Evil Love Appears chapter 81
Xu Jiale really took a hit from that ball.
He applied an ice pack all the way home, but by the time he got there, his forehead was still swollen high, making his entire head ache. So, after a quick shower, he lay down on the bed, feeling a bit weak.
Fu Xiaoyu answered two phone calls first, and then, after washing up, he lay down beside Xu Jiale and asked softly, “Is it still hurting a lot?”
“It hurts.” Xu Jiale still had his eyes closed, but when he shifted slightly to the right while holding the ice pack, he somehow ended up in Fu Xiaoyu’s embrace.
“You’re quite swollen. Let’s wait till tomorrow morning, and if it doesn’t improve, you should see a doctor.”
Fu Xiaoyu smiled, gently running his fingers through Xu Jiale’s hair, hesitating before he spoke, “Xu Jiale…”
He paused for a moment and realized that now wasn’t the right time to continue discussing that topic.
But ultimately, his inner curiosity prevailed, and he softly asked, “Will you tell him? I mean, Nanyi.”
Xu Jiale fell silent for a while. Just when Fu Xiaoyu thought he might not get an answer, he suddenly spoke, “I don’t know. Let me think, Xiaoyu… let me think.”
Xu Jiale’s ice pack covered half of his face, so Fu Xiaoyu couldn’t see his expression, but he could hear the hoarseness and weariness in his voice, almost tinged with a subtle plea, as if he were saying, “Please, don’t ask anymore, Xiaoyu.”
Fu Xiaoyu’s long eyelashes drooped. “Okay.”
As he settled under the covers, Xu Jiale suddenly tossed the ice pack aside and pulled him close.
Fu Xiaoyu silently held onto Xu Jiale.
If this were work or any other challenge, he would have immediately outlined a plan. However, when Xu Jiale, while holding the ice pack, spoke in a strained, almost pleading voice, “Xiaoyu, let me think,” his heart helplessly softened, and he truly didn’t know what to do.
As the time for Nanyi and Jin Chu’s arrival in B City drew closer, Fu Xiaoyu could clearly sense Xu Jiale’s emotions going through a turbulent phase.
Xu Jiale’s anticipation was mixed with anxiety.
He would often uncontrollably and excitedly talk about where he wanted to take little Nanyi to play. But in the middle of such conversations, he would suddenly fall into deep thought, and after a while, he’d casually bring up other topics as if nothing had happened.
Fu Xiaoyu rarely felt so defeated, but just like every time he felt powerless in emotional matters, the busyness of work provided him a refuge. However, this time, part of the work schedule was quite sudden.
“You’re going to Vietnam?”
When Xu Jiale heard Fu Xiaoyu’s words, he was preparing a pile of gifts for Nanyi, and he raised his voice slightly, “Next week? On your birthday?”
“It’s just for two or three days, and I might not stay until my birthday,” Fu Xiaoyu said softly.
“…” Xu Jiale stood up, turned to face Fu Xiaoyu, and furrowed his brows slightly. “Can’t you push back the schedule a bit, or have someone else go?”
He rarely made such requests.
He respected Fu Xiaoyu’s work, so even when their dates were squeezed in between, he still enjoyed every moment of it. But this time was different; it was Fu Xiaoyu’s birthday. He wanted to spend it with him.
“I have to make the trip, and it’s not easy to delay,” Fu Xiaoyu said softly. “Xu Jiale, I’ll try my best to get back before my birthday.”
He was telling the truth; his overseas expansion work was a significant project, and he didn’t want to entrust it to someone else. However, deep down, he knew that his nervousness about Nanyi’s arrival might also be a factor in his decision. He wasn’t sure how Xu Jiale wanted to handle the situation.
In the end, Xu Jiale didn’t push further. After finishing packing Nanyi’s gifts, he went to the balcony to have a smoke.
He smoked slowly, and each drag carried a strong bitterness. These days, the relationship between him and Fu Xiaoyu had become somewhat strained.
It was undoubtedly his fault, as he had been distracted and frequently couldn’t sleep. He kept recalling the past.
He remembered the feeling of little Nanyi’s chubby feet in his palm when he was just born – heavy.
It was the first time he realized what it felt like to be a father, and it was a heavy feeling. He cradled his precious baby in his hands and thought, “From this moment on, until he leaves this world, I will always hold him like this.”
He also remembered the first word little Nanyi learned to say, “Daddy.” But because the little guy was still babbling, he ended up calling Xu Jiale “dabi.” While drinking milk, he would endlessly repeat that single word: “dabidabidabi.” His rosy little lips were covered in milk foam, and when he bent down to kiss the little one, the foam would stick to his chin and stubble.
He remembered counting stars with five-year-old Nanyi on a hill. He held the soft hand of his precious one and counted the stars one by one. He said, “This is Sagittarius, and Daddy is a Sagittarius.”
Little Nanyi held his neck and gave him a peck, saying, “Daddy, you’re my star. Don’t go to the sky; stay by my side.”
The cigarette had burned out, but Xu Jiale still stood there.
B City’s summer was hot and humid, and he quickly broke into a sweat. His white T-shirt clung to his body, which was far from comfortable, but he persisted, standing there as if he hoped the midsummer night’s warmth would silently melt him.
The next afternoon, Xu Jiale drove to the airport to pick up Nanyi and Jin Chu and took them to Junya.
Jin Chu looked a bit weary, wearing oversized sunglasses, and he immediately slumped in the front passenger seat when he got into the car.
Xu Jiale hugged little Nanyi and showered him with kisses, not wanting to let go. However, he eventually placed the little guy in the back seat because he had to drive. When he accelerated a bit, Jin Chu finally spoke weakly, “I feel a bit dizzy from the flight. Please drive slower.”
“Dizzy?” Xu Jiale turned to glance at Jin Chu, knowing that he never got airsick and that there were specific circumstances under which this Omega would feel dizzy.
“Daddy!” Nanyi shouted from the back, “Aiden drank a lot of alcohol on the plane!”
“Hey… sweetie.” Jin Chu pushed his sunglasses up, even though he looked quite pale, and he still smiled, saying, “Don’t tattle-tale on Daddy.”
Xu Jiale didn’t say anything, but his expression wasn’t very pleasant.
“I only had three glasses of amaretto,” Jin Chu turned to explain to him when he looked back.
“You didn’t take any medication, did you?” Xu Jiale kept his voice low; he didn’t want to draw Nanyi’s attention.
However, Jin Chu had actually been taking a bit of Xanax since his college days due to anxiety and insomnia during final exams, and he occasionally still took it. Of course, it wasn’t uncommon in the United States, but a couple of years ago, Jin Chu had an incident when he combined Xanax with alcohol, which left him in a pretty bad state, nearly unconscious. Xu Jiale was frightened by that experience, and since then, he had been very reluctant to let Jin Chu get prescriptions for such medication.
“No,” Jin Chu put his sunglasses back on and turned to look out of the car window, saying wearily, “I just had a bit to drink because I was in a bad mood. When you take Nanyi out to play later, I’ll get some rest.”