Precious Items

Li Hua pulled out of her suitcase a small photograph, about the size of her palm, housed  in a delicate silver frame. Smiling warmly Li Hua passed it to Chang who was astonished to see it was a picture of her mom and dad, holding her as a little baby.

In the photo, her mother was beaming full of pride, almost glowing with her joy as she held the tiny baby in a white dress sleeping. Her father, almost twice her mother's height stood beside her smiling with a loving look, looking down at his wife and newborn daughter, radiating tenderness. 

Chuckling Chang noticed that her mother had defied the laws of aging for twenty years plus, unlike her father had. Seeing the image for the first time, the younger woman stared in shock at the sight of her father's clean-shaven youthful face. 

Chang felt tears come to her eyes as she used a hand to cover her mouth and stifle a rising sob. There were too few pictures of her father as he had always been the one to take pictures.  Hénri Dumont had always thought it was important to document the best things in life through film, yet there were so few pictures of him, the best part of their life.

Chang traced her fingers over her mom and dad's youthful faces before looking at her mom and thanking her in a hoarse whisper. Li Hua embraced her daughter in response, letting out a few silent tears of her own.

The two chatted for a while longer before Chang excused herself due to exhaustion. Li Hua graciously let her leave, masking her own weariness due to the day''s events and her growing cancer.

Chang exited into the bright main hallway that was two storied, all consisting of guest wings. At either end of the hallway at the ground floor were two giant doorways. While she did not know where the one to the right led,  she did know the one to the left led to an antechamber and to the gardens where she awoke.

Chang faltered for a moment before heading back to the garden where she awoke to see if she could find Jian. Her legs and hips were really starting to get stiff and sore after the day's ride. As she walked, Chang absentmindedly rubbed her palms against the side of her thighs as she wandered back out into the expansive gardens.

As she wandered through the sunshine she studied the picture of her mom and dad. Some days she almost forgot her dad's face even though she knew it so well, and could see him clearly in her dreams. It was a precious gift to have the physical reminder.

As she walked, she all of a sudden ran face first into a solid meat wall. She stumbled a few steps back as she had been absentmindedly walking along the tan pebbled path, keeping it within her peripherals.

Liang Jian Amal had been keeping an eye on her as she walked with her mother, while still allowing the two of them their privacy. When he saw Chang wandering through the garden alone, lost in thought, he came up to her quickly thinking Li Hua had broken the news to her. Seeing her dazed expression, slightly reflective yet not broken, he realized that she had not as of yet.

With his hurried actions and her inattention she crashed face first into his chest before he could stop himself.

Liang Jian Amal caught her and steadied her in his arms after she went face first into his chest. She blinked her beautiful deep blue eyes at him bewildered while rubbing her nose for a moment before showing immense relief. Before he could apologize she spoke first.

"Jian, I'm super tired where do I rest?" Chang asked him after realizing who it was she had run into. Her legs were starting to feel like dead weight and she just wanted to be off them at this point.

The man sighed deeply before pulling her into a deep hug.