If You Could Hear My Heart

His arms were incredibly strong, hugging her tightly and preventing her from moving.

“Are you really having a headache or are you faking it? You seem to be doing quite well,” Xu Chaomu gritted her teeth.

“Who would take medicine for no reason?”

In the darkness, Shen Chi’s eyebrows furrowed deeply, the dull pain in his head coming in waves. However, with her by his side, the pain seemed to diminish.

He held her in his arms, smelling the unique fragrance of her body, and his heart instantly calmed.

No matter the torment, it seemed worthwhile, as long as she was still by his side.

“Then let’s make a deal, you release your hand first? It’s dark and we shouldn’t move rashly,” Xu Chaomu suggested, mimicking his tone.

Shen Chi’s lips curved up in a smile, his voice laced with laughter, “Right, don’t move around, or else I can’t guarantee anything. You should know, I am a normal man.”

In fact, when he held her, his body had already ignited a fire, but firstly, she was pregnant, so he couldn’t do anything to her, and secondly, his headache was so severe that he really wasn’t in the mood.

“Liar,” Xu Chaomu whispered reproachfully.

She regretted coming to see him at night; why was she so kind-hearted? This liar.

Now she was held in his arms, unable to move. Moreover, as they were pressed close together, she could clearly hear his steady heartbeat, unhurried and strong.

It was her, embarrassingly, whose heart was thumping wildly. Why was it doing that?

Shen Chi’s head still ached faintly, but holding Xu Chaomu close had eased much of the pain.

Hearing the thumping of her heart, he couldn’t help but smile deeply and ask, “How does it feel to be held by a ‘male god’?”

Xu Chaomu’s heart was still racing, and his words made her even more irritated, “What male god? More like a male lunatic. Shen Chi, your vanity is beyond cure.”

He didn’t take offense, instead hugging her even tighter, the smile on his face becoming even more pronounced.

“Shen Chi, can you loosen your grip a bit? It’s summer! Summer!” Xu Chaomu protested indignantly.

“The air conditioning is on.”

“Don’t you find it hot?”

“I find it cold.” Having said that, he wrapped his arms even tighter around her.

Xu Chaomu was at a loss for words. There was no point in arguing with someone so shameless.

“Mumu, let’s go to sleep, it’s late,” he suggested.

“Does your head still hurt?” she asked, sounding annoyed.

She didn’t really want to ask, but then she thought about how he bought a peace-lock for their baby today. Well… it wouldn’t hurt just to ask, it’s not like it would cost her anything.

“If you don’t talk, it doesn’t hurt,” Shen Chi replied.

Why did she care about him? Whether his head hurt or not, what did it have to do with her? Why should she care?!

Consequently, Xu Chaomu became truly silent, refusing to speak with him any longer.

However, this was her first time sleeping in his bed, and she felt incredibly awkward.

During those eight years, she spared no effort trying to get close to him, trying desperately to crawl into his bed, only to be thrown out just before she could snuggle up. And now, ironically, she couldn’t leave if she wanted to.

She closed her eyes, but truthfully, she couldn’t sleep at all.

Shen Chi wasn’t asleep either. Even with the medication, his head was still aching. He could only frown and endure it. Endure a little longer and it would pass.

The summer night was peaceful, without a whisper of sound. Occasionally, a breeze would stir, causing the tree leaves to rustle softly.

Time ticked by second by second, and when the clock on the wall pointed to “3,” neither of them were asleep, each preoccupied with their own thoughts.

Xu Chaomu moved slightly, trying to gently withdraw her arm, only for him to whisper in her ear, “Can’t sleep? Am I pressing on you?”

Xu Chaomu was startled, “Why are you still awake?”

“When I have a headache, I often can’t sleep all night,” Shen Chi said nonchalantly.

“Has it been like this for the past five years?” she inquired.

“It’s like this whenever I miss you,” Shen Chi touched her head and chuckled.

“I’m asking you a serious question here.”

“And I’m giving you a serious answer,” he replied.

Xu Chaomu was left speechless; he always did this.

“Since you can’t sleep and neither can I, why don’t you tell a story to our baby?” Xu Chaomu suggested.

“Sure, what story do you want to hear?”

“I don’t know what story he’d want to hear, so… just tell any story, as long as it’s good.”

“Then I will just tell any story,” Shen Chi became enthusiastic, “Once upon a time, there was a very dumb, very dumb rabbit, as dumb as… let me think… oh, as dumb as you.”

“Damn it, Shen Chi, can’t you tell a proper story?”

Xu Chaomu couldn’t help but tug at his hair, irritated that even storytelling had to bring her down!

“Don’t move, don’t move. I’ll continue, I’ll tell it properly.”

“Yes, go on,” Xu Chaomu said, letting go of his hair.

“One day, this dumb rabbit went down the mountain to sell a basket of vegetables, and he happened to encounter a wolf dressed as a sheep.”

“Then what?” Xu Chaomu asked from under the covers.

“Then, the wolf squatted in front of the dumb rabbit’s vegetable stall and muttered to itself, ‘What should I eat today?’ The dumb rabbit picked up a bunch of grass, ‘Need grass? Two bucks a bunch, two bucks, and you won’t be fooled; two bucks, and you can’t go wrong.’”

“The wolf rolled its eyes, ‘No thanks.’ The dumb rabbit then grabbed a bunch of greens, ‘How about the greens?’ The wolf shook its head again, ‘No.’ The dumb rabbit became anxious, ‘What about the carrots, fresh, I haven’t even had the heart to eat them myself,’ and the wolf kept shaking its head, no.”

“Frustrated, the dumb rabbit flipped its stall, ‘What the hell do you want? What do you want?!’ The wolf grabbed it firmly and smiled slyly, ‘I want to eat you.’”

Upon hearing the story, Xu Chaomu scoffed, “That’s too violent! Not nice at all!”

“I haven’t finished yet,” Shen Chi said.

“Oh, then continue.”

“Of course, the dumb rabbit struggled, saying, ‘My meat doesn’t taste good,’ but the wolf picked it up by the ears and took it home.”

“So, did the wolf have a change of heart? Or maybe there were other rabbits to save it?” Xu Chaomu inquired.

Shen Chi chuckled wryly; wrapping his arms around Xu Chaomu’s waist, he whispered softly, “Come a bit closer, and I’ll tell you.”

“Hmm?” Xu Chaomu was curious.

As she moved closer to him, Shen Chi whispered in her ear, “The big bad wolf fell in love with the dumb rabbit, and when he said ‘I want to eat you,’ he meant… I want you in every way. From then on… the big bad wolf and dumb rabbit lived happily, blissfully, thudding and wall-thudding lives together…”

… Damn! Xu Chaomu was instantly at a loss for words, feeling as if a flock of crows swooshed overhead.

She smacked his shoulder, “Yellow and violent stories, Shen Chi, mind the influence! You’re corrupting my baby!”