The next morning, Cen Jin didn't wake up until nine when a phone call from Ms. Qin disturbed her sleep. Fumbling for her phone, half-eyed, she saw "Dear Ms. Qin" written in large letters on the caller ID, which instantly cleared the fuzziness in her mind with a buzzing sound. Her back stiffened, her drowsiness vanished, and she sprang up from bed like a spring, clearing her throat subconsciously to make her voice sound less sleepy.
When the ringtone chimed for the third time, Cen Jin finally slid the answer button and spoke brightly, "Hi... Mom."
On the other end, Ms. Qin suspiciously asked, "Why did you take so long to answer? Nie Cenjin, you didn't just wake up, did you!"
"No... no, I've been up for a while, just changing clothes," Cen Jin glanced around guiltily, totally lacking confidence in her spontaneous excuse.
"Really?" Ms. Qin obviously expressed deep skepticism about her words.
