Sylvia sat on her bed as she stared at the paper butterfly in her hand. A few months ago, when she made that paper butterfly, so she could wish for Wes' happiness. She didn't give it to him that time, and decided to keep it until the day she could finally wish him  well. The time she made that paper butterfly, it was the time Tia left Wes. She knew how hurt Wes was at that time. And now, she think Wes is hurt because of her. 

"Was it  bad that I rejected him? But for now I only want to be friends. I feel guilty..." she said. Then, she let out a sigh. "I didn't want to hurt Zheng, but, I can't accept him when I know I'm not ready, and when I know I'm still confused with what I feel..." she said in a low voice. 

She didn't want to hurt him, that's the last thing she wanted to do. But, she doesn't know how to face this kind of dilemma. "I'm sorry, Zheng..." she whispered as a tear from her eyes. "I'm so sorry for hurting you..."

--

"Chun ge, what's for dinner?" Wes said as she went down the stairs. "Sweet and Sour Pork." Chun said. He saw the older guy put the plates on the table. "Great! I can eat a lot today." he told him. He sat down, and put some food on his plate. 

"Are you doing anything tomorrow after school?" Chun asked him. Wes shook his head. "Why, Chun ge?" Wes asked. "It's Ella's birthday the day after tomorrow. I was planning to do some groceries so I can cook her favorite food and bake her favorite cake. Can you help me?" Chun asked. Wes smiled, and nodded his head. "I'm also planning to go to the orphanage and pick up Stephy. She also wants to surprise Ella. But if I cant do that tomorrow, I'll probably pick her up the next day." Chun said. 

Wes' eyes widened upon hearing that. "Stephy? Ella jie's little friend?" he asked. Chun nodded his head. Wes let out a wide smile. "Wow, so you two have decided to adopt Stephy?" he asked. Chun nodded his head. "But it will be a long process. Aside from that, Ella and I needs to reconcile first before we could finally adopt her." Chun told him. 

"Well, I hope you and Ella jie would be able to reconcile on her birthday. So that you could adopt Stephy, and you  three can become a real family." Wes told him. Chun smiled at him. "I hope I can make Ella really happy that day." he said. "I'm sure you will. I promise, I'll help you with it." he said. 

--

The next morning. 

Sylvia waited in front of the door. Soon after, it opened, and Wes got out of the house.When Wes saw her, he paused for a while. "Fei Fei..." he said. She looked at him sadly. "Zheng..." she called him in a low voice. Then, he let out a forced smile. He ruffled her hair. "What are you sad for? It's early in the morning." he said. 

She was surprised at his reaction. She was expecting him to be upset at her, or even be sad. But, he simply smiled at her. "He kept his promise... to forget what he said yesterday, and to go back to being my big brother. But why do I feel hurt?" she asked herself as she followed behind him. Both of them were silent as they walk to school, and she isn't used to Wes being this quiet.

She reached for his hand, and touched it. Wes paused from walking, and looked at her. She looked up at him, and before she could look into his eyes, he looked away. "If you walk really slow, we won't be able to get breakfast." he told her. 

His voice seemed cold. She retreated her hand, and let go  of his hand. She could only stare at his back as they walk to school. She lowered her head as she walked. She wanted to cry, but she can't cry in front of him. 

"Ah, Fei Fei. I forgot that Dylan need me this morning. Are you OK to buy your breakfast on your own?" Wes asked her. Sylvia looked up at him, and nodded her head. Before he could turn away, she saw the sadness in his eyes. 

"I have to get going. I'll see you later." he said before he began to walk faster. Before she knew it, he was out of her sight. She bit her lips, still trying her best not to cry. "Maybe he needs space..." she told herself. 

--

The whole day, Wes kept himself busy with school. He had a meeting with the student council that morning. There was no time for him and Sylvia to talk, which made Sylvia a little upset. 

"Are you all right?" Diana asked Sylvia, seeing the sad look on her face. Sylvia nodded her head. She looked outside the window, and saw Wes joking with Win and Evan. "Do you think we could go back to how we were before?" she asked. This made Diana confused. 

"What do you mean? Is there something wrong?" Diana asked her. Then, Sylvia looked at Diana. "Diana, you know, yesterday, I asked Zheng if he likes me."

"And?"

"He said he does like me more than a friend."

With that, Diana let out a smile. "Really? Did you accept him?" she asked. Sylvia shook her head. With that, Diana's smile slowly faded. "But why?" she asked. "I got scared. I didn't want anything to change between us." 

"Sylvia, are you really that scared to love again, that you have to reject Wes?" 

Sylvia looked at her. She knew Diana was disappointed at her. "I'm sorry. I know your breakup with Sam had a huge impact on you. But Wes... he's the last person you want to hurt right? So that's why he seems to avoiding you today..."

"But he promised we'll go back to being best friends. Why do I feel that he's being cold to me?"

"Do you really think things will go back to how it was before, knowing that he had fallen in love with you? Of course, Wes would be upset. He's going to be hurt. But you just have to  let him be for now. You can't just ask him to befriends right away."

Sylvia looked outside the window again. Seeing Wes made her feel a tug in her heart. She just wanted her big brother back. 

--

It was lunch break and Wes was sitting alone at the bleachers. He did his best today to avoid Sylvia, because seeing her only hurts him more. 

"Why are you alone here?" someone asked. He looked up, and saw Wayne walking up to him. "You didn't join us for lunch. Why?" Wayne asked as he sat beside him. "Nothing. I just want to be alone." he told him. Wayne gave him a skeptical look. "Or is it because you're avoiding Sylvia?" Wayne asked. 

Wes then looked at him. "Someone told me that she noticed you were avoiding her the whole morning. And you're being cold to her too." Wayne said. "That someone is your girlfriend, right?" Wes asked. Wayne nodded his head. "Fei Fei is upset..." Wayne said.

Wes let out a bitter laugh. "Why would she be upset?"

"Because you were ignoring her."

"She wanted us to go back to how it was before. This is what she wanted."

"I don't understand, Zheng. What happened, really?"

Wes let out a sigh before telling him everything. "I followed Sylvia yesterday, remember? She wasn't going to the street market. She was going home alone without me. Turns out, she wants to avoid me." Wes told him. "But why would she do that?" 

"She knew I like her. And she confronted me about my feelings for her."

"So you finally told her you like her?"

"I did."

"And?"

"She rejected me."

Wayne's face fell upon hearing that. He looked at Wes, and saw him smiling sadly. "She said she just wanted to be friends, that for her. I'm just her big brother. She asked me to stop liking her. And I agreed." Wes said. Wes looked away, but Wayne could see the sad expression on his face. "But it hurts you know... it hurts. Not because she rejected me. I expected that. It hurts because it felt like I'm not the person anyone could love. I started questioning myself, is there something wrong with me? Why do the people I love end up hurting me? Why can't I be loved? Am I born not to be loved back? Am I not trying harder? Everything came back to me. Why did my mom left me? Didn't she love me? And Tia... why did she chose to leave me and break my heart?"

Tears rolled down his eyes as he spoke. He took a deep breath as he wiped his eyes. "Why do I have to live a life where the people I choose doesn't choose me at all? Am I not worthy of being loved? Because I know for myself, when I love, I give everything that I have. It's just that, I wasn't given the chance..." Wes said tearfully. 

Wayne listened to him as he cried. He patted his back to console him. "Honestly, I don't know the answers to your question. But people love you, Zheng. There's your Aunt Melody, your dad, Sylvia's parents, me and Diana. I know Sylvia loves you too. But the kind of love she have for you is different. She could only love you in a way that she knows how. Sometimes, we get disappointed because we ask for more love than what the other person could give us." Wayne told him. 

Then, Wayne let out a smile. "Have you ever thought that maybe, the reason why Sylvia rejected you is because she's scared?" he asked. Wes gave him a puzzled look. "We saw how hurt she is with Sam back then. He's her first love, remember. He's also her first heartbreak. Maybe she got scared to be hurt again. Or, maybe she's scared she'll hurt you in the end. You are important to her, and I know she doesn't want to hurt you. If she accepted your confession, knowing that she still has not moved on from Sam, she'll only hurt you. Think of her rejection as her saving you from future heartache." Wayne said. 

For Wes, Wayne is right. Maybe she's still scared. Maybe it's not yet the right time for them. He needs to give Sylvia enough time to heal, and he needs to give himself time too. Wayne put his arm around Wes, and smiled at him. "Don't worry, maybe for now, you and Sylvia can't be together. But at the right time, and the right moment, she will finally accept your love." he told him. Wes finally let out a smile at him. "Are you a love expert?" he asked. Both of them just laughed. 

--

"P'Sylvia, I just need to bring something for Dylan, then I'll come back for our cleaning duties, all right?" Sunnee told Sylvia as soon as the bell rang. "Hey, we also need to go. Wayne wanted to go to the comic bookstore." Diana told her. Sylvia just nodded her head.

Everyone left the classroom, making Sylvia and Wed alone together. There was a long, uncomfortable silence between the two of them. "Uhmmm... you're on cleaning duties today, right?" Wes finally asked her. Sylvia nodded her head. Then, he stood up from his seat, and took his bag. "Then, I should get going. I'm sorry, I can't wait for you, or walk you home. I promised Chun ge I'll go with him to do some shopping today." he told him. 

Sylvia looked at him as he turned his back on her. As he made a few steps, she stood up, and rushed to him. Then, she hugged him tight. Wes paused as she felt her hand around him. 

"I'm sorry, Zheng..." he heard her say as she cried. He remained silent as he listen to her sob. Hearing her cry made his heart ache. "I'm sorry if I hurt you..." she told him. He broke her hug, then, he turned to her. Then he let out a smile as he wiped the tears in her eyes. "I should be the one who should say sorry to you." he told her. "I'm sorry for ignoring you today. I admit, I was hurt. But I realized, your decision is for the best." 

"But Zheng... I..."

Wes put his finger on his lips. "It's going to be fine. We'll go back to what it was like before. I will still be your big brother no matter what. So, don't cry anymore, OK? Cats don't cry, remember?" he told her. Sylvia nodded her head. Then, she finally smiled at him. 

Wes pulled her into a hug. He missed her so much, even if it has only be a day. As he held her close, he made a promise with himself in his thoughts. "I know, you can't love me for now, Fei Fei. But I will love you silently, hoping one day, you'll feel the same way for me. I won't give up till the day you're ready to love again...."