"I, I'll give you a week. How about that?"  

Wu Fan raised his eyes and looked at the old lady in front of him. The old lady he was forced to call 'grandma'. The old lady who never allowed him call her 'grandma'. The old lady who, right at this moment' looks at him as a grandma. A real one.

He opens his mouth to say something, then closes it and hesitates a little. "There's no need."

She looks at him with questioning look.

"I'll go. I'll go with you."

And that's about it. That's how things are settled. That is how his mother knows about it when she comes in few minutes later as they both tell her the decision they made. That is how Zi Tao looks at Wu Fan who refuses to make an eye contact with any of his family members. That is how his dad leaves the room with Zi Tao soon after him while his mother throws a fit and yells at the grandma.

Wu Fan feels as if he watches it all from above. He forgets to cry when his mother leaves hysterically and his grandmother stares at him blankly. He puts his head on his pillow and closes his eyes. He doesn't remember when was the last time he fell asleep so fast.

When he opens his eyes, his mother is sitting beside his hospital bed. He almost thinks he's at home, back to his childhood bed when he was sick and his mom would sit next to the bed all night, till his fever is gone, caressing his head gently while quietly singing old Chinese lullaby.

When she smiles at him, that's when it hits him it's all too fresh and real right now. Her eyes are red and she looks extremely tired.

"Hi baby…" she says weakly, voice hoarse. He says nothing in return, feeling tears coming up.

"Have you slept well?" she moves some hair from his eyes. He closes his eyes and nods, already crying. She whispers hushed "Shh" and "it's okay"s until he feels sleepy again.

The next time he wakes up, his dad sits on the armchair close to the bed, reading a newspaper while his mother arranges some flowers on the small table in the room.

He sighs and pushes one of the buttons  next to the bed, making the bed go to sitting position. His father notices and helps him sit comfortable while his mother brings him a very needed glass of water. It's all too quiet.

In order not to make things harder later, he drinks the water and holds the glass tightly as he says, "I'm going with grandma to China."

His father looks at him surprised, face expression similar to his mother.

The elder man clears his throat, "Wu Fan-"

"I know what you're about to say. Both of you." He cuts him off and looks at the glass in his hands as if it's the most interesting thing in the whole world. "She did not force me into anything. We talked and I just decided it's the right thing to do."

"Wu Fan, you listen to me now!" his mother pointed at him, angry expression taking over her face. "We are your parents no matter what. We raised you and watched you grow up. You will do as we say right now, you are not going anywhere and that's the end of this discussion!"

He looked at her, then averted his gaze. "She told me about…" his voice quieted.

"About what?" his mother was in an attack-mode and it seemed even a tank wouldn't be able to stop her.

"…about Meilin."

She gasped. His father took a step back and sat back on the armchair heavily.

"No. No, no no no. Wu Fan! Whatever she told you, whatever it was, it's in the past! Nothing matters right now, not a thing, do you hear me?" She didn't seem to give up. Wu Fan felt happy yet frustrated.

"Mom, please-"

"No! I am not willing to listen!"

He sighed with his father at once. They looked at eachother and laughed weakly.

"Mom, look," he looked at her again, "I'm not saying I want to become engrossed in anything happened in the past. I'm just saying it'll be better for everyone now. If she really is as powerful and  bad as grandma says, you will be uneasy and I don't think she'll give up. All of your friends are somewhat like you in that aspect.

His mother hugged herself and looked away, frowning. "If there's anyone who can protect you from her, it's your parents."

His father cleared his throat again, "Actually, that is where you're wrong honey."

They both looked at him, it was rare for him to disagree with her.

"I. I talked with mother." He said looking at the shocked woman in front of him.

"Wha- Why would you-" she seemed lost and hurt, "we already talked about it! He stays with us!"

Wu Fan's dad looked at him, "I think the right thing to do is to let Wu Fan choose."

When they were both out of his room, Wu Fan took a paper from the nightstand next to his bed together with a pen. He wrote what he was afraid to say.

Wu Yi Fan.

Wu.

Yi.

Fan.

"Wu Yi Fan." He whispered and it sounded foreign. Out of place.

All that's left now is to tell Zi Tao. He asked his parents to let him do it, when he finds it right.

"You'll be okay." Wu Fan said as he unlocked his phone and looked at his wallpaper. Him and Zi Tao smiling as if they own the world.

--

A/N: Thank you for reading. Thank you for still being here.

The chapter is not edited so there might be some mistakes.

(cr for the picture to rightful owner)

BTW, there's about 3 chapters left to the end of this story. yay ;-;