Rewritten Past

Late Thanksgiving night.

Alex and April had already gone to bed, tucked in by Serena.

Since Wang still had to work the next day, he turned into bed early after helping to clean up the dishes.

That left Yue alone with her big sister, Mei.

They were sitting in the living room. All the food had been cleared away, but Mei had left out the tupperware of brownies that Alex made. Handing a cup of tea over to Yue, she let out faint smile and said, "You've been taking good care of my little boy, Yuyu."

Yue took the cup of tea and nodded. "Of course. He's pretty much my kid at this point."

Mei winced. But she let out a soft sigh and said, "...You always did care about him." She idly rubbed her hand over her belly and said, "Even when I was carrying him, you were so excited and talked to him every day. Then you stayed up all night to make sure the nurses didn't switch him and followed them around everywhere...."

Yue sipped her tea and said, "...That's because he was a baby. Your baby. He's special." Yue remembered too. How worried she had been for Mei. How much she studied in order to help Mei through the pregnancy since Wang had been pretty pathetic...

Mei let out a thin smile and said, "I remember how hurt you were when Alex hated you babysitting him when he was smaller. I'm glad he likes you now."

"Me too." Yue nodded. "I love that he cares now."

A deliberate choice of words.

Mei noticed and flinched.

Yue didn't take it back. Instead, she glanced down at Mei's belly and said, "You and Brother-in-law actually did it, huh? You said it over the phone, but to think you actually chose to have another kid..."

Mei placed her hands on her belly, idly rubbing her green blouse. "...We did. We're prepared this time. And since Alex was at school and with you... we thought we could."

Yue's hands tightened on her teacup. "...So you're replacing him."

Mei flinched. "No. Not replacing. Just-"

"How is it not replacing him?" Yue gently set down her teacup and stared at her older sister. "You basically threw Alex at me, didn't even BOTHER to come visit in person once for three months, and now have a new child on the way."

Mei lowered her gaze. "That's..."

"Did you even WANT to have Alex, Sis?" Yue stared into Mei's eyes, serious. "Or were you just doing what you were expected to again?"

Mei was quiet.

Yue was quiet too.

Between the sisters, their cups of tea slowly cooled, just like the atmosphere in the room.

After a few minutes, Mei softly said, "I love Alex. I do. He's my little boy."

Yue didn't reply for a bit. But then she said, "Words aren't enough, Sis. They never have been. You of all people should know that, considering Mom and Dad."

"...I know." Mei wrapped her arms around herself, like she was trying to hug and comfort herself. "I *know*. But... It's all I have." She finished softly.

"...Five years," Yue said. "That's how long Alex has been a part of our lives. YOUR life. No, considering how long you carried him, it's closer to six now. During all that time, have you ever gotten to know Alex, really?"

Mei pursed her lips and said, "Of course I have! He's my son!"

"What's his favorite food?"

Mei paused. "That's... It's... chicken. Right?"

"No. It's stir-fried beef with broccoli."

Mei narrowed her eyes and said, "How was I supposed to know that?! We never had enough to-"

"That's the point." Yue cut Mei off and said, "It's not about you 'having enough.' It's about Alex having enough. At least, it should have been. Sis." Yue was quiet and said, "Have you ever even SEEN Alex properly? As himself and not just your 'little boy?'"

Mei didn't respond.

Yue waited.

Then, after a few moments, Mei softly said, "...What do you mean?"

Yue stared into Mei's eyes. Then she said, "Sis. You saw what happened earlier. How Alex reacted. That's not something a normal kid should do. And he didn't pick that up from being around me."

Mei's breath hitched. "That's... not..."

"It's true." Yue pursed her lips. "...Alex is smart, you know? Just like you were. He knows things without understanding how."

Mei was quiet.

Yue continued and said, "You and Brother-in-law were always so busy working. Alex had to be by himself, alone, so often. And when he was younger, I tried babysitting him, but he always wanted to go back to you two. Have you ever wondered why?"

"That's..." Mei trailed off.

Yue sipped on her tea, mulling over her thoughts and the implications from what she had seen Alex do tonight. And from all she knew about Alex since living with him. After a bit, she said, "I don't know exactly what happened, Sis. But SOMETHING happened to Alex in the past. When he was alone. Something bad enough to where he didn't trust you or Brother-in-law to save him. Something bad enough to where he learned how to make money, kill, and escape if needed."

Mei's expression crumpled.

But Yue didn't care. It had to be said.

Alex thought he was keeping it hidden. But Yue wasn't stupid.

She saw how often he used his laptop and how thoroughly he hid what he did on it. And she also saw the charges on her credit card statements.

Yue never brought it up.

And Alex probably thought she didn't notice or just thought it was a kid playing around.

But Yue saw. And Yue understood the implications.

Alex probably had a small slush fund hidden. Not only that, but he clearly understood Japanese from the fact that he created that Japanese inspired game. He also knew Korean too, since she had seen him stop and read the characters when they passed Korean shops, mouthing the syllables to himself.

Combined with his ability to speak Cantonese and probably Mandarin, Alex could slip away into Asia and vanish whenever he wanted to.

But more than that, he understood how the emergency systems and cops worked here in America too, along with Child Protective Services.

That was clear from how he reacted the night that April and Serena were in danger. And also from how he subtly coached April in speaking so that no one would even think that she and her mother were in danger.

Yue might not be as book smart as Mei was. But Yue knew street smarts when she saw them. And Alex was both: street smart AND book smart.

A genius through and through. And one smart enough to know that standing out was dangerous, so he quietly pretended to be normal.

No, not 'pretend.'

If he was pretending, Yue would have noticed it. She WAS an actor, after all.

It wasn't pretending. It was 'choosing.'

Alex could do more. Be more. Stand out as much as he wanted and awe the world.

But he deliberately dimmed his light, training for his self-satisfaction while living as a normal... or as normal as he could be, kid.

It would have been one thing if he had done it when he was ten.

But Alex was FIVE.

To have figured all of this out so young...