One-way Access

“Nannan.” At this time, Ming Luchuan called to him from inside the house. “Come have breakfast first.”

Ming Luchuan had rescued him right on time. “I’m starving, I’m gonna go eat first,” Xia Wennan said as he dashed to the house.

Yin Zejing didn’t stop him; he dribbled the ball and shot at the basket on his own. 

Xia Wennan followed Ming Luchuan into the dining room. “Don’t call me Nannan,” Xia Wennan grumbled quietly.

Ming Luchuan said nothing. 

When they entered the dining room, Ming Qin and Ming Sichen were already there. There were steamed buns and eggs on the dining table, a simple Chinese breakfast. 

Aunt Zhang wasn’t present at the time. Ming Sichen’s wheelchair was parked next to Ming Qin, who was feeding him steamed eggs. 

Ming Sichen never looked up at them from the moment they arrived. He kept reaching for the small porcelain spoon on the dining table, and when his finger almost touched it, Ming Qin pushed it away, leaving a small distance between his fingers and the spoon.

“Did you sleep well last night?” Ming Qin asked Xia Wennan. 

“I did,” responded Xia Wennan.

Ming Qin smiled. As he and Xia Wennan chatted, Ming Sichen finally reached the spoon and took hold of it. 

“Chenchen, put that down!” Ming Qin rushed to take the spoon, hastily placing the bowl in his hands on the table. 

Xia Wennan’s seat was not that far from Ming Sichen’s; he rose to his feet and helped Ming Qin remove the spoon from his grasp.

Frozen in place, Ming Sichen turned to Xia Wennan. 

“Don’t play with the spoon,” Ming Qin said, as if he was chiding a child. 

Ming Sichen’s eyes were still on Xia Wennan even after he returned to his seat; he twisted in his wheelchair so he could get a good look at Xia Wennan’s face.

Xia Wennan’s feelings towards Ming Sichen were complicated; he knew that Ming Sichen’s mind was entirely that of a child, but he was a ‘child’ who had the appearance of an adult. Being the target of Ming Sichen’s gaze like so, Xia Wennan could only look up and force himself to smile. He smiled so hard that his eyes narrowed into slits.

Right then, Aunt Zhang emerged from the kitchen. She took the bowl of steamed eggs from Ming Qin, sat down, and started feeding Ming Sichen.

Ming Sichen swallowed a spoonful of eggs and craned his head to glance at Xia Wennan. 

Ming Qin propped his face on his hands, a faint smile gracing his face as he noticed Ming Sichen’s movements. “Chenchen still remembers Wennan?” he asked.

“Wennan,” Ming Sichen whispered.

Ming Qin was somewhat surprised. “You really remember Wennan?”

Ming Luchuan sat next to Xia Wennan. He hadn’t uttered a single word since the beginning and appeared to have no intention of contributing to the conversation. Xia Wennan had no choice but to defuse the awkwardness, asking Ming Qin, “Can Sichen make a full recovery?”

Ming Qin sighed upon hearing his question. “Sichen’s condition is different from yours,” he said. “His injuries were really severe back then, it’s a miracle that he’s still alive. Furthermore, the damage to his brain is organic. The doctors say it will be difficult for him to fully recover.”.”

“Oh…” Xia Wennan had no idea how to respond. 

Ming Sichen kept his gaze fixed on Xia Wennan as he took another bite of his meal, and he did so until he finished it. Even when Aunt Zhang fed him milk, his gaze did not leave Xia Wennan.

“Chenchen really likes Wennan,” said Ming Qin. 

Ming Luchuan, who had been silent the entire time, suddenly spoke up, “He knows what liking is?”

Ming Qin petted Ming Sichen’s head. “Of course he does. For him, liking something or someone is the easiest thing to understand. Isn’t that right, Chenchen?” After that, Ming Qin turned to Ming Luchuan and said, “Are you going to the company?”

Ming Luchuan made a noise of assent.

“Then why don’t you let Wennan stay here.”

This time, before Ming Luchuan could respond, Xia Wennan rushed to answer, “I’ll be all right.”

“Wennan’s condition is still unstable.” Ming Qin was still speaking to Ming Luchuan. “I worry about you leaving him home alone when you go to work during the day. Why doesn’t he stay here?”

Ming Luchuan remained silent and didn’t respond.

Xia Wennan kicked his leg under the table to show that staying here was the furthest thing from what he wanted. 

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” said Ming Luchuan.

“Why not? Won’t it be good for you two to stay in this house for the time being? I’ll have Aunt Zhang to cook nourishing soup for Wennan everyday, and there’s a driver at his disposal if he wants to go out. If not, what would he eat if he was left at home alone?”

“I’ve more or less recovered,” Xia Wennan responded quickly. “I can go to work.”

“Which part of you says ‘more or less recovered’?” Ming Qin turned to him. “There’s no way you’ll be able to start working again in your current condition. Shouldn’t you be getting treatment first and foremost?”

Ming Luchuan was silent.

“Do you not want to come home and live with dad that badly?” Ming Qin continued after a brief pause, sounding slightly disappointed. 

This time, Ming Luchuan turned to Xia Wennan and said, “We’ll discuss this later. For today, come with me to the company first. Didn’t you say that you wanted to sort through some of your things yesterday?”

“Mm,” Xia Wennan replied.

Ming Siyan was hurrying downstairs for breakfast as Ming Luchuan and Xia Wennan left the dining room.

Outside, Yin Zejing was still playing basketball by himself.

Ming Luchuan brought the car around to pick Xia Wennan up, and they drove off after Xia Wennan got in.

Sitting in the passenger seat, Xia Wennan said, “I don’t want to move here.”

Ming Luchuan remained mute.

Xia Wennan shot a glance at him. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

“What did you want me to say?” Ming Luchuan said unhurriedly. 

“Tell your dad that we won’t be living here.”

Ming Luchuan fell silent once more. 

“What on earth is on your mind?” Xia Wennan cocked his head to look at him. “Are you too scared to go against your dad?”

Ming Luchuan didn’t answer his question. A moment later, he asked, “What if I tell you that we’ll be moving here for the time being?” 

“And why should I do as you say?” said Xia Wennan.

“As of now, I’m still your husband.”

“Then how about we get a divorce?” Xia Wennan sounded out, watching his expression.

Ming Luchuan abruptly slammed on the brakes and turned the steering wheel until they came to a halt at the side of the road. Fortunately, they were still in the suburbs, so the parked car didn’t obstruct the traffic on the main road.

Startled, Xia Wennan said, “What the hell?”

“You want to divorce me?” Ming Luchuan asked coldly.

While Xia Wennan had that in mind, he’d never mentioned it to Ming Luchuan because he couldn’t find the right time. He hadn’t been awake long; he knew nothing, and he had no idea what had really happened between him and Ming Luchuan. Divorcing him and abandoning everything in haste was far from a responsible course of action.

When he first awoke, all he wanted was for all of this to never have happened, for those six years not to have existed, for him not to be married to Ming Luchuan, for his grandpa not to have died; but as the days passed, he’d gradually come to accept a few things, such as the fact that he’d lost his grandpa, and even the fact that he had an alpha husband as well as a decent job. Rather than his initial desire to cast everything aside, he was now more interested in regaining his memories, finding out what exactly had happened, and then divorcing Ming Luchuan and starting over.

Since he’d already blurted it out, Xia Wennan couldn’t just act like nothing had happened. He could only try to salvage the situation by saying, “Why don’t you think about it?” 

Ming Luchuan’s tone was frostier than it had ever been. “I don’t need to. Let’s get a divorce. Get out of the car.”

Xia Wennan froze. He reached for the door handle and paused midway, asking Ming Luchan, “Shouldn’t we go to the civil affairs bureau?”

He was met with nothing but Ming Luchuan’s silence and expressionless face as he started the car and continued driving. Against the morning rush hour, he drove all the way to the entrance of the Civil Affairs Bureau. Except for when Ming Luchuan told Xia Wennan to get out of the car when they arrived, the two men didn’t say anything the entire journey.

Xia Wennan opened the door and got out. Once he’d closed the door, Ming Luchuan sped off without wasting a second more. 

Xia Wennan froze in place. A moment later, he shouted angrily in the direction of Ming Luchuan’s car: “I’ll divorce you on my own, dammit!”