Qing Hua looked at the notes scattered atop his desk. Though there must have been at least 12 pages in front of him he couldn't remember anything he'd just read. Midterms were in two weeks and he'd somehow made himself more lost than before. He placed his face in his hands and sighed in frustration.
He peered at the time on his cell phone.
"Shit." He stood from the desk and made his way to his closet, throwing clothes on to his bed. Just as he was about to undress he heard a soft knock at his door. He jolted.
"Who is it?" He asked walking towards the door. There wasn't an answer. He swung the door open and was face to face with his father. His eyes widened in surprise.
"Dad, what are you doing here?" He asked.
"Nice to see you too Qing Hua" His father replied pulling him into a firm embrace. Qing Hua smiled awkwardly and hugged his father back.
"I didn't mean that, I just wasn't expecting you to be in Shenzhen. Here for business?" Qing Hua asked finally pulling away.
"Yeah, I had some business with the Dean, so might as well see how my son's doing." His father peered beyond Qing Hua into his door room. "Don't be rude. Invite your father in."
"Sorry," Qing Hua said stepping aside allowing his father to enter. His dad's judging eyes trailed around the room. His gaze moved from the disheveled clothes thrown atop Qing Hua's bed to the array of papers scattered across his desk.
"Sorry about the mess, I've been studying pretty hard." Qing Hua said.
"It's fine. My dorm was in a much worse state when I was your age." His father let out a low chuckle.
Qing Hua nodded.
"So, how's your studies?" His father asked taking a seat on a nearby stool.
"Good, midterms are coming up so I have been studying like crazy." Qing Hua said motioning towards the stacks of books and scattered papers on his desk.
"That's good, I am glad to hear it. The men of the Hou family have always been exceptional at education and business. You won't disappoint me, right?"
His father's words cut through him. As the sentence entered the air he felt himself become smaller. He thought back to the history test with the 0% written on it, the many essays he'd written for Bao Zheng's class that were barely passable. He didn't want to see his father's face as he came to realize that his "exceptional" son was defeated by a stupid history class. His chest stung at the thought.
"I won't." Qing Hua said.
"Good. I really hope so but I heard you're currently failing a history class. Is that true?" His father looked up at him. Though his face was calm, his eyes were shooting daggers in Qing Hua's direction, and he could not avoid them. His nightmare had come true.
"Who told you? I'm not failing but it is harder than I'd anticipated."
"It'd be a shame if you let a simple history class be the death of you. I didn't raise an incompetent son." His father's face was stern as he spoke.
"I know dad, I will try harder."
His father stood, walked over to him, and grabbed his shoulders. His father stood shorter than him but gave off the aura of a man with power. His expensive tailored navy blue suit and finely maintained appearance was the envy of many of his business associates. Unlike most of them he'd aged gracefully.
"Qing Hua, your mother and I have always been proud of you. You've always brought honor to our family and we're happy you are a part of it. We have always treated you like you were our own child and afforded the best resources a family could provide. Don't disappoint us."
"I won't." Qing Hua's shoulders slumped. It was still morning but this conversation had drained him beyond any physical activity. He'd never considered being a failure to his parents. He always believed that he'd pull through and make them proud. Was his father ashamed of him? Would him failing this class cause a riff between them? Anything less than perfect was never enough.
His father smiled and let go of his shoulders. "Well, since I'm in town, let's grab a bite to eat."
"I have class," Qing Hua said.
"I can wait until you are done. Let's do lunch."
Qing Hua nodded.
"Great, I will let you get ready for class. Call me when you're done."
His father left the room. Besides the door closing the room felt empty and quiet. Qing Hua looked down at the stack of business papers and notes on his desk. He'd spent hours studying for all of his classes and was getting passing grades in all but one.
"Never good enough." Qing Hua said picking up a sheet and throwing it across the room. The paper slowly drifted to the floor. Qing Hua fell back on his bed and covered his face with his hands. He no longer wanted to do anything, he just wanted to be alone.
Though he'd decided to lay alone in his room and skip class, he was now sitting in his advanced business class staring at the old teacher up front. Though his mouth was moving Qing Hua's thoughts were elsewhere. He laid his face in his hands. The lights in the classroom seemed to make his pounding headache even worse. Finally the class came to an end. Qing Hua pulled his phone out and called his father. The phone rang for several seconds before disconnecting.
"He must be busy." Qing Hua said placing his phone in his jacket pocket. Qing Hua made his way towards his dorm when his phone finally vibrated. He quickly pulled it out and read his father's text message.
Dad: A business meeting came up. Lunch next time.
Qing Hua sighed and pushed the phone back into his pocket. "I didn't want to go anyway." He pulled his jacket closed as a cold wind blew over him.
أنت تقرأ
Rule Me School Me: A Complex Creatures Story (BoyxBoy)
العاطفيةMeet Huang Bao Zheng, the youngest professor to teach at Shenzhen University. After a tragic accident took the life of his best friend, Tan Zhi, he has never been the same. Now a divorcee and hermit, his world is turned upside down when Hou Qing Hua...
