It was over!
Totally over!
Fu Cheng held the little dog in his arms and stood frozen in place, glancing from Lin Zao to Lin Xiaobao and back again.
He tugged at the corner of his mouth, forcing a stiff smile toward them, trying his best to look innocent and sincere.
It wasn’t him. He hadn’t done it.
He hadn’t taught this dog to “roar-roar.”
He hadn’t even interacted with the dog before this.
He had no idea where the dog had picked up that sound.
This was a frame job! A blatant setup!
Little Zao, Little Bao, you have to believe me!
Don’t let some outsider dog drive a wedge between us!
Unfortunately, Fu Cheng couldn’t speak.
Unfortunately, Lin Xiaobao had a very loud voice.
“Big Daddy is a big meanie! Big Daddy stole my little dog! Big Daddy…”
In a mix of grief and indignation, Lin Xiaobao threw his head back, opened his mouth wide to reveal his red little throat, and wailed at the top of his lungs.
Fu Cheng was starting to panic for real. He quickly bent his knees with a couple of cracks and squatted down in front of the boy, holding out the little dog.
Here, take it back. Don’t cry.
Lin Xiaobao cracked his eyes open, tears pooling as he glanced at the little dog. Then—
He cried even louder!
“The little dog is mine! Dad and Big Daddy already have me as their kid—they’re not allowed any more kids! Not even the little dog! You can’t give it to other… other dogs as a dad…”
Fu Cheng was truly at a loss. The little dog in his hands felt like a hot potato—handing it over didn’t work, and neither did holding on to it.
All he could do was lower his head and shake the little dog gently.
Say something! Come on, talk!
I can’t speak—you do it!
But the little dog had no clue what he meant. It rumbled twice, flopped in his palm, and closed its eyes, drifting off to sleep.
Fu Cheng’s eyes widened in disbelief as he stared down at it.
You dare copy me?
You think he isn’t crying loud enough already?
Fu Cheng turned pleading eyes toward Lin Xiaobao.
Little Bao Bao, please stop crying! I’m begging you!
I’m squatting here begging you!
Lin Xiaobao howled like a storm, while Fu Cheng flailed in a frantic attempt to soothe him.
Just then, like a god descending from the heavens—
Lin Zao squatted down, scooped Lin Xiaobao into his arms, and rocked him gently.
“Alright, Little Bao, no more crying.”
“I’m gonna cry! Big Daddy is the bad one…”
Lin Xiaobao could be awfully stubborn at times, just like Lin Zao.
“But look—”
Lin Zao pointed at his little face, trailing off on purpose.
Lin Xiaobao ducked his head and peered in the direction of his dad’s finger, growing even more frantic.
“What? I can’t see! I can’t see my own face!”
“Tap-tap-tap—”
Lin Zao’s finger trailed from his little cheek on down, ending at his tummy.
“You’ve shed so many tears, and they’ve all fallen into your belly. Is there still room for meat?”
“Um…”
Lin Xiaobao stopped crying at those words. He patted his little belly, feeling it seriously.
“I think… there’s still a little room…”
“Then you definitely can’t cry anymore.”
Lin Zao pulled a clean handkerchief from his pocket and pressed it to Lin Xiaobao’s forehead so he could wipe his tears.
Little babies tend to get worked up and cry when others fuss over them.
Fu Cheng had been scrambling to comfort him, making Lin Xiaobao feel even more wronged—he hadn’t wanted to cry at first, but now he was bawling.
Lin Zao distracted him with random chit-chat, and he was fine in an instant.
“Come on, let’s head up for dinner.”
Lin Zao stood with Lin Xiaobao in his arms.
Lin Xiaobao lifted off the ground and hurriedly wrapped his arms around his dad’s neck.
It was right then that his hand slipped, and the handkerchief used for wiping tears fluttered down.
“Oh no…”
Lin Xiaobao stretched out his little hand to grab it.
But his arms were too short. The handkerchief drifted halfway down before Big Daddy snatched it out of the air.
Fu Cheng held the little dog in one hand and the handkerchief in the other, watching him quietly.
“Hmph…” Lin Xiaobao pursed his lips and turned his head away. “Hmph!”
Big Daddy was a meanie, and he was still mad!
His tears weren’t fully wiped, and it felt uncomfortable, so Lin Xiaobao lowered his head, aiming to rub his face on his dad’s clothes.
But before he could make contact, Fu Cheng reached out with a big palm, padding it with the handkerchief and covering his little face.
Little Zao’s clothes are so clean—look how messy you’re getting them.
No wiping your tears and snot on Little Zao.
“Hmph!”
Lin Zao glanced back, holding in a laugh, and asked on purpose, “Little Bao, did you turn into an Hmph-Hmph Pig?”
“I’m not.” Lin Xiaobao started to “hmph” again but hesitated and held it back.
He scrunched up his little face and headbutted Big Daddy’s hand twice, hard.
Wipe my tears!
It made his cheeks hurt a bit, so he gave up.
Lin Xiaobao snatched the handkerchief back and wiped his own tears.
Lin Zao carried Lin Xiaobao, while Fu Cheng held the little dog.
The family of three headed upstairs.
As Lin Zao climbed the stairs, he lowered his head and called softly, “Little Bao.”
“Mm?” Lin Xiaobao clutched his tiny handkerchief and looked up. “Dad.”
Lin Zao leaned in close to his ear and whispered, “Are you mad because the little dog learned to ‘roar-roar’ like Big Daddy, or because it sees your Big Daddy as its dad…?”
“Hey!”
Before he could finish, Lin Xiaobao squirmed in protest.
His whole body rejected the question.
He wasn’t answering that!
Lin Zao chuckled and patiently explained, “Actually, not every little dog is born knowing how to ‘woof-woof.'”
Lin Xiaobao leaned on his dad’s shoulder, pouting skeptically.
“Some little dogs go ‘rumble-rumble,’ and others go ‘roar-roar.'”
“Every little dog is different. Just like you—you say ‘yay!’ when you’re happy, and ‘oh no, oh no’ when you’re not.”
“Really?” Lin Xiaobao wavered a bit and asked quietly, “But the little dog isn’t trying to steal my dad from me?”
“Of course not.” Lin Zao’s voice was gentle. “The little dog has its own mom and dad—it just got separated from them by accident and is staying with us temporarily. Why would it steal yours when it has its own?”
“Then Big Daddy wants another kid!” Lin Xiaobao kicked his legs in anger.
“Of course not.” Lin Zao answered patiently. “Dad and Big Daddy planned from the start to raise just you.”
“Then… then why did Big Daddy teach the little dog ‘roar-roar-roar’ but not me?”
“Dad thinks Big Daddy didn’t mean to.”
“Hm?”
“Monster language and little dog language are probably pretty similar.”
“Big Daddy and the little dog both lived on the first floor before, so the little dog must have overheard Big Daddy speaking ‘monster talk’ from his room.”
“And learned it.”
Lin Xiaobao tilted his head, pondering seriously.
It… kind of made a little sense.
“We can’t turn Big Daddy into a mute and stop him from talking, right?”
“We can.” Lin Xiaobao nodded earnestly.
“Huh?” Lin Zao was surprised.
Lin Xiaobao waved his little hand imperiously. “Big Daddy can only talk to Dad.”
“Not even to himself?” Lin Zao asked with a smile. “Little Bao, the domineering CEO?”
“Mm-hmm.” Lin Xiaobao nodded confidently.
“Then no more crying from the domineering CEO.”
Lin Zao bounced him lightly as he carried him upward.
“If you want to learn ‘roar-roar-roar,’ you can have Big Daddy teach you after dinner.”
“He got so worried when you cried.”
“He can’t speak human words right now, just monster language, so he doesn’t know how to comfort you.”
Lin Xiaobao buried himself in his dad’s arms, peeking out with big eyes to observe Big Daddy.
Was Big Daddy… really that worried?
From the first floor to the second, just a few dozen steps.
In mere minutes, Lin Zao had completely soothed Lin Xiaobao.
The family of three arrived at the second-floor dining room.
Lin Zao settled Lin Xiaobao into the baby chair.
Fu Cheng looked around but saw no matching chair for the dog, so he imitated the gesture and placed the little dog on the seat beside him.
The rectangular redwood dining table had Lin Xiaobao and the little dog on one side, with Lin Zao and Fu Cheng together on the other.
Four dishes and a soup steamed on the table.
The rice gleamed plump and perfect, paired with braised pork trotters in thick, glossy sauce.
The kelp soup was creamy white, its rich aroma wafting through the air.
Before digging in, Lin Zao fetched cups for the three of them and poured the leftover sugar water from their outing adventure, giving each a glass.
“Little Bao, yours.”
“Thanks, Dad.”
“Brother Cheng, yours.”
“Roar—”
Lin Xiaobao cradled his little cup with both hands and held it up obediently.
“Big Daddy, chee… cheers…”
Sorry about earlier—it was all underwater.
Fu Cheng froze for a moment, unsure how to react.
Kids were so strange.
Crying one moment, laughing the next.
Sad one second, happy the next.
Little Zao was amazing, though—he’d calmed the boy down so quickly.
Right then, Lin Zao raised his cup with one hand and nudged Fu Cheng’s arm with the other, prompting him to lift his.
Lin Zao called out loudly, “Cheers!”
With Dad leading, Lin Xiaobao grew bolder.
“Cheers! Welcome… welcome Big Daddy upstairs!”
Lin Zao couldn’t hold back his laughter. “Little Bao, what kind of welcome is that?”
“It’s a welcome, duh.” Lin Xiaobao was utterly righteous. “Otherwise, you say it, Dad.”
“I’ll say it.” Lin Zao cleared his throat. “Welcome home, Brother Cheng!”
“Dad, Big Daddy’s been home already.”
“Then—” Lin Zao thought for a second. “Welcome to the room, Brother Cheng!”
“Huh?” Lin Xiaobao blinked in confusion at his dad.
Fu Cheng turned his head, gazing at Lin Zao’s profile with a hint of amusement in his eyes.
Lin Zao met his gaze and went for it. “Welcome to the room, Brother Cheng! Welcome to the dining room, Brother Cheng!”
“Welcome to the table, Brother Cheng, to eat with us!”
“Welcome to the bed, Brother Cheng, to sleep with us!”
“Everyone, give a big warm welcome!”
Lin Zao and Lin Xiaobao set down their sugar water and clapped enthusiastically.
Fu Cheng tried to imitate them, but before he could lower his cup, Lin Zao grabbed his hand.
Lin Zao picked up the cup again, leaning in close with a playful eyebrow waggle.
The rims clinked with a crisp sound.
Watch closely—this is called—
Cheers!
Lin Xiaobao panicked when Dad and Big Daddy clinked without him and tried to stand up in his baby chair.
“Me too! Don’t leave me out!”
“Alright, alright.”
Fu Cheng learned fast this time—no need for Lin Zao’s guidance. He held out his cup on his own.
Clink—
Big cup, little cups: all three touched together.
“Cheers!”
“Roar-roar—”
With the ritual done, Lin Zao and Lin Xiaobao lifted their sugar water and drank.
“Dad, it’s sweet, like cola but without the fizz.”
“Then blow some bubbles into it.”
“Okay!”
Lin Xiaobao puckered up and blew “whoosh-whoosh-whoosh” into his drink.
Lin Zao tilted his head back, finished his sugar water, and turned to find Fu Cheng pressed right up against him, very close.
That dead-ghost look again.
Lin Zao asked, “Why aren’t you drinking? After cheers, you finish it all.”
Fu Cheng stared fixedly at him, rumbled twice, and leaned in even closer.
“It’s sugar water, not booze. I don’t even know if zombies can drink alcohol.”
Fu Cheng kept staring, until Lin Zao started to get annoyed.
“What are you doing? Drink up—we can eat once you’re done…”
Before he finished, Fu Cheng lunged forward.
A cold sensation pressed against Lin Zao’s cheek.
Lin Zao froze for a second, then glanced down.
It was… the bite guard…
Fu Cheng tilted his head, dragging the bite guard across Lin Zao’s face.
He stared intently at Lin Zao in silence, staring until goosebumps rose on Lin Zao’s back.
Little Zao, tell me—how am I supposed to drink with this thing on my face?
Tell me!
Zombies have it so rough! Zombies always get wronged by their wife and kid!
He was done. He was going out to bite zombies right now, infect a bunch more with zombie virus, and poison himself to death!
Fu Cheng turned to leave, but Lin Zao grabbed his arm and yanked him back.
“Brother Cheng, sorry, my bad! Don’t go! I’ll take it off right now! Don’t be mad!”
Lin Zao dragged him insistently, while Fu Cheng half-resisted, half-went along.
They finally made it back to the table.
Lin Zao removed the bite guard for Fu Cheng, then picked up chopsticks and tossed two pork trotters into his bowl.
“Eat! Eat now!”
Fu Cheng grinned stiffly, picked up his chopsticks, and noticed his grip matched Little Bao’s, not Little Zao’s.
Little Bao ate slippery foods the same way—gripping the chopsticks to stab them or grabbing with his hands.
Compared to Little Bao, he was still a bit better.
But Fu Cheng wasn’t satisfied with that.
He watched Lin Zao intently, mimicking his hand movements as he ate dinner.
Lin Zao ate while occasionally glancing at him and serving him more food.
This was Fu Cheng’s first time without the bite guard, eating with them.
Lin Zao was still a little scared.
Scared that midway through, Fu Cheng might mistake him and Little Bao for dishes and turn it into an all-you-can-eat buffet.
“Brother Cheng, eat more cabbage—you’ll get fairer skin.”
“Eat more tomatoes—you’ll get sour.”
“Eat more…”
Lin Zao’s eyes twinkled as he picked up a single yellow soybean and dropped it into Fu Cheng’s bowl.
“Eat more soybeans.”
Fu Cheng knew he was messing with him on purpose, since the beans were impossible to pick up.
Fu Cheng lowered his gaze to the tiny bean in his bowl, hesitated a moment, then—
Lifted the entire bowl to his mouth.
—Little Zao, let me reiterate: I’m not an idiot.
Lin Zao pretended nothing happened, swaying casually as he turned away.
At that moment, Lin Xiaobao was battling a big pork trotter bone.
Some shreds of meat were stuck in the crevices.
His blunt baby teeth couldn’t bite them off, and his clumsy little tongue couldn’t hook them out.
“Wah—”
Lin Xiaobao’s mouth was sore from chewing, but the bone still wasn’t clean.
“Dad…”
He set it down, his face screaming “help me” in big letters.
Lin Zao smiled. “If you can’t get it, just leave it…”
Before he finished, Fu Cheng reached over and held out his bowl to Lin Xiaobao.
Lin Xiaobao’s eyes lit up. He tossed the bone right in. “Thanks, Big Daddy.”
Lin Zao’s eyes widened in disbelief as he watched curiously.
Was this the zombie’s muscle memory? Or…
Fu Cheng looked helpless as he met Lin Zao’s gaze. He took back the bowl, picked up the chopsticks, and reached into Lin Zao’s bowl to grab the pork rind and fatty meat he’d set aside.
Lin Zao suddenly felt a bit embarrassed.
It wasn’t that he didn’t eat fatty meat; he just had a specific order for eating it.
He always finished the lean meat first and set the fatty bits aside, steeling himself mentally before tackling them.
Fu Cheng understood immediately. He transferred all the remnants Lin Zao had left into his own bowl and popped them into his mouth.
He even crunched up the bones and swallowed them down.
Whatever his wife and son couldn’t or wouldn’t eat, he would handle it.
Lin Zao and Lin Xiaobao both grinned foolishly in unison.
“Brother Cheng/Big Daddy, you’re the best!”
After dinner, Lin Zao and Fu Cheng quickly cleared the dishes. Lin Xiaobao fed the little dog a full milk bottle of kelp soup.
The family of three returned to their third-floor room and lined up to take turns washing up and bathing.
Lin Xiaobao finished first. Dressed in his Small Dinosaur pajamas, he reluctantly climbed into bed.
“It’s still so early. Dad, can we watch a bit of TV?”
Lin Zao came in right after him as the second one done. He slipped into his Medium Dinosaur pajamas and burrowed under the covers.
“No. Once you turn on the TV, you can’t turn it off. Our whole sleep schedule is already a mess—we have to fix it now.”
“But I can’t fall asleep.”
“Then close your eyes and zone out.”
“Aw, come on…”
Finally, Fu Cheng finished washing up.
The towering Big Dinosaur approached the bedside.
When he sat down, the mattress dipped noticeably under his weight.
Lin Zao and Lin Xiaobao couldn’t help sliding toward him.
“Brother Cheng!”
“Big Daddy!”
Fu Cheng opened his arms and caught his wife and son.
Lin Zao sprawled across Fu Cheng’s chest and stretched to switch off the bedside lamp. “Time to sleep.”
In the end, though, none of them could sleep.
Lin Xiaobao clung to his dad’s arm, refusing to settle. “Big Daddy, teach me how to ‘roar roar roar.'”
Lin Zao wrapped himself around Fu Cheng too. “Brother Cheng, why are you so cold? You’re wearing pajamas and still freezing—it’s chilling me now. I slept like the dead last night and didn’t notice, but tonight it feels so cold.”
He cradled Fu Cheng’s hand and rubbed it vigorously, even huffing warm breath onto it.
Fu Cheng lay flat on his back, indulging their every request. “Roar roar roar—”
They didn’t know how long they fooled around like that until the sky had turned pitch black and the world fell completely silent. Only then did Lin Zao and Lin Xiaobao finally drift off in a daze.
Lin Xiaobao was latched onto Lin Zao, who was latched onto Fu Cheng.
The family of three resembled a little three-layer burger.
But Fu Cheng’s body was too cold. Lin Zao huddled against him, sleeping fitfully and shivering now and then.
Fu Cheng thought for a moment, then carefully extracted his arm from Lin Zao’s embrace.
He patted Lin Zao’s head, lifted the quilt off himself, and slipped out, leaving it for Lin Zao and Lin Xiaobao to share.
Fu Cheng lay beside them without any covers. He stretched out his arms to hug them through the quilt and, through the bite guard, gently touched their foreheads.
Goodnight, my most beloved son.
Goodnight, my most, most, most beloved wife.
