Chapter 22: Uncle Zen.
Haru stepped outside of the car after his parents before someone screamed out. "You're finally here!!!" A blonde man in his mid-twenties came running out of the house wearing a white suit and hugged Krista before moving on to hugging Luke. "It's been like forever. I missed you guys." Haru walked around from the other side of the car. "And you must be Haru." The man looked towards Haru before Haru recognised the voice from the phone. "I'm guessing you are Zen?" Haru asked already knowing the answer.
"I am indeed," Zen said awkwardly. He had known Krista since birth and had met Luke quite a few times. But this was the first meeting between the two of them. What was he supposed to say? He thought about it for quite a while. "Would you like to go in and look around? I have something I need to talk to your parents about." Haru didn't really like being treated like a kid but he didn't have a reason to refuse.
Haru entered the house as Li Jun followed slightly behind. To the front of the main entrance was a gigantic staircase that led up to the third floor with a chandelier hanging in the center. But the place was spotless. There wasn't a single piece of evidence to say that anybody lived there. Was Zen just a neat freak or did he not actually live here? Haru walked throughout the building and ended up in the kitchen. He opened the fridge and it was packed full of snacks. Chocolate, Soda, and toasted pancakes. He laughed.
Li Jun then decided to use the time alone to teach Haru how to use his spiritual sense. "You can do it anywhere and when you get good at using it you can use it all the time." Li Jun walked him through feeling the natural Qi within a certain distance. It came to Haru quite quickly as it was similar to sensing mana fluctuations. But as he was sensing the Qi it came to his attention that there were many different types of Qi. The Qi closer to the heating system produced a warmth as I felt it, The Qi closer to the refrigerator had a coldness to it and the Qi closer to the floor had given him the sense of earth. Was it possible to see even if you were blind? Haru thought as he let his spiritual sense spread throughout the house.
It reached the back yard before he picked up the sense of life. What is that? Haru thought before making his way outside. He stepped outside he was thrown on to his back as he felt something wet against his cheek. He opened his eyes to see a pure white German shepherd licking his face. "Hey what are you doing? Let me up." The dog didn't respond as it carried on licking him. Li Jun laughed at the sight. "Why are you upset? She just wants to be friends with you." Haru opened his mouth to speak as the dog licked. He began to cough whilst almost throwing up as the worst taste he could imagine entered his mouth. "Xue, Down girl," Zen called out from the doorway.
The dog stopped what she was doing instantly before running over to Zen and lying down at his feet. "Oh, You got a new dog?" Krista asked Zen as she reached down to pet her. "Yeah, I got quite lonely living here all alone. I needed someone to keep me company." Zen responded before dropping a treat to the floor for Xue. "She still needs training. She has a problem with licking everyone she meets. You don't dislike dogs do you Haru?" Zen asked before reaching down to pet Xue. Li Jun decided to head off and explore for a while and get used to his surroundings.
"No, In fact, I love them. They are cute and fluffy." Haru said as his mom stared at him. "…. You like cute fluffy things…." She said quietly as she thought back to when she watched him hugging Jake as they said goodbye. Haru walked over to pet the dog. He put his hand out as she licked his palm and then rolled onto her back. "Of course. Who doesn't?" He said before rubbing Xue's tummy. Krista was caught off guard. "Well… I guess you are right." She said quietly, slightly questioning her son's sexuality.
"Oh, Haru I have a gift for you. I know it won't make up for missing your birthdays but here." Zen said before handing Haru a white box. Haru opened the box the find a Kphone. The newest smartphone that was released by a US tech company. "You really didn't need too," Haru complained before turning it on. He had never had a smartphone but it was similar to the student planners they used back at school so he had already adjusted to using it. He typed in his personal details as it loaded. "You better call us at least once a week now," Krista said before snatching it from his hand and typing in her contact details.
"Once a week? Seriously?" Haru said in protest. "Yeah. Don't you think once a week is too much?" Luke agreed. Krista pouted and turned her head. "Fine, Once a month!" She demanded before Zen walked back inside before coming out with a dog leash. Xue jumped around crazily as she spotted it. "I didn't know what time you were coming so I planned to take Xue for a walk earlier. But I guess since you are already here Haru can take her out whilst we all catch up and discuss everything." Zen said as he handed the leash to Haru.
Haru looked toward Krista with disappointment as she stared at him angrily. She didn't need to say anything for Haru to know she will get mad if he refused. Xue walked up beside Haru before sitting down to the left of him. Haru reached down and attached the leash to her collar. Xue barked and began to pull forward. "I'm not taking you anywhere if you are going to drag me," Haru said to Xue.
Xue stopped and wined for a second before she spotted something. Haru and Xue made their way through the house before stopping at the front door. "Where are we going?" Li Jun came back from his exploration and stood behind Haru. Xue began to bark as Li Jun got closer. "Oh, She can sense me? Maybe I should have taken this dog as my disciple instead of you." He laughed before going back inside the ring to conceal his presence. Xue stopped and then looked around confused whilst sniffing the floor where Li Jun was previously stood. "I guess dogs really can see ghosts," Haru stated before giving a gentle tug on the leash and heading outside.
They walked back down the long road as Xue sniffed at everything in sight. "Hey Li Jun, You there?" Haru used his spiritual sense to send a thought into the ring. He wasn't sure if it would work but to his surprise. "Yeah, What is it?" Li Jun's voice bounced around the inside of Haru's head. "I have a question for you. Do you remember when you gave me this ring?" He asked. "Yeah it wasn't that long ago, was it? Is your memory that bad?" Li Jun mocked him. "No, it isn't that. It was just. I'm sure I heard another voice when I put it on. What was that?" There was a moment of silence before Li Jun replied. "That was Lao. He is the soul of a dragon that was sealed in this ring probably millions of years ago. He said he wanted to teach you a few things too. I will introduce you to him sometime."
"A dragon!? Like an actual dragon!?" Haru was amazed at the thought. Actual dragons. Were the upper realms filled with dragons? The closest thing to a dragon he had seen before was a summoned beast in the form of a wyvern. Summoned beasts couldn't talk so they were just used as tools to do their masters bidding. "Yes an actual dragon…" Li Jun said as Haru walked on down the road.
He looked down at Xue. She was a smart dog but still, she can't express herself. It was sad he thought. He related to her. All Haru had done during his time in the military was follow orders to make other people happy. There was more than a few times he had been called a dog of the military. He felt a strange connection to Xue. "Hey, where do you want to go?" He asked Xue. She tilted her head towards him before pulling a little harder down toward the gate that blocked off the neighbourhood.
They walked for half a mile before reaching the gate. A whistle echoed through the air as a man's voice called out. "Xue!"