"Sunday evening." Jinjing said in reply to Mrs. Sheng's question regarding her resuming work.
The elders did not find it a big deal that Jinjing would be away for a while, but Liang did and his sister and best friend were well aware of his predicament. The next question was even more painful.
"How long will you be away?" continued Mrs. Sheng.
Feeling the grip around her hand tighten, Jinjing replied, "aunty I will be gone for at least a month or more, I plan to resign and come back for good." She seemed to be sharing her plans with mother Sheng but in actual fact, she was secretly consoling Liang.
She knew he was scared to leave her this time. Their separation was traumatizing for him more than it was for her. She squeezed his hand to give him some security.
Without hesitation, Liang proposed, "Pa! since there is still time before my leg and other wounds heal completely and I return to office, I would like to accompany Jinjing to city S. I am working from home here, I will continue to do that there. If need may arise, I can visit our city S branch."
Even though he addressed his father, he waited for everyone to respond, especially Jinjing's parents. After a moment of silence and exchange of glances, Papa Lee reluctantly said, "well that is fine, if Mr. Sheng agrees."
Father Sheng had no issues with the idea, but before he could voice his agreement, Jinjing spoke up, "I am not in favor of living together before marriage or at least engagement." Her statement left everyone in dilemma. They knew clearly that Liang wanted to stick around Jinjing, but when Jinjing denied, it was worrisome.
Looking at her son's gloomy face, mother Sheng could not bear it and hence suggested, "why don't you get them engaged first then?"
The suggestion made Liang almost jump out of joy, whereas the others were left absolutely speechless. Getting engaged was fine, but Jinjing was leaving the next day in the evening, so they just had half a day in hand. It seemed highly impossible.
Mother Sheng looked around with eager eyes, waiting for everyone to speak. Mr. Sheng spoke first, "darling, it is impossible to get things done so fast, moreover it would be very haphazard. We want the kids to feel special, it is such an important event." Liang's excitement was doused off by his own father.
"Liang I know what you are feeling, but you need to be patient. It's just a matter of a month. Then she will be with you forever." Father Sheng explained.
'Now how should I tell my father my problem.' Liang simply rubbed his forehead with his index finger.
Breaking the ice, Mrs. Feng (Buzz's mother) suggested, "city S is just three hours by flight. Why not get the two engaged after a week in city S and then later hold a grand wedding here, in city B." her suggestion seemed reasonable to everyone.
Happy Mrs. Sheng held on to Mrs. Lee's hand and said, "yes! And we also have our ancestral mansion there, it is bigger than this one. We can host the engagement in the lawn. It can easily accommodate a thousand people. What do you think Mrs. Lee?"
Mama Lee was fine, but she had a doubt that may be Jinjing was not okay with getting engaged in such a hurry. In order to get her honest opinion, Mama Lee decided to talk to her alone at home. This way she won't feel pressurized to take a decision against her will.
"Well, we will discuss once at home and let you all know by tomorrow morning." Mama Lee politely said and everyone agreed, bring the topic to an end.
As it was the weekend and the weather was surprisingly pleasant, the elders sat around talking about random things.
Meanwhile, Jinjing excused herself to go to the washroom. Liang sensed something was amiss and followed her after a delay of five minutes.
True to his intuition, she was standing staring blankly in the mirror of the guest bathroom. Liang approached and stood behind her.