Hong Kong Young Writers Anthologies Fiction Group 3 - 2017 | Page 353

would like to go to his house. Parco replied that he was looking for an old man named Xiahan. The old man seemed shocked
for a moment, then tried to calm himself down before whispering softly to Parco, “I am Xiahan.”
Things happened like a dream for Parco that night. Parco couldn’t believe that the old man standing in front of him was his great
grandfather. He kept chatting with him for hours. He just made up a lie by telling him that he was a traveler from Southern
China and was his distant cousin. Surprisingly, the old man believed him and kindly invited him to his house. There Parco also
met his great grandmother who looked rather skinny and pale, although she was pregnant. Now, everything made sense. He had
seen that the date was July 4, 1920, and his grandfather would be born three weeks later. And then five weeks later, his great
grandmother would pass away silently because of pneumonia.
11p.m. passed. Parco still couldn’t sleep. He was fiddling with his smart phone which he had kept safe in his pocket all the way.
He dared not make a sound, being afraid that his great grand-parents would be awaken. He was writing a blog entry about his
great grandparents, his feelings and finally, his worries of how to get back to the 21 st century.
Early next morning, Parco rushed to the door. He figured that he needed to find the temple that brought him here in order to
return to the 21 st century. So, without telling anyone, he disappeared in the blink of an eye.
After a while, Parco’s great grandmother came to Parco’s room to wake him up. She was puzzled when she found the room was
empty. When she removed Parco’s blanket from the bed, it uncovered a small gadget. She didn’t know that it was Parco’s smart
phone. She curiously touched the buttons on the gadget, and then suddenly light came out of it and Parco’s blog entry popped
up on the screen of the phone. Silently, she read it.
The blog entry was translated into English below :
“I am Parco from the 21 st century. I was brought here by accident, and I don’t know how to go back. I have met my great
grand-parents, and they are now going to give birth to my grandfather three weeks later. But my great grandmother will sadly
pass away five weeks later. I am so depressed now. How can I stay here and see my great grandmother die? I want to go home.”
Upon reading it, tears strolled down the cheeks of Parco’s great grandmother.
That night, Parco found something odd about his great grandmother’s behavior. She kept silent during dinner. After dinner, she
cuddled him tightly in her arms. Instead of feeling warm, Parco felt a chill down his spine. He wished his terrible thought was
just out of his imagination. He rushed to his room, and searched under his blanket for his smart phone. He discovered that what
was left under his blanket was a phone which was powered on. Obviously, someone had turned it on and opened Parco’s blog
entry. With a heavily-laden heart, Parco didn’t know how to face his grand-parents. He fell asleep in uneasy thoughts.
Three weeks later, Parco’s great grandmother rushed to hospital. She was going to deliver her baby, Parco’s grandfather. Parco’s
eyes were filled with excitement when he saw his baby grandfather. But Parco’s joy didn’t last long. Another two weeks passed.
Parco’s great grandmother caught pneumonia, which made her suffer from serious coughing and chest pain. Deep in her heart,
she knew that her end was near. So, every day, she tried to cook traditional dishes which Parco used to avoid, but now all looked
exceptionally scrumptious to Parco. She told Par co the local folklore and some family tales. She shared her feelings and thoughts
with them, for she surely didn’t want to waste any time before God’s calling. Parco treasured the love, tenderness and care she
showed him, as he knew that he would never see her anymore.