Panandaliang natigilan si Xinghe matapos niyang magising.
Ano ang ibig sabihin ng panaginip niya.
Matagal niyang hindi napanaginipan ang kanyang ina.
Ano ba ang sinasabi sa kanya ng kanyang ina sa kanyang panaginip?
Iniisip ito ni Xinghe habang sinusuri niya ang kanyang kapaligiran. Napagtanto niya na nasa ospital siya; si Xia Zhi ay natutulog sa kanyang tabi.
Sa labas, ay papasikat pa lamang ang araw, ang amoy ng hamog ay malalanghap sa hangin.
Tinapunan ni Xinghe ng mabilis na tingin ang kanyang telepono at nabigla ng mapagtanto na wala siyang malay ng ilang araw.
Naging kumplikado ang mga emosyong bumuhos sa puso niya habang bumabalik ang kanyang isip sa mga nangyari noong nakaraang araw.
At sa sandaling iyon, ang pintuan sa kanyang silid ay bumukas ng marahan.
Ang isang maayos na nakadamit na si Mubai ay pumasok. Nagtagpo ang kanilang mga mata at pareho silang saglit na natigilan.
Kinakitaan ng pagkahiya ang mukha ni Mubai panandalian bago ito tuluyang nawala. Kinolekta niya ang sarili at naglakad papasok ng marahan.
"Kagigising mo lang?" Tanong niya sa baritonong boses.
Tumango si Xinghe at sinabi, "Salamat sa tulong mo kahapon."
"Wala iyon. Ano na ang pakiramdam mo? Wala kang malay ng ilang araw."
"Maigi na, salamat sa pagtatanong…" Gustong magtanong ni Xinghe tungkol sa kanyang kondisyon pero hindi na niya itinuloy ang pagtatanong ng makita niya kung gaano kadali dito ang gumalaw at makita ang maliwanag nitong hitsura.
Tumango si Mubai ng mapansing bumabalik na ang kulay sa mukha ni Xinghe. "Maigi naman na gumaganda na ang pakiramdam mo. Siya nga pala, ang tao na nagtangka sa buhay mo ay inupahan ni Chui Ming."
"Tulad ng iniisip ko."
"Gayunman, mula ngayon, hindi mo na poproblemahin pa si Chui Ming sa hinaharap."
"Alam ko."
Alam ni Mubai ang pagkakaaresto kay Chui Ming at ang hatol dito ay sigurado na, pero hindi pa ito alam ni Xinghe, kung kaya paano niya nasabi na hindi na niya ito poproblemahin pa?
Gaano na ba kalayo ang kanyang plinano?
Sa ibang kadahilanan, ang talino at galing ni Xinghe ay nagpakaba kay Mubai.
"Mayroon ka bang gusto nating pag-usapan?" Tanong ni Xinghe na may mausisang ekspresyon.
Hindi naman posibleng ilahad ni Mubai na naroroon siya para tingnan ang lagay niya…
"Aalis na ako sa ospital, kaya dumaan lang ako rito para tingnan ang lagay mo," sagot ni Mubai. Tumango si Xinghe.
"Maayos na ang lagay ko," matapat na sagot ni Xinghe, "Salamat ulit sa tulong mo sa noong araw ng aksidente pati na rin ang ilang pagkakataon bago iyon."
"Sinabi ko na sa iyo na wala kang dapat ipagpasalamat. Parte ito ng responsibilidad ko, dahil ikaw ang ina ng ating anak." Sinadya ni Mubai na banggitin ang panghalip na 'atin' imbes na 'akin' o kahit na ang pangalan ni Lin Lin.
Tila ba na pinalalapit nito ang relasyon nila.
Pakiramdam ni Xinghe ay nahulog ang isang parte niya.
Kung tatapatin lang, mabuting ama si Mubai. Inaalagaan niya ng maigi si Lin Lin nitong mga nagdaang taon.
Pero ngayon, nagpaplano siya kung paano maipapanalo ang kustodiya ni Lin Lin palayo rito. Bigla, nakaramdam siya ng pagkakasala dito.
Gayunman, ikakasal na itong muli, at magkakaroon ng mga bagong anak…
Hindi naman masama para sa kanya na ipaglaban si Lin Lin, hindi ba?
Gayunpaman, hindi pa rin niya maialis ang pakiramdam na nakokonsensiya sa kanyang isip. Kaya naman naisip niyang subukan ito.
"Ang totoo, mayroon akong gustong pag-usapan natin," maingat na panimula ni Xinghe.
Sumagot si Mubai, "Okay, sabihin mo sa akin."
"Tungkol ito sa…"
"Mubai, andito ka pala!" Biglang pumasok sa silid si Tianxin bago pa natapos ni Xinghe ang pangungusap niya.
Nagmadali nitong tinungo ang tabi ni Mubai at iniakap ang kanyang kamay sa braso ni Mubai. Trinato niyang tila wala sa silid si Xinghe at sinabi, "Nagpunta ako sa kwarto mo para hanapin ka pero wala ka doon. Akala ko ay umalis ka na sa ospital pero alam kong hihintayin mo ako. Halika na, umuwi na tayo. Nagluto kami ni Auntie ng isang kaldero ng chicken stew para sa iyo."
What was the meaning of her dream?
She hadn't dreamt about her mother in a long time.
What was her mother trying to tell her in the dream?
Xinghe thought about it as she took in her surroundings. She realized she was in a hospital; Xia Zhi was fast asleep beside her.
Outside, the sun had just risen, the smell of dew hanging heavy in the air.
Xinghe took a quick look at her phone and was shocked to realize she had been unconscious for a few days.
A complicated bundle of emotions arose in her heart when her thoughts went back to the things that happened yesterday.
At that moment, the door to her ward was gently opened.
A smartly dressed Mubai walked in. Their eyes met and both were a little bit stunned.
Shyness flitted across Mubai's face before disappearing completely. He collected himself quickly and walked in, unhurriedly.
"Just woke up?" he asked in a low rumble.
Xinghe nodded and said, "Thank you for your help yesterday."
"It's nothing. How are you feeling? You've been out for a few days."
"Much better, thank you for asking…" Xinghe wanted to enquire about his condition but she swallowed the question when she saw how easily he moved about and how radiant he looked.
Mubai nodded when he saw the color that had returned to Xinghe's face. "It's good that you're feeling better. By the way, the person that made an attempt on your life was arranged by Chui Ming."
"I thought as much."
"However, from now on, Chui Ming will never be a source of worry for you in the future."
"I know."
Mubai knew about Chui Ming's arrest and that his prosecution was a certainty at this point, but Xinghe shouldn't know this yet, how could she know that he won't be a problem?
Just how far ahead has she planned?
For some reason, Xinghe's intelligence and acuity made Mubai somewhat flustered.
"Is there anything you want to talk to me about?" Xinghe asked with a curious expression.
Mubai couldn't possibly reveal he was there to check up on her…
"I'm leaving the hospital soon, so I'm just here to see how you're doing," Mubai answered in good taste. Xinghe nodded.
"I'm doing just fine," Xinghe replied honestly, "Again, thank you for your help on the day of the accident and the few other times before that."
"I've told you there's no need for thanks. It's part of my responsibility, after all you are the mother of our son." Mubai purposely used the pronoun 'our', instead of 'my' or even Lin Lin's name.
It seemed to draw their relationship closer.
Xinghe felt a part of her give.
In all honesty, Mubai was a great father. He had been taking good care of Lin Lin all these years.
But now, she was plotting her way to win the custody of Lin Lin away from him. Suddenly, she felt guilty about it.
However, he was going to remarry, and have new children of his own…
It wouldn't be wrong for her to fight for Lin Lin, would it?
Regardless, she couldn't shake the guilt out of her mind. Therefore, she decided to test the waters.
"Actually, I have something I want to discuss with you," Xinghe said cautiously.
Mubai implored, "Okay, tell me."
"It is about…"
"Mubai, so you're here!" Tianxin burst into the room before Xinghe could finish her sentence.
She rushed to Mubai's side and curled her hand proprietarily around Mubai's arm. She treated Xinghe like she wasn't even there in the room and said, "I went to your ward to search for you but you weren't there. I thought you'd already left the hospital but I knew you would wait for me. Come on, let's go home. Auntie and I have cooked a pot of chicken stew for you."