29 YOU ARE VALID

"Why the hell are you looking at me like that?" Li Jun snickers looking at their faces. "What? You are pitying me right now, aren't you? Tsk!" he swings his hand, "don't be. It was good that it ended, to be honest. Our relationship was crumbling from the beginning."

Wan Li suddenly hugs him tightly by the neck. "I'm sorry, sis!" he sighs, "Why didn't you tell us sooner?"

"Hey, stop it. You're grossing me out!" Li Jun resists however Wan Li tightens every time he tries to break the hug. At last, he stopped struggling and embraced him back, trying to prevent a sniffle from escaping from him.

"I can't find any reason to tell any of you. It's useless and irrelevant." Li Jun say, his face sullen.

Yu Mei and Liu Yang join in the hug and give Li Jun a kiss on the cheek.

"You have all the reason to tell us. We are always here to listen," says Liu Yang while his hair. Yu Mei, on the other hand, nods in agreement and remains silent the entire time.

"Aiyah! Aren't we planning to drink and have fun?" Li Jun said in a muffled voice. His tears finally made their way when he heard the warming words coming from his friends.

All of them laughed while still in a cuddle.

*ding dong!*

"It must be the food!" Liu Yang runs to the door and greets the delivery guy. After saying thanks, she happily went back and shouted, "Come on, let's get drunk!!!"

They are all huddled up on the living room floor with their backs on the long couch. On the coffee table, food and tons of canned beer are laid in front of them.

"We're gonna drink lots tonight so, prepare your livers for this, dear sisters!" Wan Li utters, opening a can of beer, and passes it to Li Jun.

The latter slurps the fizzling drink, preventing it from dropping on the rug.

"You don't have to worry about that. We have our Doctor Yu here to cure us," Liu Yang jokes, accepting a can and instantly downs half of it.

The three of them laugh in unison while Yu Mei grimaces.

"Ahhh~! This is the life!" Liu Yang adds, leaning her head on Li Jun's shoulder next to her.

"You're not going to ask what happened?" Li Jun asks, turning his head from side to side.

"Are you ready to talk about it?" Yu Mei gives him a side-eye, sipping on the beer as she does. "Don't force yourself. Talk when you're ready."

Wan Li and Liu Yang nod in agreement. The latter even taps his knee, comforting and reassuring him.

Li Jun chuckles and turns away. His eyes are starting to fail him once again. He had cried enough for the past few days; he thought his tears had dried out only to realize they did not.

"Four years is not a short period, you know?" Wan Li wraps his arm around him. "Everything you feel right now is valid, and we are always here ready to listen. Always remember that."

Li Jun presses his lips into a thin line while sniffling, preventing himself from bursting into tears. It took him a while to recover, and when he does, he says:

"Okay, okay!" while clapping his hand, "Enough of that. We are all here to have fun, aren't we?"

"Should we watch a movie, then?" Wan Li asks with the remote control already in his hand, browsing through the TV for potential movies to watch. "Horror, thriller, drama, chick-flicks, you name it."

"You know I don't watch horror films therefore, scrape it out of the options," Liu Yang says while having a bite on a pizza slice.

"Okay, then horror it is."

"Hey! Do you want to sleep outside!"

Liu Yang was a tad late, Wan Li had already pressed the button and the movie is already starting. He gives him a grin with his wrinkling into a thin line.

"I heard this is a good movie it will make jump in your seat. Let's see if the rumors are true," Yu Mei comments on the side, focusing her eyes on the screen.

Liu Yang's face turns dark looking at the three of them leave her out. She is about to turn off the television when her phone starts ringing.

"Hello, Big Sister?"

"Ah!"

The three started shouting that also startled Liu Yang and even earned a dark stare from her. Her sister on the other end, asks worriedly what the noise is about. They covered their mouths and laughed silently, pointing at each other and blaming one another. Liu Yang slaps their shoulders one by one before going to her room.

"Nothing. The gang is here and we are watching a movie. Wait, I'll find a quieter place."

She settles on the balcony, closing the glass sliding door behind her to suppress the noise from the inside. Leaning against the cold silver balustrade, she asks, "What is it? Is there something wrong?"

"Am I interrupting your time with your friends?" her sister carefully asks.

"No, of course not. I should even thank you for your timing," Liu Yang chuckles.

"Why?"

She sighs, "Because they are watching a horror film."

On the other side, Liu Yang could hear her sister's cackling - almost teasing her.

"Yeah, yeah. Go ahead and laugh all you want," she says, unimpressed. "So, is there something wrong?" Liu Yang asks again, trying to divert the subject.

Liu Yan clears her throat when she recovers from laughing. "It's Mom. She collapsed this afternoon and is in the hospital," her tone suddenly turns serious.

Liu Yang's heart skips a beat. "What?! Why did she suddenly collapse? Is she okay?" her voice slightly quivered, and the grip on the phone tightened. She closes her eyes, brushing her hair back in frustration and guilt.

After all these years she ran away from their home, this is the first time she felt regretful for her action. But it is too late now, isn't it?

"The doctor said it's hypertension but she is already in a stable condition. No need to worry, I just called to let you know."

"How could I not worry?! What hospital is she in?" Liu Yang's voice went an octave higher.

"You're coming?"

Liu Yang licks her lips. She does not know how to answer. "I'll think about it. And I'll send some money later."

"Yang." Liu Yan cuts her off. "You think that will be enough? They don't need money. They need your presence – both Mom and Dad do."

She was caught off guard she did not know how to answer which is why she asked another question, "Are they still angry?"

"She asked for you once when she woke however, she never said a thing after that." Liu Yan pauses for a second and adds, "So is Dad. Have some time to visit before they go home. Mom will be staying in the hospital for a few days for further observation, and I told her to get checked up for other health conditions with Dad."

Liu Yang sighs at the long explanation. "Okay. I'll send the money right after our call."

"You should also visit, okay? I'll be the one who is going to get mad if you don't."

Liu Yan named the hospital and realized it was far from her apartment. She takes another long sigh and stares blankly in the dark.

"I'll go, now."

"Yang, make sure you come."

"I…I'll look into my schedule for some free time. Bye."

Liu Yang ended the call first. She did not want to hear another nagging from her sister and sent the money as promised.

She decided to stay on the balcony for a little while. The movie is far too scary enough to give her sleep paralysis later.

Walking back, she saw how the three are crowding on the sofa with their feet curled up. Looking at the TV, the movie must be at its climax. Has she been gone for that long?

An idea suddenly pops in her head. Slowly opening the fridge, she took the pint of ice cream and tiptoes behind the couch. Luckily, the sound of the television is loud enough, greatly helping Liu Yang with her plan. With an evil grin, she crouches on the ground, tipping her elbows on the floor. Although she is having a hard time with the heavy pint in her hand, it does not seem to bother her just to carry out her plan.

She stops on the side where Yu Mei is settled and pokes her head up a little to calculate the situation.

Bingo!

They are focused on the screen without blinking.

She sets the container on the ground, slowly takes the lid, and dips the spoon in the soft ice cream for a few seconds. When she feels like it is cold enough, Liu Yang carefully pops her head to see if they are still focused. Slowly, she aims for Yu Mei's exposed arm and…

"AHHHH~!"

The people on the couch scrambled to their feet, screaming in unison with the blanket flying in the air. Liu Yang guffaws at the target reaction she got from her friends with her hands clutching her stomach.

"Priceless!" Liu Yang says, scooping ice cream and putting it directly into her mouth.

"HEY~!" the three chorused.

"She must have gone crazy. Oh, yes, that must be it." Li Jun harrumphs while panting - with hands on his chest.

"Give me that!"

Wan Li grabs the pint of ice cream and spoon from her clutch and starts eating himself while Yu Mei pulls Liu Yang to sit next to her, flicking her forehead.

"Ah!" cries out in pain.

"Serves you right!"

"Here, just eat!" Li Jun stuffs Liu Yang with a spoonful of ice cream that gives her a brain freeze.