Chapter 84 Chapter 84 She Needs Time
There was only a warm yellow rabbit night light on in the bedroom, and the soft glow enveloped the big bed.
Xizhi washed herself and smelled delicious. She curled up in Xitong's arms, her little hands clutching the corner of her pajamas, listening to her mother telling the story of the Little Prince in a gentle voice.
"...the little prince left his rose and set out to visit other planets..."
Xitong's voice was gentle, and her fingers patted her son's back intermittently.
The story came to an end, but Xizhi suddenly raised his head, his large eyes behind his black glasses filled with innocent curiosity. He whispered, "Mom, did I also live in your belly before?"
Xitong's heart softened instantly. She kissed her son's forehead and said, "Yes, baby, you used to live in a little house called the womb inside your mother's belly. It was warm and safe."
Xizhi blinked, and then questions followed, exploring the origin of life: "Then... Mom, how did you know I was in there? Are you scared?"
How did you know I was in there?
Are you scared?
These two simple questions, like two keys, unexpectedly opened a long-closed door deep in Xitong's memory.
The torrent of time roared back, instantly pulling her back to eight years ago, a summer full of confusion, choices and panic for her.
It was a college graduation trip.
She, Su Luyao, and two other roommates went to the western Sichuan Plateau together.
The sky was incredibly blue, the clouds hung low and seemed to be within reach, the snow-capped mountains shone with holy light in the sun, and the grasslands were full of wild flowers...
The scenery is breathtakingly magnificent.
However, Xitong gradually became absent-minded.
I was overcome with a sense of inexplicable fatigue, and the sight of greasy yak beef hotpot made me nauseous. Most importantly...
My period has been delayed for almost half a month.
An ominous premonition, like the chill that quietly spread across the plateau, seeped into her limbs bit by bit.
She didn't dare to think too much and could only force a smile and take photos and ride horses with everyone, trying to cover up her inner uneasiness with the excitement of the journey.
Until the last night of their trip, they stayed in a hotel outside the Siguniang Mountain Scenic Area.
After Su Luyao finished washing up, she saw Xitong staring at the dark night outside the window, her face looking a little pale under the dim light.
"Xiao Xi, what's wrong with you? Are you still feeling uncomfortable due to altitude sickness?"
Su Luyao asked with concern.
Xitong turned her head and looked at her best friend. Her lips moved a few times and her voice was dry: "Yaoyao... I... I haven't had my period for a long time."
Su Luyao was stunned for a moment, then her eyes widened slowly. A guess came to her mind, and she lowered her voice: "You...you and Yu Sixie...?"
Xitong nodded with difficulty.
"No way..." Su Luyao was also panicking. She stood up suddenly and said, "Just wait!"
She put on her coat and almost rushed out of the hotel. In the unfamiliar town, she finally found a small pharmacy with the lights on and bought a pregnancy test stick with her heart pounding.
Back in the room, Su Luyao locked the door and stuffed the small box that seemed to weigh a thousand pounds into Xitong's hands.
The hotel's bathroom is not big, the lighting is not bright, and it has a cold texture.
Xitong's fingers trembled slightly due to nervousness. She followed the instructions and placed the pregnancy test stick flat on the edge of the sink.
Then, there was a long, suffocating wait.
She leaned her back against the cold tiled wall, afraid to look.
Su Luyao held her hand tightly, and both of them could feel the cold sweat and slight trembling on each other's palms.
There was the sound of silent wind outside the window, and the only sound in the room was each other's heavy breathing.
Time passes second by second, and each second seems as long as a century.
Finally, Xitong plucked up the courage, turned her head slowly, and looked at the small pregnancy test stick.
The two clear and glaring red bars on the white tiles of the sink were like two thunderbolts, striking her sight fiercely!
boom--!
My mind went blank, and the sounds of the entire world seemed to be taken away in an instant.
The huge panic was like ice water pouring down from above her head, instantly freezing her blood and breathing.
She could even clearly hear the sound of her heart beating wildly, almost breaking her sternum.
"Two...Xiao Xi...it's two!"
Su Luyao's voice was filled with tears and trembling with disbelief, and she hugged Xitong's body tightly, which had suddenly become cold.
Xitong froze in place, his eyes fixed on the two bars that would determine his fate. His whole body was cold, and his hands and feet were numb.
She was only twenty-two years old, and everything about the future was full of uncertainty... The arrival of this child was completely out of her life plan. It was like a sudden tsunami, shattering all her plans and aspirations.
Are you scared?
It's more than just fear.
It is a panic of falling into an endless abyss, a huge fear of an unknown future, and a helplessness and confusion of bearing the consequences alone.
At that moment, she felt like a lost child, standing in the wilderness, unable to see any direction.
Under the warm yellow light, Xizhi was still looking up, waiting for his mother's answer.
Xitong pulled herself away from that hasty memory, but her heart still tightened slightly because of that long-lasting panic.
She looked into Xiaozhi's pure and innocent eyes, gently concealing the heaviness and fear, leaving only a gentle smile.
She touched Xiaozhi's soft cheek and whispered, "Mom used a little tool to know when the baby was coming. I was a little scared because I was still young and didn't know how to take good care of you."
She hugged Xiaozhi tightly, feeling the warmth from his small body, her voice filled with the peace and confidence that came with years of experience: "But later, Mom knew that you are the best gift God has given her. No matter how scared I am, Mom will bravely give birth to you and love you well."
Xizhi seemed to understand, but in Xitong's warm embrace and gentle words, he felt a full sense of security and love. He rubbed himself contentedly, yawned, and gradually fell asleep.
Xitong looked at her son's peaceful sleeping face, feeling mixed emotions.
That hectic past has now become one of the most precious memories in my life.
Because she found out she was pregnant on National Highway 318, she even joked that she wanted to name the child "318".
The peace and happiness at this moment made her extremely grateful to her younger self who was trembling with fear in the hotel bathroom but ultimately chose to face it bravely.
…
The atmosphere at the Yu family's dinner table was as warm as ever.
Auntie cooked several of her signature dishes, which were delicious and flavourful. Father and Mother Yu kept serving food to Xitong and Xizhi, while Yu Sixie also carefully peeled shrimps for Xitong.
However, Xitong seemed to have a particularly poor appetite today.
She looked at the sweet and sour pork ribs in the bowl that Yu's mother had given her, which she usually liked very much. As soon as she smelled the sweet and sour taste, her stomach began to churn uncontrollably.
She suppressed her discomfort, took a small bite, and chewed it a few times, but it felt like chewing wax, and even brought her a stronger sense of nausea.
She quickly picked up the water cup beside her and took a big sip to suppress the nausea.
"Xiao Xi, are these ribs not to your liking? I see you haven't even touched them."
Yu's mother asked with concern, her eyes lingering on her slightly pale face.
Xitong forced a smile and put down her chopsticks. "No, Mom, it's delicious. Maybe... maybe I was standing at school for too long this afternoon. I'm a little tired and don't have much of an appetite."
Yu Sixie looked at her barely touched bowl of rice, frowning slightly. "Have you been too busy lately? Is the project stressful?"
"fine."
Xitong shook her head, not wanting to worry everyone, "I'll just have some soup."
She scooped a small bowl of light winter melon and pork ribs soup and sipped it, trying to soothe her protesting stomach.
But even this light soup made her feel a little stuffy and uncomfortable after drinking it.
During the meal, Yu's father and mother exchanged glances several times, and both saw the same guess in each other's eyes.
Yu's mother even noticed that Xitong subconsciously pressed her chest lightly with her hands several times, which was clearly a small action to relieve nausea.
They are all experienced people. Xitong's recent symptoms of fatigue, loss of appetite, and nausea when smelling certain smells are too obvious to point to.
But no one dared to speak rashly.
Because they all knew clearly that Xitong had no plans to have another child. Her career and studies were at a critical stage, and the planning of W City was also on the agenda.
Bringing up the speculation of pregnancy at this moment is like touching her reverse scale.
The dinner ended in a subtle, tacit silence.
Xitong went back to her room to rest on the pretext of being tired.
Watching her disappear at the stairs, Yu's mother immediately stopped Yu Sixie, who was about to go to the study, and lowered her voice, her tone filled with anxiety and worry: "Yu Sixie, have you noticed that Xiaoxi is not right recently? She can't eat, can't stand the smell of greasy food, and is always sleepy... This, this seems like..."
Father Yu also came over and nodded solemnly in agreement, "Yes. We think so. But Xiaoxi is a very determined child. She's said before that she won't reconsider. We can't ask directly for fear of upsetting her. Find a chance to gently remind her, or... accompany her to the hospital for a checkup. Her health is important. Don't let her become ill from overwork."
Yu Sixie listened to his parents' words, recalled Xi Tong's recent abnormal behavior, and doubts arose in his heart.
He had previously thought that she was just busy with her studies and overdrawn, and did not think too much about it.
When his parents pointed it out to him at this moment, those subtle signs connected together, and a possibility gradually became clear in his mind.
He nodded, his expression serious: "I understand, Dad, Mom. I will find a chance to tell her."
…
There was only a dim bedside lamp left in the master bedroom, and the soft light cast the embracing figures on the wall.
Xitong washed away her tiredness, leaned in Yu Sixie's arms, and enjoyed the rare quiet moment of the day.
Yu Sixie's fingers entangled with her hair from time to time, feeling the warmth in his arms, but in his mind he was thinking about what his parents said at dinner and Xi Tong's recent abnormal behavior.
He carefully chose his words and spoke casually, his voice sounding particularly low in the silent night:
"Xiao Xi, today I saw how much Mom loves Xiao Zhi. She was so reluctant to let go..." He paused, observing her reaction. "I was thinking, if, if... if there was another cute child like Xiao Zhi in the family, Mom and Dad would definitely be happier."
Xitong's body, leaning against his chest, stiffened almost imperceptibly.
She didn't answer immediately, but buried her face deeper in his arms, as if this could isolate her from all temptations from the outside world.
Yu Sixie sensed her resistance, but still continued to cautiously probe: "Or...what about you? Have you ever thought about having another child?"
This question is quite straightforward.
Xitong suddenly raised her head from his arms. Under the light, her expression was a little complicated, with a hint of barely perceptible irritation and... perhaps panic?
She stared at him, her tone hard: "Yu Sixie, what do you mean?"
Without waiting for his answer, she suddenly threw back the quilt like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, and curled herself up completely inside, covering even her head. Only a muffled voice with obvious resistance came out from under the quilt:
"I don't want it! I have Xiaozhi and that's enough! I'm doing well now. My studies and career, which one doesn't require all my energy? Another child? How would I have the time? How would I have the energy?"
Her voice became more and more urgent, as if she was trying to convince him, or more like to convince herself: "One child is great! I will give him all my love and devote all my resources to him, raising him to be the best child. That's enough!"
Yu Sixie looked at the bulging quilt on the bed with "Refuse to Communicate" written all over it and sighed helplessly.
He reached out to pull the quilt, but Xitong held it tightly from inside.
"Xiao Xi..." He tried to comfort her.
"Don't touch me!"
Xi Tong's voice had a barely perceptible nasal tone, like aggrieved, yet also like some kind of desperate warning. "Yu Sixie, let me tell you, if, and I mean if! I only have one child, Xiaozhi, in this life, then he'll be named Xizhi! There's no way I'll let him change his last name to Yu! You'd better give up on that idea!"
This almost arrogant declaration is not so much an insistence that the child take her surname as it is a disguised fear and resistance to the fact that she might be pregnant.
She was afraid that her life rhythm would be disrupted again, that her career, which had just started again, would be forced to stop, and that she would have to take on the heavy responsibility of another life.
Yu Sixie looked at Xi Tong's ostrich-like attitude and listened to her "warning" that she was trying to cover up her mistake. The guess in his heart was almost confirmed to 80%.
He did not forcefully pull the quilt again, but gently patted the place where she curled up through the soft duvet, with infinite indulgence and a hint of amusement in his voice:
"Okay, okay, it's up to you. If you're surnamed Xi, then Xi is your surname. If you're called Xizhi, then Xizhi is your name. As long as you're happy, anything is fine."
The person under the quilt seemed stunned for a moment and didn't say anything. However, his tense, curled-up posture relaxed slightly.
Yu Sixie knew that she needed time.
He didn't force her, but just lay quietly on the other side and turned off the bedside lamp.
In the darkness, he listened to the unsteady breathing of the person next to him, patted her back gently, and held her tightly in his arms.
If his guess is true... then this might be the beginning of another challenge.
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