Chapter 11: Tender Feelings

Xiang Yu was held by Jin Fubai and placed in the passenger seat of the car. He fastened her seat belt and kissed her on the forehead lightly, “There is a good private hospital nearby. It’s about a ten-minute drive, bear with it for a bit. “

It took a short time to walk out of the alley yet Xiang Yu was already sweating in pain. Her lips and face were pale, she watch Jin Fubai with weakness and alarm as he closed the door and started the car to drive out of the old courtyard.

The warmth of his lips seemed to remain on her forehead and Jin Fubai’s phrase “bear with it” was really soothing.

But that shouldn’t belong to Jin Fubai. Xiang Yu hunched her back and pressed her hands tightly against her abdomen, her voice couldn’t be raised any higher, “Jin Fubai, I may just be on my period. I’ll just take some painkillers and I won’t need to go to the hospital.”

Jin Fubai’s car didn’t slow down, and he didn’t look back, but his tone was quite firm, “If it hurts like this you need to go to the hospital.” 

At night, there were lights on at the hospital building, and the yellow lights illuminated the building like it was a small palace. But no matter how beautiful the building is, people who are not sick and are in pain are reluctant to come to this place.

When they got out of the car and entered the hospital, Xiang Yu was held in Jin Fubai’s arms, and she was not allowed to take a step. Although she was already trembling uncontrollably in pain, she still felt that it was quite stimulating to use this battle against pain to go to the hospital because of her period.

On the way, Jin Fubai also made two phone calls on their road there. When he arrived at the hospital he happened to see the professor-doctor who was called by him putting on a white coat while standing at the gate of the hospital and looking out.

The old professor saw Jin Fubai and took the initiative to nod, “Fortunately, the time of your call was just when I was about to get off work.”

“Excuse me.” Jin Fubai held Xiang Yu, even if he felt she was struggling around for a while. He still didn’t let her go on the ground, “Help my girlfriend, she has a stomach ache.”

Xiang Yu calmed down when Jin Fubai spoke and resisted not violently raising her head to look at him. Don’t know if this title was because the people present were irrelevant so he just said it randomly, or because she said that she wanted him to “coax” her before.

Because her pain was too severe, the old professor first gave her a pain relief medicine saying that it might work slower, but it had no side effects and was better than other pain relievers.

The old professor took Xiang Yu for a few tests, including a Doppler ultrasound and then a doctor versed in traditional Chinese medicine came over to inspect her. The Jin Fubai unbelievably found a wheelchair to push her in and walked around the hospital.

After the results came out, the old professor pushed his glasses, his voice kind as he said that Xiang Yu had dysmenorrhea, and confirmed that there were no cysts or inflammations. In this situation, she can only pay attention to her condition and when it gets serious, she can drink pain relief to calm the pain.　　

At this moment, the medicine finally became effective and Xiang Yu’s abdominal pain was slightly relieved only to notice that the disinfectant in this hospital was not less smelly than other hospitals, and Jin Fubai had been holding her hand tightly.

The old professor followed Xiang Yu’s gaze, glanced at their clasped hands and suddenly smiled. He urged Jin Fubai, “During this period, don’t have sex. You should also keep warm at all times, your hands and feet must not be cold, and don’t let your girlfriend eat raw or cold things.”

Xiang Yu couldn’t help it and her face grew hot, but Jin Fubai was very calm, nodded and said yes.

Changing the subject Xiang Yu asked the professor, “Is it necessary to take atropine?”

The professor said that there are more soothing imported medicines and that she needed a transfusion at the hospital.

Xiang Yu was placed in a private ward and while lying on the bed, Jin Fubai covered her with the quilt and said she could sleep. In fact, Xiang Yu couldn’t sleep. She felt that there must be something magical about this night, she received more tenderness than she had expected, making her feel at a loss for a while.

Jin Fubai found a chair and sat by the side of the bed, “Why the expression?”

Xiang Yu shook her head.

“Just stayed with you overnight and I ended up in a ward,” Jin Fubai lifted up a corner of the quilt, smiled and teased her, “I see that the hospital bed is quite big, how about I accompany you to sleep?”

He was sitting on the left-hand side where the needle was inserted into Xiang Yu and Xiang Yu wanted to raise her hands to fight. He gently supported her wrist, “Stop making trouble, put your hands down or else the needle will have to be re-inserted.”

Maybe because the temperature in the ward was too suitable for one to rest as she actually fell asleep. It was midnight when she woke up with only a soft light left on in the ward and Jin Fubai was not to be seen.

She was awakened by the vibrating sound of her phone. After looking around for the sound, she found that the phone was placed on the low cabinet beside the bed.  Xiang Yu moved her hand, she didn’t know when the infusion was over but only two pieces of tape were left on the back of her hand where the needle once was.

Answering the phone, it was her mother’s voice.

“Yuyu, you didn’t come home tonight? Out? I called home and Auntie said you were not at home.”

Xiang Yu couldn’t remember the last time her mother had called her. She was silent for a few seconds before speaking, “I’m in the hospital.”

“You’re sick? Did Auntie accompany you?”

Xiang Yu hesitated at this moment; she didn’t know how to describe Jin Fubai.

To say that he was a friend was wrong as friends didn’t kiss each other.

To say he was a lover?

Before she could think about the words to say there was a bit of noise on her mother’s side, and then her mother’s slightly tired and apologetic voice sounded out, “Sorry, mother has something to do temporarily and needs to attend a meeting. Let’s talk later.”

“Okay.”

After disconnecting the phone, Xiang Yu looked through her call logs and remembered that the last time her mother called was three months ago. At that time, she had just graduated and was travelling all over China.

When the ward returned to its quietness, Xiang Yu found that the light in the bathroom was on. After listening carefully she could hear Jin Fubai talking on the phone lowering his volume. He hasn’t left yet?

Xiang Yu listened quietly for a while and found that she could not understand what Jin Fubai was talking about. Not because of the content, but because she just didn’t understand what he said.

Jin Fubai was speaking Cantonese, it was a bit like a Hong Kong movie.

The pain completely disappeared and Xiang Yu lifted the quilt and stood up. The bed sheets and quilts on the hospital bed were very similar to those in the hotel. They were both pure white except now there is a smell of disinfectant.

The moonlight was still the same moonlight as before, but Xiang Yu was not as peaceful as when she said “coax me” to Jin Fubai in the courtyard. It seemed that every time when she was helpless, he had always accompanied her due to an unexpected turn of events.

When Xiang Yu grew up, there was no shortage of suitors. Those boys who gave her milk tea and fruit in high school, those boys who boldly shouted “I love you” to Xiang Yu in the basketball court beneath the teaching building in university. Some have given red roses, and some have confessed in candles arranged in a heart-shape downstairs at their dorms.

But those people were not as fascinating as Jin Fubai, nor have they ever kissed her forehead tenderly.

Xiang Yu suddenly had a thought, what if it wasn’t a momentary obsession?

What if she had fallen in love with him somehow?

It was also at this time that the door of the bathroom was pushed open and Jin Fubai walked out holding his phone. His jacket was still in the car and he was only wearing a black shirt with two buttons on his neckline casually opened.

Seeing Xiang Yu sitting by the bed, Jin Fubai almost subconsciously observed her complexion, “Better now?” 

It was already 2 hours past midnight; the ward was so quiet that only the slight sound of him rubbing his trousers as he walked over sounded out.

Nodding Xiang Yu said, “It doesn’t hurt anymore.” She was sitting on the side of the hospital bed, barefooted. When she was lying on the quilt before her skirt was already a little messy and at this moment it was now on her knees, revealing her small kneecaps and well-proportioned slender legs.

Jin Fubai came over, squeezed her ankle, put it back in the quilt, and helped her to cover it, “Was it not just then the doctor said that you should keep warm, and now you forget about it when your pain is gone.” He wasn’t entirely well-intended when he put her under the quilt and his thumb rubbed her ankle, and with an ambiguous tone, “What else do you need to pay attention to? Can’t do it during menstruation?”

Xiang Yu kicked him. Jin Fubai avoided it, smiling happily.

It was very late, and Jin Fubai told her to take it slowly when she walked. He said that it was cold at night and it is easy to catch a cold as soon as she woke up.

Xiang Yu held the quilt and leaned against the bed while Jin Fubai sat not far from her and the two chatted casually. Jin Fubai asked if she was awoken by him when he answered the phone. Xiang Yu said no, saying that she woke up after she received a phone call.

“Someone called you in the middle of the night, not considerate.”

“My parents work abroad, maybe they aren’t aware of which time it is and they calculated the time difference wrongly.” Xiang Yu shot back, “Aren’t you also picking up a call in the middle of the night? And you were also speaking Cantonese on the phone.”

Jin Fubai smiled and said that it was an elderly in the family, living abroad, and they were too old to understand the time difference. The elderly he was talking about was his grandmother, she was Jin Fubai’s only family member who he could calmly bring up. The old lady is a Cantonese person and is used to communicating with people in Cantonese so Jin Fubai also speaks Cantonese so that the old lady is happy.

Xiang Yu said, “Cantonese is very good, I always feel that Cantonese reminds me of a Hong Kong movie. Have you ever seen such an old film? It has an undercover police plot, “Infernal Affairs”, quite a good film.”

“I’ve seen it.” Jin Fubai stood up, leaned over and hugged Xiang Yu, “I saw it once.”

“I have also seen that movie only once.” Xiang Yu moved a little in his arms to show her refusal, “I don’t have a stomach ache right now. I can go by myself.”

Jin Fubai actually did not seem to be the kind of man with muscles, he is slightly thin but was very strong, he could squat down and with ease hold Xiang Yu in a princess carry with one hand, walking steadily outside of the ward.

Out of the hospital, the building full of lights was left behind where only the leaves were rustled by the wind. There were only a few cars in the parking lot and Jin Fubai’s one was the most conspicuous, with the license plate “44444”.

Xiang Yu suddenly remembered that in Xiuchun Street a few months ago, it was also this car that was discussed by Zhao Yanmo and his scoundrel friends. She didn’t expect that she would get into this car just after a change of seasons.

In the silent night, Jin Fubai suddenly said, “I like listening to Cantonese.”

“Mmm.”

Xiang Yu put her arms around his neck and looked at Jin Fubai’s side profile, he unexpectedly looked back, his eyes full of affection, “I like you.”

---

Author: 殊娓

http://www.jjwxc.net/onebook.php?novelid=5163285

Note:

He said that last sentence in Cantonese.

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