-Lei Zhao

Lei Xiao Tong slowly looked at Lei Zhao’s face. She raised her shaky hands and brought it to Lei Zhao’s face cupping his cheek.

Lei Zhao smiled and leaned into his mother’s palms.

”Mom..”

Hearing her son’s voice, Lei Xiao Tong’s stomach and throat tightened.

Fear grabbed unto Lei Xiao Tong. She wanted to ask how, why? But she couldn’t.

More tears spilled began to spill from her helpless eyes but the tears weren’t for the death of her son. No, it was for the feeling of being wrong.

Lei Xiao Tong felt like fate was playing with her. She could still feel the emptiness in her heart.

The sheer of nothingness that coursed through her soul and the helpless feeling like the weight of the world was on her heart.

As a mother who had lost both of her sons the numbness that washed over her made her lips trembled until she bit them.

”Please-say something.” Lei Zhao began to panic when he saw his mother just looking at him without saying anything.

Lei Zhao turned to look at his father for help.

”Honey, see our son. He is alive not dead.” Mr. Lei said softly as he placed a hand on his wife’s shoulder.

”Mom-are you okay?” Lei Zhao asked as worry etched in his voice.

Lei Xiao Tong nodded and finally a smile spilled from her lips.

”My Little Zhao is really alive.” She said as she turned to look at her husband standing beside her.

”Yes, yes. Your Little Zhao is alive. How can I die? I still haven’t taken you for a walk along the beach when you get old.”

Lei Zhao smiled as she said. Lei Xiao Tong cried and laughed at once when she heard him.

Tears of joy of having her son back mingled with tears of relief of seeing him again.

Lei Xiao Tong turned her head squarely towards her husband and grasped his hands on her shoulder.

Lei Zhao wiped the tears under his mother’s eyes and planted a kiss on her cheeks.

”Sorry Mom. I made you worried.” Lei Zhao mumbled.

”You’re back that’s the most important thing. Where is Yan Mei? You should contact her, I’m sure she must be worried about not hearing from you.”

Lei Xiao Tong said anxiously.

”She is here Mom. Look.”

Lei Zhao said as he pointed at the door. Yan Mei was awkwardly standing there as she fidgeted.

She felt like she was intruding on their happy reunion.

”Mom..” she squeezed out a smile awkwardly.

Lei Xiao Tong frowned when she saw Yan Mei’s puffy eyes. She felt like Yan Mei had lost weight

”XiaoMei, what happened to you? Come here let mom look at you.”

Yan Mei walked inside the room and greeted Mr. Lei.

”Dad..”

Mr. Lei nodded and smiled softly at her.

Lei Zhao stood up from the floor and sat beside his mother on the bed.

”XiaoMei are you okay? Why is your eyes puffy?”

Lei Xiao Tong asked with concern in her tone.

”I’m fine Mom. It just…”

Yan Mei trailed off. She didn’t want to tell Lei Xiao Tong that Lei Zhao died and she nearly killed a team of doctors due to her rage.

”Were you scared that something had happened to Lei Zhao?”

Lei Xiao Tong asked.

Yan Mei nodded, “Yeah, he wasn’t picking my calls and I couldn’t reach him. I thought something had happened to him. But fortunately he is okay.”

Yan Mei said as she looked at Lei Zhao who was ardently staring at her.

Lei Xiao Tong nodded, “Lei Zhao you’re now back. Go home with Yan Mei and rest. Tomorrow we will talk.”

Even though Lei Xiao Tong wanted to talk to his son, she knew the young couple needed time to talk.

Lei Xiao Tong was afraid Yan Mei would misunderstand her son. So she wanted them to go home so that they could talk.

She held Lei Zhao’s hand and squeezed it gently.

”Remember to coax XiaoMei. A wife goes through a great agony when she doesn’t hear from her husband for days. Especially when she is afraid that something happened to him”.

She whispered in his son’s ears before turning to smile at Yan Mei.

Lei Zhao nodded and stood up.

”Mom, I will see you tomorrow.”

”Alright. Remember what I told you.”

Lei Zhao nodded, said goodbye to his father and walked out the room with Yan Mei.

Lei Zhao came downstairs to meet Jun Mo and Henry Liu standing in the living room. Because he was in a hurry to see his mother he didn’t pay attention to his friends when they reached the house.

He rushed to his parents room, the moment he got down from the car.

Lei Zhao looked at his elegant friends whose eyes were puffy and had dark circles and he raised his eyebrows.

”What happened to you? You look awful.”

Edward Wu rolled his eyes and leaned against the sofa.

”Lei Zhao.” Henry Liu said as he rushed into Lei Zhao’s arms.

”I was so afraid…I thought..I wouldn’t see you again.”

Henry Liu said as tears ran down his cheeks. Lei Zhao squinted his eyes when he saw the tears in his friend’s eyes.

”You’re crying because you thought I was dead?”

Lei Zhao asked awkwardly.

Henry Liu nodded, “Yes.”

”Oh,” Lei Zhao turned to look at Edward Wu who just shrugged at him.

”He was pretty messed up when he got the news about your accident.” Edward Wu said as he stared at Yan Mei standing beside Lei Zhao.

Feeling his eyes on her, Yan Mei looked at him. She saw the questions and curiosity in his eyes but she just ignored him.

Lei Zhao patted his shoulder..

”I’m here now, don’t worry.”

Henry Liu nodded and wiped his tears.

Lei Zhao was touched by his friends. Never in his wildest dreams did he think Henry Liu will cry if something happens to him. Or Edward Wu who was always calm will lose his cool or Jun Mo will take care of his wife.

He smiled at his friends, “I will like to catch up but my wife is tired. I will see you guys later.”

Jun Mo frowned, “Lei Zhao are you really okay? Don’t you have any headaches or feel any pain? Did the doctors perform tests on you?”

Jun Mo asked worriedly. As a western doctor, he couldn’t believe that his friend was totally fine.

”Yeah Doc. I’m fine. Just burns at my back but I will live.”

Lei Zhao said as he heaved a sigh.

Jun Mo knitted his brows but he nodded at his friends.

”I will ask grandfather to give you medicine so that no scars are left at your back.”

Lei Zhao nodded, “Alright.”

”Thank you guys for everything.”

Edward Wu rolled his eyes and stood up.

”Don’t make me waste my time again. If you can’t protect yourself go back to the military for training or I can let you join my Mafia.”

”Yeah, I love you too.” Lei Zhao retorted at his friend.

Edward Wu wrinkled his nose in disgust and turned to look at Yan Mei.

The temperature dropped at his words and Lei Zhao turned to his wife who was glaring at him.

”Wifey,you know I’m just joking. How can I love this ugly man.”

Lei Zhao said as he pulled his wife in his arms.

Edward Wu and Jun Mo shook their heads.

”Let me take you guys home before you poison us with your shamelessness.”

Edward Wu said as he frowned at them.

———-

Yan Mei looked at the time and realized it’s a quarter past seven o’clock pm. She dialed her grandfather’s number the moment they got home.

She had left abruptly, she knew her grandfather would be worried about her.

On a single ring the call was picked up by the old man.

”Grandpa,” Yan Mei greeted the moment the call was picked up.

Grandpa coughed before he replied her.

”Yan Mei where are you? Are you okay? You said you were going to your in-laws but you never came back or called me. Is your husband okay?”

Grandpa Yan asked a series of questions before taking a deep breath.

Hearing her grandfather’s distressed voice Yan Mei felt a pang in her heart.

”I’m fine, Grandpa. Lei Zhao is also fine. I came back to our house with him.”

Yan Mei explained to the old man

”That’s good. As long as you’re okay. Remember to take care of yourself.”

”Alright Grandpa. See you tomorrow.”

”Okay.”

Yan Mei hung up the phone and rubbed her temples.

Lei Zhao grabbed her shoulders and buried his head into her neck. He breathed her in.

”Wifey, are you okay? Do you have a headache?”

Lei Zhao whispered into her ears.

”Yeah, I’m fine. Just it had been a couple of rough hours. ” Yan Mei chuckled as she said.

”Won’t you ask me how I found you? Why my father looks young or how he was able to bring you back? Don’t you want to know?”

Lei Zhao shook his head, “No. I know you have your reasons for hiding all of this. Because of me you revealed your secrets. Sorry Wifey.”

Lei Zhao said as he turned her around.

Yan Mei stared into his eyes, “Aren’t you,…. aren’t you afraid of me? I’m a monster.”

Lei Zhao chuckled, “Yes you’re a monster but you’re a beautiful monster. And you’re mine.”

Lei Zhao flickered her nose, “My beautiful monster.” He whispered against her lips.