Standing at the south exit of Fuzhou South Railway Station, Lin Jin and his dad both leaned against a stone pillar, waiting for the train his mom was on to pull into the station.
"How much longer?" Dad looked quite uneasy. His hands were in the pockets of his jacket and his left leg kept shaking. He took a pack of cigarettes out of his pocket, wanting to smoke, but was afraid that the smell would cause him to get berated later. So he put the cigarettes away and stood up to look towards the exit. "It's already five o'clock."
"It should be about time. Younger brother told me it's around five" Lin Jin replied, not as nervous as his dad. Although he hadn't seen his mom for quite a while, their relationship was still pretty good. What he was nervous about was whether his parents would argue when they met.
They wouldn't argue, would they? Even if their relationship had deteriorated, time should have smoothed things a bit by now. What Lin Jin feared the most, however, was that their feelings for each other had also faded. His mom wouldn't have left in the first place if his dad hadn't broken her heart so thoroughly. But maybe it was precisely because they had feelings for each other that his mom's heart was so broken?
Hmm, maybe.
The announcement for the incoming train blared through the speakers, and his dad became agitated. He kept standing on his toes to look at the exit, watching the crowd beginning to pour out.
Lin Jin was a bit more composed, still leaning against the stone pillar, scanning the exiting crowd from left to right, fearing he might miss his mom and Lin Chen.
"I see them." Lin Jin spotted the tall figure of Lin Chen walking behind a fashionably dressed woman who looked to be in her thirties.
"Where?"
His father hadn't seen mom or Lin Chen in nearly a decade and didn't recognize them.
Lin Jin raised his arm high, waving towards Lin Chen's direction: "Lin Chen!"
Lin Chen heard him clearly. He turned his head and immediately saw his short-haired sister (wrong) wearing a hat.
"Brother." Lin Chen ran straight over but abruptly halted upon seeing their dad standing beside Lin Jin. Pulling Lin Jin to the side, he whispered, "Is this dad?"
"Yeah, you don't recognize him?"
As mentioned before, when Lin Jin was ten years old, their dad was quite overweight. Back then, he was a businessman and was constantly socializing. Plus, since the family was relatively rich, he ate well and slept well, and even drank occasionally. As a result, he weighed over 100kg at that time.
So, it was quite understandable that Lin Chen couldn't recognize him now. These days, their father had muscles and only weighed around 65kg, even his face slimmed down.
Their mom walked slowly up to their dad, looked him in the eye, and then moved beside Lin Jin. She smiled gently at Lin Jin and asked, "How have you been lately?"
"Uh, not bad."
Perhaps Lin Chen had told her about Lin Jin's current situation when he went back home, so she didn't seem surprised. She took both Lin Jin's and Lin Chen's hands and walked up to their dad. Her expression instantly turned icy as she said, "Let's go."
"Alright."
Dad promptly took out his car keys from his pocket and led the way towards the parking lot.
Although they used to have a car, it had been sold by their dad to pay off gambling debts. The car they were heading to now was actually rented from a car rental below their residential building.
It was merely an attempt to maintain some semblance of dignity in front of their mom.
"How's your studies, Lin Jin? Even though you're in a college, you could still transfer to a university if you do well." It had been more than three years since mom last saw Lin Jin. Seeing him again, she momentarily forgot Lin Chen standing beside them and kept asking how he was doing. "How's life at home? Are you able to afford meat? Have you been bullied by classmates? If so, just tell your mother."
"No, it's more like I bully my classmates, they don't have the nerve to bully me." Lin Jin gave a wry smile, shaking his head. He glanced at his hand, which was gripped tightly by his mom, and looked up at her. "Life at home is pretty good, we just don't have a computer. As for meals, I cook what I like to eat."
"And what about your studies?"
"My studies... uh, I've passed the final exams." As soon as the topic turned to his academic performance, Lin Jin became vague. "Anyway, the point of college is to not fail any subjects. I even passed English without cheating. Over 70 points."
"You actually scored in the seventies without cheating?" Lin Jin’s mother rubbed his's head affectionately, "Keep up the hard work."
"Yep, yep."
Lin Jin's mom looked young, but it was largely due to her makeup and the independent aura she gave off. Because of this, his mother who was already in her forties only appeared to be in her thirties. Her physique was also quite good, not at all like some of the out of shape women her age.
"Is your dad really done with gambling?" Her voice suddenly dropped a few notches, and she leaned in close to Lin Jin, whispering, "You and your brother aren't teaming up to deceive me, are you?"
"Um, he really hasn't been gambling recently, and he's cut down on drinking too." Lin Jin was actually not very confident inside, the main reason his dad wasn't gambling was likely due to the casinos closing for the Chinese New Year. However, he still pretended to be sure of himself. "I think he's quit for good. Our home used to be empty, but he's been earning money and bought some furniture."
His dad, who was leading the way up front, paused for a moment upon hearing Lin Jin's words but didn't interject.
"That's good then" Mom nodded and chuckled coldly, "When we divorced, I even had to go to the casino to get him to sign the papers. Took him nine years to change."
"Mom, did you mainly come back to visit for the New Year?" Lin Jin put on a feigned innocent act and asked naively, "Could you stay at home for a while? I've prepared a really, really beautiful room for you."
"Brother, can you not talk in that tone?"
Before Mom could say anything, Lin Chen couldn't take it anymore, brushing the goosebumps off his arm.
"Scram!"
After walking about a kilometer, they all climbed into the small car their dad had rented. Dad drove in silence like a professional driver, while the trio in the backseat chatted away.
Especially mom, her enthusiasm towards Lin Jin was so much that Lin Chen started to wonder if he was actually their biological child.
"Do you want mom to get you a new phone? Yours is all scratched up." Mom fiddled with Lin Jin's phone, noticing the scratches and dents from being dropped. "How about switching to an iPhone 7? Once Lin Chen starts college, I'll get you both the latest model."
"No need, it's too wasteful." Lin Jin, who was used to being frugal, instinctively declined the offer.
Phones are supposed to last until they break down, aren't they? Besides, his iPhone 6 only had cosmetic scratches. It could probably last another three or four years.
"That's fine too." While mom kept talking to Lin Jin, she occasionally glanced at their dad. Then she asked, "Why haven't you grown taller? You've been this height since the first year of high school."
"Ah... don't talk to me about height..." Lin Jin looked heartbroken. "I must have had a genetic mutation or something. Both you and dad are pretty tall, but I'm only 1.6 meters."
"Yeah, yeah, brother, I also think you have a genetic mutation" Lin Chen chimed in, agreeing with Lin Jin's words.
If it weren't a genetic mutation, how could a perfectly good older brother end up looking like a sister?
Standing at the south exit of Fuzhou South Railway Station, Lin Jin and his dad both leaned against a stone pillar, waiting for the train his mom was on to pull into the station.
"How much longer?" Dad looked quite uneasy. His hands were in the pockets of his jacket and his left leg kept shaking. He took a pack of cigarettes out of his pocket, wanting to smoke, but was afraid that the smell would cause him to get berated later. So he put the cigarettes away and stood up to look towards the exit. "It's already five o'clock."
"It should be about time. Younger brother told me it's around five" Lin Jin replied, not as nervous as his dad. Although he hadn't seen his mom for quite a while, their relationship was still pretty good. What he was nervous about was whether his parents would argue when they met.
They wouldn't argue, would they? Even if their relationship had deteriorated, time should have smoothed things a bit by now. What Lin Jin feared the most, however, was that their feelings for each other had also faded. His mom wouldn't have left in the first place if his dad hadn't broken her heart so thoroughly. But maybe it was precisely because they had feelings for each other that his mom's heart was so broken?
Hmm, maybe.
The announcement for the incoming train blared through the speakers, and his dad became agitated. He kept standing on his toes to look at the exit, watching the crowd beginning to pour out.
Lin Jin was a bit more composed, still leaning against the stone pillar, scanning the exiting crowd from left to right, fearing he might miss his mom and Lin Chen.
"I see them." Lin Jin spotted the tall figure of Lin Chen walking behind a fashionably dressed woman who looked to be in her thirties.
"Where?"
His father hadn't seen mom or Lin Chen in nearly a decade and didn't recognize them.
Lin Jin raised his arm high, waving towards Lin Chen's direction: "Lin Chen!"
Lin Chen heard him clearly. He turned his head and immediately saw his short-haired sister (wrong) wearing a hat.
"Brother." Lin Chen ran straight over but abruptly halted upon seeing their dad standing beside Lin Jin. Pulling Lin Jin to the side, he whispered, "Is this dad?"
"Yeah, you don't recognize him?"
As mentioned before, when Lin Jin was ten years old, their dad was quite overweight. Back then, he was a businessman and was constantly socializing. Plus, since the family was relatively rich, he ate well and slept well, and even drank occasionally. As a result, he weighed over 100kg at that time.
So, it was quite understandable that Lin Chen couldn't recognize him now. These days, their father had muscles and only weighed around 65kg, even his face slimmed down.
Their mom walked slowly up to their dad, looked him in the eye, and then moved beside Lin Jin. She smiled gently at Lin Jin and asked, "How have you been lately?"
"Uh, not bad."
Perhaps Lin Chen had told her about Lin Jin's current situation when he went back home, so she didn't seem surprised. She took both Lin Jin's and Lin Chen's hands and walked up to their dad. Her expression instantly turned icy as she said, "Let's go."
"Alright."
Dad promptly took out his car keys from his pocket and led the way towards the parking lot.
Although they used to have a car, it had been sold by their dad to pay off gambling debts. The car they were heading to now was actually rented from a car rental below their residential building.
It was merely an attempt to maintain some semblance of dignity in front of their mom.
"How's your studies, Lin Jin? Even though you're in a college, you could still transfer to a university if you do well." It had been more than three years since mom last saw Lin Jin. Seeing him again, she momentarily forgot Lin Chen standing beside them and kept asking how he was doing. "How's life at home? Are you able to afford meat? Have you been bullied by classmates? If so, just tell your mother."
"No, it's more like I bully my classmates, they don't have the nerve to bully me." Lin Jin gave a wry smile, shaking his head. He glanced at his hand, which was gripped tightly by his mom, and looked up at her. "Life at home is pretty good, we just don't have a computer. As for meals, I cook what I like to eat."
"And what about your studies?"
"My studies... uh, I've passed the final exams." As soon as the topic turned to his academic performance, Lin Jin became vague. "Anyway, the point of college is to not fail any subjects. I even passed English without cheating. Over 70 points."
"You actually scored in the seventies without cheating?" Lin Jin’s mother rubbed his's head affectionately, "Keep up the hard work."
"Yep, yep."
Lin Jin's mom looked young, but it was largely due to her makeup and the independent aura she gave off. Because of this, his mother who was already in her forties only appeared to be in her thirties. Her physique was also quite good, not at all like some of the out of shape women her age.
"Is your dad really done with gambling?" Her voice suddenly dropped a few notches, and she leaned in close to Lin Jin, whispering, "You and your brother aren't teaming up to deceive me, are you?"
"Um, he really hasn't been gambling recently, and he's cut down on drinking too." Lin Jin was actually not very confident inside, the main reason his dad wasn't gambling was likely due to the casinos closing for the Chinese New Year. However, he still pretended to be sure of himself. "I think he's quit for good. Our home used to be empty, but he's been earning money and bought some furniture."
His dad, who was leading the way up front, paused for a moment upon hearing Lin Jin's words but didn't interject.
"That's good then" Mom nodded and chuckled coldly, "When we divorced, I even had to go to the casino to get him to sign the papers. Took him nine years to change."
"Mom, did you mainly come back to visit for the New Year?" Lin Jin put on a feigned innocent act and asked naively, "Could you stay at home for a while? I've prepared a really, really beautiful room for you."
"Brother, can you not talk in that tone?"
Before Mom could say anything, Lin Chen couldn't take it anymore, brushing the goosebumps off his arm.
"Scram!"
After walking about a kilometer, they all climbed into the small car their dad had rented. Dad drove in silence like a professional driver, while the trio in the backseat chatted away.
Especially mom, her enthusiasm towards Lin Jin was so much that Lin Chen started to wonder if he was actually their biological child.
"Do you want mom to get you a new phone? Yours is all scratched up." Mom fiddled with Lin Jin's phone, noticing the scratches and dents from being dropped. "How about switching to an iPhone 7? Once Lin Chen starts college, I'll get you both the latest model."
"No need, it's too wasteful." Lin Jin, who was used to being frugal, instinctively declined the offer.
Phones are supposed to last until they break down, aren't they? Besides, his iPhone 6 only had cosmetic scratches. It could probably last another three or four years.
"That's fine too." While mom kept talking to Lin Jin, she occasionally glanced at their dad. Then she asked, "Why haven't you grown taller? You've been this height since the first year of high school."
"Ah... don't talk to me about height..." Lin Jin looked heartbroken. "I must have had a genetic mutation or something. Both you and dad are pretty tall, but I'm only 1.6 meters."
"Yeah, yeah, brother, I also think you have a genetic mutation" Lin Chen chimed in, agreeing with Lin Jin's words.
If it weren't a genetic mutation, how could a perfectly good older brother end up looking like a sister?
