August 11, 20XX (Sunday)
Various Places"Can we buy this?"
Yang sighed. The little boy that had dared to kick his legs before was now insecure about having someone to buy something for him. The CEO had been left alone to care for the boy as Mei Li and Ling Ling entered their pink kingdom of dolls and fluffy animals. Little boy Chang had seen a remote control red sports car, and when Yang told him to buy it, the boy had turned into an insecure mess.
"Of course," Yang immediately nodded.
"But we don"t have much..." Chang murmured as he stared at the toy in his hands with longing.
Yang ruffled his head, seeing how cute Chang looked and said, "I"ll pay for it, I have lots of money to spare."
"If I buy this, will you have money left to buy for the rest of my friends?" Chang asked, making Yang"s heart melt. Dammit, why is this boy giving him a look that resembled Mei Li"s? Yang was impressed that the boy did not forget the other children in the orphanage. An average child would have thrown all reason out of the window and selfishly take things for themselves. Yang would do that if he was in Chang"s shoes.
Yang nodded, firmly, and comforted Chang from his worries, "I am a billionaire. I can buy all the things in this store if you want."
Chang frowned and denied, "No, don"t do that. What about the other kids that need toys? Where will they buy them?"
If Yang"s heart was not melted yet, now, it has turned into a puddle of messy goo. He can see why his parents were so adamant for grandchildren now. A cute girl like Ling Ling and a compa.s.sionate big brother like Chang would make Zhao Manor bright. Heck, it would make the condo homier and lively.
Yang ruffled Chang"s hair again before pointing at the basket full of toys while saying, "Okay. I won"t buy everything, so go ahead and put everything you need in the basket."
The two looked at the basket that was already breaming with toys like a mountain as Mei Li and Ling Ling continued to pile girly things in for the girls in the orphanage. The CEO and the little boy turned to face each other with stunned expressions. Yang touched his nose in helplessness while Chang pinched the bridge of his nose.
"We might need another basket," Chang commented as he looked up to Yang.
Yang stared as Ling Ling pointed at a row of teddy bears. He crouched down to the boy and said, "We"ll have to get five baskets..."
Chang snorted, "Should we make it ten baskets, just in case?"
"Good idea," Yang agreed immediately. Mei Li was a miser, but when it comes to food and kids, she was a spender. Yang had never been grateful to be a rich man as he is now. The CEO signaled for his hidden bodyguards to call for backup. The quant.i.ty of these things needs a workforce to lift. No way was Yang carrying it all by himself.
When it was time to pay, Yang whipped his black credit card, to the awe of the salesladies, and swiped it with relief. Chang had grown close enough to allow Yang to hold his hand. Ling Ling was now asleep in Mei Li"s arms, but Yang knew the painter was already out of breath from the little girl"s constant weight.
Yang bent down to whisper into Chang"s ears, "Your Miss Wu is already tired of carrying Ling Ling. I can carry her so will you go and hold unto Miss Wu"s hand?"
Yang wanted to squish Chang"s cheeks as it puffed with worry as he stared at Mei Li"s red face. After Mei Li pa.s.sed Ling Ling to Yang, Chang had immediately slipped his right hand into Mei Li"s left hand. The little boy marveled as Mei Li smiled at him and bent down to kiss his forehead. He was smiling as they walked to the restaurant that they will be eating their lunch. He was grateful that he could at least experience having a family even for this day.
Chang now knows that family causes warmth in your heart. Maybe, he should distance himself a little. He was afraid of getting used to this warmth and then lose it after the day is over. When he felt Mei Li gripped his hand tighter, he looked up to see the smile in Miss Wu"s lips. Chang gulped, he wanted more of her motherly warmth. He hated himself for coveting something that wasn"t his. He is an orphan. He doesn"t have a mother... Miss Wu is not his mother.
When they arrived in the restaurant and settled into their private room, Chang was seated beside CEO Zhao. As they started to eat Ling Ling was enjoying being fed by Miss Wu, but Chang carefully put the food in his children"s plate and ate carefully with manners that could rival Yang"s. He stared in shock as CEO Zhao sneakily took the ecky peppers and placed it on his larger plate. The CEO gestured him to be silent which Chang was curious why.
Miss Wu saw his finished plate and Yang"s plate full of green bell peppers. She immediately complimented him, "Chang is amazing. Yang should follow your example."
Chang liked that he was complimented, but he didn"t like lying. Opening his mouth, to tell the truth, he was interrupted by CEO Zhao"s teasing remarks, "I want Miss Wu to feed me too."
Chang"s heart warmed again as Yang winked at him and signaled him to be quiet. He kept his emotions locked inside his fast beating heart and controlled the tears that welled in his eyes. This day has allowed him to know what having parents feel.
Chang is envious of the future kids of Miss Wu and CEO Zhao.
If only he had parents like them.