All Ty ever wanted was to make it in life while having a strong, Black educated man beside her to support her dreams. The only thing Ty wants more than those two things is to travel the world and to experience other cultures. After stacking up funds...
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- Yu Garden, Shanghai
The past few days flew by uneventfully. We went on a couple different tours around Shanghai. I'm not gonna lie, Shanghai is by far the most beautiful city I have ever visited. Yesterday, Mike and I met up at a Starbucks for a cup of coffee and to catch up. I was happy to get out of the apartment, but it just wasn't the same without Ni Ni, Day, and the guys there. As I walked into the kitchen, I saw Ni Ni whispering something to Day. "What you whispering about Ni Ni?" I asked curiously. "Oh nothing... so, I was thinking, since we're all dressed we could leave out for dinner in a little bit." Ni Ni replied. "Fine with me. Where do y'all want to..." my sentence was cut short by a knock on the door. I walked over to the door and opened it. There stood Bo and Lei, both holding small gift bags in their hands. As I looked at Lei from head to toe I had to lick my lips. He was wearing maroon Converse, khaki joggers, and a white V-neck. He looked scrumptious. "Bo...Lei...what are you guys doing here?!" I asked, shocked and surprised. I pulled Lei into the apartment by his arm and gave him a big hug. "Someone missed me." he whispered saucily into my ear. Bo cleared his throat from behind Lei. Shit, we must still be hugging. I hurried up and broke apart from Lei. "Well, we were hoping to join you ladies for dinner." Bo said. " Sure. Let me invite Kevin." Day said while picking up her phone from the counter. " Oh Day, here's a gift from Bo and I to you. I hope you like it." as Lei passed Day a small gift bag. She dug inside the gift bag and pulled out a small white teacup. It had cherry blossoms on it. "The saleslady said it was handcrafted in Japan." Bo said to Day. Oh my gosh, they remembered. Day looked like she wanted to cry. "Thanks guys, I really appreciate it." she said in a shaky voice. "And to my fair Ni Ni, this gift is from me to you." Bo said while kneeling down and holding the gift bag out in both of his hands. Ni Ni walked in front of him and grabbed the green gift bag. "Oh my gosh," Ni Ni said while pulling a necklace from out of the box "it's a laughing Buddha made from jade." Ni Ni was so excited about her gift she gave Bo a quick peck on the lips. Bo turned extremely red. I knew that was their first kiss because Ni Ni swore to me last night that they hadn't had a chance to kiss yet. Ni Ni and I learned about the importance of the laughing Buddah and jade in one of our Chinese culture classes in undergrad, so I knew that Ni Ni kissed Bo because she was overwhelmed with the sentiments and symbolism connected to the laughing Buddah and jade. "And this is a gift to you, from me..." Lei said while placing the gold gift bag in my hand. Inside of the gift bag was a long, slim rectangular box made of wood. Inside of the box, there was a pair of black ceramic chopsticks with golden dragons on the tips. I WAS FUCKING SPEECHLESS. The chopsticks were so beautiful and heavy. Maybe there was more to Lei than I thought, Lei and I stared at each other intensely for awhile. "Well", Day said, breaking the tension in the room, "before you lovebirds start making out, lets go meet Kevin for dinner. I found this American burger restaurant that I am just dying to trying out!" Day said. As she continued to ramble on, I could not hear a word she was saying because all my attention was focused on Lei.
An hour and a half later, the group and myself emerged from the restaurant full of food and in good spirits. Bo told me a couple embarrassing stories about Lei as a little boy, Lei told a few bad jokes about American people in a horrible accent, and Kevin told us stories of about how he spent some of his childhood summers visiting his mother's family in El Salvador. Yup, so Kevin was half Chinese, part El Salvadoran, and part White (American). He grew up in the United States. Around the age of 14 years old, his father moved them to Shanghai after realizing the American school system was horrible. To put it simply, dinner was a huge success and everybody was including everyone in the conversation. "So I think we guys want to have some one on time with each of you." Kevin said to Day, Ni Ni and me. "That's fine with me!" Day said and Ni Ni nodded her head in agreement. "Well, we only have one key to the apartment. It's 9:00 pm now, how about we all agree to meet up at the apartment at 11:30 pm,? I suggested. "Fine..." Day grumbled. "Come on Ty. I have a place I want to take you to." Lei said while grabbing my arm. Twenty minutes later, we were walking inside of a place called Yu Garden."Oh my gosh... This place is more beautiful in person than it is in the pictures on Google!" I said excitedly. Lei burst into laughter. "Sorry...it's just I always wanted to visit Shanghai..." I said, embarrassed. "Its okay, I shouldn't have laughed at you..." Lei repented. We walked around the garden looking at the different flower patches and ponds. Although it was nighttime, we could see everything because the garden was lit with soft lamps. "Ah, this is my favorite place in Yu Garden. Apparently, in ancient China there was a ruler name Hong that lived in that house," he pointed to a red and white house. "And the only people that were worthy enough to visit the emperor had to cross this bridge. However, the pond below was filled with water demons and creatures. So most people never made it across before being killed by a demon or creature." Lei finished up the story as we walked on the bridge.
Once we reached the halfway point on the bridge Lei stopped and leaned against the railing. "This is my favorite part of the garden. In my opinion it is one of the most beautiful sights in the world, well, not including you..." he finished and I blushed. I was really starting to like him and I had to leave in less than two days. "Lei...I'm leaving the day after tomorrow..." I said while looking out onto the water. " Oh yes, I forgot to tell you! My cousin was able to expedite me a new passport for Ni Ni. I'm going to pick it up from her tomorrow afternoon. Don't forget you owe me date." he said playfully. "Thanks so much Lei. I just wish we could've met in a different time or something..." I said, sad. "Look at me.", Lei said while cupping my face and looking into my eyes, "Don't say it regretfully. I enjoyed the last few days with you, Day and Ni Ni. Let's not think about you leaving. Let's focus on enjoying each others company now." he finished in a breathy voice. He was right. As I looked at him, I realized he truly was beautiful. His dark sepia eyes pierced my soul. His dragon tattoo looked like a beautiful masterpiece etched into his skin. His small, yet plump lips were a bright red. Before I knew it, he pressed his lips into mine. The kiss was gentle, yet dominant. I tried to pull away and process what was happening, but Lei had a firm grip on my face, cupping it and pulling me towards hime. I couldn't do anything but melt into the kiss. I swear I felt all my previous reservations about Asian men being erased. Needless to say, I didn't know anymore if what I wanted was what I needed in life.
