For The Rest Of Our Life – Chapter 89

If you kiss it, it won’t hurt anymore

Lin Xian was truly exhausted. Shortly after closing her eyes, she fell into a groggy sleep, losing consciousness.

Xiao Wanqing carefully extracted her hand from Lin Xian’s grip, and then took the alcohol and cotton balls handed to her by the nurse and gently wiped Lin Xian’s palms.

When the first IV bottle was finished, Xiao Wanqing tried to be as gentle as possible so as not to wake Lin Xian, quietly checking her temperature.

But as soon as Xiao Wanqing lightly tugged at Lin Xian’s collar, Lin Xian opened her eyes in a daze. She looked at Xiao Wanqing blankly, unsure if she was fully awake. As she kept looking, she foolishly curved her eyebrows and smiled at Xiao Wanqing.

Xiao Wanqing’s heart instantly melted. While inserting the thermometer into Lin Xian’s elbow crease, she gently touched her forehead and softly coaxed her, “It’s okay, I’m just checking to see if your fever has gone down; you continue to sleep.”

Like a contented and well-behaved little kitten, Lin Xian pouted her lips, turned her head, and kissed the inside of Xiao Wanqing’s wrist that was before her. She rubbed her forehead against it twice, then without any further movement, fell asleep again.

In Xiao Wanqing’s eyes, weary with fatigue, a soft smile could not help but appear.

Her lips curved in a gentle arc.

A few minutes later, she deftly removed the thermometer from under Lin Xian’s armpit. This time, she did not disturb Lin Xian.

38.8°C, the temperature was slowly falling. Xiao Wanqing breathed a slight sigh of relief.

She put down the thermometer and gazed at the girl’s peaceful sleeping face, inwardly chiding her: “You look so sweet; how can you be so naughty?” But her hands, honest in their actions, firmly grasped Lin Xian’s hand that lay on the bed with an IV drip, tenderly caressing the base of her thumb.

She didn’t know how much time had passed when the mobile phone in her bag began to vibrate. Xiao Wanqing, not wanting to disturb Lin Xian, let go of Lin Xian’s hand, and as she took out her phone, she walked toward the door of the infusion room.

The call was from Aunt Liu, inquiring about Lin Xian’s condition.

Xiao Wanqing stepped outside the door and assured Aunt Liu that Lin Xian was getting an IV drip and her fever was receding slowly, telling her not to worry.

Standing in the corridor, Xiao Wanqing noticed hospital staff starting to move about sparsely. She glanced at her watch, then at Lin Xian, still deep in sleep, and spoke to Aunt Liu with a favor: “Auntie, could you trouble yourself to make some porridge and bring it over? Xianxian is sleeping, and I don’t feel comfortable leaving her alone, and I’m worried she’ll wake up hungry. There’s still a bottle of IV left that’ll take more than an hour to finish.”

Aunt Liu didn’t decline; she cheerfully agreed, “I was just thinking of asking you if you needed food brought over. I’ve already cooked the porridge, so I’ll bring it to you now.” Her sleep was shallow; startled awake in the middle of the night by Lin Xian, she found herself unable to fall back asleep. She decided not to sleep and instead tidied up her own things while waiting for Xiao Wanqing and Lin Xian to return. A long time passed without their return, so she guessed they might not come back for a while and went ahead to prepare breakfast for them.

In fact, this was beyond the scope of Aunt Liu’s responsibilities, but her enthusiasm and consideration were something for which Xiao Wanqing was genuinely grateful.

Over half an hour later, Aunt Liu brought over the porridge. Looking at the stubborn girl lying on the hospital bed, she hesitated, as if having something to say but then thinking better of it. It seemed, after all, this was not the place for conversations, not urgent for the moment. However, she still gave Xiao Wanqing a heads-up: “Xiaoxiao, I’ll go back first. When you return, there is something I want to talk to you about.” Xiao Wanqing had always been polite and friendly, and after they became acquainted, Xiao Wanqing had said calling her Miss Xiao was too formal and suggested she call her Xiaoxiao instead. After a few interactions and seeing that Xiao Wanqing sincerely didn’t mind, she stopped declining to use this informal title.

Xiao Wanqing gave her a calm look, eyes serene, and replied softly, “Okay.”

Aunt Liu sighed, a mixture of disappointment and relief in her breath.

This employer can be really good when she’s good, and just as truly terrible when she’s not.

Not long after Aunt Liu left, Lin Xian woke up. She was uncomfortably dry from sweating excessively; her lips and the inside of her mouth felt parched. She propped herself up to sit, and just as she frowned, intending to ask Xiao Wanqing for some water, Xiao Wanqing anticipated her needs. She had opened the thermos Aunt Liu brought over and poured out a cup of warm water for Lin Xian, saying softly, “It’s warm, won’t burn you.”

Lin Xian took the cup lid, gulped down the warm water, and thoroughly moistened her mouth and throat, her brows lifting and eyes smiling with satisfaction. She had slept for quite a while, her fever had subsided, and she felt more spirited, enough to tease Xiao Wanqing with renewed energy. Her voice, still raspy from sleep and laced with a lazy gentleness, murmured, “My girlfriend is so considerate.”

“My girlfriend”… Lin Xian chewed over these words to herself, her lips curving into a higher and higher smile.

Upon hearing this, Xiao Wanqing’s movement to recapture the cup lid paused, and a light blush spread quickly across her fair face. She bit her lip almost imperceptibly, then lowered her eyes, pretending not to have heard what was said, and asked with concern, “Do you want more to drink?”

Lin Xian shook her head, “No more, thank you.”

Xiao Wanqing screwed the cap back on and lifted the thermos out, then asked with a hint of a plea, “Are you hungry? How about some porridge? Aunt Liu mentioned that you didn’t eat last night.”

Lin Xian touched her stomach, realizing she was actually a bit hungry. She smacked her lips, unsure, “But I haven’t brushed my teeth, is it really okay to eat?”

Seeing Lin Xian’s serious little dilemma, Xiao Wanqing couldn’t help but smile helplessly.

She ladled out two small bowls of porridge from the thermos; one bowl was half full, and the other had just a little. She set the half-full bowl aside on the table to cool down a bit, and then, cradling the bowl with only a few mouthfuls of porridge, she lifted it to her lips, tilted her head back slightly, and finished the small portion in a few gulps.

She relaxed her brows and eyes, smiling at Lin Xian, “I haven’t brushed my teeth either. Don’t worry, we won’t laugh at each other or find each other disagreeable.”

Lin Xian immediately burst into giggles with a “pu-chi” sound. She looked at Xiao Wanqing, who was wearing pajamas under her overcoat, her face clearly showing signs of fatigue and looking less radiant than her usually bright and fresh self, resembling a goddess returning to the realm of mortals. Lin Xian felt an overwhelming surge of affection. Half-joking, half in confession, she said, “Don’t be afraid, in fact, even if I brushed my teeth and you never did, I wouldn’t laugh at you.”

Xiao Wanqing, who was actually a bit obsessive about cleanliness, had already struggled with drinking the porridge without brushing her teeth. Hearing Lin Xian’s words, she couldn’t help but seriously object, “I wouldn’t keep not brushing my teeth.” After saying this, she picked up the other bowl, took a spoon, scooped up a spoonful naturally, and brought it to Lin Xian’s lips.

Lin Xian was initially amused that Xiao Wanqing had missed the point, but seeing her bow her head and tenderly scoop the porridge for her, her heart swerved too.

She opened her lips and took the spoon, swallowing the warm porridge. Her eyes intently fixed on Xiao Wanqing, who was softly asking her “Is it hot?”, she smiled with a sincere sense of realization, “Being sick is actually quite nice, I wish it could always be like this…” Before she could finish, Xiao Wanqing, in a frantic tone, cut her off: “Xianxian, don’t talk nonsense.”

Lin Xian sealed her lips, then her eyes flickered as she looked at Xiao Wanqing with a blazing gaze and asked: “If I don’t say such things and if I’m not sick, Auntie Xiao, could you still be as good to me?”

Xiao Wanqing felt her hand trembling with her heart for a moment. After a while, she lowered her eyelids and then looked up again, rapidly meeting Lin Xian’s passionate gaze with her own. She handed over the spoon filled with porridge and nodded gently with a slight motion.

Lin Xian took the spoon into her mouth, her heart brimming with sweetness, and her smile blossomed across her face.

Xiao Wanqing took a day off for Lin Xian. After the IV drip, she took Lin Xian straight home.

Back at home, Xiao Wanqing originally wanted Lin Xian to go back to her room and sleep some more to rest, but Lin Xian felt her body was sticky and very uncomfortable, insisting on taking a bath.

Unable to persuade her otherwise, Xiao Wanqing had no choice but to personally adjust the water temperature for Lin Xian, setting a time limit for her, making sure she didn’t indulge in the cool by lowering the temperature too much or taking too long to shower. Lin Xian agreed cheerfully to each condition.

As Lin Xian entered the washroom to bathe, Aunt Liu, who had been waiting for the right moment, finally seized the opportunity to pull Xiao Wanqing aside to sit down and talk on the living room couch.

First, she exchanged pleasantries with Xiao Wanqing for quite some time, and then described in detail Lin Xian’s behavior during the days she was away, including the fall that was previously unreported. Then she gently steered the conversation to the main point: “Xiaoxiao, Xianxian is actually a very sensible child, but it’s exactly such sensible children who can become more terrifying when they act out.” She paused for a moment and sighed, “Actually, as an outsider, I shouldn’t really be qualified to discuss these matters with you, but yesterday, she really scared me.”

“If I hadn’t gotten up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom and found it strange that the air conditioner was on, and hadn’t been extra cautious to check on it, I dare not imagine what might have happened if I only discovered it this morning.” She recalled the incident with lingering fear.

A pain struck Xiao Wanqing’s heart, and her gaze darkened, the mere thought of what could have happened felt unbearable.

“Do you know what Xianxian told me yesterday before you arrived? She said that she and you had a disagreement, and asked me to be more patient, and that these incidents might frequently happen in the future.” Aunt Liu recalled with a sense of dismay, speaking in earnest, “Xiaoxiao, let me be frank with you, I’m scared, I can’t take responsibility for such matters. I don’t know what disagreements you and Xianxian have, but I know that kids these days don’t have the same tough upbringing as my generation. They haven’t been through major setbacks, and when faced with something unsatisfactory, they can easily become emotionally unstable and act irrationally. What if something irreversible happens?”

Aunt Liu was genuinely worried, and she couldn’t bear to watch a child torment themselves in this way, decisively expressing her unwillingness to continue. She considered herself to be a person of integrity, and considering that her niece, Xiao Ke, was still working under Xiao Wanqing, she mentioned that she was just short of completing a full month, so she didn’t want Xiao Wanqing to pay her for the full month; paying her by the day would suffice.

One good turn deserves another. Xiao Wanqing respected Aunt Liu for her conduct. Although they had only made a rough verbal agreement about the employment duration, Xiao Wanqing not only paid for the full month but also gave an extra half month’s wages as compensation for her breach of the agreement.

Lin Xian had only intended to take a shower, but after washing away the stickiness from her body, she couldn’t help despising her greasy hair. Gritting her teeth and steeling her heart, she decided to put her head under the showerhead and wash her hair as well.

Xiao Wanqing came once to urge her to hurry up, and Lin Xian obediently promised she would, but in the end, she still took a bit more time.

By the time she emerged from the bathroom feeling refreshed and clear-headed, clad in shorts, a short-sleeved shirt, and a lightweight robe draped over her wet hair, over half an hour had passed.

Xiao Wanqing was seated on the living room sofa and turned her head at the sound of footsteps. She let out a sigh, chiding her with a helpless tenderness, “Why can’t you be a bit more obedient?” Her tone lacked any reprimand, instead sounding indulgent and doting.

Lin Xian plopped down cross-legged beside Xiao Wanqing, pouting cunningly and adorably owning up to her error: “I was wrong, but not feeling clean really is uncomfortable.” After speaking, she looked around inquisitively and wondered, “Where’s Aunt Liu?”

Xiao Wanqing gave her a reproving glance, “Scared off by you, just as you wanted.”

Lin Xian immediately grinned without concealment, her happiness evident as she eagerly followed up, “Really?” As she laughed, she soon felt a bit embarrassed and hastened to explain, “Actually, Aunt Liu is quite nice, it’s not that I don’t like her.”

The smile at the corner of her lips was irrepressible, yet she still mustered a careful facade of caution, feigning ignorance as she asked, “So, with Aunt Liu gone, who will manage my three meals a day from now on?”

Xiao Wanqing responded with a nonchalant demeanor, “You might have to figure out a solution for yourself.”

Lin Xian was no longer the least bit intimidated. She leaned closer to Xiao Wanqing, wrapping her arms around Xiao Wanqing’s shoulders. With a deliberately pitiful expression and a soft, whiny charm, she cooed, “Oh please, I really want to eat the meals cooked by Auntie Xiao.”

The icy front that Xiao Wanqing had put up couldn’t withstand the girl’s sweet, tender onslaught for more than three seconds before it crumbled.

Her expression softened, she turned her head slightly, and her gaze unintentionally fell on Lin Xian’s arms wrapped around her. Something seemed to cross her mind, causing a subtle shift in her demeanor.

She lifted her hand and gently pulled down Lin Xian’s slim arm. In the girl’s puzzled gaze, Xiao Wanqing pushed up her sleeve to reveal her fair, smooth arm, as delicate as a lotus root.

On the tender, flawless arm, the sight of a dark red scab peeling off at the elbow, revealing new, pinkish flesh beneath, tugged painfully at Xiao Wanqing’s heart.

With a somber look in her eyes, she carefully let go of Lin Xian’s arm, stepped back from the sofa, and crouched down to pull up Lin Xian’s leg, meticulously inspecting the wound above her ankle bone.

Lin Xian felt Xiao Wanqing’s warm thumb caressing tenderly around her wound, followed by a warm droplet falling onto the dorsum of her foot.

She looked up, her eyes slightly moist, brimming with tender concern like gentle ripples on water, and asked affectionately, “Does it hurt?”

Lin Xian’s heart was instantly drenched by the expression in Xiao Wanqing’s eyes.

She gazed at Xiao Wanqing, and all the grievances and sorrows that had once weighed upon her heart seemed to dissipate in that instant. The wish she had hidden deep within, the one she didn’t dare voice and felt she had no right to express after cutting her hand that day, resurfaced. She tentatively extended her elbow and said with pursed lips, filled with both anticipation and trepidation, “Auntie Xiao, if you kiss it, it won’t hurt anymore.”

Xiao Wanqing looked at her with even more sparkling eyes, seemingly stunned, without moving.

Just when Lin Xian thought Xiao Wanqing was still not comfortable with the intimacy of their relationship and unwilling to indulge in such closeness, embarrassed and ready to awkwardly retract her hand to spare herself, Xiao Wanqing at that moment bent down, lowered her head, with her long lashes fluttering.

A tender, affectionate kiss fell upon the new flesh over her ankle bone. Soft and tickling, it was like a fire on the prairie, igniting the flame in Lin Xian’s heart, scorching her entire being.

“Does it still hurt?” Her beloved looked at her, with eyes like rippling water, filled with tenderness.

Lin Xian heard, within her heart, the sound of fireworks bursting into bloom.

The author has something to say:

Lin Xian: Thank you everyone for your support, have some sweets.