Hurried footsteps echoed from the mouth of the alley.
Several people came rushing in from the other end and nearly ran straight into Nate.
Leading them was Mr.
Carter from the grocery store next door, a man in his sixties with graying hair and a flashlight in hand.
“Nate?” Mr.
Carter sounded frantic.
“What happened? Gas explosion?!”
Behind him were Mrs.
Taylor and Matt from the laundry, along with several neighbors Nate knew by sight but not by name.
“I’m fine, Mr. Carter.” Nate stepped forward and blocked the entrance to the alley.
“Don’t go any farther.”
The beam of Mr.
Carter’s flashlight swept past Nate’s shoulder and across the wreckage of the restaurant kitchen.
Collapsed brick walls, the mangled remains of the sedan, and pools of red liquid mixed with unidentifiable debris scattered across the ground.
Mr.
Carter’s hand trembled.
He switched off the flashlight and lowered his voice.
“Nate, did someone come after you? Is this connected to your father?”
Nate said nothing.
He didn’t know either.
Mr.
Carter didn’t press him.
He simply patted Nate on the shoulder and sighed.
“You’re alive. That’s what matters.”
He glanced back at the wreckage and sighed again.
“The restaurant… Henry’s going to be heartbroken when he sees this.”
The words struck a nerve.
Before Nate could respond, someone called his name from behind the crowd.
It was Lily.
Nate looked up and saw her rushing into the alley.
A stooped older man followed behind her.
Henry Wang, the owner of Good Luck Restaurant.
Henry, whose health had been failing lately.
Lily was still wearing the same clothes as before, now with a pair of slippers on her feet and her hair in complete disarray.
Her eyes were red.
The moment she saw Nate covered in blood, her legs nearly gave out.
She stumbled, caught herself, then rushed straight toward him.
“Where are you hurt?!”
Lily crouched in front of him and cupped his face in both hands.
Then she began checking his arms and shoulders, looking him over from every angle as if terrified she might miss something.
“Say something! Where are you hurt?”
“Lily, I’m really fine.”
Warmth spread through Nate’s chest.
He gently caught her hands.
“Just some cuts. Nothing serious.”
Her hands were still trembling beneath his.
Lily stared into his eyes for several seconds.
Her lips quivered, and tears began gathering in her eyes.
“You scared me half to death, you know that?!”
She smacked him on the shoulder, her voice breaking.
“I’d barely gotten home and sat down when I heard the explosion. I looked back and saw flames coming from this direction! Then you wouldn’t answer your phone! Do you have any idea how…”
Nate’s voice softened without him realizing it.
“I’m okay, Lily. Really. Don’t cry.”
Lily wiped her face roughly with the back of her hand and took a deep breath before finally standing.
Then she turned toward Henry.
Henry slowly made his way in from the alley entrance, leaning on a cane.
He wore an old gray coat.
His weathered face showed little emotion as he stood there, his gaze passing over everyone before settling on the ruins of the restaurant.
The place he had spent more than twenty years running was almost unrecognizable now.
All that remained was a heap of smoking brickwork and twisted metal.
Nate got to his feet and walked toward him.
“Henry, the restaurant…”
Henry finally looked away from the wreckage.
His eyes settled on Nate.
He looked the blood-covered young man up and down, pausing briefly on his injuries before looking away.
“You’re alive. That’s enough,” Henry said.
His voice was calm, but Nate could hear the weariness beneath it.
“I’m sorry, Henry…”
Henry’s voice hardened.
“A restaurant can be rebuilt. A life can’t.”
He paused, then took two slow steps forward with his cane and stopped at the edge of the ruins.
The night wind carried the smell of scorched debris, along with the harsh mix of leaking water and chili oil.
Henry stared at the wrecked sedan buried in what remained of the kitchen.
For a long time, he said nothing.
“That car…” Henry finally said, his voice heavy.
“Was it after you?”
Nate opened his mouth.
He had no idea how to answer.
Henry didn’t press him.
Instead, he turned and looked directly at Nate.
His eyes were clouded with age, but they were still sharp.
“Stay here. When the police arrive, tell them what happened,” Henry said.
“Lily will stay with you. I’m going home to take my medicine.”
“I’ll walk you back.”
“No need.”
Henry waved him off and slowly started away with his cane.
After a few steps, he stopped.
He didn’t turn around.
“Nate.”
“Yeah?”
“Being alive is what matters.”
With that, Henry continued walking.
His hunched figure soon disappeared into the shadows at the end of the alley.
Nate stood beside the ruins, staring after him for a long time.
Lily came up behind him and draped a jacket over his shoulders.
Nate had no idea where she had found it.
“My dad’s always been like that. Too proud to show how worried he is.”
Her voice was still slightly hoarse from crying.
“I know,” Nate said.
As far back as he could remember, Henry had never really yelled at him, nor was he the type to say anything overly sentimental.
He was simply old-school that way.
Yet this ordinary man had taken in an unwanted child and raised him for more than a decade.
He had fed him, clothed him, and watched him grow from a scrawny little kid into the man he was today.
Nate had never forgotten what Henry had done for him.
Especially over the past year, Henry had treated him almost like his own son.
“Lily,” Nate said suddenly.
“Yeah?”
“I’ll figure out the money to repair the restaurant.”
Lily paused, then smiled.
There was affection in that smile, along with a touch of helplessness.
“Focus on healing first.”
She reached over and patted the back of his head.
“Don’t worry about anything else. Dad and I will handle it.”
Police sirens sounded in the distance.
They were getting closer.
Nate glanced at the ruins, then at Mr.
Carter and the other neighbors standing near the alley entrance, concern written across their faces.
Finally, he looked down at the kitchen knife still in his hand.
Blood coated the blade, and the steel gleamed coldly beneath the streetlights.
Nate tucked the knife behind his waist, took a deep breath, and watched as several police cars approached from down the street.