Chapter 6 — The Daughter No One Chose

I held his head, gently leaned on my shoulder, and whispered: "Tran Le, let's take the exam to Beijing together! There, we will live better than anyone." That night, Tran Le and I promised each other a future. After school was out for the holidays, my foster parents suddenly called, just saying they missed me. I understand, they want to meet Giang Duy Nhat. “Mom, I want to go back to the district.” During dinner, I suddenly spoke up. “It's okay, they probably miss you too.” Giang's mother nodded, indicating her agreement. I glanced at Giang Duy Nhat who was silent and suggested: "Or let Duy Nhat go visit them too?" The spoon in Giang's mother's hand fell to the ground, and no one in the dining room spoke. The next day, Giang Duy Nhat and I boarded the bus back to the district. As soon as they saw her, my adoptive parents couldn't hold back their tears. Because they have no conditions, they can only watch helplessly as their biological children call other people their parents. “Sister, I miss you so much.” My ten year old brother Lam Tuan hugged me and sobbed. Because his adoptive parents were too busy, Lam Tuan was almost single-handedly taken care of by me since he was a baby. When I left, the boy clung to my hand and refused to let go, afraid that I would abandon him. Because he was unfamiliar with the environment here, Giang Duy Nhat used the excuse of a dance competition so he only stayed for two days and then left. I know, in Giang Duy Nhat's heart, the only people she cares about are the Giang family, and her adoptive parents are just strangers to her. After she left, her adoptive mother held her photo and silently shed tears. I could only comfort her: "Mom, don't be sad, you still have a child with Tuan." "Tieu Khe, why do you understand things so much? Duy Nhat was raised so well, but you were buried by us. We are not worthy of you calling mom and dad at all." My adoptive mother hugged me, crying more and more intensely. Actually, I used to blame them, but it happened, what else can I do but accept it? Near Tet, I carried a big bag and a small bag back to Giang's house. As soon as I entered the door, I saw people surrounding Giang Duy Nhat, congratulating her on being invited by the Ballet Association. The atmosphere between them was so good, I put my things down, turned around and left the house. In the KFC store, I took out the specialty and gave it to Tran Le. “I purposely bought this for you. I like this flavor the most.” “Thank you, I really like it.” He was absorbed in his homework, but still didn't forget to answer me. After completing the exam, he raised his head and looked at me very seriously, as if trying to find some flaw in my face: "Did you have fun there?" I picked up the cards, looked at them and replied: "It's fun! It's just that they are too polite to me, making me feel unfamiliar." “I'm the type of person who's a bit sensitive, I just feel like they're getting further and further away from me.” “Giang Khe, you are very good, you will definitely be happy.” Looking at Tran Le continuing to study, I couldn't help but smile. I don't know when, this boy has become an indispensable person in my life. On New Year's Eve, I sneaked out to find Tran Le. He and I sat and watched fireworks for a long time in the square. At that moment, a boy and a girl leaned against each other, finally no longer alone. At the start of school, Tran Le entered a period of intense exam preparation, and Giang Hang, pursuing a girl outside the school, had his achievements plummet. He was beaten once by Giang's father before he became obedient a little bit again. But after accidentally seeing him and that girl in the bar, I knew Giang Hang had really fallen. Giang Hang came home late many times. One time I accidentally bumped into him and felt respectful so I just reminded him lightly. “Giang Hang, the most important thing now is the university entrance exam.” The whole person reeked of alcohol. Giang Hang fell down on the sofa and said indifferently: "Don't meddle in my business, just don't bother." I pouted, turned around and entered the room. He doesn't know anything, and I don't need to be a good person. At school, all kinds of rumors began to spread about Giang Hang, some said he booked an entire bar to please a beautiful woman, some said he stole someone else's girlfriend. Rumors spread, and a proud son of heaven like Giang Hang was also dragged into the mud. After school, Tran Le and I went to the library to review. Passing by a deserted alley, three thugs were surrounding Giang Hang. One guy stepped on his arm and said fiercely: "You dare to flirt with my girl like that?" “Ah!” Giang Hang screamed, the pain made him cringe, no longer having any majesty. The situation was urgent, Tran Le grabbed my shoulder and seriously instructed: "Giang Khe, now go to the police immediately, remember, no matter what happens, don't come back." "I'm not going, don't go over there, they're not easy people to mess with." I held his hand tightly, not letting him leave. In my heart, Giang Hang cannot be compared to Tran Le. Tran Le suddenly smiled and patted my head to comfort me: "It's okay, have you forgotten how we first met?" He rushed in to save people, I immediately called the police. Seeing Tran Le gradually falling into a weak position, I picked up a stick from the roadside and rushed forward. I have never fought, but because of Tran Le, I cannot hesitate. Police car sirens sounded in the distance, three thugs ran away in panic, Giang Hang lay motionless on the ground. “Why did you come back?” Tran Le was extremely scared and got angry with me for the first time. After finishing treating the wound, I looked at him and said seriously: "Tran Le, you are afraid that I will be injured, so am I." Hearing that, he couldn't bear to be angry with me anymore. Because of a broken arm, Giang Hang could not participate in the university exam this year. Under the intervention of Giang's father, the school agreed to let him repeat the grade for one year. Waking up, Giang Hang was extremely irritable, could not bear this humiliation, and insisted on taking revenge. Giang's mother and I went to the hospital to visit him, just as he was rioting and demanding to be discharged. “Giang Khe, this time thank you and Tran Le, I apologize for what happened before.” Giang Hang coughed softly, his face full of shame. I shook my head and calmly replied: "No need, if it was a stranger, Tran Le and I wouldn't stand by and watch." Perhaps my attitude was too cold, he suddenly stood up and loudly questioned: "Giang Khe, I've already apologized, what else do you want?" “I don't want anything.” I responded coldly, completely indifferent. If the hurt can be erased with just a "sorry", then it is truly unfair to the person suffering the pain. After that incident, Giang Hang often tried to get closer to me. The things he bought for Giang Duy Nhat also started to belong to me. I felt that he wanted to reconcile. “Tieu Khe, your brother knows he's wrong, please forgive him!” Giang's mother had no words of advice. "Mom, I have the right not to forgive. I never considered him a brother, he was just that Giang Duy Nhat is just my sister, we still use river water and don't violate well water." Everyone says I'm petty, but I still choose not to forgive. On the day Tran Le took graduation photos, I intentionally brought a camera to school. “Tran Le, just smile!” He stood stiffly in front of the camera, his expression completely unnatural. Everyone says he is difficult to approach, but in my eyes, Tran Le is upright, honest, and is the first person to give me candy when I am most miserable. It was late afternoon, the sky was filled with sunset light, he and I sat on the steps, reviewing the photos we had just taken.