I've Been There Before

Mrs. James stopped a taxi. The driver asked her where she was going. The people here were friendly and hospitable. Picky as
Mrs. James was, she was not in the mood to judge the driver’s substandard Mandarin at this moment.
Just as she was about to answer the driver’s question, her cell phone rang. She nervously picked it up and stared at the caller’s
name on the screen for a long time.
She hesitated. If she did not answer, she could still stall for a while. Once she answered, she could no longer refuse.
The long ringing of the phone finally stopped. Before Mrs. James could breathe a sigh of relief, the demonic ringing of the phone
started again.
Helplessly, she pressed the connect button and said, “Payne.”
“Mom, did you get off the plane?”
Payne asked anxiously from the other end of the phone, “Mom, go to find Grace directly. She is at a homestay called ‘Memory
Inn’. I’ve told you before.”
Payne kept urging Mrs. James to look for Grace. He knew from WeChat that Grace was running a homestay called Memory Inn.
A woman, who used to drink with Payne before, had recognized Grace in that picture in their WeChat group. She said that she
probably had seen Grace’s photo on a forum.
Then, Payne followed the evidence and worked hard before finally getting the news of where Grace was staying.
He didn’t want to wait for death... Payne held his phone tightly and said to his mother in a hurry, “Mom, tell little Grace that her
brother will die if she doesn’t save me.
Grace looks tough, but she is actually very soft-hearted. She definitely doesn’t to watch her own brother die.”
Mrs. James’s eyes turned even redder behind the sunglasses.
She felt extremely sad, and she choked with sobs as she said,
“Payne, I know. You should stay in hospital and take care of yourself. I will tell Grace about it. I’ll beg her to save your life.”
Mrs. James cut off the phone and spread herself out in the back seat, “Memory Inn. Go to Memory Inn.”

“The homestay?”
“Yes.”
Along the way, she was silent. No matter how beautiful the scenery was, it was impossible to touch her anymore. She felt
extremely worried and exhausted.
She clenched her fist and rested it on her knees. She couldn’t help but tremble.
She glanced at the screen that was still on. She saw the photo of her and Jafar, sweet and intimate.
But...at this moment, it was totally ironic!
Thinking of Jafar, Mrs. James’s face turned pale.
After a long journey, the wilderness at the sight confused Mrs. James. “Did you take the wrong path?”
The driver stopped the car and said, “This is it. That’s right.” He opened the window and pointed not far away. “There, Memory
Inn. That’s the homestay.”
After paying the fare, Mrs. James walked in the direction of Memory Inn. Standing in front of the gate, she felt complicated. She
wanted to turn away and leave several times, but when she thought of Payne lying on the hospital bed and Jafar who had
already told her the truth, her hesitation was instantly drowned out by hatred.
She pushed open the door and walked in.
At the front desk, a woman said in a clear but calm voice, “Welcome--” The woman at the front desk raised her head. Gentleness
of her face faded away as her eyes suddenly widened, and her voice abruptly stopped.
Mrs. James was also shocked the moment she raised her head.
“Little Grace...”
Almost at the same time that Mrs. James called out, the woman who was just leaning against the front desk suddenly turned
around and left without saying a word.
Mrs. James caught up to her like a gust of wind and reached out to grab Grace’s arm, “Little Grace!”

With “little Grace”, half of Grace’s body froze. She lowered her head... Little Grace? Little Grace. Little Grace. Little Grace?
“Who are you calling? Little Grace? Little Grace is dead. Mrs. James, who are you talking to?!” Grace suddenly turned her head
and stared at the middle-aged woman with her swollen eyes. She knew that she had lost her temper.
But... She couldn’t stay calm anymore! She couldn’t make it!
“Grace, I am your mother. Don’t call me Mrs. James.” Mrs. James broke down in tears. She could no longer cover the regret in
her eyes!
Words could hurt people because they were too cruel.
“My mother?” Grace wanted to laugh. She wanted to laugh out loud. There was already a tearful Mrs. James. The world did not
need her tears anyway.
“So, stop crying. It’s useless...” she said to herself.
“Let me go, Mrs. James. This isn’t the first time I’ve called you Mrs. James. Naturally, it won’t be the last time.”
Staring at the woman in front of her, Grace said calmly, “I don’t have a mother anymore. I haven’t had one since long time ago.”
Mrs. James was in extreme pain. The pain she felt was so intense that she finally realized the gap between she and Grace was
unbridgeable. She softly loosened her grip on Grace’s arm.
Without Mrs. James’s constraint, Grace quickly turned around and left.
It wasn’t until Grace walked two meters away that Mrs. James suddenly regained her senses. She strode forward and grabbed
Grace’s hand again. She said hoarsely,
“Little Grace! Payne—your brother—he has got leukemia!”
For a moment, Grace felt like she was hallucinating. After hearing the bad news, she stood there dumbfounded.
“Payne...has leukemia?” she asked after a long time.
Mrs. James nodded with sobs.
“Oh...” She was shocked for a while. “Leukemia is not incurable. The James family should be rich enough to find a cure for him.”

“Little Grace, what, what... Why did you say that? Payne is your brother!”
Mrs. James stopped crying. She blinked her eyes and looked at Grace in front of her. Grace’s face made her fell both familiar
and strange.
“Mrs. James, your son is ill. You should treat him well. It’s no use holding me. I’m not a doctor.”
“I know. The doctor said that your brother needs a bone marrow transplant, but neither I nor his father was his match.” As she
spoke, Mrs. James looked at Grace with embarrassment.
When she saw Mrs. James’s look, Grace suddenly understood something... She slowly lowered her head, her hair hanging
down. She stretched out her hand and slowly supported her lowered forehead. Mrs. James could not see her expression clearly,
but she noticed Grace’s shrugging shoulders in front of her. Grace seemed to be sobbing.
“Grace, don’t cry. Your brother can be saved. As long as you...”
Cry? “This is a misunderstanding, Mrs. James,” Grace said, raising her head and wrapping her hair behind her ear. As she
revealed the face, it was apparent that she didn’t cry at all. Looking at Mrs. James, who was surprised, she said,
“Why would I cry?”
Why would she cry? She didn’t cry. She put on a faint smile. “I was just... I was just laughing at myself,” she laughed at herself
for being naïve and fantastic.
Although she had put on a long face the moment she saw Mrs. James, she couldn’t deny that she felt warm and surprised at first
glance. Although it was short—for a moment, she thought that she had not been abandoned by her “parents”. She thought that
the woman, who was her “mother” for decades... missed her.
“Little Grace, don’t do this. Please. Please save your brother. I’m begging you!”
When she heard Mrs. James’s plea—when she heard it clearly—Grace finally throw away all her innocence.
She looked indifferently at Mrs. James.
“I’m willing to help, but unable to do so.”
After saying that, she shook off Mrs. James’s hand. But Mrs. James cried out, “Little Grace! He’s your brother! Your own brother!
If you don’t save him, he will die!”

“I think there’s something I should tell you, Mrs. James. I’m not your biological daughter.”