By My Side () is a Singaporean Chinese drama which was telecasted on Singapore's free-to-air channel, MediaCorp Channel 8. It made its debut on 28 October 2008 and ended on 24 November 2008. This drama serial consists of 20 episodes, and was screened on every weekday night at 9:00 pm.

The drama bears the same English name as another 30-episode SBC drama which debuted on 1 May 1990 (), and was screened on weekdays at 9.30pm, but both dramas are not related in any way.

Plot

The series is about AIDS patients and the social stigma they suffer, hence the red ribbon shown on the title sequence.

Chen Bufan's family of 5 [wife (Xinya), daughter (Tiantian), and his parents-in-law] live in a 4-room HDB flat. Happy-go-lucky by nature, Bufan is a family-man who works as a section supervisor in a supermarket. Xinya is a tutor. Ever since his parents passed on, Bufan has shouldered the responsibility of caring for his younger brother, Buqun, who is assertive to the point of being annoying.

Bufan fishing A man with no unsavoury habits, Bufan's biggest pastime is fishing which he does every weekend in the company of friends like Ma Shiyou (nicknamed Black Horse), Gao Liguo (nicknamed Grey Hound), and Bai Maolin (nicknamed White Fur). They usually go angling in the open seas or by the beach and would give the fish away. Of the lot, Black Horse is a lecher, Grey Hound had been unsuccessful in many match-making sessions and doesn’t dare to express his feelings for Xiulan (his colleague) even though he is enamoured with her, and the effeminate White Fur is uninterested in women. They usually tease Bufan for being the most “normal” one psychologically.

Black Horse usually skips to brothels and nightclubs on the pretext of fishing, leaving Bufan and the rest to cover his tracks in front of his wife. Their advice to him (to not philander) fall on deaf ears as he reckons that he would never contract venereal diseases. He even jeers at Bufan's monogamous and “boring” lifestyle, which the latter laughs off.

Family life Bufan and Xinya are high-school sweethearts. Ever since having Tiantian, Xinya has resigned from her job as a primary school teacher to become a tutor, citing health reasons. The youngest daughter of her family, she is highly dependent, and is reliant on Bufan. Xinya is feeble-minded and would consult Bufan even for disagreements between her parents and sister-in-law, adding to his burden. This is why Bufan sometimes jokingly questions how she can survive, if he should pass on.

Bufan dotes on his only child most, as he loves children by nature. Though immensely disappointed at Xinya's refusal to bear him another child following childbirth trauma from delivering Tiantian, he hides his emotions well. He respects Xinya's aversion of sex, and it is Xinya's own mother who constantly reminds her not to neglect her husband's physiological needs. Her heart is set at ease by her husband's assurance that he is not horny, as Black Horse is.

The couple adore their daughter, Tiantian, a tomboyish girl who dresses like a little boy, acts like one (being constantly engaged in ball games with the other kids in the neighbourhood), and is the unofficial leader of the group. She has a habit of confiding in her little diary, aspires to go to the Sports School and wants to be a professional sportswoman when she grows up. She has seen movies like Kungfu Soccer and Kung Fu Dunk umpteen times, and in her attempt to copy the moves, always gets herself injured. This gives Xinya a headache but to Bufan, it is proof of Tiantian's athletic talent and he decides to groom her in this direction.

Parents Xinya's parents (Lin Cunxiao and Wang Qiuyue) can’t get along with their daughter-in-law even with Bufan and Xinya's intervention. As such, Bufan puts his in-laws up at his place. Cunxiao has been popular with women since youth and helps them whenever they’re in need (earning him the moniker “Peach Blossom Xiao”, loosely translated as Xiao the Flirt). Many of the women he knows are involved in vices and the flesh trade. He sticks by the principle of “flirting without straying” though no one he never involved with any of them. He wife always remarks that she wouldn’t be surprised to see his illegitimate children turning up at his funeral, putting him in a spot. And on the pretext of helping his vice-involved friends, he brings Bufan to nightclubs and bars, often causing the latter much embarrassment. In reality, he is testing his son-in-law and through such instances, he gathers that Bufan is not steadfast and would stray if given the opportunity. Xinya merely smiles at his word of caution.

Weekend fishing It's another weekend and the 4 friends arrange to go fishing together again, Grey Hound and White Fur miss the appointment at last minute, and Black Horse comes late with the young and ravishing Xiao Hong by his side. Initially minding his own business, Bufan is irked by the duo's open flirtation that he wants to tell them off. At this moment, Black Horse's wife arrives with her friends and they proceed to beat Black Horse and Xiao Hong up before dragging the straying husband home. Bufan is about to leave for home when he sees the injured Xiao Hong staggering. Feeling sorry, he gives her a ride.

Along the way, Xiao Hong shares her sob story about being forced into prostitution by circumstances, eliciting Bufan's sympathy. The shrewd Xiao Hong is aware that Bufan, who rarely visits nightclubs and brothers, cannot resist temptation and proceeds to seduce him. Bufan almost succumbs but for the timely recollection of his first experience with a prostitute many years ago...

It turns out that years back, Bufan had a one-night stand with a local whom he later discovered, was a prostitute. His disgust at the realisation, coupled with guilt (towards his wife), makes him swear to himself that it won’t happen again. He has refrained from opening himself to temptation through the years and had kept this secret hidden. This chance encounter with Xiao Hong rekindles a lust within him and he can’t seem to erase the urge, which overwhelms his mind. The more guilty he feels towards Xinya, the more deprived he becomes and this lust nearly overcomes his senses and logic. Bufan's efforts in keeping his carnality in control are thwarted by Xiao Hong, who dishes herself up to him. Her quick thinking in posing herself off as his Marketing colleague saves the two of them from being exposures when Xinya sees her one day. Angered, he confronts her only to be blackmailed when she shows him some compromising pictures of both of them, which she wants him to redeem with money.

Cunxiao quietly informs Xinya that his female friend had seen Bufan at Geylang, but she doesn’t believe it. Bufan becomes increasingly emaciated and he attributes it to stress. He wills himself to stop his wandering mind and stops going for the fishing trips. He even plans to take Xinya and Tiantian for a holiday. Unfortunately before this trip materialises, he suspects that he has contracted aids after listening to a CDC talk, and is tested positive. The HIV strains have lain dormant in him for years and its source – the sole fling he ever had abroad.

The report shocks him, and he shuts out everything the doctor says afterwards. Dazed, he wanders aimlessly until Tiantian finds her father in the streets, drenched by the rain. She leads her Dad home and dries him to keep him warm. She is appalled to find tears in his eyes.

Bufan's illness Bufan falls even more seriously ill, running a fever and coughing incessantly. He locks himself in the room, becomes queer, and isolates himself. He even chases his most beloved Tiantian out. He refuses Xinya's suggestion about seeing a doctor. Qiuyue thinks he's possessed and suggests seeking help from a temple medium. No one knows the fear within him. He's petrified about possibly infecting Xinya and Tiantian and contemplates seeking CDC's help but is incapacitated by his apprehensiveness. He gets to know Zhang Yuhang, a social-service volunteer who encourages him to come clean with his wife so he can seek her forgiveness and send his family for HIV tests too. After much emotional struggle, he still fails to pluck up his courage.

Hesitant, apprehensive and unable to face up with the disease, the despondent Bufan can only confide incessantly in Yuhang. He tries to avoid facing up with reality and when Xinya tries to get intimate with him, he escapes. Xinya starts to wonder if her mother had been right about his infidelity, which leaves him speechless. Thinking that he had indeed been unfaithful, the aggrieved Xinya presses him for an absolute answer, which Bufan can’t provide. This casts a shadow over their marriage.

The youthful and pretty Yuhang is a dynamic girl bursting with life and passion. She encourages Bufan to face up to reality instead of wallowing in self-pity and becoming angst-ridden. Bufan retorts that he had strayed but once whereas his friend is a frequent philanderer. The heavens are unfair to stricken him with this illness.

Conflict Bufan's accusation that Yuhang doesn’t know how he feels is unfounded as being an aids sufferer herself, Yuhang can empathise with him. In fact, she is even more impeccant victim, having contracted it from her only boyfriend, who had been cheating on her. Embittered, she had confided him her closest friends only to be distanced by them because they are afraid of contact with her. Infuriated further, she tells her relatives and friends of her condition (plus joined organisation) in a futile attempt to challenge society. Sadly, she receives the same treatment. Ascertaining society's rejection of aids patients, she converts her anger into motivation and channels her energy into helping the unfortunate sufferers. Through helping others, she sees resilience of the human spirit and the value of genuine love that survives adversity.

Her boyfriend died of aids, having despaired and become morose because of the disease. Yuhang, on the contrary, becomes more enthusiastic about living. She tells Bufan that aids is not a terminal illness and can be kept under control with the right medication, further encouraging him to come clean with his family and seek their understanding and support. Bufan procrastinates, however.

Bufan becomes sickly and Xinya, egged on by Qiuyue, tries to be intimate with him to no avail. Buqun believes that his brother has succumbed to a moment's folly and looks Yuhang up to urge her not to break his brother's family up. He realises Yuhang is his ex-classmate. Yuhang is at a lost for words and can only tactfully turn him away. This deepens Buqun's misunderstanding.

Little Tiantian overhears her mum mentioning divorce and innocently looks Yuhang up to ask her to back off. She injures herself and is rushed to the hospital by Yuhang. Bufan tells the doctor the truth about his condition and upon checking Tiantian, is relieved that she is HIV negative.

During a dispute with a prostitute, Bufan angrily reveals that he has AIDS, having contracted it from such women. When Xinya overhears, Bufan confirms to Xinya about his condition and his worry that she might have contracted the disease as well. Xinya is stunned and her world crumbles. She cannot accept the horrifying fact and goes for a HIV check at Bufan's insistence. Thankfully, she is HIV negative, but the relief does nothing to alleviate the bitterness of her husband's betrayal.

Family atmosphere