Chapter 193 - DELIVERING LUNCH
LUO YAN was holding a tray of vegetable dumplings, egg drop soup, moo shu tofu, and a bowl of fragrant white rice. Every dish was healthy, just right for someone who should mind their diet. It was his grandfather's lunch. He heard that he regained consciousness. So, Luo Yan volunteered to bring him his lunch.
"Yan Yan, it's this way," Bai Ye said to him.
The kid was walking beside him, enthusiastically leading him to the direction of their grandfather's room. He was also holding a tray. But unlike him, his tray contained a tea pot and a tea cup.
When Luo Yan told everyone that he would bring lunch to his grandfather, Bai Ye immediately volunteered to bring the tea with him. So the two of them ended up going together. Which he didn't really mind. Bai Ye was such a cute kid after all. Adorable people were always welcome to accompany him.
His brothers actually wanted to go with him as well. He refused. He knew they were just worried about him. They might be worried that the same thing that happened in the garden would happen again. And that it would cause him to feel down once more.
But letting them accompany him might just make their grandfather even more nervous. His two extremely tall brothers could look pretty intimidating. Especially if they're trying to act like his guardians. He didn't want their grandfather to be nervous and have another breakdown.
So, Luo Yan used the ever useful power of 'cuteness' to convince them that he would be alright. At the end, they had no choice but to agree to what he wanted. Good thing both of them were weak against his charm.
"Xiao Ye, are you really fine carrying that tray?" he asked.
"It's fine. I'm already a big boy, I can carry this much."
Luo Yan chuckled when he heard that. "Yes, Xiao Ye is a big boy."
"Ahm…" Bai Ye gave him a hesitant glance.
"What is it?"
"Did you… ahm, cry?"
Luo Yan was slightly startled by that sudden question. "Why do you ask that?"
"The corners of your eyes are red."
Bai Ye's eyes often became like that after he cried. So when he saw Yan Yan earlier and noticed the redness at the corners of his – yes, for now he would believe that Yan Yan was a boy but he was still not convinced – eyes, his first thought was that he cried.
Luo Yan was silent for a second and then he gazed down at Bai Ye. "I did. But let's keep it a secret between us, okay?"
After they ate lunch, he excused himself and went to the toilet. There, he let out the tears that he had been suppressing. He let it out in one fell swoop. It had been so long since he last cried that the action itself felt almost foreign. But he was glad that he managed to let out those pent up emotions.
It was actually kind of refreshing doing that. It's like a huge weight was finally lifted from his shoulders. All the negativity that suddenly filled him today felt like it had been washed away along with his tears.
Luo Yan washed his face thoroughly with cold water so it wouldn't be too obvious that he cried. He thought that he managed to hide it well. He even took care not to directly stare at others so they wouldn't notice that he cried. But who would have thought that this kid, Bai Ye, would actually manage to see through him.
The only thing that's currently echoing in Bai Ye's mind was the word 'secret'. Wasn't a secret only between two people who were closed to each other? If he and Yan Yan had a secret, wouldn't that mean that they're now close?
"Yes, I'll definitely not tell it to anyone! It will be our secret," Bai Ye said, full of resoluteness.
"Thank you, Xiao Ye," Luo Yan said, smiling sweetly at Bai Ye.
Bai Ye immediately blushed when he saw that smile. He looked down and his lips tilted in an arc. Yan Yan still looked best when he smiled. But why did he cry? He thought of what he accidentally heard when his parents were whispering with each other earlier. He didn't hear the whole of their conversation, he just heard them mentioned his grandpa and Yan Yan. Could that be the reason why Yan Yan cried?
He looked up again at Yan Yan. "Did you cry because of Grandpa? I know he's kind of weird and he always get people's name wrong, but he's really kind. So, Yan Yan shouldn't be afraid of him."
Once again, Luo Yan was amazed by how observant this kid was. What was he, five? And yet, he was already this observant. "I'm not afraid of Grandpa. If I am then I wouldn't volunteer delivering his lunch."
Bai Ye was happy to hear that. "You're right."
They soon arrived at their grandfather's room. It's on the first floor. Because of his condition, it just wouldn't be convenient to have him on one of the upper floors. Since both of them couldn't exactly use their hands, Luo Yan gently kicked the door to knock on it.
After a few seconds, the door opened and the one who appeared was that male nurse that Luo Yan saw in the garden earlier. The nurse looked like he was slightly surprised when he saw them. But when he saw the tray they're carrying, he immediately smiled.
"Are the two young masters bringing lunch to their grandpa?" he asked.
The corner of Luo Yan's mouth twitched because it was obvious that he was being treated like a kid the same level as Bai Ye. But he was not interested in correcting the view of this nurse towards him. So, he just smiled and said, "Yes. Can Big Brother let us in?"
The nurse, Mo Yi, was again taken aback by the beauty of this kid. It was the same when he first saw him in the garden earlier. His hand was even itching to take a photo. But he knew he couldn't do that. Or else, he'd definitely be fired from this job. Which he didn't want to happen. Aside from the fact that he really needed the money, he already came to care for the old patriarch of the Bai family.
"Of course, of course," he said, opening the door wildly. "Let me hold that for you."
Then he took the tray of dishes from Luo Yan to help him. After putting it on a table, he also took the tray Bai Ye was carrying.
Luo Yan didn't have any opinion since his arms were already starting to get tired from carrying the tray.
He looked at the bed where his grandfather was sitting. He also turned his head in their direction. When he saw the both of them, his cloudy eyes suddenly brightened. Almost like an excited kid.
"Hua-er, Ah Chen!" he called.
"See? Grandpa never gets my name right," Bai Ye whispered beside him, but there wasn't a trace of sulking in his voice. As if he already got used to it.
Their grandfather was probably only mistaking him and Bai Ye for the younger versions of his mother and his uncle. He just walked towards his grandpa and smiled, planning to spend this whole afternoon with him.