Chapter 2 — Half a Life for a Life

Relatives and friends surrounded A Nghien and Tieu Mong to disrupt the wedding room.
“The bride is so beautiful!”
"One hundred years of happiness! Give birth to a son soon!"
“Ah Nghien, in the future you must love your wife very much!”
Laughter. Cheers. The sound of wedding candy falling onto the plate. They all filled the living room. Someone pulled A Nghien out to tease him. Some people brought tobacco and candy to celebrate. Each hurried step passed by my tightly closed door. No one stopped. No one remembers... During the second half of the wedding party, where did that sister in the wheelchair go. I sat in that night. Quietly watching them bring all the joy to the wedding room next door. It was late at night. Guests left one by one. Tired parents returned to the bedroom. As soon as I lay down on the bed, I fell asleep. Listen to their steady breathing. Suddenly I felt like my five years of existence finally had some meaning. It turns out... As long as I'm gone. They will sleep just as well. I stayed in that house for one night. Early the next morning. Mom got up very early and went to the kitchen to cook porridge. Dad set out the bowls and chopsticks. A Nghien and Tieu Mong sat at the dining table. Someone just got married. A person just walked through the door. Even the sunlight shining on their shoulders brought with it an atmosphere of joy. Mom looked around and frowned.
“Han Han, why aren't you awake yet?”
Dad casually replied:
“Normally she wakes up before dawn.”
More precisely... It wasn't even dawn before I couldn't sleep. The recurring pain after surgery always likes to wake me up in the middle of the night. Mom's voice quickly mixed with annoyance.
"Today is Tieu Mong's first day coming home to eat. She deliberately couldn't escape. What other tricks will she play?"
I really want to say. I don't play tricks. My face... Was stiff and cold. There are no more expressions. A Nghien put down his chopsticks and looked towards my room door.
“Did you drink alcohol yesterday and feel unwell?”
Done talking. He himself was startled. Because more than anyone else. He knows I can't drink alcohol. But Dad paused for a moment and then quickly shook his head.
“It's been five years.”
“Should have been healthy a long time ago.”
“How unpleasant can just one glass of wine be?”
“If there was really a problem, he wouldn't have drank that glass yesterday.”
“If you drink it, it means you'll be fine.”
Mom also nodded.
“Every day he drinks his medicine on time.”
“The doctor also said to recover slowly.”
"Is it true that you can't touch this and can't touch that for the rest of your life?"
Not. What the doctor said was... No alcohol for life. Do not work hard. Do not provoke emotions. Those words. Five years ago they all heard it. It's just... I listened to it for so long that I forgot. A Nghien still wants to say something. Tieu Mong gently held his wrist.
“A Nghien.”
"For saving your life that year, my family has repaid you day and night in the past five years."
“I'm married now.”
“You can't spend your whole life being bound by feelings of guilt.”
A Nghiem pursed his lips. Looked at my room door for a long time. Finally… Still didn't get up. Dad lost patience and picked up the bowl.
"Stop."
"If it doesn't come out then don't call."
“Anyway, I can't eat much.”
Everyone implicitly understood each other's ideas. No one mentioned me another word. As for my cold body... Still quietly leaning on the wheelchair.
03
Finished breakfast. Mom dried her hands and took them out from the room savings books. She placed them in the middle of the dining table. Especially pushed towards Tieu Mong.
“My family has saved some money.”
“But before that, A Nghien had liver failure, was hospitalized, had surgery and then had dialysis, spending a large amount of money.”
"Later, Han Han donated her liver, so many years of follow-up examinations, medication and recovery were a bottomless pit."
Speaking of this. Mom stopped. Perhaps afraid that Tieu Mong would be unhappy, she hastily added:
“Fortunately, last year our family was lucky and picked up a winning lottery ticket.”
“There are still two hundred thousand yuan left.”
She pulled out a savings book and gave it to A Nghien.
"This one hundred and fifty thousand is for the two of us to use as capital to build a family."
“The remaining fifty thousand…”
Mother's voice became smaller.
“Let's leave it to Han Han first.”
“The baby's health…”
Tieu Mong lowered her eyes. Say nothing. Just gently pulled A Nghien's sleeve. But A Nghien didn't seem to see it.
“Yes, Mom, I understand.”
Tieu Mong immediately raised her head. The edges of the eyes turned red again.
“Ah Nghien, I don't want to fight with you.”
“But she is my biological sister.”
“If anything really happens in the future, isn't it still up to us to take care of it?”
"The money left at her place is only used for medical treatment and medicine."
“There is never an end.”
"Didn't we already discuss? Open a dance training center for me."
“This fifty thousand is just enough for a deposit for renovations.”
The living room suddenly became quiet. I suddenly found it funny. Dance training center. It turns out... Something I lost. Switch to someone else to say it. Can still be called a dream. Final. Dad himself took the remaining savings book and stuffed it into Tieu Mong's hand.
“Take it.”
he said.
“The two of you living your lives well is more important than anything else.”
“A Nghien worked very hard to get to where he is today.”
“Can't keep being dragged around anymore.”
Tieu Mong holds two notebooks. Bright eyes. As for me... I breathed a sigh of relief again. Luckily I died. No need to be alert and watch yourself become a burden in their mouths little by little. But… Somewhere in my chest. Still feeling a bit unwilling to be late. The years before being imprisoned by illness. I also lived as brightly as the sun. I love Latin dance. I love you so much that I can fast all day just to practice a perfect swing. In grade 11, I passed the CBDF Latin certificate at Venus III level. Also directly admitted to Imperial Dance Academy. At that time. I used to think my life would be very large. There will be spotlights. There was applause. There are paths that I jumped on myself. Until... A Nghien suffered liver failure and had to be hospitalized. Since childhood, he has been my tail. If you have candy, give it to me first. There were also snacks secretly stuffed into my bag. He raised his head and said to me many times:
“Sister, when I earn money in the future, I will take you to the most beautiful stage.”
So... When I saw my younger brother who was once full of life lying on the hospital bed. So skinny that it's just skin and bones. When my parents turned their hair white overnight, crying and begging me to save them.
“The doctor said the sequelae won't be too serious.”
“As long as you rest well, you can still live like a normal person.”
“Han Han, as long as you agree.”
“In the future, even if we risk our lives, we will take care of our children for the rest of our lives.”
How can I refuse? That's A Nghien. He is the younger brother I have protected since childhood. When signing surgical consent form. My hands trembled non-stop.