The truth was that Xiang Weimin had no answer to that question. It was true that neither Grandfather Xiang nor Mu Chenyan never came between the siblings. They might have stopped Xiang Hulin from reaching out to his daughter because of that promise but when it comes to Xiang Weimin and Xiang Wai, they didn't have the same concerns.
They never wanted to come between the siblings. That was never their intention. However, it was Xiang Weimin and Xiang Wai who chose to distance themselves.
As for why? It had mostly to do with the fact that they were both young and they both took their parents' divorce a bit hard. But seeing how even their grandfather chose their youngest sister, both of them were a bit resentful. In fact, they both resented Raelle at one point.
They were kids and they wanted to put the blame on something. They chose to blame whoever they heard about. Xiang Weimin didn't even want to mention in front of Raelle what he had heard when he was young.
Back then, everyone said their parents divorced because of Raelle and how she was the unlucky star who couldn't even protect her parents' marriage. And Xiang Weimin and Xiang Wai being too young actually ended up believing those words they heard.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtWhat he didn't know was that those words were something even Raelle heard all her life. Just because it didn't have any effect on her didn't mean that she was dead all along. She heard it all. The things that someone of her age wasn't really supposed to hear at all.
"Grandfather took you out of the country," he said after thinking about it hard. "We lived on different continents."
But it was only after those words left his mouth that he instantly regret it. Because he suddenly recalled that Hyson also grew up here. There was the exact amount of distance between Hyson and Raelle as them. Or perhaps even more since Hyson had no advantage of sharing the same blood as he did. And yet here they were today.
Even with all that distance between them, Hyson still ended up becoming a part of Raelle's life. And seemed to be a very important part as well.
"Why don't you try another excuse?" suggested Raelle.
Xiang Weimin took a deep breath, "I don't really have an excuse. We were young."
"Now, this one is acceptable," said Raelle. "This one I can understand that you're young. I might not be sensitive to emotions but I have a logical brain. I do understand that when parents choose to divorce, what it does to kids. You don't really have to explain it to me." She took a pause and added, "However, understanding is one thing. I still don't have a place for you in my life. That is a fact."
Xiang Weimin didn't expect to hear this from her and said, "We don't blame you."
"I never was one to blame," replied Raelle. "Your parents couldn't save their relationship, it had nothing to do with me. It never did. I won't be taking that blame. It was never my responsibility to save their marriage. It was their own responsibility and they certainly didn't do a very good job at it."
Xiang Weimin was taken aback when he realized that she understood what he meant. And that gave him a complicated feeling because he also realized that it wasn't him who had heard those remarks. She did too. He was suddenly curious to know whether she really felt nothing about it all?
"I'll be honest with you," said Xiang Weimin. "When Wai and I were young, we did feel resentment towards you. We wanted to find someone to blame and from whatever was going on around us, we chose to blame you. By the time we started really understanding the reality of life, we couldn't find a way to reach out to you and just like that, time just drifted away without giving us a chance." He lowered his head, "I apologize for that. I really am guilty of even having such thoughts. And being young really isn't a good enough excuse."
"I don't need your apology," she said. "It means nothing to me since I never had anything to do with you. So, what you thought about me, doesn't really concern me." Xiang Weimin looked up at her. "If you do want to apologize, you should apologize to my Opa. He is the one who loved you a lot. After all, you're the eldest grandson of his family. How could you not have a place in his heart? But you pushed him away. You should know how much that would have hurt him."
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmXiang Weimin suddenly didn't even know what to say to her or how to react. He couldn't possibly argue with her on this topic. He couldn't even recall why he was so naive and foolish as a kid.
"I do plan on going to see Grandfather," he told her.
"Then you should be looking for him instead of me," said Raelle as she stood up to leave. "It's useless to look for me. We share nothing except for blood in our veins. It's better for you to look for Opa who actually loves you."
"I'm scared," he chose to honestly tell her that. He didn't think there was anything wrong with telling her that he was really scared of their grandfather. Not because he was scary but because he didn't know how to face him now.
"My Opa isn't scary," said Raelle. "And to you..." she didn't say anything after that as if leaving her sentence halfway would add some mystery to it.
Raelle put on her black shades and turned to leave saying, "Have a good day, Lieutenant! And get well soon!"
With that, she left his office and walked out. Sitting inside her car, she tapped her fingers on her knee in deep thought.
"Where to, Miss?" asked the chauffeur.
"Let's go back to the office," said Raelle.