Chapter 2 — I Don't Wait For Them Anymore

At the dinner table, his mother asked about his eldest brother's work and asked about Tran Dao's studies. When it was my turn, a simple "Are you okay" was passed by. Over the years, I have never talked about these things with anyone. Because talking is useless. They will say "it's normal to have a house full of people and not be able to worry", "you're too sensitive", "it's not easy for your parents". But today, I sit at this desolate empty stop. Thirty-six calls went unanswered. Mom's answer was lazy, down to the punctuation. I suddenly understood. It's not forgetting. It's that I'm inherently unimportant. What are the conditions for forgetting someone? Is not interested. That's all. I stood up, turned on my phone. Not for calling anymore. It's about opening a convenient car booking app. Enter destination: Thien Dao Lake. Ten seconds later, a driver appeared to accept the pick-up. The owner's name is Chu Kien Quoc, rated 4.9 stars, driving a black Honda Accord, arriving in forty minutes. I click confirm. After that, I opened the family group and took a screenshot of my mother's message "Find your own way home." Save to photo album. Later, when I want to soften my heart, I will open it and see. 【Chapter 4】 The car is here. Mr. Chu, in his mid-forties, has crew cut hair, wears a checkered shirt, and wrinkles at the corners of his eyes when he smiles. A very simple middle-aged man.

“Brother, are you going alone?”

“Yes, just me.”

“Why are you standing at the rest stop alone like this? Is the car broken down?”

I opened the back door, sat in, smiled and said: "I was forgotten." Mr. Chu looked at me through the rearview mirror and didn't ask any more questions. The car drove up the highway, the radio station was broadcasting traffic news. The announcer reported that there was a slow section ahead. Mr. Chu said: "Don't be afraid, our path won't go past that part." The car was quiet for a while. Mr. Chu is a talkative person, he couldn't help but say: "Brother, you said you were forgotten earlier? Going out with friends?"

“Family.”

“Wow.” Mr. Chu's voice rose, "Your family forgot you at the station? This is too unreasonable."

I said nothing. Mr. Chu asked again: "Did they find out? Did they call back?"

"I called more than thirty times but no one answered. Then my mother sent a Wechat message, telling me to find my own way home."

Mr. Chu was silent. After a while he sighed: "Little brother, I say this harshly. This is not forgetting, this is not paying attention." I leaned back in my chair, watching the barriers on the highway pass by the window.

“Yes.”

"My daughter is only four years old, I have to talk to her when I go to the bathroom. The whole family left and forgot a living person..." Mr. Chu shook his head, "I can't understand."

I didn't reply. It's not that I don't want to say it, it's that saying it doesn't make any sense. Complaining to a stranger, other than looking pathetic, doesn't do anything. But Mr. Chu's words stuck in my head:

“This is not forgetting, this is not paying attention.”

The vehicle continues to move forward. I opened my phone to look. The family group still just stops at that message, nothing new is added. No one asked me if I had caught the bus yet. No one asked me if I was safe. No one texted "Let me know when you get there". Like the message "Find your own way home", it was the greatest grace they gave me. I turned off the phone and closed my eyes. This sleep lasts forty minutes. 【Chapter 5】 Me was awakened by Mr. Chu's voice.

“Damn, there's a traffic jam.”

I opened my eyes, ahead was a bright red taillight area. The car lights were lined up in a long line, unable to move an inch. Mr. Chu moved to the far left lane and leaned forward to look: "Oh my God, I'm stuck and can't see where to stop. There must be an accident ahead." I pulled out my phone to look at the map. There is a serious congestion ahead that stretches for six kilometers, with the expected travel time taking more than two hours.