311 Im More Like Him (2/2)
Keira accompanied Xander for the rest of the day as he made the arrangements for Bernard's remains.
Her mobile phone beeped. It was a message from Zach, responding to her earlier text message, in which she informed him that she would be accompanying Xander at the hospital for a while.
[ Alright. Please offer him my deepest condolences. I hope he will find some peace... I'll be meeting Senior Liu today. Please take care of yourself. Don't skip meals, and come home early if possible. I love you, my star… ]
Keira smiled and proceeded to help Xander with everything that he needed, as soon as she put her mobile phone back in her purse.
............
”Sir…” Zach greeted Senior Liu, who visited him in his office at the military base. Then he gestured for Senior Liu to take a seat on the couch.
Senior Liu sat down and smiled at him. ”Please call me 'Uncle' from now on. I prefer that over 'Sir'”
Zach smiled and humbly apologized, ”I'm sorry, I'll try to keep that in mind. To be honest, everything hasn't really sunk in yet.”
Then Zach offered, ”Would you like something to drink? Tea, coffee?”
Senior Liu smiled and replied, ”Coffee will do, please…. Thanks.”
Zach signaled his subordinate to get his guest a cup of coffee, while Senior Liu looked around Zach's office and stood up to approach a cabinet where Zach's medals and awards were displayed.
Then it dawned on him that he had never even gotten the time to visit his own son's office at the military when he was still an active General of the army. 'I'm such a bad father,' he lamented, followed by a sigh.
Zach smiled, seeing Senior Liu stare intently at his trophies. Then as if he could read his mind, Zach pointed out, ”Jeru also has the same amount of those, Sir…”
Senior Liu smiled and nodded, but his heart still felt like it had been pricked by a needle for knowing so little about his own son.
”He sat back on the couch and said, ”Your father, Charles, would surely be proud of you wherever he is now.”
”I would like to know more about him, Sir. My father. How was he like? What kind of a person was he?” Zach asked in earnest. He genuinely wanted to find out more about his biological father.
Senior Liu took a sip of his coffee before he started narrating about the good old times that he had with Charles, including their childhood stories.
”I think I'm more like him then,” Zach asserted with a smile. From Senior Liu's stories, just like him, his father also appeared to be a reserved man, who couldn't reveal his thoughts or feelings readily. His father had changed and had become more open to things only after he met his mother. Just like how he had also started to open up more only after Keira strolled into his life...