FOREIGN | WEN JUNHUI

02 / store

note: PLEASE READ AND COMMENT I DIED THREE TIMES WRITING THIS

word count: 2598

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Despite her several protests, Vernon had insisted that she went inside their apartment— so there Jaynie Berry was, awkwardly sitting at his kitchen counter, regretting her entire existence up until that point. Any attempts to hide her anxiety, though, were interpreted by her brand new acquaintance as a desperate cry for help. It made him laugh when their eyes met.

She glared at him. (Or tried to, at least.)

"I'm sorry," Vernon offered, but a teasing smile on his face said otherwise. As an apology, he slid the box of pizza in front of her, oozing with the mouth-watering aroma of cheesy pepperoni, sausage, mushroom heaven. "You just reminded me of this meme and I—" Pause. "—will stop talking and let you eat."

Similar to a mouse, Jaynie took a quiet bite and savored the moment of temporary relaxation. The taste of Shenzhen's pizza delivery was nowhere close to Chicago's deep dish, but it served as a remedy to her homesickness. For now.

Also, apology accepted.

"So, if you're wondering about where my mother is," Vernon randomly started, "She works as a masseuse. You know, one of those people that get paid to massage you in a creepy, dark room with a bunch of candles and stuff."

A subtle "oh" came out of her mouth. "How did she find out that we moved in then?" she inquired, in a voice so low that it sounded rude on accident.

The boy twisted off the cap of his water bottle— well, a random water bottle that he found on the counter— and took a gulp. "Oh, so what happened was, I saw you guys with that woman and at first, I thought it was some drug deal, but then I saw her hand over a set of keys identical to ours, and well, I put two and two together and texted my mom about it."

It took a few moments for Jaynie to register what he just said, but when she finally did, her umber-colored eyes narrowed in on him. ". . . you stalked us?"

"Well, if you put it that way, perhaps?" He rubbed the nape of his neck, sheepishly, but there wasn't much shame in his tone. "Like, it's nice to talk to someone without having to be their English homework helper for once."

Jaynie felt both guilt and warmth from his answer. He seemed so optimistic about their chance meeting. "I might need someone to translate everything for me though. . . I don't know any Mandarin to survive a day in school."

It was her worst nightmare: attending a new school in a country that she's never been to and knows nothing about. Her brain ached while she imagined how idiotic she was going to look if there was ever an oral presentation. Or a group project. Or a simple conversation—

"Hey, don't sweat it. No one expects you to be an expert," Vernon reassured her. "It's not too bad after a while; you'll definitely learn and get the hang of it sooner or later."

For the first time in forever, relief washed over her. Perhaps she had been secretly waiting for someone to calm her down and give her some optimism, for the sake of hanging in there for her dad.

"Really?" she asked, eyes bigger than before now.

"Yeah," Vernon answered, easily. "You'll be fine."

Before Jaynie can respond with a simple thanks, she was suddenly interrupted by a guttural scream that scared the crap out of her. It's sound was similar to the keyboard smashing in all caps.