Tangled Vines Read Online Free PDF Page B

for my mother, the dragon took me to Beijing and left me in front of a big school that children lived in.”
    Jojo’s forehead wrinkled in confusion as he had another revelation. He was old enough to know that dragons weren’t real but he usually played along. Sometimes when it was only them alone together, he just wanted to act like a little boy and that was fine with her. She wanted to keep him that way as long as possible before the harsh ways of the world spoiled his innocence.
    “Ma, children don’t live in schools. It was an orphanage,” Jojo said, his tone stern.
    Li Jin was taken aback. They’d never used that word before or even discussed what an orphanage was. So this was part of the whole school experience her son was getting? She wondered what else he had learned.
    “But why didn’t the dragon just give you back to your mother if he didn’t want you?”
    Li Jin shook her head. “I don’t know, Jojo. Maybe we traveled so far he couldn’t find his way back. But anyway, the only thing they knew about me was from a note pinned to my shirt giving them my name.” As usual, she allowed him to think that her name was Li Jin. One day she’d tell him the truth, but not today.
    “And the tattoo of the flower on your foot!” Jojo said.
    “Yes, and someone had drawn the character for flower on my heel. Anyway, the orphanage took me in and I lived in the big school with a lot of other babies until I could walk. I didn’t like it there, so I was happy that when I got older they let me stay in a real house with a man and woman.”
    “Your foster family!” Jojo answered loud enough to turn a few heads.
    Li Jin held her fingers to her lips and looked around quickly. “Shh. Yes, my fuyang jiating . My foster father was big and round, and laughed like this!” She held her arms out in a big circle and touched her fingers, then let out a jolly laugh. Jojo giggled at her impression.
    “And my foster mother was a teeny tiny lady who talked like this.” She brought her hands up in front of her to look like little paws, shrunk her head down into her shoulders, and whispered a few unintelligible words through a pretend overbite.
    “She was like a little mouse,” Jojo added, nodding his head as if he knew every word of the story. And he probably did, Li Jin thought. She’d told him about her foster families before. He always remembered the first one. They were the good family. Some of the ones she’d been in after those she would never tell her son about. Some things a son should never know. She’d also never tell him of the hardship of her times at the orphanage—the dark and cold rooms, and the feeling of isolation even though she was surrounded by at least a hundred others. Sadly she kept a lot of secrets—and they were real ones, not made-up fairy tales.
    “Yes, she was like a little mouse. But she took good care of me for a few years. Then she and her husband moved to another place in China far away to help take care of their grandson. I had to go back to the school until they could find me another family.”
    Jojo reached over and nudged her playfully.
    “I don’t like the way that story ends. I want you to stay with the fat man and the mousy woman.”
    Li Jin smiled and rubbed the top of his fingers.
    “I know, Jojo. I wish I could’ve stayed, too. Come on. We need to go; I’ll tell you more of the story another time.” She picked up their things and led Jojo to the walking path. She figured they were safe to head home. Jojo would be happy there’d be no time for a bath. She grabbed his hand as he used the other one to point up at the final burst of fireworks.
    “Dude! Look at that one! It’s the biggest one yet!”
    “ Dui, it sure is, Jojo. But please don’t say dude.” Erik’s slang was really rubbing off on him and Li Jin didn’t like it.
    “Let me see your tattoo again.” He pointed at her foot.
    “Not tonight. I’m not taking my shoes off. And we need to go. Come on.” He’d