87: A DATE WITH DAD (II)

A DATE WITH DAD (II)

LUO YAN bit into the crepe he's holding.  He smiled happily when he tasted the cream and the strawberry.  It was almost five o'clock in the afternoon.  He and his father arrived here ten in the morning.  Who would have thought that they would spend the whole day here?  Even Luo Yan was surprised that his father lasted this long.  He really thought that after just an hour or two he would ask him to leave and go to a different place.0

He felt truly loved.

He saw a stand selling ice cream.  He finished eating the crepe and wanted to ask his father to buy him one.

"Xiao Yan, that's the last one, okay?  You can't eat anymore sweets today," his father suddenly said, as if reading his mind.

Luo Yan looked longingly at the ice cream stand.  But in the end, he could only pout and said, "Okay."

Luo Wei Tian patted his son's head and then he noticed the cream on the lower side of his lips.  He took out a handkerchief and gently wiped it.  "You, how could you eat like a child?" he said helplessly.

Luo Yan was about to defend himself when he suddenly heard the conversation of two teenage girls behind them.

"What do you think is their relationship?" asked one.  "Do you think they're in that kind of relationship?"

"I don't know.  But I heard the younger one call the other 'Dad'," said the other.

"Who knows.  Maybe that's the new way sugar babies call their sugar daddies.  Just look how sweet they are to each other.  They're definitely in that kind of relationship."

"Now that you said that, it probably really is."

If Luo Yan heard it, of course, his father did too.

Luo Wei Tian's face became full of black lines.  He glanced back at the two girls and looked at them coldly.  "This is my son.  Young ladies should cleanse their mind and try not to think of dirty thoughts."

The two teenage girls blushed, not just from embarrassment but because this uncle really looked good.  They didn't have time to respond because the man already pulled his son away.

Luo Yan gazed up at his father's dark expression.  His father – a serious minded businessman – actually argued with two teenagers.  He couldn't help but chuckle.

"Is Xiao Yan laughing at Dad?" Luo Wei Tian said with a bit of grievance in his tone.

Luo Yan stared at him.  His father was really getting better and better at selling meng.  "No.  It's because Dad looks so young and handsome."

"And now you're just teasing me."

He only grinned widely at him.  

They walked a bit more until Luo Yan pulled his father towards the ferris wheel.  They lined up at the ticketing booth.  It didn't take long before it was their turn.  Luo Yan first went in at the passenger car that was stopped in front of them, he was quickly followed by his father.

The ferris wheel moved in its signature slow rhythm. 

Luo Yan looked out of the passenger car and stared at the sky.  The blue horizon was slowly starting to change.  Rich hues of red blending with orange and crimson.  A sign of the soon setting sun.  When they reached the top, he could clearly see the sky's beauty.  

Luo Yan couldn't help but sigh.  "Sunsets are truly beautiful."

"Why does Xiao Yan think that?"

He looked back at his father.  "Because it's the time of the day when the lights in the sky look the best."

Suddenly, the image of his second son overlapped with the image of another person in Luo Wei Tian's mind.  That of a woman with the same big peach blossom eyes and a smile that could melt anyone's heart.  His mind became blank and he simply couldn't think of anything.

Luo Yan immediately noticed this.  "Dad, is there something wrong."

Luo Wei Tian tried to smile but his face only contorted into a somewhat ugly expression.  He looked down and tried to breath evenly.  The wound that was always there inside his heart seemed to start bleeding again.

"Dad?" Luo Yan called again.    

He clenched and unclenched his fists.  He made sure that his expression was back to normal before raising his head and looked out over the horizon.  "Nothing.  I just suddenly remembered your mother.  She used to say the same thing, you see.  That sunsets were the best time of the day when the sky gathered the most beautiful light."

Luo Yan didn't know how to answer back to that.  Because he didn't expect that the original body's mother would actually have the same thoughts about sunsets as him.  Truthfully, when it came to Bai Mei Hua, he didn't know what to feel.  But because of the lingering emotions of the original owner, even if he didn't want to, there's a deep affection in his heart that one could only feel for his mother.

Despite his confused emotion, Luo Yan was certain of one thing.  That he was grateful to Bai Mei Hua.  Because without her sacrifice, he wasn't sure if he could even wake up and be reborn again in this body.

Looking at his father and the pain that flashed in his eyes but tried hard to hide, he couldn't help but also feel a bit discomfort inside.  He didn't like seeing him like this.  Or any of his brothers, for that matter.  If he could, he truly wanted them to always smile and be filled with happiness.   

"Mom is definitely looking after us in heaven.  I'm sure she wouldn't want you or Brother or Ah Jin to be sad because of her.  She'd probably want to be remembered with a smile rather than with sadness.  I think… I think if we're happy, it would also be her happiness."

Luo Wei Tian didn't expect for his son to say that.  It was a bit of a sloppy way of comforting, but his heart still felt comforted.  The pain he was feeling slowly receded.  "Thank you, Xiao Yan."

Luo Yan was glad to see his father smile again.  

Soon, the ferris wheel ride stopped.  Luo Yan got out and looked up at the sky.

[I'm sorry, Mom – can I call you that?  I'm sorry for saying those things as if I know what you're feeling.  But I truly believe that you would want them to be happy, right?  So in your place, I swear, I would love and cherish them and do my best to protect them.]

As if answering him, a soft breeze blew in his direction.  Leaving a tender kiss on his cheek.

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