Chasing Her Idol
#9 December 2010#
Several days passed and it was Chen Rumin's last day working as a lecturer at University M. Her last class was actually ended three days ago, but she still came to her workplace to clear up her table and assisted the students who came to ask for her last guidance.
Chen Rumin entered her house with her both hand hold plastic of groceries. There were extra shoes at the entrance and she heard giggles and talking sound from Chen Ziyi's bedroom.
She then took out the groceries from the plastic and put them on the tabletop. Her eyes caught a nine inch flat white box on the dining table before walked closer to Chen Ziyi's bedroom.
The door was closed so she knocked the door lightly before her hand grabbed the door knob pushed the door open. Chen Ziyi was sitting on her bed with Han Meirong also sitting on the bed beside her daughter.
There was another girl with a half-dutch ponytail sitting on the chair that Chen Ziyi would usually sat when she did her homework.
"Good evening, Aunt Chen." Both Han Meirong and Lin Chao-xing stood while greeting Chen Rumin. Chen Rumin nodded with a smile, looking at the two girls same age with her daughter.
"How long have you been here?" Chen Rumin asked looking at them. In front of her daughter, there was her daughter blue Acer Swift laptop. It seemed to her that the three girls in front of her were doing something with the laptop.
"They came after lunch time." Chen Ziyi answered the question on behalf of her friends.
It has been several days passed since they met, and they still had few days before they went to separate ways.
Han Meirong was bored at her home since she too had finished packed her things that she would bring to YangJia High School. As the school she was going to attend by next month would be literally far from her home, she accepted the offer made by YangJia's administration to stay at the hostel provided by them.
She would stay at the Capital until she graduated, so she had to make sure the things that she need to bring along was packed earlier so she would not be in rushing at the day she set off to the new school. She also wanted to quickly finish all the packing because she could get more time to spend with her family for the rest of vacation days.
When she was contemplating on what to do for the rest of the day, Lin Chao-xing texted her said she was bored. Apparently, Lin Chao-xing was also in quite similar situation with her that she texted her out of the blue.
Actually, Lin Chao-xing texted everyone privately. She wanted to see if there was anyone who would entertain her and Han Meirong coincidentally read her text right after she send it. Han Meirong chuckled at that and replied.
[Han Meirong]: Where is your other two best friends?
[Lin Chao-xing]: You are the first one replied to me. And I think Wan Zhen's phone is off.
[Han Meirong]: Fang Peizhi?
[Lin Chao-xing]: I think she sleep. No one other than you who are replying to me-wait! I think I got another one who replied to me.
Han Meirong laughed reading the text. She could imagine what kind of style Lin Chao-xing speaking to her.
[Lin Chao-xing]: Ziyi replied to me. She replied 'It's too late for us to plan to have a date. Perhaps you want to come to my house. I am alone in my home right now.' You know, Meirong. When she talked like that, it's like she was talking to a man and invited the man to her house as she was alone in her house.
[Han Meirong]: How many drama's you watched for you to get to this point?
Han Meirong was laughing hard at how Lin Chao-xing funny imagination. At the same time, at that moment the reply from Chen Ziyi was actually just a casual invitation.
She did not really expected that Lin Chao-xing would take on the invitation as a truly invitation although she did not mind at all if Lin Chao-xing really accept that offer.
At the end, Lin Chao-xing asked Han Meirong to tag along. Although Chen Ziyi had opened up to them, she would still feel awkward for her alone go to Chen Ziyi's place. Among them, Han Meirong could be considered as the friendliest one with Chen Ziyi so there would at least have a bridge between her and Chen Ziyi.
Meanwhile, Chen Ziyi never had the thought of any awkwardness. She texted her mother afterwards to inform her of her friends visiting them.
"Will both of you stay for dinner then? My cooking is not bad," Chen Rumin asked.
"Well, if it is not troubling you, we will accept that offer. Hehe" Lin Chao-xing cheerily said before she continued.
"Aunt Chen, the tart on the dining table is for you. My aunt bought for you."
When Lin Chao-xing told her mother that she wanted to go play at Chen Ziyi's house, her aunt was at the living room. Her aunt hurriedly offered to send her and dropped by at a dessert shop to buy a tart as a souvenir for Chen Rumin.
At that time, Lin Chao-xing could see her aunt was like a young girl chasing her idol and would do anything for that idol's attention.
"How thoughtful that junior of mine. I will make a call to personally thank her later. Do both of you have any allergies to any food?"
"No. I can eat anything." Lin Chao-xing said.
"Other than nuts, I can eat everything," Han Meirong said.
"Okay then. I will go cook," Chen Rumin left the door open when she left to the kitchen.
Han Meirong and Lin Chao-xing took their seat after Chen Rumin left.
"Your aunt is my mom's junior?"
"Um. My aunt was your mom's university junior. In fact, all the things-" Lin Chao-xing was going to say more but she suddenly stopped, hesitate to continue, upon she realized something.
Chen Ziyi who leaned her body at the headboard, noticed the suddenness, with her clueless face, raised her brow at Lin Chao-xing.
Tightened her lip, Lin Chao-xing was not sure whether she should say the things that she was going to tell her. Her gaze that was previously on Chen Ziyi darted on Han Meirong.
Han Meirong did not know what exactly that made Lin Chao-xing stopped from going further, so she was also wearing a clueless expression, which later made Lin Chao-xing wanted to smack her forehead.
Her eyes would later subconsciously steal glance on the bedroom door that was not tightly closed. There was still small gap left as apparently Chen Rumin might not put a bit more strength when she closed the door.
"All the things...?" Chen Ziyi repeated back Lin Chao-xing's last sentence before she left them hang. She did not missed the ask-for-help looks that Lin Chao-xing made to Han Meirong, which unfortunately the later seemed was clueless as she tilted her head, and raised a brow, silently implying 'what' to Lin Chao-xing.
Han Meirong in truth, also aware of the looks that Lin Chao-xing gave to her after she realized the long gaze that she received from that friend of hers, but she did not exactly know what was it that Lin Chao-xing ask her help for.
She herself wanted to smack her own head for not able to understand what was her friend trying to tell her. Where was her skill in reading the situation go?
She wanted to hide and buried her face somewhere, but since she was unable to do so, she could only grinned with apologetic look at Lin Chao-xing.
"Is it something that you can't say to us?" Chen Ziyi asked.
"Yeah.-Maybe something about your aunt?" Han Meirong added.
Lin Chao-xing froze like a statue for a second upon both of them threw the question to her. Her eyes stared at Chen Ziyi and Han Meirong forth and back before her eyes squinted again at Han Meirong.
She was obviously sending hint to Han Meirong, but it seemed not getting through her. So upon Han Meirong not helping her but instead 'help' Chen Ziyi pursuing the matter, during that moment, a realization hit her.
She could never-thought that- the friend that always quick at read situation better than any people would seem so-clueless and even throw an innocent look to her.
Released a long breathe, she shook her head, acting like she was disappointed, before she bowed down, grabbed the small cushion that was on the floor, then threw it off to Han Meirong.
"You, Han Meirong! I can't believe that you can be that clueless!" Lin Chao-xing shrieked through her gritted teeth.
The cushion was a soft one but because it was accurately aimed at Han Meirong's face, the cushion did interfere Han Meirong's sight for a second and Han Meirong was caught off guard because of that.
"Hey! -What- What did I do wrong?" Han Meirong stuttered.
"YOU! I thought you can read situation better than this."
"Read situation? I didn't even know what are the things you were trying to tell us. And I never know your aunt, how would I know something related to her? As a person, of course it pique my interest too."