Early in the morning, when I opened my bedroom door, a pungent, heavy smoke suddenly drilled into my nostrils, making me burst into a fit of coughing.
Following the source of the smoke with a puzzled gaze, I saw Mimi standing motionlessly in the kitchen with a vacant, soul-detached expression, while the entire kitchen was shrouded in a thick smell of burning.
Alarmed, I hurried toward the kitchen. The stove flame was burning fiercely, and the food in the pot had already turned completely charred and black.
I quickly reached out to turn off the heat source and cranked the range hood up to its highest setting.
Once that was done, I walked over to the window and pushed it wide open to let fresh air flood into the room.
Turning back to look at Mimi, I found her seemingly dazed and frightened by the sudden mishap. I stepped forward quickly, took hold of her hand, and led her out of the kitchen and into the bedroom.
“Older sister, I’m sorry.” Looking at me, Mimi burst into aggrieved tears, teardrops falling continuously in a patter.
“What’s wrong, little crybaby?” I supported her as she sat down on the edge of the bed, squatted down right in front of her, and used the sleeve of my pajamas to help wipe away her tears.
“Older sister, I’m sorry.” Keeping her head lowered, Mimi apologized over and over again.
“Stop crying now, it’s alright. Older sister will make you breakfast in a little bit,” I said, cradling her face in both hands and looking straight into her eyes.
“Older sister, I’m so useless. I always mess things up,” Mimi shook her head and said.
“How could that be? Everyone has things they excel at, and older sister isn’t good at everything either,” I said sincerely.
“But I couldn’t even make breakfast” Still immersed in self-blame, Mimi continued, “I noticed Older sister hasn’t been in a good mood these past two days, so I wanted to make a hearty breakfast for you, so you’d have delicious food waiting the moment you woke up.”
“Didn’t Mimi make me porridge yesterday? It was super delicious,” I comforted her. “And look, the smoke in the kitchen has mostly cleared out now, so there’s nothing to worry about.”
Mimi looked up at me and gave a slight nod.
“Alright, no more crying. Go wash your face and wait to eat the breakfast Older sister makes.” I gently pinched Mimi’s cheek before standing up.
Mimi obediently headed into the bathroom, while I walked back into the kitchen and shook my head helplessly at the mess covering the stovetop.
Tying an apron around my waist, I began cleaning up the kitchen. First, I scraped away the burned food and washed the pots and pans. While waiting for the noodles to boil, I even took the time to fry a soft-boiled egg for Mimi.
Before long, two steaming bowls of noodles were served at the table.
I called Mimi over to eat, and seeing the smile return to her face filled me with an immense sense of satisfaction.
“Wow, it smells so good!” She ran over, sat down at the table, and praised, “Older sister is amazing!”
“Dig in and try it,” I said with a smile, handing her a pair of chopsticks.
Mimi picked up a mouthful of noodles and savored the taste carefully. “Mmm, delicious!”
Right after, she picked up a piece of the fried egg, popped it into her mouth, and chewed slowly, a satisfied smile blooming across her face.
“Thank you, Older sister!” Mimi said happily.
Watching Mimi happily enjoy her breakfast, my own mood lightened considerably.
“Older sister, I’m sorry. Did I do something wrong these past few days?” Mimi asked worriedly while eating.
“Really, nothing of the sort. Older sister isn’t upset; I’ve actually been very happy these past few days,” I patted her head and replied with a smile.
“But yesterday when I said I couldn’t sleep, Older sister didn’t even say you’d come keep me company,” Mimi muttered softly, keeping her head down as if trying hard to rein in her emotions.
Immediately afterward, she raised her head again, looking at me with reddened eyes as she continued, “Oh right, and last time when we held hands, Older sister even pulled your hand away.”
“No I didn’t!” I exclaimed in surprise. Could these little incidents have made Mimi feel that way? Had my unintentional actions over the past couple of days led her to mistakenly believe I was angry? A wave of guilt washed over me at the thought.
“Mimi, I’m sorry. It was my fault for failing to be considerate of your feelings. Ever since we came back from Yunnan, my mind has been in a complete mess with too many tangled thoughts, which is why I inadvertently did things that upset you. Will you forgive older sister?” I gently took Mimi’s hand and offered a sincere apology.
“It’s okay, Older sister. I know you didn’t mean it,” Mimi comforted me in turn. “So, has Older sister figured things out now?”
I nodded. “Mmm, I’ve sorted some things out, I suppose. I’m just not quite sure how to put it into words.”
“That’s fine, we can take our time thinking about it. Older sister only rebirthed a little over a month ago, and there’s still a long future ahead of us! We can figure things out step by step.” She offered a reassuring smile.
Patting Mimi’s head with a touch of emotion, I remarked, “You’re right, the future is still long. But there is one thing I’m absolutely certain of right now.”
Looking at me curiously, Mimi waited for me to continue.
Clasping her hand tighter, I said earnestly, “I want to cherish the present moment and treasure every single second after my rebirth.”
Hearing this, a brilliant smile blossomed across Mimi’s face, her eyes sparkling with joyful radiance.
“Mmm! I’ll keep Older sister company!” She nodded vigorously, gazing at me with a steadfast look. Then, she added softly, “Next time Older sister has something weighing on your mind, you have to talk to me about it, okay? No more bottling things up and overthinking on your own.”
“Alright, I promise you.” I smiled and replied.
At that moment, the morning sunlight poured through the windows onto the two of us, warm and bright.
Easter Egg
(Xiyumi’s Bedroom)
Xiyumi had stayed awake the entire night. Just as the sky was beginning to turn pale at dawn, she climbed out of bed early. After a quick wash, she headed straight for the kitchen, determined to whip up a lavish breakfast.
Following the cooking steps, she looked up on a mobile app, Xiyumi cautiously turned on the stove knob and picked up the oil bottle to pour oil into the pan.
Right at that moment, a barrage of loud popping sounds erupted, and the pan suddenly splattered countless droplets of hot oil. Caught completely off guard, a panicked Xiyumi grew flustered and hurriedly grabbed the pot lid, slamming it over the pan for dear life to avoid getting burned by the hot oil.
After a brief moment, seeing that the oil had stopped flying everywhere, Xiyumi breathed a slight sigh of relief.
Yet when she lifted the pot lid once more, a lingering trace of hesitation remained in her heart. Taking a deep breath, she mustered up her courage to crack two eggs into the pan, then hastily clapped the lid back on.
Suddenly, a pungent burning smell wafted into her nose, and the previously steady flame flared up furiously into a surging blaze.
This abrupt turn of events startled Xiyumi badly. Losing her footing, her body lurched backward sharply, and she nearly tumbled to the floor.
Panic completely overwhelmed Xiyumi, making her hands and feet feel entirely out of her control. She had no idea how to handle the crisis unfolding before her. Standing frozen in place, she could only watch blankly as the raging fire grew larger and larger, her heart filled with overwhelming fear and helplessness.
Just then, the bedroom door on the south side slowly opened, and a figure appeared in the doorway.
Xiyumi subconsciously looked toward that direction, only to see the figure walking step by step toward her. Illuminated by the firelight, her outline grew exceptionally clear, radiating a mysterious and ethereal glow.