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Chu Ying has had many dreams that seem too good to be true. He dreams of going back to the palace and playing with the emperor again. He dreams of watching the television sitting beside Shi Guang's mother who is completely unaware of his presence. He dreams of meeting Shi Guang after leaving the world and entrusting him with his fan.
But this dream is different. He's currently dreaming of himself falling down the cliff and seeing the vast waters approaching him from below. It's definitely not a pleasant one, a huge deviation from his usual dreams. With the uncomfortable pressure of gravity pulling him down, his natural reflex suddenly acts and he jolts his whole being awake.
He opens his eyes and finds himself no longer inside the void. He looks around and sees a room with a huge dark blue bed in the center and two side tables beside it. The lamp is turned off but the moonlight from the glass door gives a faint brightness all over the place.
Chu Ying turns around to look at the sky. Is he dreaming again? He examines his hands, arms, and legs, and while being absorbed in his own thoughts, a surprised voice rings in his ear.
"Who are you?!"
Chu Ying lifts his head to search for the source of the voice. He answers back with an equally-surprised one.
"Xiao Liang?"
Mixed expressions of confusion, bewilderment, fear, and wonder fill the young man's face. His eyebrows are crunched and it appears that his brain might have also stopped working for a bit, giving an unexplainable charm to his firm face. The Yu Liang in this time is already 23 years old. He is taller now than he already was and looks more mature. An unofficial online poll even ranked him as one of the best-looking Go players in the country, ranking second.
"You really expect me to believe that you're Chu Ying?"
"You'll know after you play a game with me."
The sun is just starting to rise, the emerging humidity is filling the room, and Yu Liang is sweating a bit. Maybe it's from the heat, but most likely it's from the challenging play style that he has indeed seen before. This game reminds him of his games with Shi Guang, but honestly it looks more like his first game with him more than 10 years ago.
Now that he further thinks of it though, it looks most like his game with Chu Ying on Weida.
With this realization, his hands freeze inside the container of the Go stones as he lifts his gaze from the board to Chu Ying. Yu Liang doesn't say anything but his eyes say everything.
"It is indeed I, Xiao Liang."
Yu Liang is undoubtedly a smart person, but he's having a hard time wrapping his head around the information overload that Chu Ying just dumped onto him. He was a Go spirit trapped in a chessboard? He was Shi Guang's mentor before? No one else sees and hears him aside from Shi Guang? He has always been watching over all of them?
"Sorry Chu Ying, let me just process all of these for a bit." Yu Liang raises his hand and closes his eyes to calm his mind and even his breathing. Chu Ying only smiles.
The door to his bedroom suddenly opens and his mom checks inside, worried.
"Xiao Liang, are you okay? Who are you talking to?"
"Uhh…" He then raises his eyebrows towards Chu Ying and shows an awkward smile to his mom. "No one."
"Okay, hurry up now, Fang Xu is already waiting for you outside."
Chu Ying follows Yu Liang around; he's the only one that can see him now anyway. Or at least yet, because he's meeting Shi Guang in a short while. Fortunately for him, the Go Association has a conference today which will be attended by professional players all over the country.
"Xiao Liang, cars are much better now! The seats are so soft, and what is that screen? It looks like the box in Shi Guang's house but this is much smaller and, hmm, flatter? Xiao Liang, what's that sound? I think I heard a woman's voice saying that we should turn left soon? Wait, is there someone else here? Xiao Liang-"
Chu Ying continues to flail around in the backseat causing Yu Liang to finally lose it and look at him via the rear-view mirror with a "Please be quiet" face.
What Yu Liang doesn't notice is Fang Xu was actually talking to him, telling him to take the driving exam so he can get his own license. Instead he was only met with Yu Liang's annoyed face in the rear-view mirror, causing him to awkwardly clear his throat at the glare that (he thought) was directed at him.
He doesn't talk again for the whole trip.
Yu Liang arrives in the conference hall and immediately goes to the seats assigned for the Fangyuan Institute Go Club. There he meets Shi Guang who stands up on his feet, grinning widely, to greet him.
"Hey, Yu Liang!"
Both Yu Liang and Chu Ying carefully examine the expression of the guy in front of them, but nothing seems out of the ordinary. Shi Guang then raises his eyebrows at Yu Liang waiting for him to return his hanging handshake.
"Shi Guang, you...you don't see anything?"
Shi Guang retracts his hand embarrassingly and lightly hits Yu Liang's arm instead.
"What are you talking about?"
Yu Liang slowly moves his eyes to look at Chu Ying when the host suddenly announces that the program will be starting in a few minutes. Yu Liang rushes to his seat while his invisible companion reluctantly follows him, obviously distraught.
Lunch time comes and Yu Liang walks to Shi Guang's table which he shares with Hong He and Shen Yilang.
"Yu Liang, why don't you eat with us?" Shi Guang urges while moving his seat aside to make way.
Yu Liang shakes his head. "Shi Guang, can we talk?"
"Yeah, sure. What do you want to talk about?" The other replies as he pushes his plate away and turns his body to face him.
Yu Liang then takes a quick glance at Chu Ying who is standing beside him, eyes earnestly focused on Shi Guang.
"I was hoping the two of us could be alone."
Shi Guang lets out a confused and long "uhh…" as he moves his glance over to Hong He and Shen Yilang who both quickly looked down to gobble down their food.
"Okay!" He then stands up and hooks his arm on Yu Liang's shoulder as they walk away.
Hong He and Shen Yilang raise their heads in unison watching the two figures slowly disappear from their sight.
"Bro, did you see that?"
The older pushes his eyeglasses and nods resolutely. "Yes."
Yu Liang panics and brings his handkerchief in front of Shi Guang. Shi Guang, looking at the ground and crying uncontrollably, doesn't notice so Yu Liang takes one of his hands to place the handkerchief there.
Shi Guang only holds onto it tight which makes Yu Liang sigh and take it back, raising the other's bowed head to wipe the tears himself.
"Chu Ying...he's really here, right?"
"Of course. How else would I know about your stories with him? How he taught all of the Go that you know. How you promised to ride a bicycle with him. How you celebrated his birthday with him. How you hid magazines under your pillow when your mom-"
"Chu Ying! You even told him that?"
Chu Ying laughs while wiping the tears that subconsciously fell from his own face.
"He also wants to say that he's very happy, Shi Guang. He's happy that you still remember him and doesn't hate him for leaving."
"My apologies, sir, all the tandem bicycles have already been rented out for the whole day. A company contacted us to provide supplies for their event."
Shi Guang sighs disappointedly, turning to face Yu Liang's left side to apologize to Chu Ying.
"Chu Ying, I'm sorry. I failed-"
"Shi Guang, he's on the right."
"Chu Ying," Shi Guang turns again to face the right side this time. "I once again-"
"Just kidding, he's on the left."
Chu Ying laughs and raises his fan, hiding his face behind it. Shi Guang hits Yu Liang's arm with a hard smack.
"How childish!"
Yu Liang only responds with a laugh as Chu Ying winks at him.
The bike rental shop attendant then clears his throat to get their attention. "If you don't mind, we have normal one-seated and family three-seated bicycles left."
"Yu Liang, don't be a freeloader! Why don't you try helping me?" Shi Guang says while panting, sitting at the frontmost seat, pedaling like his life depended on it.
Yu Liang pedals harder. "I'm already giving my best okay?"
Chu Ying sits at the backmost seat enjoying the cold breeze and the beautiful scenery moving around him. Shi Guang was right, this almost feels like flying and if he discovered this feeling much earlier, he would have asked him to ride the bicycle instead of playing on the see-saw.
"Chu Ying, just how much did you eat while you were gone?"
The three of them break in laughter, catching breath in between this exercise, throwing some more jokes and stories back and forth.
Yu Liang bows at his opponent, signaling the end of the game which ended in yet another victory for him. He proceeds to stand and walk to the table where he left his backpack, placing it on his back as he's getting ready to leave.
"Where are you going? We still have an instructive game for the juniors," Mu Qingchun says as he stands up from opposite the Go board.
"That was ad hoc and scheduled at the very last minute. I have a planned activity to go to." Yu Liang then bows to him and to the juniors who just watched his match, some visibly disappointed.
"Don't worry, I'll help you sometime soon. Just schedule it in advance and let me know."
"Bacon cheeseburger sounds good. No, should I go for something with a double-patty instead?" Shi Guang carefully looks on the menu board of the food stand with the shortest queue in this crowded theme park.
They could only pick a weekend for their hangouts, and while Shi Guang is free for the whole day, the Weida GC schedule requires its members to practice an extra half-day every Saturday. Yu Liang taking off before lunch surprises Mu Qingchun and their other clubmates since it has been consistently evident that he doesn't have anything else to do during weekends.
"What?" Yu Liang softly asks while leaning in closer to Chu Ying who was telling something to him. They both laugh afterwards.
"Hey, you! The two of you! Having fun talking behind my back? Chu Ying, you were telling him how I absolutely can't handle spicy food, right? That's why I don't bother looking at that, that side of the menu?"
"No Shi Guang, Chu Ying was telling me a story during his time where cooked meat is usually-"
"No Yu Liang, you step out of this. I am talking to the gentleman beside you. Chu Ying, you're really-"
"Shi Guang, he's on the right."
"Hah! I'm not falling for this again!"
Chu Ying touches his stomach, all cramped from laughing too hard at Shi Guang who still acts exactly the same like he did years ago, and at the fact that he is very emotional at "lecturing" him, clicking tongues and pointing fingers and all, towards a direction where there is literally nothing.
Because of the long queues, they only end up enjoying three rides including the highest roller coaster in the city, in which Chu Ying miraculously gets a seat for himself behind Shi Guang and Yu Liang, and conveniently disappears every time the climb reaches its peak.
"This is one of the best days of my life! Chu Ying, you had fun too, right? We didn't have these things when you were first here. You came back at the perfect time!"
Shi Guang couldn't stop talking about how much fun he had while Yu Liang nods at him, trying to appear composed even though his head is still shaking. Chu Ying walks confidently beside them as if he has completed all the rides and did not hide half-way.
"Shixiong, I'm thinking of taking the driving exam soon."
"Good thinking, Xiao Liang! Nothing beats the convenience of having your own car. Plus, you're already 23, you can't expect me to drive for you until you get old, right? By the way, I have been trying to convince you for too long. What changed your-"
"Shi Guang? Yes, we should be near now, just met with a red light. What? Yeah," Yu Liang says softly over the phone as he looks at the backseat, smiling at the new friend that only he can see.
Fang Xu awkwardly lifts a smile. He'll eventually get used to Yu Liang ignoring him, he thinks.
Shi Guang's best friends Hong He and Shen Yilang learn to ask him to hang out less frequently after Shi Guang starts turning their invitations down, saying "Yu Liang this, Yu Liang that".
Shi Guang [8:17 PM]
Why? Is it because you want to spend more time with your girlfriends? So much for loyalty, huh?
Hong He
(Typing…)
Shi Guang [8:18 PM]
Whatever, just watch me, I'll be having SO MUCH FUN with Yu Liang
Hong He [8:18 PM]
…
Shen Yilang [8:18 PM]
:)
The members of Weida GC also learn to work around Yu Liang's schedule of leaving on the dot, with the juniors formulating a private unofficial schedule on who can consult him and when. Fang Xu also learns the hard way when he sets a whole-day team-building event on Shi Guang's birthday, "of all possible days".
In retrospect, Shi Guang, Yu Liang, and Chu Ying have done it all together - going to the theme park, exploring the night market, having a street food tour, watching the movies, playing arcade games, and so much more. Shi Guang, even though he no longer gets to see Chu Ying, never lost the bond that the both of them have shared for a long time. Yu Liang, even though he only got to meet Chu Ying now, quickly grew close to him, getting enamored by Chu Ying's unexpected reversal of cuteness which is totally the opposite of his ruthless identity on the Go board.
Shi Guang and Yu Liang get closer more than ever, with Shi Guang completely opening up his heart for Yu Liang to see and Yu Liang carefully taking hold of it, serving as a bridge for this student and master who will undoubtedly wait for each other for a lifetime had this opportunity not come to them.
This day was the most tiring of them all, with Shi Guang excitedly suggesting bungee jumping after seeing it on the internet. He regrets it afterwards. The three of them have all their strengths sucked out by gravity and adrenaline, tiredly collapsing on the backseat of a taxi that they fortunately got on a busy rainy day.
Yu Liang turns his head to the left to look outside the window when he notices Chu Ying leaning his head on his shoulder, obviously tired as well but wearing a satisfied smile on his face. He then turns his head to the other side to look at Shi Guang leaning on his right shoulder, seemingly laughing in his sleep. Yu Liang smiles. It would be great to do this again. And again.
The rain pours harder and they hear news reports of a storm unexpectedly making a landfall. Shi Guang offers his apartment so Yu Liang and Chu Ying can stay for the night, in hopes that the weather would get better tomorrow.
Shi Guang lets out a snort when Yu Liang walks out of the bathroom wearing pants that are too long and big for him and a loose shirt that almost exposes his collarbones. "At least it's comfortable, right?" is the only thing that he says before he collapses to a laugh.
Yu Liang rolls his eyes but lets it go anyway. "Good night," he says as he walks over to the couch. Shi Guang stops him by the arm.
"Where are you going? My room is over there. You don't think I'll be letting you sleep on that small couch, right?"
Yu Liang becomes uneasy as he glances over Shi Guang's shoulder to look at his room. "We're grown-ups now, we shouldn't-"
"Shouldn't what? It's not as if we haven't slept beside each other for months during our training. Come on, I'm sleepy."
Yu Liang almost gets hypnotized at the sight of the round eyes of the man in front of him. Before he knows it, they are already sleeping on the same bed with backs turned against each other.
Morning comes and Yu Liang opens his eyes to find Shi Guang's face lying close in front of him. Perhaps too close. But his heart doesn't mind, beating faster in each second that passes, in taking notice of each feature on his face that he hasn't seen before, in watching each eyelash flutter when his eyes involuntarily move in his sleep, in observing each-
"Good morning." Shi Guang suddenly opens his eyes, startling the other who was staring straight at him.
Yu Liang doesn't immediately answer but at this moment, he realizes. He wants to stay like this forever.
"Good morning."
Shi Guang smiles and they look at each other's eyes as if it was the most natural thing to do, with Yu Liang's heart beating way faster than it did earlier, not noticing how Shi Guang's heart is beating equally as fast as his. Suddenly, the alarm clock in Shi Guang's phone rings.
Shi Guang snuggles closer to Yu Liang, burying his face in his chest.
"Ugh, I don't want to get up yet," the muffled voice says, making Yu Liang slowly lift his trembling hand to touch the other's hair softly. He feels Shi Guang smile against his chest.
Yu Liang's heart relaxes. Maybe he's not the only one who feels this way.
It has been hours since Shi Guang and Yu Liang were separated from each other, but Yu Liang is still thinking of what happened in the morning. After successfully getting out of their own little world, things still carried on as usual, with Shi Guang being as cheerful as ever and Yu Liang responding in the best way he can. No love confessions, no kisses, nothing.
Chu Ying is standing in front of the glass window to admire the night sky when he hears Yu Liang ruffling around in his bed, breaking the silence.
"Chu Ying?"
"Hmm?"
"Have you ever...fallen in love?"
Chu Ying then walks closer to the troubled Yu Liang, giving him a comforting smile. "I have. And it was one of the best things ever."
Yu Liang sits up straight and looks at the other with wide eyes, showing an intense amount of interest.
"I fell in love with a princess when I was back in Southern Liang. She was a bit mischievous and rebellious, so the emperor asked me to teach her Go to occupy her time. I only taught her for a short while when we discovered that she has the talent for it. We played together, from morning till night, from dusk till dawn, and...we fell in love in the process." Chu Ying smiles at the pleasant memories that start coming back to him.
"That's amazing! You found a person you love and you can enjoy the things that you love with that person."
Chu Ying opens his fan and slowly turns his back on Yu Liang. "You're right. It's indeed a miracle to find a person like this in your life. Not only was she beautiful, but her Go was the most beautiful thing I have ever laid my eyes on."
Yu Liang smiles for some time and then gets hit with a sudden realization. "Then how...how do you know that you really love her and not the Go that she plays?"
Chu Ying turns around again to face him, this time with a serious look on his face. "Let me answer that with a question, Xiao Liang. If one day, Xiao Guang stops playing, will you still be with him?"
Yu Liang furrows his eyebrows. "Impossible, Shi Guang will never stop playing. It's almost in his blood, and he promised me that he'll never quit again."
Chu Ying only nods slowly as he sighs, when Yu Liang continues.
"But, in the rare chance that he really really really decides to never play again..." Yu Liang proceeds to look at Chu Ying sincerely. "I will never leave his side and I will support him in whatever he does."
Chu Ying releases a relieved laugh, looking completely satisfied, when Yu Liang interrupts him again.
"Wait, no! This isn't about Shi Guang. That was a very generic question. I'm all grown now anyway so I should be curious about love, right? No wait, Chu Ying, why are you laughing? Are you laughing at me?"
"Silly kid," Chu Ying says as he lightly hits Yu Liang's head with his fan. "You can lie to yourself, but not to me. I live in your heart now, and I completely know what you feel. Besides..."
Yu Liang perks up his ears in interest with Chu Ying's lingering word. "Besides what?"
"I think Xiao Guang will be happy when he learns how you feel about him."
"How did you know?"
"Did you already forget after spending so much time with me?
I used to live in his heart too."
Yu Liang has received so much encouragement from Chu Ying that he feels unstoppable now. A car won't move if you don't start it, a Go game won't proceed if you don't place a stone, a relationship won't blossom if you don't talk. Shi Guang has a friendly game on Wednesday where Yu Liang and his teammates will attend and watch, but ultimately the best timing is on Saturday. He makes a plan for the two of them to go to the theaters and have a fancy dinner somewhere afterwards.
"Xiao Liang, Xiao Guang once did this with me. How about we do this? If you snap your fingers, I'll disappear. No, wait...that would be too obvious. How about this? Clear your throat twice and I will disappear. Then you'll have the moment to yourselves. Good luck, Xiao Liang!"
"You only have this romance movie here? That sucks, I wanted to watch something with more action," Shi Guang sighs as they stand in front of the theater counter.
"Apologies, sir. Yes, the selection is quite limited for today. According to our schedule, two new films will be shown tomorrow. If you want, you can come back-"
"No!" Yu Liang shouts, surprising Shi Guang, Chu Ying, and the theater attendant. "Uhm, I mean...we're already here. It would be a waste to go back. Maybe this movie is also good?"
All according to plan. Yu Liang managed to bring Shi Guang to this movie house where they would have no choice but to watch a cheesy romantic film. Yu Liang has watched this in advance and planned things out. When the male lead kneels in front of the female lead to ask for her hand in marriage, he will confess to Shi Guang.
Fortunately it's a romantic-comedy film, and Shi Guang's sense of humor allows him to enjoy it despite his initial repulsion. Meanwhile, Yu Liang is not paying attention to the movie at all. His sweating hands clench on his pants while waiting for that critical scene. There it is, around three minutes left. Two. One. He clears his throat twice and Chu Ying disappears from beside him.
"Shi Guang?"
"Hmm?" Shi Guang moves his eyes from the screen to Yu Liang's face which he can only faintly see in this dark theater.
"I like..." Yu Liang clears his throat again. "I like...whew wait...I like..."
"What is it, Yu Liang?"
"I like..." Yu Liang closes his eyes. "I like the flavor of that popcorn."
An awkward silence follows causing Yu Liang to slowly open his eyes to look at Shi Guang. He's thankful that the darkness can hide the crimson blush on his face right now.
Shi Guang only laughs at him. "Sure, sure, have as much as you want," he says while handing him the box.
Yu Liang's plan fails. He already has it drawn out on his head, setting up a romantic moment that will make Shi Guang only say 'yes', but his coward self just had to say something entirely different. But no, there's still the dinner, he thinks. He specifically picked an elegant place with a table that is a bit far from everyone else's. He looks at Chu Ying who mouths a determined 'Good luck!' at him.
Yu Liang's back-up plan fails. Yu Liang ends up telling him about the different types of steaks that he has tried when his family went on a Europe trip. Shi Guang listens with full attention, sharing his own stories about how his grandfather couldn't digest meaty dishes anymore so they only usually eat chicken or fish at home. Yu Liang is not able to find the right timing (which may or may not be his excuse) so the day ends without him letting his intentions known.
"Yu Liang, today was really fun. I enjoyed it a lot." Shi Guang then looks at the backseat to bid farewell to Chu Ying. "See you two next week!"
He then leaves and the sound of the door closing might have triggered something in Yu Liang. He doesn't start the car and Chu Ying talks to him, but he is not responding.
After what seemed to be a few minutes, Yu Liang grabs his keys and puts it in his pocket. "Excuse me, Chu Ying. I'll be back in a while."
Shi Guang hums as he enters his apartment when a hand suddenly appears to stop him from closing the door.
"Who- Yu Liang, you scared me! I thought it was a thief or something. What's wrong?"
"Shi Guang, I..." Yu Liang lets out a breath. This is it. No turning back. "I like you."
Shi Guang's lips curve up and he doesn't say anything, which makes the nervous Yu Liang much more nervous, unsure how to interpret the other's smile. Not until Shi Guang pulls him inside and into him, capturing his lips with a kiss. Both of them don't know how to do it, they have never done this before, but they just let themselves melt in the moment, wrapped in each other's warmth and moving as their hearts tell them to.
Shi Guang breaks the kiss first and moves away slowly, not removing his sight on Yu Liang's clear eyes. "That's perfect. I like you too."
They were supposed to have their next "date" on Saturday, but after confirming each other's heart, how could they spend another day, let alone another week, apart? Like teenagers lovestruck with each other, they talk on the phone the whole night, with Yu Liang whispering so he won't wake his parents up. Shi Guang agrees to go to Yu Liang's house the next day to, who knows, just spending the day together is enough.
"Shi Guang, you're here. Xiao Liang briefly went out to pick up something. You can relax yourself in his room first. Just let me know if you need anything," Yu Liang's mother says as she gently pats Shi Guang's shoulder, smiling softly at him.
Shi Guang goes into Yu Liang's room and after only a few steps, barely entering the space, he stops.
"Chu Ying…?"
Chu Ying turns around and becomes shocked, seeing Shi Guang look straight at him. It's almost as if he can see him now, like before, like what has always been.
"Xiao Guang, you-"
Shi Guang starts with slow, small steps at first, speed gradually increasing as he walks up to Chu Ying, forgetting to close the door. He rubs his eyes with both of his hands and looks in front of him.
"Chu Ying...Chu Ying, I'm not dreaming, right? How can this be…? How is this possible?"
Chu Ying smiles at the kid who is starting to cry again. No matter how old Shi Guang is now, he is still the soft-hearted crybaby that he witnessed grow up.
"I...I don't know. I have no idea. This is too sudden. You didn't see me last time, why can you now suddenly-" Chu Ying stops when he notices Yu Liang standing by the door, watching the two of them with confused eyes.
Something clicks in Chu Ying's mind, causing him to lightly laugh. "I have a guess, but I'm not really sure," he starts while continuing to look at Yu Liang. "I live in Xiao Liang's heart now, right?"
Shi Guang, with head facing down and tears touching the floor, only weakly nods.
"So when you confirmed your feelings with each other, you now share the same heart."
Chu Ying looks back at Yu Liang who is still standing right where he is, frozen. Yu Liang smiles back.
"This way, sir. Can I see your tickets please?"
Yu Liang hands the tickets as he turns his head to watch Shi Guang and Chu Ying, eyes glowing at seeing this world-class large-scale venue that they both haven't been in before.
"Sir, these are three tickets. There only seems to be the two of you."
Yu Liang smiles at the staff. "It's okay, we bought an extra seat beside us."
The three of them have just settled on their seats when the lights turn up, the fireworks on the stage shoot up, and the crowd screams.
You've got me feeling emotions
Deeper than I've ever dreamed of
You've got me feeling emotions
Higher than the heavens above
Chu Ying screams at the top of his lungs with his broken English, "I love you, Mariah!" Shi Guang's eyes suddenly grow wide at this sight of him that he's never seen before. Chu Ying knows American singers now? No, when has he even learned English?
Yu Liang, unbothered, joins him as he screams too, "Wooh! Mariah, you're the best!"
Shi Guang shakes his head as he enjoys watching the two of them enthusiastically cheering; he swears he also saw a single teardrop fall down Chu Ying's cheek. It hasn't been that long since Chu Ying lived with Yu Liang, but his taste in music has already been influenced by this much?
He brings his attention back to the performance, doing his best to dance along trying to remember the songs that Yu Liang blasts in his car, while his companions are energetically singing along like all the other people in the concert, with Yu Liang flaunting his perfect English and Chu Ying...never mind, as long as he's having fun.
Shi Guang smiles again.
A partner whom he will share the rest of his life with, and a mentor who was once a part of him who he never thought he would see again but has come back.
He couldn't be any happier.