The small villa was warm, so Zhao Meimei took off her sweater shortly after entering and nestled into the comfortable and soft leather sofa in Shi Yang's house, watching Shi Yang mop the floor.
Shi Yang worked methodically, sweeping and mopping the floor, tidying up the trash on the coffee table, ensuring everything was neat and clean before finally sitting beside Zhao Meimei on the sofa.
After working for a long time, Shi Yang had worked up a sweat, and habitually lifted his clothes to cool down.
Shi Yang was fair-skinned, and when he lifted his clothes, a slender waist was exposed.
Zhao Meimei leaned over and reached out to touch Shi Yang's belly.
Shi Yang burst out laughing, grabbed Zhao Meimei's hand: "You found my tickle spot!"
Zhao Meimei copied him, lifting her own shirt to reveal a round and plump belly: "I don't have a tickle spot."
Shi Yang smiled with a curve at the corner of his mouth, looking at her teasingly before suddenly grabbing Zhao Meimei and tickling her.
"Oh no!" Zhao Meimei exclaimed, laughing uncontrollably, squirming and twisting on the sofa like a little eel: "Brother Yangyang! Hahaha! It tickles! I'm dying of laughter!"
Watching Zhao Meimei laugh to the point of tears, Shi Yang finally let go, sat her up properly on the sofa: "Didn't you say you didn't have a tickle spot?"
Zhao Meimei squinted her little eyes: "I didn't have one before, but it suddenly appeared just now."
Haha…
Shi Yang chuckled, pulled down Zhao Meimei's top to cover her chubby belly: "Be careful not to catch cold."
Shi Yang's home was much better than Zhao Meimei's, and she stared at the television cabinet showing colorful images, her eyes wide.
Shi Yang sorted the food his mother brought earlier in the morning, putting items with shorter shelf lives in the fridge and putting snacks directly on the coffee table, specially taking out a can of cookies to give to Zhao Meimei.
Sitting back on the sofa next to Zhao Meimei to watch TV together, Shi Yang watched as Zhao Meimei exclaimed: "Brother Yangyang, I've seen this cartoon at home too. The girl's clothes were white there, how come on your TV she's wearing pink? It's really pretty."
Shi Yang's big color TV was probably the only one in the family residential block at the time, brought back by his father from Shanghai, and they'd been watching it for two years. At that time, color TVs had just become popular in big cities, making it a household treasure for families like Zhao Meimei's who were from salary earners' backgrounds. At least Zhao Meimei's family had a black and white TV, and Da Bao's family didn't even have a TV.
Shi Yang handed the cookies to Zhao Meimei, even made her a cup of fruit juice fearing she'd be thirsty eating them: "Eat while watching."
Zhao Meimei glanced at the box, cover painted with fancy cookies.
"Are there cookies inside?" Zhao Meimei opened the lid, took out a cookie and stuffed it into her mouth, unable to stop after the first bite.
Zhao Meimei hit the jackpot; the cookies in the tin were bought by Shi Yang's father during a business trip to the provincial capital, an old and expensive brand, costing thirty yuan per box back then, almost equal to Grandma Zhao's monthly allowance in Building No. 3.
Just as Shi Yang was about to answer, the phone rang, and he rushed to pick it up—it was his mother calling.
Shi Yang spoke into the receiver: "Mom, Meimei and I are at home. Where are you? Still at the hospital?"
Shi Yang's mother replied: "We sent the person to the hospital, a doctor took over. That kid is Meimei, right? Meimei's parents are watching at the hospital. We left."
Shi Yang fiddled with the phone cord: "When are you coming back, then?" His tone carried a soft and warm coaxing sound.
Shi Yang's mother: "Mom will be home tomorrow. Your dad rarely has a day off. I told you to come over with me, but you refused."
Shi Yang pursed his lips: "I don't want to stay with him; I'm not familiar with him."
Shi Yang's mother scolded him: "Nonsense! He's your dad; if you're not familiar with him, then who are you familiar with?"
Shi Yang wasn't afraid of his mom at all, but he played along: "Yeah, yeah, I get it, I get it. Alright then, Mom, just have fun."
Shi Yang's mother reminded him: "Since Meimei is staying at our house, you have to take good care of her. Her mom runs the grocery store at the corner, you know? They're good-hearted people; they entrusted their child to you, so you must take good care of her, okay!"
Shi Yang laughed: "Alright, I get it. The little girl is really interesting. It's great she's here to play with me since you're not home."
After hanging up, Shi Yang's smile gradually faded, feeling a bit down. He sighed lightly, turned his head accidentally, and saw Zhao Meimei chomping on cookies, crumbs scattering everywhere.
Shi Yang exclaimed, quickly moved over to tidy up, and handed Zhao Meimei a board he used for homework to catch the crumbs under her mouth.
Zhao Meimei was eating with great contentment, her mouth stuffed full of cookies, chewing with extra effort.
Watching her like a little groundhog, Shi Yang's gloomy mood quickly vanished. He reached over, grabbed a cookie, and started eating too; it seemed to taste better than before.
After drinking a bellyful of fruit juice, Zhao Meimei felt tired, leaning against Shi Yang as they watched TV together.
Zhao Meimei loved cartoons, and Shi Yang watched them with her.
The small villa was so warm that Zhao Meimei, having eaten her fill, felt her energy retreat into her stomach to help digest.
She leaned against the soft sofa, stared at the TV for a short while and fell asleep against Shi Yang,
Shi Yang found it funny, carefully moved around, laid Zhao Meimei flat on the sofa, helped her with a pillow, and brought his own blanket from the bedroom to cover her.
Zhao Meimei's little face was rosy from sleep; her eyes were small, but her lashes were dense and long, covering much of her eye lids when closed, looking utterly adorable.
Watching, Shi Yang couldn't help but gently touch her, Zhao Meimei scrunching her nose, reaching out from under the blanket to scratch the itch, then placed her hand outside the blanket before quickly sleeping again, relaxed.
Stifling laughter, Shi Yang tucked her chubby little hand back under the blanket.
A classmate came over to find Shi Yang to play. Upon entering, he saw a little girl sleeping on the sofa, leaned in for a closer look, and turned to Shi Yang: "Whose kid is this?"
Shi Yang kicked his classmate lightly, whispering: "Quiet, can't you see she's sleeping!"
The visitor was Qu Chaozong, Shi Yang's classmate. He didn't live in the residential block but not too far away, cycling over took about twenty minutes.
Qu Chaozong looked at the piglet-like sleeping Zhao Meimei: "Who is she?"
Shi Yang quietly explained to Qu Chaozong how he met Zhao Meimei.
Qu Chaozong grinned broadly: "Really? This girl's so tough, huh? She's hilarious! When are her folks coming to pick her up?"
Shi Yang glanced at the wall clock: "Should be afternoon, right? Her parents are at the hospital taking care of the elderly lady."
With a smile on his face, Shi Yang genuinely appreciated the act of kindness by Zhao Meimei's parents, nodding: "They are good people, and so is the girl. She's really fun and interesting; you'll see when she wakes up."