The Call
Chapter One
The Call
The bell above the bakery door chimed as Shen Ziyi stepped inside.
The smell hit her immediately.
Fresh bread.
Butter.
Coffee.
Warm sugar.
For a moment she simply stood there enjoying it while the morning crowd flowed around her.
“Ziyi!”
Mrs. Liu emerged from behind the counter carrying a tray of pastries.
“You’re late.”
Ziyi blinked.
“I am three minutes early.”
“That’s late.”
The older woman pointed a flour-covered finger at her.
“You always come at nine.”
“It is nine.”
“It’s nine-oh-three.”
Ziyi smiled.
“I apologize for my shocking lack of discipline.”
Mrs. Liu sniffed dramatically before handing over a basket.
“Blueberry muffins.”
“Thank you.”
“And chocolate.”
“Thank you.”
“And the extra ones for the children.”
The smile softened on Ziyi’s face.
“Thank you.”
The older woman waved dismissively.
“Those children eat more than construction workers.”
“They are growing.”
“They are eating my profits.”
“You say that every week.”
“And every week they prove me right.”
Ziyi laughed and began filling another basket with bread rolls.
The orphanage children had opinions about breakfast.
The blueberry muffins were for Xiaobao.
The chocolate ones were for Mingming.
The strawberry pastries were for a little girl who refused to eat anything that wasn’t pink.
Somewhere along the way she had memorized everyone’s preferences.
She wasn’t entirely sure when that had happened.
“Good Morning, mother superior.”
The familiar voice came from behind her.
Ziyi turned.
Kang Haerin stood in the doorway carrying an iced coffee and wearing the expression of someone deeply offended by being awake before noon.
“Good morning.”
“It isn’t.”
“It literally is.”
Haerin ignored her and walked toward the display case.
A young man near the window glanced up.
Then glanced up again.
Then forgot he was holding a cup.
Coffee splashed directly onto his hand.
Ziyi immediately looked away.
Haerin saw everything.
The grin spreading across her face was warning enough.
“No.”
“What?.”
“No.”
Haerin pointed toward the unfortunate man.
“You should ask for her number.”
The entire bakery seemed to freeze.
The poor man nearly dropped his coffee again.
Ziyi grabbed the nearest menu and smacked Haerin’s arm.
“Ow.”
“What is wrong with you?”
Haerin rubbed her shoulder.
“I was helping.”
“Nobody asked for your help.”
The man laughed.
Which somehow made the situation worse.
Haerin looked delighted.
“See? He’s nice.”
Another smack.
“Stop doing that.”
“Doing what?”
“That.”
“Being supportive?”
“Haerin.”
“She doesn’t have a boyfriend,” Haerin informed the man helpfully.
Ziyi covered her face.
“Oh my God.”
The man looked like he wanted the ground to swallow him.
Then he smiled.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
Another smack.
Haerin finally surrendered.
“Fine.”
Ziyi narrowed her eyes.
“One day someone is going to throw bread at you.”
“Worth it.”
They collected their coffees and escaped before Haerin could cause further damage.
The moment they stepped onto the sidewalk, Haerin burst into laughter.
“You should have seen your face.”
“I hate you.”
“No, you don’t.”
Unfortunately, she was right.
The city was already awake around them.
Cars moved through crowded streets.
Cyclists weaved between pedestrians.
Shop owners rolled open metal shutters.
Morning sunlight spilled across the old Chengdu neighborhood.
The apartment building stood only a few blocks away.
A narrow three-story structure squeezed between a stationery store and a noodle shop that had somehow survived three decades without changing anything except the prices.
Mrs. Wang stood outside sweeping the sidewalk.
She brightened immediately when she spotted them.
“Ziyi!”
“Good morning, Auntie.”
“Come eat noodles later.”
Haerin groaned.
“See?”
“What?”
“She recruits customers the same way cults recruit members.”
Mrs. Wang smacked Haerin’s shoulder with surprising accuracy.
“Watch your mouth.”
“See?” Haerin repeated.
The older woman laughed and returned to sweeping.
By the time they reached the third floor, both women were carrying more than they should have been.
Ziyi unlocked the apartment door.
Sunlight flooded the small space.
Plants occupied every available window.
Books covered half the shelves.
Children’s drawings decorated the refrigerator.
The apartment wasn’t large.
But it was hers.
Haerin immediately walked toward the balcony.
“There’s a new noodle shop.”
“There are six noodle shops.”
“This one is new.”
“We already have Auntie Wang.”
“Exactly.”
Haerin pointed dramatically.
“We should try it this weekend.”
Ziyi looked horrified.
“What am I supposed to tell Auntie Wang?”
Haerin turned slowly.
“The noodle lady?”
“She’ll see us.”
“So?”
“So she’ll know.”
“Know what?”
“That we went somewhere else.”
Haerin stared at her.
“You are aware she doesn’t own you?”
“That’s not the point.”
“Tell her we got bored of her flavors.”
Ziyi gasped.
“Absolutely not.”
Haerin collapsed onto the sofa.
“I knew it.”
“Knew what?”
“You’ve secretly married her noodles.”
Ziyi laughed.
“You are ridiculous.”
“You’re going to have little noodle babies.”
At that, Ziyi fell backward onto the bed, laughing helplessly.
The sound filled the apartment.
For a moment neither of them spoke.
The kind of comfortable silence only years of friendship created.
Then Haerin glanced toward the ceiling.
“How’s the first-floor neighbor?”
Ziyi groaned immediately.
“Not again.”
“What?”
“I’m not doing this.”
“The accountant.”
“No.”
“The one who brought you oranges.”
“He brought oranges for everyone.”
“He absolutely did not.”
Ziyi threw a cushion at her.
Haerin caught it.
“Very sad, by the way.”
“I didn’t dump him.”
“You did and you don’t even remember.”
“There was nothing to dump.”
“He looked heartbroken.”
“He asked me out once.”
“And?”
“I said no.”
Haerin shook her head.
“Your standards are impossible.”
Ziyi crossed her arms.
“Like I said, I have refined tastes.”
Haerin barked out a laugh.
“Right.”
“What?”
“Like Zhang Linghe?”
Ziyi pointed at her.
“Leave him alone.”
“Unattainable.”
“He is the Nation’s crush.”
“He is a celebrity.”
“That doesn’t mean anything.”
“It means everything.”
Ziyi tried to look offended.
Failed completely.
Haerin grinned.
“I think Zhang Linghe would disagree.”
“About what?”
“Everything.”
“He doesn’t have a choice.”
The cushion hit Haerin directly in the face.
By the time they loaded the last box into Haerin’s car, the morning had already slipped toward noon.
The trunk was packed with enough supplies to sustain a small army.
Books.
Art supplies.
Muffins.
Bread.
Three separate bags of snacks.
A box of crayons.
Another box that Haerin was reasonably certain contained even more snacks.
She pointed at it.
“What is in there?”
“Supplies.”
“That’s extremely vague.”
Ziyi closed the trunk.
“Markers.”
Haerin stared at her.
“There are children in that orphanage who are going to grow up and think markers are a food group.”
“They like drawing.”
“They also like eating.”
“Everyone likes eating.”
“Not as much as those children.”
Ziyi laughed.
The drive took less than twenty minutes.
The moment they turned through the orphanage gates, children appeared from seemingly nowhere.
Haerin sighed.
“Here we go.”
The car had barely stopped when a small boy launched himself toward the passenger door.
Another ran toward the driver’s side.
A little girl spotted Ziyi through the window and immediately began jumping up and down.
“Ziyi-jie!”
The shout was taken up by three others.
Then five.
Then half the courtyard.
Haerin waited.
Nobody called her name.
Not one child.
She folded her arms.
“I carried half the boxes.”
Nobody cared.
The passenger door opened.
A small crowd immediately formed around Ziyi.
One child grabbed her hand.
Another hugged her waist.
A third demanded to know if she had brought chocolate muffins.
“Good afternoon to you too,” Ziyi said.
The boy looked hopeful.
“Did you?”
Haerin pointed dramatically.
“Do you see what I mean?”
Still nobody cared.
The betrayal was profound.
Director Shen emerged from the main building.
Her sharp eyes took in the chaos before settling on the two women.
“You’ve brought half the city again.”
“They were on sale.”
“That’s how she justifies everything,” Haerin informed her.
“I am standing right here.”
Director Shen ignored her.
A little smile appeared instead.
One of the rare ones.
“You should visit without bringing things sometime.”
The children gasped.
As if such a thing were impossible.
Ziyi laughed.
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
“You won’t.”
“No.”
“At least you’re honest.”
For a while the afternoon passed peacefully.
The children showed her drawings.
One proudly demonstrated a magic trick.
Another spent ten full minutes explaining a disagreement involving dinosaurs.
Haerin sat beneath a tree and complained that nobody appreciated her sacrifices.
A little girl handed her a muffin.
Haerin immediately forgave everyone.
The phone rang nearly an hour later.
The sound was ordinary.
The effect wasn’t.
Ziyi glanced at the screen.
The smile faded slightly.
Not from fear.
Recognition.
Director Shen noticed immediately.
So did Haerin.
Ziyi stepped aside to answer.
She listened.
Asked several questions.
Listened again.
When the call ended, she remained standing quietly for a moment.
The courtyard continued around her.
Children laughing.
Voices drifting through open windows.
The familiar sounds of home.
“Another difficult one?”
Director Shen asked.
Ziyi looked up.
Then smiled.
A little apologetically.
“Yes.”
The older woman closed her eyes briefly.
“Of course it is.”
From beneath the tree came a horrified groan.
“No.”
Ziyi turned.
Haerin pointed accusingly.
“I don’t want to go.”
“You get paid to go.”
“That doesn’t mean I should have to.”
“I’m fairly certain that’s exactly what it means.”
Haerin dropped her head backward dramatically.
“Oh no.”
Ziyi’s smile widened.
“Oh yes.”
Even Director Shen laughed.
For a few seconds the entire courtyard felt lighter.
Then reality settled again.
Somewhere far away, people needed help.
And as always, they would go.
