406. No Risk, No Reward
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Under the blue sky and fluffy clouds, in the park.
Chen Yao, dressed in a white suit, held hands with Lin Nan, who looked stunning in her black evening gown. They posed for wedding photos under the photographer’s guidance.
With a face full of happiness, he gently wrapped his arms around Lin Nan, patting her slightly protruding belly, and teased, “Is he kicking you?”
“Crazy, it’s only been two months, what’s there to kick about?”
Just as they were basking in their sweet exchange, Chen Yao suddenly heard a muffled sobbing that seemed to shift in and out of earshot. He paused and continued, “He’s even crying now.”
Suddenly, the dream shattered. Chen Yao opened his eyes in confusion, still echoing with that baby crying in his mind.
Why is it so hard to have a good dream?
He thought about closing his eyes to jump back into it, hoping to fast-forward to their wedding night, but as he became more awake, the sobbing seemed to be right next to him.
Reaching out to grab the familiar soft body, he found nothing but empty space!
Startled, Chen Yao tumbled out of bed and scrambled to fling open the bedroom door, immediately spotting Lin Nan curled up on the couch, tears streaming down her face.
“What’s wrong, what’s wrong?” he rushed over, squatting beside her, a nervous look plastered on his face as he stared at her tear-streaked cheeks. “Why are you crying? Talk to me!”
Lin Nan looked up at him with puppy-dog eyes, and the tears just flowed even more.
“Don’t just cry! Is it Zhu Yong Wen…”
“It’s not that… Auntie’s here,” Lin Nan said, clutching her tummy with her hands, her nails digging into her flesh. “I sent him to buy me some painkillers.”
Chen Yao plopped down onto the floor, relieved but also chuckling at her pitiful appearance. “See, this is what you get for loving cola so much; you never listen to me!”
“I didn’t hear you say that!” Lin Nan shot back, sounding rather self-righteous.
“Two months ago, I told you not to drink cola at the beginning of the month, but you insisted it was just medicine—drinking it would make the pain go away.”
Realizing she was at fault, Lin Nan turned her head away, groaning in pain but ignoring Chen Yao.
Chen Yao felt helpless—this girlfriend was getting more spoiled by the day! At this rate, she might become a true little princess.
Struggling to find the right words, he grabbed a tissue from the coffee table and gently wiped Lin Nan’s tears, softly saying, “I’ll get you a heating pad and boil some water. You just stay on the couch and don’t move; you already look like a sad cat.”
“I don’t want to cry either…”
Lin Nan mumbled, gnashing her teeth in frustration. “Next time you see Lilith, just take her out!”
“What does she have to do with this? It’s still your fault sticking to your cola habit! Didn’t you have ice cream when you were tutoring yesterday?”
“Triple scoop! It was delicious! They bought me a dozen boxes, and I didn’t want it to go to waste!”
Fuming, Chen Yao flicked her forehead several times with his finger. “Still thinking about food? You’ll eat yourself to d*ath!”
“If I d*e, you’ll have no girlfriend!” Lin Nan bravely declared, despite the pain, “Now pamper me, or I swear I’ll d*e from the pain!”
To be fair, Lin Nan had tried to avoid cold water and forbidden foods, but her cravings got the better of her. Even during her time of the month, she couldn’t resist a sip and, finding no immediate pain, she went wild with it.
Until today, when karma showed up.
While she was busy distracting herself from the pain with her thoughts, she suddenly felt weightless—before she could react, she found herself in Chen Yao’s arms.
Panicking, she wrapped her arms around his neck, eyes shut tight. Already a bit afraid of heights, the feeling of weightlessness was terrifying to her.
Fortunately, she was soon set down on the bed in the bedroom, where Chen Yao promptly layered her with two comforters, then turned to search for the elusive heating pad.
“Snuggle tight and stop crying; if you cry, I’ll be sad too.”
Lin Nan curled up again, using the blanket to wipe her tears, but they just kept rolling out under the pain’s influence. “I told you it wasn’t my fault!”
Wrapping herself up in the blanket, she lamented her own indulgence.
If only she hadn’t had the cola and ice cream.
Eating was a joy, but facing the consequences was a whole different kind of brutal.
As she grumbled about this and that, deep down, Lin Nan knew she was just trying to divert her attention; she understood it was all her own stubbornness that got her here.
Then, there was a knock at the door. Chen Yao quickly put on a shirt and raced to open it, finding Zhu Yong Wen standing there with some medicine, which he snatched away without a second thought. Quickly, he searched for the medicine online.
He was worried Lin Nan might have bought something harmful.
This medication was pretty popular among women dealing with period cramps, which eased his worries, and he nodded at Zhu Yong Wen. “Thanks.”
“No problem! But seriously, what’s wrong with her?” Zhu Yong Wen entered, glancing at the closed bedroom door with concern. “Is it acute gastroenteritis? Should we go to the hospital?”
“No, it’s nothing serious. She brought this upon herself.” Chen Yao rubbed his temples. “I can’t control her; she just eats whatever she wants when working part-time outside.”
“Did she eat something bad?”
“Maybe.” Chen Yao poured the boiled water into a cup, sat down on the sofa, and began transferring it back and forth between two cups, trying to let the boiling water cool down to warm.
He looked up at Zhu Yong Wen. “Did you book the earliest train?”
“At ten in the morning.”
“Then you better hurry to catch it! It takes two hours by bus to get to the station; even a taxi would take an hour, and in the morning, you might hit traffic!”
Zhu Yong Wen shook his head. “Forget it. I’ll refund my ticket. I’m not leaving her like this.”
Dude, are you actually starting to like Lin Nan?
Chen Yao watched him closely, reading concern in his eyes, but he shook his head. “No, just go. I can take care of Lin Nan.”
“If you could take care of her, how did it end up like this?” Zhu Yong Wen asked with curiosity. “Not some chronic illness, is it?”
If periods count as an illness, then sure!
Chen Yao’s headache intensified. He took a sip of the now lukewarm water before grabbing a pill and heading into the bedroom.
The door was ajar, allowing Zhu Yong Wen to clearly observe the interaction inside.
He suddenly felt a bit out of place.
Chen Yao wasn’t an idiot—if something serious was going on, he’d be in a panic way before Zhu Yong Wen. Now, him being here just made him an oversized third wheel.
Moreover, if he stayed too long, Lin Nan’s image of him would be completely ruined!
Hearing gentle moans of pain from the bedroom, he stood up and called out, “Lin Nan, my train is about to leave! I’m heading out first!”
“Safe travels! Have a good trip!”
“Why do I feel like you’re cursing me?” Zhu Yong Wen mumbled; back in high school, they used to add “and disappear halfway” to “safe travels.”
