Dinner with her friends

Chapter 4: Dinner with her friends

Chapter 3 is linked here.

When Robert entered the room the guy turned and looked at him for a few seconds, before smiling and walking to the door. At the door he stopped and turned to John, speaking softly in Chinese with what could be only described as malice in his eyes, before exiting the room. Robert didn’t understand what the guy said but, by the look in John’s eyes, he could see that it was obviously a threat of some kind.

Robert walked to John, asking, "What the hell was that about?"

John replied, “The guy seemed pissed because we’re working on his machine. He was speaking broken English at first but became angry and started yelling in Chinese."

Robert, getting angry, said, “John, I heard you speaking in Chinese. I thought you said you don't speak Chinese."

"I don't speak Chinese, he was making me angry, so I just blurted out some Chinese swear words I know."

Robert asked him to repeat the words for him, and John spoke several Chinese words that Robert knew were not the words he spoke before. In his mind, Robert kept repeating the words John had spoken to the guy as they walked back to the other room.

When they got back to the room, William was there alone, and said that he had sent the crew to another machine they were installing upstairs. He wanted Robert and John to try and get the shuttle working without them around. It took them about thirty minutes to find and fix the wiring problem, which pleased William greatly.

They spent the rest of the day doing system checks on their coating machine, as Robert kept repeating the Chinese words in his mind. He was trying to remember the words so he could ask Lina what they meant.

On the drive back to the hotel that evening, Lina called Robert and invited him to dinner with her friends on Thursday. Robert asked if they could make it Friday instead, as they were working late on Thursday, but not working on Friday. They agreed on Friday and Lina said she would pick him up at seven pm, outside the hotel. He told John that he would be going to dinner on Friday, and John said that was good; as he was going shopping with his friend and going to dinner after.

They worked a lot of hours in the next few days, preparing the machine for the main building wiring, which was happening on Friday. They got back to the hotel a little earlier than expected on Thursday, so decided to get cleaned up and have dinner together before calling it an early night as they were both exhausted. On the way up to the rooms after dinner, John said he would be late getting back tomorrow night so he would see Robert on Saturday. Robert agreed as he expected to be getting back late, as well.

The next day Robert had breakfast in his room before going down to walk along the river.

He spent the day around the hotel, shopping in the small stores and talking with some American families that were adopting babies. He found that they were all good people, in love with their new children.

He passed the time checking out the gardens around the hotel and swimming in the outdoor pool before going up to get ready for his dinner date. He had trouble deciding what to wear; he had a suit with him but felt he might feel uncomfortable if the restaurant was hot. He decided on a pair of light dress pants and shoes with a short sleeve, light coloured, shirt.

He went down to the foyer a few minutes before seven and walked outside to a beautiful summer evening. It wasn't hot at all, but was extremely comfortable with a light breeze off the river.

Lina pulled up a few minutes after seven, with a friend who was driving a Black Mercedes.

They got out of the car to greet Robert, and as he walked towards these two beautiful women dressed in incredible summer dresses and high heels he smiled and said, “I must be the luckiest man in the world”.

They looked like they’d just stepped out of a magazine cover as they came towards him. Lina smiled and hugged him before she introduced her friend, Candice. They greeted each other, and Robert complimented their beauty, before getting in the car and heading to the restaurant.

Lina told him they were going to a beautiful restaurant on the river that served Chinese and western food. There would be six of them, three couples, and they’d booked a table outside on the river.

They arrived at the restaurant a few minutes later, as it was close to the White Swan hotel.

Candice's boyfriend, Ming, was waiting outside when they arrived, and said that his cousin, with her friend, were on their way and should be there soon. Robert and Ming shook hands, and they all went in to get their table. The waiter escorted them outside to the patio, which overlooked the Pearl River directly across from the hotel. He walked them to a table on the river bank, as Robert was commenting on the magnificent view of the hotel and Shamian Island. While they waited for Ming’s cousin, Lina asked Robert if he wanted a tour of the restaurant grounds as it was a protected area with historic significance, and he agreed.

She took his hand as they walked around the grounds, explaining the history of the area. They stopped beside an old, small stone structure protected by fencing, and Lina explained that this was a fishing house and was nearly 2000 years old. There were some people there speaking Chinese, which reminded Robert of the words that John said, so he asked Lina if she could translate them. She said ok, so he spoke the words, the best he could remember them. When he’d finished, she looked at him puzzled and said, "I'm not sure you're saying what I think, can you repeat it, slowly?"

Robert repeated the same words much slower than before, as clear as he could. She laughed and said, “you probably have it wrong; because it sounds like you said, she is not an animal; He doesn't own her."

They were walking back to their table, when Ming met them and said, "Just coming to get you, they’ve arrived. Come, Robert, meet my cousin; she’s a little older than me, and her name is Aili," as they approached the table.

Robert was walking and smiling at Lina as Ming was speaking, but stopped in his tracks when he looked towards the table.

Sitting beside Ming’s cousin Aili, was a man holding her hands and looking at her as he talked.

Robert stared at the man and spoke one word, “John?”

**

Aili, looking into John's eyes and listening intently as he spoke, didn't see the man and woman walking to the table with Ming until the man said, "John?"

She’d never met Robert but recognized him from the pictures the girls had shown her from the night at the "Pub on the Lake." She couldn't speak and watched in disbelieve as Robert walked towards them, staring at John with a confused look on his face.

Fear rose in Aili’s throat as she had an uncanny feeling of being watched. She looked around the restaurant before looking towards the river and seeing two men, taking pictures and smoking cigarettes. They were looking directly at their table. The men stared at her for a few seconds before throwing their cigarettes in the river and walking away.

She knew in her heart that these men worked for her husband, Fan Zhang, one of the most dangerous men in Guangzhou. Her hands trembled as she thought back to the fight and Fan’s heartbreaking words the day before she met John.

**

Aili's husband returned to China a few days after the fight, without visiting them before leaving.

He phoned Aili the day he was going, and told her that his father needed him in Guangzhou, and he was leaving in a few hours.

Aili protested, "what about Mai-Ling?"

He said, "what about her; she’s not a child."

Aili was getting angry and said, "She’s your daughter and loves you. Why would you hurt her this way?"

Fan raised his voice, "How dare you question me, I’m your husband. My daughter is a Zhang and will understand that my decisions as her father are final. The reason that she has her Literature degree is because I allowed it. She knows the importance of the Zhang family name and the respect it demands. Your family name means nothing; you’re a family of useless men that can't even provide food and clothing to their dirty children. Your name is the laughing stock of Guangzhou."

Aili, feeling punched in the stomach from his words and angry at the disrespect he showed her family, raised her voice, "Why would you speak to me like that? What have I done that makes you treat me with such disrespect? I know we’ve had our problems, Fan, but you know I’ve always loved you."

He yelled, "You are my wife, I will speak to you as I feel. It's not me you love; it's my name. Remember what you were when I met you."

Aili felt her heart break when he continued with venom in his voice, "The little ugly girl boy, with the stinky father," and hung up the phone.

After the phone call, Aili collapsed at the table in shock, transported back to her childhood and the bullying she endured, feeling gutted by Fan's words.

She sat there for a long time, thinking about what Fan had said before taking a shower and changing her clothes before Mai-Ling arrived home.

When Mai-Ling came in, Aili was in the kitchen making dinner, and she could see that her mother had been crying. She went to her and asked, "What's wrong mom, was dad here?"

Lately, her father had been mean whenever speaking to her mother and this upset her.

She was starting to resent him, as her mother was a kind and thoughtful person, and she couldn't understand why he treated her like this.

They sat at the table together, and Aili told her that her father had called earlier today.

She asked her mother why he had called, and she said that he had to fly back to Guangzhou today.

Mai-Ling asked her mother, "Is he coming here first?"

Aili replied, "No, he couldn't; your grandfather is having some trouble and demanded he come right away."

Aili thought this news would upset her, but Mei-Ling looked relieved when told that her father was not coming. Mai-Ling smiling said, "Its ok mom, it will be just you and I and Maryanne again. It's always more comfortable when it is just the three of us. I’m not upset; I'm happy."

As they stood to make dinner together, Mai-Ling hugged her mother tight and told her how much she loved her.

The next day, Aili, feeling she needed a distraction from the pain she felt, joined the local YMCA, which was a short drive from home. They had lots of classes she could join, like yoga, dancing, and swimming. She signed up for a light yoga class and a swimming class, which included water aerobics.

The girl informed her that there was a water aerobics class later that day, and she could book a spot now if she wished. She booked her place, and the girl gave her an armband before she went home to change and get her swimming clothes.

She returned to the YMCA a little later, and decided to use some of the exercise equipment before going to the swimming class. She worked out for about an hour, then took a shower and walked to the pool. When she got to the pool area an earlier class was finishing; she watched the people in the wading pool, exercising to music as the instructor stood on the side showing them the moves. Standing with a group of people as they waited for the next class, she could see they were from several different lineages. It was a mixture of different races that made up Canada.

When the class they were watching finished and the pool cleared, their group went in.

The pool was about four feet deep, and had a broad set of steps, that the instructor rolled into place for anyone who needed it. She decided to use the steps as her left leg was feeling a little sore from the exercising. A white man, about her same age, went down the steps before her and offered his hand as she came down. The man helped her into the pool and smiled at her as she said, "Thank you."

He replied, "No problem, I slipped on the step a couple of weeks ago."

She thought, "What a kind gesture," as she smiled back at him.

He said, "See you later, have fun," as the instructor told them all to spread out, so there is enough room to swing your arms and legs.

The class lasted forty minutes, and Aili loved it.

The female instructor walked back and forth and had them make different moves to the beat of the music.

Everybody was having fun and laughing as they tried to keep up with her. Aili feeling invigorated from the music and laughter forgot about everything else and just had fun. Close to the end of the class, people could be closer together, as they were doing some low impact cool down stretching before leaving the pool.

The man that helped Aili into the water came closer to her, and asked if she liked it, as they were stretching. The man felt non-threatening, so she felt comfortable talking with him about the class for a few minutes. When the class ended, they all clapped and thanked the instructor before leaving the pool.

As they were waiting to use the steps, the man asked her if she would be doing this class again. She told him that she would and that she loved it.

He said, "Well, that's good news; I hope to see you again."

The man extended his hand to shake hers and said, "Very nice to meet you. My name is John.”

Shaking his hand and smiling, she said, "Very nice to meet you, John, my name is Aili."

***