Chapter 19: 19. The First Friend

I was found sleeping in a desolate corner of the yard. The teacher looked for me for quite some time. Luckily, before the police was called, I was found. My body was small, and I was partially hidden under the bushes and the shadow of various broken equipment. Teacher Wang was nice about the whole ordeal. She didn't pay much attention to me, which was a relief. There were more than sixty kids for her to take care of, so it was to be expected. I apologized for taking so much of her time, then we continued class.

Which ended with much excitement. At least it wasn't another bout of dodge-ball. Even simple arts and crafts could whip up the kids into a frenzy.

Today, I was feeling better than usual. Maybe it was the meat in lunch, maybe it was the long nap, or maybe it was something else entirely, but I felt more energetic that day. Walking to the park was a breeze. The park, the school, and our house was merely a block or so apart. Of course, if I ran that distance, I would probably be tired in a few minutes regardless.

And so I went to the park. Not to jog or walk, but to rest. It was a much better option compared to going back to the house, into a tiny room that wasn't even mine. The house was dangerous.

Jun and LiMei seemed to want me dead, which didn't concern me. I also wanted them dead, so it was even. However, we were at a stalemate: Harming me wouldn't bring the family real benefits. Harming the family wouldn't bring me any real benefits either. And with all that work we had to do to kill each other, all of us were living in peace, as one family. Since, of course, killing each other would be too much work with almost no pay.

The park was filled with people, as usual. I eyed the grasses on the clean lawn. Dandelions, miner's lettuce, violets, and alpine strawberries. I All edible and delicious. In the countryside, you could pop them into your mouth to ward off hunger for a few days. In the city, I was more cautious. Maybe next time, I thought, I could teach MeiHui and the girls actual cooking. She seemed like a sweet girl.

I drew attention in the park. I could guess the reasons for that. One, I was a kid wandering around alone. Two, I had blonde hair. I spotted a bunch of older teenagers jogging on the walkway. Their feet thudded against the grass, and like all the times I came to the park, I wondered how they were so fast.

There was one who was particularly fast. He was the fastest, overtaking the others, and looked to be alone. There was nobody running alongside him, and he never paused or looked behind to check the people behind. I studied the man. He had a crew-cut and was tall and muscly, like a Westerner, but his hair was a natural black. And though muscled, maybe it was because of his height: he was slim. He wore a sleeveless shirt and shorts that cut at his knees.

He looked like an athlete, I thought. And I'll be honest. Though he looked youthful, he didn't look very handsome.

Noticing me staring at him, I saw the man slow down. He looked curious. Friendly. Not at all like a kidnapper. The man smiled.

I backed away in reflex. Now he looked a bit more like a kidnapper. He stopped in front of me and rubbed his head, then turned his head right and left as if he was looking for something. He leaned forward.

"Are you lost?" he asked.

Lost? What a presumptuous assumption! Lost! Why would I be lost! Did I look like I was lost? I wondered. I shook my head. The boy titled his head in response. He stepped closer to me, but as I stepped back, he hesitated and also stepped back.

"Where are your parents?" He asked, much more gently than before.

"I don't know." I answered truthfully.

The boy sighed. He squatted next to me, and smiled warmly. It was a disarming smile. Though he wasn't handsome, he looked like a trustworthy person, I observed. It was a useful trait to have. And when he smiled, he looked especially sweet.

"What's your name?"

"I'm Aby." I said. He was asking a lot of questions, I thought. "Wu Aby." I added, remembering I had a proper surname now. Maybe that excited him. His eyes grew bigger. Bad sign, bad sign, I thought, sneaking glances from my surroundings, just in case.

"Wu? Do you know Wu Lintian?"

I thought for a while, before recalling the name. It was familiar. Wu Lintian. It was the name written down on my hand-me-down school uniform, that I suspected was previously my stepbrother's. And so again, I replied truthfully,

"I think?" I said uncertainly, "he's my stepbrother."

The older boy gasped, then grinned, looking several years younger. "I'm his friend Ming Guo! You can call me Brother Ming. Tian Er! I can't believe he didn't tell me he had such a cute sister."

Tian Er? Was that Brother Wu's nickname? My brows furrowed. Wasn't that a name for girls? Wait, that wasn't important. Who cared if Brother Wu liked feminine nicknames. I looked at Brother Ming's figure filled with even more power than Brother Wu's. I looked at his friendly face and his low possibility for being a kidnapper. I looked around at the park, which was safe and filled with people I could ask for help.

And I asked him the same question I asked Brother Wu, the one Brother Wu said 'no' to.

“Brother Ming, do you want to exercise together?”

And I was pleased to find that Brother Ming also smiled with me, his face bright and radiant like the sun. "Of course!" he exclaimed. "Let's go for a lap together!"

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No amount of meat that day could cure my low stamina. It was to the point where Brother Ming scratched his chin while looking at me. I couldn't look at him, embarrassed with my low degree of skill. Be confident, I told myself. It wasn't my fault I wasn't good at running. Brother Ming ran at a fraction of his previous speed, but it didn't matter. I dragged my feet behind him, feeling like a firetruck on fire. In other words, burnt out.

I huffed and panted. My eyes wanted to roll into the back of my head. Brother Ming stopped. Finally. I collapsed on the grass, feeling thankful for the rest.

"Hmmm." I felt him stare at my face and so I used all my energy to open my eyes and look up. Brother Ming studied me with a worried expression. "Um, Aby, you're so thin. Are you eating much? Maybe you should wait until you grow older. How old are you?"

"I'm..." I spat out between heavy breaths, "eight."

"Eight?" Brother Ming said, surprised. "You look younger than that. I was taller when I was six."

"Different people have different physical aspects." I answered. "It's possible Brother Ming and I genetically differ greatly in this aspect, or it could be due to environmental reasons. Brother Ming, did you eat a lot of meats and vegetable foods when you were young? I heard meat helps growth."

Brother Ming's eyes opened wide, then he asked again, "You are really eight?"

"Yes, and I would prefer not to repeat that sentence. I'm tired of stating my age." I said. Some time had passed, and I felt better now, though not by much. I shakily stood up on my legs and stretched.

"You're very smart for your age." Brother Ming marveled. "Just like your brother. Tian Er is also very smart. He's very good at literature and Classic Chinese. He got first in our class for those."

"So Brother Ming and my brother go to the same school?" I asked curiously.

"Yes." Brother Ming said. "We're best friends." His smile seemed to falter at this sentence, though it could have just been my imagination. I wished it wasn't. Brother Ming was strong, and a possible ally. However, if he was tied down to Brother Wu, he could turn into a enemy. I would need to keep guarding against him just in case. How tiring.

But if their supposed friendship broke on their own accord, and I could potentially have another ally on my side, that would be a splendid harvest! In the apocalypse, a powerful fighter like Brother Ming would be valuable. As Grandma said often, the enemy of my enemy is my friend. Unless, of course, they try to kill you.

"You better go home now." Brother Ming said, looking up into the sky. "I'll take you there. In the future, don't walk around alone. It's dangerous for little kids to wander about."

"Brother Ming?" I said in a small voice. I successfully got his attention.

"Can we meet at the park again in the weekends?" I asked him, face filled with anticipation. Brother Ming frowned, so I added on, "If you're not there, I'll just walk alone. I don't care if it's dangerous."

As Grandma loves to say, "Subtle, playful blackmail is a great tool of manipulation." It was one of her great lessons. I only learned a couple, but this was one of my favorites. Another was, "Omitting the truth is better than lying. Be honest." I watched as Brother Ming sighed. There was an invisible wall between us. Brother Ming was much more cautious than I anticipated. I wasn't disappointed. I prepared to leave. It wasn't working.

"Okay." Brother Ming said helplessly. "But you have to tell your parents in advance. I'll pick you up in front of your house."

"In the morning!" I added. It worked.

"In the morning." Brother Ming agreed.

And after those words, he held my hand and gently walked next to me. We were heading towards my house. Brother Ming seemed to be in deep thought the whole time, so I acted obediently. He was a very social person, I noted. Brother Ming asked how I was doing, whether my other family members were doing well, and such. Nothing too personal, I noticed. I answered everything truthfully, as there was no reason not to. Finally, in front of my house, Brother Ming waved me off.

It was quiet for once. It wasn't the soundproofing-it was genuinely quiet. Jun and LiMei should be in a good mood today, I thought. I yawned, relieved.

"Thank you!" I said, then bowed politely. Then, after a pause, "We're friends now, right?" I asked.

Brother Ming waved. "Bye Aby!"

So he didn't answer my question until the end, huh. Brother Ming was very nice regardless. I looked forward to learning how to fight from him. He must play sports, and from the various scars and bruises on his body, I suspected he preferred sports with a more violent origin. The apocalypse comes closer. I grinned, thoughtful.

Today, for the first time in my life, I made a friend.