New Life : A Second Chance

It was like entering a museum of sorts. Wooden furniture, which looked like mahogany wood, filled the bedroom. It was solid wood, thick and heavy-looking - unlike the seemingly flimsy type of wood you\'d normally see.

There was a huge King size (wooden) bed with a big headrest, two heavy-set wooden bedside tables. The wardrobe was also made of wood. A rectangular-shaped table and thick-set chair were set at another wall. A bookcase. All wood.

Everything had these intricate designs

"This is your room?" Kyle asked, with his eyebrows raised.

"Slightly \'modern\' ancient style," Xing Han said with a sigh as he dumped his suitcase to one side, "Believe me, this bed is already an improvement. It could have been like those really ancient styles with bedpost and those damn heavy curtains."

Xing Han shuddered.

"It\'s to let me \'delve into my roots\' sort of thing," Xing Han explained, "I must not be swayed by the modern culture and what-not. So they\'re pretty happy that I have you as they see that as me \'valuing bonds\'."

"Which you do," Kyle said with a smile, putting his suitcase next to Xing Han\'s.

Xing Han shrugged, "I suppose."

"How long are we staying?" he asked, opening his wardrobe and gave a slight grimace.

With such furniture, if it isn\'t aired often, it has this dusky smell. None of the maids that cleaned his room while he was away dared to open his desks and wardrobe, so he had to do it himself each time he came home.

"Why?" asked Kyle, as he sat down at the edge of the bed, "You don\'t want to stay for a week or so?"

Xing Han turned around, his face aghast in horror, saying, "Don\'t you even suggest such a thing!"

Kyle grinned, wriggling his eyebrows, then rubbed his chin, saying, "Why not? Your family seems pretty -"

Before Kyle could finish, Xing Han had rushed at him, pushing him down on the bed. Towering over him as Kyle was busy laughing, Xing Han climbed over, straddled him and grabbed him by collar.

"No no no no!!" he hissed, his face inches away from the still laughing Kyle.

There was a slight knock before the door opened, and Rose walked in, "Brother, do you ..."

She stopped.

She stared.

Her brother was straddling Kyle. On the bed.

She blinked.

"Brother, are you and Kyle ..." she began.

Xing Han\'s eyes narrowed at her, and he growled, "Don\'t you ever knock?!"

She pouted, stomping her foot, "I did!"

Kyle placed his hand on Xing Han\'s chest and pushed him off, "At least get off first, Xing Han. Yeesh."

Xing Han didn\'t move at first, giving Kyle a glare before he got off. He swung his legs over Kyle\'s chest and then jumped off the bed. He walked over to Rose, each step purposeful while his face showing his intense displeasure.

This was a side of Xing Han that he never showed in school.

At school, Xing Han let loose and was himself. At home, he had to be the Tan Heir, so he had to be serious, and formal. He had to be firm as he would be the Head of the Household in the future.

Getting caught playing around with Kyle was a being a bit out of character, but scolding Rose would not be. He was annoyed at her anyway, so it was easy enough.

Kyle sat up on the bed, running his hand through his hair as he watched Xing Han stare down his sister, "Knocking and then entering before I answer doesn\'t count!!"

He put his hands on Rose\'s shoulders, turned her around and pushed her out the door, slamming it.

Then he opened it again, just putting his head out as he glared again at his sister, and said, "Do not disturb!"

He snarled and slammed the door again in Rose\'s face.

Xing Han wasn\'t blind.

He had seen how sparkly his sister\'s eyes had been when she saw Kyle earlier. This was the reason why he had never invited Kyle to his home before. These harpies at home would have ruined it and he was afraid it would have scared Kyle away.

Now that they were older, he didn\'t have that fear anymore. But it was still annoying.

In Greek mythology, harpies were female monsters (half-human, half-bird) who caused mischief and tormented wrongdoers. In Xing Han\'s eyes, his sisters fit the bill but instead of tormenting wrongdoers, they tormented him and any good-looking male species.

Xing Han turned to Kyle who was now lying down on the bed, the amused expression still evidetn on his face.

"You now know why I don\'t want to stay for long, right?!" Xing Han said, pouncing on the spot next to Kyle.

"We can always avoid them," Kyle said pacifyingly, "We\'re here for your parents anyway, not them. It\'s no different than avoiding the girls at school, right?"

Xing Han mumbled something incoherently.

Kyle patted Xing Han\'s chest, saying, "Don\'t worry about it and don\'t overthink it. I\'m fine."

"You have no idea how they\'re like," Xing Han warned.

"I can handle it," Kyle said.

He, too, had seen the way the sisters had looked at him. All three of them.

Rose and Jessica were just the ones that were too expressive about it while the eldest - there had been a flicker of interest in those eyes as she looked at him above the book she had been reading.

That one was not a danger at all for Kyle could also see that she wasn\'t like most. She saw, she admired, she set aside. Kyle figured she only saw him as a kid. After all, he was her younger brother\'s friend.

It was the youngest sister that he had to be careful of. She was still very young, so he couldn\'t be too harsh on her. She was, after all, Xing Han\'s sister.

An idea formed in his head.

"You know, there is one way to get your sister to take a step back," Kyle said.

"What? How?"

"She obviously thought there\'s something going on between us from our pose earlier," Kyle said with a smile, "So let\'s just ... encourage that? Subtly, of course."

Xing Han looked at Kyle.

"Really? You\'d go down that route?" he asked.

Kyle shrugged, "Why not? Not in front of your parents, though."

Xing Han laughed, "Most definitely."

He rubbed his hands together. Actually, this was going to be fun.

?? ??

Rose stood outside her brother\'s room in shock, her mind racing as she processed what she had seen earlier and how angry he had been.

The anger part was already surprising, for, despite the strict demeanor Xing Han showed, he had always been gentle. He had actually been angry?

Angry enough to ban her from his room?

Do not disturb????

Rose\'s eyes went wide and she quickly ran to the living room, where Jessica was still lounging around.

Jessica\'s eyebrows went up when she saw Rose coming down quickly, "You didn\'t really go to Xing Han\'s room, did you?"

Rose nodded, and sat down next to her, grabbing her hands.

"You did?! Really?!" Jessica gasped in disbelief.

After that completely embarrassing display right in front of Kyle, Rose was that thick-skinned as to go up to meet him?!

Rose nodded again, this time, hardly stopping. Her mouth opened, then closed as she bit her lower lip. Should she tell Jessica about it? This was, after all, her brother\'s private matter so should she just give it out like that?

Heck, yes.

"Sister," Rose said seriously, "We can only watch Kyle from afar."

Jessica gave her the \'what-you-talking-about\' look. Rose felt important, having this juicy piece of secret that she was about to spill.

"We agreed that we would never, ever ever ever, steal each other\'s boyfriends, right?" Rose said.

"Yes," Jessica answered, "What has that got to do with Kyle?"

"No touching another sibling\'s boyfriend," Rose clarified.

"Yes, again, what has that got to do ...." Jessica began again and then stopped, her mouth going \'O\'.

"NO," she gasped.

Rose nodded again.

"Are you sure?" Jessica said, not believing this, "I mean, I know Xing Han like, worships Kyle, but ... really?"

"If I hadn\'t caught him on top of Kyle on his bed just now, I wouldn\'t have thought of it either," Rose said, her voice lowered.

"O.M.G." Jessica gasped, then said, "Maybe they were just playing around?"

Rose shook her head, looking all serious and feeling all important, "Then why would he push me out of his bedroom just now?"

"Er, because you\'re annoying?" Jessica answered with a straight-face.

Rose ignored that.

"And forbade me from going back in?" Rose pressed on, "Brother has never done that before."

"You\'re thinking too much," Jessica said, refusing to believe it.

"You didn\'t see what I saw, Sister," Rose insisted, "Xing Han\'s face was THIS close to Kyle\'s."

She brought her face up to Jessica\'s, her lips almost touching hers.

"If I had walked in later, I would have caught them kissing," Rose declared, leaning back, proud of her deduction.

Jessica shook her head, still not convinced.

"Let\'s observe them first," she said after a while, "We can\'t let Mum and Dad know."

"Of course," Rose said, "Do you think I\'m crazy? If they found out brother is gay, they\'d literally beat it out of him."

Jessica put her hand over Rose\'s mouth, "Don\'t EVER say that. Even when they\'re not around. We have to be very, very careful."

Rose nodded.

Jessica put her hand away, satisfied. This younger sister of hers might get Xing Han in trouble with her over-enthusiastic observation of their brother. That cannot happen.

The Tan siblings may annoy each other and have disagreements but in truth, they were actually very close.