The Child I Raised Is Acting Strange

[Excerpts from Mr. Mu's Diary]

001

Before my lifelong best friend died, he entrusted his two twin children to me.

They were only six years old, with fair skin and big eyes. They looked adorable.

With my friend's last wishes in mind, I prepared to raise them.

002

In elementary school, the older brother took his younger brother around picking fights. They beat up the other kids so badly that their parents came to our door, pointed at me, and shouted, "What kind of parent are you? Look what your kids did to mine! Why didn't you do anything...?"

Before he could finish, he spotted my friend's pale, ashen photo hanging in the living room and fell silent.

Then the parent took his child and left. His child protested tearfully, "Dad, but they made my face all swollen!"

"Forget it. Can't you see how small and shabby their home is, and that they don't have a mother? How pitiful..."

Me: ...How do I tell him that the person in the funeral portrait is a man?

Never mind. Let's just call it a beautiful misunderstanding.

003

In middle school, the younger brother started studying hard, while the older brother kept skipping class, climbing over the school wall to play video games.

When a teacher caught him, they'd call me. "Hello, Mr. Mu. Your son, Cheng Muyao, has skipped class to play games again, and he hasn't done his homework either. Please come to the school."

I hung up, didn't even bother to change, and hurried straight to the school.

But as soon as the teacher saw me, his legs began to tremble. "Mr. Mu, y-you..."

I calmly wiped the blood from the corner of my mouth and straightened my burial clothes. "Sorry, Mr. Chen. I just came back to life and haven't had time to get ready."

After that, Mr. Chen never called to complain about the older brother again. But whenever I went to pick up the two kids at school, I could always feel him watching me from afar, terrified and astonished.

004

In high school, the older brother went to an ordinary low-ranking school, while the younger brother got into the top science class at a prestigious high school.

But before long, I noticed that the usually obedient and sensible younger brother seemed to be... secretly dating.

So I secretly followed him to school and spent days crouching on the roof of the school building, but didn't see anything amiss.

Then, on the fourth day, I saw a tall boy block his path and pin him against the wall with a cool flourish. "Hey, Cheng Muyun, why haven't you replied to the love letter I gave you or any of my messages? Are you avoiding me on purpose? Don't you like me?"

The younger brother pressed his lips together and clenched his hands. "Let go of me. Stay away. I don't like you."

I took a good look at the boy. He was pretty handsome, but his gender wasn't a good match for my Mu Yu. And besides, this was high school. They shouldn't be dating yet.

So I jumped down from the eaves. As several high schoolers watched in shock, I landed, grabbed the boy by the collar, and started running laps around the school track with him.

After ten laps, the boy shouted for mercy. "Bro, I'm sorry! Let me go!"

After fifteen, he was almost crying. "Big brother, I promise I'll never try to steal Mu Yu from you again. He's yours, okay?"

It seemed he hadn't run enough, so I took him around for five more laps.

005

The two kids finally got into college, and my hard days were finally about to end.

It was my birthday. The two kids, no, the two grown men, traveled all the way home. Each had prepared a gift for me, and they turned off the lights and insisted that I blow out the candles and make a wish.

While we were eating cake, Cheng Muyao suddenly put his hand on my shoulder and asked with a half-smile, "Mr. Mu, why haven't you changed at all after all these years?"

His younger brother, Cheng Muyun, paused with his fork. His beautiful eyes fixed on me. "That's right, Mr. Mu. Why don't you... ever grow old?"

P.S. 1. The blurb is written in first person, while the main story is in third person.

2. This is not strictly 1v1 throughout. Read at your own discretion.

3. Please check the tags carefully. If they include anything you dislike, read with caution. For example, the main story ends ambiguously, but the bonus chapters have a happy ending.

Theme: Warmth and love can heal anything.