A Round Trip to Love 2: Separate Routes

Chapter Fourteen

Getting to know Ke Luo was purely coincidental. Wen Yang had already entered T university at that time, I drove there to see him, fussing like a mother hen, bringing along numerous essentials and non-essentials in various sized packages for him. That little brat chose not to stay in the school dormitories, instead renting an apartment outside the school compound. This arrangement raised my suspicion and made me uncomfortable. He might have assured me that his roommate is a boy, but why is it when I went over for a visit he just happened not to be there? Thanks to his dubious behavior I was left with so much misgivings, worrying like a typical uncool Dad of a nineteen year old teenager.

As I was driving back, I must have been in the middle of letting my imagination go wild at this very issue when I had a near-collision with another little brat. He was carrying a laptop on one hand and an umbrella in another, dashing across the pedestrian crossing on a rainy day. That level of thrill is not something a forty year old heart can take, and I was left hyperventilating. Data has shown that most weather-related crashes happen on wet roads, and the incidence of car accidents rise proportionately to how heavy precipitation is, such are common knowledge and yet this juvenile had to take the risk of disobeying traffic rules, brats these days ......

Probably because he bore a little resemblance to Wen Yang – OK I admit that it is my fatherly empathy acting up, any boys of similar age to my son would remind me of him – or probably because at my age it is common to nag more, but I found myself pulling my car over to the side of the road and alighting, all geared to give him a lecture on cherishing one's own life.

On closer look, his eyebrows does look fairly similar to Wen Yang's. It is obvious he is a good kid, not the least bit insubordinate, for as soon as I spoke, he blushed openly, his head lowered the entire time looking quite the adorable sight, so much so that I felt bad to be stern on him: "That's OK, just be more careful next time, if your Dad knew you almost got into an accident today, he would have a heart attack like I almost did, even if he has a healthy heart."

He pouted his lips: "I don't have a Dad."

"Huh?" It was my turn to blush, apologizing over the insensitive remark, "I'm sorry about that ......" I aimlessly took over the laptop in his hands in a random effort to reduce the awkward moment, "Is there something wrong with your laptop? You have to carry it running around in such a heavy rain."

"It's not working, and I am in a hurry to get my paper done for submission......"

My paternal instincts took over again: "Is that so? This is my area of expertise, how about I take a look for you?"

I drove Ke Luo and his precious laptop to my place, and that can be considered our first encounter with each other.

Ke Luo and I strike up an easy friendship, we can be said to be on the same wavelength despite our differences in age and background. He is also a student of T university, only younger than Wen Yang by a few months. I look upon him almost like an adopted son, so when he confided to me about his sexual orientation, full of trust in me, I felt a little sad.

"You are gay?" I asked again to confirm that that was what he meant.

"Mm." He nodded his head, then he looked at me anxiously, "Uncle ....... Will you look down on me?"

"No, no." I shook my head earnestly. My poignancy is not born from any inherent reason, but I understand how tough this road really is, with difficulties and hardship at every step of the way, and I wish he need not go down this path too.

"Do you have someone you like?"

Damn ...... He looks mesmerizing when his round face blushes sweetly, I could not help but feel a little jealous.