Us. (HIStory2 越界 - Crossing the Line: Zhen Wen x Zhen Wu)

I'm Happy to Have Found You (Zhen Wu)

The sun is barely out when I open my eyes as the room is dimly lit. Disoriented, I look around to see a view that's not my room. Only when I feel a movement on my chest that I realize I'm in Zhen Wen's room. The memory of last night—no, this morning, resurfaces. I peek down, and I can only see the crown of his head because his face is buried on my chest. His arms are wrapped around me, not letting me go. As I stroke his dark hair and plant kiss at the top of his head, my heart is filled with gratitude that I can be this close with him, making sure he rests well.

I look at the clock; it's almost six. I need to prepare myself to go to school.

Slowly, I unwrap his arm and climb out of bed while praying so hard he doesn't wake up. He wriggles a little, but goes back to sleep. I fix the blanket for him and caress his head, and only in that moment I can take a good look at him.

Pins and needles stab my heart at the sight of his swollen eyes and tear-stained face. Sheen of sweat covers his hairline. His lips are slightly parted, breathing in the cool air around the room. I wipe the sweat off. Zhen Wen...

His puffy eyelids then flutter. Bloodshot eyes look around the room and then found my own eyes.

"Ge...?" he lets out a hoarse voice.

"Go back to sleep, Zhen Wen. You don't need to go to school today," I tell him softly, putting my hand on his cheek.

"Where are you going?" he asks.

"I'm getting ready for school."

He nods, fixes his position and goes back to sleep. He looks so thin and drained and pale...

I get out of his room slowly, making as little noise as I humanly possible, and quickly get ready.

When I come downstairs, Dad is pouring himself a cup of coffee and Mom is cooking breakfast for us. I put my bag on the chair and get ready to take whatever Mom has cooked.

"Is Wen ready?" Mom asks while flipping the omelet.

I don't know how to break the news for them, as I know they will be terribly upset and worried. But the tea has to be spilled anyway.

"Uhm... he had the nightmare last night," I reply cautiously.

Her hand stops midair.

"Is it back?" Dad asks. I nod slowly, averting eyes from both of them. "He hasn't had them for a long time..." he mumbles, concerned.

It's true. We can't even remember the last time he had the nightmare. The nights have been peaceful for a long time. But now it's back. That demon haunts our house one more time. We need to think of something to get rid of it before it harms Zhen Wen in any way as soon as possible.

"I've told him to rest for the whole day," I tell them.

Mom turns her head to take a good look at my face for the first time this morning. "You look like the ghost itself. Take a rest today as well, Zhen Wu. You can take care of Wen too that way," she advises.

"That's right. Have you looked at yourself, Zhen Wu? We're... quite worried," Dad chimes in.

Apparently, my dark circles are more obvious that what I thought. After all, it took me quite a while to fall asleep this morning because I had to be alert and made sure Zhen Wen sleeps soundly. When I did fall asleep, the dawn has broken and I need to get ready for school.

"Don't worry. I'm fine, guys. Besides, I need to train today. There's another practice match coming soon," I reassure them.

Unlike Dad, Mom's worry seems to have doubled after I said that. I squeeze her shoulders gently to reassure her I'm totally fine.

"I understand. Don't force yourself, Zhen Wu. I'll prepare Wen's breakfast and you can bring it to his room when you've finished eating," she says.

I nod and bring my plate to the dining table. When I sit down, Dad seems to remember something and then asks, "How long since he last saw Mrs. Chen?"

"Did he even go? I can't remember," I say with my mouth half-full.

Chen Yifei is Zhen Wen's psychologist. She has put up with all Zhen Wen's brokenness after the incident. A kind woman, but strict nonetheless. We weren't allowed to even enter one of Zhen Wen's sessions because she said it's for the patient's confidential medical information and well-being. We were only allowed the first session, in which Zhen Wen hesitated throughout, so she decided to leave us out of the picture in order to help him recover effectively. We're quite devastated because we're powerless when we wanted to help Zhen Wen as much as we can. Apparently, our absence seems to help his treatment, so we left him in Mrs. Chen's care entirely.

He went to the sessions religiously once a week the first year after the incident. It was hard on both him and us, but he tried to overcome it with Mrs. Chen's help. We did whatever we can on our part. However, he gradually stopped attending sessions the year we entered senior high school. We were also convinced that he didn't need to see Mrs. Chen again, looking at the absence of nightmare and his seemingly well mental health. And he also reverted back to his carefree attitude, which resulted in a lot of trouble, and reached its peak of even getting expelled this year.

"Do you think he needs to go back?" Mom's concerned tone snaps me out of my thought. "Because this nightmare proved that the trauma is still there." She is now sitting beside me, opposite Dad, putting some food on Dad's plate.

After a few moment of silence, he says, "I... don't think he can get over this trauma easily." His head hung low, his tone regretful and I can hear Mom's quiet gasp. "I detest myself to even think about this, but trauma isn't something one can just forget..."

The air around us is now heavy. I clench my hands into a fist and say under my breath, "I'll be there for him."

Both Mom and Dad's head turn to look at me. They don't seem to hear what I have said clearly. So I declare my promise once more.

"I will help him overcome this."

I then take the tray of Zhen Wen's breakfast and proceed to go upstairs.

***

Balancing the tray on one hand, I open the door to Zhen Wen's room quietly. He is still sound asleep, and doesn't even change position since I last saw him. I feel so relieved knowing he's getting all the lost sleep.

I put the tray down on his study table, and then my eyes land on a framed photo he puts on the small shelf on the table. I hold it in my hands.

It's us.

I have forgotten how long it has been since this picture was taken. It seems like forever ago. We were so young and so happy our parents just got married. It was just a small and simple wedding ceremony where only families and closest friends were invited. After all, it's their second wedding, and they said they didn't need anything fancy.

In the picture, we were holding hands, standing in front of the altar where wedding gifts were displayed. Layers of sparkling white curtain and Chinese decorations hung high behind us. We wore the exact same navy suits with a sky blue bow tie. Even though we only had one year difference between us, I was taller than Zhen Wen, and he still looked like a baby here. He smiled so wide, showing his pearly whites, and I showed a cool smile of mine, feeling proud of my new family. It was a simple party, but we were happy. All of us were.

I stroke the picture lovingly, smiling at the sight of little Zhen Wen smiling.

"I'm happy to have found you," I tell the little Wen on the picture.

I put down the frame slowly without knocking away other things, and approach the sleeping Zhen Wen. I fix his blanket. He looks so peaceful, and I pray so hard he stays this way. No more nightmares haunting him.

I kiss his forehead and say, "I'll see you when I get home."

***
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