Heidi wailed on the bridge for about ten minutes before Jiaming helplessly hugged her and walked to the side. There was a small restaurant with a glass wall at the corner of the street. There were also tables on the side of the road with a beautiful colorful shed. He let Heidi sit down and looked back. Not many people in the restaurant were looking outside.
The waiter came over and Jiaming asked for water and tissues. Heidi sat there and continued to cry. Her tears kept falling, and her body twitched from time to time. Her whole face was already messed up. It wasn't a problem with the makeup. Jiaming had been in the city for half an afternoon. Although he wasn't injured, his clothes were torn and dust and the like were naturally covered in a lot of dust. Just now the girl was hugging him while crying and wiping her tears on his clothes like a cat. At this time, she was even dirtier. For a moment, Jiaming almost felt that the poor girl who had wandered the streets of Jianghai nine years ago in hunger and cold for a month had appeared in front of him again.
"Okay, okay … You've cried for so long. Don't cry … Don't cry …"
As he spoke softly, Jiaming picked up a tissue and wiped her face. It took more than a minute for the crying to turn into sobs and sobs. Heidi was already a mature girl with a slightly rebellious dress and hairstyle. At this time, her beautiful little face was indescribably childish. She looked at Jiaming's shoulders for a long time before she finally blinked her eyes and reacted. She smiled a little embarrassedly, and then with a bang, she slammed on the table. After two seconds, she straightened up again.
"You … You won't, won't …"
"Well, it won't be like last time."
Jiaming nodded and handed her a tissue. Heidi was a little embarrassed as she wiped her red eyes. "Hehe …"
She finally stopped crying. The waiter, who had been standing not far away and looking at her suspiciously for a long time, walked over hesitantly and stammered, "Um … excuse me … may I ask … are you Miss Janet … uh …"
Heidi pulled out three more tissues from the front and lowered her head to cover her dirty face. Under the watchful eyes of the waiter, she snorted and then folded the tissues to wipe her face. With a choked voice, she said, "No … My name is Heidi …"
"Uh … Oh … Oh …"
Heidi looked up and smiled at Jiaming. Jiaming also smiled and pointed at her cheek. The sea breeze blew, and under the warm street lights, the girl took out a makeup box from her handbag and looked at herself. She then cried out in surprise and hurriedly tried to fix it …
*****
Although Heidi had described the journey as complicated, the journey to Marilyn's current location was really not far. When the girl stopped crying, touched up her makeup slightly, and set off again ten minutes later, they arrived at their destination.
During this period of time, Heidi told Jia Ming bits and pieces of what had happened in the past few years, such as singing, shooting music videos, life, and studies. The girl who had just cried appeared obedient beside Jia Ming, but occasionally showed signs of her rebellious and playful side.
"Mom is working at the bakery, but she should be back by now … When you see her later, don't tell her that I cried just now …"
"Anyone can see that."
"I know, I can tell. Don't say it …"
She said so, rubbed her eyes, and then smiled brightly.
The buildings in Venice were all unique. Even an ordinary residential building was full of gorgeous European style. There were all kinds of well-lit shops below, and the balconies above were distributed in an irregular but beautiful pattern on the outer wall. White gauze curtains fluttered slightly, and clusters of decorative flowers and plants were placed on the balconies. Heidi pointed at one of the balconies and then led Jiaming there. She hesitantly took out the key to the door on the second floor.
"Should I take the front or you take the front … Or you take the front … Uh, I'll take the front …"
After changing positions with Jiaming back and forth several times, she still stood in front of the door. She originally wanted to open it with the key, but after thinking about it, she reached out and knocked. There was no fluorescent light in the stairwell, and the yellow light was hazy and somewhat ambiguous. Heidi pushed Jiaming to the side, and after a while, the door opened.
"Heidi …"
A surprised voice came. Heidi called out, "Mom!" Then, there was a "ping" sound, and a white porcelain plate fell to the ground and shattered into pieces. The surroundings fell silent for a moment.
Marilyn stood by the door and looked at Jiaming next to her. She opened her mouth slightly, and for a moment, she was short of breath. Her eyes blinked hard, and her eyes moved back and forth between the two of them outside the door. Then, she raised her right hand hesitantly, as if she was going to touch Heidi, but in the end, she gently covered her mouth.
"Ha … Uh …"
Five years had passed, and she hadn't changed much. When she gave birth to Heidi, she wasn't very old. At this moment, it seemed that the little girl had closed the distance between them, and the two of them were like sisters. She was wearing a light yellow coat and a five-quarter skirt that were convenient for movement, and her long blond hair fell over her shoulders like waves. She took a deep breath.
"Mom, I'm going in first …"
"Heidi …"
With tears in her eyes, Marilyn watched her daughter walk past her. She looked at Jiaming and walked up to him in two steps, as if she wanted to hug him like before. But after thinking about it, she stopped and walked on the spot. After a while, Jiaming frowned, gently hugged her waist, and pressed the plump woman's body against his.
"I don't know if I can still do this. If I can't, just tell me, okay …"
Marilyn just nodded desperately with tears in her eyes.
*****
It was just past eight o 'clock, and the three of them were cooking in the kitchen. The situation was somewhat similar to when Jiaming, Lingjing, and Shasha were together.
Heidi naturally didn't know how to do this. Because she saw that Jiaming was busy, she came in to join in the fun and help wash the vegetables and rice. From time to time, she would be hit by Jiaming because of her clumsiness. Marilyn, who had washed her face and wiped away her tears, hugged her daughter to protect her. The laughter was enough to temporarily bring the three of them back to the past. But because of Heidi, Marilyn seemed to deliberately avoid excessive contact with Jiaming. Except for the hugs and kisses at the beginning, whenever Jiaming touched her, she blushed and retreated clumsily. Even Heidi found it a little funny when she saw it.
Except for the fact that their positions were a little vague, the dinner could be said to be enjoyable and harmonious, just like the three of them five years ago. Some mischievous little girl, beautiful and sexy mother, and young and mature teenager who seemed to be the head of the family.
However, because of the past, Marilyn was much quieter now. Only Heidi was actively asking questions and telling Jiaming about her mother over the years. Only at this time did Marilyn add a few words with a smile. She also mentioned that many men who pursued her mother were rejected. The way she looked at Jiaming seemed to be hinting that "Mom has been waiting for you all these years."
Every time this happened, Marilyn would look at her daughter with a little uneasiness.
In the midst of Heidi's curiosity, Jiaming also tactfully talked about his difficulties in the past few years. His brain was sick, and he lived like a walking corpse for a few years. From Heidi and Marilyn's statements, he learned that after the incident four years ago, they had come to China and tried to find him. However, no matter how hard they tried, it was like throwing a stone into the sea.
At that time, the two of them thought that Jiaming deliberately cut off all contact with them and finally left. After this incident, Marilyn also fell seriously ill. Heidi probably left home because of guilt and didn't come back easily.
These things were in the past, so it didn't matter anymore. At most, the parties involved were a little embarrassed. The three of them talked about these things while watching TV. At eleven o 'clock in the evening, Jiaming finally had to leave. Heidi then talked about her plan. "Jiaming, in the future … I'll go to China to sing, okay?"
"Up to you, but if you call me dad again, I'll beat you up."
"Hehe, you won't bear to."
"I'll give it a try …"
While chatting and laughing, Marilyn sent Jiaming downstairs. Probably worried about her daughter's condition, the beautiful mother was a little silent until they crossed the stone arch bridge. She was wearing a soft vest, and in the sea breeze, her high heels made complicated footsteps. When Jiaming stopped in front of her, she directly bumped into him. Jiaming hugged her, and she just stood there, resting her chin on his shoulder, not daring to look at his face.
"Next time when Heidi's not here, I'll come to you."
"… Okay."
Marilyn nodded. At this moment, a figure rushed out from the distant balcony, hands cupped around his mouth.
"Dad —"
The shout echoed in the air, followed by bell-like laughter. The two of them were a little helpless, amused, and annoyed.
Soon after, Jiaming's figure disappeared at the corner of the street in the distance. On the balcony of the building, Heidi turned her back. Tears fell from her face as she smiled brightly. No matter how hard she wiped them, they couldn't be wiped away.
*****
When it was close to midnight, Jiaming went to Natalie's villa.
Perhaps because of Natalie's prior instructions, he did not encounter any obstacles along the way. The entire villa was spacious and quiet. He went straight up to the second floor and pushed open the huge bedroom door that belonged to Kelly. The soft white curtains were swaying in the sea breeze. On the huge lounge chair by the balcony, two women were sleeping quietly.
Kelly was lying on her side in a pearl-black translucent nightgown. Her sexy body was perfectly outlined in the night, and there were circles of black anklets on her white ankles. Sleeping quietly, she was like a charming and holy goddess of the night. Natalie was wearing a white nightgown. Sensing Jiaming's arrival, she raised her head, then propped herself up and made a shushing gesture.
Jiaming walked over and squatted down beside the lounge chair.
Natalie gently stroked the hair covering Kelly's face, like a sister protecting her younger sister.
"Sometimes, I really don't understand your relationship with her. Do you like her or are you using her? Does she like the current you or the disguised you …"
"I don't know either." Jiaming looked at Kelly's sleeping posture and smiled. "What about you guys? Are you gay?"
"What do you think?"
A beautiful smile appeared on Natalie's face, then she tilted her head. "That's just sex …"
Their voices quietly spread in the room. On the lounge chair, which was like a huge bed, Kelly shifted her body and mumbled, "I haven't slept yet. Don't you think it's noisy …" The two of them laughed.
"Is it fun to be mother and daughter together?"
With her back to Jiaming, she mumbled in a daze. Jiaming smiled but didn't reply. The room fell into silence.
This silence lasted for more than a minute. Finally, Kelly said, "Hug me to sleep …" Jiaming got on the lounge chair and hugged her from behind. Natalie looked at them for a while, then finally leaned over and fell asleep.
The sea breeze was still there. In the quiet room, only the white curtains danced gently in the sea breeze …
The next morning, according to the news he received, Jia Ming greeted Marilyn and his daughter before boarding a plane to Albania. That afternoon, he met Long Tangwei, who was waiting for him in the southern Albanian city of Korça. In a sense, this was the first time they had met …