My Youth Began With Him

“I asked Mian to come.” Xixi ran up to Huo Mian, holding her hand.

Rick looked at them, confused…

Xixi whispered to Huo Mian, “Please talk to him…”

“Don’t worry.” Huo Mian nodded.

“Rick, I’m heading back to school now, see you tomorrow! Have a good talk, guys.” Then, Xixi turned around, opened the door, and ran away.

The good thing was, Rick was used to Xixi’s temper…

Then, he looked at Huo Mian. “Sit…”

“Mhm.”

Rick stood up to make some tea for Huo Mian, but he suddenly remembered that she was pregnant, so he poured her a glass of warm water.

“Rick, I actually came today to talk to you.”

“About what?” Rick asked, as indifferent as he always was.

“Qin Chu…”

Upon hearing Qin Chu’s name, Rick’s expression faltered; Huo Mian could tell that he really cared about what happened.

“Sure, go ahead…” Rick seemed to understand why Huo Mian came, and why Xixi asked her to come.

“Rick, you feel guilty because of Qin Chu’s plane crash, right?”

“Mhm.” Rick nodded slowly.

“Do you feel like you’re responsible?”

“Mhm.”

“But this is all just Huo Siqian’s plan. Even if the plane crash didn’t happen, something else would have. He wasn’t going to let Qin Chu go so easily, and the plane crash was just an opportunity. If you didn’t take him there and someone else did, the accident would’ve still happened.”

“But I saw him get on that plane,” Rick said, feeling sad.

“But wasn’t I the one who asked you to take him there?”

Upon hearing what Huo Mian said, Rick looked up at her in surprise but didn’t say anything.

“So if you feel guilty, shouldn’t I die of guilt? Before I was incarcerated, I asked you to stop Qin Chu from seeking revenge and make him go to the States. So, in the end, aren’t I the one who killed him?”

Huo Mian’s words left Rick at a loss for words; he knew Huo Mian had a high EQ and was good with words.

“You have to remember something very important.”

“What’s that?” Rick looked at Huo Mian, who said, word for word, “I don’t think he’s dead, I know he’s still alive.”

Then, she added, “I know what you guys are all thinking. The chances of surviving a plane crash are slim, but it’s not impossible. So, I believe that he beat the odds… It’s actually good news that we haven’t heard anything yet, Qin Chu has his own way of doing things. So, if he’s okay, but you’re stuck living with the guilt of being responsible for his death, not only will Xixi feel bad, but so will I. I will blame myself because it was me who asked you to put him on a plane.”

“Huo Mian, don’t say that. Qin Chu’s a really good friend of mine, I wanted to do this for him…”

“If you’re friends, you should know that Qin Chu wouldn’t want to see you like this… I don’t want your life to change drastically because of him. If… he’s really dead, being sad about it isn’t going to help, right? Should I be crying my eyes out and disregarding my unborn children, my life, and my family?”

“You have a point…” Rick understood what Huo Mian was trying to say and immediately felt ashamed.

“So… buck up, okay? Don’t make Xixi worry, she loves you, a lot.”

Rick’s face flushed upon hearing Huo Mian’s straightforward remarks.

“I understand, thank you, Huo Mian.”

“Don’t thank me, thank Xixi…” Huo Mian said as she slowly got up, “I’m going home then. It’s late, Mrs. Su and Grandpa Su will worry about me… They treat me like I’m a member of their family.”

On her way out the door, Rick couldn’t help but stop her. “Huo Mian, you really don’t want to know about your real family?”