This is the first time Bai Yao has truly separated from Mu Mu’er since they met. Mu Mu’er finds himself missing Bai Yao as soon as he wakes up the next day. He misses him a lot of times throughout the day; when he sees the jatropha curcas, when he is eating lunch, even when auntie Zhang came over to spend time with him.
Although the house is familiar and reassuring to him, Bai Yao is not here. He keeps feeling like something is amiss.
He also knows, though, that Bai Yao is away to help care for Xiaoqing-jiejie, so he is not panicked or scared, but he does miss him. He misses him a lot. He wants to hug him, and to eat together with him, and to sleep in the bed together with him.
Now that Bai Yao is absent, he finds himself able to eat the snacks without someone stopping him. He’s never been able to so do before.
That night, before he goes to sleep, he makes a detour before going into the bedroom. He goes back into the guest storeroom, and heads straight for a lamp in the corner, and reaches up to grab a bag of cucumber chips.
He’s put little seashells and snacks everywhere in Bai Yao’s home where said knick-knacks can be stored. Perhaps all sea otters have the innate potential to be hamsters, and Mu Mu’er thinks he is very good at hiding things where Yaoyao cannot find.
Well, Yaoyao finds them sometimes, but he says he does not know where they come from. Or he’ll simply say that Yaoyao hid them.
He is able to accuse Bai Yao because he knows Bai Yao cannot truly get angry at him. He always has the right to act innocent and appeal in front of him, because he is Bai Yao’s little sea otter.
Mu Mu’er enters the room, satisfied that he has a bag of chips in hand, and hops onto the bed as usual. He then curls his legs up, swinging in the air, as he opens his WeChat to Bai Yao, and clicks on the icon for a phone.
While it’s ringing, he opens the bag of chips to scoff down.
Only three seconds in, though, Bai Yao has already picked up. Mu Mu’er wasn’t expecting it to be so quick, so his mouth is still full of chips. His cheeks are filled like that of a little hamster. His eyes are also widened in shock, and it takes some time before his brain reboots again.
“Yaoyao!” Mu Mu’er calls out, smiling at Bai Yao on the phone, “what is Yaoyao doing?”
He didn’t see him for an entire day! He is scared he would forget what Yaoyao looked like if he didn’t see him soon enough.
“Waiting for Mu’er to call me. What is Mu’er doing?” Bai Yao is leaning relaxedly into the bench in the waiting area while smiling back at Mu Mu’er. He’s still in the hospital, down at the lobby from the maternity ward on the second floor. He is going to wait for Jing Xiaoqing’s check-up results before returning to the hotel.
The hospital is mostly quiet by this hour, with few people still walking the corridors.
Mu Mu’er almost has his entire face planted onto the phone’s screen, like he’s trying to stay as close as possible to Bai Yao, “Mu’er is thinking about Yaoyao.”
He answers, with this expression of longing. It’s really irresistible to see him like so. At least, Bai Yao finds he has an urge to stroke his head right now.
“Don’t leave the phone so close to your eyes. It’s bad for your vision,” Bai Yao can’t help but remind Mu Mu’er, seeing his face zoomed closer and closer.
So the camera moves a little, but which also reveals a glance of a green-coloured bag on the bed next to Mu Mu’er.
An alert Bai Yao asks, “what do you have there?”
Mu Mu’er pushes the bag away with his hand while mumbling, “nothing. There is nothing…”
Bai Yao almost wants to laugh, but also reminds him, “don’t eat anymore before you sleep. If you already ate some, remember to go brush your teeth again.”
“No, Mu’er was not eating,” Mu Mu’er covers the chips with the blanket, “these are for Yaoyao. Mu’er will put them in the blanket to keep warm.”
Bai Yao is already smiling wide at the nonsense Mu Mu’er is spouting. After listening to Mu Mu’er fumble through his explanation, he tells him, “do not eat all of them at once, got it?”
“Ok. Mu’er will not eat. Mu’er will not eat any.”
After that, Mu’er starts talking about everything he’s done throughout the day in extreme detail – even things like how he found an acorn in the garden, and put it on the fence for a little squirrel to pick up.
Getting excited in his recount, Mu Mu’er has already forgotten what he said and grabs the bag of chips to eat while talking.
Finally, when he finishes, he yawns and declares, “Mu’er is sleepy. Yaoyao, stay.”
They sound almost entirely unconnected, but Bai Yao gets it. He nods and wishes him a good sleep, “Yaoyao will be here. Mu’er, good night.”
Before Bai Yao left, when Mu Mu’er was worried he won’t have hands to hold in bed anymore, Bai Yao told him he can call him on the bed at night. He can hold the phone in his hands; it’s the same as holding his actual hand.
Mu Mu’er has pulled the blanket up, holding the phone tightly in his hand as he sleeps. After a few moments, he sneakily opens an eye to check. Bai Yao is resting his forehead on his arm now, leaning back onto the wall.
Since Bai Yao isn’t looking, the boy continues to look at his Yaoyao, like he’d do when they are sleeping at home.
Bai Yao only hangs up the call after confirming that Mu Mu’er is deep asleep.
He sits there with a dumb smile on his face for quite a while.
Last week, while he was doing some cleaning about the house, he saw the green bag of cucumber chips put onto the lamp in the guest storeroom as soon as he walked in.
Mu Mu’er is quite a lot shorter than he is, so he can’t see well above the lampshade. He must think himself clever for hiding the snack above the lampshade, that Yaoyao would not see, but Bai Yao is tall enough to immediately spot the snack he hid as soon as he enters.
Still, he’s only left Mu Mu’er at home for a day, but it feels like it’s been weeks already. His mind has wandered off, wondering when Mu Mu’er will call as soon as he’s helped Jing Xiaoqing settle down. He really wants to call, but he also doesn’t want to make Mu Mu’er long for him to return more seeing his face.
He frets no more, though, as soon as the video call finally connected.
Another day passes, and finally, today is the day Bai Yao is coming back. Mu Mu’er counts the time again and again on the clock, and after he finishes breakfast, he moves a chair from the living room to sit near the staircase. He wants to give Bai Yao a big hug as soon as he enters.
Mu Mu’er always had something or another to do and play, never bored, but not today. He doesn’t want to do anything today, but to wait in sight of the entrance, listening for Bai Yao to open the door.
After patiently waiting for over an hour, though, Bai Yao is still not back. Feeling slightly anxious, Mu Mu’er uses his phone to give Bai Yao emojis.
As soon as the message is sent, Mu Mu’er receives a reply before he even puts the phone down.
[Got off the train now. Mu’er, I’ll be home in 20 minutes]
Mu Mu’er happily nods at the phone, then he realises Bai Yao can’t see him nod, so he yells, “ok!”
This is the first time Bai Yao has truly separated from Mu Mu’er since they met. Mu Mu’er finds himself missing Bai Yao as soon as he wakes up the next day. He misses him a lot of times throughout the day; when he sees the jatropha curcas, when he is eating lunch, even when auntie Zhang came over to spend time with him.
Although the house is familiar and reassuring to him, Bai Yao is not here. He keeps feeling like something is amiss.
He also knows, though, that Bai Yao is away to help care for Xiaoqing-jiejie, so he is not panicked or scared, but he does miss him. He misses him a lot. He wants to hug him, and to eat together with him, and to sleep in the bed together with him.
Now that Bai Yao is absent, he finds himself able to eat the snacks without someone stopping him. He’s never been able to so do before.
That night, before he goes to sleep, he makes a detour before going into the bedroom. He goes back into the guest storeroom, and heads straight for a lamp in the corner, and reaches up to grab a bag of cucumber chips.
He’s put little seashells and snacks everywhere in Bai Yao’s home where said knick-knacks can be stored. Perhaps all sea otters have the innate potential to be hamsters, and Mu Mu’er thinks he is very good at hiding things where Yaoyao cannot find.
Well, Yaoyao finds them sometimes, but he says he does not know where they come from. Or he’ll simply say that Yaoyao hid them.
He is able to accuse Bai Yao because he knows Bai Yao cannot truly get angry at him. He always has the right to act innocent and appeal in front of him, because he is Bai Yao’s little sea otter.
Mu Mu’er enters the room, satisfied that he has a bag of chips in hand, and hops onto the bed as usual. He then curls his legs up, swinging in the air, as he opens his WeChat to Bai Yao, and clicks on the icon for a phone.
While it’s ringing, he opens the bag of chips to scoff down.
Only three seconds in, though, Bai Yao has already picked up. Mu Mu’er wasn’t expecting it to be so quick, so his mouth is still full of chips. His cheeks are filled like that of a little hamster. His eyes are also widened in shock, and it takes some time before his brain reboots again.
“Yaoyao!” Mu Mu’er calls out, smiling at Bai Yao on the phone, “what is Yaoyao doing?”
He didn’t see him for an entire day! He is scared he would forget what Yaoyao looked like if he didn’t see him soon enough.
“Waiting for Mu’er to call me. What is Mu’er doing?” Bai Yao is leaning relaxedly into the bench in the waiting area while smiling back at Mu Mu’er. He’s still in the hospital, down at the lobby from the maternity ward on the second floor. He is going to wait for Jing Xiaoqing’s check-up results before returning to the hotel.
The hospital is mostly quiet by this hour, with few people still walking the corridors.
Mu Mu’er almost has his entire face planted onto the phone’s screen, like he’s trying to stay as close as possible to Bai Yao, “Mu’er is thinking about Yaoyao.”
He answers, with this expression of longing. It’s really irresistible to see him like so. At least, Bai Yao finds he has an urge to stroke his head right now.
“Don’t leave the phone so close to your eyes. It’s bad for your vision,” Bai Yao can’t help but remind Mu Mu’er, seeing his face zoomed closer and closer.
So the camera moves a little, but which also reveals a glance of a green-coloured bag on the bed next to Mu Mu’er.
An alert Bai Yao asks, “what do you have there?”
Mu Mu’er pushes the bag away with his hand while mumbling, “nothing. There is nothing…”
Bai Yao almost wants to laugh, but also reminds him, “don’t eat anymore before you sleep. If you already ate some, remember to go brush your teeth again.”
“No, Mu’er was not eating,” Mu Mu’er covers the chips with the blanket, “these are for Yaoyao. Mu’er will put them in the blanket to keep warm.”
Bai Yao is already smiling wide at the nonsense Mu Mu’er is spouting. After listening to Mu Mu’er fumble through his explanation, he tells him, “do not eat all of them at once, got it?”
“Ok. Mu’er will not eat. Mu’er will not eat any.”
After that, Mu’er starts talking about everything he’s done throughout the day in extreme detail – even things like how he found an acorn in the garden, and put it on the fence for a little squirrel to pick up.
Getting excited in his recount, Mu Mu’er has already forgotten what he said and grabs the bag of chips to eat while talking.
Finally, when he finishes, he yawns and declares, “Mu’er is sleepy. Yaoyao, stay.”
They sound almost entirely unconnected, but Bai Yao gets it. He nods and wishes him a good sleep, “Yaoyao will be here. Mu’er, good night.”
Before Bai Yao left, when Mu Mu’er was worried he won’t have hands to hold in bed anymore, Bai Yao told him he can call him on the bed at night. He can hold the phone in his hands; it’s the same as holding his actual hand.
Mu Mu’er has pulled the blanket up, holding the phone tightly in his hand as he sleeps. After a few moments, he sneakily opens an eye to check. Bai Yao is resting his forehead on his arm now, leaning back onto the wall.
Since Bai Yao isn’t looking, the boy continues to look at his Yaoyao, like he’d do when they are sleeping at home.
Bai Yao only hangs up the call after confirming that Mu Mu’er is deep asleep.
He sits there with a dumb smile on his face for quite a while.
Last week, while he was doing some cleaning about the house, he saw the green bag of cucumber chips put onto the lamp in the guest storeroom as soon as he walked in.
Mu Mu’er is quite a lot shorter than he is, so he can’t see well above the lampshade. He must think himself clever for hiding the snack above the lampshade, that Yaoyao would not see, but Bai Yao is tall enough to immediately spot the snack he hid as soon as he enters.
Still, he’s only left Mu Mu’er at home for a day, but it feels like it’s been weeks already. His mind has wandered off, wondering when Mu Mu’er will call as soon as he’s helped Jing Xiaoqing settle down. He really wants to call, but he also doesn’t want to make Mu Mu’er long for him to return more seeing his face.
He frets no more, though, as soon as the video call finally connected.
Another day passes, and finally, today is the day Bai Yao is coming back. Mu Mu’er counts the time again and again on the clock, and after he finishes breakfast, he moves a chair from the living room to sit near the staircase. He wants to give Bai Yao a big hug as soon as he enters.
Mu Mu’er always had something or another to do and play, never bored, but not today. He doesn’t want to do anything today, but to wait in sight of the entrance, listening for Bai Yao to open the door.
After patiently waiting for over an hour, though, Bai Yao is still not back. Feeling slightly anxious, Mu Mu’er uses his phone to give Bai Yao emojis.
As soon as the message is sent, Mu Mu’er receives a reply before he even puts the phone down.
[Got off the train now. Mu’er, I’ll be home in 20 minutes]
Mu Mu’er happily nods at the phone, then he realises Bai Yao can’t see him nod, so he yells, “ok!”
