The night that Sherry was grounded, An and Ping were having a serious discussion in their room. The dim lighting of the lamp and grim expressions made it seem even more solemn.
"(Do you think we went too far?)" An asked, doubt in her voice. She hasn't punished her daughter like this ever since she became an adult and so she was worried that it might've been too strict.
Ping frowned, shaking his head. His voice was stern, confident and steady. "(It is for her own good.)" He said. "(When she stormed out like that, I really thought something bad happened.)"
An recalled the scene from earlier. Without any prior notice, Sherry rushed out from her room, her urgent footsteps echoing in the house. Then she shouted, not caring about their answer and just left. At the time, An felt anger, concern and a sense of loss bubbling in her chest as she stood there, stupefied.
Her face hardened. "(You're right. If we don't teach her properly, she might end up in the hospital one day. I really don't want to be a grey sending off a black.)"
[A/N: It's a Chinese proverb. Something to do with the younger generation dying before the older one. So, children dying before parents.]
"(Ay!)" Ping scolded. "(Don't say that, it'll attract bad luck.)"
An smiled. "(Well, I'm just happy that she's fine. Even if she encounters some trouble, Janine and Charlotte can help her. They are really good girls. And that Dylan, he seemed really sensible. I hope he can be my son-in-law.)"
"(Son-in-law? That's too soon, woman. My Shi Ming needs no man, she can stay with us forever!)" Ping grumbled.
An laughed and snuggled close to him. "(Can't bear to let her go? But one day, you'll have to walk her down the aisle and give her up to another. And you'll see the day she becomes the most beautiful woman in the world.)"
Ping groaned. He just imagined his daughter in a wedding dress, her image overlapping with his wife's. Then as his heart warmed up, he suddenly imagined his baby girl in the arms of another. Ping pouted, not wanting to see it.
An giggled. "(Let's go to sleep. Wendy and them are coming over tomorrow.)"
"(Mm)" The two called it a night and went to sleep, unaware that Sherry hadn't learnt her lesson at all and was happily talking with Dylan as they slept.
The next morning, An got out of bed early to make breakfast. Her friends were coming over in the afternoon and she wanted to make some snacks to greet them. Ping also crawled out of bed to help her. He hugged her from behind with sleepy eyes and rested his head on her shoulder.
"(Morning.)" He greeted.
"(Good morning, sleepy head. Go wash up and eat.)" An smiled and greeted back. Ping grunted in response and sneakily pecked An's cheek as she turned her head. With a smirk, he left to brush his teeth. An shrugged and smiled before going back to her cooking.
When she set the table up, Ping finished washing up and helped her. "(Where's Shi Ming?)" He asked.
"(She's still sleeping.)"
He stood up and went to knock on Sherry's door. Hearing no answer, Ping peeked inside and found Sherry fast asleep. He approached her and gently shook Sherry. With a soft voice, he spoke to her. "(It's time to eat. Mum made breakfast.)"
"Mmm, I'm tired…" Sherry moaned and turned over to the other side of her bed. Ping helplessly shook his head and decided to be mean. He mercilessly grabbed a hold of Sherry's blankets and, PULL! He did a cold air trick and stole her blanket away from her.
Feeling sudden chill, Sherry hugged herself in a fetal position. "Wake up." Her dad ordered.
Sherry reluctantly opened her eyes. She sat up and looked grumpily at Ping. He just looked at her and told her to eat. Mumbling incomprehensible words to herself, Sherry marched to the bathroom like a zombie. When she was alive again, she headed to the kitchen.
There she saw, her parents eating breakfast while being lovey dovely. The two love birds were being openly affectionate. Ping helped An to cut up her toastie while she brew him a cup of coffee. They showed off harmony and warmth of a family whilst professing their love for one another.
"(Thank you, honey. I love you.)" Ping said. Sherry had grown immune to such PDA after having been subjected to such eyesore from a young age. But after having matured and witness a lot of other couples, Sherry realised that her parents were the odd ones out. For one, they were still of affectionate like newlyweds despite having been married for over twenty years. Janine's parents acted like siblings, they always bickered and fought but still acknowledged each other's presence and respected one another. Other married couples were similar in that they were no longer as openly in love.
This was a good thing. Sherry knew that it was better than her parents initiating a cold war in their own home. However, what was strange was Ping's attitude in the mornings and night. In the morning, he was extra affectionate. He would insert heartfelt confessions in every sentence and be very physical. He would hug and kiss at every opportunity, just being loveable in general. But as the afternoon approached, these blatant confessions of love would tone down, and become limited to a simple showcase of affection, maybe a hold of the hand or a pat of the head. Sherry decided to dub this level, the Dylan level due to the similarities with Dylan's flirting from time to time.
Then, as the day went on, he would progressively become more and more taciturn as if he had run out of affection. It was at this time that An would instead be the one initiating. But she was mainly satisfied by arm hugging so perhaps afternoon to night was the least of an eyesore. Of course, Ping was normal in front of strangers. He had an image to uphold after all.
"(Shi Ming. Help us to make dumplings. My friends are coming over later.)" An said, clearing the table and replacing the empty plates with dumpling skin and filling.
Automatically, the family of three started to make dumplings. They worked quietly and skilfully, each dumpling looking beautiful and delicious.
"(You have some flour on your face.)" Ping pointed out. An wiped her face with her sleeve but made it worse by spreading it. Ping smiled and got a tissue. He gently wiped her face with a warm smile and gazed directly into her eyes. "(My wife is still beautiful even when her face is covered.)"
"(Oh darling. You look handsome today as well.)" Not wanting to lose, An giggled and slapped Ping on his chest. The two did a sly glance at Sherry. After double checking that she wasn't watching, they kissed each other. It was a brief kiss, only just a peck but still enough to make immature kids shy away and get disgusted.
Little did the Chen couple know that Sherry knew everything they were doing. She just sighed to herself, lamenting her solo life and continued to wrap dumplings.