and I hurried to help with the bags in the trunk so he wouldn't see my face get red. I could tell I was blushing. Good grief! I blushed! I couldn't remember the last time I did that.