4 The Jade Pearl of The Eastern Sea (2)

"After all, this one was a memento from someone important."

•

1650 years ago.

A storm came upon the land, followed by a huge tide that crashed onto the shore. Many lost their lives and many disappeared without a trace. This one calamity had worried the Heavens and the Sea.

On that incident, a small sea goddess was also swept away from her home, dragged along the stream into an isolated river.

The sea goddess, being the princess of the Eastern Sea Palace, had not a single clue of her where being. She spent her time waiting for rescue that might never came from day to day, until a boy stumbled across her. If he were to never come across her, it would be doubtful that she would be rescued. After all, the Sea God, Shui ZhouYe, preferred the best of his children over the lesser ones. Shui QingWan's incapability to win her father's heart with one of her talents surely couldn't come to aid her in dire time. Her unfortunate fate was that of being one of the least favored children.

She rather quickly acquainted herself with the little boy, telling him many tales he had never heard before.

The boy's name was Xiao Er, the second child of a pair of farmers in a small village not too far from the river. Living in property made the boy's life harder as he had to help his parents taking care of their corps, watching over his little siblings, and doing heavy works. Since his birth, he had carried a burden a child his age shouldn't have. Only after he turned nine, the life of his family became better and better. Gods and Goddesses had blessed them, they said. The Heavens had finally smiled at them, the village cheered.

Xiao Er no longer had to work as hard as he used to do. He got much more spare time to waste on things he had never done before. Almost everyday, he walked alongside the riverbank, observing the moving water and colourful fishes that dwelt inside.

Not too long after the sudden change in his village, a storm came. It wrecked ports and ships, destroyed everything on its way. Perhaps the elders were true, Heavens blessed their village. That one place was left untouched by the calamity.

Then, only a few days apart from that incident, Xiao Er found himself lost. As he walked further, the sceneries became more unfamiliar. Not knowing which direction was the right one, he stopped wandering and sat on the riverbank.

"Boy, are you okay?"

That one sentence changed his life.

That one sentence was the reason Yuan Ji had the jade pearl.

Shui QingWan was the reason one of the pearls decorating the throne of the sea god became a young boy's.

•

The deity glanced at the youth, who paid a great amount of attention to him. The Yang also happened to look as though he was going to explode if Yuan Ji continued.

Yang YueChen squirmed around, rolling about, and thrashed on his bed. He could barely lay still, it made Yuan Ji's hand itch. Just one mistake and the deity most likely would hit him upside the head.

"Why can't you stay still? Heck, you're so hyper." Sighed the deity.

YueChen rolled once more, lifting his head to meet the deity's eyes. "Not my fault, I got ADHD."

Gods swore that the expression on Dong Shi Shui Shen's face was priceless.

Confused, mocked, all sorts of emotions flashed on his face. "What? A—what??"

YueChen furrowed his brows, "You don't know?"

Yuan Ji immediately became defensive. For the lack of words, he stayed unresponsive.

The other took his silence as concealed ignorance, which was about right. He then proceeded to explain, "I can't really focus. Active and sorts. Got it?"

Saying no would mean that Yuan Ji had to throw away his dignity, so he crossed his arms and snorted, "You think I don't know? It's just that you used a weird term for the condition."

What a stupid excuse to save his slowly crumbling dignity!

Yuan Ji doubt that YueChen, being all naive and innocent, would actually believe that lie. After all, who was the one he tricked? A baby?

Perhaps the Yang was too kind to actually point out that obvious lie, he only looked at the deity.

"..."

"..."

"A-Ji?" YueChen sat up, properly meeting the deity's eyes.

"W—what?"

The boy opened his mouth, but decided against it. Lips pressed together and looking downwards, as if he was considering how to say what he currently had in mind. Not knowing what he should say, he brought his hand on the deity's shoulder, patting him lightly.

"Just be honest, okay?"

Hearing that from the boy before him, Yuan Ji froze. YueChen knowing that he was being fooled. Of course, who was he fooling with that obvious lie? A baby?

Furthermore, what Yuan Ji feared the most wasn't the fact that YueChen might not be as gullible as he once thought. No, it was something else. For who knows how long, Yuan Ji had worn a smiling mask over his face. He would smile, he would laugh, he would joke, he would tease, he would do anything. But he would never cry or show real genuine emotions he felt.

Yuan Ji didn't realize what was wrong. Warmth trailed from the dark pair of eyes to his cheeks. A few droplets of tears had fallen onto the middle of his palms. The deity stared at the mildly panicked eyes before him and then lowered his head to stare at his fair, jade-white palms.

Yang YueChen had always been the crybaby, the one who cried and whined, the one who needed comfort the most. But being faced to this new problem, he became all anxious and awkward. The teen extended his arm to comfort him, but froze midway in hesitation. YueChen feared that the deity would only slap his hand away, not letting him to touch him at all.

Whilst the young boy was contemplating to retract his hand, a firm hand grasped his wrist.

YueChen flinched at the other's sudden move. He squeezed shut his eyes, waiting for a hit from the deity.

However, instead of hand meeting his skin, it was coldness pressed onto his shoulder.

Yuan Ji saw his response, that lasted for a split second. He saw, and he wondered what made the boy flinched. Surely only a firm grasp on his wrist wouldn't affect him that way.

What have this child gone through?

He leaned forward and rested his forehead on the child's shoulder. Drops of tears seeped through the thin fabric of the other's clothes.

Yang YueChen froze, not moving the slightest bit. After a few seconds of confusion and not knowing what to do, he brought his hand up to the deity's back and promptly patted his back.

That night ended up a little awkward, for the beginning was fun and interesting.

A few moments passed, and the frown on Yuan Ji's face became bigger. The tears wouldn't stop, no matter how hard he tried. The tears flowed freely, as if no command could cease the silent cries.

Realizing that he might not stop crying in short time span, the water deity huffed and tugged at the boy's shirt. However, what startled the boy wasn't that one act, but the next thing Yuan Ji did.

Yuan Ji pulled YueChen as he leaned sideways to lay on the bed. The pull was so sudden it nearly made YueChen crashed face-first to the bed. Fortunately the deity had extended his arm to the side of his head.

"Sleep, you got school tomorrow." Was all Yuan Ji said, voice soft and gentle, with closed eyes.

Laying face to face with another male, was already a little awkward. Even more so the said male had circled his arms around his waist. YueChen couldn't help but being tense.

He took a deep breath and peeked at the deity's face. His eyes a little puffy and red, moist with tears lingering on the corners of his eyes. His nose was straight, his mouth thin and pinkish.

One look at him, ladies would be gathering around Yuan Ji. The water deity was a rare beauty, too bad he could only see his appearance once a year.

Out of blue, YueChen felt warmth crept up to his ears, his eyes never left the deity. The light rise and fall on the other's chest indicated that Yuan Ji had long fallen asleep.

The boy didn't know when he fell asleep, but the next day he only discovered a ray of light in the place of Yuan Ji.

Sun had risen, its brightness penetrated the darkness, seeped into the room through the blinds.

The deity was no longer there. And the fact that he had disappeared only added another feeling of an imaginary night they spent together never happened.

However, a wind danced around lightly, spreading a hint of ocean breeze in the quiet room.