Chapter 25 — Anonymous Drawing

After the meeting decided to keep the same design unit, the working atmosphere at the Ben Cu construction site became much more relaxed, as if both the construction team and the design office felt the biggest pressure had passed, leaving only the final stage to complete the project. Dieu Linh, when hearing the news from Khoi Nguyen, could not hold back her tears, not because of surprise, but because she was touched by the silent efforts he had put in to protect the project, without even waiting for her to ask for help.

"Thank you," she said over the phone, her voice choking. "Not just for defending the project, but for the way he did it — with data, with reason, not by using family power to dictate decisions. That's exactly what I needed to see, to trust fully."

"I just do the right thing," Khoi Nguyen replied, his voice humble but warm. "You deserve that, and more."

News that the project was kept with the same design unit quickly spread to Mr. Huan's office, causing the whole small office to organize a celebration party that afternoon. Uncle Huan, when raising his glass to congratulate, could not hide the pride in his voice.

"I've been in this profession for more than twenty years, witnessing countless good projects being crushed just because of short-term financial pressure," he said, looking at Dieu Linh with affectionate eyes like a father looking at his daughter. "This time, my project not only stands firm, but also stands firm thanks to the true value it brings. That's a very rare thing, you know?"

"I got that thanks to you trusting me to be in charge from the beginning," Dieu Linh replied, her voice emotional. "I will never forget your gratitude."

"No need to say any gratitude," Uncle Huan waved his hand and smiled gently. "You deserve everything you achieve. I'm just glad I didn't look at the wrong person when I decided to hire you that year."

The next two months passed in a busy but exciting work pace, as the project gradually completed every last item - installing bookshelves for the library, painting the interior walls according to the color palette Dieu Linh had painstakingly chosen, planting the first rows of green trees in the courtyard. Dieu Linh and Khoi Nguyen were present at the construction site almost every weekend, sometimes together, sometimes each with their own work, but always kept in touch regularly, naturally as if the eight years of separation had never existed, although they both understood, the old scars did not completely disappear, but were only gradually eased through each day of mutual trust.

One afternoon in late November, when the project was ninety-five percent complete, Khoi Nguyen took Dieu Linh to visit Aunt Bay Nha, who still lived in the old house in Cay Gon alley, now much older but still maintaining the same lucidity and warmth as before.

"Oh my god, is this Dieu Linh?" Aunt Bay Nha exclaimed when she saw her, hugging her like hugging a niece she had not seen for a long time. "You're so big now, I almost didn't recognize you. I still remember when you used to feed Nguyen sticky rice, he always told me about it."

"I miss you so much too," Dieu Linh said, her eyes stinging with emotion. "I'm sorry for not visiting you all these years."

"It's okay, child. Once it's over, let it go," Aunt Bay Nha gently rubbed her hand, her eyes kind. "I'm just happy that you two finally found each other again. I always believe that everything that is sincere will find its way back sooner or later."

That afternoon, the three people sat and talked for a long time in the small house, reviewing old memories, and Dieu Linh, for the first time, heard in more detail about what Khoi Nguyen went through during the period when his parents separated, about the true fear of a family that was once threatened, about the loneliness of a fifteen-year-old boy who had to hide most of his true self just to stay safe. That story, told by the person who witnessed the entire process, made Dieu Linh understand more deeply than ever that Khoi Nguyen's silence was never a betrayal, but the burden of a child forced to grow up too early.

On the way home, when passing by the almost completed project, the interior lights began to be tested, shining warmly through the skylight. Dieu Linh stopped the car, pulled Khoi Nguyen to stand and watch the project from afar.

"So beautiful," she whispered, her voice filled with pride. "I can't believe it, it's finally real."

"It's all thanks to you," Khoi Nguyen said, standing next to her, their shoulders almost touching in the sparkling construction site lights.

"Thanks to both of us," she corrected, smiling at him, a sentence repeated almost exactly from that spring fair evening, when they were both fifteen or sixteen year olds behind the mixed rice paper stall.

Khoi Nguyen realized that coincidence, laughed softly, took her hand, this time not as clumsy as the first hand holding last year, but firm, warm, full of confidence of a man who has gone through enough stumbles to appreciate what he has in his hands.

"Dieu Linh," he said, his voice serious. "I know we still have a lot to learn about how to trust again. But I want you to know, no matter how long it takes, I'm willing to walk with you every step of the way, no rush, no pressure, just give me the chance to be by your side."

Dieu Linh looked at him, the construction lights behind them lit up both of their faces, and she felt that, after all the years of pain, misunderstanding, and difficult growth, this was the moment she had been waiting for, even if she didn't say it out loud.

"Me too," she replied, squeezing his hand. "Let's move forward together, step by step."

A few days before the project entered the final stage of completion, Mr. Bach Son visited the construction site alone, without warning, standing silently looking at the almost complete building in the afternoon sunlight. Khoi Nguyen, when he arrived and saw his father standing there, walked closer and stood next to him in silence for a while.

"You can do what I have never been able to do in the past decades," Mr. Bach Son said, his voice deep and thoughtful, without taking his eyes off the project. "Dad spent his whole life building this corporation, building dozens of buildings and urban areas, but there has never been a project that has been as meaningful to him as this project is to you."

"I learned that from my father," Khoi Nguyen said, turning to look at him. "Dad always told me, architecture is not to show off to the rich, but to solve problems for those who need it the most. I'm just trying to live up to what you taught me."

Mr. Bach Son was silent for a moment, then turned to look at his son, his eyes were a little wet and red, rarely seen. "I'm sorry, because eight years ago, the way I protected you made you pay a heavy price. I was wrong in not consulting you before acting."

"Dad, there's no need to apologize anymore," Khoi Nguyen said, his voice gentle, without any resentment. "If it weren't for what happened, maybe I wouldn't have been mature enough to understand the true value of what I have now. Everything, no matter how painful, eventually leads me to the right place I need to go."

Mr. Bach Son gently patted his son's shoulder, did not say anything more, just stood there with him watching the construction in the sunset that dyed the sky yellow, father and son quietly shared a moment of reconciliation that they both knew had come too late but there was still time to cherish.

The official acceptance ceremony of the project is scheduled for mid-December, exactly one year from the date the notice inviting bids appeared on the bulletin board of the Truc Giang Architects Association, and also nearly eight years since the day a motorcade suddenly appeared in front of Tan Viet school's gate, separating the two for a long life.

Dieu Linh, upon receiving the official schedule of the acceptance ceremony from the project management department, sat quietly for a moment in front of the computer screen, looking back at the entire journey of the past year - from the morning she accidentally read the bidding notice, to the moment she faced the past in the soaring glass hall, to the sleepless nights perfecting the drawings, and finally, to the moment she stood with Khoi Nguyen watching the project gradually take shape under the lights. She smiled, feeling deeply grateful for that arduous journey, because without it, she would never have regained both the career she was proud of and the feelings she thought were lost forever, unable to be saved.