"I just knew you'd like this one... um... which one to eat... chocolate or fruit..."
The little guy smiled as he spoke, not answering her question, but calling out to Gan Yuan who just walked in.
"Mommy!"
He recognized his mother's footsteps; she hadn't even entered the ward when he had already discerned her return.
"How about trying the fruit one first?!"
Qian Xueying opened the box filled with pastries, carefully helping him take one out, when she heard the word "Mommy," she realized that the little guy was completely ignoring her presence.
Her fingers clenched around the plastic fork suddenly tightened, and there was a soft snap. The fork in her hand broke into two pieces, and the sheer broken edges pierced her finger in an instant.
"Are you alright?"
Gan Yuan approached the bedside, took the little guy's extended hand, and noticing her unusual behavior, asked softly.
"Oh... no... it's nothing!" Qian Xueying shook her finger, "I just accidentally broke the fork."
