Chapter 8: Mom and Dad's Divorce

  "Oh, boss, don't, please don't deduct my salary again." As I saw the furious boss in front of me, my drowsiness instantly disappeared. I quickly used both hands to rub the sleep from my eyes and got up as fast as I could, pleading with him.

  "I asked you, where is your market research report?" The boss's face was stern and unmoving, his red eyes staring at me as if he wanted to swallow me whole.

  "Uh..." I stared at the thing that had been thrown into the trash can and was now a mushy mess, worried that I would get scolded again.

  "Su Xiaomei!" Just then, a voice that came out of nowhere saved me in the nick of time. I took a deep breath like a prisoner sticking his head out of the window and looked towards where the sound was coming from.

  Security guard Yang Xiaofei was wearing a deep blue security hat, stretching his neck and turning his head while standing in the entrance hall shouting. "Su Xiaomei! Su Xiaomei! Someone is looking for you!"

  "Hey, I'm over here! Over here!" I turned my body with exaggerated motion, waving my arms wildly, and rushed over like I was reuniting with a long-lost relative.

  "Who's looking for me?" I asked excitedly as I ran over.

  "Uh, there's an old man outside the door who says he's your dad." Yang Xiaofei adjusted his hat and said.

  "Huh?" A hint of surprise flashed through my mind. My dad had never come to the company to find me before, what was he doing here today?

  Although living in the same city as my parents, it seems like a long time since we last met. Today, my dad suddenly came to see me, what's going on?

  I rushed into the hall with a mind full of doubts and a sense of relief at having escaped from my boss.

  At the entrance of the security room in the hall, Dad was hunched over with a half-white head of hair, his face expressionless and helpless, and he looked like he had aged a lot since I last saw him.

  When was it that I last saw him? I tapped my forehead, trying hard to think clearly.

  As I walked up to him, he still hadn't remembered, "Dad," I shouted at him.

  "Ah, Xiao Mei." Dad seemed even more flustered when he saw me, his aged face revealing obvious fear, but then he forced a faint smile, looking pitiful and guilty like a child who had done something wrong.

  "Is something wrong?" I asked, looking at him strangely.

  "Dad stretched out his rough big hand and awkwardly rubbed the white hair, wanting to smile, but the lines squeezed out were almost like crying."

  "Dad, what's going on? I'm still working. " I glanced around at the passersby, wanting to end this awkward encounter as soon as possible.

  "Ah," my dad let out a deep sigh, suddenly shrinking into a ball, hugging his head and squatting down. After a moment, he slowly lifted his head under my curious gaze and said with a determined look: "I'm divorced from your mom."

  "Ah?" I stared blankly with wide eyes, my mind a complete mess.

  "Why?!" As soon as my brain had a slight gap, I immediately jumped up like a fish jumping back into the water, splashing and shouting. "You're all at this age, why do you want to get divorced? You've argued for so many years and got through it, why do you have to get divorced at this time? It's really big news, I haven't heard of parents my age getting divorced! I'm 27, I haven't gotten married, I don't even have a boyfriend! Why are you treating me like this? How am I supposed to face my classmates and friends? Have you considered my feelings? Do you care about me? At the very least, you should have told me in advance, what do I count as in your eyes?"

  Dad, under my repeated questioning, stared with his dull yellow eyes, as if frightened silly, half-opening his mouth, filled with guilt and sadness, staring blankly at me.

  Yang Xiaofei, who had walked back, stopped his steps in the distance, took off the hat on his head and twirled it around in his hand.