His mouth twitched. "And the stick..."
Xie Nuying harrumphed. "To beat up those nasty kids bullying the poor cat. I know how to set kids like them straight. I have done a lot in my university," her eyes proudly sparkled.
She leaned slightly and softly smiled at the cat. "Then I saw you taking care of them, and I was assured. As expected of my capable son-in-law."
The cat with her light brown irises stared at her and Jun. She wasn't too hostile to them and neither too free. But giving them a surprise, she hopped out of the box and slowly walked towards Jun. She nudged her head against his leg and quietly meowed.
"Oh my. I thought it would be difficult to pet her. But it seems that she likes you," Xie Nuying said. "I think she is thanking you for saving her."
Jun cautiously touched the tip of his finger over the top of her head and slowly ruffled her fur. He beamed, seeing how the cat liked it.
"She reminds me of Ai," Jun's gaze softened. "Even though she was surrounded, she surely fought for herself well. Ai is also always so strong and undaunted like that."
Xie Nuying observed Jun and felt something was off with how his eyes looked a little lost.
Jun quickly said, "I am such an idiot. You came to Beijing and here I am just standing like that doing nothing. Where do you want to go? Should I take you back to my condo?"
"Is Ai at home too? I wanted to meet you both and talk to you," she smiled and then mumbled, "before that man finds you two..."
Jun stiffened. "Ai..."
He wasn't sure if she was at home or not. He didn't even know if Ai came to Sky while he was away or she chose to go to the library.
Xie Nuying stared at him. "You don't know?"
Jun slightly touched his throat and awkwardly smiled. "I had left a bit earlier than her..."
Condo, Sky or the library?
Not knowing the answer made him feel ashamed.
"How about we go to Sky first? I always wanted to see my son-in-law's company and where you two work."
"S-sure."
Xie Nuying then asked in concern, "What should we do about this cute cat? She might be in danger again if she stays here."
Jun smiled and tickled her ears, which the cat seemed to like. "Let's take her to a cat shelter first. The people there will take good care of her."
She nodded. "A fine idea."
She then lamented. "It seems she was abandoned. It looks like she was well fed before and was a pet cat. Becoming stray so suddenly will be too dangerous for her."
"Indeed."
He gently put the furry cat back in the cardboard box and lifted it.
*Meow*
He smiled. "You will be in a good place now."
She stared at him for a long while.
To go to the cat shelter first which was a little farther away from Sky, he called for a cab where the three got inside. The ride to the shelter was filled with awkwardness for Jun.
Shit...
He cursed himself in his mind endlessly. He had promised to Ai's parents that he would always take care of her. But now, he wasn't even aware where exactly she was.
What would they think of him?
"Have you two fought?" Xie Nuying's question calmly echoed in the space between them.
Jun froze with the sudden question popping in the air. It came direct and unmasked. He wasn't someone who could hide his feelings too well, so Xie Nuying already understood that they had indeed argued.
"I see. That's why you don't know where she is. You two are at the 'ignoring each other' phase," she said, unfazed.
Jun wiped his forehead anxiously. "No, Aunt. It's not like that."
She blinked. "Oh don't take me wrong. I am not blaming you at all. Ignoring each other is always the first result after a fight. I know it better than anybody else, considering how many times I have fought with Yichen. The house would be silent for days. We were always at a cold war."
"H-How did you two handle it?"
"We couldn't. That's why we got divorced."
"..."
Jun never meant in that extreme sense, but somehow he still felt stupid for asking that.
"I am sorry. I didn't mean it that way."
"I know. You meant by how we would come to a truce for the years we lived together."
"K-Kinda..."
There was a short period of silence.
"Do you know what is at the heart of your issue?" She tilted her head.
"Heart?" He furrowed his brows.
"Yes. You think that you are fighting for or against something, but it's actually something else altogether. Either you don't realize it or you are purposely ignoring it. I feel the former is the case."
"I am sorry, I don't think I understand."
"I mean for example, when Yichen used to come home late at night from his work, I would get furious at him, thinking that he was flirting with girls somewhere. But actually, it was because he didn't properly organize his side of the closet in the morning. I felt frustrated by the mess he made and his lack of discipline and that anger poured out for simple things where he really wasn't even at fault. Do you get me?
I was mad at him because of his disorganization originally, but I kept it in my heart for that time. So when he did something else I didn't like, I lashed out at him. I knew he wasn't late because he was fooling around and I didn't realize that I was fighting with him not because of his lateness but because of the morning's chaos."
"So you see? This happens when you don't confront the real worries and insecurities bothering you. The underlying reason is something else, but you are fighting for something else altogether and nobody has a clue why you are even fighting in the first place."
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