Chapter 191 Statue of Liberty
The next morning, before Lin Yan went to the branch office for a meeting, he specially ordered breakfast for Si Zhui, and wrote the hotel room card and his mobile phone number on a note and stuck it on the headboard of the bed.
"Call me if you have any problems, don't run around." He ruffled Sizhui's hair, his tone filled with admonition.
"I know." Si Zhui nodded obediently, watching him pick up the briefcase and go out. He felt a little empty in his heart, but not as panicked as before - the recorder on the bedside was still there, and Lin Yan's voice seemed to be right next to his ears.
As soon as Lin Yan left, Si Zhui got up and leaned against the window to watch the street scene. New York mornings were vibrant, with pedestrians hurrying by and rich aromas wafting from streetside cafes. He took out the small wooden kite carving and ran his fingers over the incisions. Suddenly, he felt that even being alone wasn't so hard.
Lin Yan's meeting lasted longer than expected. By the time he finished his work and left the meeting room, it was past lunchtime. There were three unread messages on his phone, all from Si Zhui: "Brother Lin, breakfast is delicious," "I'm watching cartoons," and "When will you be back?"
He smiled and replied "Right away", and his pace couldn't help but quicken.
When he opened the door to his hotel room, he saw Sizhui sprawled on the sofa, hugging a pillow in his arms. English cartoons were playing on the TV, but his eyes were fixed on the door. Hearing the noise, the young man suddenly raised his head, his eyes instantly lighting up.
"Brother Lin!" He jumped off the sofa, ran over and held Lin Yan's hand, like a puppy waiting for his owner to come home.
"Have you been waiting for a long time?" Lin Yan looked at the tip of his red nose, knowing that he must have been facing the air conditioner for a long time again.
"No!" Si Zhui said stubbornly, but put his hand in his pocket, "Let's go see the Statue of Liberty!"
On the cruise ship to Liberty Island, Sizhui leaned against the side of the ship, excitedly gazing at the Statue of Liberty in the distance. The sun shone on his face, and his smile blossomed like a sunflower. Lin Yan stood beside him, watching his wind-twisted hair, and reached out to smooth it down for him.
"Look, she's so tall!" Si Zhui pointed at the statue of the goddess, his voice full of amazement.
"Yeah." Lin Yan nodded and took out his phone. "Do you want to take a picture?"
Si Zhui nodded quickly, ran to stand in front of the goddess statue, and smiled widely. Lin Yan raised his phone and froze the scene—the young man stood in the sun, the towering statue behind him, the light in his eyes brighter than the sun.
After taking a few solo photos, Sizhui pulled Lin Yan in for another. He stood on tiptoe, his arm resting on Lin Yan's shoulder, and smiled with extraordinary joy. Lin Yan looked at their faces close together in the camera and suddenly felt that this trip to New York had been well worth it.
On the way back from Liberty Island, Si Zhui was so tired that he fell asleep on Lin Yan's shoulder. Lin Yan carefully held him in his arms, looking at his tired sleeping face, his heart softened.
Back at the hotel, Lin Yan put him on the bed. Just as he was about to get up, Si Zhui grabbed the corner of his clothes.
"Brother Lin..." Si Zhui mumbled in a daze, "Please don't leave..."
Lin Yan's heart suddenly tightened. He sat down beside him and patted his back gently: "Don't leave. I'll stay here with you."
Si Zhui seemed to have heard his words, his brows gradually relaxed, and his hand gripping the corner of his clothes loosened a little.
Lin Yan looked at him and suddenly remembered Lan Wangji's words - "Let him know that there is warmth hidden in your severity." He used to think that protecting him meant shielding him from all the storms, but he forgot that sometimes, letting him see his concern was more important than anything else.
He picked up the small wooden kite sculpture, placed it next to Sizhui's pillow, and gently kissed him on the forehead.
"Go to sleep, I won't leave."
When Si Zhui woke up, he found that Lin Yan was still there, sitting at the desk processing documents. His left hand was typing on the keyboard a little clumsily, but very seriously.
"Brother Lin."
Lin Yan turned around and smiled: "Are you awake? Are you hungry? I'll take you to eat steak."
Sizhui nodded, got up and ran to his side. Looking at the dense English words on the computer screen, he stuck out his tongue and said, "It's so difficult."
"I'll teach you later." Lin Yan ruffled his hair. "As long as you want to learn, I'll teach you."
Si Zhui looked at him and suddenly felt that the future seemed to become very clear - they would grow up together, learn a lot of things together, and go to many places together, just like these two little kites holding hands, never separated.
During dinner, Sizhui looked out the window at the night view and suddenly said, "Brother Lin, how about we go to Central Park tomorrow? I want to fly a kite there."
"Okay." Lin Yan agreed with a smile, "I'll take you to fly a kite tomorrow."
Seeing Si Zhui's happy face, Lin Yan suddenly understood that the so-called sense of security was never obtained by being bound, but was slowly accumulated through repeated companionship and promises. Just like now, he knew that Si Zhui would not hurt himself to keep him, and Si Zhui also knew that no matter how far he went, he would come back.
That's good.
As the night deepened, the lights of New York twinkled like stars. Lin Yan looked at Si Zhui sleeping beside him, his heart filled with an unprecedented peace.
This trip to New York is not only for work, but also to make Sizhui understand that distance is never a problem. As long as the hearts are together, they can feel each other's concern.
And he will spend his whole life proving this truth.
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