“Wah wah wah—”
“Dad, I’m so scared! I’m scared to death!”
In the hallway.
Lin Xiaobao threw himself into his dad’s arms, sobbing his heart out.
His cries were heart-wrenching, shaking the very ground.
Even the fluorescent light overhead flickered twice.
He was so scared—so scared of that banging on the door, so scared of the bad guys outside.
So scared that Dad would leave him all alone at home!
He was scared to death!
Even as Lin Xiaobao cried, he remembered to reach out and clutch his dad’s clothes tightly.
Dad wasn’t allowed to leave! He couldn’t leave him all by himself!
Seeing his son like this, Lin Zao’s heart had already shattered into pieces.
Lin Zao crouched down on the floor and wrapped his arms around the boy, holding him tight.
He lowered his head, pressing his own wind-chilled cheek against Lin Xiaobao’s tear-streaked little face.
In a soft, gentle voice, he murmured words of comfort.
“Little Bao, don’t be scared. Dad’s right here. Dad will protect you.”
Lin Xiaobao was crying too hysterically to take in his words.
Lin Zao didn’t rush him. He just held on, repeating the reassurances over and over.
For every accusation Lin Xiaobao wailed, Lin Zao had an answer.
“It was so loud outside! Louder than thunder!”
“The bad guys were smashing the door, but Dad and Big Daddy chased them away. Don’t be scared.”
“It was so dark, and the closet was so dark! Dad didn’t even turn on the light for me!”
“I’m sorry, that was Dad’s mistake. I’ll put a night-light in the closet right away.”
“Dad and Big Daddy didn’t stay with me! Dad and Big Daddy don’t want me anymore!”
“Dad and Big Daddy didn’t abandon you! We went to protect you!”
“I was all alone… Dad and Big Daddy are two people, but I’m just one…”
At first, Lin Xiaobao could still string together clear, complete sentences amid his sobs.
But he was crying so fiercely, so intensely.
Soon, he doubled over, hunching his little body as violent coughs wracked him.
“It’s not fair… cough cough cough… not fair at all…”
“Little Bao? Little Bao!”
Seeing this wasn’t good, Lin Zao quickly loosened his hold a bit. One hand steadied the boy while the other hovered near his back, patting gently.
“What’s wrong? Did saliva go down the wrong way? Can you breathe?”
Just then, Lin Xiaobao coughed hard once more, then opened his mouth wide, gulping in air.
Lin Zao squeezed his little hand and felt it trembling. He promptly covered the boy’s mouth and pinched his nose shut.
“Little Bao, don’t breathe so fast.”
He’d been crying too hard, breathing too quickly.
Lin Xiaobao wasn’t listening. Lin Zao had to raise his voice.
“Little Bao, listen to Dad! Follow what Dad says!”
Lin Zao pinched—
“Breathe in slowly.”
Pinched—
“Breathe out slowly.”
Trembling all over, Lin Xiaobao obeyed his dad’s instructions.
In… and out. Pause. Repeat.
A few minutes later, his breathing steadied.
Lin Zao felt his little hand—no more shaking—and finally let out a breath, relaxing.
Lin Xiaobao stood before him, eyes red, lips red, his whole face flushed.
Looking at his dad’s overly stern expression, he sniffled and asked softly, “Dad’s being so mean… Does Dad hate me…?”
“Nonsense!” Lin Zao cut him off at once, pulling him back into his arms. “Dad doesn’t hate you. Dad’s worried about you!”
“You were crying so hard you couldn’t catch your breath. Dad was talking to you, but you couldn’t hear, so I had to be a little stern.”
“Dad was worried you couldn’t breathe, worried you’d pass out.”
Lin Xiaobao slumped into his dad’s chest, burying his face there as he mumbled, “Really?”
“Of course!” Lin Zao’s tone was earnest. “How do you feel now? Can you breathe okay?”
“Mmm…” Lin Xiaobao nodded.
“That’s good.”
Lin Zao patted his back, then pulled a handkerchief from his pocket to wipe his face.
Lin Xiaobao had cried so much—tears, snot, drool, all over.
Lin Zao didn’t mind a bit. He wiped gently as he coaxed.
“The situation was dangerous earlier. Dad was afraid the bad guys would grab you or hurt you, so I hid you in the closet.”
“Dad knows you were terrified, so the moment the bad guys left, Dad rushed right back to you. Right?”
“Dad knows you’re just a little baby, still so young. So even if you cry, Dad isn’t mad or anything. Dad feels sorry for you.”
“Sorry for our little baby, hiding alone in the closet, opening the door all by himself.”
“So small, but so brave. Right?”
“Right…” Lin Xiaobao nodded pitifully. “Right.”
“You were so sad, and Dad heard every word.”
“So next time, you can tell Dad properly. You can cry, but don’t cry so hard you hurt yourself.”
“Okay?”
Lin Xiaobao nodded again. “Okay.”
“Good boy!” Lin Zao flipped the handkerchief to a clean side and pinched Lin Xiaobao’s nose with it. “Little Bao, give a ‘honk’!”
Lin Xiaobao took a deep breath, clamped his mouth shut, and blew through his nose. “Honk—”
Like a little train starting up.
“Huh—” Lin Zao held up the handkerchief for him to see. “Look, all that snot.”
“If you keep crying and crying without letting Dad wipe your face, it’ll run down into your tummy. It’s dirty, and worms will grow in your belly.”
“So next time you cry, stop after a bit and let Dad wipe you off. Okay?”
Lin Xiaobao nodded vigorously one last time. “Okay.”
“Alright.” Lin Zao took his hand. “The bad guys are gone—Dad and Big Daddy chased them off. Dad will take you to wash your face and hands first, then we’ll finish dinner. Sound good?”
“Okay.”
“Let’s go.”
Lin Zao led him into the bedroom bathroom.
He filled half a basin with warm water, soaked Lin Xiaobao’s little towel in it, then wrung it out.
Lin Xiaobao sat obediently on a small stool, tilting his head back.
The warm towel draped over his face.
“Little Bao, does that feel nice?”
“Nice.”
Earlier, Lin Zao had just wiped away the worst of the mess. Now he cleaned carefully—around the eyes, the corners of the mouth.
Lin Xiaobao sniffled, then called out, “Dad.”
“Dad’s right here. What’s up?”
“Did Big Daddy go out too?”
“Yeah.” Lin Zao replied. “Dad couldn’t handle those bad guys alone, so Big Daddy came to help. He even got hurt saving Dad. We’ll go put medicine on him in a bit.”
“Then I want to go with you! Next time, I want to go too!”
“But it’s too dangerous outside.” Lin Zao refused instinctively. “You’re still so little.”
“I don’t care! I want to go! I want to be with Dad and Big Daddy!”
“But… staying home is an important job too.” Lin Zao coaxed patiently. “Look at all this food, all this meat. Someone has to watch it.”
“Dad and Big Daddy went out, and you guarded everything at home. We split up into teams, working together. Right?”
Lin Xiaobao objected. “But Dad and Big Daddy are two people, and I’m just one! That’s not fair at all!”
“That’s because…” Lin Zao thought for a second. “Dad and Big Daddy are kinda dumb, but Little Bao’s super smart—one of you is worth two of us. You’re a whole team by yourself, which means you’re the best.”
Lin Zao gave him a thumbs-up—first one thumb, then the other.
“Awesome! Super awesome!”
“Mmm…”
Lin Xiaobao hesitated a little.
It kinda made sense.
“But I still want to be with Dad and Big Daddy. I don’t want to stay home alone. I’m scared you’ll get hurt…”
“Don’t worry, Dad and Big Daddy will be fine.” Lin Zao ruffled his hair. “We’ll take care of ourselves. You stay home and count to a hundred, and we’ll be back.”
“Really?”
“Of course.” Lin Zao held out his pinky. “Wanna pinky swear?”
“Okay…”
Lin Xiaobao started to reach out, then remembered something.
“Dad, I can’t count to a hundred yet!”
Dad was tricking him! Dad was fooling this little illiterate!
“No problem. Dad’ll teach you right away—tonight.”
The little illiterate’s eyes lit up, and he was placated in an instant.
“Okay then. Pinky swear.”
Lin Zao washed Lin Xiaobao’s face and hands, then took him downstairs to the dining room.
The robbers had shown up just as the father and son were about to eat dinner.
Now that the robbers were gone, the food on the table had gone cold.
Lin Xiaobao had just had another big crying fit, so nothing too greasy—he might get an upset stomach and throw up.
Lin Zao put away the braised pig head meat in the fridge, taking out only two firm pieces of braised pig heart and slicing them into small chunks.
At the same time, he got a new pot of water going for a light, appetizing seaweed egg drop soup.
While the soup cooked, he set up a steamer over another pot and warmed the rice.
Soup done, rice hot.
Lin Zao lifted Lin Xiaobao into the baby chair and set the food in front of him.
It was so late, and after all that crying, Little Bao had to be starving.
“Here we go—nice, steaming pig heart and egg drop soup. Eat them together.”
Lin Xiaobao eyed the food laid out before him and asked, puzzled, “What about Dad? Isn’t Dad eating?”
“Dad had a bit while prepping the food.”
Lin Zao explained patiently.
“Big Daddy’s hurt and waiting downstairs for Dad to bring medicine and bandage him up.”
“Eat slowly, no rush. Dad’ll be right downstairs. If you need anything, just yell, and Dad’ll come up.”
“Okay?”
Seeing Lin Zao about to leave, Lin Xiaobao couldn’t sit still.
“No! No no no!”
He twisted around, trying to climb down from the chair.
“I want to be with Dad! Right now, with Dad!”
He was still a bit scared.
Lin Zao had thought he was okay, but…
Of course. Little Bao was only three. After something that terrifying, how could he bounce back right away?
Lin Xiaobao struggled so much he nearly tipped the baby chair over.
Lin Zao scooped him up at once. “Okay okay, you’ll come with Dad. I’ll take your food downstairs to eat.”
Lin Xiaobao’s eyes brightened, and he nodded hard. “Yeah yeah!”
“But you have to promise Dad—you’ll eat nicely, no running into Big Daddy’s room. Big Daddy’s hurt pretty bad and needs Dad to treat him personally. You can’t disturb us or mess up the healing.”
Truth be told, Lin Zao wasn’t worried about disturbance. He was afraid Fu Cheng, covered in blood, would scare Little Bao.
“Okay.” Lin Xiaobao agreed instantly. “I promise. No bothering Dad and Big Daddy.”
“Then let’s go.”
Lin Xiaobao picked up his little rice bowl.
Lin Zao grabbed the medicine kit—one hand with the salve and bandages, the other holding the egg drop soup.
The father and son headed downstairs.
Lin Zao dragged over a tall plastic stool and set it by the utility room door—a little ways from the entrance.
“Little Bao, this is your dinner table. Sit here and eat. Dad and Big Daddy will be inside tending the wounds.”
“Dad, a little closer, please.” Lin Xiaobao tried to negotiate.
“No.” Lin Zao was firm. “Right here.”
What if Brother Cheng didn’t recognize them and went berserk? At least Little Bao would have a chance to run if he was eating out here.
“Fine.”
Lin Xiaobao set down his little bowl obediently, darted off to fetch a small stool, and placed it by his “table.”
Lin Zao saw through it and reminded him, “No moving stools yourself. You can’t manage it, and if you spill the soup, it’ll burn you.”
As he spoke, he grabbed Lin Xiaobao’s hand and pressed his fingers briefly against the iron basin holding the soup.
“Hot?”
“Super hot!”
“So be careful, okay.”
“Okay.” Lin Xiaobao agreed reluctantly.
With Lin Xiaobao settled, Lin Zao finally donned his helmet and gloves, approaching the utility room slowly.
He wondered if Brother Cheng would still recognize him.
What if he didn’t?
What if… what if Brother Cheng tried to bite him?
No. No what-ifs.
Even if the worst happened, he had to treat those wounds!
Fu Cheng was covered in blood, hurt so badly—it couldn’t be ignored.
Lin Zao steeled himself and reached the utility room door. He placed his hand gently on the slightly ajar iron door.
With a creak, he eased it open from outside.
One inch, two—
Lin Zao fumbled for the wall switch and flicked on the light.
The fluorescent bulb flickered twice, illuminating the whole utility room.
Three inches, four—
Lin Zao looked up to see Fu Cheng sitting on the bed.
Just as he’d ordered before leaving, and Fu Cheng had obeyed.
Fu Cheng held a meal box in one hand, chopsticks in the other.
He was eating dinner—and nearly finished.
Hearing the noise, Fu Cheng looked up at Lin Zao.
In an instant, his eyes lit up with joy, full of delight, no hint of aggression.
Lin Zao breathed a sigh of relief. He pocketed the salve and bandages, then turned to fetch water.
With all that blood, he needed to wipe him down first before bandaging.
But the moment he turned, Fu Cheng grew restless behind him.
Lin Zao glanced back, pointed at him, and said, “I’ll be right back. Sit.”
Fu Cheng didn’t understand the words but got the gesture. He tamped down the urge to lunge and sat back down.
Lin Zao went to the garage faucet, filled a basin with clean water, and took a blue towel from the wall.
It was Fu Cheng’s towel for wiping sweat while fixing the car.
Fairly new—good enough.
Lin Zao carried the basin back into the utility room.
Seeing him return, Fu Cheng grinned again.
“Grinning, grinning—you got yourself like this and you’re still grinning?”
Lin Zao muttered at him, fished the towel from the water, wrung it out, and slapped it onto his face.
His vision suddenly plunged into darkness. Fu Cheng instinctively raised a hand to strike, only to lower it the instant he heard Lin Zao’s voice.
“Brother Cheng, what the hell happened? How did you end up with so many injuries?”
Lin Zao clutched a towel and gently wiped away the dried, crusted blood from his face.
Beneath the bloodstains lay several faint scars.
His face had gotten off relatively lightly. The real damage was on his shoulder and arm, and worst of all, his chest.
Deep, jagged wounds gaped open, flesh turned out. Even Lin Zao felt a chill run down his spine at the sight.
Bowing his head, Lin Zao carefully dabbed at the gashes on his chest.
One. Two. Three…
As he wiped, a sour ache bloomed in Lin Zao’s chest, his nose stinging.
He didn’t want to break down crying, so he kept talking to Fu Cheng, letting the words drown out his emotions.
Even knowing Fu Cheng couldn’t understand a thing, he asked the same questions again and again.
“What exactly happened? Did you go climb a mountain of swords or something?”
“How did you end up like this? Does it hurt?”
“Can zombies even get injured and bleed like that? Will a zombie’s blood just run dry?”
“Brother Cheng, I really hate you sometimes. You always charge ahead without a care, never sparing a thought for yourself.”
“You were like that when you were human, and you’re still the same as a zombie.”
“No more of this next time, you hear me? If you do it again, I’ll…”
Lin Zao kept his head lowered, his gaze fixed on the floor, desperately trying to conceal the heartache pooling in his eyes.
But in that moment, the moonlight shifted, pouring in through the window unimpeded.
It was clear and bright, a pure silver glow.
Lin Zao looked up on instinct, staring blankly at the empty frame. For a second, he lost himself in the sight.
This place… it used to be a window?
Where was the sash? The glass panes?
The next instant, Fu Cheng rumbled softly.
Why was Little Zao spacing out? Why had he stopped wiping his hands?
Lin Zao snapped back to attention. He looked down at Fu Cheng and pieced it all together in a flash.
That spot hadn’t been a window at all. It was an exhaust fan!
An exhaust fan with sharp metal blades!
The kind that… could shred a person head to toe with wounds like these!
A heartbeat later, Lin Zao threw his arms around Fu Cheng and hugged him tight.
Fearless. Without a shred of hesitation.
