Chapter 2 — My Tattooed Dad

“So the marks on your neck…” “It's Trieu Loi.” I bowed my head. “Every time he got drunk, he would use a cigarette lighter to sting me.” Silence again. This time it took even longer. I secretly raised my eyes to look at him. His hands were clenched into fists, his knuckles were white. The facial muscles are tense, next to the temple there is a blue vein twitching. After a while, he relaxed his fist. "Okay." He stood up. "For now, you just stay here." I raised my head to look at him. He is very tall. Standing next to the bed was like a tower. "Wait until you find your mother before continuing." "What if... I can't find you?" I asked in a low voice. He bowed his head and looked at me. That fierce face, the scars and the tattoos, at that moment no longer seemed as scary as before. "If you can't find it, then that's it." "I won't let you starve to death." 【Chapter 3】 His name is Pho Nghien. Thirty-two years old. Unmarried. I don't know exactly what he does, but many people call him Deputy General Director. His house is very large, with several maids. They are called maids and housekeepers. The first day, the young man drove him to report for work. I sat on the sofa in the living room, my feet dangling off the ground, quietly watching TV. The young man lowered his voice: "General Director Pho, did you really not report to the police? What if someone comes to look for this child?" How do I do the legal procedure?" "What legal procedure?" "Adoption." The notebook in the young man's hand fell to the ground. "General Director Pho, what did you just say?" Pho Nghien finally raised his head, his eyes calm. "Can't you use your ears?" "No, you... you..." The young man's voice broke completely. "You don't even have a girlfriend!" "What does that have to do with adoption?" "But..." "But what?" What?” The young man's mouth sometimes opened, sometimes closed, like a fish lacking oxygen. Finally, he accepted his fate, picked up the notebook, and tremblingly wrote down: "Contact... lawyer Te... to carry out adoption procedures..." After writing, he still couldn't help but ask: "General Director Pho, what do you gain?" Pho Nghien did not speak. He was silent for a few seconds. Then he said something that I can't forget for the rest of my life. "If no one wants anything, I'll pick it up. Isn't that okay?" That night, the housekeeper took me to the bathroom. While helping me undress, her movements suddenly stopped. I know you saw it. Scars on my back. Some spots have turned into white marks. There are a few spots that are still dark red. She doesn't talk. But the rim of the eye is red. After showering, she put on new pajamas for me, her hands still shaking. "Be good, it won't be like that anymore." Her voice also trembled. "From now on, it won't be anymore." That night, I slept alone in the big bed. The room was very dark. Very quiet. I didn't dare sleep again. In the past, whenever Trieu Loi got drunk, he would kick open my door in the middle of the night. I'm scared. I lay down for a long time. After that, I crawled out of bed, hugged my pillow, put on slippers, and groped in the dark to the door of Pho Nghien's room. The door was ajar. I pushed open a small gap and saw him sitting on the bed looking at his phone. Hearing the noise, he raised his head to look at me. "What's wrong?" I stood at the door, hugging my knees and looking at him. Don't talk. He looked at me for a few seconds then sighed. "Get over here." I ran over and climbed onto his bed. His bed is even bigger. The blanket is also thicker. I curled up in the farthest corner, hugging my pillow tightly. He didn't fire me. He turned off the light and lay down. Dark,

His voice came. "You don't drink alcohol." How do you know what I'm afraid of? "Nor do I smoke anymore. Today is the last one." I tightened my grip on the corner of my pillow. "Go to sleep." That night, I slept very soundly. I had a dream, but I don't remember the content clearly. Just remember that it doesn't seem like a nightmare. 【Chapter 4】 During the first week, I hardly talked. Whatever Pho Nghien asked, I answered. If you don't ask, I will sit quietly. It seems he also doesn't know how to live with children. Our way of communicating is basically: “Are you hungry?” I nod. “What do you want to eat?” I shake my head, meaning to eat anything. “Let's eat noodles.” End. But his powers of observation were astonishing. On the third day, he discovered that I did not dare to use the large ceramic bowl, because I was afraid that if I broke it, I would be beaten. On the fourth day, all the dishes on the dining table were changed to unbreakable plastic. On the fifth day, he discovered that I did not dare to sit next to him, because Trieu Loi often suddenly hit me when sitting next to him. He immediately moved to sit on the opposite side of the dining table. Between us was an entire table. Safe distance. It seemed he didn't ask anything, but saw everything. On Saturday, lawyer Qi arrived.