Chapter 11 - You Forgot Me!

The little boy laughed widely, causing his plump cheeks to bulge and his small baby teeth to flash in triumph. He nodded, his chin knocking against her when he moved his head. “I followed Mom!”

“Er...” Li Xia was at a loss. “Baby, do I look like your mother? Do I have the same face?” She touched her cheek and moved her face from side to side so he could see well.

Children didn’t usually recognize the wrong parent.

The bright smile dimmed one tenth. “Mom! You are my mom.” He shook his head, his hair flying cutely from side to side. “Only you can be her.”

“But...”

The Little Dumpling let go of her leg. That is, his arms let her go, but he leaned his little body fully on her. Little hands dug into his Taji Academy jacket pocket. Li Xia watched him, mesmerized by the serious concentration on this little guy’s face.

“How old are you?” Why did he look like the temperament of an older child but his body was clearly a little toddler. Children were so evolved these days?

The little guy withdrew his hand from his school jacket and lifted a piece of paper towards her. “This is you,” his lips turned down seriously, his little smile gone. “This is my mother.”

Li Xia took the paper. At most, she expected to see her lookalike - someone eight-tenths similar to her at least. However, when she turned the paper over, her knees went weak. This girl in the photo was her. Not a look-alike, just her.

But she couldn’t recall where she had posed for this photo.

She held the photo, dazed. She couldn’t even mind the little boy now.

Did she have a twin her parents never told her about? It was the only conclusion for this matter. A woman who looked exactly like her and who had a toddler son was the only reasoning her mind could make up.

Below, the Little Dumpling’s arms slipped around her leg again. He didn’t speak or look up at her. He rested his little face against her leg, his little body sagging heavily and she felt something wet on her leg.

She looked down.

The little baby’s face was smooth yet sad. His eyes were closed like he was making a solemn wish. And... tears were leaking past his eyelids and into her skin.

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The poor little guy.

His little bow lips were moving but what he was saying was too soft for her to catch. She bent her body in half to be closer to him and heard: “Please say you are my mommy. Please say you are my mommy. Please...”

Li Xia’s heart ached for him. He was chanting the words quietly as if saying it enough would make it be true.

Li Xia, her arms and heart yearning to hug the sad little guy, pushed him away a little. His eyes flew open and he looked up, desolation and hurt on his beautiful little face. Li Xia knelt in the space he created and grabbed him close to her chest in a tight hug: that was a look she didn’t deserve! She only wanted to hug him, not push him away.

The little guy was stiff in her arms at first, like a plank of wood. In seconds however, his little rotund body melted into hers. His fists clutched at the fabric on her blouse and he buried his head in her chest. His cries weren’t silent anymore, but became louder.

“Wuwuwuwuwu!”

Li Xia, a little panicked, hugged him closer and began patting his little back. “It’s okay, Little Dumpling. It’s okay, don’t cry.”

How to comfort a crying child? Telling him ‘I’m not your mother’ wasn’t an option.

“Little Dumpling, does your mother look a lot like me? What is her name?” So I can find her and give you back to her.

"Not a lot like!” Little Dumpling’s whole body shook. His voice was so loud that he was screaming. “Look one-hundred like! No mistake!”

The customers, a group of middle-aged women at the table to the side were disturbed by the commotion and the baby’s loud voice. Someone shouted, “Noisy! Lady, take your child outside if he is misbehaving!”

Another woman from the group added, “We didn’t order this cake. Take it away. Are you going to scam us into paying for something we didn’t order?”

Somewhere across the cafe, a male voice called, “That’s our cake! Lady, did you mistake our order? We’ve been waiting more than ten minutes now.” It was the couple at the window who ordered the cake, watching her with impatience.

The problem became bigger when Su YiWei came out. “Li Xia,” Su YiWei and some other restaurant staff gaped at her and the child in her arms. “What is...?”

“He ran away from school,” Li Xia said quickly to Su YiWei. “Can you call the school and let them know he is here?” No need to ask what school. Taiji Academy’s uniform had no crest, but the gold edges of the jacket was the signature statement of the school.

“No!” The boy wiggled and shouted. “Don’t call. They will take me away! Mommy, don’t you want me?”

‘Mommy?’ Su YiWei mouthed. Li Xia shook her head at Su YiWei. She didn’t know either okay, don’t ask.

Li Xia moved the child a bit so she could see his face and teach, “Little boy, you ran away from the school. This is a bad thing you did.”

Somehow, ‘You made a mistake’ turned into: “You don’t want me! Wuuu!” He screamed and started crying again. “Mommy! You left me! You want to give me away! You don’t want me! Wuuuuuu!”

All heads turned their way. Li Xia could see the customers bending their heads to each other and whispering while looking over. They thought she was a bad mother who abandoned her child!

Even Su YiWei was looking at her funny. “Li Xia, you have a child?”

“I don’t!” Li Xia hurriedly claimed innocence above the child’s crying. “I’ve never had a child. I don’t remember that!”

The child was in full blown tantrum now, “You forgot me? Mommy!” The word ‘Mommy’ wasn’t said but was a long scream. “I want my Daddy! Dad!” The word ‘Dad’ was also a long scream.

Li Xia looked around - at the crying and screaming child, the gossiping patrons, the bewildered staff - and didn’t know what to do.

“Little Dumpling, do you want ice-cream?”