Strawberry Pop Pop Pop chapter 11
On the other side, Han Yang began to secretly practice smiling in the bathroom. His smile was stiff and unattractive, but he was putting in a lot of effort to practice it.
After all, this was the only “gift” that Gu Nuan had asked him for, and he didn’t want to disappoint Gu Nuan.
Han Yang had never had any friends before, and he wasn’t sure if someone like Gu Nuan could be considered his friend. But perhaps even Han Yang himself didn’t realize that he had already considered Gu Nuan as his first friend.
It was 5:30 in the morning.
Impatiently, Li Li knocked on the bathroom door a couple of times, and Han Yang quickly opened it.
“Why did you take so long? What were you doing in there?”
My stomach doesn’t feel well,” Han Yang didn’t lie; he had been eating leftovers from the restaurant lately, and it upset his stomach. To avoid affecting the restaurant’s business, Wang Sheng hadn’t taken him along these days.
That day, Li Li had a day off, and she glanced at Han Yang’s pale complexion but didn’t say much. She just walked into the bathroom.
Han Yang returned to his cluttered little room, and by now, he had lost the urge to sleep. He took out a workbook from his new backpack and began to work on some exercises.
After a while, Wang Sheng woke up. He wiped his face and walked into the tiny living room. He glanced at the new coat hanging on the hanger, then touched his chin as if he remembered something. He went straight to Han Yang’s room.
“How did you meet that guy?” Wang Sheng asked.
“I don’t know him,” Han Yang answered without hesitation.
“You don’t know him, but he gave you such an expensive coat and backpack?” Wang Sheng walked over and patted him on the head. “You little rascal, do you know what kind of car that guy drives?”
Han Yang remained silent.
“You couldn’t even afford a single wheel of that car with what you’re worth!” Wang Sheng didn’t seem annoyed this time. He shrugged and chuckled, seemingly scheming something. “But making friends, well, that’s not a bad thing.” He was in a good mood today, humming a tune, and left without even brushing his teeth.
Han Yang lowered his head, and the corner of his workbook got crumpled from his grip.
About ten minutes later, Li Li came out of the bathroom.
She began to rummage through their things, making the place a mess. After struggling to find Han Yang’s medical records from the innermost part of the cabinet, she let out a soft sigh of relief.
She put on her coat and grabbed her shoulder bag. “Put on your coat.”
“Are we going out?”
“To the hospital.” Li Li’s tone was flat, and she didn’t seem to show any emotion even in the way she looked at Han Yang. She urged him, “Hurry up.”
Han Yang didn’t dare to hesitate.
The streets after New Year’s were deserted, and a gust of wind made Han Yang shiver. He regretted not wearing the scarf that Gu Nuan had given him.
He turned around and saw Li Li dragging a bicycle from the hallway. She lifted Han Yang onto the back, and he felt stiff from the cold. He grabbed Li Li’s coat, tilted his head, and saw Li Li’s dark green scarf wrapped tightly around her neck from the back.
The morning light suddenly pierced through the fine gaps in the scarf, hurting Han Yang’s eyes. He closed his eyes in a hurry.
He heard Li Li say, “Don’t cling to me so tightly.”
Han Yang let go.
Suddenly, Han Yang remembered a few days ago when Gu Nuan had held his hand and refused to let go. He thought about it, pursed his lips, and didn’t feel cold in the wind on his neck anymore.
…
After a short wait at the small hospital, it was soon Han Yang’s turn to see the doctor. Li Li stayed put, playing with her phone outside. Han Yang checked his number and entered the corresponding examination room.
He had eaten something that upset his stomach, but it wasn’t anything serious. The doctor prescribed some medicine for him, gave a few instructions, and it was over.
When Li Li saw him come out, she put away her phone. “You don’t need to go to the restaurant anymore, I’ve talked to Wang Sheng about it.”
Han Yang nodded.
Li Li looked at the time; it was almost noon. She pushed the bicycle forward, and Han Yang followed behind, carrying a bag of medicine. His stomach growled loudly.
Li Li stopped in front of a small restaurant. She ordered two bowls of green pepper pork noodles.
The steaming hot soup noodles always gave people a bit of warmth and illusion during the winter. When Han Yang saw those greasy slices of meat, he suddenly thought of the green pepper pork slices he used to have in his lunchbox.
In fact Li Li didn’t dislike the dish; she intentionally left it for Han Yang, who was still growing. Their life had, however, improved a lot, and Li Li no longer deliberately left meat for him. But Han Yang had started to feel unsatisfied with his meals lately. Though he didn’t dare to tell Li Li about Wang Sheng’s mistreatment, especially since she often worked late.
Han Yang thought, he just needed to endure a little longer. He wasn’t good at anything, but he was good at enduring.
As Han Yang chewed on the pork slices, he wasn’t sure if it was because he had met Gu Nuan and had his heart melted once or twice. So today, when he saw the bowl of noodles that Li Li had ordered, his head began to throb, and he opened his mouth, “Mom…”
Unfortunately, before he could finish the word “Mom,” Li Li kicked his ankle hard.
Han Yang closed his mouth in pain and turned his head. He saw several people walking towards them. It seemed they were Li Li’s colleagues.
Li Li put on a friendly smile and her attitude towards Han Yang instantly changed.
“What a coincidence! I brought my stepson out for lunch,” Li Li said. “Oh, how could he be mine? I’m not old enough to have such a big child. He’s actually my husband’s son from his previous marriage.”
She emphasized the words “stepson” very clearly, clear enough that these words had already become calluses in Han Yang’s ears.
As a victim herself, Li Li had always considered him a disgrace. She didn’t like him and didn’t want him.
Afraid of exposing the truth, Li Li quickly took out a fifty-yuan bill from her pocket and stuffed it into Han Yang’s hand, pretending to be gentle. “I have something to do; you can go play around.”
He had only taken a few bites of the noodles, and the steaming soup had already blurred his vision.
The light in Han Yang’s eyes dimmed, like a candle being extinguished silently.
—Nobody likes me. It would be great if I could leave this place.
This thought flashed through Han Yang’s mind, repeating itself over and over again, breaking and rebuilding.
…………..
As the winter vacation neared its end, Grandma Zhang, due to her old age, was taken to live in another neighborhood by her daughter. Han Yang would habitually walk to the third floor and squat by the door and do some math exercises for a while.
He had been diligently practicing his smile, but he didn’t know when Gu Nuan would return to China. Perhaps he would come back when school started, or maybe he wouldn’t visit this neighborhood again?
Had he already been forgotten?
Han Yang worried about this and day by day, his anticipation grew.
Lately, Wang Sheng had conflicts with his parents and stopped going to the restaurant to help out. He often stayed at home. Han Yang didn’t want to run into him, so he would spend some time at the old bookstore near the vegetable market.
Today was no exception. He was wearing the coat Gu Nuan had given him, had Gu Nuan’s scarf around his neck, and carried Gu Nuan’s backpack on his back.
The afternoon sun was warm, and he stood in front of a stack of exercise books, flipping through them seriously. He often did this, coming to the bookstore every so often to copy some exercises to take home. Because he had been coming too frequently recently, the shopkeeper was not pleased. “Oh my, you never buy anything; you just keep flipping through!”
Han Yang didn’t have the money to buy new exercise books. The fifty yuan Li Li had given him was still in his pocket, and he didn’t dare to use it.
Seeing that he remained unfazed, the shopkeeper just tsked. “Be careful not to damage the books!”
Han Yang pretended not to hear and continued copying the questions. He tried to do it quickly so that he could leave soon. So, when Gu Nuan suddenly appeared next to him, it genuinely startled the focused Han Yang.
“Big brother!”
Han Yang’s pen nearly snapped in half. He looked at Gu Nuan in astonishment, stammering, “H-How are you here?”
“I followed Uncle Zhang and Aunt Xu to buy groceries. My dad and father are always busy when they go abroad, and I’m alone at home. I really, really wanted to come and play with you, and I didn’t expect to run into you here!” Because Han Yang was often with his step dad at home, Ji Mu and Gu Yuanchen were worried about Gu Nuan going to visit Han Yang alone.
Before, Grandma Zhang used to live there and could look after him, but now she had moved away.
Gu Nuan approached him affectionately, seeing Han Yang copying questions. He said excitedly, “Wow, big brother, are you doing homework?”
Han Yang closed his exercise book with a serious expression. “Not exactly.”
“Hmm?”
“Books are expensive, so I copy some questions to bring home and study slowly.” Han Yang still remembered Gu Nuan’s request for a “smile,” so he made a slight effort but couldn’t smile.
Perhaps it was because of the kick Li Li gave him yesterday; it had knocked him back down from the small progress he had made.
Han Yang hesitated for a moment before asking Gu Nuan, “Are you leaving soon?”
“Yeah, Uncle Zhang is waiting over there, and Aunt Xu is probably almost done with the groceries.” Gu Nuan pointed to a pricey private car nearby, and Zhang Uncle, who was standing a few steps away, was closely following Gu Nuan.
Han Yang didn’t know who Aunt Xu was, nor did he want to ask.
His ankle was still aching, and the area that had been kicked had developed a massive bruise. This made him look disheveled in front of Gu Nuan for no apparent reason.
“Big brother, what happened to you?” Gu Nuan asked with concern.
Han Yang furrowed his brow, tensing his nerves. He had a sweet, kind, and caring Gu Nuan in front of him, but he couldn’t even return a smile. Despite practicing for so long, he still couldn’t smile.
In his struggle, he looked up and saw a cake shop next to the bookstore. He remembered the fifty yuan in his pocket.
As a way to make amends, he didn’t mind Li Li’s scolding later. He reluctantly opened his mouth and asked Gu Nuan, “Do you want to eat cake?”
Gu Nuan had just mentioned wanting to buy a cake with Uncle Zhang. “Yes!”
Han Yang felt a slight relief in his heart, thankful that Gu Nuan didn’t refuse him.
He walked to the cake shop and stared at the display case for a while. Then he gritted his teeth and chose the most expensive cake, which cost fifty-three yuan.
It was an eight-inch fruit cake with rough cream decoration in the center, featuring some canned fruits. Its craftsmanship wasn’t top-notch, making it only worth that price.
“I’ll take this one.” Han Yang took out the fifty yuan bill and fumbled for a while in his backpack, pulling out two coins. He hesitated while looking at the coins in his hand and quickly changed his mind. “Actually, I’ll take this one.”
He pointed to another cake that cost forty-five yuan.
The shopkeeper had already taken the cake out and said without looking up, “I’ll give you a discount of one yuan.”
Han Yang eventually got the most expensive cake from the display case.
The shopkeeper took a rectangular piece of chocolate from a nearby plastic box and asked him, “Do you want me to write something?”
Han Yang didn’t understand. The shopkeeper pointed to the chocolate in his hand. “Do you want me to write ‘Happy Birthday’?”
Han Yang had never bought a birthday cake before and didn’t know that they could write on it. Instead, the one waiting beside him, Gu Nuan, raised his hand and suggested, “Auntie, write ‘Be happy every day.'”
After all, no one could resist such a cute child with teary eyes. The shopkeeper finally smiled and packed the cake for Han Yang. Afraid that Gu Nuan couldn’t carry it, Han Yang turned to walk toward Uncle Zhang.
Gu Nuan followed him, bouncing along, but accidentally stepped in a puddle, splashing mud all over his pants.
Han Yang had no choice but to stop and wait for him.
“Big brother, hold my hand.”
Han Yang reluctantly reached out his hand.
Gu Nuan happily ran over and grabbed his hand. He noticed that Han Yang’s sores had improved a lot. “Big brother, are you going home?”
“Yeah.”
“What are you going to do at home?”
“Study.”
“Are you doing fifth-grade homework?”
“Yeah.”
“I can do third-grade homework.”
“You told me before.”
“Oh…”
Gu Nuan elongated his voice and held Han Yang’s hand, not letting him go. “Do you want to come to my house today?”
Han Yang shook his head.
“I’m all alone today.” Gu Nuan pouted and, in a playful manner, started leaning against Han Yang. He said almost in a wronged tone, “Dad and Father are both working, and I’m all alone at home. Big brother, can you come to my house to do homework with me?”
He was being persistent and clingy, just like a little mischief maker. Finally, he hugged Han Yang and rubbed his head against his clothes unreasonably, not behaving reasonably. “Big brother, big brother, come to my house to play, okay.”
Uncle Zhang, the driver, couldn’t bear to see this anymore. “Young Master, you…”
Gu Nuan looked up, his eyes filled with tears. If Han Yang refused him again, he would definitely cry!
After all, he had been enduring it since his return to China, and he was just a child. He couldn’t endure any longer!