Chapter 17: A Visit (Part 1)

January 12, 2074, 19:05

"Hmm... it's all your fault, you made me almost forget the time!" Xida wiped her lips with the small mirror she had just bought, ensuring no one could spot any anomaly.

Yahweh held Xida with his left arm, resting his chin on her head, and secretly rolled his eyes at the mirror.

"Hmph!" Xida, her face flushed, punched Yahweh's chest with a small fist, grabbed his mischievous left hand, and dragged him to the door of the Martinez Family.

"Hey? Gloria! I'm here... yes... right at the doorstep."

Gloria, wearing somewhat worn-out loungewear, opened the door and gently embraced the short-haired girl who came bouncing over.

"Xida..." she softly stroked Xida's small head back and forth, her eyes full of affection.

"Gloria..." Xida hummed a few times comfortably before letting go of Gloria's embrace. "Let me introduce you to my boyfriend, Yahweh!" She turned and dragged the man hiding behind her forward.

"Hello, I am Yahweh." He smiled politely and bowed to Gloria, "Thank you for taking care of Xida."

"Actually, I am the one being taken care of by Xida..." Gloria hurriedly held back the bowing Yahweh, smiling awkwardly, "It's cold outside, come in quickly and talk."

January 12, 2074, 19:10

"Has David come back from school?" Xida took out two pairs of slippers from the bag Yahweh was carrying, changing her shoes while asking.

"Just got back, about the same time as you two, one after the other."

By etiquette, it should have been the host, Gloria, who prepared these, but since Xida insisted on not letting her spend money, they had to let the guest's wishes prevail.

Gloria scratched her red long hair, turned, and shouted inside, "David, Sister Heda and her boyfriend are visiting!"

"Coming~" David walked out of the bathroom with his head down, his usually upright punk hairstyle drooping, looking as listless as its owner.

"What's wrong with you? Did you break up?" Xida lightly flicked David's forehead with her finger.

"Ah!" David covered his forehead, shouted exaggeratedly, and ran to the Sofa in the living room, pretending to be blown away by great force.

"Do they always interact like this?" Yahweh's lips curled up, amused by the two clowns' pretentious performance.

"Usually, they are quite normal..." Gloria looked at the two acting like siblings, her face beaming with a gentle smile. "Xida is like my daughter; since she moved in, our home has had much more joy... David has also become much more cheerful."

"So, Yahweh, it's not that I'm deliberately making things difficult for you..." As she spoke, she led Yahweh to sit on the two plastic chairs by the window.

"For Xida's sake, I have to check you thoroughly... Although saying this is very unlucky, I don't want her to become a single mother too..." She paused, smiling bitterly, her beautiful face showing several distinct wrinkles under the light.

"I understand, Sister Gloria." Yahweh sat on the plastic chair, his back straight. "I don't know if Xida has told you about her background..." He spoke in a low voice, ensuring the silly girl playing next door couldn't hear what he was saying.

"No..." Gloria frowned, a bad feeling arising in her heart.

"Her parents passed away a few months ago, due to human causes..." Yahweh lowered his eyes, his long eyelashes hiding all his emotions. "Because of this, she fled to Night City..."

Rain began to fall outside the window, pattering amidst angry thunder.

Gloria recalled the sincere smile Xida always showed when throwing herself into her arms, and her nose tingled with acidity.

"What are you two talking about? Why do you look so serious?" Xida finished playing with David, sneaked up behind Yahweh, rested her head on the man's broad shoulders, and mischievously tugged at his earlobes with both small hands.

"Talking about how to handle our wedding when you and I get married in the future..." Yahweh grabbed Xida's small hands and used his palms to dispel the slight chill.

"Ah!" With her hands caught, Xida struggled a few times without success, then simply pressed her face against Yahweh's back, trying to hide her completely flushed face.

"Sister Heda is shy too! Hahahaha..." David ran behind Gloria, making a funny face.

"You brat! You deserve a beating!" Taking advantage of David laughing so hard he couldn't straighten up, Xida stepped away from behind Yahweh, took a short running start, and leaped into the air, striking a flying kick pose.

"Help!" Seeing this, David immediately turned and ran back to the living room, dodging Xida's pursuit from behind.

"Usually David is quite silent and reserved; only when Xida comes to visit does he show his childish side..." Gloria watched the two playing again, smiling, yet her mouth corners drooped bitterly, and her whole body trembled. "Sometimes I reflect on whether I am a qualified mother... but I have no other choice..." She choked up and stopped speaking.

"I'll talk to him later; if Xida is his sister, then I am his brother." Yahweh narrowed his eyes slightly, watching the subtle, unnatural gait of David as he ran, and understood everything.

"Thank you for your trouble..." Gloria tilted her head back slightly, took a deep breath, and repeatedly wiped the corners of her eyes. After a while, her body finally stopped trembling.

"Xida! Come here, I'll cook, you help!" Gloria, having regained her composure, held Xida's hand and walked toward the small kitchen they had renovated themselves.

"David? Come sit..." Yahweh called to the boy, who had become listless again, inviting him to sit opposite himself.

"Brother-in-law?"

"If you're not used to it, just call me Yahweh..." Yahweh smiled helplessly; even someone as innocent as the boy could see the insincerity and awkwardness in his words.

"I'll still call you Brother-in-law... Sister Heda likes you very much; you must take good care of her!" A trace of loneliness flashed across David's face, which was pretending to be mature.

"Okay... However, David, is your injury really fine?" Yahweh pointed to David's left knee, seeing the fragility and surprise beneath the cracked mask of maturity, just as he expected.

David stood frozen in place, at a loss, staring blankly as Yahweh walked over and patted his shoulder.

"Men shouldn't pretend to be strong, David," he gently gave the boy a hug. "You have a mother who loves you, Sister Heda, and me; you have a home to rely on behind you..."

David looked at Yahweh, feeling his vision blur slightly. He quickly raised his head, blinking hard, trying to hold back the sour liquid already overflowing from his eyes.

"Were you bullied at school?" Yahweh sat back in his original spot and waited quietly for the fifteen-year-old boy to calm down before slowly asking.

"Yes..." David hesitated, wanting to speak but stopping, and after a long while, squeezed out a reply between his teeth.

"Rest assured, David, no one will bully you anymore, I promise..." Yahweh closed his eyes and slowly opened them again a few seconds later.

"Oh..." David rubbed his left knee, which no longer throbbed faintly, frowning in confusion.

"I don't care who you are; you must treat Sister Heda well!" He repeated it again; even though the man before him was full of mystery, it could not shake his determination to protect his family.

"I promise you, David... I promise you..." After making this promise to the boy, Yahweh fell silent and turned his head to look out the window.

A storm raged between heaven and earth, with howling winds mixed with lightning and thunder, illuminating his blue eyes that reflected the world.