At night, after those at work returned home from dinner, a voice boomed and echoed through the house.

"WHAT?! ChunHua's fever got that bad?! I'm going to fuck up that dude!"

However, WeiSheng was firmly held back by his mother by his shoulder.

"Mo-"

"Do you want ChunHua to be mad with you?" She asked with a serious expression.

"But she was all fine and dandy when we left for work!” He exclaimed with his arms out. “To hear this upon our return! Argh!!" He tousled his hair roughly.

"Let's try to talk to her instead. It's no point ruining your relationship with her to help her. She won't appreciate it." Their mother advised.

"Mm. Let's just keep being there for her so we can help her the moment she sees his true colours." Their father echoed their mother’s sentiments.

WeiSheng glared at the main door, humphed angrily, then stalked off to ChunHua's room.

Their parents looked at each other and shook their heads before heading up the stairs with WeiSheng in the lead.

Gentle knocking on the door easily drew ChunHua out of her slumber. The ruckus from earlier had already did half the job.

ChunHua grimaced because of the discomfort she felt all over. When the adrenaline died down during her bath, she started noticing the chills and aches. She suspected that there had always been a slight fever. After all, it was like this in her previous life. However, she did not remember feeling THIS bad. Did she push herself more than she did last time?

"ChunHua?" A chorus of voices called out her name ever so gently.

She peeked beyond her covers and saw the people that brought endless warmth to her heart. Tears sprung to her eyes uncontrollably. "Papa, mama, big brother..." Her voice was a mere whisper.

They rushed to her bed. WeiSheng and their mother kneeled by the bed, side by side, while their father stood behind them.

"Our dear baby... How are you sick again?" Her mother asked first.

"ChunHua, listen to big brother, BaiQiao really doesn't care about you. Please come to your senses and stop torturing yourself like this!" WeiSheng went straight to the point.

However, it only earned him a light whack to the back of his head. He looked at his mother, flabbergasted. "What did I say-"

"Dense boy. Can't you find a better time to have this talk?" Their mother lightly chided.

"Your sister's clearly so unwell now. Don't give her distress at this time." Their father explained.

He looked at ChunHua's pale expression and half-lidded teary eyes. His expression turned guilty as he hung his head low. "Sorry, I was rash."

ChunHua slowly shook her head then reached out for his hand.

WeiSheng saw her sluggish movements, understood what she wanted, and quickly gave her his hand. Then, she mustered all her strength to give the biggest smile she could manage.

“It’s okay, I know big brother was just worried about me…”

“… You’re growing up.” Their mother suddenly remarked as she gently stroked the top of ChunHua’s head.

ChunHua stared at her mother, unsure of how to respond. Her mother had never said something like that to her before.

‘Am I better now?’

ChunHua had a mix of feelings. She was happy but also frustrated with herself for what she had to exchange for her growth.

‘If only I wasn’t so dumb.’

ChunHua eventually dropped her gaze to her hand that was still holding onto WeiSheng’s hand.

‘As long as I keep up my revenge, I’m sure things that will worry them will keep happening like this. But I don't want to worry them all the time... What should I do?’

"ChunHua? Is there something you want to say? You know you can tell big brother anything, right?"

ChunHua looked at him with a troubled expression.

"If it's too tough to talk now, rest.” WeiSheng smiled gently and patted the back of her hand. “There's no rush."

She glanced at her parents who shared the same smile her brother had.

Alright. She made up her mind.

"Can you all promise to cooperate with me no matter what I say?"

Her sudden and odd request stunned them. An ominous chill travelled down their spine.

"D- Don't we always?" Her mother stammered for the first time, albeit with a stiff smile.

"I mean... If I’m going to do something that I dislike and may even suffer for a while, will you all let me?”

Their smiles dropped at the same time.

"No way." WeiSheng rejected without a second thought.

"Why would you want to do something like that?" Her mother said with worry thick in her eyes.

"Why would you be in such a position?" Her father probed.

"..." ChunHua remained silent for a long while. "I'm sorry. I just have something I simply must accomplish."

Her family members silently exchanged glances before turning back to face her. Since when was ChunHua like this? Was something happening?

"... We promise." They said almost in unison.

They would rather stay in the know and be there when she needed their help. They did not need words to know each other's thoughts about this matter.

ChunHua stared at them in pleasant surprise. Tears fell without her knowing it. All she felt was the gratitude she had for their unwavering support.

“Oh dear, what’s wrong, baby girl?” Their mother asked as she wiped ChunHua’s tears away. The men leaned in, eagerly waiting for her response as well.

"Thank you. Thank you... Thank you..." ChunHua did not know what else to say.

"Little sis..."

"Oh, our poor baby..." Her mother hugged ChunHua tightly.

When her mother let her go, her father also approached the bed and brushed ChunHua's hair out of her face that was now streaked with tears. "Little princess, rest now. Tell us more later. Okay?"

ChunHua nodded. She took a deep breath and obediently closed her eyes.

Everyone stayed by her side until she dozed off, which did not take very long to happen.

"Do you think it has anything to do with BaiQiao?" Her mother whispered.

"It could be..."

"I'll so beat that bastard up-!"

"WeiSheng!" His mother sternly chided in a hushed voice. "Did you already forget your sister's plea?! You be a good boy and wait to hear what she needs us to do!"

He pouted and sulked in the middle of the room like a giant husky. Xiao Tang noticed his distress and came bounding towards him to provide some comfort.

"Only you're on my side Xiao Tang..." He whined.

However, Xiao Tang soon walked off to ChunHua's side.

"Xiao Tang...! Even you...!" He cried dramatically.

"Her dream!" Their father suddenly exclaimed, still in a hushed voice. "Remember the dream she kept going on about yesterday?"

"So, it's about us?"

Their parents continued discussing in quiet voices what ChunHua could possibly want to talk to them about.

WeiSheng let out a long sigh. He stood up, placed his arms around their shoulders, then said while directing them towards the bedroom door, "Why don't you both practice what you preach and just wait to see what she has to say? No point fretting and guessing so much."

His mother nudged him in his ribs. "You. How daring..." Although her tone was scolding, she wore a smile on her face. She knew that WeiSheng meant well. "You're really our reliable son. ChunHua's trustworthy big brother."