Dead man walking.
Qie Xieling had never seen his dad this mad at him. In fact, his dad never got mad at him when he broke things in the house nor when he deleted all his dad's gaming history by accident.
His dad would speak to him nicely while explaining why what he did was wrong. Dad was very different from nana Wen. When nana Wen was mad she would fling her slipper and it would always land accurately.
So when he saw his dad walk past him and ignore him like he was non-existent Qie Xieling's heart sank. He bit his index finger hard trying to stop the tears from flowing.
"Let's go," said his father as he patted his shoulder urging him to follow and Qie Xieling took a few steps forward a little terrified to go home.
As a little kid, he probably thought his dad would abandon him now and he will be stuck with his strict father. How miserable would that be? Qie Xieling's steps paused as he shook his head his eyes red.
Qie Ranzhe turned his head back when he realised the little footsteps that were supposed to be behind him weren't there. His heart lurched seeing his son like that but comforting was not his best suit.
He was the type of father that when baby Lin Lin was crying he would give him money and the kid would stop crying but even he knew in this situation a couple of bills won't solve the problem.
Qie Ranzhe sighed before picking up his son. "Don't worry about your dad. You know how many times I have angered your father and got kicked out of the bed but I always crawl back in so.... we will figure it out," he said and Lin Lin who had lost count of how many times his father had been evicted from the master bedroom nodded his head.
Qie Ranzhe smiled while pinching his cheeks and said, "You gave that kid a shiner though. I thought you didn't listen when I taught you to fight."
If Wen Qinxi heard him say this he would surely kick him out of the house entirely. Like most fathers, Qie Ranzhe couldn't help but feel a slight sense of pride that his son could stand up for himself. The thing he was upset about though was his son's reason for doing it.
The figure of a tall handsome man in a dark grey suit and black shirt holding a child was incredibly eye-catching. A few moms and teachers took second glances their expressions that of admiration or rather sultry.
Who in this international school didn't know that there were two new gay dads that everyone was drooling over? It was so bad that the both of them didn't dare go to the PTA meetings or school events alone otherwise they would be eaten alive by those moms.
As expected when Qie Ranzhe and Qie Xieling stepped outside in the parking lot, Wen Qinxi had already been stopped by a very young teacher who from the looks of it wouldn't stop talking.
Wen Qinxi was still polite to her but hus brows were creased slightly showing his impatience. Qie Ranzhe wasn't polite at all. He opened the passenger door while saying to his husband, "Let's go," his sharp piercing gaze aimed at the young lady.
The young teacher felt a biting chill creeping into her bones being looked at like that. Damn, she heard that Mr Qie was quite possessive but she didn't think it would be this terrifying.
He buckled his son in the booster seat and closed the door before walking to the front passenger seat and opening the door for Wen Qinxi.
Wen Qinxi looked like he had been granted amnesty as he entered the car. Qie Ranzhe caressed Wen Qinxi's waist while at it and when his husband sat in the car he reached for the seat belt.
Wen Qinxi didn't even react like this was the normal order of business. With a click, Qie Ranzhe buckled the seat belt and kissed Wen Qinxi's temple. The touch was light but so heartwarming that jealousy seeped through the young teacher's eyes. 'Why was it so hard to find a man who would treat her just like that?' she thought as she waved them both goodbye.
Qie Ranzhe didn't respond at all. He just opened the driver-side door and pushed the start engine button while holding down Wen Qinxi's hand that was waving back.
The young teacher, "..."
They pulled out of the parking lot and Qie Ranzhe finally cleared his throat asking, "Are we heading home?"
Wen Qinxi glanced at his son sitting there quietly with his head down before looking ahead. "Let's go home," he replied and Qie Ranzhe rubbed the back of Wen Qinxi's hand with his thumb trying to comfort him.
This car ride would have remained peaceful if it weren't for Manchu's unexpected phone call. As the SUV came to a stop at a red traffic light a call came through and Qie Ranzhe answered thinking it was important.
"Ey, I heard Lin Lin got into trouble at pre-K. I didn't think preschool was like a prison with fights breaking out easily," he said and because the call was connected wirelessly everyone heard him.
Qie Ranzhe had a feeling that Manchu was about to say something stupid so he tried to interrupt with him saying, "It's nothing. It was just a small disagreement."
"Lucky thing you taught him how to fight. I bet he left the little brat with a medal of honour. Hahaha, your boy must be at the top of the food chain now."
Qie Ranzhe, "..."
Lin Lin, "..."
Wen Qinxi cut the call and turned to look at his husband first then his son then back to his husband. The two of them had on colourful expressions as they already knew that the hole they were currently in had just gotten bigger.
It was so bad that Qie Xieling could hear his dad yelling upstairs when he was downstairs in the corner for a time-out. He didn't want to hear it but his dad was so heated that his voice could wake the dead. Fine, that was an exaggeration but he could hear everything.
"... you told me he was just getting training to fend off kidnappers but you went behind my back and taught him how to fight," said his dad and soon his father's soft voice whispered,
"I was afraid it wasn't enough so I taught him a few things. I just didn't think he would beat up a classmate... You can't hold this against me. Remember when we got called because he swore a lot and he got that from you? He will pick up some of our bad habits."
Wen Qinxi, "WTF!"
Translation, Qie Ranzhe was a dead man walking.