"(We sure bought a lot of clothes.)" An commented with a smile as she walked into the house.
"(I wonder how their talk went.)" Sherry muttered whilst taking off her shoes.
As soon as they stepped feet into the house, their noses were assaulted by the smell of alcohol. The smell got stronger as they approached the kitchen and they could even hear some noises coming from within.
"(You guys drank?)" An asked, setting aside her bags.
"(Wife, you're back?)" Ping replied with a question, sounding both tired and relieved.
Ping was sitting by the table, holding his hands together like in prayer and leaning on them. In front of him, Dylan was collapsed on the table. He was snoring peacefully and occasionally muttered to himself in his sleep. Fir snuggled up beside him, using his cold body temperature to cool Dylan down.
"(How much did you drink to get him like that?)" An laughed and pecked Ping on the cheek. She also pat him on the head as if to award him for his efforts.
"(A whole bottle.)" Ping answered honestly. "(But I drank three quarters of it. He barely had any.)"
"(He's always had a low tolerance.)" Sherry muttered, ruffling Dylan's soft hair. Dylan let out a giggle, a slight smile surfacing on his red face. Even after Sherry stopped patting him, the sleeping Dylan still smiled from the lingering touch.
"(How was it?)" An asked Ping while she put the dishes away into the sink. Ping got up and followed her into the kitchen, leaving Sherry alone with Dylan and Fir.
"(Well, its hard to say.)" Ping sighed. "(He was very much like a child when drunk and would spout nonsense from time to time. The only thing I could tell was that he really loves Shi Ming, so much that he wouldn't stop talking about her for hours on.)"
An chuckled and hugged her husband. "(Isn't that a good thing? Our child loves him too, very much so. Her eyes get so gentle and affectionate when she looks at him, and she even yell at us for his sake. If he didn't reciprocate that love, she would have a really hard time.)"
Ping was silent. An knew what he was thinking and so spoke up once again.
"(He's different from the other one. He respects her, you know that.)" An told Ping. She too had a good eye for people, the respect that Dylan held towards Sherry, his love and desire to make her happy was all so transparent in her eyes. After all, he had made no attempts to hide it.
"(…I know.)" Ping kissed An on her forehead. "(I was just afraid to see her break down like that again.)"
"(If that happens, we'll just have to be there for her.)" An narrowed her eyes and smiled somewhat maliciously. "(Of course, we'll have to make him pay for his crimes.)"
"(Mm, you're right.)" Ping smiled. "(Let's just watch and see.)"
He was apprehensive but after interacting with Dylan for a short while, Ping was able to see elements of him that he usually hid. The childish side of Dylan and also his more wilful self, Ping was unclear as to why he buried them so deeply within his heart, but he desired to see the boy behaved less reserved and more selfish. He wanted Dylan to let the burdens weighing down on his heart go, less he started projecting them on his beloved daughter. A truly healthy relationship was only possible when both parties bore their hearts out to each other.
"(Well then, let's go check up on the two.)" An grabbed Ping's hand and led him back to the dining table. There they found Dylan holding onto Sherry's arm whilst smiling like a little puppy. His bird was nestled in his hair, whistling his empathy and apologises on behalf of the drunk Dylan.
"(Oh my, what's going on here?)" An laughed at the situation. Ping grumbled at her side.
"(Ma, Ba.)" Sherry called out helplessly. She tried to pull her arm away but Dylan shot her a pitiful gaze filled with tears, the sight just shot into her heart, how could she possibly pull away? "(I don't know. When he woke up, he suddenly just started to hug me.)"
Sherry tried to make herself sound and seem calm, but her ears were a deep red and the corners of her mouth were slightly lifted out of sheer joy.
"Sherry, I missed you so much." Dylan confessed in Divian. "I was so lonely without you."
"I, I missed you too." Sherry replied back in Divian. She had a sheepish smile on her face and her cheeks were dyed red.
Dylan smiled back, it was a warm and bright smile, very charming and enchanting. "I love you, from the moon and back."
Sherry froze from shock. 1 second, 2 seconds, 3 seconds later, she finally reacted. Steam came out from her head as her overloaded mind was trying to digest what it just heard.
"L-L-L-Love me?" She stuttered.
Dylan nodded. "My best friend, my comrade, the one I trust, I love you."
Best friend...Sherry's heart dropped and skipped a beat. Her eyes revealed concealed sorrow at the revelation and deep pain. 'As excepted, he doesn't see me in the same light'.
Sherry smiled with all her might and pat the drowsy Dylan on the head. Softly, she whispered, "I love you too."
Unfortunately, Dylan didn't hear. He had already plopped back down on the table, returning to the land of dreams. However, before he slept, he continued to quietly confess his love. "My light, my world, my everything. Sherry, I love you."
Unfortunately, Sherry was too busy suppressing the anguish in her heart and didn't hear. She looked up at her parents as naturally as she possible could. Being in Diva for two years taught her to hide her emotions, thus, even her parents were now unable to detect the change that had just occurred in her.
"(Since when did you know how to speak his language? And so fluently at that.)" Ping asked.
"(He taught me how to. He's a very good teacher.)" Sherry laughed.
"(Not a very good drinker though.)" An teased. "(Let's get him in bed for now. The guest room is still clean, yeah?)"
"Mhm." Sherry replied.
Ping lifted Dylan up and supported him on his shoulder. Fir flew up at the sudden movement and perched on Sherry's shoulder instead. They watched as Ping tucked Dylan into bed and Dylan slept peacefully in the dark room.
"(I'm going to rest now.)" Sherry told her parents. She then retreated into her room, finally letting her bottled up emotions explode.
"What's wrong, Sherry? Why are you crying? Who made you cry?" Fir asked in a panic.
Sherry shook her head. "It's nothing. I just feel really sad right now."
"Why?" Fir had actually been sleeping during the two's exchange and was totally ignorant about the misunderstanding that was caused by the drunk Dylan.
"You'll understand when you get older." Sherry pat Fir's head and didn't tell him. As Dylan's contracted spirit, Fir was bound to tell him about her feelings if she told him. Sherry didn't want that, she didn't want her feelings to get in the way of their friendship. Especially not since Dylan didn't see her that way.
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Author: Oops, didn't intend to do that. Haha, maybe I got drunk too.
Dylan: You suck, I hate you and will never forgive you.
Author: It wasn't on purpose, I swear! It was just a whim, I mean, I had to make you do something stupid while drunk, so...
Dylan: But now Sherry's crying!
Author: I'm so sorry! It was an accident!!! QAQ