Dawn broke, and Ethan was woken by Maya's voice.
"Ethan, time for breakfast."
When Ethan opened his eyes, he saw Maya had already placed a simple breakfast of congee and pickles on the bedside table.
Ethan mixed the pickles into the congee. It was simple, fragrant, and comforting.
"Maya, don't you have school today?"
Maya rolled her eyes. "Ethan, it's Sunday. Yesterday was Saturday."
"Oh, right..." Ethan realized it was already Sunday. He'd called Michael on Thursday, and the days had blurred together.
After breakfast, Ethan intended to stay at the hospital, but Lydia shooed him away.
"Go on, what are you going to do here? I'm not immobile. I've arranged for a hospital caregiver. You go home, get cleaned up, and do your own things. Just come visit me when you have time."
Under his mother's insistence, Ethan and Maya rode their bicycles home.
Sitting in his room, Ethan pondered. His mindset needed to shift. He took a shower and meticulously washed his school uniform from the other day.
As for the family fishpond, Ethan went to Maya's house at lunchtime and asked her father to help manage it.
"Uncle, I'm entrusting the fishpond to you. Mom and I won't have the time. With winter coming, we need to set up insulation, and—"
"I know all about it, son," Maya's father waved a hand. "I have materials left from building my greenhouse this year. Putting up a simple shelter won't be a problem."
"Alright, Uncle, it's in your hands. Sell the catch at my mom's usual stall; they're all regular customers. Just have Maya bring some crucian carp soup to the hospital for my mom. Consider the rest payment for your trouble."
Maya's father didn't say more. He poured Ethan a glass of liquor. "Ethan, you're the man of the house now. We've been neighbors for a long time. We help each other. No need for big words. It's all in this glass."
Ethan picked up the glass and downed it in one go. The fiery sensation made his face turn red.
In the afternoon, Ethan went into town and bought a three-wheeled electric scooter for Maya, one with a winter canopy, costing over three thousand.
Maya and her father adamantly refused.
"Uncle, you said it yourself, we're neighbors. When my mom collapsed the other day, you didn't hesitate to pull out those three thousand, did you? Did you think I'd be able to pay you back?"
"Later, you'll need to transport fish, and Maya will need to bring soup to the hospital. Let's share this scooter. Didn't you see how cramped it was riding back with Maya this morning? She's getting chubbier; I could barely pedal."
Maya punched Ethan's arm, glaring at him indignantly. She was skin and bones; where was this 'chubby' coming from?
Ethan left the scooter, bought a new phone for his mother, and delivered it to the hospital.
"It'll be easier for us to stay in touch. I transferred some money to it. I kept a few thousand for myself."
After handling everything, Ethan lay on his bed and fell asleep.
The next morning, Ethan, in his clean school uniform, walked into school. The bandage on the back of his head drew stares. The moment he entered his classroom, he felt several pairs of eyes lock onto him.
It was Marcus Whitfield and his crew of eight.
Ethan was surprised; he'd never seen Marcus arrive so early. His deskmate informed him that after Ethan had slipped away when they tried to corner him on Thursday, Marcus had come early on Friday too. Not finding Ethan, he'd claimed Ethan was too scared to show up. He'd even looked for Ethan at the market over the weekend, without success.
Seeing Ethan today made Marcus and his gang instantly happy.
Marcus swaggered over, deliberately drawing the whole class's attention, and slapped his hand on Ethan's desk. "Don't you dare run after school!"
With that, under the watchful eyes of the class, Marcus strode out of the classroom with his crew, heading off-campus for breakfast and internet cafes.
Ethan spent the entire day buried in his books and homework. Marcus's threat didn't faze him in the slightest; he was completely unaffected. After the events at Lansway, his perspective and courage had grown by leaps and bounds.
The last period in the afternoon was supposed to be their homeroom teacher's math class.
"Your math teacher is sick. It's P.E. instead."
This was probably the most absurd excuse Ethan had heard in three years of high school. With the last period being P.E., everyone was essentially packed up and ready to leave.
Some had even staked out positions near the school gate, anticipating a show. Across the street, they could already see Marcus and his group, along with a bunch of older, rough-looking guys.
Marcus and his friends stood at the front, cigarettes dangling from their mouths, cracking their knuckles, seeming impatient.
When the final bell rang, Ethan walked out of the school gates.
Marcus and his entire crew started marching across the street towards him.
While still in the middle of the road, Marcus pointed at Ethan and yelled, "Ethan! Let's see you try to run today!"
He basked in the mix of fearful and admiring looks from the surrounding students.
"Ethan's in for it today. Marcus said he got away last time, but he won't escape this time!"
Students couldn't help but glance at Ethan, some whispering about how tough Marcus was, who he'd hung out with before.
Just then, a convoy of black Range Rovers rolled down the street. The pure black SUVs exuded an imposing, powerful aura. Marcus and his socialite thugs, halfway across the road, were forced to stop, not daring to challenge the convoy, letting it pass in front of them.
But the Range Rover convoy wasn't just passing through. It came to a smooth stop right in front of Marcus and his crew.
Over a dozen Range Rovers parked in a perfect line. Doors opened, and out stepped men in black suits, each over six feet tall, radiating authority.
One of the men who got out simply glanced at Marcus and his crew.
"Get lost, kids!"
Marcus didn't even dare to talk back, shrinking back a few steps. The thugs were fine bullying students, but faced with this kind of professional security detail, none of them dared to make a sound. They all retreated, watching with their heads down.
Forty or fifty black-clad bodyguards formed two lines. Then, the door of the lead Range Rover opened. A long, shapely leg stepping out instantly captured everyone's attention.
Summer, her long hair cascading over her shoulders, her figure striking, strode forward. The bodyguards fell in behind her as she walked directly up to Ethan.
Summer looked at Ethan and offered a slight smile. Then she turned to the bodyguards. "Aren't you going to greet the Young Master?"
The bodyguards bowed in unison.
"Good afternoon, Young Master!"
The scene left Marcus and the watching students utterly dumbfounded. Those who had just been predicting Ethan's doom were wide-eyed.
Ethan frowned slightly. He didn't mind the show of force, but the setting at the school gate and the title felt awkward.
"Michael sent you?"
"Yes," Summer nodded. "Michael heard you were having some trouble at school. To resolve it permanently, he made special arrangements."
"Unnecessary," Ethan shook his head. "Also, I'm not any 'Young Master.'"
Summer took a step closer, a stunning smile on her lips. "Michael hopes... you'll come back."
"Heh." Ethan let out a soft, derisive laugh. "So, Michael is willing to acknowledge me now?"
Summer nodded, about to answer, when Ethan spoke again.
"Did Michael get one fundamental thing wrong? From the very beginning, it was never about whether he was willing to acknowledge me. The question is whether I, Ethan Chen, am willing to acknowledge him. Summer, go back and ask Michael: Is he even worthy?"
Gasps rippled through the crowd. Another, equally imposing convoy of Range Rovers approached from the opposite direction, pulling up in a line along the curb by the school gate.
The doors opened simultaneously. More tall bodyguards in black suits emerged. From the lead vehicle, Serena He hopped out, her short hair sharp, her legs long, her waist slender, radiating a confident, capable energy.
"Who told me the seniors got out after seven?!" she complained lightly.
She led her contingent of bodyguards straight to Ethan. She glanced briefly at Summer and her group, then turned a sweet smile towards Ethan.
"Ethan, dinner tonight?"