“Oh, I’m fine. It’s probably something I ate, that’s all,” Bai Beibei explained quickly. She was afraid that he would find out that she might be pregnant.
“I’ll pour you a cup of hot water. It should help.” Gong Yi got out of bed and poured her a cup of hot water.
“Thank you.” Bai Beibei looked upon his actions with great fondness. Gong Yi was always considerate in that way.
Gong Yi bent down and kissed her forehead. “Silly, there’s no need to thank me. From now on, the two of us are one. Drink the water and rest early.”
“Okay.”
…
Bai Beibei arrived at the hospital early in the morning. She wore a mask to conceal her identity.
The doctor asked, “Miss, is there something wrong with your body?”
Bai Beibei could not meet the doctor’s eyes. Stammering out a reply, she said, “I think I’m pregnant.”
The doctor examined her lower abdomen thoughtfully. “How long has it been since you last had your period?”
“Almost four months.”
“Four months? Why haven’t you gone for a checkup yet? Four months is a long time to be without your period.”
Bai Beibei could not answer this question.
“Where’s your husband?”
Bai Beibei lowered her head, not saying a word.
“How old are you?”
“18.”
The doctor sighed. She was so young. Who would have thought a young woman like her would be pregnant? Society was certainly suffering from serious moral degradation, and it was only going downhill from where they presently stood.
The doctor ordered a panel of tests which he did after receiving her assent. “We’ll need a blood sample. It’ll help us determine if you’re pregnant.”
“Thank you, doctor.” Bai Beibei accepted the order form and walked out of the examination room after paying the bill.
“Wait here for now. The results will be out in about half an hour.” The attending nurse, who drew a phial of blood from her, instructed.
Bai Beibei sat on a bench in the corridor and waited. Time passed. Ten minutes, twenty minutes, and it was not long before half an hour had passed. To her, the wait seemed longer than it really was. It felt like it took forever to get the results of her blood test.
She got up in slow mechanical motions, heading to a counter where she received her test results.
The report showed she was pregnant.
Pregnant!
She was pregnant!
The news hit her like a bolt from the blue. It was so shocking that her hands trembled as she gripped the report stating its findings. If her eyes were lasers, the glare she aimed at the report would have reduced it to ashes.
She did not know what to do.
In the doctor’s office, the doctor looked at the report and said, “Miss, according to our test results, you are almost four months pregnant.”
Four months…
Bai Beibei recalled the events that took place clearly. She could not be wrong. This child belonged to the man from that night. Even now, she did not know who he was.
He was a stranger to her.
“Everything looks normal. The baby is developing well. Do you plan on giving birth to it?”
Giving birth to the child…
Beibei had not considered it at all.
“Shouldn’t you still be in school, Miss? Where are your parents? Didn’t they accompany you here?”
Bai Beibei shook her head and said softly, “I don’t have any family.”
She really didn’t have any family. She did not have a father or mother whom she could call her own. She only had her grandmother, and she was six feet under. She did not have anyone left.
The doctor licked his lips and said, “You’ll be responsible for the child being its mother. Do you have the means to support the child in your current condition? An abortion at this stage will be very painful for both you and your unborn child. This is something you’ll need to consider.”
Bai Beibei walked out of the examination room in a daze. Absently, she rubbed her lower abdomen. She had not felt any movement from the fetus in the four months that she had been pregnant. It was as if she was not pregnant at all.
Despite being pregnant for so long, she had not felt any sign of the developing life nurtured in her womb.
Should she keep the child?
There seemed little point in keeping the child – a child whose father was a man she knew nothing about.
Bai Beibei stared at the diamond ring coiled around her ring finger. Gong Yi had proposed to her yesterday, and she agreed. She was about to become Mrs Gong. A future of happiness awaited her. If Gong Yi learnt of the child’s existence, what would he do?
He was a good man – that much she knew. He would not allow her to have an abortion. However, could she truly be so selfish? Giving birth to another man’s child and forcing him to take care of them both seemed far too much for her to ask for. It would stain his name, shaming him.
She could not bear the thought of being so cruel to him. He was already so tolerant of her, knowing how cheap and dirty she was.
Happiness was within her grasp. She did not want to lose it.
“Doctor, I don’t want this child. Please arrange an abortion for me.”
The doctor looked up at the girl who had suddenly barged in. “Very well. If you’ve decided, I’ll make the arrangements. Do not inform anyone of who you are. I’ll have everything ready by tomorrow morning.”
…
Bai Beibei returned home shortly after.
Gong Yi called to say he would be back late that night, so she ate a light dinner by herself. When she had finished her meal, she took a shower and went to bed.
That was the beginning of her nightmare.
She dreamed of a young girl – a young girl who chased her, calling her mother.
The words grated in her ears. She did not want to be a mother, not yet. In her dream, she turned her back on the weeping child, walking away.
The little girl cried out in alarm, chasing her as tears streaked down her porcelain cheeks. She could hear her, then. The cries of ‘mother! mother!’ The heart-wrenching cries of a child who could not understand what she had done wrong; the frightened cries demanding an explanation as to why she was being abandoned.
“Beibei, Beibei.”
Bai Beibei was awoken by a soothing voice laced in concern. Slowly, she opened her tear-filled eyes, covering her face to hide her embarrassment. The pillow she had been lying on was drenched.
Gong Yi wrapped his strong arms around her supple waist and kissed her. “Beibei, what’s wrong? Did you have a bad dream? Why are you crying?”
Gong Yi leaned over, kissing away her tears as he did so.
Bai Beibei snuggled into his chest as she hugged his stalwart form for comfort. The warmth he exuded chased away her fears and brought her a sense of relief. It was just a dream. Gong Yi smelled of soap. It had not been long since he showered. His heady scent was a refreshing balm that soothed her.
“Mm… I had a bad dream.”
“What kind of bad dream did you have? Tell me.”
Bai Beibei shook her head. “I don’t remember.”
Gong Yi pinched her cheek. “A lot of things have happened recently. I know you’re in a bad mood because of shock. I’ll spend more time with you after I’m done with what I’m doing. The mental arithmetic competition in America will start in a few days. I’ll go with you. I have many friends in America. I’m sure they would love to meet you.”
He wanted to introduce her to his friends. Those same friends who had sent her to his room in a feat of matchmaking. Bai Beibei was sure they would be shocked to see them together.
Fate truly had a way of making fools out of them.
Idly, Gong Yi toyed with the idea of revealing the true identity of the man who had claimed her that night. That thought, however, was discarded almost immediately.
It would make no difference once they returned from America. By then, the whole debacle would have been covered up nicely. He saw no reason to come clean since Beibei would learn the truth sooner or later.
To put it bluntly, he chickened out. The mere thought of rejection was enough to stymie any enthusiasm he may have had in revealing the truth.
Bai Beibei remained silent. She was in no mood to consider the competition whatsoever. Her thoughts, insecurities and apprehensions revolved around her unborn child.
Suddenly, her vision went dark. Gong Yi’s lips had latched themselves over her cherry-coloured mouth.
He kissed her gently, carefully caressing her. Bai Beibei’s eyes widened in fright. She could feel his need from the scalding touch of his skin.
“Gong Yi,” she hissed in warning.
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