They worked together in silence, father and son, both trying to find some way to bridge the impossible distance to a daughter and sister who feared them.
By 7:30, they had a thermos of fresh porridge, a pot of carefully brewed tea, and a basket of steamed buns Jin Zixuan had found in the freezer and reheated.
"Should we wake the others?" Jin Zixuan asked.
Jin Chengyu shook his head. "No. I think... I think it should just be us. Too many people will overwhelm her. Just you and me."
Jin Zixuan nodded in agreement. They were the ones who'd witnessed her breakdown last night. They were the ones who'd been there.
They drove to the hospital in Jin Chengyu's car, neither speaking much, both lost in their own thoughts and fears. What if she refused to see them? What if their presence triggered another episode? What if Mu Yunchen turned them away again?
But they had to try. Had to show her, or maybe show themselves, that they weren't giving up.
— — — —
