hey sister, do you still believe in love, i wonder?
In-laws are so, so funny to torture over the holidays. Especially if they’re not yet your in-law.
Ren Liufang stands in the doorway stiffly, looking as pristine as she usually does. Yan Siyuan, also as she usually does, allows herself fifteen seconds to take a physical catalogue of Ren Liufang. She’s an objectively attractive woman, small face and sharp eyes, and since Xiu Ying is also an objectively attractive woman, she has to make sure that Ren Liufang hasn’t done anything to herself, since it would be a shame if all those looks went away if they ever had a child tog—
“Yan Siyuan,” Ren Liufang calls. “Where would you like me to...”
“Oh! Right,” Yan Siyuan chirps, wiping her hands on her reindeer patterned apron. She hurries out of the kitchen to the doorway, smiling at the younger woman apologetically. “Just set the boxes down right there, Ju-mei. We can take them to Yue Fei’s room later.”
Ren Liufang nods obediently, setting down the boxes full of Christmas lights and decorations onto the tile floor. She clears her throat when she rises, shoulders squared as she looks at Yan Siyuan expectantly. Almost timidly.
It’s so cute, really, Yan Siyuan thinks, how nervous Ren Liufang is. I mean, she should be, because she expects some winning over to be done if this woman plans on seriously dating and eventually, of course, marrying the literal miracle and best girl that is Xiu Ying.
But here’s a secret: Yan Siyuan’s already won over. Ren Liufang is...good for her younger sister. She’s pragmatic, logical. Persistently caring, when very few in Xiu Ying’s life have bothered to care enough about her to be persistent. She’s quietly thoughtful, knows how to talk to people. So yes, she’s already received Yan Siyuan’s stamp of approval.
But Yan Siyuan thinks it’s funny how nervous Ren Liufang gets. And besides, she can’t seem easy to the other woman. What will she think of her Xiu Ying, then?
“Aish, Cheng Bowen and Zhang Wei are out on the lawn right now,” Yan Siyuan muses, clicking her tongue disapprovingly. “They should be clearing the snow off the pavement, but from the looks of it, they just started a snowball fight.”
“It is...not more than what I expected of them,” Ren Liufang answers, almost cautious. She always answers slowly with Yan Siyuan, like she’s taking extra time to carefully choose her words.
Yan Siyuan narrows her eyes at her. Ren Liufang fidgets in place, almost imperceptible.
Then, Yan Siyuan claps a hand on Ren Liufang’s shoulder cheerily. She gestures over her shoulder to the kitchen. “It’s fine! Zhang Wei brought the apple cider, eggnog, and the champagne. I’ll let it slide. But you and I need to finish cooking up the rest of dinner, yeah?”
Ren Liufang nods, just as Xiu Ying pops her head into the room.
“Ah! Jie, Ren Ju,” Xiu Ying greets. “Shi Li and I are almost done with the Christmas tree ornaments! Should we set the table now?”
“Lovely! Go ahead, please,” Yan Siyuan answers, clapping her hands together. “Ren Ju’s helping me cook.”
“Helping you cook? Re Ju, is she overworking you?”
Ren Liufang looks between the two of them. “Ah, I--”
“I am not! What are you complaining about?” Yan Siyuan shoots back, crossing her arms. “You’re the one who eats the most, anyways, so if I’m making food so there’s enough—
“Jie, you have enough food here to feed an army! Did you forget that we already have Shi Li’s ham? Jiaozi? Stuffing? Ren Ju, tell her!”
“There is definitely ample food,” Ren Liufang answers diplomatically. “But making more is always appropriate for the holidays.”
“Ha! See?” Yan Siyuan says, triumphant. She waves her hand in a shooing motion. “Scurry along now, love.”
″Gahh, I’m sorry, Ren Ju,” Xiu Ying apologizes, and the two give each other sappy looks that Yan Siyuan almost coos at. Xiu Ying gives a shy wave. “Good luck, dude!”
“See you soon,” Ren Liufang replies, soft. She also takes Xiu Ying calling her “dude” in stride, another reason Yan Siyuan likes her.
And then Xiu Ying pops out of the room. And it’s just Ren Liufang and Yan Siyuan again.
///
“Ju-mei, could you check on the cookies in the oven?” Yan Siyuan calls over her shoulder as she continues cutting pie crust in precise swipes of her knife. “The snowman one, is it deforming?”
Ren Liufang dutifully does so, sporting red baking mitts. “No, it’s perfectly in shape. The candy cane one looks fine as well.”
“Ah, that’s a relief! You’re really good at this, it’s lovely to have you in the kitchen. Not like A-Ying, pah, that girl...”
“Thank you for allowing me here.”
“Psh, don’t mention it,” Yan Siyuan says. “Come back here, I just need to finish this sweet potato pie, and you can finish up mashing the potatoes, and we’re all set! It’s easy riding from here on out.”
Ren Liufang nods, returning to her place besides Yan Siyuan at the kitchen island. She picks up the masher and, with an elegance uncharacteristic of people who usually mash potatoes, quietly gets to work. Jingle Bell Rock plays over the Home Alexa.
“So how are things at home. Ju-mei?
“We’re settling in well, thank you.” With a pause, and a small smile on her face, Ren Liufang continues, “Xiu Ying drops her laundry often.”
“Oh? Sounds like her, she’s always so enthusiastic about chores that she’s awfully messy about it. You alternate laundry duties?”
“We do.”
“So you’ve seen my sister’s underwear, then?”
Ren Liufang drops the masher with a clank into the metal bowl.
Yan Siyuan, with great effort, stops herself from laughing. She nonchalantly takes a chopstick, dips it into the potatoes, and holds it to Ren Liufang’s mouth. “Anyways, how’s it taste? Soft enough?”
Ren Liufang takes a nibble, doing a good job at not seeming shaken. “...it’s soft enough.”
“Oh, that’s lovely!” Yan Siyuan chirps, turning back to her pie. She happily pats her hand onto Ren Liufang’s shoulder. “I think we’re about done. You should wash up now, love. All in a good day’s work, I’ll say.”
Ren Liufang nods, shifting over to the sink to wash her hands. Yan Siyuan hums to herself.
She clears her throat. “So you’ll be drinking tonight?”
Ren Liufang stills. “I will be.”
“Ah, I see,” she intones, playing up the surprise in her voice. “Are you a regular drinker? Is my sister dating an alcoholic?”
Ren Liufang turns to her quickly, eyes wide. “I’m—“
“Just kidding, Ju-mei!” Yan Siyuan steps back to admire her pie handiwork, proud of the snowflake design cut into it. “Could you call the boys in to eat? I think we’re officially ready for dinner.”
///
Yan Siyuan must make it clear that above all else, she is proud of her table set up.
The table on its own is rectangular, made of polished wood. Three chairs are lined neatly on one side, while the other holds a long, elegant couch. The table is decorated with a nice blue and white, wintry themed spread adorned with flowers and blue plates.
Yue Fei’s, er. Okay, he’s seated in an extra chair at the end, because angsty preteens must have their moments. But luckily, in the chair nearest to him is Cheng Bowen, who’s kid-friendly enough. Next to Cheng Bowen is Zhang Wei, who’s currently telling the other man some story that has Cheng Bowen nearly snorting cranberry sauce out his nose and excusing himself. And egging him on to his right is Xiu Ying, who’s choking on a piece of roast duck.
Yan Siyuan’s seated in the couch next to Ren Liufang, of course, who quietly laughs along with the story and neatly spoons mashed potatoes into her mouth. Shi Jinghui stifles his laugh behind his hand on her other side.
“Cheng Bowen, gimme your plate,” Yan Siyuan beckons, reaching her hand out. “You need more stuffing.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he answers dutifully with a salute, handing his plate over obediently.
“Jie, stop,” Xiu Ying groans, chin on her hand. “He’s gonna go into a comma if you feed him any more.”
“A comma?” Zhang Wei snorts, elbowing her.
“Coma, whatever,” she says, elbowing him back. She waves her hand around. “Whew. Too much champagne.”
Shi Jinghui raises an eyebrow, gesturing to her glass. “You had one sip, you lightweight.”
Ren Liufang sighs. “Half a sip past her sobriety threshold.”
“Ah, it’s the holidays,” Yan Siyuan intones, twirling her fork in her hand. “Try to get her drunk, she’ll spill some dirty secrets eventually.”
“Jie!”
Shi Jinghui taps his knuckles on the table, enthusiastic. “My mom does that to my brother, too! I second this motion.”
Cheng Bowen chortles. “Oh my God.”
“That is so messed up,” Zhang Wei says.
“All’s fair, again, during the holidays,” Yan Siyuan answers. She grins at Ren Liufang, who’s smiling fondly. “Yeah?”
She doesn’t know all of the details of—Ren Liufang and Xiu Ying’s complicated history. She knows a few, from when Xiu Ying was sixteen and spoke easily out of anger. But anyways, what she does know is that the people that were unkind to Xiu Ying were, maybe, close in contact to Ren Liufang? And Yan Siyuan doesn’t like that.
The rest of the table has dissolved into a heated discussion on each other’s alcohol tolerance. Yan Siyuan nudges Ren Liufang gently.
“Do holiday dinners usually look like this for you?” She asks, tilting her head.
Ren Liufang swirls her cup on the table, giving a delicate lift of the shoulder in response. “Not so much...cheer, I believe.”
Yan Siyuan hums mildly. These poor girls.
“You’re always welcome here,” Yan Siyuan says, soft. “Our home is yours, Ju-mei.”
Ren Liufang looks at her. She looks—surprised, at first. And then her gaze goes gentle.
“Thank you,” she answers, quiet.
“Don’t mention it,” Yan Siyuan answers, elbowing her. “Just eat some more, yeah?”
///
Yan Siyuan scrubs away at the dishes after shooing Zhang Wei and Cheng Bowen away for the fifteenth time. It’s her house, and she will not allow anyone else to clean these plates.
“I meant what I said before,” Yan Siyuan says over her shoulder, not turning away from the sink. “Whenever you’d like to drop by...”
“I will visit when I can,” Ren Liufang answers, polite.
“I mean it, Ju-mei,” she insists. She sighs, turning off the sink, and waves a hand to beckon Ren Liufang forward. She turns to her, hands on her hips, when the other woman stands next to her.
“You’re a good person,” Yan Siyuan continues, meeting her gaze sincerely. “You’re good to my sister, but you’re...kind, overall, in the quiet ways. It’s been nothing except lovely to have you here.”
Ren Liufang nods, lips parting to no doubt say another polite thank you, but Yan Siyuan beats her to it.
“You’re my family now,” she says, firm. She reaches a hand out, ruffling Ren Liufang’s hair. “Take care of yourself, yeah?”
Ren Liufang gives her a smile, grateful. “I will. Siyuan-jie.”
“Aw,” Yan Siyuan answers. She turns back to the sink. “Alright, get outta here. I think they’re watching a movie in the living room.”
Ren Liufang nods at that, turning to walk out of the kitchen.
“Oh, also, Xiu Ying might think she’s pregnant.”
She trips.