You muster up your strength to stare her in the eyes.  You notice how cold they are when she looks at Tao, and even more intimidating when she looks at you. 

                She’s tall and thin and exotically beautiful.  Like brother like sister.  She stands with a distinguished posture, unlike Tao’s timid one.  Her makeup is thick and her waist is cinched.  There’s not a hair out of place on her figure.

                “You’re…Zi Yun?” Tao probes, attempting to make his voice sound stronger than he feels. 

She straightens her back and smirks at him confidently.  “The one and only.  And I know your name.” 

She directs her attention to you.  “And you are…”

You fumble to introduce yourself, but her splendor makes you feel weak and inferior.

Tao clears his throat.  “We’ll familiarize in a moment,” he answers gruffly.  He keeps his hand clasps around yours.  You don’t have to look at him to know that he understands. 

“Let’s sit.”

First meetings are meant to go well, or they remain in your mind as one of the worst experiences of your life.  With Zi Yun, there was no telling.

Her words seem indifferent and spiteful, yet she keeps a vibrant grin the entire meeting.  She sits across from you and Tao, with her legs crossed one over the other, and her diamond ring tapping rhythmically against the wooden table as she speaks.

She tells her story, of being boarded by a family and receiving funds for schooling in America.  She talks about her modeling job and her villa in the countryside.  She complains about the poorly photocopied birth certificates that she received in the mail two days ago, and how dull life is in this tired city. 

Not once, does she ask how her brother has lived for the past twenty years.  Not once does she wonder about how long it took for Tao to find her, or how much he left behind in order to remember. 

So Tao keeps to himself.  You want to speak up for him, but find it improper to disrupt the relationship between a sister and a brother—though they sit and stare at each other like strangers.

Zi Yun breaks the peaceful tension after a long sigh.

“I don’t see the point in meeting up like this,” she shrugs. 

You can’t believe your ears.

“I’ve never thought about having a brother,” she continues.  “Just because two people come begging to see me, doesn’t mean I’ll let them in and act like they’re family.”  She reaches into her bag and retrieves the birth certificates that Tao given her.  “I’ve never had a family nor have I demanded for one.  Don’t waste your time looking for me.”

Your head spins with discontentment.

Zi Yun frowns for a moment, then drops the certificates on the table.  Her cold-blooded gaze fixes on Tao for the last time, and the rapping of her heels are heard until the door of the café closes with a ring.

You sense Tao’s body stiffen.  It’s upsetting, the way his jaw is clenching and unclenching.  Crying without crying.

“Tao,” you begin.  “Listen, this is…I’ll—”

He cuts you off by pushing his chair back and standing quickly, the iciness in his eyes returning.  He doesn’t want to look at you so he picks up the papers on the table and stares at them instead.

“It’s all right.  Let’s go home.”