MAPF Chapter 41

Chapter 41 Parallel World “Our Secret”

After Xiaoyue finished dinner, Wang the housekeeper led her by the hand to the guest room on the second floor.

The guest room was large, but the decor was a bit too white. White walls, white bed, white wood floors with white curtains, it was hard to tell what kind of guest it was intended for.

Xie Shiwei, after complaining about the room’s decor, was afraid Xiaoyue would be bored, so he took her to his room to rest first.

Xiaoyue wanted to play the “slap hands” game, and Xie Shiwei played with her. When pulling his hand away, he deliberately slowed down, and Xiaoyue slapped his hand over and over again, her grape-like eyes smiling.

After a while, Xiaoyue pinched her skirt and said she wanted to play with Brother He Qin. Xie Shiwei patted his chest and said no problem, and went to the study to call out He Qin.

He Qin shook his head, saying he wasn’t finished with work yet. Xie Shiwei couldn’t stand this workaholic, so he dragged him out of the study and pinned him to the carpet, forcing him to participate in a three-person version of “slap hands.”

The game tested reaction speed. Xie Shiwei went first as the attacker, his left hand touching Xiaoyue’s little hand, and his right hand touching He Qin’s big hand. The feeling on both sides was completely different.

At the start of a round, Xie Shiwei, as before, gave Xiaoyue a break, but showed no mercy to He Qin, slapping him hard on the back of the hand before he could pull it away.

By the fifth round, Xiaoyue had noticed that He Qin was losing repeatedly, and said that Brother He Qin was too weak. Xie Shiwei looked at the back of He Qin’s hand, which he had turned red, and sighed, “He Qin, you really are a gaming black hole. It’s one thing that you can’t use game consoles, but how can you keep losing even at this little game?”

He Qin said in Xie Shiwei’s ear, “You’re the only one allowed to throw the game, but not me?”

Xie Shiwei raised an eyebrow: “You’re deliberately losing?”

“Of course, letting you win a few times to make you happy.”

Xie Shiwei was skeptical, but continued to play, whispering to He Qin not to hold back when it was his turn to attack.

“I’m afraid you’ll think it hurts.”

“You can tell me that after you hit me.”

Then, with a smack, he was really hit by He Qin, with no time to react. However, He Qin seemed to have controlled his strength, and although the sound was loud, it didn’t hurt. The back of his hand tingled and felt hot, as if something was tickling it.

The three of them played in a circle for a long time. Xiaoyue began to yawn, so Xie Shiwei picked her up to go to sleep, and he and He Qin tucked her in from either side.

Xie Shiwei touched her head: “Be a good girl and go to sleep.”

Xiaoyue put her hands together to her ear and said sweetly, “Good night,” and closed her eyes.

Xie Shiwei and He Qin exchanged a glance, turned off the lights, and left, each returning to their own bed.

That night, at some unknown time, wind and rain rose, with lightning and thunder.

The booming thunder woke Xie Shiwei. He turned on the bedside lamp. Outside the window, the sky was dark, and the trees were dancing wildly. In a mist of rain, he could barely see the flickering ship lights on the distant sea.

It was the first time he had seen such a heavy rain in Jiangcheng at night. The wind howled, as if trying to tear the sky apart.

He turned over and got out of bed, put on his slippers, and went to Xiaoyue’s room to check on her. He heard a whimpering cry at the door.

Pushing open the door, Xiaoyue was curled up in a ball at the head of the bed. A sudden flash of lightning illuminated the mottled tears on her round little face.

When Xiaoyue saw Xie Shiwei, she cried even harder, sobbing and reaching out her arms to Xie Shiwei for a hug.

Xie Shiwei’s heart tightened, and he quickly hugged her, gently patting her back: “It’s just a heavy rain, nothing happened. Xiaoyue is the strongest, don’t cry.”

“Brother Shiwei, I’m scared, I’m most afraid of rainy days like this, woo woo woo.”

Xie Shiwei realized something. Some scenes flashed back in his mind.

Xiaoyue cried and spoke intermittently, saying that her father and mother had died in a car accident on a stormy, rainy day. She was in the car too, and only survived because her mother desperately protected her.

“Brother Shiwei, I don’t have a father or mother anymore, I miss them so much, can you… can you give them back to me?”

Xie Shiwei’s nose was sour, as if the rain had leaked into his heart. He put his arm around Xiaoyue and said softly, “Xiaoyue, let me tell you a secret, okay?”

Xiaoyue’s attention was diverted, and she stopped crying: “Okay.”

“Do you know what a parallel world is?”

Xiaoyue shook her little head.

“In the world we live in, there may be many time-spaces, and in each time-space, there is a you. You have the same name, the same appearance, and live completely different lives.” Xie Shiwei held her and looked out the window. “Brother came here from another world. In that world, I also lost my parents in a car accident. I grew up alone, studied, and worked. Although it’s a bit lonely sometimes, I’m living well.”

“Really?” Xiaoyue was a little confused.

“Yes, really. Someone once told me that after parents leave, they turn into stars to protect us, Xiaoyue, your father and mother have also become stars, watching you from heaven.”

The rain gradually subsided, and moonlight leaked through the gaps in the dark clouds.

Xie Shiwei held Xiaoyue and came to the window, trying hard to find stars for her in the middle of a dark cloud.

After finally finding one, Xiaoyue giggled and reached out to grab it.

Xie Shiwei wiped away her tears: “What Brother just told you is our secret, Xiaoyue can’t tell anyone else.”

“Okay, brother, pinky promise.”

Xie Shiwei smiled, his little finger hooked Xiaoyue’s slightly cold hand: “Okay, let’s go back to sleep.”

“Brother Shiwei, this room is all white, it’s scary. I want to sleep with you and Brother He Qin, I’m going to a new home soon, and I won’t be able to sleep with you anymore.”

Xie Shiwei thought for a moment and nodded in agreement, telling Xiaoyue to wait here. Then he went all the way back to his room and headed to He Qin’s room.

The door wasn’t closed.

Inside the room, He Qin was also awake. A flash of lightning outside the window made his dark eyes frighteningly bright in the rainy night as he stared at him, as if trying to see through him.

Xie Shiwei suddenly felt a little nervous: “What a coincidence, you’re awake too?”

“The thunder was too loud and woke me up.”

“You’ve been in the room the whole time?”

He Qin said, “Yes.”

Xie Shiwei breathed a sigh of relief.

He had forgotten to close the door in his haste just now. It would be difficult to explain if He Qin heard it.

“Xiaoyue was scared awake. The guest room is quite gloomy. She wants to sleep with both of us, do you mind?”

“I don’t mind.”

“Then I’ll go get her, you go lie down on my bed.”

Xie Shiwei went to the guest room to get Xiaoyue, but Xiaoyue said she wanted to be strong and didn’t let Xie Shiwei carry her. She took her little pillow and crawled onto Xie Shiwei’s big bed. Xie Shiwei praised her for being so great, and he and He Qin lay down on either side of her.

Xiaoyue first kissed He Qin, then kissed Xie Shiwei, and grabbed their arms with her chubby little arms: “This way I won’t be afraid.”

“Okay, go to sleep,” Xie Shiwei said softly.

The bed was very big and soft. Lying on it was like sinking into feathers. Xiaoyue quickly fell asleep, and her little hand gradually loosened. Xie Shiwei pulled the blanket up, turned his head to look at He Qin. He Qin had his eyes closed, breathing calmly, seeming to be asleep as well.

So he turned off the bedside lamp, got under the covers, and also drifted off to sleep.

A few seconds later, He Qin reopened his eyes.

He looked at Xie Shiwei’s blurred profile in the darkness, his eyes extremely gentle, his heart with a slight, dull pain.

He had heard Xie Shiwei tell Xiaoyue with his own mouth that he came from another time-space and talked about his childhood.

He really wanted to hug Xie Shiwei.

.

Early the next morning, He Qin got up first, moving lightly, packed Xiaoyue’s little schoolbag, went to the city to pick up Bai An, and then came to the Xie residence to pick up Xie Shiwei and Xiaoyue.

He drove a six-seater van. Bai An sat in the last row, and Xie Shiwei pulled Xiaoyue to sit in the middle.

Once in the car, Xiaoyue greeted Bai An. Bai An responded with a forced smile, put on his headphones and pretended to sleep, but in reality, nothing was playing in his headphones. He was watching Xie Shiwei and He Qin’s every move.

He Qin and Xie Shiwei talked about the day’s itinerary and precautions. They exchanged questions and answers, and the more he listened, the more uncomfortable and jealous he became. He tightly closed his eyes.

The car drove from the highway exit toward the mountains. He Qin always drove very fast, but on the winding mountain road, he slowed down for safety reasons. The curves became more and more numerous, and the car became more and more bumpy. Xiaoyue fell asleep on Xie Shiwei’s lap. Xie Shiwei felt a little dizzy and gently leaned his head against the car window.

He Qin saw it in the rearview mirror and asked him if he needed to get out of the car to rest.

Xie Shiwei frowned: “No need, don’t waste time, let’s get to the Black Mountain Orphanage as soon as possible.”

Then Bai An noticed that the car speed was slightly faster than before.

His gaze passed over Xie Shiwei’s head, staring at He Qin with deep resentment. He didn’t understand why, in just one month, his Brother He Qin was becoming more and more concerned about this villainous Xie Shiwei, so concerned about his words, so concerned about his feelings. Xie Shiwei hadn’t even said he was uncomfortable, and he had already noticed first.

And what about him?

Was the friendship they had since childhood worth nothing?

.

At ten o’clock in the morning, the car drove into the Black Mountain Orphanage parking lot.

After the rain, the mountain was shrouded in mist, with the fragrance of grass and trees. The orphanage had a red roof and white walls, lying prostrate in the mountains like an oil painting.

The gray-haired old director and a woman in her fifties came out to greet them.

Xiaoyue ran to the woman, pointing to her cochlear implant excitedly: “Teacher He! Look! I can hear again, and I can speak again!”

The head of the Black Mountain Orphanage was the He family, father and daughter. The father had been the director for more than sixty years, and the daughter had been teaching here all along, teaching all subjects alone, and was the enlightenment teacher for all the children who left the orphanage.

Bai An respectfully walked towards the two elders, took out his painting, and handed it to them. Ms. He put down Xiaoyue, took Bai An’s painting, and smiled from ear to ear: “An’an is a great artist now, teacher is proud of you.”

Bai An said shyly: “Teacher, Director, I’ll paint portraits for you later, and another one for our orphanage.”

Ms. He carefully put away the painting: “Xiao An is too kind. Xiao Qin, you’ve also worked hard taking care of Xiaoyue’s affairs, thank you. If it weren’t for you, I really wouldn’t know what to do.”

He Qin shook his head. Old He and Ms. He then turned their attention to Xie Shiwei, and were quite emotional for a moment.

Xie Shiwei approached and politely greeted them.

Ms. He took his hand: “Shiwei, thank you for saving Xiaoyue. To be honest, when Xiao Qin told us this news, we couldn’t believe it.”

Old He sighed and tapped the ground lightly with his crutch: “Alright, alright, you have to say this too!”

Xie Shiwei laughed: “It’s okay, I did do a lot of wrong things before, it’s good that you two don’t hold it against me.”

Hearing this, He Qin led the topic away: “Let’s go in, let Xiaoyue go back to rest first, and let Bai An talk to you, he’s going back to the United States next month, and who knows where he’ll settle after returning to the country.”

Bai An suddenly felt as if a basin of ice water had been poured over him, and forced himself to cheer up: “Brother Xiao Qin, I’ll try to come back to Jiangcheng to work.”

He clenched his palms and thought silently, no matter what, he would always stay by his brother’s side.